Download Mesopotamia

Mesopotamia
What elements of Civilization do you see
in this picture?
Geography Promotes Civilization
*Note: text in yellow represents a fill-in.
Fertile area between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers became site of world’s
first civilization. Today we call this area Iraq.
Fertile Crescent well suited for agriculture
Farming in Mesopotamia posed challenges:
If water levels too high, crops washed away
If water levels too low, crops died
People developed methods to control water:
Basins, canals, and dikes
Organization: assigning jobs, allocating resources
What factors influenced the rise of
civilization in Mesopotamia?
Answer:
What factors influenced the rise of
civilization in Mesopotamia?
Answer: fertile land; plentiful food; need to
organize people for jobs
Sumer
The Cities of Sumer
• Large cities developed by 4000 BC
• Structures made of mud bricks
• Ziggurat: pyramid-shaped temple
• Massive wall encircled each city
• Each city and its land formed a
city-state, with its own
government
Religion and Government
• Polytheism Shaped life in citystates
• Polytheism: worship of many gods
• Priests had high status and were
the first rulers
• War chiefs began to rule as kings
• Dynasty: series of rulers from one
family
Sumerian Culture
Writing
Math and Sciences
• Cuneiform: Sumerian writing
• Scribes
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The Arts
Trade and Society
• Arches, ramps, columns
• Traded for wood and metals
• Sculpture
• Social hierarchy
• Cylinder seals
• Distinct male/female roles
• Business accounts and records
• Law, grammar, literature
System based on number 60
Geometry
May have been the first to use the wheel
Invented the plow
Basic surgery
Why was the Sumerians’ development
of cuneiform a major turning point in
history?
Answer(s):
Why was the Sumerians’ development
of cuneiform a major turning point in
history?
Answer(s): After the development of cuneiform,
humankind moved from prehistory into the historical
age.
Empires in Mesopotamia
• Each conquering invader adapted aspects of Sumerian culture.
• Thus Sumerian civilization continued to influence life in Mesopotamia.
Sargon’s Empire
• Sargon I:
– Around 2330 BC, created first
permanent army
– Conquered Sumer and northern
Mesopotamia
– Established world’s first empire,
which lasted about 100 years
• Sumerian culture spread far beyond
Tigris and Euphrates valleys
The Babylonian Empire
• Hammurabi became king in 1792 BC
• United all of Mesopotamia
• Able ruler and administrator
• Hammurabi’s Code:
– 282 laws covering everything
from trade to murder
– Written for all to see
– Babylon became Mesopotamia’s
greatest city
Mesopotamian Achievements
Sumerians
• Developed the world’s first Civilization
• Created cuneiform writing
• Invented the wheel and the plow
• Wrote the Epic of Gilgamesh
• Built cities and ziggurats
Sargon I
• Established the world’s first empire
Babylonians
• Wrote Hammurabi’s Code
end