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Early Civilizations Ch 2

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Early Civilizations Ch 2 Mesopotamia Lesson 2 Sumer and Akkad Mesopotamia consisted of city states Akkad: north Sumer: south Similar farming and business methods and ... – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: Early Civilizations Ch 2


1
Early CivilizationsCh 2
  • Mesopotamia
  • Lesson 2

2
Sumer and Akkad
  • Mesopotamia consisted of city states
  • Akkad north
  • Sumer south
  • Similar farming and business methods and had
    similar customs, but spoke different languages
  • Akkadian and Sumerian languages
  • Wars occurred often between the two to control
    land and water
  • Sumer was the most powerful

3
  • Outside of the cities were vast, irrigated farms
  • Mudbrick wall surrounded most city-states
  • Protection from unfriendly nomads armies of
    enemy city-states
  • White painted mudbrick houses of one or two
    stories
  • Temple complex at the highest point
  • Largest and most impressive temple structures
    were the ziggurats

4
  • Ziggarauts werestacked rectangular platforms
    that formed a huge pyramid-shaped structure
  • Believed to link Earth with the heavens

5
Ziggurat of Ur
6
Religion and Government
  • Temples were built as earthly homes for the gods
  • Structures reflect the importance of religion to
    society
  • Sumerians and Akkadians practiced polytheism
  • Worship of many gods
  • Believed gods and goddesses were responsible for
    the well-being of the people and the fertility of
    the land

7
  • Anu the god of the heavens
  • Enlil the god of wind
  • Enki the god of water
  • Ninhursag the mother of the gods
  • They also believed in many lesser gods
  • If the city state was peaceful it was because the
    gods were pleased
  • Temple priests made offerings to the gods to keep
    them happy

8
  • Religion and government were closely linked
  • Sumerians believed that kings were chosen by the
    gods to carry out the gods wishes
  • Divine kingship
  • The right to rule was god-given
  • Also believed the right to rule could be passed
    from father to son

9
  • Sumer had a class system
  • Kings
  • Wealthy businesspeople, landowners, and
    government workers
  • Artisans and farm workers
  • Slaves

10
Writing
  • About 3200 B.C. the Sumerians invented a
    writing system to keep track of business
    dealings
  • Simple pictures that stood for objects or
    actions
  • 2400 B.C. this picture writing was simplified
  • Cuneiform wedge-shaped writing
  • Professional writers are scribes

11
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12
  • Akkadians adopted cuneiform
  • Cuneiform was used for centuries
  • It was used to record the exchange of goods
  • Was also used to tell stories (Epic of
    Gilgamesh-legendary Sumerian king)
  • Medical texts, law codes, letters, arguments
    debates, and wise sayings

13
The Rise and Fall of the Akkadian Empire
  • Sargon led the Akkadians to defeat the Sumerians
    around 2334 B.C.
  • He united all the city-states of Mesopotamia
    under his rule
  • Forming the worlds first empire
  • A large territory, consisting of many different
    places, all under the control of a single ruler
  • Stretched from the sunrise to the sunset

14
  • Sargons practice of appointing his daughters as
    high priestesses as followed by many other kings
  • He also passed his empire on to his son
  • Akkadian dynasty was constantly threatened by
    revolts
  • Was only powerful for only about 150 years

15
Sumers Final Days
  • 2100 to 2000 B.C., the city-state of Ur in Sumer
    held control of Mesopotamia
  • Last and most successful dynasty was under king
    Ur-Nammu and his son, Shulgi
  • Business, literature, and the arts did well
  • Oldest known written law code was from this time
    period

16
  • Sumerians used writing, religion, and technology
    in their daily lives to help them advance their
    civilization
  • The first wheel appeared in Mesopotamia more than
    5,000 years ago
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