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Home , Akkadian Empire, Akkad (city), Enheduanna, Gilgamesh, Kish (Sumer), Me (mythology)

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If YOU were there ... You are a crafter living in one of the of Sumer. Thick walls surround and protect your ,so you feel safe from the armies of .• other city-states. But you and your neighbors are fearful of other Main Ideas ---.. 1. The Sumerians created beings-the many gods and spirits that you believe are every- the world's first advanced where. They can bring illness or sandstorms or bad luck. society. ! 2. played a major role How might you protect yourself from in Sumerian society. -' gods and spirits'! ~-,I I The Big Idea J The Sumerians developed the " - '._ -- c .~- ~ -~- _ ~ - . - _ __-, - c _ first in . - l BUILDING BACKGROUND As developed along rivers, ~ their societies and governments became more advanced. Religion Key Terms and People ~ ~ became a main characteristic ofthese ancient cultures. Kings rural, p. 60 claimed to rule with the approval ofthe gods, and ordinary people urban, p. 60 I city-state, p. 60 r wore charms and performed rituals to avoid bad luck. , p. 61 l Sargon, p. 61 , p. 61 Advanced Society polytheism, p. 62 , p. 63 In southern Mesopotamia, a people known as the Surnerians social hierarchy, p. 63 (soo-MER-ee-unz)developed the world's first civilization. No one knows where they Came from or when they moved into the region. However, by 3000 BC, several hundred thousand Surne- rians had settled in Mesopotamia, in a land they called Sumer (soo-muhr). There they created an advanced society. ; Use the graphic organizer i online to take notes on the I Sumerian civilization. The City-States of Sumer Most people in Sumer were . They lived mainly in rural, I or countryside, areas. The centers of Sumerian society, however, I were the urban, or city, areas. The first cities in Sumer had about I I I 10,000 residents. Over time, the cities grew. Historians think that by 2000 BC, some of Sumer's cities had more than 100,000 residents. A5 a result, the basic political unit of Sumer combined the I I two parts. This unit was called a city-state. A city-state consisted of a city and all the countryside around it. The amount of coun- tryside controlled by each city-state depended on its military strength. Stronger city-states controlled larger areas.

60 D Empire of Sargon ~Sumer Ancient coastline of Persiari Gulf 100. 200 Miles Sargon Ruled 2334-2279 Be According to legend, a gardener found a baby floating in a on a river and raised him as his own child. This baby later became the Akkadian emperor Sargon.As a young man, Sargon served -, the king of . Sargon later rebelled against the Sumerian ruler, took over his City,and built into a military power. He was among the first military leaders to use soldiers armed with bows and . Sargon gained the loyalty of his soldiers by eating with them every day.

City-states in Sumer fought each other of their differences, however, the Akkadi- to gain more farmland. As a result of these ans and the Sumerians lived in peace for conflicts, the city-states built up strong many years. armies. Sumerians also built strong, thick That peace was broken in the 2300s Be walls around their cities for protection. when Sargon sought to extend Akkadian Individual city-states gained and lost territory. He built a new capital, Akkad power over time. By 3500 BC, a city-state (A-kad), on the River, near what known as Kish had become quite powerful. is now the city of . Sargon was the Over the next 1,000 years, the city-states of first ruler to have a permanent army. He and Ur.fought for dominance. One of used that army to launch a series of wars Uruk's kings, known as Gilgamesh, became against neighboring kingdoms. a legendary figure in Sumerian . Sargon's soldiers defeated all the city- ~ hmhsocialstudies.com states of Sumer. They also conquered ANIMATED, Rise of the northern Mesopotamia, finally bring- j HISTORY . Sumerian In time, another society developed along ing the entire region under his rule. With City- States, the and Euphrates. It was created by these conquests, Sargon established the 2300 BC the Akkadians (uh-KAY-dee-uhns). They world's first empire, or land with different lived just north of Sumer, but -they were territories and peoples under a single rule. not Sumerians. They even spoke a differ- The Akkadian Empire stretched from the ent than the Sumerians. In spite to the .

