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Unit 2: Chapter 3 -The Fertile Crescent Section 1 – the Civilization Of Unit 2: Chapter 3 -The Fertile Crescent Section 1 – The Civilization of Sumer The Fertile Crescent is a region of the Middle East that stretches in a large, crescent-shape curve from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea. - Within this area is Mesopotamia –a wide flat plain in present day Iraq that lies between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. o Here is where Sumer (the world’s first civilization) began to form. This was a good place for civilization to develop. This was because of its location near rivers which provided a number of things: water for soil to grow crops, a way of transportation for trade and travel. Agriculture in Mesopotamia o Rich fertile soil to be able to grow many grains and vegetables. o Sheep, goats and cattle were raised - Southern Mesopotamia is hot, dry, desert-like region with little rainfall. o Even so, the soils are rich with nutrients due to the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. These rivers have carried fine, fertile soil called silt down from the mountains. Each spring the rivers flood their banks spreading the rich soil/silt across the plain making perfect conditions for growing crops. But these floods can pose challenges as well –Floods could was away crops and villages while Sumer can be extremely hot with little or no rain. o Technology was used to resolve these issues. Irrigattion- the supply of water to their crops. Digging irrigation canals for many miles to their fields to supple water for their crops. New method for planting seeds – developed a seed funnel that would automatically have seeds dropped as the plow moved forward. This made planting faster and easier. City-States of Sumer - Better agricultural techniques produced more food, leading to a growing population of villages grew and cities began to form. o Uruk – first city of Mesopotamia. Population – 40,000 + . Other cities were Ur, Lagash and Nippur . These cities grew large and formed city-states—an independent state that includes a city and surrounding territory. Each Sumerian city-state had its own government, laws and main god. - Each city-state was a center of trade. o Most trade was done by barter –a trading system in which people exchange goods directly without using money. o Often goods were transported on the river by loading goods onto barges –large rafts. New technology to make trade easier –wheels on their carts and sails on their boats o Goods transported out were barley, wheat, dates and cloth. o Goods brought back were lumber, metals and precious stones. - Sumerians developed social order through three classes, each of which had distinct (different) roles within the society. Upper class – ruler, his top officials, powerful priests, wealthy merchants, and owners of large plots of land. Middle class – farmers and skilled workers. Lower class – mostly slaves. .
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