Untitled Flashcard Set

1. What was the Fertile Crescent and where was it located?

The Fertile Crescent was an arc of land that stretched from the Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. The rich soil and the abundant crops found there allowed the land to sustain an early civilization.

2. Specifically where within the Fertile Crescent did Mesopotamia lie and by what two rivers was it bounded?

Mesopotamia was located at the eastern end of the Fertile Crescent and was bounded by the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.

3. What did the two rivers bounding Mesopotamia do that caused the soil to become so fertile and what practices did the Mesopotamian people employ to control it?

In late spring, the Tigris and Euphrates rivers often overflowed their banks depositing fertile silt which enriched the soil over the years. The people in the valley could not predict when this

flooding would occur or the size of the flooding so they learned to control the flow of the rivers by using irrigation and drainage ditched

4. Who were the creators of the first Mesopotamian civilization; approximately when did they establish independent cities in southern Mesopotamia and identify three of those cities.

The Sumerians were the creators of the first Mesopotamian civilization and had established

the cities of Eridu, Ur, and Uruk by around 3000B.C.

5. What was a "city-state" in ancient Mesopotamia and describe how and out of what materials a city was built?

A city state in ancient Mesopotamia was the basic unit of Sumerian civilization. It was a state with political and economic control over the surrounding countryside. Sumerian cities were surrounded by walls that enclosed city dwellings made from sun dried brick.

6. Describe the religious beliefs of the Mesopotamian people and explain why their religion was polytheistic.

The Mesopotamian peoples believed that powerful spiritual beings, gods and goddesses, permeated all aspects of the universe and their religion was polytheistic because of their belief in many gods.

7. What was a ziggurat and why was it the most prominent building in a Sumerian city?

A ziggurat was a massive stepped tower that was the most prominent building in a Sumerian city and served as the temple dedicated to the chief god or goddess of the city.