1. Chapter 3 Sumerians: The First Great Civilization
World History
Chapter 3
Sumerians: The First Great Civilization

2. The Land Between Two Rivers
South of Mesopotamia-Sumer
Hot weather, floods, swamp land – all make fertile soil

3. Sumerian Farmers Irrigation – bringing water to crops
Dug canals, built dikes to hold back floods
Oxen/plow

4. Trading Merchants Needed materials Traded with crops Used boats
Brought treasures

5. Villages Grow Into City-States
Houses made from reeds
Began to make houses from mud bricks
Built temple
People offered goods to gods
Priests became wealthy
Each city state had own government
City state UR built ziggurat to honor god

6. The Invention of Writing
Sumerians invented writing
Drawings on tablets
Symbols = cuneiform
Scribes - special people who were taught to write
Sumerians wrote ideas and kept records

7. Other Gifts from the Sumerians
Taxes
Money
Measured time
irrigation
Sailboats
Wheel
metalworkers

8. Life in Sumer Hard work on farms Wealthy children went to school
King ruled
When the dies they went to another world
riches were brought with them

9. Attack on Ur 2000 bc Sumerians were attacked by Babylonians
Many were killed
Children become slaves
Babylonians built new cities over olds ones

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