Mesopotamia

The Land Between Rivers Mesopotamia comes from the Greek, (Μέσοποτομος) which means “the land between the rivers.” Mesopotamia lies between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. The northern part of Mesopotamia is a plateau that leads to mountains, while the southern part is made of plains; the region of Sumer. Sumer was the site of some of the world’s first cities.

Cities of Mesopotamia Sumerian civilization dates as far back as 5000 B.C., but their cities date as old as 3500 B.C. Sumer was home to as many as twelve great cities; Ur, Kish, and Lagash. Some of these cities are estimated to have as many as 20,000 people. Each of these cities were also city- states, a place in which farmland around the city is controlled by the government of the city, and those within the city begin to specialize in areas of services.

Mesopotamian Economics The excess of goods and services made trade possible and the cities desirable. Daily economic life centered around local cultic practices; religious piety stimulated economic activity. Each city state was autonomous, and their governments were controlled by local leaders; there was no centralized government that controlled all of these cities. Modern-day ruins of an ancient Mesopotamian ziggurat.

Cities in Sumer thrived off of trade Cities in Sumer thrived off of trade. Their city administrators would help develop trade in order to sell the surplus for things that the city had a shortage of. So, food could be traded for wood, or bricks could be traded for spices or gold and other metals. As the city attracted goods and trade from other regions, they began to manufacture special products and sell them. Artisans created and crafted games, jewelry, and weapons. The Sumerian culture thrived as they developed new technologies to keep up with the growing challenges of their environment.

Irrigation Irrigation was the key to developing Mesopotamia; one of the earliest civilizations. The climate of Sumer – with its droughts, floods, and extreme heat – made farming and agriculture a challenge. These challenges, however, led the Sumerians to develop a system of irrigation; a series of levies and dams to bring water from the rivers during droughts, while preventing water flow in times of flood. Floods were prevented by a series of strategically located lakes and ponds that would serve as gathering points for excess water.

Writing One of the most important things developed was the idea of keeping record, which would eventually lead to writing. Writing initially started on papyri; a paper-like material that was harvested from the papyrus plant. Writing on papyri was short-lived because the papyri would become weathered in the extreme climate of Mesopotamia. The Sumerians developed a written language using pictographs – similar to that developed by the Egyptians (pictured above). This would later take the form of Cuneiform and was used throughout the Ancient Near East (pictured right).