Geography and technology
What does the word Mesopotamia mean?
Land between two rivers.
It has enough food for all of it's people.
What is the name for the buildings used in ancient Sumer for worshiping their gods?
Ziggurats
What was the main issue regarding the rivers in Mesopotamia?
They flooded in the spring, destroying crops and homes.
Social Structure
What invention most affected the food supply in Sumer?
The plow
What are at least 3 things that would be considered art in ancient Sumer?
painting, architecture, music, literature, sculpting, metalworking.
This stringed instrument was popular in early Sumer.
Lyre
Name at least 3 ways the people in Mesopotamia solved the flooding problem.
They build canals, dams, levees, reservoirs.
Which ancient Sumerians most likely lived in a two-story house near the center of the city?
Nobles (kings/queens), priests, government officials.
What was an important invention that improved the work of potters, farmers, and soldiers?
The wheel
What was the written language of ancient Sumer called?
Cuneiform
What did ancient Sumerians believe pleased their gods?
When they showed them signs of devotion, love, and obedience.
Building a moat.
This group of people lived on the outside edges of the city-state often outside of the city walls.
Farmers.
What was Sumer's greatest architectural achievement?
The invention of the arch.
What where the 3 important technologies from Sumer?
The wheel, the arch, and the plow
What types of items would metal workers make in Sumer? (at least 3)
Weapons, cups, and decorative items such as mirrors or jewelry.
How did the irrigation system bring people together from other settlements?
People had to work together to build and maintenance the irrigation system because it went across city boundaries.
Who had the responsibility of having temples built, leading armies, and enforcing laws?
The king
What two bodies of water is Mesopotamia between?
the Tigris and Euphrates rivers
Name all 7 characteristics that make something a civilization.
1. stable food supply. 2. social structure 3. Government 4. Religion 5. Highly developed culture 6. technology 7. written language.
What did Sumerians use to produce cuneiform?
a wedge-shaped stylus
What did some City-States do to the irrigation systems that caused problems with other City-States?
They blocked water from other City-States so they could have more of it.
What Sumerian belief about the king helped strengthen the social order?
He was supported by the gods.