Sumerian Civilization Along the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers

1. Sumerian Civilization Along the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers • The Tigris -Euphrates River valley was an area of conflict. • The Tigris River carries more water. The Euphrates more silt than the Nile. • The Northern part of the valley Mesopotamia, the southern Babylonia.

3. Sumer and its people • Where the Tigris-Euphrates reach the Persian Gulf lies ancient Sumer. • The Sumerian culture developed at the same time as the Nile River Valley. 3000 B.C. • The Sumerians developed city-states. The city-sates of Ur, Kish and Erech. Medical tablet

4. Sumerian Social Life • The Sumerians had three social classes. Nobles, merchants/artisans, and peasants. • Sumerian writing was on clay tablets. The writing with a stylus was wedged and called cuneiform. 600 signs. • The Sumerians traded all over the Middle East. They used clay bricks to build. The arch was a Sumerian design. They built ziggurats.

6. Sumerian Knowledge • The Sumerians developed some of the principles of Algebra. Used sets of 60 for large numbers. 360 degree circle. • Anu, lord of heaven, Enlil- god of air and storms, EA - god of water. • Education was important in Sumerian culture. Sumerians were polytheistic. • No firm belief in the afterlife, but in ghosts.

8. Empires in the Fertile Crescent • The Akkadians under Sargon. 2400 B.C. Lasted for 100 years. • About 1792 B.C a strong Babylonian king Hammurabi. Developed the Code of Hammurabi. • The Code of Hammurabi was harsh. 282 laws governed everyday life. “An eye for an eye was the response in most cases.

12. The Hittites, Assyrians and Chaldeans • The Hittites invaded Mesopotamia 1600 B.C. They used iron weapons and had an easier code of law. • The Assyrians invaded around 900 B.C. They used cavalry and were cruel warriors. They built roads, a postal service, and used mercenaries. • The Chaldeans controlled much of the Assyrian empire under Nebuchadnezzar. Hanging Gardens , astronomy

14. The Persians • The Persians conquered Babylon in 539 B.C. and spoke Indo-European language. • The region became known as Persia. • The rulers of Persia - Cyrus, led a revolt against the Medes and conquered Asia Minor. • Darius the Great added areas as far as India to the Persian Empire. • Xerxes invaded Greece in 400 B.C.

16. Persian Government and Religion • The Persians allowed conquered people to keep their religion. They paid close attention to local customs. • The Persians copied the road system of the Assyrians, and the secret police. • 600 B.C. a prophet and religious reformer changed the religion to Zoroasterism • Good versus evil and the belief in one God. 331 B.C. Persian Empire falls.

18. The Phoenicians • Land along the Mediterranean. The northern part was Phoenicia and Lydia and the southern was Caanan, Israel, and Palestine. • Phoenicia was a group of city states. They used the sea to make a living. • They were great merchants and traders. The famous purple cloth. • The Phoenician alphabet basis of Greek alphabet.

20. The Lydians • The Lydians were the first people to use coined money. Before the Lydians people had to barter. • With coins the Lydians developed a money economy.

21. The Hebrews • The basis of modern Judaism. They had the greatest impact on the area. The were from Sumeria and then to Goshen. • Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt. • The Ten Commandments - the moral laws of the God Yahweh. • The commandments emphasize self-restraint, the importance of family, and formal worship of one God.