1. The Fertile Crescent Life between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers

2. The Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia is considered the cradle of civilization - it was the first time that humans created and sustained (3,000 years) an urban, literate, technologically sophisticated society where people shared common values and a common view of the origins and order of the world.

3. The Fertile Crescent plateau: elevated flatland

4. The Fertile Crescent silt: tiny bits of rock and soil

5. The Fertile Crescent drought: long periods of dry weather

6. The Fertile Crescent irrigation: the watering of land with canals or pipes

7. The Fertile Crescent cuneiform: Sumer’s system of writing; one of the first writing systems invented

8. The Fertile Crescent scribe: record keepers of ancient times; Sumer’s writers

9. The Fertile Crescent city-state: a self-governing city that also governs surrounding villages

10. The Fertile Crescent ziggurat: a large, mud-brick building with a temple at its peak used for religious purposes

11. The Fertile Crescent polytheism: the belief in many gods and goddesses

12. The Fertile Crescent monotheism: the belief in one god or deity

13. The Fertile Crescent empire: a group of lands and peoples ruled by one government

14. The Fertile Crescent code of law: a written set of rules that applies to everyone

15. The Fertile Crescent aqueduct: a new kind of watering system; a raised waterway; carries mountain stream water to city

16. The Fertile Crescent moat: a canal used for protection

17. The Fertile Crescent tax: money collected by the government

18. The Fertile Crescent “Hanging Gardens” Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar built these for his wife

19. The Fertile Crescent “Hanging Gardens”

20. The Fertile Crescent “Hanging Gardens”

21. The Fertile Crescent “Hanging Gardens”