Download The Sumerians

The Sumerians
I. Sumer
A. Tigris and Euphrates
Uruk period (3800-3200 BC)
Creative time
Invention of the wheel and plow
Developing agriculture
First orchards
Development of metal works
Cuneiform
Clay tablets
A permanent record
Government, religious, etc
Not efficient
Cities arise
Numerous
Small and independent
Circuits of walls
Symbolic and defensive
Buildings of mud brick
Ziggurat
Dynastic Period (2800-2350)
Fierce competition
Among the cities and within as well
Lugals
Kings
Monarchy
In place by the gods
Rule by the favor of the gods
Victory in battle
Not thought to be a god
Large landowners
Warrior aristocracy
B. Geography
Broad open plain
Two rivers
Surrounded by desert and mountains
Region has no natural borders
Invasion and migration
Areas beyond Mesopotamia
The higher developments
C. Dissemination: Outside Invasion
Akkadians
King Sargon (2371-2316 BC)
Effective fighting force
Began to move to the south
Son and successor
Did not destroy the culture
Absorbed Sumerian culture
Lower level of cultural development
First moment of the dissemination
Amorites
Hammurabi (1792-1750)
Most famous and powerful
Adopted and spread Sumerian culture
Sumerianization
Common foundation for cultural life
II. Characteristics of the Culture
A. Religion
Polytheistic
Worshipped many gods
Always adding new gods
Sky gods and earth gods
Immortal and superhuman
Trying to keep the gods happy
Religion was pessimistic
No ethical code
B. The Law
Issued by councils in cooperation the priests
Not abstract and philosophical
Long lists of rules
Social tensions
Published in public places
All are subject to the law
The law belongs to all
No man is above the law
C. Literature
“Epic of Gilgamesh”
Sumerian epic
Work on a grand scale
Gods and heroes
Important subjects
Serious in tone
Adventures & friendship of Gilgamesh & Enkidu
Account of the civilizing process
Reflection on mortality
Short poems
Enkheduana, Sargon’s daughter
First known woman writer
D. Science
Sky watchers
Decimal system
Greek developments in mathematics
III. Legacy
A. Sumerian Culture
Foundation
Spread
B. Sumerian Practices
Adapted
Conquers the conquerors