1. Chapter 3 Key Terms Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia irrigate city-state
barter
polytheism
ziggurat
cuneiform
empire
ally
cultural trait
Hammurabi’s Code
rule of law
cavalry
standing army
tribute
currency
stele
import
export
navigation
colony
cultural diffusion
alphabet

2. Chapter 3 Section 1: The Civilization of Sumer
The Fertile Crescent
Located in the Middle East
Includes Mesopotamia
Lies between two rivers (Tigris and Euphrates)
“land between two rivers”
Cradle of civilization
Agriculture in Mesopotamia
Rich soil
Grew many grains and vegetables
Raised sheep, goats, and cattle
Geography of Mesopotamia
Contains the foothills of the Taurus and Zagros mountain chains in the North
In the South…
Foothills flatten into plains
Hot, dry region with little rainfall
Soil is rich with nutrients because of the two rivers
Two rivers could be harmful if the floods were too high and caused damage
Farming the Land
Used technology to irrigate, or supply water to, their crops.
Created funnels to automatically drop seeds into the ground
Chapter 3 Section 1: The Civilization of Sumer

3. Better agricultural techniques= produce more food= population grew
City-States of Sumer
Better agricultural techniques= produce more food= population grew
3400 BCE cities started to form
Cities Emerge
First city was Uruk- population 40,000
Others were Ur, Lagash, and Nippur
World’s first city-states
An independent state that includes a city and its surrounding territory
Trade
Most trade done by barter
A trading system in which people exchange goods directly without using money
Used rivers and canals to transport goods
Then, used new technologies (the sail and wheel) to make trade easier
Social Classes
Each class had distinct roles
Upper class- ruler, his top officials, powerful priests, wealthy merchants, owners of large plots of land
Middle class- farmers and skilled workers
Lower class- slaves

4. Sumerian Religion Practiced polytheism Belief in more than one god
Gods controlled every aspect of life- rain, wind, and other elements of nature
Behaved much like people- ate drank, slept, married
Gods lived forever
Needed to keep the gods happy
Only priests communicated with the gods
Built pyramid-shaped brick tower temples called ziggurats
Filled with beautiful paintings and statues

5. At first they drew pictographs
Sumerian Writing
At first they drew pictographs
Simple pictures that represent objects
Cuneiform
Created by 3400 BCE
Uses triangular-shaped symbols to stand for ideas or things
Epic of Gilgamesh
2000 BCE- first story
Stories are myths- made-up tales of gods and heroes

6. First leaders were priests
Sumerian Government
First leaders were priests
When conflicts arose the way cities were ruled began to change
Development of Kingship
Conflicts over land and water led to wars
Priests chose military leaders that would sometimes continue to control city-states- became first kings
Kings and Priests
Kings needed support of the priests
Priests supported the kings by declaring that the gods had chosen them
Written Laws
Earliest known law code written around 2100 BCE by Ur-Nammu- the King of Ur
Laws about marriage, slavery, causing harm to others
Achievements
Trade spread the Sumerian’s achievements
One of the first cultures to make bronze by mixing copper and tin

7. Section 1 Quiz The term Mesopotamia refers to which two rivers?
Danube and Euphrates
Nile and Danube
Mississippi and Tigris
Tigris and Euphrates
Another term for a city and the surrounding land it controls is…
city-state
empire
kingdom
nation-state
The laws written by Ur-Nammu are an example of
a law code
national control
a priestly text
a religious text
Which of the following is a type of building?
Gilgamesh
pictographs
polytheism
ziggurat
Cuneiform is a type of…
clay tablet
mathematics
writing
wedge