Mesopotamia

Land Between Two Rivers

• Mesopotamia was known as the “Fertile Crescent” because of it’s crescent shape and availability of fertile or “rich” soil…good for planting.
• It was also known as the “Cradle of Civilization” because it was the birthplace of civilization.
• The first major civilization was Sumer
• Mesopotamia was located between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.

Irrigation

• A dry, hot desert-like climate.
• The rivers would flood unpredictably every spring, leaving silt behind to help create fertile, rich soil which was great for growing!
• Sumerians needed to control the river so they could prosper.
• Sumerians developed a system for controlling the flow and direction of water from the rivers.
• Canals and irrigation ditches were built to redirect the water to the fields.

Development of Agriculture

• Important Inventions: irrigation systems, the plow, the wheel/cart.
• These inventions helped crops to grow in the difficult climate which led to a surplus of food.
• The surplus led to a system of trading.
• Sumer had limited resources, so they needed to barter with other lands.

City-States

• There were many city-states that developed in Mesopotamia. They were independent of one another.
• They each had their own god, government and leaders.
• They would often go to war with each other over resources and land.

Ziggurat

• Located in the center of the city-state.
• Home of the city’s God
• Temple-Only priests could enter
• Courtyards surrounded ziggurat so merchants could trade goods
• “Mountain of the Gods”

Sumerian Homes

• Homes were usually windowless and made of sun dried mud bricks because there was little wood or stone available.
• Roofs were flat.
• Roofs provided a fourth living space.
• People cooked and slept on their roofs, when weather permitted.
• Some of the fancier roofs were designed with four walls for privacy.
• Some had grape arbors that provided food, privacy, and shelter from the sun.

Sumerian City

• Sumerian houses faced away from crowded streets. Instead, they faced onto courtyards where families ate and children played.
• Sumerian city streets were so narrow that you could hardly get a cart through them.

Social Classes and Division of Labor

• People started specializing or becoming trained in different jobs.
  • There were farmers, craftsmen, priests, merchants, soldiers, scribes, rulers and slaves.
  • People had different jobs to do and contributed to the society.
• Depending on their wealth and education, people were valued differently and were treated differently by the law.
  • Slaves and peasants were at the bottom of the social pyramid and rulers, priests and the wealthy were at the top.
  • The wealthier you were the closer to the ziggurat you lived

Sumerian Priests

• The early city-states were ruled by priests.
• The job of priests were to:
  • control irrigation
  • settle arguments
  • store and distribute surplus
  • collect taxes in the form of goods
  • make sacrifices and pray to the unpredictable gods of Mesopotamia

Religion

• Polytheism: belief in many gods
• 4 main gods and around 3,000 lower gods
• Gods had human qualities.
• They were viewed as often hostile and unpredictable – similar to the natural environment around them.
• Sumerians believed their purpose on Earth was to serve the gods
• The forces of nature and all the evils were under control of the Gods, so Sumerians offered food and animals to please the gods.
• Only the priests of the city-state could speak with the gods.
  • They controlled the city-states.

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