Mesopotamia

The Topic:

Mesopotamia

Easier - Mesopotamia is the Greek word meaning "land between the rivers." Ancient civilization developed in this area because of the Tigris and the Euphrates Rivers. The land was fertile, the nearby rivers provided water, and settled farming was practiced. These early farming communities grew to became independent city states. In addition to developing the first plows and irrigation canals, Mesopotamia developed the first form of writing, mathematics, astronomy, and complex architecture. Mesopotamians were probably the first peoples to use the wheel.

Harder - Mesopotamia, called the "cradle of civilization", was the site of early river valley settlement. Conditions in the area led to people constructing permanent communities, practicing sustained farming methods, and evolving from a hunter-gatherer society into agriculture communities. Housing evolved into walled cities. Similar river valley civilizations soon followed in the Indus and Nile River regions. Today Mesopotamia is part of Iraq. This river-valley region was the site of a series of city-state kingdoms including Sumer, Babylon, and Assyria, that thrived from about 5,000 B.C. to 500 B.C.

Fertile Crescent from Mr. Dowling

http://www.mrdowling.com/603mesopotamia.html

As early civilization began to develop, people began to settle in areas of abundant physical resources. Such a location was in the Middle East.

Related Websites:

2) Ancient Mesopotamia by M. Snyder

http://www.ed.psu.edu/k-12/edpgs/su96/meso/mesopotamia.html#home

3) Ancient Mesopotamia http://www2.hawaii.edu/~edaniel/outlines/mesopot.htm

4) Explore the Land of Ur from Maricopa College, Arizona

http://www2.mc.maricopa.edu/anthro/lost_tribes/ur/mesopo_explor.html

5) Mesopotamia (Links-site) by N.B. Mautz http://history.evansville.net/meso.html

7) Mesopotamia A Place to Start

http://ragz-international.com/mesopotamia_a_place_to_start.htm

8) Mesopotamian History http://home.swipnet.se/~w-63448/mesopotam.htl

9) Sumeria and Mesopotamia http://members.tripod.com/~mr_sedivy/pho_mes.html

Hammurabi's Code of Laws translated by L. W. King

http://eawc.evansville.edu/anthology/hammurabi.htm

Although Hammurabi was a successful military leader and administrator, he is primarily remembered for his codification of the laws governing Babylonian life

Similar Websites:

2) Code of Hammurabi, c.1780 BCE from Ancient History Sourcebook

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/hamcode.html

3) Code of Hammurabi from Avalon Project, Yale Law School

http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/medieval/hammenu.htm

4) Hammurabi and His Code http://www3.sympatico.ca/aal/private/hamurab.html

5) Hammurabi's Code of Laws http://www.duhaime.org/hamm1.htm

Mesopotamia by R. Dawson

http://www.becunited.co.uk/mesopotamia/

The purpose of the site, published for the British History National Curriculum, is to be a resource for primary school teachers choosing to teach a unit on ancient Mesopotamia.

Near East from Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University

http://carlos.emory.edu/ODYSSEY/NEAREAST/homepg.html

Have you ever heard the ancient Near East called "The Cradle of Civilization?" What does that mean?

Other Online Museum Sites for Mesopotamia:

2) Ancient Mesopotamia: Royal Tombs of Ur from University of Pennsylvania Museum

of Archaeology and Anthropology

http://www.upenn.edu/museum/Collections/mesopotamia.html

3) Fertile Cresent from Mankoto E-Museum, Minnesota State University

http://emuseum.mankato.msus.edu/prehistory/middle_east/index.shtml

4) Highlights of the Collections by Region from Oriental Institute, University of Chicago

http://asmar.uchicago.edu/OI/MUS/HIGH/OI_Museum_Mesopotamia.html

5) Mesopotamia from Detroit Institute of Arts

http://www.dia.org/collections/ancient/mesopotamia/mesopotamia.html

6) Mesopotamia from The British Museum http://www.mesopotamia.co.uk/menu.html

7) Treasures from the Royal Tombs of Ur from McClung Museum

http://mcclungmuseum.utk.edu/specex/ur/ur.htm

After visiting several of the websites related to Mesopotamia, complete one or more of the following projects:

Write in Cuneiform Pictographs. Use the Ugaritic Cuneiform Translator (Requires Java Applet Download) and Write Like a Babylonian to transform your name or a message into Cuneiform symbols. Afterwards, you may also want to use the Cuneiform Calculator to complete mathematical processes.

