Sumer- The World’s First Civilization Mesopotamia Sumer- The World’s First Civilization

Discovery of Agriculture Question #1 Brainpop- The Agricultural Revolution This first happened in Mesopotamia in an area called Sumer People began to settle down and create the world’s first cities

Sumer Brainpop- The Sumerians Question #2 Brainpop- The Sumerians Sumer is believed to be the oldest known civilization in history Started in 5300 BCE and lasted until 2000 BCE Over 3,000 years! Located in modern-day Iraq, between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers The rivers flooded every spring, which made the area fertile and great for growing crops

Question #3 Sumer- Irrigation The Sumerians developed irrigation systems to control the flooding and bring water to their crops Irrigation- Controlling water to use for agriculture or prevent flooding Canals, levees, and dams were created to get the water to crops and to stop from flooding their cities

Sumer- Job Specialization Question #4 Because of the irrigation systems, Sumer was able to grow extra crops Extra food leads to job specialization (also called division of labor) Now the people of Sumer did not all have to farmers and they could start doing other jobs: Pottery Making tools & weapons Building Bakers Weavers

Sumer- Religion Religion was very important to the people of Sumer Question #5 Sumer- Religion Religion was very important to the people of Sumer They were polytheistic. This means they believed in many different gods Each city was centered around a ziggurat (temple) They believed that the god or goddess lived in the ziggurat and would worship them

Sumer- Government Each city-state had their own king (called an ensi) Question #6 Sumer- Government Each city-state had their own king (called an ensi) The king had many responsibilities: Leading religious ceremonies and building ziggurats Leading the military and protecting the people Collecting taxes Building irrigation systems (canals, levees, and dams) Acted as judges to settle disputes or when a crime was committed

Sumer- Written Language Question #7 Sumer- Written Language We know a lot about the Sumerians because they left us written records Their language was called cuneiform

Sumer- Advanced Technology Question #8 Sumer- Advanced Technology The Sumerians also had many more innovations: Bronze tools and weapons Calendar- Helped predict flooding Came up with the idea of 24 hours in a day and 60 minutes in an hour Developed the world’s first wheel for wagons. This led to more trading and traveling Plow for planting crops

Question #9 & 10 Sumer- How do we know? In the 1900s, archaeologists found the remains of several cities from Ancient Sumer Eridu is believed to be the world’s oldest city founded around 5400 BCE Uruk is believed to have a population of around 80,000 people in 2800 BCE This is much larger than any other city discovered in Mesopotamia Gilgamesh was king of Uruk The Epic of Gilgamesh is believed to be the first written story in history

Sumer- Social Classes Specialized labor (jobs) created social classes Question #11 Sumer- Social Classes Specialized labor (jobs) created social classes Each city-state was organized the same Children fell into the same social class and had the same jobs as their parents People could not move up in social class

Sumer- Social Classes Kings- Rulers Government Officials- Worked for the king Priests- Made offerings to the gods and led religious ceremonies to please the gods and keep the city-states safe

Sumer- Social Classes Scribes- Professional writers. They usually worked for the government or help merchants keep track of trade Merchants- Traded goods between the city- states and would later trade with other civilizations like Egypt and India Artisans- Made crafts of had specific jobs: Weavers Pottery Made weapons and tools Bakers

Sumer- Social Classes Farmers- Grew crops and harvested food to trade They would give food to the king for protection and irrigation They would give food to priests so the gods would reward them with a good harvest Slaves- People became slaves by being captured during wars or they were criminals and it was their punishment Their job was usually hard labor, like digging irrigation ditches or carrying bricks for ziggurats