Chapter 3 – Mesopotamia and the Fertile
Crescent
Section Notes
Geography of the Fertile Crescent
The Rise of Sumer
Sumerian Achievements
Later Peoples of the Fertile
Crescent
History Close-up
The City-State of Ur
Quick Facts
Hammurabi’s Code
Chapter 3 Visual Summary
Video
Mesopotamian Achievements
Maps
The Fertile Crescent
River Valley Civilizations
Sargon’s Empire, c. 2330 BC
Babylonian and Assyrian Empires
Phoenicia
Mesopotamia and the Fertile
Crescent
Assessment Map
Images
Development of Writing
Sumerian Achievements
Gilgamesh Statue
3.1-Geography of the Fertile Crescent
6.2.1
6.2.2
The Big Idea
The valleys of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers were the site of
the world’s first civilizations.
Main Ideas
• The rivers of Southwest Asia supported the growth of
civilizations.
• New farming techniques led to the growth of cities.
I. Rivers Support the Growth of
Civilization
1. The Tigris and Euphrates rivers are the
most important physical features of the
region known as Mesopotamia.
2. Farm settlements in Mesopotamia
eventually developed into civilizations.
A. Land Between Two
Rivers
1. Mesopotamia means “between the
rivers” in Greek.
2. Mesopotamia is part of a larger area of
rich farmland called the Fertile Crescent.
3. Mesopotamia was divided into two
regions in ancient times: northern and
southern Mesopotamia.
B. Rise of Civilizations
1. Annual floods on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers
brought silt that made the land ideal for
farming.
2. Silt is a mixture of rich soil and tiny rocks.
3. Plentiful food led to population growth and the
formation of villages.
4. Villages later developed into the world’s first
civilizations.
II. New farming techniques led to the
growth of cities.
1. Farmers used irrigation and
canals as a way to control river flow.
2. Increased amounts of food led to
surpluses, which meant that fewer
people needed to farm.
3. As a result, new occupations
developed.
A. Controlling Water
The water levels of the Tigris and Euphrates would rise or
fall, depending on the amount of rainfall. Irrigation and
canals helped solve flooding and drought problems.
Irrigation
A way of supplying water to an area of land
Canals
Human-made waterways
Farmers also built up the banks of the rivers to hold back
the floodwaters.
B. Food Surpluses and Effects
1. Irrigation increased the amount of food farmers
produced.
2. This created a food surplus, or more food than
they needed.
3. Fewer people needed to farm, so they took on
other roles and jobs.
4. When workers specialize in a particular task, a
division of labor is created.
C. The Appearance of Cities
1. Large projects were undertaken,
which led to the need for structure and
rules.
2. Settlements grew in size, creating
cities between 4000 and 3000 B.C.
3.2-The Rise of Sumer
6.2.3
The Big Idea
The Sumerians developed the first civilization in
Mesopotamia.
Main Ideas
• The Sumerians created the world’s first advanced society.
• Religion played a major role in Sumerian society.
I. An Advanced Society
1.Created basic political units
called city-states
2. Had strong armies
3. Built walled cities for
protection
A. The City-States of Sumer
1. Consisted of a city and all the
countryside surrounding it
2. The amount of countryside in each citystate depended on its military strength.
3. Fought each other to gain more farmland
4. Gained and lost power over time
B. Rise of Akkadian Empire
1. Akkadian ruler who had the first permanent army
2. Defeated all the city-states of Sumer
3. When his army conquered northern Mesopotamia, he
established the world’s first empire.
4. Empire: land with different territories and peoples
under a single rule
5. Sargon ruled for 50 years. After his death, his empire lasted
only a century longer.
II. Religion Shapes
Society
A. Sumerian polytheism was the basis for
all Sumerian society.
1. Polytheism is the worship of many gods.
2. Gods had enormous powers.
3. Priests had great statues built in Sumer.
4. Priests were people who performed
religious ceremonies.
B. Sumerian Social Order
1. Social hierarchy: the division of society by rank or class
2. Kings were at the top of the order because they claimed
to be chosen to rule by the gods.
3. Social order
a. Kings
b. Priests
c. Skilled craftspeople, merchants, and traders
d. Large working class of farmers and laborers
e. Slaves
C. Men and Women in
Sumer
1. Men generally held the political power and made
laws.
2. Women generally took care of the home and
children.
3. Education was generally reserved for men, but some
upper class women were educated.
4. Some women were priestesses in Sumerian
temples.
a. Enheduanna, a priestess who wrote hymns, is the
first known female writer in history.
3.3-Sumerian Achievements
The Big Idea
The Sumerians made many advances that helped their
society develop.
Main Ideas
• The Sumerians invented the world’s first writing system.
