Eni's+Meso+Page

**Eni Meso Page**
 * __ Location __**
 * Mesopotamia is between the Persian Gulf and Mediterranian Sea
 * Tigris River and Euphrates River
 * Modern day Iraq Mediterranian

__** Geography **__
 * Curved shape
 * Flat, swampy lands
 * Rich soil=silt -->Fertile Crescent
 * Desert climate
 * Mesopotamia means: "land between the rivers"-->


 * __ Economy & Agirculture __**
 * Traded grain and cloth
 * Recieved wood, metal.
 * Grew wheat, barley and sorghom
 * Through trade exchanged ideas which led to cultural diffusion


 * __ Time Period __**
 * 4500 B.C.
 * People learn to farm in swampy land
 * 3300 B.C. Sumwe (city-state) Sumerians (people) were civilizing in Meso.
 * 4500-2008=2508 yrs. ago


 * __ Environmental Challenges __**
 * Unpredictable flooding lead to good soil and ruined crops+li**v**es
 * Natural resources were limited
 * Little to no rain at all=desert
 * No natural barriers
 * Defensless
 * Easy to see enemy coming
 * Not a lot of building materials
 * Needed water for crops plus survial
 * They built irrigation ditches

__** War, Military & Defense **__
 * Built city walls
 * Constant war between city-states
 * Hard to defend=no natural barriers
 * Spread culture
 * Men pick a leader during times of war

__** Institutions **__
 * City-state: an independent self-governing city including its surrounding farm land
 * Empires: independent country city-states**-**-> brought under 1 rule
 * Sargon created the first
 * Babylonian empire
 * Invaded meso.
 * Dynasty:--> series of rulers from 1 family


 * __ Religion __**
 * Polytheism: belief in many gods
 * Gods controlled nature
 * What happens to your after death? you to: "the land of no return" (gross, yucky, place)
 * Gave offerings and sacrifices to their gods such as wine, food, and animals.


 * __ Architecture __**
 * Ziggurat: [[image:http://questgarden.com/52/41/5/070613164641/images/ziggurat1.gif width="85" height="62"]]
 * top temple (close to gods in the sky)
 * Middle gov. office
 * Bottom layer was used for grain (storage)
 * Around the Ziggurat the "bazaar"=market place
 * Structure
 * arches
 * ramps
 * columns
 * pyramids
 * (In the zig) They Exchanged ideas, political, religious, and economic + social center of Meso. culture.


 * __ Literature __**
 * Epic of Gilgemesh- gives us info. on how the might have lived
 * Story is similiar to Noah's Ark (the legendary flood)


 * __ Social Class __**
 * Top layer: kings, langholders & priests
 * Next: wealthy merchants
 * Ordinary people who worked int the fields or in workshops
 * Lowest level was the slaves (debt=war)

__** Equality (Women's Rights) **__ Women could be:
 * merchants, farmers, artisans, and priests.
 * women could own property

Some upper class even learned to read & write to become scribes
 * more rights than women in many other ancient societies.


 * __ Technology __**
 * Invention's: wheel, plow, bronze, and sail
 * Needed math to plan+build things (houses structures)
 * Arithmetic & geometry
 * Base was 60 (60 secs.= 1 min.), (60 mins.=1 hour) 360 degree circle
 * Architecture was ziggurats, arches, pyramids, ramps,
 * Writing was written in cuneiform (on clay tablets)
 * Cuneiform means= wedged shaped
 * __ Important People __**
 * Sargon conquered Sumer- adapted & spread Sumerian culture 1st Empire
 * Hammurabi- leader of Babylonian Empire (known for code of law)


 * __ Government __**
 * Controlled by priests @ first
 * During war men chose a tough fighter to lead @ 1st control.--> after that control ended (priests gained power again)
 * With war increasing --> fighters= commanders got permenant control
 * Hammurabi's code of law.