1. Mesopotamia

2. Civilization
AIM: Students will understand the kingdoms that controlled Mesopotamia and how rule of law developed.

3. Meme of the day

4. Technology
5) Technology – What was some of the Neolithic technology advancements?
Sumerian artisans relied on new technology to make their tasks easier.
A) Around 3500 B.C., they first used the potter’s wheel to shape jugs, plates, and bowls.
B) Sumerian metalworkers - certain amounts of copper and tin made bronze.
Bronze Age refers to the time when people began using bronze, rather than copper and stone, to fashion tools and weapons. The Bronze Age started in Sumer around 3000 B.C.

5. Fertile Crescent
Fertile Crescent = moon- shaped strip of land from the Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf that is excellent farm land
Located in modern-day Middle East

6. Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia = located within the Fertile Crescent, between the Tigris & Euphrates Rivers
Rivers were NOT a reliable source of water (unlike the Nile)
Ran dry in summer; flooded in spring
Villages joined together to build dams, canals, and ditches

7. The Sumerian Civilization
People from Asia arrived in Mesopotamia
Formed 12 city-states = the city and the land surrounding it.
Uruk, Kish, Umma, and Ur.
Considered the world’s 1st cities
Created ziggurats = stepped pyramids with a temple at the top

8. The Sumerian Civilization
Sumerians shared common culture, language, and religion
City-states governed themselves -
Were theocracies = kings served as both government leaders AND high priests
Laws regulated the roles of women & men  men had far more rights

9. The Sumerian Civilization
Practiced polytheism = belief in more than one god
Each city-state had its own god
Negative outlook on life and the afterlife
Believed gods were selfish and had no regard for humans

10. First Mesopotamian Empires The Akkadians
Empire under Sargon I
Kingdom was called Akkad
FIRST EMPIRE EVER- Empire – brings several peoples, nations, or independent states under the control of one ruler.
Conquered & united all of the Sumerian city-states
Empire fell apart after his & his grandson’s death
Dynasty – When power is passed from father to son

11. First Mesopotamian Empires Babylon
Ruled by Hammurabi
Strict Code of Laws = Hammurabi’s greatest achievement
Rules and consequences that addressed daily life
Law code covered entire region of Mesopotamia
“Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth” type of laws
Government assumed the responsibility of protecting its citizens
People now had laws to protect their rights & didn’t need to resort to violence

12. First Mesopotamian Empires Babylon
Social classes were similar to the Egyptians, but they had far more slaves
Hammurabi’s empire fell apart after his death