Classics - 5th - Mesopotamia: The Cradle of Civilization
What does Mesopotamia mean?
"land between the rivers" in Greek
What does polytheistic mean?
the belief in or worship of more than one god.
What is fertile silt?
the nutrients in the water that would flood land around the banks of the river in Mesopotamia and make the soil very fertile so that plants could grow
If Mesopotamia did not have stone or timber resources, how did they build their ziggurats?
used mud
What does arid mean?
very dry
What is cuneiform?
wedge-shaped writing marked into wet clay
Which cities were built by the Sumerians?
Kish Ur Uruk
Which s the first civilization in history?
Mesopotamia
Were Kish, Ur and Uruk exactly the same?
No They had the same culture, but they developed their own government, each with their own rulers Each city and the surrounding land it controlled formed a city-state
Was northern Mesopotamia, near Turkey, treated with irrigation?
No, irrigation was not important in that part of the land since they had regular rain
Was the civilization in Mesopotamia made up of one state?
No, many different people lived there and they created a collection of independent states
What is job specialization?
People are trained to do different jobs
Where was Mesopotamia located?
Present day Iraq
Which was the first civilization of Mesopotamia?
Sumer
Which people lived in Mesopotamia?
Sumer - Southern Part - (3500 to 200 BCE) Akkad - Northern Part - (2340 to 2180 BCE) Babylonia - These tow regions were unified (1830 to 1500 and 650 to 500 BCE) Assyria - Assyrian Empire - (1100 to 612 BCE)
What was the name of the people who lived in the Southern part of Mesopotamia?
Sumer - Sumerians
What are ziggurats?
Sumerian temples
What is the Code of Hammurabi?
The most influential and important legal document written in cuneiform. Laws of Babylon.
What led to the creation of a government in Mesopotamia?
The need to have an irrigation system and it needed to be designed, dug, and operated
What are scribes, and how did they contribute to society?
They were responsible for all record keeping and writing things down
Which rivers was Mesopotamia in between?
Tigris and Euphrates
What is an example of the architecture of Mesopotamia?
Ziggurats
What is a city-state?
a city and its surrounding lands functioning as an independent political unit
What is an irrigation system?
a means of supplying land with water
How long did Mesopotamia last?
approximately 3000 years
What type of jobs did the people of Mesopotamia have?
astronomers pottery making scribes farmers
What was Mesopotamia called?
cradle of civilization Fertile Crescent
What is an example of the infrastructure of Mesopotamia?
irrigation system
How did the city-state function?
like an independent country does today
What type of religion did they practice in Mesopotamia?
polytheistic
What were the geographic conditions in Mesopotamia?
1. Little rainfall 2. Hot and dry climate 3. windstorms that left muddy river valleys in the winter 4. catastrophic flooding of the rivers in the spring 5. arid soil containing little minerals 6. No stone or timber resources
Why was Mesopotamia called the Fertile Crescent?
1. Once a year, most rivers flooded 2. water soaks in the ground, but leaves behind a fertile silt that was in the water 3. over the years the fertile silt made the soil on the banks of the river fertile 4. Life in Lower Mesopotamia was possible only because they used irrigation 5. Irrigation was so important that it led to the creation of a government to design, dig and operate the system needed to supply water to this dry area
Which cities were developed in Mesopotamia?
1. Ur 2. Uruk 3. Babylon
Why as Mesopotamia known as the Cradle of Civilization?
1. developed cities 2. had first form of writing 3. had an organized religion 4. was divided into 3 social classes 5. had job specialization 6. had a government and laws 7. had art and architecture 8. had an infrastructure
How many social classes did they have in Mesopotamia?
3
What was the name of the people who lived in the Northern part of Mesopotamia?
Akkad - Akkadians
What was the code of law in Mesopotamia
Code of Hammurabi
What was the first form of writing called?
Cuneiform
