Geography
This area of land in the Middle East, located around the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, where early Mesopotamian civilizations grew is called the _____.
Fertile Crescent
Worshipping multiple gods or deities is called _____
Polytheism
The wedge-shaped writing on clay tablets used by the Sumerians is called _____.
Cuneiform
The strict and harsh set of laws in ancient Mesopotamia is called the _____.
Code of Hammurabi
People who worked for the nobles and palaces and were farmers, fishermen, and crafters belonged to which social level?
Commoners
Name the two major rivers that define Mesopotamia
Tigris & Euphrates
What were the most prominent buildings in the Sumerian city-states?
Ziggurat
According to the test, cuneiform was usually written on what material?
Clay tablets
Describe the Code of Hammurabi.
The laws were engraved on stone and publicly displayed.
Name two jobs that people in Sumerian cities did.
Farmer, fisherman, crafter (or artisan, merchant)
Why was the Fertile Crescent especially good for farming?
Because floods left rich soil (silt) that made the land fertile for crops
What was the main purpose of those prominent buildings?
They were temples where Sumerians believed gods and goddesses ruled the city
“Cuneiform was the first _____.”
first writing system
Give two examples from the Code of Hammurabi that show it was strict or harsh
Example strict rules: severe physical punishments; class-based penalties where nobles and commoners received different punishments
“Describe how the invention of the wheel changed society.”
The wheel made transport of goods easier and faster, and it led to the potter’s wheel for making pottery
Why did nomads decide to stay in Mesopotamia?
Nomads stayed because Mesopotamia had reliable water/land for farming and rich soil in the Fertile Crescent
Give two short facts about how religion (temples/priests) influenced Sumerian cities?
Priests ran the temples and controlled religious rituals; temples held economic power
Name the epic poem from Mesopotamian times that describes the life of a legendary king
The Epic of Gilgamesh
Give 2 facts about the Code of Hammurabi
Three facts: (1) Created by Hammurabi, king of Babylon; (2) Laws covered family, trade, labor, and property; (3) Laws were engraved in stone and publicly displayed
Describe the Sumerian economy in two sentences using test vocabulary (mention farming, crafts, and trade).
The Sumerian economy relied on farming to produce surplus, craftspeople who made goods, and trade to get raw materials and sell products.
Describe two ways the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers affected where Sumerian cities developed
Rivers provided silt and water for irrigation; flooding shaped city placement and required levees/irrigation systems
Describe the Sumerian social hierarchy by naming the three social groups shown on the test pyramid and give a one-word description for each group’s role
Top: Nobles/kings (ruled); Middle: Free citizens/artisans (crafted/traded); Lower: Farmers/slaves (worked the land)
Explain two ways the invention of writing changed society, using test-based ideas such as record-keeping, laws, or trade.
Writing allowed permanent records (laws, trade agreements), helped officials collect taxes and manage resources
Explain how having a written code like Hammurabi’s would help rulers and judges in Mesopotamia (use test terms like “laws,” “justice,” or “public”).
Written codes provided consistent rules for judges and showed the ruler’s authority; public display made laws known to citizens
Mesopotamia is known as the “_____.”
Mesopotamia was known as the “Fertile Crescent.” It earned this name because its rich soil and river silt made farming productive and supported large cities.