1. Ancient Mesopotamia The land between the rivers in Greek

2. Mesopotamia - The Fertile Crescent Covers area of Iraq, parts of Syria, Turkey Region called Fertile Crescent due to shape, fertile soil

3. Mesopotamia is a region, not a country. Refer to the individual Peoples that made up Mesopotamia; the Sumerians, Akkadians, Babylonians, Assyrians, Chaldeans, and to some degree the Hittites, Phoenicians and Persians

4. The Mesopotamian City-States City-state—city and areas it controls. high walls protect it from invaders. irrigation canals provide water to areas with little rainfall. allow safe trading of grain, dates, stones, metals, & timber.

5. The Mesopotamian City-State Sumerians—form city-states around 3000 B.C.E. Ruled by temple priests, then elected leaders later became kings. Kings control politics, military; priests control religion, economy.

6. The Mesopotamian City-State Each city-state built a temple to a specific guardian god. Ziggurat – Temple that is a pyramid-shaped tower.

7. Hammurabi Babylonian emperor who ruled Mesopotamia between 1792–1750 B.C.E. Hammurabi’s code – the first set of written laws. Very strict “eye for an eye”