ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS

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ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS

• CHAPTER 1, Sections 2 and 3
• The Fertile Crescent

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VocabularyMesopotamian Cultures, Section 2

• city-state
• Definition A self-governing state consisting of
  a city and surrounding territory
• cuneiform
• Definition The system of writing used by the
  ancient Sumerians
• Context Cuneiform writing looks more like
  symbols than pictures. Wedge shapes.

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VocabularyMesopotamia From Nomads to Farmers

• .

irrigation Definition To bring water to the
cultivated fields. Earthen dams were constructed
to hold back floodwaters Context A levee system
helped the Mesopotamians farm their most fertile
land. Mesopotamia Definition An ancient land
located where we find the modern country of Iraq
Context Mesopotamia means, land between the
rivers and got its name because it was located
between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.
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VocabularyMesopotamia From Nomads to Farmers

• .

scribe Definition A person paid to write,
especially in ancient times Context The job of
a scribe was considered important in Sumer.
stylus Definition A hard, pointed writing
tool cut from a reed Context Sumerians pressed
the point of a stylus into wet clay in order to
write. This left archeologist a great record of
their writing and their civilization
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VocabularyMesopotamia From Nomads to Farmers
cuneiform Definition The system of writing
used by the ancient Sumerians Context Cuneiform
writing consists of characters with wedge-shaped
parts. domestication Definition The taming of
wild animals to use for farming or to be kept as
pets Context The domestication of sheep and
goats helped the Mesopotamians become farmers.
Euphrates River Definition One of the rivers
that borders what was the land of Mesopotamia.
Context The Euphrates River bordered
Mesopotamia to the west. Tigris River
Definition One of the rivers that borders what
was the land of Mesopotamia Context The Tigris
River bordered Mesopotamia to the east.

• .

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Vocabulary Mesopotamian Cultures

• Sumerians
• Definition Residents of Sumer, a region of the
  ancient land of Mesopotamia
• Context The Sumerians developed many inventions,
  such as the wheel and the plow.
• tablet
• Definition A flat slab often of clay or stone
  suitable for an inscription
• Context The Sumerians etched symbols into wet
  clay tablets to create a permanent document of
  their activities.
• Tigris River
• Definition One of the rivers that borders what
  was the land of Mesopotamia
• Context The Tigris River bordered Mesopotamia to
  the east.

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Vocabulary Mesopotamian Cultures, Section 3

• Assyria a Mesopotamian empire about 1,000 years
  after Hammurabi, in the north of Mesopotamia near
  the Tigris River
• Persian Gulf a body of water at the mouth of
  the Tigris and Euphrates River (south end of
  Mesopotamia)
• Nineveh the Assyrian capital on the Tigris
  River
• Provinces political districts or divisions of a
  large empire
• Nebuchadnezzar Chaldean king, controlled all of
  Mesopotamia 605 B.C.E. 562 B.C.E.
• Hanging Gardens of Babylon terraced gardens
  with large tress, and a variety of plants, built
  by Nebuchadnezzar
• Caravans groups of traveling merchants
• Astronomers people who study the stars and
  planets, phases of the moon first to use a
  sundial and created a calendar with a seven day
  week.

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Steps to farming in Mesopotamia

• Local officials decide when to let water flow
  onto crops
• Farmers let animals graze in soil to trample and
  eat weeds.
• Farmers break up the soil using hand tools
• Spread seeds and plow
• Plant seeds
• Harvest the plants
• How did they know when to do these things?

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QuestionsMesopotamia The Development of
Civilization

• What was the importance of scribes in
  Mesopotamia?
• Why did the scribes have greater access to the
  priests and kings than other people in the
  city-states?

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Questions Mesopotamia From Nomads to Farmers

• Why did the ancient Sumerians look for new ways
  to produce their food?
• How did growing crops and domesticating animals
  like sheep and goats allow the Sumerians to build
  cities and live in one place all year long?
• What does the word Mesopotamia mean?
• Between which rivers did Mesopotamia lie?
• Why did the soil of the Mesopotamian region of
  Sumer grow such good crops?

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Questions Mesopotamia From Nomads to Farmers

• In what other way did the Sumerians control the
  rivers?
• What important farming tool did the Sumerians
  invent?
• What else did the Mesopotamians invent?
• What do we call their system of writing?
• What tools did the Mesopotamians use for writing?
  
• What did the Sumerians put into writing before
  any other society?
• What was the name of the temple where Sumerians
  believed their gods lived?
• Of what material were the houses in Sumerian
  cities made?

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Chaldean v. Assyria Venn DiagramMesopotamia
Empires900 B.C.E. 539 B.C.E.

• Chaldean Assyrian

Top Ten of the Greatest Contributions to
Civilization
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Chaldean v. Assyria Venn

• Chaldean
  Assyrian

• Wanted to have a better quality of life
• which included better safety.
• 2. Warriors
• Learning was
• important
• 4. Grand cities

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Chaldean v. Assyria Venn

• Chaldean
  Assyrian

• Wanted to a better quality of life
• which included better safety.
• 2. Warriors
• Learning was
• important
• 4. Grand cities

• Roads
• Caravans
• Markets
• Nebuchadnezzar
• Rich from Trade
• Hanging Gardens
• Astronomers

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Chaldean v. Assyria Venn

• Chaldean
  Assyrian

• Wanted to a better quality of life
• which included better safety.
• 2. Warriors
• Learning was
• important
• 4. Grand cities

• Roads
• Caravans
• Markets
• Nebuchadnezzar
• Rich from Trade
• Hanging Gardens
• Astronomers

• Skilled Warriors
• Battering ram
• Ninevah
• Chariots
• Expert archers
• Libraries
• Well-organized Government

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Chapter 1 Notes

• Section 2 Land Between Two Rivers
• Mesopotamia lay between the Tigris and Euphrates
  rivers. These two rivers and the rich, fertile
  soil drew people to the region.
• The early people of Mesopotamia became farmers
  and then builders of cities. The most successful
  and advanced cities were the city-states of Sumer.

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Chapter 1 Notes

• Section 2 Chaldean and Assyria
• After the fall of Sumer, the biggest and most
  important civilizations were the empires of
  Chaldean and Assyria.
• These civilizations built grand cities where
  culture and learning were highly valued.

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Chapter 1 Notes

• The Mesopotamians were probably the first to
  develop two of the key components of almost all
  civilizationsa system of writing and a set of
  written laws.
• Look in your answers of the
• Section Review (page 23) to see
• just a few examples of other
• important things that the
• Mesopotamians discovered/ invented