Mesopotamia
History
History
- gets its name from Tigris and Euphrates
- The land between the Tigris and Euphrates create the "fertile crescent"
- 10,000 years ago people started the agricultural revolution
- 3500-3000 BC southern Mesopotamia went through growth and changes
- Sumer began in 4000-5000 BC
8000 BC Nomadic people settle in Mesopotamia
6000-7000 BC People began to experiment pottery
4500 BC Sumerian civilization begins
2500 BC Assyrian civilization begins
1700 BC Babylonia civilization begins
1700 BC Hammurabi writes code of laws
6000-7000 BC People began to experiment pottery
4500 BC Sumerian civilization begins
2500 BC Assyrian civilization begins
1700 BC Babylonia civilization begins
1700 BC Hammurabi writes code of laws
Geography
Economy
- located in Modern day Iraq
- Northern Mesopotamia surrounded by hills and mountains
- Southern Mesopotamia made of marsh and flat plains
- land good for farming
- Tigris and Euphrates provided easy transportation for water and crops
Economy
- crops grown were wheat and barley
- Tigris and Euphrates made transporting goods easy and economical
- River boats helped transport goods for trade
- wool and wool cloth important for trade
Social Structure
- slaves were at the bottom but usually treated well
- the commoners were the laborers in the lower class, 85% were farmers
- merchants and artisans invented cuneiform to keep track of trade deals
- the scribes were educated and sons of the wealthy
- the priests were the upper class of the society
- the king was the pinnacle of the social order
Government
- combination of monarchy and democracy
- kings ruled the people
- four classes of people in Mesopotamia priests, upper class, lower class, and slaves
Beliefs and Religion
- believes world was controlled by mix of different gods. goddesses, demons, and monsters
- believed every aspect of nature made by mythical creature
- main gods and goddesses were Ea, Adad, Gula, and Lama
- demons consisted of human body and animal head
- monsters were large scary creatures that haunted Mesopotamian myths
- Mesopotamian mythology series of repeated stories
- oldest religion that we have records of
Advances and Achievements
- controlled flooding in the spring
- controlled drought with the creation of an irrigation system
- developed first writing system
- created the wheel
Architecture
- the beginning of monuments in Mesopotamia usually considered to be contemporary founding in Sumerians cities