Early River Valley Civilizations

Lo1: Define Mesopotamia, Sumer, city-state, cultural diffusion, polytheism, Hammurabi
Mesopotamia-an ancient region of southwestern Asia in present-day Iraq, lying between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.
Sumer-an ancient region of southwestern Asia in present-day Iraq, comprising the southern part of Mesopotamia. From the 4th millennium bc it was the site of city states which became part of ancient Babylonia.
city-state-a city that with its surrounding territory forms an independent state.
cultural diffusion-Cultural diffusion is the intermingling of one or more cultures. It is the outcome of the spread of literacy and education
polytheism- the belief in or worship of more than one god
Hammurabi-the sixth king of the first dynasty of Babylonia, reigned 1792–1750 bc
Lo2:Identify the region of Sumer and discuss aspects of Sumerian Culture
Sumer is In southern Mesopotamia also known as modern day Iraq. It is one of the first civilizations in the world along with ancient Egypt and the Indus valley.The plow for agriculture, the wheel for trading carts, sail boats for moving bulky goods up the river and above all writing.
Lo3:Explain the impacts of Agricultural Revolution on Sumerian Culture
The Agricultural Revolution had an effect on Samaria of an increase in food and population making them way more successful than they were prior to the revolution. They had many people even before the revolution so they had to make sure that they could have food for them so that they can survive and wont starve to death.

Chapter 2 section 1 reading guide

The Problems	The Solutions
With flooding of the rivers unpredictable, how could farmers water their fields during the dry summer months?	To provide water, they dug irrigation ditches that carried river water to their fields and allowed them to produce a surplus of crops.
With no natural barriers, how could villagers protect themselves?	For defense, they built city walls with mud bricks.
With limited natural resources, how could Sumerians get the materials for tools and buildings?	Sumerians traded their grain, cloth, and crafted tools with the peoples of the mountains and the desert. In exchange, they received raw materials such as stone, wood, and metal.
How should the Sumerian city-states be ruled?	They chose a person who is a strong person and a person that could command the cities soldiers.
What could be done to please the gods and earn their protection in life?	The people were building Ziggurats, which were huge pyramidal temple towers built in the ancient Mesopotamian valley & western Iranian plateau.

Religion	Literature	Architecture	Inventions
The Sumerians believed in a primeval sea that gave birth to a cosmic mountain containing both heaven and Earth. An, the god of heaven, was male, and ki, the goddess of the Earth, was female. They were also Polytheistic making them believe in multiple gods	Most Sumerian literature is preserved indirectly, via Assyrian or Babylonian copies.	They built many different things out of many materials such as stone, or even mud to make houses and such. But they are famously known for their building of ziggurats, which was one of their ways to please the gods	They had many inventions such as: -Writing -Hydraulic Engineering -The chariot -The plow -Mathematics -Metallurgy But they were most famously know for their creation of writing called cuneiform.

Section Assignment
1)

Fertile Crescent	the region where the first settled agricultural communities of the Middle East and Mediterranean basin are thought to have originated by the early 9th millennium bce.
Mesopotamia	Mesopotamia is a region of southwest Asia in the Tigris and Euphrates river system that benefitted from the area’s climate and geography to host the beginnings of human civilization.
City-state	City-state, a political system consisting of an independent city having sovereignty over contiguous territory and serving as a centre and leader of political, economic, and cultural life
dynasty	a succession of rulers of the same line of descent
Cultural diffusion	Cultural diffusion is the spread of cultural beliefs and social activities from one group of people to another. Through cultural diffusion, horizons are broadened and people become more culturally rich.
polytheism	Polytheism is a word that indicates the presence or belief in several gods, it belongs to people who as a doctrine
empire	An empire is a political construct in which one state dominates over another state, or a series of states.
Hammurabi	Code of Hammurabi is historically significant as the first time law was put into a permanent, accessible form.

2) I think the toughest problem was the one where they had to find the materials to build what they needed. They had to find others to trade with and when they are trading they had to make good trades. It was very important because they needed the materials to build their ziggurats which were a way for them to please their gods
3) The three environmental challenges were unpredictable flooding, no natural barriers, and natural resources were limited. Un predictable flooding can be a huge factor because if it comes without anyone knowing that means that no one will be prepared, which could cause a high amount of damage. No natural barriers can be a bad thing because if they get into an unexpected war than they wont have any cover to help which makes them easy targets.
4) they admired them and they always wanted to please them so they help them when they are in need
5) It represented all things in life from privacy, to rights, to appearance everything they needed to worry about was covered in the code.