Early Civilizations: Mesopotamia

Name for group of civilizations that developed in the area between the Tigris River and the Euphrates River known as "The Fertile Crescent."

A wide, flat plain that offered little protection.

Random, violent floods.

There was no one, single, Mesopotamian culture. The Sumerians, based around the city of Sumer were the oldest.

Every civilization that followed kept what worked and got rid of what they didn't like.

However, this doesn't mean that there was no culture.

Compare this style of writing with Egyptian hieroglyphics.

Egypt, because it was protected, developed an artistic, fancy style. Mesoptamia had to create something that worked.

Most Mesopotamian societies were polytheistic, like Egypt.

However, Judaism, the world's oldest monotheistic religion developed here. Without Judaism there is no Christianity or Islam.

Most Mesopotamian civilizations were organized as city-states, or a city and it's surrounding area. Each city-state had it's own government, often a monarchy.

One of the world's first law codes.

Created by Babylonian King Hammurabi.

Summed up best as "an eye for an eye."

Sumerians

Babylonians

Akkadians

Assyrians

Persians

Hebrews