Download Lesson 12_ The Akkadians and The Babylonians

Aim: How did the Akkadians
and the Babylonians impact
the Fertile Crescent?
Do Now: Define: Mesopotamia,
cultural diffusion, empire, law.
“Mesopotamia” is Greek for “land between
the rivers”. It is the land between the
Tigris and Euphrates rivers in modern Iraq.
A-The Sumerians
1. The Sumerians developed an early
civilization in Mesopotamia.
2. The Sumerians lived in independent citystates.
a) The Sumerian city-states never united.
3. The Sumerians built ziggurats or temples
to their gods.
B- Sargon I
1. Sargon I united the city-states of
Mesopotamia.
2. He built the first empire when he
conquered the city-states of
Mesopotamia.
3. Sargon I ruled a kingdom north of Sumer
called Akkad.
a) The Akkadians ruled Mesopotamia.
The Akkadians had their own language
but used Sumerian cuneiform to keep
records.
C- The Babylonians
1. Around 1800 B.C., a new city-state arose
in Mesopotamia called Babylon.
2. Hammurabi was an important king of
Babylon.
3. He conquered the Akkadians and the
Sumerians.
D- The Code of Hammurabi
1. Hammurabi was an important king.
2. He created the first written law code.
3. The Code of Hammurabi provided
harsh punishments.
a) It also treated people differently based on
social class.
Task 1
• Get into groups
• You are the leaders of a civilization, but
you need to make laws to keep order.
– Create a set of at least 5 laws
– Should be fair but a good deterrent
– Also include penalties for breaking them
– Can be harsh if necessary
• Be ready to share your answers
Summary/Application
• The people of the Fertile Crescent are
remembered for the great
accomplishments they made. Like all
great civilizations, they too eventually
came to an end.
• Why do civilizations come to an end?
• Is this the case for all civilizations?
• What about ours?