Mesopotamia and Sumer The Land between two rivers

Mesopotamia and Sumer

The Land between two rivers • Geography Promotes Civilization • Fertile Crescent- In southwest Asia a large band of fertile land for an oasis in the midst of deserts and mountain. It curves in between the Mediterranean Sea and the Persian Gulf.

The fertile crescent • Mesopotamia- Fertile land lines in between Tigris and the Euphrates river • These two areas brought about the world’s first civilizations • 5500 BC people were farming • Rivers flooded making it good for agriculture • Sometimes flooded too often eventually people developed ways to control water

Sumer • The Cities in Sumer • People who developed the first civ were Sumerians and lived in Sumer • Large temples called ziggurats • Polytheistic • Gods controlled all natural forces • Worked to please the gods • Priest were high in the social ranking and governed citystates

Sumerian Culture • Writing • Cuneiform- Sumerian writing and the first writing system • Used for record keeping at first • Eventually they began writing literature like the Epic of Gilgamesh

Sumerian Culture • Math and Science • Created a math system based off the number 60 • They studied geometry which help them build elaborate structures • Invented the wheel, and plow • Used bronze to advance weapons • Made use of medical knowledge

Sumerian Culture • Trade and Society • The obtained many materials for art and buildings through trade • Traded across Southwest Asia • Men held political office and made women take care of homes and children • Social ranking developed • • King Priest Principal agent Landowners Merchants Artisans Farmers laborers

Empires in Mesopotamia • The Babylonian Empire • Tribes fought over Mesopotamia • Leader Hammurabi united Mesopotamia under his rule • Started tax collection, building projects, increased trade • He wrote Hammurabi’s code- first law to be written down • 282 laws • Dealt with everyday life • Babylon was greatest under Hammurabi • Lasted for 2 centuries

Phoenicians • The Phoenician Alphabet • Most influential achievement was their alphabet • Worlds first alphabet • 22 letters • Because of their trader their alphabet spread because it made writing easier • Greeks adopted it and expanded it to include vowels • Greeks alphabet is the ancestor of the modern alphabet we use to write English