Complete A Mesopotamia WebQuest. Follow or adapt the procedures found at one of the following webQuest sites:

1) Exploring Mesopotamia by J. Weinshel http://cte.jhu.edu/techacademy/fellows/Weinshel/webquest/jrwindex.htm

2) Mesopotamia Or Bust!! (Grade 7) by. A. Mosdell

http://www.sd68.bc.ca/ed611/mosdell/MesoBoring.htm

Make A Poster that Illustrates the Inventions/Innovations in Mesopotamia. After exploring the resources on Mesopotamia found at the websites and the library media center, decide what major contributions were made by ancient civilizations in Mesopotamia. Create an original poster that shows those innovations and improvements. Another good activity is to create a model that illustrates a specific technological achievement. Display your project.

Create An Ancient Mesopotamia Journal. Pretend that you are living in ancient Mesopotamia. Imagine what your daily life would have been. Describe your 'pretend' life in a series of journal entries. Decide if you want to cover all the days in a week or less frequent stories over a longer time frame.

Was there a Hanging Gardens of Babylon? Use the online resources and your library to investigate what is known and believed about this 'wonder of the ancient world.' Then decide if you think the gardens did exist. What evidence has been found? Could this have been a myth or story that was told and repeated until it was believed to be real? You decide, then present your ideas in a position paper, debate presentation, or multimedia presentation. Explain your views and back them up with as much evidence that you find. Explain where the facts end and conjecture begin. What do you believe?

Illustrate the Causes and Effects of Cultural and Technological Changes in Mesopotamia. To get the idea for this project, first visit a 'beginning' concept map at Innerconnections Illustrating the the Nature of Sumer. Expand this idea to encompass other changes and innovations and their causes and effects. The example at the website was created using the Inspiration software package.

Identify the Positive and Negative Aspects of Mesopotamian Civilization. The 'cradle of civilization' was not necessarily all 'sunshine and roses.' Identify the major components of their civilization. Then identify both the positive and negative aspects of those developments.

Websites By Kids For Kids

Ancient Mesopotamia (Grade 6) William Penn Charter School, Philadelphia, PA

http://www.penncharter.com/Student/meso/index.html

This project on Mesopotamia includes gods and writing in Mesopotamia, clothing and pottery, geography of the region, government and law, inventions, and social organization.

Ancient Mesopotamia (Grade 4) Spring Street School, Shrewsbury, Massachusetts

http://www.ci.shrewsbury.ma.us/Sps/Schools/Central/Curriculum/ELEMENTARY/SOCI

ALSTUDIES/Mesopotamia%20html/ancient_mesopotamia.htm

This is another student project site on Mesopotamia.

Ancient Sumer History

http://www.vnc.qld.edu.au/et8se01.htm

This website contains historical information, an online quiz, links, and more.

Light of People Cultures: Mesopotamia (2001 ThinkQuest Project)

http://library.thinkquest.org/C0119205/main.htm

This informative site contains information, activities, links and more on Mesopotamia.

Mesopotamia from Urbana Middle School, an Illinois Museum In the Classroom Project

http://www.cmi.k12.il.us/Urbana/projects/AncientCiv/Meso/meso.html

This site shows several student projects related to the study of the the daily life and inventions of ancient Mesopotamia.

Mesopotamians (A section of Time and Time Again, a 2000 ThinkQuest Junior Project)

http://library.thinkquest.org/J002807/Time%20and%20Time%20Again/Time%20and%20

Time%20Again/mesopotamians.html

The site shows the growth of civilizations in Mesopotamia.

More Websites on Mesopotamia

About Cuneiform Writing. . . from University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and

Anthropology

http://www.upenn.edu/museum/Games/cuneiform.html

Sumerians created cuneiform script over 5000 years ago. It was the world's first written language.

Related Websites:

2) Cuneiform http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/GLOSSARY/CUNEI.HTM

3) Cuneiform Numbers http://it.stlawu.edu/~dmelvill/mesomath/Numbers.html

4) Cuneiform Tablet

http://www.usc.edu/dept/LAS/wsrp/educational_site/ancient_texts/Cuneiform.shtml

5) Cuneiform Writing http://ragz-international.com/cuneiform_writing.htm

6) Dubsar, the Cuneiform Scribe Welcomes You to Ancient Nippur

http://www.fortunecity.com/victorian/stone/319/

7) First Known Writer of World Literature http://www.angelfire.com/mi/enheduanna/

Accessing Women's Lives in Mesopotamia from Women In World History Curriculum

http://www.womeninworldhistory.com/lesson2.html

This site provides excerpts gleaned from Mesopotamian cuneiform tablets and artifacts that explore these aspects of women's lives.

