Transcript Read to Discover

Sumerian Civilization
Created by:
Alyssa
Julio
Vocabulary
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Cuneiform-Sumerian writing made by
pressing a wedge-shaped tool into clay
tablets.
Arch-Curved structure over an
opening.
Ziggurats-Sumerian temples made of
sun-dried brick.
city-state-Form of government that
includes a town or city and the
surrounding land controlled by it.
Read to Discover
• How did geography affect the
development of the Sumerian
civilization?
• What were the achievements of the
Sumerian people?
• What was life like in Sumerian society?
The Land: Its Geography and
Importance
• A strip of fertile land begins at the Isthmus of
Suez and arcs through Southwest Asia to the
Persian Gulf. The land within this crescentshaped area is so well suited to farming that it
is known as the Fertile Crescent. Between
5000 B.C. and 4000 B.C., Neolithic farmers
began to build an identifiable civilization in the
Fertile Crescent. Their society was built
around the cooperation necessary to control
floodwaters and to irrigate fields.
The Tigris and Euphrates River
• The Tigris and Euphrates Rivers are major
geographical features of the Fertile Crescent.
• The Tigris-Euphrates Valley has been known
by many names, including Mesopotamia. The
southeastern part of the valley has usually
been called Babylonia.
• Both the Tigris and the Euphrates overflow
often, sending floodwaters swirling over the
surrounding land.
More information
• Unlike the Nile flood, the flooding of the Tigris
and Euphrates cannot be easily predicted.
• The early people of the valley viewed nature
and the gods as harsh and unpredictable.
• As with the Nile Valley, the Fertile Crescent
was surrounded by dry lands and mountains.
Some More Information
• Tribes of wandering herders lived off the
grasses and other plant life there. They often
invaded the valley, conquered it, and
established empires.
• Over time, these invaders grew weak and
new waves of invaders conquered them. This
pattern makes the history of the Fertile
Crescent a story of repeated migration and
conquest.
Sumer and Its
Achievements
• As the Tigris and Euphrates flow to the
Persian Gulf, they carry rich soil. In ancient
times, particularly fertile soil covered the
lower part of the Tigris-Euphrates Valley.
• Neolithic people settled in this area, called
Sumer, and grew crops. Over time, they
created what we call Sumerian culture.
• By 3000 B.C. these people used metal and
had developed a kind of writing called
pictographs, or picture writing. Sumerian
pictographs are one of the earliest known
forms of writing.
Pictures
Sumerian writing
• Sumerians wrote by pressing marks into
clay tablets.
• Writers used a wedge-shaped tool called
a stylus.
• Cuneiform writing developed from
pictographic writing. Sumerians had
about 600 cuneiform signs.
Architecture and science
The Sumerians may also have invented several
important architectural designs. The arch, a curved
structure over an opening, is one of the strongest
forms in building.
By combining several arches, the Sumerians built
rounded roofs in the shape of domes or vaults.
• The most striking Sumerian buildings were the
temples, known as ziggurats.
• Each could be up to 150 feet high. The top served as
a shrine to a Sumerian god.
Egyptian Life and Culture
Created By:
Alyssa
Read to Discover
• What did the Egyptians achieve in the
arts and architecture?
• How did the Egyptians express their
religious beliefs?
• How were farming and trade carried on
in Egypt?
Vocabulary
• Scribes-Egyptian clerks who read or
wrote for those who could not do so for
themselves.
• Mummification-Process of preserving
the body with chemicals after death.
• Caravans-Groups of people traveling
together for safety over long distances.
The Main Idea
• Egyptian culture was marked by long
periods of stability built around their
religion and geography.
Architecture and the arts
The Egyptians built the pyramids as tombs for
the pharaohs.
The best-known pyramids, including the Great
Pyramid, tower above the sands at Giza.
Built in about 2600 B.C., the Great Pyramid
covers about 13 acres at its base. It was
originally about 480 feet high and was
constructed with more than 2 million blocks of
stone, each weighing about 5,000 pounds.
More Information
• Building the pyramids required great skill. Egyptian
architects and engineers ranked among the best in
the ancient world. Historians believe the engineers
built ramps and levers, which were used by
thousands of workers to move the heavy stones.
• The Egyptians perfected other art forms as well.
