What Civilizations Developed in the Tigris-Euphrates Valley?

Chapter 25: Section 2

LEQ(s) What civilizations developed in the Tigris-Euphrates Valley? What were the major achievements of ancient Mesopotamian civilizations? How did trade and warfare affect Middle Eastern civilizations? How did the Greek and Roman cultures blend with the culture of the Middle East?

II. Early Civilizations A. Sumerian Civilization 1. the first major civilization of the Middle East 2. they had large-scale projects such as irrigation systems, flood control, and government buildings 3. 3500 B.C. – powerful city-states controlled the surrounding farmland and usually had their own special god, code of laws, and army 4. rival city-states were Erech, Ur, and Kish 5. Sumerians believed that gods were all-powerful and if the gods were angry they would send disasters such as flood and disease 6. Sumerian priests were important because it was their sole task to memorize all the hymns, rituals, and prayers needed to keep the gods happy 7. the chief building in each city-state was a ziggurat, which was a many-tiered temple 8. priests controlled daily tasks over the populace from the ziggurat such as collecting taxes, making offerings, supporting the activities of the temple, providing education (scribes people who kept records) 9. writing was important for trade, governing, ideas, and as a tool for cultural diffusion 10. Sumerians wrote in a language called cuneiform (from the Latin word cuneus, meaning “wedge.”) 11. they were the first people known for the wheel, plow, calendar, geometry, arithmetic, measurement up to 60, and the sail

12. Sumer.asx B. Warfare and Trade Spread Culture 1. a pattern has emerged throughout the Fertile Crescent over the course of history 2. nomadic people from the highlands were attracted to the fertile river valleys and rich cities of the plains and would conquer the area 3. the invaders would adopt their culture and intermingle their ways with those they conquered 4. 1700 BC, King Hammurabi and his followers conquered most of the Fertile Crescent 5. he made one universal code out of all the laws, Hammurabi’s code included 282 laws in order to maintain peace and order 6. the code distinguished major from minor crimes and tried to make the punishment fit the crime 7. these laws were put in public for all to see and would influence later societies 8. 1500 BC- the Hittites invaded using iron weapons 9. the invasion facilitated cultural diffusion of ideas and technology, Mesopotamian culture later spread to Asia Minor (modern day Turkey) influencing the Greeks 10. in modern day Lebanon, the Phoenicians developed commerce and trade 11. they are known as the “carriers of civilization” because they spread ideas through commerce and by setting up colonies abroad 12. the Phoenicians used an alphabet of 22 symbols unlike Egyptian hieroglyphics 13. the Greeks would then add four symbols to their alphabet 14. the Roman alphabet was influenced by the Greeks, which was inherited by the western world C. The Persian Empire 1. 500 BC – conquered from Asia Minor to the Indus Valley 2. Darius I divided his empire into 20 provinces, each area was responsible to the homeland of a particular group of people 3. they tolerated diversity of religion, language, and custom 4. satrap – governor of each province which was responsible for collecting taxes and maintaining order 5. special inspectors known as the “eyes and ears of the king” came on regular tours to check the satraps 6. Persians improved and expanded roads 7. they had a messenger system based on relay stations 8. at these stations existed supplies and fresh horses; messengers could exchange information very quickly through this system 9. peace, order, and a good road system encouraged trade 10. Darius set up a uniform system of coinage which set and established value for each coin 11. metal coins were first introduced by the Lydians 12. the use of coins facilitated a money economy instead of a barter economy

D. Zoroaster and the Forces of Good and Evil 1. founder of Zoroastrianism around 600 BC 2. life is a series of battles between good and evil 3. the god Ahura Mazda led the forces of good 4. the god Ahriman led the forces of evil 5. Zoroaster claimed people must choose a side to fight on 6. he converted the King of Bactria named Vishtaspa 7. his teachings were written in the Zend-Avesta 8. his teachings influenced how the Persians treated their newly conquered subjects, such as in a more humane way or tolerance of their different culture

E. Greek and Roman Influences 1. 334 BC Alexander the Great forges an Empire from Greece to the Indus Valley

2. Alexander Fights the Persians.asx 3. Hellenic – referring to Greek Culture 4. Hellenistic – referring to the mixture of Greek and Middle Eastern Culture 5. Alexandria, Egypt was a city known for its Hellenistic culture and as a place of learning

6. Heart of the Persian Empire.asx

7. Spread of Hellenism.asx 8. 115 AD – the Romans conquered Asia Minor, the Nile Valley, and the Fertile Crescent – this facilitated cultural diffusion of goods, technology, and ideas (Christianity) 9. 395 AD – the Roman Empire splits, the eastern portion is also known as the Byzantine Empire 10. the Byzantine empire ruled the Middle East from Constantinople for roughly the next 1000 years