From the book: World History by Sonia M. Zaide

2. Geographical Setting.
• Mesopotamia ( now Iraq)
means “Land between two rivers”.
• It is a huge valley of the twin rivers
– Tigris and Euphrates.
• This region forms part of the
famous “Fertile Crescent”.
• It became the birthplace of
history and civilization.

5.  Sumerians were the first inhabitants
of Mesopotamia
 They are the farming tribes from
Iranian mountains before 4000 BC
 They established independent city-
states ruled by a priest-king.
 They invented writing known as
Cuneiform (from Latin word cuneus
which means “wedge” and forma
means “form”

7.  Sumerians also invented the plow
and the wheel
 They built first cities, schools and
temples and wrote first books on
history, poetry, epics, fables and
proverbs
 They also wrote the world’s first law
codes, promulgated by
Ur-Nammu, Sumerian king of
the city state of Ur, about 2050 BC

8.  They knew cartography, astronomy
and mathematics.
 The oldest known city map was
drawn by a Sumerian cartographer
about 1500 BC (map of Nippur)
 They were also the first people to
mix copper and tin, thereby
producing bronze. They are the first
people to use bronze weapons for
war

11.  3000 BC -- Nomadic Akkadians
migrated to Mesopotamia and
founded the city state of Akkad in a
region north of Sumer.
 About 2334 BC, King Sargon of
Akkad conquered the Sumerian
city state

14.  Sumuabum– first king of Babylonia
 Hammurabi– a great conqueror and
statesman
-- historian called him
the “Lawgiver of Babylonia”
 The Hammurabi Code– inscribed in a
black stone 8-feet high with 285 laws

17.  Nobles– king, aristocrats, priests and
rich landlords
 Freemen– farmers, merchants,
soldiers and artisans
 Slaves

18.  Farming was the chief industry
 Other industries: pottery,
brickmaking, mining, glass
manufacture and making of arms
 Many were engaged in business and
trade
 Professional money lenders
 Used gold, silver and copper as money

19.  Worship 65,000 Gods
 Shamash- God of Sun
Marduk- God of War
Bel- God of Earth
Ea- God of Water
Nergal- God of Death
Ishtar- Goddess of Love
Tiamat- Goddess of Chaos

20.  Henry Rawlinson- a British scholar in
1847; discovered Behistun Rock
 Epic of Gilgamesh
 Ziggurat- edifice of several stories in
a huge platform

23.  Sexagesimal system in Mathematics
 Astronomy and astrology
 12 Zodiac signs
 Believed that every planet was a God

25.  Founded by Nabopolassar
 Nebuchadnezzar
 Nabonidus
 Tower of Babel
 Hanging Gardens

27.  Writing
 Plow and wheel
 World’s first written literature
 Earliest written law codes
 Sexagesimal system in Mathematics
 Astrology
 First cities, schools, libraries, temples,
palace, sculptured objects