Akkadians

http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~dee/MESO/AKKAD.HTM

Learn about early Akkadian history and culture from 2340 to 2125 BC.

Related Websites:

2) Akkadians http://ragz-international.com/akkadians.htm

3) Curse of Akkad http://www.personal.eunet.fi/pp/tilmari/tilmari2.htm#akkad

4) Legend of Sargon of Akkadê, c. 2300 BCE

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/2300sargon1.html

5) Sargon of Akkad http://www.freehomepages.com/zhason/school/sargon.html

6) Sargon's Eighth Campaign by A. Garia http://www.nineveh.com/sargon.htm

Babylonia from the Catholic Encyclopedia

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/02179b.htm

This site provides a detailed account of Babylonia including the early history and first and second empires plus Babylonian religion, civilization, and literature.

Related Websites:

2) Babylon from DiscoverySchool

http://school.discovery.com/homeworkhelp/worldbook/atozhistory/b/040960.html

3) Babylon http://www.wwco.com/religion/believe/babylon.html

4) Babylon http://emuseum.mnsu.edu/archaeology/sites/middle_east/babylon.html

5) Babylonia http://ragz-international.com/babylonia.htm

6) Writing on the Wall: The Fall of Babylon

http://coco.essortment.com/writingwallfal_rghs.htm

Brief History of Assyrians by P. BetBasoo

http://www.aina.org/aol/peter/brief.htm

Here you can read a summary of the Assyrian culture.

Related Websites:

2) Assyra from About.com http://ancienthistory.about.com/library/weekly/aa032100a.htm

3) Assyria from the Catholic Encyclopedia http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/02007c.htm

4) Assyria from DiscoverySchool

http://school.discovery.com/homeworkhelp/worldbook/atozhistory/a/034460.html

5) Assyrian Treasures from the City of Kalhu (Nimrud)

http://www.aina.org/aol/nimrud/

6) Assyrians http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/MESO/ASSYRIA.HTM

7) Assyrians http://ragz-international.com/assyrians.htm

8) End of Assyrian Empire http://members.tripod.com/historel/orient/06mesop.htm

Chaldeans

http://ragz-international.com/chaldeans.htm

After the fall of Assyrian power in Mesopotamia, the last great group of Semitic peoples dominated the area.

Related Websites:

2) Chaldean Empire http://members.aol.com/chaldeans7/history/chaldean_empire.html

3) Chaldeans http://www.us-israel.org/jsource/History/Chaldeans.html

4) Chaldeans http://www.wsu.edu/%7Edee/MESO/CHALDEAN.HTM

5) Introduction (to Chaldeans)

http://www-personal.umd.umich.edu/%7Esdkjr/casa/intro.html

Collapse: Why Do Civilizations Fall from Annenberg/CPB

http://www2.learner.org/exhibits/collapse/mesopotamia.html

Here you find supporting materials to a televised series which tries to explain the sudden decline of at least one major ancient Mesopotamian city.

Collection of Contracts from Mesopotamia, c. 2300 - 428 BCE

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/mesopotamia-contracts.html

Here are a number of contracts from: G.A. Barton, "Contracts" in Assyrian and Babylonian Literature: Selected Transactions, Harper (New York: D. Appleton & Company, 1904).

Related Websites:

2) Code of the Assura, c. 1075 BCE

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/1075assyriancode.html

3) Ethics of Sumer, Babylon, and Hittites by S. Beck

http://www.san.beck.org/EC3-Sumer.html

4) Laws of Ancient Society http://bwscampus.com/school/Hist/WKSHP/kusspaper.html

Copper in Ancient Times: The Sumerians and Chaldeans

http://60centuries.copper.org/ancient1_a.htm

Copper probably first came into use as the earliest non-precious metal employed by the Sumerians and Chaldeans of Mesopotamia, after they had established their thriving cities of Sumer and Accad, Ur, al'Ubaid and others, somewhere between 5,000 and 6,000 years ago.

Early Civilizations and the Emergence of Pastoral Peoples, 4000-1000 BCE

http://w3.iac.net/~pfilio/era2.htm

This website summarizes the importance of Mesopotamian civilization in the history of our world.

Related Articles:

2) Ancient Civilizations http://ragz-international.com/ancient_civilization.htm

3) Rise of Civilizations and Empires in Mesopotamia, Egypt, and the Indus Valley

http://ragz-international.com/rise_of_civilizations.htm

Fertile Crescent and the Eastern Aegean by B. Clardy

http://www.jlc.net/~brian/art/fertile_crescent.html

Thousands upon thousands of artifacts have been found. However in relative terms, very little is known about the art from this primitive bronze age civilization.

