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Mesopotamia PPT Script
By Deni Djukic
Class Introduction
• Mr. Djukic: Good morning students, how are all of you today?
• The Students: Good, Mr. Djukic!
• Mr. Djukic: That’s great to hear, today is another day to expand
our minds. Today, we will learn, by PowerPoint about a
civilization or in this case, civilizations, that historians consider
as “the cradle of civilization” which is the Mesopotamian
civilizations.
• Mr. Djukic: But first, let’s review what we learned yesterday to
help us prepare us for this lesson.
Review Prerequisites: The Agriculture Revolution
and What is a Civilization?
• Mr. Djukic: First of all, can anyone tell me what people were
before they were planting and harvesting crops around 12,000
years ago (nationalgeographic.org, 2015)?
• Janie (a student): They were either hunters or gatherers which
means they were trying to get food (nationalgeographic.org,
2015).
• Mr. Djukic: That’s right, Janie. Now, our good friend John Green
said that there were positives and negative to agriculture (Green,
youtube.com, 2012). The negatives of agriculture being that the
environment dramatically changed because of it and farming can
be a difficult endeavor (Green, youtube.com, 2012).
John
Green The
Agriculture
Revoluton
Review Prerequisites: The Agriculture Revolution
and What is a Civilization? Cont.
• Mr. Djukic: The positives of agriculture is that humans would
“control food supply” and humans would have a ‘food surplus’
which would sustain a civilization (Green, youtube.com, 2012).
Name me one thing that makes up a civilization other than ‘food
surplus’ (Green, youtube.com, 2012; Violatti, 2014).
• Trey (another student): People who are not farmers (Violatti,
2014).
• Mr. Djukic: That’s correct Trey, what else?
• Dianna: “Writing” (Violatti, 2014).
Review Prerequisites: The Agriculture Revolution
and What is a Civilization? Cont.
• Mr. Djukic: You’re right Dianna. Now, yesterday we learned
about one of the first human civilizations which was the Indus
River Valley Civilization. Do you guys remember what we
learned about the ‘Indus Valley civilization’ (Green,
youtube.com)?
• Jude: They “traded with Mesopotamia” (Green, youtube.com).
• Mr. Djukic: Awesome answer Jude, anything else?
• Joe: Their “cities were built to have natural air conditioners and
had good irrigation systems” (Green, youtube.com).
• Mr. Djukic: That’s music to my ears, students. All of you look
like are ready for the next lesson.
John Green
Indus Valley
Civilization
Mesopotamian Civilization and the Sumerians
• Mr. Djukic: Now, we will move on Mesopotamia. It’s important to
know that Mesopotamia isn’t a single civilization but a place that
held many civilizations. Mesopotamia is located in present day Iraq.
Before moving on with the lecture, we will first watch a video on
Mesopotamia (located on the right side of this slide).
• (after watching the video) Mr. Djukic: Okay, I hope you learned you
learned something from the video. So let’s first learn about the first
civilization in Mesopotamia which is the Sumerians.
John Green’s
Mesopotamia
The Sumerians
• Mr. Djukic: The Sumerians known for inventing the wheel and writing
(Mark, 2009). The writing that Sumerians used is known as cuneiform
which was “wedge-shaped style of writing” that used ‘pictograms’
(Mark, 2011; Lawrence Lo, 1996). This would allow the Sumerians to
have some form of literature, as a matter of fact, the earliest literary
work in the world was created by the Sumerians (Mark, 2009). The
work is named the Epic of Gilgamesh, which was about a mythical
king named Gilgamesh and his adventures (Mark, 2009). When
looking at the political side of the Sumerians, they have written a
document called “The Sumerian King List” “which lists all of the
kings of the region and their accomplishments” (Mark, 2011). The
Sumerians were later taken over by the Akkadians (Mark; 2009,
2011).
Meet the Assyrians
• Now, after the Akkadians, Amurrus, and Gutians had done their thing in
the region (history-world.org; Mark, 2009), the Assyrians played a
prominent role in Mesopotamia (Mark, 2009). “The Assyrians were a
Semitic people who originally spoke and wrote Akkadian before [using
the] Aramaic language became more popular” (Mark, 2014). It is best to
discuss the Assyrians into three periods of their history: “the Old
Kingdom, The Middle Empire, and the Neo-Assyrian Empire (Mark,
2014).
Old Kingdom:
• Mr. Djukic: In the Old Kingdom, Assyria was known as “a pastoral, rather
than urban, community” (Mark, 2014).
