Mesopotamia

Things to know Where was Mesopotamia How did the Fertile Crescent get its name? What was the most important factor in making Mesopotamia’s farmland fertile?

Simple Outline Hunter-gatherer groups first settled 12,000 years ago Tigris and Euphrates rivers flooded bring silt (rich soil and tiny rocks) Mesopotamia means “between the rivers” in Greek

Farming and Cities Early settlements were located near rivers, but water was not controlled and flooding was a problem Later, people built canals to protect houses from flooding – and moved water to fields With irrigation, the people were able to grow more food Food surpluses allowed some to stop farming and concentrate on other skilled jobs

The Rise of Sumer The World’s first civilization Most Sumerians were farmers, however, centre of society was the urban areas The 1st cities had about 10,000 residents By 2000 BC, some had more than 100 000!

City-States A city-state was a city and all the countryside around it City-states fought each other to gain more land Individual city-states gained and lost power Cities like Ur (above) and Uruk fought for dominance

Read the handout and watch Epic Gilgamesh One of Uruk’s kings – Gilgamesh became a legendary figure in Sumerian literature Considered 1st piece of literature Read the handout and watch Epic

Rise of the Akkadian Empire Another society at the same time was the Akkadians – lived at peace with Sumerians ... Until Sargon built a capital in present day Baghdad – which was in Sumer Akkadians and Sumerians go to war, and Akkadians win – creating the world’s first Empire

Sargon’s story According to legend, a gardener found a baby floating in a basket on a river and raised him as his own child. This baby later became the Akkadian emperor Sargon. Sargon is believed to be among the first military leaders to use soldiers armed with bows and arrows.

After Sargon After his death, the Akkadian Empire only lasts 50 years. City-state of Ur rebuilds and conquers Mesopotamia. Sumerian Society Polytheistic Priests Social hierarchy (Priests – craftsmen – merchants – traders – farmers) Role of women

Sumerian Achievements Invention of writing - cuneform (kyoo-nee-uh-fohrm) Epics The Wheel Potter’s Wheel Plow Clock (used water to measure time) Sewers Bronze metal work Makeup Math system (based on 60 – circles, months, ...) Medicine from plants and animals Architecture – most significant was the ziggurat (first to build these large temples (Stylus)

Hammurabi’s Code Hammurabi has sent a delegate to a tribe not following his law code. It is that delegate’s job to convince the people of that particular tribe to adopt Hammurabi’s Code and become a part of the civilized world. Look over the CODE

Hammurabi’s Code 1792 BCE - Babylon’s Monarch (Hammurabi) lays out world’s first written laws 282 Laws that dealt with daily life Laws were etched into a stone that was placed in the middle of the city Social class did matter – injuring a rich man brought a tougher penalty than injuring a poor man

Moving Forward …. Big Picture Babylonians conquered Mesopotamia and created a code of Law Invasions of Mesopotamia changed the region’s culture The Phoenicians built a trading society in the eastern Mediterranean region Big Picture After the Sumerians, many cultures ruled parts of the Fertile Crescent

Invasions of Mesopotamia

Invasions of Mesopotamia Hittities – (present day Turkey) First to master iron working and to use Chariots in battle Rule for about 400 years Assyrians (uh-sir-ee-unz) Very strong army and ferocious in battle Roads built to link the empire The Chaldeans (kal-dee-unz) Built the hanging gardens (why so called?) Became epicentre for astronomy and tracked weather, politics and economics

The Phoenicians Not a militaristic empire – rather a wealthy trading society Often ruled by foreign governments Trade made written communication essential – thus they develop an alphabet