Mesopotamia Vocabulary Words

Fertile Crescent

a large region of rich farmland near the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers and between the Persian Gulf and the Mediterranean Sea

silt

a mixture of small rocks and soil

civilization

the society, culture, and way of life in a particular region

irrigation

the method of supplying water to an area of land or crops

canals

waterways made by humans

surplus

more than what is needed

division of labor

an arrangement in which workers specialize in a particular task

rural

an area of countryside, rather than a town or city

urban

an area referring to a town or city

city-state

a political unit with a city and the surrounding area

Gilgamesh

King of Uruk and protagonist from the Epic of Gilgamesh

Sargon

Akkadian leader who established the world's first empire

empire

territories and groups of people under a single rule

polytheism

the worship of many gods

social hierarchy

the division of society by rank or class

Cuneiform

the world's first system of writing

pictographs

picture symbols

scribe

writer

Epics

long poems that tell the stories of heroes

architecture

the practice of designing and constructing buildings

ziggurat

A pyramid shaped temple tower

Hammurabi

Babylonian king responsible for the Code of Hammurabi, a famous law code

monarchy

type of government where a single king or queen rule a civilization

Hammurabi's Code

famous collection of 282 written laws that governed Babylonian society

chariot

A wheeled, horse-drawn cart used in battle

alphabet

a set of letters that can be combined to form words

Cyrus the Great

Persian leader who conquered large amount of territory to form the world's largest empire at that time

Darius I

Persian leader who improved society with political organization, art, road construction, and more

Persian Wars

a series of wars between Persia and Greece

cavalry

a group of soldiers who ride horses