Hanging Gardens of Babylon from Museum of Unnatural Mystery

http://www.unmuseum.org/hangg.htm

Some stories indicate the Hanging Gardens towered hundreds of feet into the air, but archaeological explorations indicate a more modest, but still impressive, height.

Related Websites:

2) Hanging Gardens of Babylon

http://www.cleveleys.co.uk/wonders/gardensofbabylon.htm

3) Hanging Gardens of Babylon http://www.sd83.bc.ca/stu/9711/jlk2w2.htm

4) Hanging Gardens of Babylon

http://www.wonderclub.com/WorldWonders/GardenHistory.html

History of Plumbing - Babylonia

http://www.theplumber.com/history.html

Learn about the location where water management evolved into irrigation dams, drains and basins, and personal bathrooms for their era's rich and famous.

Map of Mesopotamia from Oriental Institute, University of Chicago

http://www-oi.uchicago.edu/OI/PROJ/NIP/PUB93/NSC/NSCFIG1.html

Here you find a map of ancient Mesopotamia.

Another Map Site:

2) Map of Sumer and The Akkadian Empire

http://www.hyperhistory.com/online_n2/maptext_n2/sumer.html

Medicine in Ancient Mesopotamia by N. Demand, Indiana University Bloomington

http://www.indiana.edu/~ancmed/meso.HTM

A few of the cuneiform tablets that have survived from ancient Mesopotamia provide an understanding of their medical knowledge.

Mesopotamia from the Encyclopaedia of the Orient

http://lexicorient.com/cgi-bin/eo-direct-frame.pl?http://i-cias.com/e.o/mesopotamia.htm

This article and timeline summarizes the main civilizations of Mesopotamia. There are also links to several other related articles.

Mesopotamia

http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~dee/MESO/MESO.HTM

Tour the mysteries of this foundational civilization: it's life, it's words, it's gods, and it's writing; browse through the dust and heat of one of first cultures to inscribe for the future the story of its existence. This website was designed as resource for a college-level course.

Other College Websites:

2) Ancient Western Asia and the Civilization of Mesopotamia (Lecture Summary) by S.

Kreis http://www.historyguide.org/ancient/lecture2b.html

2) Mespopotamia (Lecture Summary)

http://www.ualberta.ca/~csmackay/CLASS_110/Sumer.html

Mesopotamia 9000 - 500 B.C

http://www.usfca.edu/westciv/Mesochro.html

Here is a timeline of Mesopotamian history.

Similar Website:

2) Mesopotamian Timeline http://www.wsu.edu/%7Edee/MESO/TIMELINE.HTM

Mesopotamiam Landscapes

http://www.umma.lsa.umich.edu/Oldworld/Deh_Luran/II/Landscapes.html

This brief page contains photos and description of Mesopotamia today.

Mesopotamian Mathematics

http://it.stlawu.edu/~dmelvill/mesomath/index.html

The purpose of this page is to provide a source of information on all aspects of Mesopotamian mathematics.

Related Websites:

2) Babylonian Mathematics

http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Indexes/Babylonians.html

3) Babylonian Months http://ancienthistory.about.com/library/bl/bl_babylonian_months.htm

4) Counting in Babylon by M. Fowler, University of Virginia

http://www.phys.virginia.edu/classes/109N/lectures/babylon.html

5) First Mathematicians http://members.aol.com/bbyars1/first.html

6) Sumerian Metrological Numeration Systems

http://it.stlawu.edu/%7Edmelvill/mesomath/sumerian.html

Royal Game of Ur by C. Soubeyrand from The Game Cabinet

http://www.gamecabinet.com/history/Ur.html

Learn about the most ancient board game known. It was very popular among the Sumerian rulers and spread from Sumer to sites throughout the ancient world from India to the Mediterranean.

Spiritual Systems of Mesopotamia

http://www.hist.unt.edu/ane-07.htm

Much of the information for this site is based in an old Babylonian document called "Enuma Elish," or "The Babylonian Genesis."

Related Websites:

2) Assyro-Babylonian Mythology FAQ by C. Siren

http://members.bellatlantic.net/~vze33gpz/assyrbabyl-faq.html

3) Sumerian Gods and Goddesses

http://www.usfca.edu/westciv/Sumerian.html

4) Sumerian Mythology FAQ by C. Siren

http://members.bellatlantic.net/~vze33gpz/sumer-faq.html

Storytelling, the Meaning of Life, and The Epic of Gilgamesh by A.A. Brown

http://eawc.evansville.edu/essays/brown.htm

Gilgamesh is one of the oldest recorded stories in the world. It's about an ancient King of Uruk who may have actually existed and whose name - Gilgamesh - is on the Sumerian King List.

