Vocabulary
Believing in more than one god
Polytheism
Which two rivers were located in Mesopotamia?
Euphrates and Tigris rivers
What was the name of the first civilization in Mesopotamia?
Sumer
Who was in the top upper class?
Kings and Priests
What farming tool was invented to help break apart soil to help farm
Plow
Having more than what is needed
Surplus
Semiarid
What were two complex institutions developed?
Religion
Government
Who else were considered to be in the upper class?
wealthy landowners
government officials
rich merchants
scribes
What was the invention of the wheel used for?
plow
wagons
pottery
Preparing soil to to grow useful crops
Agriculture
How did Mesopotamia get water to their crops?
Dug canals to bring water from the rivers to the farmland
How did producing a lot of food lead to more jobs?
There was enough food for everyone and they did not need as much people to farm
Who was in the lowest social class?
slaves
What mixture of metals did they make to use for weapons and tools
Bronze
The most important building in the middle of the city-center
Ziggurat
Mesopotamia had no wood and little stone and minerals. How did Mesopotamia deal with this problem?
Used mud to make bricks and plaster
Traded the large amounts of grain for stone, wood, and metal
Used metals to make bronze- much stronger
How did Mesopotamia keep track of writing? 2 ways
counting sticks
writing system
Who was in the middle social class?
free working people, farmers, merchants, artisans
marked symbols on clay
Symbols marked on clay that represented different words
Pictograph
How did agriculture influence the rise of civilization?
1. grew a lot of crops to feed more people
2. not everyone needed to farm so there became more jobs
3. Traded and started having more wealth
What made Mesopotamia a complex civilization?
larger population, more jobs, social classes, government, new technology
Why were kings and priests in the highest class?
1. Priests first controlled irrigation and wealth of city-state and they helped people pray and worship the gods
2. Kings were powerful and protected the city
What mathematical tools were invented?
number system based on 60
understanding of geometric shapes