Social Studies Mrs. Kind

Name______Date______Social Studies Mrs. Kind

Ancient Mesopotamia Chapter 1: Lesson 2

Overview The invention of writing helped to bring the ancient cities together. Laws, letters, records, stories, instructions, riddles, and proverbs could be widely shared thanks to cuneiform. Cuneiform was the system of writing invented in Sumer.

Cuneiform Facts

1. The word cuneiform means “wedged shaped.”

2. Clay tablets were left in the sun to dry.

3. Boys had to memorize all of the cuneiform characters. There were 500 possible combinations.

4. Not many people knew how to read or write cuneiform.

5. If you could understand cuneiform you were guaranteed an excellent job in government, trade or in a ziggurat.

6. Hundreds of thousands of cuneiform tablets were discovered in Iraq.

Discussion Questions

1. Why was it an honor to become a scribe in Mesopotamia? 2. How was Egyptian culture similar to the culture of Mesopotamia? How was it different? 3. How did cuneiform help Sargon to create and rule an empire in Mesopotamia? Vocabulary Development Definition Sentence/Description

Cuneiform

City-state

Ziggurat

Polytheism

Code of law