Mesopotamian Civilization

Definition of Terms: City-state- independent city which is not administered or governed by another government Patesi -combined the functions of chief priest, commander of the army and superintendent of the irrigation system Guti -first barbarian from the north Mesopotamia- is a Greek word meaning between the rivers 2 rivers: Tigris- the east Euphrates- the west Geography: Deserts and Valley Mesopotamia is a desert region except for the valley containing Euphrates and Tigris River it is called Fertile Crescent because the land was fertile most of the year due to rains, rivers, and streams 300 miles long and 150 miles wide Mesopotamian Religion Polytheism: they believe in many gods Mesopotamian Society Social Classes: 1. Kings and nobility 2. Priests 3. Craftsmen and merchants 4. Ordinary workers: Peasants 5. Slaves : were not free citizens Patriarchal (led by men); male dominated Women had few rights and not allowed to attend school (could not read and write) Powerful priest held more political power in the beginning Military commanders eventually became monarch creating a new structure of government called dynasty Economics Farming one main way to get their foods Rich people had slaves and has easy access on obtaining foods Poor people mostly depends on their crops Barter system were used Sumerians (Sumer) Civilization Sumerians- pioneers in the development of the Mesopotamian civilizations, settled in the lower TigrisEuphrates valley between 5000 and 4000 B.C. chief originators of Mesopotamian civilization

agriculture was the chief economic pursuit of most citizens, and the Sumerians were the excellent farmers produced crops of cereal grains and subtropical fruits since most of the land was divided into large estates held by the rulers, priest and the army officers, the average rural citizens was either tenant farmers or a serf. Sumerian Political Structure divided into city-states, meaning that each city has its own ruler, laws, and social customs each city-state was ruled by a priests or a king kings had both civic and religious responsibilities Sumerian Law most distinctive achievement of the Sumerians was their system of law product of gradual evolution out of local usage but it was incorporated into comprehensive code by Dungi only a few fragments of this law have survived in their original form essential features of the Sumerian law: 1. the lex talionis or law of retaliation in kind 2. semi-private administration of justice 3. inequality before the law 4. inadequate distinction between accidental and intentional homicide Sumerian religion: polytheistic and anthropomorphic they believe in a number of gods and goddesses Shamash-god of sun Enlil- lord of the rain and wind Ishtar- goddess of female principle in nature Nabu- god of writing Sumerians had special deity of the plague in the person of the god Nergal the after-life was called Sheol Sumerians bestowed no particular care upon the bodies of their dead corpses were commonly interred beneath the floor of the house without a coffin and with very few articles for the use of the ghost Sumerians Intellectual Achievements cuneiform was their system of writing, consisting of wedge-shaped characters imprinted on clay tablets with a square-tipped reed. no alphabets were ever developed Sumerians wrote nothing that could be called philosophy but they did make some feeble beginnings in science they discovered the process of multiplication and division and even the extraction of square and cube roots system of numeration and of weights and measures were duodecimal with number sixty as the most common unit invented water clock and the lunar calendar Sumerians excelled in metal work, gem carving, and sculpture

produced remarkable specimens of naturalistic art in their weapons, vessels, jewelry, and human and animal representations Ziggurat, a terraced tower set on a platform and surmounted by a shrine 2100 B.C., Sumerians, under the leadership of the city of Ur, rebelled successfully against the rule of the Guti and established their power over all of Sumer and Akkad

Babylonians or Old Babylonians Civilization Second most important stage of the Tigris-Euphrates civilization established an autocratic state and during the reign of their famous king Hammurabi, extended their dominion north to Syria royal taxation was adopted as well as compulsory military service kings officers assumed more active role in apprehending and punishing offenders penalties were increased particularly for crimes involving treason or sedition Political Structure King Hammurabi ruled the city of Babylon and the territory of Babylonia Hammurabi created a bureaucracy (a system of government workers) centralized around the city of Babylon and created the taxation system, famous for his system of laws Hammurabis Code Famous code of law the punishments fits the crime and eye for an eye Economic development those who traded for profit enjoyed a privileged position in society Babylonian rulers did not believe in a regime of free competition trade, banking, and industry were subject to elaborate regulation by the state deal to be negotiated without contract or witnesses was punishable by death agriculture was still the occupation of the majority of the citizens, did not escape regulation either penalties for failure to cultivate and for neglects of dikes and canals tenant farmer was required two-thirds of all he produced as rent Changes in religion religion underwent numerous changes both superficial and profound deities were neglected and new ones exalted Marduk, originally the local god of the town of Babylon Ishtan remained the chief goddess, Tammus, her brother and lover had no significance in Sumerians but became the third most important divinity his death in the autumn and resurrection in the spring symbolized the death and rebirth of vegetation Assyrians Civilization founded a tiny kingdom on the plateau of Asur, 500 miles up to Tigris river people lived in Asur are called the Assyrians their ultimate rise to power marked the third stage in the development of the Mesopotamian civilization 1300 B.C., they began to expand and soon afterward masters of the whole northern valley

their empire reached its height in the 8th and 7th centuries under Sargon II (722-705 B.C.), Senacherib (705-681 B.C.), and Assurbanipal (688-626 B.C.) Syria, Phoenicia, Kingdom of Israel and Egypt were the fallen victims of Assyrian military prowess state was great military machine army commanders were the richest and most powerful class in the country new and improved armaments and techniques of fighting gave to the Assyrian soldiers unparalleled advantages iron swords, heavy bows, long lanes, battering rams, fortresses on wheels, and metal breastplates, shields, and helmets were only few examples of their superior equipment Political Structures each city state was led by a king Scientific Achievements divided the circle into 360 degrees and estimated locations on the surface of the earth resembling latitude and longitude recognized and named the five planets and predicts eclipses more than 500 drugs both vegetables and mineral were catalogued and uses indicated Assyrians Art sculpture was highly most developed palaces and temples were built of stones

Chaldeans Civilization final stage in Mesopotamian civilization a nation of Semites who had settled southeast of the valley of the two rivers under the leadership of Nabopolassar, who served the Assyrian emperors as a provincial governor, organized a revolt and captured Nineveh in 612 B.C. called Neo-Babyonian because Nebuchadnezzar and his followers restored the capital of Babylon and revive the culture of Hammurabis time Chaldeans Religion develop an astral religion gods were divested of their limited human qualities ans exalted into transcendent, omnipotent beings gods were identified with the planets: Marduk became Jupiter, Ishtar (Venus) spiritual consciousness developed Chaldeans Science most capable scientists in all Mesopotamian history invented seven-day week amnd division of the day into 12 double hours of 120 minutes each Keep accurate records of eclipses and occurrences of more than 350 years Rimannu: calculated the correct length of the year within 26 minutes

Kidinnu: discovered and proved the periodic change in the inclination of earths axis