Mesopotamia5000 BCE – 600 BCE

Overview: MesopotamiaMesopotamia is not a country. “Mesopotamia” means “the land between two rivers” in Greek. Mesopotamia is the region in the middle east between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. There were several civilizations that flourished in the area between 5000 BCE and 612 BCE, including the Assyrians, Babylonians, and Sumerians.

Timeline: 4 major kingdoms of Mesopotamia

Between 3000 BC and 600 BC, four major kingdoms ruled Mesopotamia, the area between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers: •Sumer•Bablyon•Assyria•Persia

Location: Modern-day IraqNote the area in GREEN. This is the area known as the FERTILE CRESCENT. There are two major rivers, the EUPHRATES and the TIGRIS, that make it possible to grow crops and support larger populations.

Geography: Deserts & Valleys

Mesopotamia is a desert region, except for the valley containing the EUPHRATES and TIGRIS rivers.

There are no natural boundaries like mountains that provide protection for the region. This area was accessible to invaders from all sides, although the desert would sometimes act as a deterrent to invaders.

Political Structures

Sumerian City-States Babylonian Territory

Political Structures: Sumerians, 5000-1900s BCE

•Sumer was divided into city-states, meaning that each city had it’s own ruler, laws, and social customs.

•Each city-state was centered around a temple dedicated to a god or goddess.

•Each city-state was ruled by a priest-king or a king who was the head of the city government and the temple. •Kings had both civic and religious responsibilities.

Political Structures:Babylonia, 1700s – 1400s BCE

• Babylon was a city in south-central Mesopotamia that united most of Mesopotamia by the 1700s BCE.

• In approximately 1728 BCE, a king named Hammurabi ruled the city of Babylon and the territory of Babylonia.

• Hammurabi created a bureaucracy (system of government workers), centralized the government around the capital city of Babylon, and created a taxation system. However, he is most famous for his system of laws, called HAMMURABI’S CODE.

•The Code of Hammurabi used a strict system based on moral and economic values. For example, if someone were to damage (or kill) someone else’s slave, they must make reparations – meaning they must pay back the value of the slave. •The Code of Hammurabi is one of the first examples of codified law – law that is organized and written down – a precursor to modern constitutions.

Political StructuresAssyrians, 2000 BCE – 612 BCE•Assyria was made up of small city-states,

like Sumer. •Each city-state was led by a king. •By the 1500s BCE, Assyria was a powerful

kingdom that competed with Babylonia for territory and resources.

•In 612 BCE, Assyria was once again conquered by the Chaldeans from Babylonia.

Economics: Mesopotamia•Mesopotamia’s

economy was based on agriculture and trade.

•Mesopotamian’s traded natural resources, like jewels and precious stones.

•Mesopotamian’s traded their natural resources and excess crops for things that were scarce in Mesopotamia, like wood.•Mesopotamian’s also traded art, pottery, jewelry, and slaves.

Religion & PhilosophyMesopotamian civilizations were primarily polytheistic,

worshipping multiple gods and goddesses.

The gods were worshipped in temples called Ziggurats.

Society• Society in ancient Mesopotamia was

patriarchal (led by men) and male-dominated.• Priests and Kings were the highest ranked

people in Mesopotamian society.• Warriors and tradesmen made up the middle

class, along with educated bureaucrats in Babylon.

• Women and slaves made up the bottom strata of society.

• However, the basic structure of Mesopotamian society was divided into two classes: free people and slaves.

Inventions & Technology - Sumer•Sumerians developed cuneiform, the

oldest known written human language. •Sumerians are responsible for the

beginnings of mathematics – arithmetic, geometry, and algebra.

•Sumerians also invented or developed the wheel, irrigation systems, and many tools and weapons, such as hoes, axes, knives, arrowheads, swords, chariots, sandals, and more.

Inventions & Technology - Babylonia

• Babylonians were known for their metalwork, glassmaking, weaving, irrigation, and armor.

• One of the reasons the Babylonians were able to rule so many city-states was because of their metal weapons and armor, including daggers, swords, and spears.

• The Babylonians left behind evidence of the practice of medicine, astronomy, and architecture.

Inventions & Technology - Assyria•Like the Sumerians and Babylonians, the

Assyrians developed metal weapons and armor.

•The Assyrians were also known for their jewelry making abilities.

•Some archaeologists believe the Assyrians may have developed a telescope, as there is evidence of a glass shaped as a large lens, like one would use in a telescope.

Art•Sumerians developed many art forms,

including literature, painting, pottery, architecture, and jewelry.

•Babylonians also had literature, weaving, sculpture, painting, pottery, and jewelry.

•The Assyrians were known for their sculptures and reliefs (carvings on walls) depicting battle scenes and religious ceremonies. They were also known for jewelry, sculpture, and other art forms.

MesopotamianArt