Meet the Assyrians cont.
• Mr. Djukic: Plus, “The trade colony of Karum Kanesh was among the most
lucrative centres for trade in the ancient Near East and definitely the most
important for the [Akkadian] city of Ashur” (Mark, 2014). Do you have a
question, Dante?
• Dante: When you said ‘pastoral’, do you mean that a lot of people are farmers?
• Mr. Djukic: In a way, yes. Early on the old kingdom, ancient historical records
describes Assyrians living in tents, meaning that they did not have cities right
away (Mark, 2014). However, they did have cities later on the old kingdom
(Mark, 2014). Anyway, trade became important for the Assyrians, especially
trade with Anatolia (present day Turkey) over iron (Mark, 2014) because iron
was used for weapons (Mark, 2014).
Meet the Assyrians cont.
• Mr. Djukic: Between 1813-1791 BCE, “the Assyrian king Shamashi Adad
I drove the Amorites out [of Mesopotamia] and secured the borders of
Assyria, claiming Ashur as the capital of kingdom” (Mark, 2014). This
would be the start of their empire (Mark, 2014). However, the ability to
have an empire stopped for the Assyrian Old Kingdom when the
Babylonians took over Assyria in 1792 BCE (Mark, 2014). Assyria tried to
regain its empire in 1750 B.C. when Babylonia first lost power but Assyria
was in a civil war until a king named Adasi was able to ‘secure the region’
but couldn’t get a new empire (Mark, 2014). What’s your question, Toni?
• Toni: So were the Assyrians and Babylonians living together at the same
time?
Meet the Assyrians cont.
• Mr. Djukic: Good question, yes, they were living together as separate city-states at
the same time (Mark, 2009). I should have mentioned earlier on, that some of
these Mesopotamian civilizations existed together as different city-states
simultaneously and some of the Mesopotamian civilizations’ power over the
region would overlap the power of the other (Mark, 2009). This is why I’m not
doing this lecture on a strict chronological basis but instead I’m lecturing on what
these civilizations did. Anyway, the Old Kingdom ended when the Mitanni and
Hittites of eastern Anatolia took over Assyria (Mark, 2014).
Middle Empire:
• Mr. Djukic: Around 1353-1318 BCE, Assyria regained their independence from
the Mitanni and the Hittites thanks to Assyrian king Ashur-Uballit I (Mark, 2014).
Meet the Assyrians cont.
• Mr. Djukic: Then, between 1307-1275 BCE, king Adad Nirari I “conquered
major strongholds of the Hittite and Mitanni” (Mark, 2014). As a result,
King Adad Nirari I had a deportation policy for the Mitanni, where they
were replaced of their land with Assyrians (Mark, 2014). Could anyone tell
me why he would do this?
• Trenton: Um, “to prevent any future uprising” (Mark, 2014)?
• Mr. Djukic: That’s correct Trenton. However, it should be noted that the
Assyrians didn’t treat the Mitanni badly during this policy (Mark, 2014),
“deportees were carefully chosen for their abilities and sent to regions which
could make most of their talents. Not everyone in the conquered populace
was chosen for deportation and families were never separated. The general
populace became absorbed into the growing empire and were thought of as
Assyrians” (Mark, 2014).
Meet the Assyrians cont.
• Mr. Djukic: In 1200 B.C. “the Bronze Age collapsed” and Assyria was
in a stage where “it neither expand or declined” (Mark, 2014).
However, during the reign of “Tiglath Pileser I, [he] revitalized the
economy and the military through his campaigns, adding more
resources and skilled populations to the Assyrian Empire. Literacy and
the arts flourished, and the preservation initiative the king took
regarding cuneiform tablets would serve as the model for the later
ruler, Ashurbanipal’s, famous library of Nineveh” (Mark, 2014).
During his son’s, Ashur-bel-kala’s reign, Assyria plunged into a civil
war and it allowed for rebellions in different conquered lands of the
Assyrians which made the Middle Empire fall (Mark, 2014).
Meet the Assyrians cont.
The Neo-Assyrian Empire:
• Mr. Djukic: the Assyrians got their reputation for being cruel and ruthless
during this period of their history (Mark, 2014). The Neo-Assyrian Empire
was the largest empire of all the Assyrian Empire, which they controlled
not only the whole Mesopotamia but ancient nation-states such as Syria,
Lebanon, Israel, and Egypt (Mark, 2009, 2011). Aside of military
conquests, the Neo-Assyrians “made significant progress in medicine.
