1. Chapter 4: The Rise of Sumerian City-States
Kadhimain Mosque, Baghdad

2. 4.1 Introduction Mesopotamia means “ the land between rivers”
Mesopotamia is located where modern-day Iraq is today.
The two rivers we that are located there are the Tigris River and the Euphrates River.

4. Fast Facts
Population: 27,499,638
Capital: Baghdad; 5,620,000
Area: 68,754 square miles
Language: Arabic, Kurdish, Turkoman,
Assyrian, Armenian
Religion: Shiite and Sunni Muslim, Christian
Currency: Iraqi dinar
Life Expectancy: 69
GDP per Capita: U.S. $3,600
Literacy Percent: 74

5. Euphrates River

6. Tigris River

7. 4.1 Introduction
Early cities first appeared in the southern part of this land called Sumer.
The cities were small, independent countries and they were called city-states.

8. 4.2 Mesopotamia: A Hard Life
Northern Mesopotamia was hilly and got rain.
Southern Mesopotamia was a flat plain and received very little rain, but when they did get rain, it was too much!
So, life was very hard for the farmers
Building materials were also very hard to find.

9. 4.2 Mesopotamia: a hard life!
Stones were scarce.
They had no natural barriers to keep out enemies.
SO, the early Mesopotamians faced 4 key problems:
Food shortages in the hills
Uncontrolled water supply on the plains
Difficulties with irrigations systems
Attacks by neighboring communities

10. 4.3 Food Shortages
The Zagros Mountains in Northern Mesopotamia had good farmland, building materials and stones for toolmaking.
These conditions allowed the population in Mesopotamia to grow.
When the population grew too large, the farmers did not have enough land to grow food.

11. 4.3 Food Shortages
No one lived on the plains between the Tigris and Euphrates.
Because most of the year the soil was hard and dry. The plains did not have trees, or stones which would be used for shelter and tools
BUT: Because the people needed food so badly, they moved to the plains, because the land held possibilities.

12. 4.3 Shortages in the Hills
The need for food was so high, people moved into the valley. The region became known as Sumer.

13. 4.4 Uncontrolled Water Supply
The biggest problem the people in the valley had was how to control the water which flooded the plains every year.
The farmers either had too much water or too little, so it was a constant challenge to figure out how to control the water.
They learned how to create irrigations systems to provide water for their fields.

14. 4.4 Uncontrolled Water Supply
The earth walls they built were called levees. The earth walls kept out the water to prevent flooding,
BUT, when they needed the water, they could knock holes in the walls to let in water when it was needed.
Dams were also built along the river so that the water would collect in pools for later use.

15. 4.5 Difficulties with Irrigation
The main problem for the irrigations systems was how to maintain the system as it went through neighboring villages.
Farmers had to cooperate together in order for everyone to benefit from the canals.
With cooperation, villages began to depend on each other for help with the irrigations systems. The villages then grew into towns of several thousand people.

16. 4.6 Attacks by Neighbors!
As the Sumerian cities grew, they fought over the right to use water. Farms closer to the water supply would block it from going further downstream.
These fights were serious and they led to bloodshed and killing.
Sumerians began to build walls and motes around their cities to protect themselves.
Farmers fled the fields to go inside the city walls when they needed protection.

17. 4.7 Small Farming Villages to Large City-States.
The basic challenge for any group is how to provide food for itself.
In Mesopotamia the main problem was having either too much water or too little water.
The Sumerians built a complex irrigation system which crossed village boundaries.
Sumerians started to live in larger communities– the first cities.

18. 4.7 Small farming villages to Large City-States
Each city was like an independent country. The city-states often fought with one another, so they built walls and dug moats around their walled city-states.