MESOPOTAMIA AND THE FERTILE 61 I Sargon was emperor, or ruler of his Religion Shapes Society empire, for more than SO years. However, ACADEMIC Religion was very important in Sumerian the empire lasted only a century after society. In fact, it played a role in nearly a part or his . Later rulers could not keep the role every aspect of public and private life. In function empire safe from invaders. Hostile tribes many ways, religion was the basis for all of from the east raided and captured Akkad. Sumerian society. A century of chaos followed. Eventually, however, the Sumerian ' city-state of Ur rebuilt its strength and con- The Sumerians practiced polytheism, the quered the rest of Mesopotamia. Political worship of many gods. Among the gods stability was restored. The Sumerians once they worshipped were , the of the again became the most powerful civiliza- air; , god of ; and , god- tion in the region. dess of love and war. The and were represented by the gods and .~ Summarizing How did Nanna. Each city-state considered one god Sargon build an empire? to be its special protector.

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I The Sumerians believed that their gods Sumerian Social Order had enormous powers. Gods could bring Because of their status, priests occupied a a good harvest or a disastrous flood. They high level in Sumer's social hierarchy, the could bring illness, or they could bring division of society by rank or class. In fact, good health and wealth. The Sumerians priests were just below kings. The kings of believed that success in every area of life Sumer claimed that they had been chosen depended on pleasing the gods. Every by the gods to rule. Sumerian had a duty to serve and to wor- Below the priests were Sumer's skilled ship the gods. craftspeople, merchants, and traders. ACADEMIC Priests, people who performed religious had a great impact' on Sumerian society. VOCABULARY ceremonies, had great status in Sumer. Traders traveled to faraway places and impact effect, result People relied on them to help gain the exchanged grain for , , , gods' favor. Priests interpreted the wishes lumber, and precious stones. of the gods and made offerings to them. Below traders, farmers and laborers These offerings were made in , made up the large working class. Slaves special buildings where priests performed were at the bottom of the social order. their religious ceremonies.

Inside the city's walls was another and a large harbor; where foreigners docked their while they traded with Ur's merchants. Men and Women in Sumer the Inanna. She is the first known Sumerian men and women had different female writer in history. roles. In general, men held political power and made , while women took care ~ Analyzing How did trade of the home and children. Education was affect Sumerian society? usually reserved for men, but some upper-

class women were educated as well. - Some educated women were priestesses , SUMMARY AND PREVIEW In this section in Sumer's temples. Some priestesses helped ~• you learned about Sumerian dty-states, shape Sumerian culture. One, , religion, and society. In Section 3, you will the daughter of Sargon, wrote hymns to read about the Sumerians' achievements.

Reviewing Ideas, Terms, and People Critical Thinking 1. a. Recall What was the basic political 3. Summarizing In the right Characteristics Notes unit of Sumer? of your note-taking chart, Cities Government b. Explain What steps did city-states take to write a summary sentence for Religion protect themselves from their rivals? each of the four characteristics. Society c. Elaborate How do you think Sargon's Then add a box at the bottom of t Summary Sentence: creation of an empire changed the history of the chart and write a sentence Mesopotamia? Defend your answer. summarizing the Sumerian civilization. 2. a. Identify What is polytheism? b. Draw Conclusions Why do you think priests were so influential in ancient Sumerian society? 4. Gathering Information about Sumer What aspects of Sumerian society will you include on c. Elaborate Why would rulers benefit if they claimed to be chosen by the gods? your poster? What important people, religious beliefs, or social developments do you think the students should learn?