[King] Ashurnasirpal II made the first systematic lists of plants and animals
in the empire. [Plus], Schools were established throughout the empire but
only were only for the sons of the wealthy and nobility” (Mark, 2014). The
empire fell in 612 B.C. thanks to a coalition of “Babylonians, Persians,
Medes, and Scythians, among others” (Mark, 2014).
The Babylonians
• Mr. Djukic: The city-state of Babylon was founded somewhere before the
reign of the Akkadian king Sargon but Babylon became relevant in the
ancient world because of the reign of King Hammurabi who was
responsible for capturing Assyria the first time around (Mark, 2009,
2011). He also created a code of laws which can best be explained by
having the saying of “eye for eye, tooth for a tooth” (Mark, 2014). These
code of laws are called the Code of Hammurabi (Mark, 2014).
• Yesinia: Could you explain more of this Code of Hammurabi?
• Mr. Djukic: Of course, according to this law, if a person steals, their hand
gets cut off. If a person kills someone, they get killed unless if the victim
was a wife or child then the perpetrator’s wife or child gets killed.
The Babylonians Continued
• Mr. Djukic: After Hammurabi’s death and after being conquered by the
Hittites, Kassites, and the Assyrians; the Babylonians regained power in the
region in the reign of Nebopolassar and during the reign of his son,
Nebuchadnezzar II, he was responsible for building “The Hanging
Gardens” which is one of the ancient seven wonders of the world, the
‘Ishtar Gate’, and responsible for “the Babylonian Exile of the Jews”
(Mark, 2011). Plus, “Babylonian mathematics, cosmology, and astronomy
were highly respected and it is thought that Thales of Miletus (known as the
first western philosopher) may have studied there and that Pythagoras
developed his famous mathematical theorem based upon a Babylonian
model” (Mark, 2011). Can you guys tell me what is this theorem called?
The Babylonians Cont. and The End of the
Lecture
• Thomas: The Pythagorean Theorem or better known as A2 + B2 = C2
• Mr. Djukic: Good Job Thomas. So, the Babylonian civilization ended
when the Persians and their king Cyrus defeated them in the Battle of Opis
in 539 B.C. (Mark, 2011). That concludes the lecture part of the class, do
you guys have any questions?
• Randy: Yeah, what is the point of this information and why this stuff
matter?
• Mr. Djukic: The point of this information is to make sure we understand
the past of the Middle East and we need to understand where some of the
culture and laws of the Middle East originated from. For example, the
Code of Hammurabi has glaring similarities to Islamic or Sharia law.
The End of the Lecture
• Mr. Djukic: Not only that, but knowing this information will make us
appreciate the fact that these civilizations helped influence western
civilization. Whether it is the Sumerians’ invention of writing and literature.
For example, in the Sumerian literature Epic of Gilgamesh, it tells a story
about a great flood caused by their gods and how a man has to build an ark
to save himself and the rest of humanity (Mark, 2009). Does that sound
familiar? Plus, without the Babylonians’ contribution to mathematics,
maybe our knowledge of mathematics would be different (Mark, 2011). I
hope I answered your question. So, now we are going to do a worksheet,
there is also a scavenger hunt on those worksheets after the regular
questions which I need you to do. You are going to use your classroom
iPads to do the scavenger hunt and the directions on the worksheets should
be clear. You may now begin.
Worksheet and Quiz Time
• Mr. Djukic: Hi Mario (the learning disabled student), you can use your laptop to do the
worksheet so it would be easier for you. Here’s a flash drive that holds a copy of the
assignment that you can edit in.
• Mario: Okay, Thanks. (After 5 minutes of helping other students, I went back to Mario).
• Mr. Djukic: Do you have a problem with the assignment?
• Mario: Some of these questions are tough, do you think you can help me?
• Mr. Djukic: Sure, I can help you with one or two. What questions do you need help
with?
• Mario: Questions six on the Mesopotamia worksheet, this one is hard.
• Mr. Djukic: Okay, let’s do question six then. “Name the reason why trade was important
to the Assyrians (Mark, 2014)?” So, what did the Assyrians needed to grow their empire?
• Mario: Food and water?
Worksheet and Quiz Time Continued
• Mr. Djukic: Well, you’re not wrong, they needed food and water in order to do
anything. But, they already had crops and were near the Tigris and Euphrates rivers,
so they didn’t need to trade their resources for that (Mark; 2009, 2014). I’m asking
what the Assyrians needed to conquer new lands.
• Mario: Weapons, right?
