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CH 4: Mesopotamia Lessons 1 World History Mr. Rich Miami Arts Charter
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Sections: Lesson 1: Sumer
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Lesson 1: Mesopotamia (Geography) Located in the Middle East (Southwest Asia) Inside of the Fertile Crescent - Rich farmland that reached from the Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf Name means “Between the Rivers” Located between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers
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Lesson 1: Wild Rivers The Tigris and Euphrates Rivers flooded unpredictably Destroyed homes and farms Fertilized farmland by spreading silt Sumerians built dams and canals to control floods Irrigation led to more food. More food = more people = cities! Old McDonald had a farm…
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Lesson 1: Sumerian Civilizations By 3000 B.C. several city-states built (Ur, Uruk, Eridu) Each city-state was a separate and independent place. Uruk is the best! Nowhere beats Eridu!
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Sumer’s Civilization City’s had large mud-brick walls built around the entire city Cities fought wars with each other Sumer’s Religion Polytheistic – they worshipped many gods The priests were the most powerful people in the city-states Later Kings ruled the city-states with the support of the priests Lesson 1:
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Sumer’s Religion Ziggurat – Large temple Looked like a step-pyramid Each Sumerian city had at least one Lesson 1:
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Sumerian Society Social classes were based on jobs. 1. Kings and Priests 2. Middle Class (merchants, artisans) 3. Farmers 4. Slaves Lesson 1: Quiet, slave ! Why do I do all of the hard work?
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Sumer’s Contributions Cuneiform First written language Early versions had pictographs (pictures for words) Later versions used wedge shaped marks and scratches Only boys from very wealthy families studied how to read and write Lesson 1:
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