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What is a Civilization?

Civilization word has derived from the Latin word ‘civitas’ which means city. A civilization must have the features mentioned below-

1. People live in towns and cities.

2. Trading is performed with other different cities.

3. A language is formed which helps in transfer of knowledge.

4. Social and economic factors between two persons or some groups of people exist. Some groups are very strong and some have no power.

5. A government is formed with law and order to avoid the disputes between people.

6. Many religions exist with there own culture and beliefs.

The early river valley civilizations from where human life started were the four places mentioned below-

1. Mesopotamia, between Tigris and Euphrates (Iraq).

2. China, Hwang-Ho valley.

3. Egypt, Nile valley.

4. Harappa, Indus valley (India).

Approximately 2500 BCE, these four cities (Mesopotamia, Egypt, India, China) were introduced as the centers of civilization. These cities had some features in common whereas some unique features.

The early civilizations came up near rivers due to the following reasons –

a) The water of the river was used by the people for drinking and other purposes.

b) The running water became a means of transport for trading profitable to the people.

c) As the land near the river was fertile, people could grow crops and irrigate.

The Mesopotamian Civilization | History by KnockLedge

Mesopotamia is a city between the river Tigris and Euphrates. It is also called the ‘cradle of civilization’ as the birth of civilization started from here. It has four cities namely: Sumer, Akkad, Babylonia and Assyria.

Sources

We collect the information about Mesopotamia through the sources present over there. Some of them are the

archaeological sources such as the ziggurat in Ur, the seals and also the literary sources like the ‘Epic of Gilgamesh’.

Origin (Beginning or Birth)

Around the third millennium BCE (3000 years), a civilization called Sumer was developed which was the world’s first civilization. Birth of humans nearly started in this location of Mesopotamia.

Mesopotamian Cities

Sumer is divided into 5 cities: Eridu, Kish, Uruk, Ur, Lagash.

The archaeologists dugged and found these cities later. Ur is the biggest city and the major port for trading amongst these 5 cities. There is a Great Ziggurat in Ur dedicated to Nanna – the moon god. Then, Ur had 3 categories named, the sacred area, the walled city and the outer town.

(1) Sacred Area

Sacred area is the most pure and patron area of Ur. There was a tower ‘the ziggurat’, on top of which a temple of the patron god was present. The priests did all the prayers and worshippings. The sacred area also consisted of the offices and storehouses.

(2 & 3) Walled City & Outer Town

The walled city and the outer town was the residential areas which consisted mud-brick houses of different sizes that have been later on found by research. Each house had a central courtyard with rooms surrounding it.

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Social Classes

The king and his royal family were the most powerful in the social ladder. He performed many religious rites and sacrifices being the head priest. Then came the priests, high officials and scribes (writers). Scribes were the special people at that time because, everybody didn’t knew how to write. Farmers, traders and artisans were next in importance. The slaves were at the bottom position of the social ladder.

If we talk about family, so at that time the father was the head of the family. Women were not treated equal to men. Boys were sent to the school whereas girls were told about cooking, spinning and other household work. Some girls were also taught reading and writing.

Religion (way of living/habits)

The Mesopotamians believed in many different forces of nature like: the Sun God as they gave sunlight for survival and the Water God for drinking. They also believed in many gods. Each city had its own god. On the top of the ziggurats, all the statues of gods were located, priests did the ceremonies and people worshipped the god.

Through the excavated (dugged) evidences, it is proved that life after death was a belief of the Mesopotamians. Its proved by discovering the graves containing daily articles and other useful things and utensils which the dead person may need in his afterlife.

Occupations (Profession)

Most of the Mesopotamians were farmers. They grew crops like: wheat, barley, corn, dates, vegetables and fruits. Agriculture, the work of farmers, started in the 3rd period of Stone Age which was the Neolithic or the New Stone Age. Its time period was from about 8000 BCE till 4000 BCE (4000 years). Irrigation through the water of rivers made it easy for farmers to increase crop production. Among farmers, there were different craftsmen of different types like: metalworkers of blacksmiths and goldsmiths, potters, weavers, sculptors, glass-makers and many more.

Trade and Commerce

The people of Mesopotamia did trading in many goods. They imported raw materials, converted them into finished products then did trading and sold them in other cities and their home. Strict supervision took place for the quality of the products. People wrote the records of trade on clay tablets. Instead of bills in today’s world, Mesopotamians used seals to confirm that the product is there’s. The discovery of these seals was in the Indus valley cities which proves that the Mesopotamian products had a trade with India, and the archaeologists found the seals of the Indus valley cities in Mesopotamia.

Architecture

Stones were not easily available at that time in Mesopotamia, so the Mesopotamians used baked bricks to make buildings and temples. The reason why Mesopotamians used only baked bricks was that as the urban pot keeps the water inside cool, the houses made up of baked bricks were cool from inside. Some architectural forms, which were one of the greatest contributions of Mesopotamians, were some of these: arch, column, dome and vault. These architectural forms were used in the buildings and houses.

Mesopotamians made many ziggurats. There were many storeys (floors) in the buildings which were high and had decorations with marble, tiles and precious stones. The drains of baked bricks were put on the side of the ziggurats like a wall so that the rainwater can be carried away from the ziggurats.

The Hanging Gardens of Babylon, one of the seven wonders of the world. King Nebuchadnezzar created it for his wife as she missed the hilly landscape of her home.

Educational Sciences (Qualifications)

The Mesopotamians excelled in mathematics and astronomy. We count by tens but they counted by sixties. They divided an hour into 60 minutes and a minute into 60 seconds. A year had 12 months and a month consisted of 30 days. A day had 12 hours. In astronomy, Mesopotamians gave specific names to the planets and stars. They could also predict eclipses like solar and lunar eclipse.

Script (Way of Writing)

When the people of Mesopotamia and other people of other cities began to trade, the requirement of writing the records became very essential. So, keeping this in mind, the Sumerians invented the word ‘writing’ approximately 5500 years ago. This system of writing is ‘cuneiform’ by Mesopotamians. It was a wedge-shaped script. They wrote from right to left with a pen made up of reed of bone.

People did all the writing work on clay tablets and after writing they baked them so that it sticks over there and no one can disturb it. Each tablet was like a page of a book. Archaeologists found many tablets amongst which, one of the most famous tales are about the legendary hero, ‘Gilgamesh’.

Hammurabi’s Code of Law

Hammurabi was a king of Babylon who wrote all the 282 laws on a huge stone slab which the archaeologists found by excavating in Mesopotamia. Some of these rules were about: trade and commerce, family, civil and criminal disputes. The punishment depends upon the severity of the offence, the circumstances of the offence and the status of the offence.

Decline

Being the earliest and the long lasting river valley civilization of the world, Mesopotamian Civilization fell into decline. Although, the buildings and other strides made by the Mesopotamians in architecture, sciences and script has made the history of humankind.

Star Facts 💫

The early river valley civilizations used bronze (copper) to make tools and implements. That’s why they are also the ‘Bronze Age Civilizations’.
People believe that Marduk, the Babylonian god, created the world after defeating the monster.
Enheduanna was a priestess of Akkad. But she is perhaps also the world’s first writer and poet.
People believe that Marduk, the Babylonian god, created the world after defeating the monster.

Exercises (The Mesopotamian Civilization | History by KnockLedge)

The Mesopotamian Civilization ~ Quiz

This quiz contains MCQs framed from the above article.

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