Zagros Foothills
What mountain range were the Zagros Foothills at the base of?
The Zagros Mountains
What did the people who settle Sumer become known as?
Sumerians
What is irrigation?
the control of water supply
an independently ran city with its own ruler and surrounding farmland is known as a
city-state
Problem: Neighboring communities started attacking eachother
Solution:
mud brick walls and moats
What was the weather like in the Zagros Foothills?
mild, with plenty of rain
What was the soil like in Sumer?
-dry, hard
An irrigation technique that was used to direct the path of water, would direct water to crops
canals
What would city states fight over
water
Solution: Irrigation Systems
Problem:?
Uncontrolled water supply
What did settlers of the Zagros Foothills use stones for?
making tools
What two rivers flowed through Sumer?
Tigris and Euphrates
An irrigation technique of built up ridges on riverbanks to prevent flooding
levee
What defense did city-states use that was a ditch dug around the city filled with water
moat
Problem: food shortages in the hills
Solution?
move to the plains of Sumer
What problem occurred in the Zagros Foothills and why?
food shortages due to population increase
Why did the Tigris and Euphrates rivers flood unexpectedly?
the snow from the mountains would melt and overflow the rivers
An irrigation technique of blocking of water ways to stop the flow of water
dam
What material made up the walls that surrounded the city-state
mud bricks
Solution: villages would work together to build and maintain the irrigation systems
Problem?
silt clogged the canals
Give four characteristics of the Zagros Foothills
-mild weather
-plenty of rain
-became overcrowded
-fertile farmland
-wooded forests
-natural resources such as stones
Give four characteristics of Sumer
-large area with few people
-flat plains
-two rivers flowed through that flooded unpredictably
-few natural resources and barriers
-hot and dry
-hard, dry soil
An irrigation technique of a stored pool of water to save for later use
reservoir
What were two city-states in Sumer?
Ur
Kish
Nippur
Eridu
Uruk
Lagash
Why was it necessary for city-states to have defenses?
There were no natural barriers, nothing to stop invaders