• Advances and inventions changed Sumerian lives.
• Many types of art developed in Sumer.
6.2.9
I. The Invention of Writing
1. The cuneiform system involved the use
of sharp tools called styluses.
2. The Sumerians first used cuneiform to
keep business records.
3. The Sumerians also used their writing
skills to write books about history,
poems, and math.
Invention of Writing cont’d
Cuneiform
• World’s first
system of writing
• Cuneiform
symbols could
represent
syllables. Earlier
pictographs had
represented only
objects.
• The Sumerians
wrote on clay
tablets with a
stylus.
Scribes
• Writers
• Kept track of
items people
traded and
wrote down
government
records
• Scribes could
move up in
social class.
Other Uses
• Wrote works of
literature, stories,
proverbs, and
songs
• Wrote poems
about the gods
and military
victories.
• Created epics,
long poems that
tell the stories of
heroes.
II. Advances and Inventions
A. Technical Advances
1. Development of the wheel
a. Used for carts and wagons
b. Potter’s wheel
2. The plow increased farm production.
3. Sewers under city streets
B. Math and Sciences
a. Number system based on 60
b. Names of animals, plants, and minerals
1. Used medicines for healing and catalogued medical
knowledge
III. The Arts of Sumer
A. Architecture
1. Rulers lived in large
palaces.
2. Most Sumerians lived in
houses with many rooms
around a small courtyard.
3. Mud bricks were the
houses’ main building
blocks.
4. A ziggurat, or pyramidshaped temple tower, rose
above each city.
B. The Arts
1. Sculptors produced many
statues of the gods for their
temples.
2. Jewelry was a popular item
made from imported gold,
silver, and gems.
3. Engraved cylinder seals are
one of Sumer’s most
famous types of art.
a. Battle scenes
b. Show ownership
c. Highly decorative
3.4-Later Peoples of the Fertile Crescent
The Big Idea
After the Sumerians, many cultures
ruled parts of the Fertile Crescent.
Main Ideas
• The Babylonians conquered Mesopotamia and created a
code of law.
• Invasions of Mesopotamia changed the region’s culture.
• The Phoenicians built a trading society in the eastern
Mediterranean region.
6.2.4
I. The Babylonians Conquer
Mesopotamia
A. The Rise of Babylon
1. Hammurabi was Babylon’s king.
2. During his rule, Babylon became the
most important city in Mesopotamia.
3. Hammurabi’s Code was a set of 282
laws he created that dealt with almost
every part of daily life.
Hammurabi
• Babylon’s king
and the city’s
greatest
monarch, or
ruler of a
kingdom or
empire
• Brilliant war
leader who
brought all of
Mesopotamia
into his
Babylonian
Empire
• Oversaw building
and irrigation
projects and
improved the tax
system
• Developed a set
of laws that was
written down for
all to see
B. Hammurabi’s Code
1. Hammurabi wrote down 282 laws which
contained some ideas still found in laws today.
2. Specific crimes brought specific penalties.
3. Social class was taken into account. It was a
greater crime to injure a rich man than a poor
one.
4. It was unique not only because of how
thorough it was, but also because he wrote it
down for all to see.
II. Invasions of Mesopotamia
1. Armies battled for control of fertile land.
2. Different peoples ruled Mesopotamia.
a. Hittites
b. Kassites
c. Assyrians
d. Chaldeans
3. Each group affected the culture of the
region.
A. The Hittites & Kassites
1. The Hittites were the first to master ironworking, so they
made the strongest weapons of the time.
2. They used the chariot, a wheeled, horse-drawn cart, which
allowed them to move quickly around the battlefield.
3. They were taken over by the Kassites after their king was
assassinated.
4. The Kassites ruled for almost 400 years.
B. The Assyrians
1. The Assyrians had a strong army that
used chariots and iron weapons.
2. They spread terror before battles by
looting villages and burning crops.
3. Assyrian kings ruled their empire
through local leaders who each governed
a small area.
4. The local leaders demanded heavy taxes.
C. The Chaldeans
1. The Chaldeans attacked the Assyrians when
they were weak and destroyed their empire.
2. Nebuchadnezzar rebuilt Babylon into a
beautiful city that had the famous Hanging
Gardens.
3. They admired the Sumerian culture, studied
their language, and built temples to Sumerian
gods.
4. Babylon became a center for astronomy.
III. The Phoenicians
Resources
• Prized Cedar
trees for timber
• Accessed the sea
for trade
• Built great
harbors
Expansion of
Trade
Trade
• Sailed ships
around the
Mediterranean
Sea
• Founded several
new colonies
along the trade
routes
• Became wealthy
Alphabet
• Recorded their
activities
• Made writing
much easier for
everyone
• Is the basis for
the English
language
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