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Ancient Civilizations:Mesopotamia
Geography & Environment
“the land between the rivers…”
• On which continent was Mesopotamia located?
• Asia; in what is modern day Iraq, Syria & Turkey
The Geography
• On which rivers did the ancient Mesopotamians settle?
• Between the Tigris & Euphrates Rivers; in an area known as the Fertile Crescent
The Geography
• Flooding provided rich soil for farming
The Geography
• Three Environmental Challenges:
• Unpredictable flooding• No natural barriers for
protection• Limited natural resources Predict how Mesopotamians
overcame each of these challenges…
The Geography
Early Mesopotamian Kingdoms
Mesopotamian Cultures
• Mesopotamia did NOT represent a unified kingdom, instead it was made up of a series of kingdoms that occupied a specific geographical space
• Sumer (c. 3500 – 2300 BC)• Akkad (c. 2300 -2200 BC)• Babylonia (1790-1590 BC)• Assyria (1360-620 BC)• Neo-Babylonia (629-540 BC)
Mesopotamian Cultures
The first civilization
Sumer 3500 – 2300 BCE
• Geography:• Located at the
southern end of Mesopotamia
• Near the mouths of the Tigris & Euphrates
Sumerian Geography
Sumerian Geography
• City-state: • A city + its surrounding lands• Independent political units that
competed for trade & boundaries
• i.e. Uruk, Kish, Ur, Lagash
• Same culture, BUT each had its own:
• Ruler, special god, and army
Sumerian Geography
Sumerian Religion & Government
• Polytheism:• The worship of more than one
god• Believed gods were immortal &
all powerful; humans were to serve the gods
• Ziggurat:• Centralized
temples where sacrifices and offerings were made to the gods
• Animals, food, wine, etc.
Sumerian Religion & Government
• City-states were ruled by priest- kings who were viewed as powerful agents of the gods
• Theocracy – gov’t based on religious authority
Sumerian Religion & Government
Sumerian Religion & Government• Despite their religious
practices, Sumerians had little, if any, belief in an afterlife
• Believed that the souls of the dead went to the “land of no return”
Sumerian Economy• Economy based on farming &
trade• Traded with places as far away
as Egypt and India• At first barter only• Used barley for
money, then switched to coins
Sumerian Culture & Knowledge• Developed a form
of written language known as cuneiform
• Wedge shapes scratched into clay tablets
Sumerian Culture & Knowledge• Invention of the wheel (3000
BC)
Sumerian Culture & Knowledge• Other notable contributions:• System of irrigation• Invention of the sail & plow• The usage of bronze• Development of a number
system based on 60• Architecture: arches, columns,
ramps
Kings/PriestsLandholdersWealthy
Merchants
Field Laborers & Artisans
Slaves
Sumerian Society
Sumerian Society
• Most Sumerians worked with their hands in fields and workshops
• Houses were made of mud brick and clay
Sumerian Society• Roles of Men/Women:• Men could sell wife/kids into
slavery to pay off debt• But women could obtain a
divorce and buy/sell property• Scribe Schools: Edubbas• For rich boys only
Babylonia
The first system of justice
1790 – 1590 BCE
The Babylonian Empire• In 1792 BC a new empire took
control of Mesopotamia • Babylonia• Reached its
height during the reign of King Hammurabi
The Babylonian Empire
• Hammurabi’s Code:• 1st known code of law• Stressed responsible
behavior• Capital punishment
• “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth”
• Punishments based on SOCIAL CLASS
• Laws focused on ALL aspects of society
The Babylonian Empire