3. Mesopotamia was known
as the land between two
rivers, the Tigris to the
north and the Euphrates
to the south. Irrigation
was extremely vital to
Mesopotamia because
rains were seasonal in
this area, which meant
that the land flooded in
the winter and spring and
water was scarce at other
times. Farming in the
region depended on
irrigation from the Tigris
and Euphrates Rivers.
5. The Sumerians in southern Mesopotamia built city walls and temples and dug
canals that were the world's first engineering works.
6.
7. The Assyrians also developed extensive public works. Sargon II, invading Armenia
in 714 B.C.E. , discovered the qanat (Arabic ) or kariz (Persian), which is a tunnel
used to bring water from an underground source in the hills down to the
foothills. Sargon destroyed the area in Armenia but brought the concept back to
Assyria. This method of irrigation spread over the Near East into North Africa
over the centuries and is still used.
