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HISTORY OF MESOPOTAMIA CIVILIZATION

The document provides information about the earliest civilizations that emerged in Mesopotamia, located between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. It describes how the Sumerian civilization arose around cities along these rivers due to favorable conditions for farming provided by annual flooding. Key aspects of Sumerian civilization discussed include their invention of cuneiform writing, construction of ziggurats for worship, establishment of city-states each with their own government, and social hierarchy with priests and kings ruling over craftspeople, merchants, farmers and slaves. The document also notes how Sumerian innovations like the wheel and calendar system influenced later peoples in the region.

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School of Interior DesigningDesigning Hi t IHistory –I M t iMesopotamia S t ISemester –I
Ancient History andAncient History and CivilizationsCivilizations In the next several units we areIn the next several units we are going to study the history of the first civilizations. There are other ancient civilizations that existed atcivilizations that existed at different times.
Ci ili tiCivilizations • Early man did not live in civilizations They lived in villagescivilizations. They lived in villages or communities. • So what is a civilization?So what is a civilization?
Civilizations consist of: O CitiesO Cities O Organized governments A tO Art O Religiong O Class divisions
Civilizations started aroundCivilizations started around rivers. Why?rivers. Why? Good farming conditions Provided fish and freshwater Easy to travel Easy to trade ( d d id(way goods and ideas moved from place to place)place)
MesopotamianMesopotamian Civilization Focusing on the Main Ideas • Civilization in Mesopotamia began in the valleys of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.y g p • Sumerians invented writing and made other important contributions to later peoples.important contributions to later peoples. • Sumerian city-states lost power when they were conquered by outsiderswere conquered by outsiders.
Why live in Mesopotamia ?y p • create a high and safe flood plain • make irrigation and canal construction easy • provide protection • the surrounding swamps were full of fish & waterfowl
Civilizations first began as villages. The villages gradually grew into complexThe villages gradually grew into complex societies. O This area called Mesopotamia (“landO This area called Mesopotamia ( land between the rivers”) O Mesopotamia located in the FertileO Mesopotamia located in the Fertile Crescent.
O Fertile Crescent was a curved strip of land that extended from the Mediterranean Sea to th P i G lf Th i i th ftthe Persian Gulf. The rivers in the area often flooded in the spring leaving behind rich soil for farmingfor farming.
FloodingFlooding O Floods in Mesopotamia were frequent d di t bl F l d tand unpredictable. Farmers learned to control the rivers with dams and channels. They also used the rivers to irrigate.g
As cities formed, the people needed plans and decisions made for the city.p y This led to governments being formed. O Laws - keep order O Armies defend themselvesO Armies - defend themselves O Building projectsg j
During this time humans worried less about basic needsabout basic needs. Shelter/Food/Clothing People could do other thingsPeople could do other things. • Develop religions • Develop arts Invent ways of writing• Invent ways of writing • Create calendars
Farmers built ODams --- t t lto control floods Ch lOChannels --- OWalls ***** W t ***** t tOWaterways ***** to water crops ( ) *****ODitches(drain) *****
Cause Effect Irrigation 1 plenty of foodIrrigation 1.plenty of food 2.Support large population
SumerSumerORegion in southern Mesopotamia that had many citiesmany cities. OEach city was a city-state (had their own government and not part of any largergovernment and not part of any larger government.
O Sumerian cities often fought each other. To protect themselves, theother. To protect themselves, the city-states built walls around themselvesthemselves.
Cause Effect City-states were separatedCity states were separated by deserts and mud flats t lno travel or communication between each city-state built walls aroundbuilt walls around city
ZigguratZiggurat O Sumerians believedO Sumerians believed in many gods and thought their Godsg had power over nature and human ti itactivity. O They wanted to l th G dplease the Gods. O They built ziggurats ( d t l ) i(grand temple) in the center of each city for their chiefcity for their chief god.
Large temples dedicated to the God of the city Made of layer upon layer of mud bricks in the shape of a pyramid in many tiers (due to constant flooding and from belief that gods resided on mountaintops) Temple on top served as the God’s home and was beautifully decorated Inside was a room for offerings of Ziggurat of Ur - 2000BCE Inside was a room for offerings of food and goods Temples evolved to ziggurats- a stack of 1-7 platforms decreasing in 2000BCE p g size from bottom to top Famous ziggurat was Tower of B b lBabel (over 100m above ground and 91m base)
ZigguratZiggurat • It was built like a wedding cake. • On top was a special place of worship• On top was a special place of worship. • Only priest could enter. Enlil (supreme god & god of air) I ht ( dd f f tilit & lif )Ishtar (goddess of fertility & life) An (god of heaven) Enki (god of water & underworld) Shamash (god of sun and giver of law)
Government OPriests may have been theOPriests may have been the first to rule. OKings later ran the governmentgovernment.
People in Sumerp O Priests/KingsO Priests/Kings O Farmers A ti ( kill d k th tO Artisans (skilled workers that made metal products, cloth, andp pottery) O Merchants and traders (traveledO Merchants and traders (traveled to other cities and traded tools, wheat, copper, tin, timber)
Social ClassesSocial Classes OUpper class King priestsOUpper class- King, priests, government officials OMiddle class- artisans,OMiddle class artisans, merchants, farmers, fishers (largest group) OLower class- slaves (worked on farms or in temples) Slaves may havetemples) Slaves may have been prisoners of war or debtor.
Roles of Societyy OMen – head of householdOMen head of household OWomen – had rights, could buy and sell property and run businessesrun businesses.
Cradle of Civilization Sumerians’ ideas and inventionsSumerians ideas and inventions were copied and improved upon by other peoples. They left a lasting mark onThey left a lasting mark on world history.
C ifCuneiform OGreatest invention of SumeriansOGreatest invention of Sumerians OType of writing l d k d f b dOHelped keep records of business and events OOnly males could learn to write and became scribesbecame scribes. OAt first they used pictures to tell a story ( i t h)(pictograph) OEach picture evolved into a symbol for a word.
I ti fInnovations of SumeriansSumerians O CuneiformO Cuneiform O Irrigation systems O Wagon wheelO Wagon wheel O Sailboat O Number system based on 60 (60-minutey ( hour, 60-second minute, and 360-degree circle) O 12 th l d b d l fO 12-month calendar based on cycles of the moon. O Mud bricksO Mud bricks
Over the centuries, many different people lived in this area creating a collection of independentin this area creating a collection of independent states Sumer- southern part (3500-2000 BCE) Akkad- northern part (2340 – 2180 BCE)Akkad northern part (2340 2180 BCE) Babylonia- these two regions were unified (1830-1500 BCE)(1830 1500 BCE) Assyria- Assyrian Empire (1100 -612 BCE)
Assignmentg O Each student will write a secret message to trade with another studentstudent. O Your partner will have to decode without helpwithout help.