64 CHAPTER 3 If YOU were there ... You are a student at a school for in Sumer: Learning all the Main Ideas symbols for is very hard. Your teacher assigns you lessons 1. The Sumerians invented the world's first . to write on your tablet, but you can't help making mistakes. 2. Advances and inventions

Then you have to smooth out the surface and try again. Still, being ;;.'!- changed Sumerian lives. 3. Many types of art developed a can lead to important jobs for the king. You could make J - in Sumer. your family proud. Why would you want to be a scribe'! The Big Idea The Sumerians made many advances that helped their , society develop. -1 ~-===-=~=-~==~~ BUILDING BACKGROUND Sumerian society was advanced in I Key Terms terms of religion and government organization. The Sumerians I ; , p. 65 were responsible for many other achievements, which were passedl pictographs, p. 66 1 down to later civilizations. i scribe, p. 66 J epics, p. 66 architecture, p. 68 The Invention of Writing , p. 68 The Sumerians made one of the greatest cultural advances in history. They developed cuneiform (kyoo-xas-uh-fohrm), the world's first system of writing. But Sumerians did not have pen- cils, pens, or paper. Instead, they used sharp tools called styluses to make wedge-shaped symbols on clay tablets.

Sumerians wrote on clay tablets with a special tool called a stylus.

65 hz Development of Writing , I· 3300 Be! 2800 Be j 2400 Be 1800 Be

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Earlier written communication had " Go to school, stand before your'school- used pictographs, or picture symbols. Each father: recite your assignment, open your pictograph represented an object, such schoolbag, write your tablet ... After you have finished your assignment and reported to your as a tree or an animal. But in cuneiform, monitor [teacher], come to , and do not symbols could also represent , or wander about in the street." basic parts of words. As a result, Sumerian -Sumerian essay quoted in History Begins at Sumer, writers could combine symbols to express by Samuel Kramer more complex ideas such as "joy" or "pow- In time, Sumerians put their writing erful." skills to new uses. They wrote works on Sumerians first used cuneiform to keep history, , , and math. They business records. A scribe, or writer, would also created works of literature. Sumerians be hired to keep track of the items people wrote stories, proverbs, and songs. They traded. Government offidals and temples wrote poems about the gods and about also hired scribes to keep their records. military victories. Some of these were epics, Becoming a scribe was a way to move up long poems that the stories of heroes. in sodal class. Later, people used some of these poems to Sumerian students went to school to create The , the story of a learn to read and write. But, like today, legendary Sumerian king. some students did not want to study. A Sumerian story tells of a father who urged READING CHECK Generalizing How was his son to do his schoolwork: cuneiform first used in Sumer?

66 CHAPTER 3 j Advances and Inventions Math and Sciences ') Writing was not the only great Sumerian Another area in which Sumerians excelled invention. These early people made many was math. In fact, they developed a math other advances and discoveries. system based on the number 60. Based on this system, they divided a circle into 360 [ liB Technical Advances degrees. Dividing a year into 12 months- Like the Sume- a factor of 60-was another Sumerian idea. rians we use a One of the Sumerians' most important base-60 system developments was the . They were Sumerians also calculated the areas of when we talk the first people to build wheeled , rectangles and triangles. about 60 seconds in a minute and . including carts and wagons. Using the Sumerian scholars studied science, too . 60 minutes in wheel, Sumerians invented a device that They wrote long lists to record their study an hour. spins clay as a craftsperson shapes it into of the natural world. These tablets included bowls. TIlls device is called a potter's wheeL the names of thousands of animals, plants, The plow was another important and minerals. Sumerian invention. Pulled by oxen, plows The Sumerians also made advances in broke through the hard clay of Sumer medicine. They used ingredients from ani- to prepare. it for planting. TIlls technique mals, plants, and minerals to produce heal- greatly increased farm production. The ing drugs. Items used in these medicines Sumerians also invented a clock that used included , turtle shells, figs, and salt. falling water to measure time. The Sumerians even catalogued their med- Sumerian advances improved daily life ical knowledge, listing treatments accord- in many ways. Sumerians built sewers ing to symptoms and body parts. under city streets. They leamed to use to make stronger tools and weapons. They ~ Categorizing What areas of even produced makeup and glass jewelry. life were improved by Sumerian inventions?