Sculptors crafted small, lifelike statues of rulers and
animals. Buildings were decorated with paintings of
everyday life. The paintings show farmers in their
fields, artisans at work, and people at banquets. They
provide us with colorful examples of the Egyptian way
of life.
Science, math, and medicine
• Early in their history the Egyptians invented a
calendar based on the movements of the moon.
• Some time later, the Egyptians realized that a bright
star appeared above the horizon right before the Nile
floods. The time between one rising of this star and
the next is 365 days.
• To keep track of the years, Egyptians counted the
years of the pharaohs' reigns. For example, they
might refer to the first, second, or tenth years of the
reign of a certain pharaoh.
More Information
• In addition to developing a calendar, the Egyptians
used a number system based on ten. This system is
similar to the decimal system used today. The
Egyptians used fractions and whole numbers. They
also used geometry to build pyramids and rebuild
fields after floods.
• The Egyptians made important discoveries in
medicine. They knew a good deal about the human
body. They used their knowledge to treat illnesses
and to preserve bodies after death. Although
Egyptian treatments included "magic spells," they
also often involved herbs and medicines.
Education and Religion
• To pass on their knowledge, Egyptians
developed an educational system.
• Education focused mainly on an elite group of
people called scribes, or clerks.
• Scribes learned to read and write so that they
could work for the government.
• Religious instruction formed an important part
of Egyptian education. Schools were usually
attached to temples. In fact, religion played a
major role in Egyptian life.
The gods
In the early days of Egyptian civilization, many villages had their
own local god or gods. These gods often had an animal symbol
that people considered sacred. Sacred animals included the cat,
the bull, the crocodile, and the scarab beetle.
• In time, some of these gods came to be worshiped by people
throughout Egypt.
• The most important god was Amon, the creator, identified with
the sun.
• Osiris, who judged people after death, was also associated with
the Nile River—just as the Nile River regularly flooded and
receded, Osiris periodically died and was reborn.
The afterlife
• At first, Egyptians believed that only pharaohs had an
afterlife, or life after death. Later, Egyptians believed
that everyone, including animals, had an afterlife.
• They believed that in the afterlife a person was
judged. The person's heart, which would tell whether
the person had lied, murdered, or been too proud,
was weighed on a great scale against a sacred
feather, the symbol of truth.
• If the scale balanced, the heart had told the truth. It
could then enter a place of eternal happiness.
• If the scale did not balance, the heart was thrown to a
horrible monster called the Eater of the Dead.
More Information
• Egyptians believed that the body had to be preserved to make
life after death possible.
• To do this, they developed a process called mummification.
• Organs were removed from the body, which was then treated
with chemicals. This process preserved the body for centuries.
Workers placed the mummy in a tomb stocked with clothing,
food, tools, and weapons. They even included painted figures
that represented servants.
• The number and value of the objects in the tomb depended on
the importance of the dead person. The Egyptians considered
that the objects were necessary for the afterlife.
Society and Economy
• The pyramids reflected the greatness of the
pharaohs. Most Egyptians could never hope for
wealth or power.
• They ranked as the equals of their husbands in social
and business affairs.
• An Egyptian woman could own property in her own
right. She could leave that property to her daughter.
• In many ways, Egyptian women had more freedom
and power than women of other cultures in the
region.
Farming
Farmland in Egypt was divided into large estates.
Peasants did most of the farming.
Wheat and barley were the chief grain crops. Flax
was grown and then spun and woven into linen.
Farmers also grew cotton, just as important to Egypt
in ancient times as it is today, for weaving into cloth.
The peasants, however, could keep just part of the
crop. The rest went to the pharaoh, who legally
owned all land.
The life of a farmer was difficult.
Trade
• Trade was also tightly controlled by the government.
Since the peasants of ancient Egypt grew more food
than the country needed, Egyptians traded the extra
food with other peoples. As trade developed it offered
new opportunities to the growing merchant class.
Merchants riding donkeys and later camels formed
caravans—groups of people traveling together for
safety over long distances. Caravans traveled from
Egypt to western Asia and deep into Africa. Egyptians
also traded by sea. They were among the first people
to build seagoing ships. Egyptian ships sailed the
Mediterranean and Red Seas and traveled the
African coast.