1. Mesopotamia

2. Geography/Interaction with Environment
LOCATION
Southwest Asia
Iraq and Syria
Dry, desert climate

3. Geography/Interaction with Environment
Fertile Crescent
Curve shaped area of rich soil

4. Geography/Interaction with Environment
Mesopotamia
Greek translated to “Land between the rivers”

5. Geography/Interaction with Environment
Tigris and Euphrates River
Flow southeast to Persian Gulf
Flood annually, leaving rich soil

6. Geography/Interaction with Environment
Challenges
Solutions
Unpredictable flooding
No rain
Dug irrigation ditches
No natural boundaries
Built mud brick walls around cities
Scarce natural resources
Traded grain for raw materials

7. Power and Authority Sumerian City-States 1st settled in 3300 BC
City-state is a city and its surrounding lands

8. Power and Authority
Ziggurat
Temple at the center of each city-state

9. Power and Authority Priest were Rulers
Priests acted as go betweens for the people and the Gods
Priests demanded crops as a form of taxation for their services
People believed that the Gods were responsible for all things in their lives (crops, rich soil, rain, etc.)

10. Power and Authority Warriors become King Dynasty
In time of crisis Priests were not the rulers
A strong leader was needed in time of crisis (ex. War)
Wars were for extended periods of time
Warriors would continue to rule
Dynasty
Series of rulers from a single family (pass on to sons)

11. Power and Authority
Social Classes:

12. Power and Authority Women’s Rights Most of the same as men Priest
Farmers
Artisans
Merchants

13. Religious and Ethical Systems
Polytheistic
Belief in more than one God
Sumerians feared the power of their Gods
Blamed natural disasters, poor crops, and illness on a persons social actions
Enlil
God of storms and air

14. Religious and Ethical Systems
Afterlife
Souls of dead went to “Land of No Return”
A dark, gloomy place

15. Religious and Ethical Systems
Epic of Gilgamesh
Long heroic poem
Gives us an idea about Sumerian life

16. Cultural Interaction/Economics/Empire Building
Trading Surplus
Allowed Sumerians to increase long distance trade and develop new city-states
Cultural Diffusion
When a new idea or product spreads from one cultural to another
Trading surplus allowed for cultural diffusion

17. Cultural Interaction/Economics/Empire Building
Bringing together of several nations under one ruler

18. Cultural Interaction/Economics/Empire Building
Sargon
Created the 1st empire (Akkad)
Akkadian Empire
2350BC
Helped spread Sumerian idea
Lasted 200 years
Internal conflicts will lead to its future breakdown

19. Cultural Interaction/Economics/Empire Building
Babylonian Empire
Amorites: nomadic warriors
Established empire along the Euphrates River
2000 BC
Hammurabi
Ruled during the peak of the B.E. from 1792 BC – 1750 BC

20. Cultural Interaction/Economics/Empire Building
Other empires
Babylon fell due to the invasions of the Kassites and then the Hittites.
Hittites- dominated iron and superior military power
Assyrians- neighboring empire; established capital at Nineveh
Assyrians were defeated by the Medes and the Chaldeans
Chaldeans- King Nebuchadnezzar (rebuilt Babylon)
Defeated by the Persian Empire

21. Cultural Interaction/Economics/Empire Building
Codified Law (Hammurabi’s Code)
Single, uniform code of laws
Unified a diverse empire
Engraved on stone and place in various cities around the empire
282 laws
Community, family relations, business, and crime
Principle of RETALIATION
Set different punishments for rich, poor, and women

23. Science and Technology
Arithmetic and Geometry
Needed to build walls, plan irrigation, and survey fields
Number system based on 60
Modern examples:
60 sec. = 1 min.
360*circle

24. Science and Technology
Architecture
Arches, columns, ramps, and pyramids
Example: Ziggurat

25. Science and Technology
Cuneiform
Sumerian writing system on clay tablets

26. Cultural Interaction/Economics/Empire Building
Hammurabi’s Code
Classwork (at the end of
the lesson)