Between what two rivers is Mesopotamia located? What river is associated with Egypt? Why do you think early man settled around rivers?
World History 1 Mr. Driskell
Farmers need their villages near water because they need it for their crops.
The region between the Tigris River and the Euphrates River is known as Mesopotamia. One of the first villages to emerge was Sumer. The villagers were called Sumerians.
Sumer was neither a city nor a country. Rather, it was a collection of separate cities with a common way of life. They shared a common culture. Historians believe that Sumerians built the world s first civilization. Right: Artistic view of what Sumer might have looked like.
Five Traits that are Essential for a Civilization 1. The Growth of Cities Not Just Population growth, but also a center of trade emerges for a larger area. Farmers, Merchants, Traders bring goods to market in the cities. 2. Specialized Workers Workers became skilled in one particular job. Ex. Artisans: Workers who made goods by hand. Farmers were able to produce more than what was needed for themselves. They had a surplus of crops and were able to trade their extra goods for a different good or service. (An end to subsistence farming.) 3. Record Keeping/Writing Enables people to make records of data. Merchants needed accounts of debts and payments. The Sumerians created Cuneiform, which is a system of writing with wedge-shaped symbols. (Around 3,000 B.C.)
Imprints of the signs, called cuneiform, were made by pressing a wedgeshaped stylus into wet clay.
Five Traits Essential for a Civilization Cont. 4. Advanced Technology The Sumerians were skilled in science & technology. Ex. Invention of the wheel, plow, sailboat. Use of bronze (mixture of copper & tin). Bronze Age 5. Complex Institutions Having an organizational system to run a city. (This is a key trait that is essential for a civilization.) Government is an example of a complex institution.
Sumerian Solutions 1. Water Problems- Unpredictability of floods and water dries up quickly. 1. Sumerians created irrigation ditches. 2. Defense Problems- Very flat land there were no natural defensive barriers to prevent raids by nomads. 2. Sumerians built city walls with mud bricks to discourage raids. 3. Limited Natural Resources- Lack of resources to create tools. (Stone, Wood, Metal) 3. Sumerians created an extensive trade network with the surrounding people.
Sumerian Solutions are Still In Use Today! Below: Irrigation ditches are still used today as a means of getting water to crops. Above: Mud brick homes are still built today in the Middle East because of the lack of timber.
The Sumerians were polytheists. They believed that their gods were a lot like them except they were immortal and all-powerful. Anu- God of Heaven Enlil- God of Clouds & Air Ea- God of Water & Floods. Afterlife: Sumerians believed that their souls went to the land of no return, a gloomy place between the earth s crust & the ancient sea.
Priests & Kings Priests had power because they knew how to please the gods and keep the city safe. Sumerians began by choosing a strong warrior to lead them into battle. These leaders eventually became kings. Kings became a hereditary position.
SOCIAL CLASSES IN SUMER Priests & Kings Wealthy Merchants Artisans & Farmers *Women had more rights than women in many later civilizations. Slaves: By working obediently day & night they could hope to earn their freedom.
For 1,000 years (3,000-2,000 B.C.) the citystates of Sumer were at war with one another. All the fighting weakened the city-states so much that they could no longer ward off attacks from outsiders (nomads). 2,000 B.C. Nomadic raiders swept through Ur, leaving it in ruins, thus ending the last of the great city-states.
Around 2,000 B.C. a group of nomadic warriors known as the Amorites invaded Mesopotamia. The Amorites established Babylon as their capital city. Hammurabi (1792-1750 B.C.) was a powerful and influential king. Babylon s civilization was becoming so complex that there was a need for written laws to help resolve disputes. Hammurabi established a collection of laws that became known as Hammurabi s Code. Carving shows the sun god Shamash giving the laws to Hammurabi.
To cause justice to prevail in the land, to destroy the wicked & evil, and to prevent the strong from oppressing the weak to enlighten the land and to further the welfare of the people. There are 282 specific laws. 88 Laws deal with marriage, family, property. 3 Fundamental Principles: 1. Principle of Retaliation to punish crimes. (Eye for an Eye) 2. Principle of Punishment (Double Standards existed between social classes). 3. Principle that the Government had a responsibility for what occurred in society.
Hammurabi s code was very harsh it believed in an eye for an eye It is the world s 1 st written law code