1. 3.1 Rise of Sumer

2. 1. Sumerians - southern Mesopotamia (land between 2 rivers) - earliest know civilization

3. - control environment - rivers flooded each spring - irrigate crops - main crop barley

4. - began organized government - set up laws - began building cities - Ur - mud bricks

5. 2. City- States – own god and government - city and farmland - surrounded by wall of brick w/bronze gates - streets-center of city

6. - 2 story houses - upper class – center - fights between cities over boundaries

7. 3. Religion - center of the city was the ziggurat - “mountain of god” - “hill of heaven” - home of the chief god

8. - around ziggurat were courts - center of life for Sumerians - artisans - school - stored goods - food for poor

9. - gods were forces of nature - 3,000 gods - 1 st male gods then female gods - Sumerians were there to serve gods

10. - only priests knew what the gods wanted - powerful - controlled land - ran schools

11. - schools for rich males - poor boys worked fields - tablet houses - writing - clay tablets

12. 4. Writing - cuneiform -developed to track business - students became scribes - worked in -temple

13. - worked in temple, palace, government, army, for merchants, own business 5. Women-could - buy and sell property - run business - own and sell slaves - conduct husband’s job when he is away

14. - be sold or rented onto slavery - had marriage arranged - children had to obey and support parents - all obeyed priest and gods

15. 6. Priest-Kings – 1 st kings were priests - Gilgamesh - received advice from council of free men - war times assemble chose military leader - leader slowly stayed in charge

16. - 3,000 B.C. became permanent - heredity