• Mr. Djukic: Yes, you’re right. However, they needed some material to make the
weapons. You played Minecraft right? (Mario nods his head). Ok, now tell me, what
kind of ores players use to make swords?
• Mario: There’s iron, gold, and diamond.
• Mr. Djukic: Ok, let’s apply some of that knowledge to what we are doing here. The
Assyrians can’t use gold and diamond because it is way too hard and difficult to
find. So that means?
Worksheet and Quiz Time Continued
• Mario: They had to use iron.
• Mr. Djukic: That is right.
• Mario: So do I answer with: trade was important to the Assyrians
because they needed iron to make their weapons (Mark, 2014)?
• Mr. Djukic: That is affirmative. Okay, let’s see if you can do the rest
this on your own. You can finish this at home and for homework, you
can only do questions 1-5. (then I walk around the classroom).
• Jade: Hey, Mr. Djukic?
• Mr. Djukic: Yes, Jade?
• Jade: Is the answer to question 3 the Akkadians?
Worksheet and Quiz Time Continued
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Mr. Djukic: Yes it is.
Jade: Thanks. (I walk over to Trey’s desk).
Mr. Djukic: Hi Trey, are you done with your worksheet?
Trey: Yeah. (I take a look at his worksheet to see that it is completed).
Mr. Djukic: Wow, good job! Do you think you can help Mario with his worksheet?
Trey: Sure, no problem. (goes over Mario’s desk to help him). (Ten minutes goes by).
Mr. Djukic: Hi Mario, are you finished with the worksheet?
Mario: Almost.
Mr. Djukic: Well, I wanted you to start this quiz early, you can finish the worksheet
at home. (I pass a quiz to him and to Trey also since he is finished).
Worksheet and Quiz Time Continued
• (five minutes goes by). Mr. Djukic: Who is done with the worksheet? (All but one
raises their hand).
• Mr. Djukic: Ok well, since you guys are done with the worksheets, you guys can
finally do the quiz, you have five minutes to complete it. (Five minutes later). Since
we are done with the quiz, I will go over the homework that you need to do. First, you
will go to ddjukiceducationportfolio.weebly.com. Then, you will go to ‘world history
modules’ and click on “Week one: The First Civilization and The Fertile Crescent”.
The directions on that page should be clear and that homework is due in two days.
Plus, you will do a two page essay on what was the greatest civilization in
Mesopotamia in your opinion, but you will do research on why you said your choice
of a Mesopotamian civilization is the greatest out of all of them. You should use Times
New Roman, a font space of 12, the essay should be double spaced, and should
include a reference page. This essay is due in a week.
The End of Class
• Mr. Djukic: Now, I’m going to go over some of the questions from the
worksheet. “1. What is the type of writing Sumerians used as wedged shaped
pictograms (Mark, 2011; ancientscripts.com)?”
• Students: Cuneiform (Mark, 2011; ancientscripts.com).
• Mr. Djukic: Good job! Okay, “5. Give me the three periods that makes up
Ancient Assyrian history (Mark, 2014)”.
• Students: “The Old Kingdom, the Middle Empire, and the Neo-Assyrian
Empire” (Mark, 2014).
• Mr. Djukic: That’s music to my ears. (The bell rings). Ok, that’s it for today,
class. Have a nice day and don’t smoke crack! (The students laugh as they are
leaving the classroom). The class is over.
Reference Page
1. National Geographic Society (2015). The Development of Agriculture.
Retrieved from https://genographic.nationalgeographic.com/development-ofagriculture/
2. Green, J. (2012, January 26). The Agricultural Revolution: Crash Course World
History #1. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yocja_N5s1I
3. Violatti. (2014, August 5). Neolithic. Retrieved from
http://www.ancient.eu/Neolithic/
4. Green, J. (2012, February 2). Indus Valley Civilization: Crash Course World
History #2. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7ndRwqJYDM
Reference Page
5. Lawrence Lo. (1996). Sumerian. Retrieved from
http://www.ancientscripts.com/sumerian.html
6. Mark, J. (2009, September 2). Mesopotamia. Retrieved from
http://www.ancient.eu/Mesopotamia/
7. Mark, J. (2011, April 28). Sumer. Retrieved from http://www.ancient.eu/sumer/
8. history-world.org. (n.d.). The Akkadians. Retrieved from http://historyworld.org/akkadians.htm
9. Mark, J. (2014, June 12). Assyria. Retrieved from http://www.ancient.eu/assyria/
10. Mark, J. (2011, April 28). Babylon. Retrieved from
http://www.ancient.eu/babylon/