The Wheel Do you realize how much the achievements of ancient Sumer affect your life today-and every day? For instance, try to imagine life without the wheel. How would you get t t around? Look at the streets outside. The cars, trucks, and .! buses you see are all modern versions of Sumerian wheeled " vehicles. Wheelchairs, bicycles, and in-line skates all depend on as well. Even modern air travel owes a large debt to the Sumerians. As impressive as jets are, they could never get off the ground without their wheels!

ANALYZING INFORMATION ~- Generalizing Why is the wheel so important to modern society?

MESOPOTAMIA AND THE 67 I I I I I I

:- ~--". The Sumerians' artistic achievements included This stringed miisical I beautiful works of gold, wood, and stone. instrument is called a I . Itfeatures a cows head and is made of silver decorated with shell and stone.

Cylinder seals like this one were carved into round stones and then rolled over clay to leave their mark.

The Arts of Sumer The Arts Sumerian sculptors produced many fine The Sumerians' skills in the fields of art, works. Among them are the statues of gods metalwork, and architecture -the sci- created for temples. Sumerian artists also ence of building-are well known to us. The ruins of great buildings and fine works sculpted small objects out of and of art have provided us with wonderful rare woods. Sumerian is known more for its quantity than quality. Pot- examples of the Sumerians' creativity. ters turned out many items, but few were works of beauty. Architecture Jewelry was a popular item in Sumer. Most Sumerian rulers lived in large palaces. The jewelers of the region made many Other rich Sumerians had two-story homes beautiful works out of imported gold, with as many as a dozen rooms. Most peo- silver, and gems. and other items ple, however, lived in smaller, one-story found in the region show that Sumerian houses. These homes had six or seven jewelers knew advanced methods for put- rooms arranged around a small courtyard. ting gold pieces together. Large and small houses stood side by side Cylinder seals are perhaps Sumer's along the narrow, unpaved streets of the most famous works of art. These small city, Bricks made of mud were the houses' objects were stone cylinders engraved main building blocks. with designs. When rolled over clay, the

7i) hmhsocialstudies.com City centers were dominated by their designs would leave behind their imprint. ANIMATED temples, the largest and most impressive Each left its own distinct imprint. As a HISTORY buildings in Sumer. A ziggurat, a - result, a person could show ownership of Ziggurat shaped , rose above each dty. a container by rolling a cylinder over the Outdoor staircases led to a platform and a container's wet clay surface. People could shrine at the top. Some architects added col- also use cylinder seals to "sign" documents umns to make the temples more attractive. or to decorate other clay objects. What animal is shown in two ofthese works?

Some seals showed battle scenes. Others provided entertainment in marketplaces displayed worship rituals. Some were highly and homes. decorative, with hundreds of carefully cut gems. They required great skill to make. .~ Drawing Inferences What The Sumerians also enjoyed music. might historians learn from cylinder seals? Kings and temples hired musidans to play on spedal occasions. Sumerian musidans played reed pipes, drums, tambourines, fsUMMARY AND PREVIEW The Sumerians and stringed instruments called . Chil- [.greatly enriched their sodety. Next you dren learned songs in school. People sang will learn about the :"later peoples who hymns to gods and kings. Music and dance lived in Mesopotamia.

Reviewing Ideas, Terms, and People Critical Thinking

1. a. Identify What is cuneiform? 4. Identifying Effects In Advance/ b. Analyze Why do you think writing is one of a chart like this one, Achievement Effect history's most important cultural advances? identify the effect of I I c. Elaborate What current leader would you each Sumerian advance choose to write an epic about, and why? or achievement you 2. a. Recall What were two early uses of the wheel? listed in your notes. I - '- ' .. b. Explain Why do you think the invention of the plow was so important to the Sumerians? 3. a. Describe What was the basic Sumerian building material? 5. Evaluating Information Review the Sumerian b. Make Inferences Why do you think cylinder achievements you just read about. Then create seals developed into works of art? a list of Sumerian achievements for your . Would this list replace some of the information you collected in Section 2?

MESOPOTAMIA AND THE FERTILE CRESCENT