Chapter 3 Section 1Geography of the Fertile Crescent

Rivers support the growth of civilization

1. What is the Fertile Crescent?

It is a large arc shaped area of rich, or fertile farmland in a region called Mesopotamia.

• Mesopotamia means “the land between two rivers” in Greek.

• It was first settled more than 12,000 y.a.

EuphratesRiver

Tigris River

Rise of Civilization

2. What is silt? Silt is a mixture of

rich soil and tiny rocks.

• Every year floods would bring rich silt to replenish the soil with nutrients.

• The first farms formed as early as 7000 BC.

3.What did farmers grow?

Farmers grew wheat, barley, flax, and other types of grain.

• Livestock, birds, and fish were good sources of food.

FlaxBarley

Farming and Cities4. Why was farming

difficult?

There was very little rainfall.

If it did rain a lot, the rivers would flood the crops.

If there was not enough rain, crops would die. (drought)

Controlling Water

5. What is irrigation? Irrigation is a way of supplying water to an area of land.

6. What are canals? Canals are human made waterways that connected these basins to a network of ditches.

7. Why did Mesopotamians build canals?7. Why did Mesopotamians build canals? To control the river’s flow.

Food Surpluses

8. What is surplus? Surplus means more than you need.

• Irrigation increased the amount of food farmers were able to grow which created surpluses of food.

• Irrigation made farmers more productive so fewer people needed to farm.

Oats

9.What is division of labor? It is an arrangement in which each worker

specializes in a particular task or job.

WhyDid Craftsmen

came to work in

Mesopotamia?Because

of Division

of Labor and

Morejobs

The Appearance of Cities…around 4000 and 3000 BC

UR

Ishtar’sGate

Babylon

NinevehBabylon

Summary

• Mesopotamia’s rich, fertile lands supported productive farming which led to the development of cities. If they had a steady food supply, people could develop a complex society.