Introduction to Mesopotamia and Early Western Civilization

Vocabulary flashcards defining foundational terms, cultures, empires, and literary concepts from Mesopotamian history as presented in the lecture notes.

Mesopotamia

A Greek term meaning "the land between two rivers," referring to the region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in modern Iraq.

Sumer

Located in modern Iraq, the first loose confederation of city states to unite political and economic power into a kingdom from 3000 to two thousand three hundred and fifty BC.

Cuneiform

The first written language, invented by Sumer, composed of wedge writing made up of wedge-like characters or symbols used to record river water flow, astronomy, and agriculture.

City States

Large urban centers with surrounding countryside, villages, and towns that became centers of commerce, government, and organized defense.

Similes

A figure of speech involving the comparison of one thing with another thing of a different kind, used to make a description more emphatic or vivid.

Metaphors

A figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable.

Epithets

An adjective or descriptive phrase expressing a quality characteristic of the person or thing mentioned.

Akkadian

A group (two thousand three hundred and fifty to two thousand one hundred fifty BC) described as less civilized people who took over Sumer and introduced the new concept of divine monarchy supported by force of arms.

HAMMURABI's Code

A legal standard introduced by King Hammurabi containing 282 regulations aimed at establishing order by regulating private property, trade, business affairs, and human behavior.

Retaliation in Kind

The principle of legal justice under Hammurabi's code summarized as "eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth."

Assyrian Empire

A warlike empire (1076 to six hundred and twelve BC) recognized as the first militaristic state in history, which controlled subjects through extreme cruelty and forced population removals.

Babylonian Captivity

The event in which the Chaldeans (Second Babylonian Empire) conquered Jerusalem and forced many Jews or Hebrews to resettle in Babylon to serve their new master.

Zoroastrianism

A personal religion originating in the Persian Empire where all life is viewed as a contest between good and evil, truth versus error, and light versus darkness.