Ancient Mesopotamia is the region where humans first formed civilization. It was in Mesopotamia that people first began to live in large cities, learned to write, and created governments. For this reason, Mesopotamia is often called the 'Cradle of Civilization'. Mesopotamia is the site of the earliest developments of the Neolithic Revolution from around 10,000BC. It has been identified as having inspired some of the most important developments in human history, including the invention of the wheel, the planting of the first cereal crops, and the development of a cursive script, chariots, and sailboats.
It will be interesting to explore this ancient region - its geography, cities, religion, people, and life.
The word Mesopotamia means "the land between rivers". Ancient Mesopotamia refers to the historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris-Euphrates river system, in modern days roughly corresponding to most of Iraq, Kuwait, the eastern parts of Syria, Southeastern Turkey, and regions along the Turkish-Syrian and Iran-Iraq borders. Ancient Mesopotamia covered an area that was about 300 miles long and about 150 miles wide.
Two rivers, the Tigris, and the Euphrates, regularly flooded the region. This made the soil near the two major rivers fertile. This area was later called the Fertile Crescent because it looks like a quarter moon. Early settlers in Mesopotamia started to gather in small villages and towns along the banks of the rivers flowing through the region. As they learned how to irrigate land and grow crops on large farms, the towns grew bigger into cities.
Mesopotamia was geographically and ecologically diverse. Northern or Upper Mesopotamia was made up of hills and plains where seasonal rains and the rivers and streams come from the mountains. The Northern or Upper Mesopotamia received enough rainfall; on the other hand, the Southern or Lower Mesopotamia made of marshy areas and wide, flat plains, received almost no rain. Eventually, the early settlers learned that if you irrigated the land, crops would grow quickly. They built canals to bring water to the land from the rivers. This increased the amount of food to be grown.
They planted wheat, barley, dates, and vegetables including cucumbers, onions, apples, and spices, from seeds and plants they found growing wild in the area. The main crop of the ancient Mesopotamian farmers was barley which grew easily and abundantly in the fertile alluvial soil. From barley, the people made both bread and beer, which were staples of their diet.
At about the same time as the birth of agriculture, people began domesticating animals, beginning with goats. They also raised sheep, pigs, cattle, ducks, and pigeons. They made cheeses and cultured dairy products from milk. Fish from the rivers and canals were also a popular addition to the diet. Though settled in villages and cities, ancient Mesopotamian hunted for sport and meat.
Some of the major Mesopotamian civilizations include the Sumerian, Assyrian, Akkadian, and Babylonian civilizations.
Sumerians - The Sumerians were the first humans to form a civilization. They invented writing and government. They were organized in city-states where each city had its own independent government ruled by a king that controlled the city and the surrounding farmland. Each city also had its own primary god. Sumerian writing, government, and culture would pave the way for future civilizations.
Akkadians - The Akkadians came next. They formed the first united empire where the city-states of the Sumer were united under one ruler. The Akkadian language replaced the Sumerian language during this time. It would be the main language throughout much of the history of Mesopotamia.
Babylonians - The city of Babylon became the most powerful city in Mesopotamia. Throughout the history of the region, the Babylonians would rise and fall. At times, the Babylonians would create vast empires that ruled much of the Middle East. The Babylonians were the first to write down and record their system of law.
Assyrians - The Assyrians came out of the northern part of Mesopotamia. They were a warrior society. They also ruled much of the Middle East at different times over the history of Mesopotamia. Much of what we know about the history of Mesopotamia comes from clay tablets found in Assyrian cities.
The ancient Mesopotamia created a government that was a combination of the monarch and local councils that advised the king. Elected officials served in the Assembly and helped to rule the people. Even kings had to ask the Assembly for permission to do certain things.
The population was divided into social classes which, like societies in every civilization throughout history, were hierarchical. These classes were: The King and Nobility, The Priests and Priestesses, The Upper Class, the Lower Class, The Middle Class, and The Slaves.
The King of a city, region, or empire was thought to have a special relationship with the gods and to be an intermediary between the world of the divine and the earthly realm. The priests presided over the sacred aspects of daily life and performed religious services. They were educated and considered experts in interpreting signs and omens. They also served as healers. The upper class included wealthy people such as high-level administrators and scribes. Below the upper class was a small middle class made up of craftsmen and merchants. They could make a decent living and could work hard to try and move up in class. The Lower Class was made of laborers and farmers. These people lived a harder life. At the bottom were the Slaves, who were owned by the king or bought and sold among the upper class. Slaves were usually people who were captured in battle. The king and priests kept most slaves, but wealthy classes could buy slaves to work for them.
The ancient Mesopotamians worshipped hundreds of gods. They worshipped them every day. Each god had a job to do. Each city had its own special god to watch over the city. Each profession had a god to watch over the people who worked in that profession like builders and fishermen.
In the center of each town was the Ziggurat. The Ziggurat was a temple. The ancient Sumerians believed their gods lived in the sky. In order for the gods to hear better, you needed to get closer to them. Ziggurats were huge, with built-in steps. Ziggurats had a wide base that narrowed to a flat top. When the Babylonians took over in the South, and the Assyrians in the north, ziggurats continued to be built and used in the same manner as they were in ancient Sumer.
The land of Mesopotamia did not have a lot of natural resources, or at least they did not have the ones in demand during that time period. So, to get the items they needed, the Mesopotamians had to trade. As there were no road routes to nearby cities and countries, they figured out 'water transportation' as the alternative mode of transportation. So, they designed boats, which were primitive in design, but they helped them carry people and goods downstream and then back upstream. Around 3000 BC, the Sumerians invented sailboats and started using the wind to navigate boats used for trade. The sail was used in the Persian Gulf and thus, began using the sailboats for controlling the trade in Near East.
In the southern part of Mesopotamia, docks were built along the sides of the rivers so that ships could easily dock and unload their trade goods. The merchants traded food, clothing, jewelry, wine, and other goods between the cities. Sometimes a caravan would arrive from the north or east. The arrival of a trade caravan or trading ship was a time of celebration. To buy or trade these goods, the ancient Mesopotamians used a system of barter.
The civilization of Ancient Mesopotamia begins in the late 6th millennium BC and ends with either the rise of the Achaemenid Persians in the 6th century BC or the Muslim conquest of Mesopotamia in the 7th century CE. Persian Emperor Cyrus II seized power during the reign of Nabonidus in 539 BC. Nabonidus was such an unpopular king that Mesopotamians did not rise to defend him during the invasion. Babylonian culture is considered to have ended under Persian rule, following a slow decline of use in cuneiform and other cultural hallmarks. By the time Alexander the Great conquered the Persian Empire in 331 BC, most of the great cities of Mesopotamia no longer existed and the culture had been long overtaken. Eventually, the region was taken by the Romans in 116AD and finally Arabic Muslims in 651 AD.
