REVOLUTION A TOTALLY new way of living:

From

Hunter-Gatherersto Agriculture

• Until the first civilizations, people were nomads. They lived in groups of 20 -30, and spent most of their time hunting and gathering.  The men hunted game animals, and the women gathered fruits and berries. 

• When they learned to cultivate crops and domesticate animals, life radically changed. This is known as the Agricultural Revolution.

•  Agriculture (crops) led to permanent settlements, the establishment of social classes, and the eventual rise of civilizations.

• Because there was enough food (surplus), social class divisions developed, such as farmer, craftsman, and warrior. (Would you need to fight if there’s nothing to gain?)

• When resources became scarce, warfare among villages increased.  During war, some men gained stature as great warriors and became leaders in their society.

• Priests and warriors were the upper class, while farmers were lower class. (Remember, there were no priests, warriors, or social classes before there was a surplus of food.)

• New technologies developed in response to the need for better tools and weapons to go along with the new way of living.  They developed simple metal tools such as plows, to help with their work.  Metal weapons were developed as villages needed to protect their valuable resources.

Archaeologists believe this is where one of the world’s first civilizations arose. Mesopotamia (today’s Iraq) – is known as the cradle of Civilization.

4 Early River Valley Civilizations

“The Four Early River Valley Civilizations”• Sumerian Civilization - Tigris & Euphrates Rivers (Mesopotamia)

City-States in Mesopotamia

PP Design of T. Loessin; Akins H.S.

“The Four Early River Valley Civilizations”

City-States in Mesopotamia

SW Asia

(the Middle East)

PP Design of T. Loessin; Akins H.S.

Fertile Crescent

A flat plain known as Mesopotamia lies between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.

Because of this region’s shape and the richness of its soil, it is called the Fertile Crescent.

“The Four Early River Valley Civilizations”

City-States in Mesopotamia

PP Design of T. Loessin; Akins H.S.

Sumerians were first to settle in this region, attracted by the rich soil.

. Three Disadvantages / Environmental Challenges1. Unpredictable flooding / dry summer months

2. No natural barriers for protection - small villages lying in open plain were defenseless3. Limited natural resources - stone, wood, metal

PP Design of T. Loessin; Akins H.S.

City-States in MesopotamiaI. GEOGRAPHY

PP Design of T. Loessin; Akins H.S.

Sumerians were first to settle in this region, attracted by the rich soil.

B. Three Disadvantages / Environmental Challenges

1. Unpredictable flooding / dry summer months

2. No natural barriers for protection - small villages lying in open plain were defenseless3. Limited natural resources (stone, wood, metal)

PP Design of T. Loessin; Akins H.S.

C. Solutions 1. Irrigation ditches

2. Built city walls with mud bricks3. Traded with people around them for the products they lacked. Initiated Bronze Age.

Sumerian innovations in achieving civilization

set example others would follow.

But to arrive at these solutions,

required organized government.

Let’s now look at the type of government the Sumerians had.

City-States in MesopotamiaII. The City-State Structure of Government

A. Although all the cities shared the same culture …B. each city had its own government / rulers, warriors, it’s own patron god, and functioned like an independent

countryC. includes within the city walls and also the surrounding farm landD. Examples include Sumerian cities of Ur, Uruk, Kish, LageshE. At center of each city was the walled temple with a ziggurat –

a massive, tiered, pyramid-shaped structure.

PP Design of T. Loessin; Akins H.S.

Definetype of

government

The Ziggurat at Ur was first excavated by British archaeologist Woolley in 1923. The Iraqi Directorate of Antiquities restored its lower stages in the 1980s.

ZIGGURATS

Ziggurat – Holy Mountain

Click on the pictures for more information on ziggurats.Click on the pictures for more information on ziggurats.

The reconstructed facade of the Neo-Sumerian Great Ziggurat of Ur, near Nasiriyah, Iraq

BABYLONIAN ZIGGURAT

Sumerian ReligionSumerians worshipped many gods, not just one. This belief in many gods is called polytheism. “Poly” means many and “Theism” means gods.

The picture above shows a ziggurat. Ziggurats were the main temples used to worship the gods of a city. Ziggurats were built in the center of the city. They had steps and ramps, and it was believed that the gods descended to the Earth using the ziggurat as a ladder.

ziggurat

Sumerian Mythology

Sumerian myths, or stories, explained people’s beliefs. Sumerians believed that a person must keep the gods happy by going to the ziggurat and praying to them. They believed that the gods would reward them for good service. They also believed that the gods would punish the people who made them angry.

City-States in MesopotamiaII. The City-State Structure of Government

A. Although all the cities shared the same culture …B. each city had its own government / rulers, warriors, it’s own patron god, and functioned like an independent

countryC. includes within the city walls and also the surrounding farm landD. Examples include Sumerian cities of Ur, Uruk, Kish, LageshE. At center of each city was the walled temple with a ziggurat – a massive, tiered, pyramid-shaped structure.

PP Design of T. Loessin; Akins H.S.

F. Powerful priests held much political power in the beginning.

Right: “Priest-king," ca. 3300–3000 B.C.; Uruk.

Left: Priests intervening between worshipers and gods.

Definetype of

government

Cultural diffusion is the spread of elements of one culture to another people, generally through trade.

Take the spread of writing. Similarities between the pictograms of Egyptian hieroglyphics, Sumerian cuneiform, and the Indus script are striking.

Can you give examples of cultural diffusion in your society today?

PP Design of T. Loessin; Akins H.S.

“The Four Early River Valley Civilizations”

City-States in MesopotamiaIII. SUMERIAN CULTURE

A. RELIGION

A Sumerian warrior-god, gold figurine, ca. 2,400-2,500 B.C.E.

1. Belief in many gods - polytheismGod of the clouds / air was Enlil – the most powerful god.(Nearly 3,000 others – with human qualities. The Sumerians viewed their gods as hostile and unpredictable – similar to the natural environment around them.)

Marduk, the Dragon god

PP Design of T. Loessin; Akins H.S.

“The Four Early River Valley Civilizations”

City-States in MesopotamiaIII. SUMERIAN CULTURE

B. SOCIETY1. Three social classes

a. Priests and royalty (kings)b. Wealthy merchantsc. Ordinary workers

[Slaves] –were not free citizens and thus not included in class system

2. Women

Left: Statue of Sumerian woman with hands clasped at chest, ca. 2600-2300 B.C. Right: Gypsum statue of man and woman at Inanna Temple at Nippur, circa 2600-2300 B.C.

a. Had more rights than in many later civilizations (could own property, join lower ranks of priesthood)b. But not allowed to attend schools (could not read or write)

“The Four Early River Valley Civilizations”

City-States in MesopotamiaIII. SUMERIAN CULTURE

C. SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY1. One of the first writing systems - Cuneiform

Cylinder seals and their ancient impressions on administrative documents and locking devices are our richest source for a range of meaningful subject matters.A wealth of these have been discovered at Sumerian sites. *

PP Design of T. Loessin; Akins H.S.

Review:

1. What were the places of worship for the people of Mesopotamia?

2. What was their writing called?

ziggurats

cuneiform

3. Where did the first permanent human settlements occur? Nile River area or Mesopotamia

4. The Fertile Crescent was between what two rivers?

Mesopotamia

Tigris and Euphrates