Sumer Flashcards
(41 cards)
Sumerian period:
3500—2000 BC
River valley civilizations is from
4000 BC—500 BC
Sumer between —– and ——
Tigris
Euphrates
Mesopotamia is Greek for
Land between the rivers
Rivers
A source of food and water but trouble because floods in the spring
Floods can be
Catastrophic
Can you tell when flooding will be?
No
Silt
Mud/dirt created by rivers,good for farming
City states with features of
Civilization
Irrigation
drainage ditches, how Sumerians got control of water flow
Sumerian also refers to their
Language
City states in Sumer
Kish, Nippur, Ur, Uruk, others
Sumerians’ world’s first system of writing called
Cuneiform
Cuneiform is the Latin word for
Wedge shaped
Scribes
High profile position could lead to higher positions
Kings at first ——- then in —— BC position becomes ——-
Elected
3000
Hereditary
King’s responsibilities
Build temples, maintain canals
Sumer is the first civilization in history to record
Set laws
Ziggurat
Temple pyramids at the center of each city, most important building in city
People were created for the —- on Sumer
Gods
each city state has a ziggurat and it focuses on a different —–
God
Sumerians’ religion
Everything happened because the gods wanted it to
Who is in the ziggurat?
Gods
Four major gods
An
Ki
Enlil
Enki