Mesopotamian Achievements

1. Mesopotamian Achievements Chapter 3 Lesson 3

2. Objectives • Explain how the Mesopotamians were able to achieve all they did • Describe the development of Sumerian writing

3. Vocabulary • Innovation – new ways of doing things • Almanac – writings that include information that describes the best way to plant, irrigate land, and care for crops • Ziggurat – the largest and tallest temple in every Sumerian city-state • Cuneiform – a writing system based on wedge shaped symbols • Scribe – a person who records things for others

4. Agricultural Techniques • By 2500 BC, many farmers in Mesopotamia used bronze plows • Other agricultural innovations included plows that could also seed and written almanacs that described farming techniques

5. Measurements • To keep records of their rapidly growing society, Sumerians developed standard measurements of land, weight and volume • Also developed a number system based on the number 60 • Measured time using a 360 day calendar

6. Building • Sumerians lived in mud-brick houses • The tallest structure in each Sumerian city-state was the ziggurat, a temple that served as a center of religious and economic activity

7. Transportation • The Sumerians were the first to attach wheels to carts • Traders led caravans of donkeys across established trade routes • Sumerians also traveled in various kinds of boats

8. Writing and Literature • Sumerians developed a writing system based on cuneiform • Writing helped make new developments in government, economy, and society possible

9. Summary • People in Mesopotamia, especially the Sumerians, made many achievements • They created innovations in agriculture, measurements, building, and transportation • They were perhaps the first to use the wheel, the sailboat, and writing • These innovations helped the people of Mesopotamia build an early civilization