Transcript File - Dr. Afxendiou`s Classes

Aim: Why did the first civilization
develop in Mesopotamia?
• How did Mesopotamia get its
name?
• What does this say about
Mesopotamia?
• Why did people choose to live
there?
Mesopotamia
• “Land between the rivers”
EARLY CIVILIZATIONS
1
1 = Mesopotamia
Label the following geographical
features on your map:
1. Fertile Crescent
2. Tigris and Euphrates
Rivers
3. Mediterranean Sea
Geographic Features
• Rivers
• Open plains
• Arid
Present Day Country
Iraq
Importance of location by a river
• Fertile land for farming
• Irrigation systems
• Trade and communication
What does a society need to
have in order to be called a
“civilization”?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Cities
Government
Organized religion
Job specialization
Social classes
Arts and architecture
Public works
Writing
•Ur, Babylon, Kish, Erech
1. Cities
2. Government
•Hammurabi’s Code
3. Organized religion
•Ziggurats: pyramid like temples
3. Organized religion
•Polytheism: belief in many gods
4. Job
Specialization
•Artisan: Craftsman (weaver, carpenter)
5. Social Classes
Priests/Nobles
Warriors
Merchants
Peasant farmers
Slaves
6. Art and Architecture
•Painting
•Step Pyramids
Standard
of Ur
Economic Structure
• Irrigation led to:
• Trade and commerce
• Trade led to:
• Barter system (no money used)
7. Public
Works
•Irrigation Systems
•Defense Walls
8. Writing
•Cuneiform: wedge shaped writing
• Reason for writing system
• Keep track of buying and selling
• Scribes kept accurate records of
business transactions by writing
on clay tablets
Advances in learning and technology
Number
system
based on
60
http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/
player/kids/people-places-kids/iraqmesopotamia-kids.html
“Sumerian City Planning”
• What do city planners have to take
into account when mapping out a
city?
• How does the geography shape the
actions of city planners?
Hanging Gardens of Babylon
According to accounts, the gardens were built to cheer up King
Nebuchadnezzar's homesick wife, Amyitis. Amyitis, daughter of
the king of the Medes, was married to Nebuchadnezzar to create
an alliance between the nations. The land she came from,
though, was green, rugged and mountainous, and she found
the flat, sun-baked terrain of Mesopotamia depressing. The king
decided to recreate her homeland by building an artificial
mountain with rooftop gardens.
Epic of Gilgamesh
• Tells the story of a
great flood
• How did geography
shape life during
this time?
Teaches story that only gods are immortal.
Humans have to deal with the pain of death.
• Why was Mesopotamia
called the “Cradle of
Civilization”?
Summary
• Why were the people of
Mesopotamia able to build a
great civilization?
• At what point does a
civilization become an
empire?
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Key Vocabulary
City-states
Polytheistic - believed in many gods
Ziggurats – pyramid like temples
Ruler – enforced law, collected taxes,
maintained irrigation systems
Cuneiform – wedge shaped writing
Social structure
Trade
Theocracy – government based on
divine authority