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City-States in Mesopotamia

City-States in Mesopotamia. Chapter 2 Section 1. Key Terms. Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia City-state Dynasty. Cultural diffusion Polytheism Empire Hammurabi. Geography of the Fertile Crescent. Best farming in southwest Asia Fertile Crescent- curved shape and richness of land

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City-States in Mesopotamia

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  1. City-States in Mesopotamia Chapter 2 Section 1

  2. Key Terms • Fertile Crescent • Mesopotamia • City-state • Dynasty • Cultural diffusion • Polytheism • Empire • Hammurabi

  3. Geography of the Fertile Crescent • Best farming in southwest Asia • Fertile Crescent- curved shape and richness of land • Mesopotamia- means between two rivers • Tigris and Euphrates Rivers

  4. Environmental challenges • Sumerians 4500bc • Advantage- Good soil • Three disadvantages • Unpredictable flooding • No natural barriers for protection (defenseless) • Sumer limited resources

  5. Solving problems through organization • Provide water • Dug irrigation ditches • Allowed for surplus • Defense • Built wall of mud bricks • Traded grain, cloth, tools • Received stone, wood metal • Leaders organized construction

  6. Sumerians Create City-States • 3000 BC built many cities • Surrounded by fields of grains • Cities had own rulers and governments • City-State-Each city and surrounding land it controlled

  7. Priests and Rulers Share Control • Ziggurat was like city hall • Sumerian priests started standing armies • Leaders of army became rulers • Passed down to son • Dynasty-series of rulers from a single family

  8. Spread of Cities • 2500 BC • Long distance trading • Cities all over fertile crescent • Syria, Turkey, northern Iraq • Cultural diffusion new ideas spread from one culture to another

  9. Sumerian Culture • Polytheism- belief in many gods • Enlilgod of storms and air • Believed gods did human things • Fall in love • Have children • Quarreled

  10. Sumerian Culture • Gods could strike at any time • Tried to appease the gods • Sacrificed animals • Death went to “land of no return” • Between earths crust and the sea • Dismal place

  11. Sumerian Society • Top- Kings, landholders and priests • Next-Wealthy merchants • Majority- the people who worked with their hands • Slaves • Sumerian women could work and join the priesthood

  12. Sumerian Science and Technology • Invented the wheel, sail and plow • Arithmetic and geometry • Based on 60 (minutes, hours) circle 360 • Architecture- Arches, columns, ramps • Cuneiform-system of writing

  13. First Empire Builders • 3000-2000 Sumerians defeated • New rulers adopted their culture

  14. Sargon of Akkad • Defeated Sumer, adopted their culture • Sargon’s conquest spread Sumerian culture • Empire-brings together several people, nations under one ruler • Sargon’s Dynasty lasted 200 years

  15. Babylonian Empire • Amorites in 2000 BC defeat Sumerians • Capital at Babylon • Hammurabi’s code • Single uniform code of laws • Engraved in stone • Place throughout the empire • Had 282 laws

  16. Babylonian Empire • Included family relations • Crimes • Laws related to property • Protected women and children from unfair treatment • Eye for an eye a tooth for a tooth • If thief not caught government paid the victim • Government had a responsibility to the people

  17. Babylonia Empire • Hammurabi’s Code • Different punishments for rich and poor • Different for men and women • To bring about rule and righteousness

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