Related Websites:

2) Epic of Gilgamesh: An Outline with Bibliography and Links

http://www.hist.unt.edu/ane-09.htm

3) Gilgamesh http://ragz-international.com/gilgamesh.htm

4) Gilgamesh Summary http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~dee/MESO/GILG.HTM

5) Gilgamesh Study Guide by D. Thompson

http://novaonline.nv.cc.va.us/eli/eng251/gilgameshstudy.htm

6) Proverbs from Ki-en-gir (Sumer), c. 2000 BCE

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/2000sumer-proverbs.html

Sumer from DiscoverySchool

http://school.discovery.com/homeworkhelp/worldbook/atozhistory/s/539160.html

This article summarizes the world's first civilization that began about 3500 B.C. and flourished until about 2000 B.C.

Related websites:

2) History of Ancient Sumeria http://ragz-international.com/sumeria.htm

3) History of Sumer http://www.theology.edu/sumer.htm

4) Sumeria: The History http://www.wiu.edu/users/muems6/the_history.html

5) Sumerian http://www.crystalinks.com/sumer.html

6) Sumerians http://www.wsu.edu/%7Edee/MESO/SUMER.HTM

Ziggurats

http://www-lib.haifa.ac.il/www/art/list_Ziggurat.html

This site helps you understand what these ancient buildings looked like and how they were constructed.

Related Website:

2) Ziggurat http://www.crystalinks.com/ziggurat.html

Websites For Teachers

Ancient Mesopotamia by D. Donn (Grade 6)

http://members.aol.com/MrDonnUnits/Mesopotamia.html

Here is a unit plan for studying the ancient civilization of Mesopotamia.

Related Webpage by D. Donn:

2) Ancient Mesopotamia (Activities) http://members.aol.com/Donnpages/Ideas.html#MESO

Ancient Mesopotamia from P. Brians

http://www.wsu.edu/~wldciv/brians_syllabus/maps/maplabels1.html

Here is a map that can printed out for classroom use.

Celebrations from Social Studies School Service

http://socialstudies.com/c/%40SjU2Y1iQG7t2Y/Pages/article.html?article@FG211B+af

@donn

This activity has students planning a celebration that honors the marriage of a Sumerian king.

Other Lesson Plans from the Social Studies School Service:

2) Akbar's Dilemma http://socialstudies.com/c/%40_q6P1BMuSIDlc/Pages/article.html?article@TCM251A+a

f@donn

Close-up Look at Mesopotamian and Sumerian Inventions by E. Stone

http://tlc.ousd.k12.ca.us/cv/projects/sumeria/sumeria.html

As a final project, the students researched Mesopotamian inventions on the Internet, and wrote scripts advertising these inventions.

Gilgamesh the Hero

http://www.wsu.edu:8000/%7Edee/110/3.HTM

In this writing assignment, the student examines a summary of Gilgamesh. Their job is to come up with a Mesopotamian definition of a hero--and by extension a human being--using both aspects of the concept.

You Be the Judge of Hammurabi's Code (Grades 4-8) by P. Martin from © Ed's Oasis

http://www.classroom.com/edsoasis/TGuild/Lessons/Hammurabi.html

Students decide upon the same situations faced by Hammurabi of ancient Mesopotamia when he established his laws. Then, they write a letter to the editor of the Babylonian Times newspaper stating their opinion of his decrees.

Related Lesson Plans:

2) Hammurabi and His Law Code (Mini-play) from the Social Studies School Service

http://socialstudies.com/c/%405nR.ui9.NU3JM/Pages/article.html?article@JWW951A+af

@donn

3) Understanding Primary Sources: Hammurabi's Code of Laws from Houghton Mifflin

http://www.eduplace.com/ss/hmss/6/unit/act3.1.html

Mesopotamia Tigris River fertile natural resources walled city Sumerians

calendar agriculture astronomy pictograph ziggurat Ancient Africa

Assyrians cuneiform culture copper hunter gatherer Code of Hammurabi

clay tablet stone carving Hanging Gardens city state nomad civilization

Gilgamesh mythology scribe priest-king Ancient China flood

gods & goddesses clay token temple barter system Sumer desert

canal system plain Seven Wonders of Ancient World mathematics slavery wheel

archaeology cylinder seal Babylon Bronze Age steppes Ancient Rome

Cradle of Civilization 'Land of Ur' irrigation Iraq Euphrates River 'Fertile Cresent'

Created by Annette Lamb and Larry Johnson, 11/01