Mesopotamia – Sumer Notes
The 5 Themes
1. Location
Civilization Specific Information
What modern day countries or regions did this civilization
inhabit? (Page231), Google Earth, PowerPoint
a. Absolute
33ºN Latitude 44ºE longitude (Baghdad, Iraq)
b. Relative
“Between Two Rivers” _________ & ____________ – Arabian
Peninsula
Present Day: ____________________________
The Fertile Crescent – a region in _________________________ that was
the site of the world’s first civilizations.
c. Timeframe
2. Place
a. Physical
Characteristics
3500 BC – 226 BC
Provide detail about the physical and human characteristics
and how they may have influenced the people of this
civilization.
-
Pages 116-119, PowerPoint
Climate
_________________to _________ temperatures – low rainfall
Land Features
Low laying and fertile area between two _____________to the west
and the ____________ ______________to the east.
Rich and fertile soil (flooding deposits ____________ from higher
elevation areas).
b. Human
Characteristics
Bodies of Water
Between the Euphrates and Tigris rivers
- Culture/Traditions (Page 118-119 graphic, 122-126 power
point, and video)
Sumerians took ____________ very seriously and valued food and
______________.
- Religion (Pages 124-125, Power Point, Video)
______________________ – a belief in many gods. Sumerians
worshipped at temples called _________________: they practiced
polytheism and honored their gods with religious
_________________________.
- Language
Sumerian
- Communities
Cities were well developed, had __________ walls to keep out
invaders, large _________________, houses, busy shops, markets, and
splendid royal palaces.
City states shared culture, language, religion.
- Government/Political Structure
Each Sumerian was its own politically independent __________ _________; each had its own ____________, its own ___________, and its
own _________________________.
-
Buildings and landmarks (pages 124-125 graphic¸ page 126,
powerpoint)
______________ to the ______________(ziggurat).
______________________ palace – built for his wife who hated the
dry landscape of Mesopotamia.
- Daily Life
Cities with scribes, farmers, traders, artists, musicians, merchants,
beggars.
Social Structure
(http://www.ducksters.com/history/mesopotamia/daily_life_in_mesopotamia.php)
At the top of society was the ___________ and his ___________. The priests were
considered near the top as well. The rest of the upper class was made up of the
wealthy such as high level _________________and _______________.
Below the upper class was a small ____________ class made up of craftsman,
merchants, and civil servants. They could make a decent living and could work hard
to try and move up in class.
The lower class was made up of _______________ and _____________. These
people lived a harder life, but could still work their way up with hard work.
At the bottom were the _____________. Slaves were owned by the king or bought
and sold among the upper class. Slaves were usually people who were captured in
__________________.
Clothing
Clothing was typically made from ______________ or wool. The men wore kilt-like
____________ and the women wore longer dresses. They enjoyed wearing
__________________, especially rings. The women braided their long hair, while
the men had long hair and beards. Both men and women wore _______________.
3. Region
Babylonian Empire
Page 116
A ____________________ of trade due to its central location in Mesopotamia.
Roads were built throughout the empire. ________________, or groups of
travelers stopped in Babylon on their way between Sumer and Assyria. In the city’s
_________________ or markets shoppers could buy cotton cloth from India and
spices from Egypt.
_____________ conquered large amounts of land
Gathered great wealth through ___________________.
_____________________- created the Babylonian Empire in 1787 BC
Assyrian Empire
After defeating the Assyrians, the Chaldeans rebuilt and fortified the city of
_________________________.
Page 44
The Assyrians built a large empire by ________________first.
The Assyrians were skilled ______________ with advanced techniques of warfare;
their capital Nineveh a center of _________________. They invented the
___________________ ____________, a powerful weapon having a wooden
beam mounted on wheels. Assyrians also employed slings of _____________,
expert ______________ and armed ___________________.
Persian Empire
The Assyrians were finally defeated by two groups, The ______________ and The
________________________in 612 BC.
Page 46
The Perisans were located in present day ____________.
The Persians developed an advanced ______________ and supported ___________
and mathematics. Their rich trade network spread these ________________to
neighboring peoples.
4. Movement
a. Movement of
People
b. Movement of
Ideas
c. Movement of
Resources
5. HumanEnvironment
Interaction
a. Adapt to…
b. Modify…
c. Depend on…
PowerPoint and Video
Walking, using ___________ for carrying ____________
PowerPoint and Video
____________wrote letters and accounts of life.
Pages 48-49, Video
Hammurabi’s Code – Hammurabi ruled Babylonia from 1792-1750.
He set down rules for everyone in his empire to follow. The
__________ told the people of Babylonia how to settle _________ in
all areas of life.
- ______Laws
- Eye for an _________
PowerPoint and Video
Marketplace – goods bought and sold. Also, Trading – other citystates and civilizations
How did this civilization adapt to, modify, and depend on their
environment?
Page 36-37, PowerPoint
Houses and ________built
Oil lamps for ________
Flat __________
Pages 40-41
Local Officials decided when to open the ___________ in canals
which provided water for the farmers’ fields; farmers let their animals
graze in the wet soil to eat the weeds and spread out the ________
and minerals in the ______; farmers then broke up the soil and
planted the _______.
Fishing & Farming