Mesopotamia Module 6 Lessons 1 - 3

Fertile Crescent

A large arc of rich, or fertile, farmland found in the Mesopotamia region

silt

a finely ground fertile soil that is good for growing crops

civilization

an organized society within a specific area

irrigation

a way of supplying water to an area of land- helped create a surplus

canals

human made waterways

surplus

more than what is needed

division of labor

an arrangement in which each worker specializes in a particular task or job

city-state

a political unit made up of a city and all the surrounding lands

empire

a land with different territories and peoples under a single ruler

polytheism

the worship of many Gods

priests

people who performed or led religious ceremonies

social hierarchy

the division of society by rank or class

cuneiform

the world's first system of writing

pictographs

picture symbols used in early systems of written communication

scribe

a person who keeps records or copies documents

epics

long poems that tell the stories of heroes

architecture

the science of building

ziggurat

a pyramid shaped temple

Sumer

the region in southern Mesopotamia where the worlds first civilization developed

Babylon

an ancient city located on the Euphrates River near current day Baghdad ruled by Hammurabi

Hammurabi's Code

a set of 282 laws created by the Babylonian leader Hammurabi

chariot

a wheeled, horse-drawn cart used in battle

alphabet

a set of letters that can be combined to form words- first invented by the Phoenicians

Hammurabi

leader of the Babylonians who wrote a Code of Law

Sargon

leader of the Akkadians. Established the first ever empire.

Akkadians

first ever empire

Code of law

282 rules created by Hammurabi and displayed on a stele

Hittites

first to develop iron working and the chariot

Kassites

took over after the Hittites and rules for over 400 years

Assyrians

Ninevah was their capital and they were known as fierce warriors

Chaldeans

defeated the Assyrians and became a center of astronomy

Nebuchadnezzar

led the Chaldeans and created the Hanging Garden of Babylon

Phoenicians

expert sailors due to lack of resources, developed the first alphabet and were known for a purple dye

business records and trade goods

the reason why the Sumerians developed writing

specialization

better farming and irrigation techniques led to this

Mesopotamia

Greek for 'land between the rivers'

A.D.

Anno Domini- year of our Lord

B.C.

before Christ

millenium

1,000 years

decade

10 years

century

100 years