Social Studies Megan Baldwin
B3 11-16-15
Mesopotamia
By Megan Baldwin
M is for Medicine
M is for Medicine. Medicine is how they would cure the ill. The Sumerians used ingredients from plants, animals, and minerals. They also used a wide variety of ingredients, including milk, salt, turtle shell, fig and salt. The physicians or scholars would prescribe the medicines you need by looking at your symptoms, or what part of the body it was used in. There are more than 420 lists on clay tablets found just for medicine.
E is for the Epic of Gilgamesh
E is for the Epic of Gilgamesh. An epic is a long poem that tells the story of a hero. The Epic of Gilgamesh is the world 's oldest epic. It was first recorded in 2000 B.C. on clay tablets. This epic is about Gilgamesh and his friend Enkidu. It teaches a valuable lesson to appreciate what you have.
S is for Surplus
S is for surplus. A surplus is having more than you need. After the Sumerians invented the irrigation system, they had more food than they needed. This caused them to have a food surplus. When they had food surpluses, it meant that they didn’t all have to farm. This is when they started getting other jobs, like making pots out of clay.
O is for Oldest Society
O is for Oldest Society. Mesopotamia is the oldest society. Society means a group of people living together in a
The very first lines of the epic focus on Gilgamesh and the impressiveness of his accomplishments. They stress the wisdom he attained, drawing attention to it right away with the repetition of what he learned;
When you look back in history to the development and the contributions of both the Mesopotamian and Egyptian civilizations, you see that there was a lot accomplished, as well as a lot created. The earliest forms of writing developed in Mesopotamia, while Egypt was referred to the “Gift of the Nile” by traveler Herodotus (McKay,42). Development of cities was another major marker, especially in the “old world”, of how people eventually determined civilizations and what they represented. According to McKay, civilizations were determined by people who considered themselves more “civilized”, urban people mostly. Made up of cities, written rules of law, and social justice codes, Mesopotamia and Egypt would develop into two of the largest civilizations in history.
“The Epic of Gilgamesh” is a didactic story set out to expose the inevitability of death. The true meaning of this story is sometimes overlooked because the story is told in heighten language not easily understood. The epic hero in this story is Gilgamesh; he undertakes a quest for knowledge which is overshadowed by his ignorance. The tragic death of Enkidu, Gilgamesh’s trusted companion forces the epic hero to change his perception of death. To overcome great obstacles one must be willing to put their ignorance aside. Tzvi Abusch’s analyzes “The Epic of Gilgamesh” in his article “The development and meaning of the Epic of Gilgamesh”. Abusch’s explication of Gilgamesh’s identity, friendship, achievements and ignorance towards death lacks substance.
The two rivers had a delta which was called the Fertile Crescent. This was because of its crescent-like shape and because of how fertile it was due to the two rivers depositing rich silk into it, giving it the ability to support agriculture. The two rivers were incredibly important to the ancient Sumerians because it supplied them with water for their irrigation systems. They were able to also dump their sewage as well. The water gave them mud to use as clay for building. The river led them to the concept of regional government, which was used to manage their irrigation systems, consequently resulting in them creating a city-state. Unlike the Chinese and Harappan people, the Sumerians left behind records that we today are able to decipher. Their writing system was called ‘cuneiform’, which they wrote on clay tablets. This tell us that the Sumerians were civilized and organized. Unlike the Chinese, they utilized their time to learn how to read and write instead of fighting
To fully utilize natural resources, the Sumerians created many inventions that lead to evolutionary advancements with technology. Bronze weapons were replaced with Iron, the invention of the plow and eventual domestication of animals for agricultural purposes, and the sailboat, which was used as a mode of transportation for the trade of goods among neighboring civilizations. Among the most important inventions was the use of simple clay, the foundation of an organized communication system among the Sumerians made up of symbols, known as cuneiform. The output of knowledge by the Sumerians, despite harsh geographical circumstances, gave way as an influential role for growth and development in other civilizations such as Egypt with the invention of hieroglyphics, along the way.
In historic times, the Babylonians believed that if a god harmed a man in a dream, the man’s prayers would be heard and his wishes acknowledged Courtney Moore Mr. Seymour English 10 G 16 January 2015 Dreams in The Epic of Gilgamesh Who has not wondered what a human’s dreams mean? This curiosity has existed since ancient times and continues to perplex many. The Sumerians, Akkadians, and Babylonians valued people’s dreams and had interpreters to explain what those dreams might have meant.
Perhaps one of the main reasons the Epic of Gilgamesh is so popular and has lasted such a long time, is because it offers insight into the human concerns of people four thousand years ago, many of which are still relevant today. Some of these human concerns found in the book that are still applicable today include: the fear and concerns people have in relation to death, overwhelming desires to be immortal, and the impact a friendship has on a person’s life. It does not take a great deal of insight into The Epic of Gilgamesh for a person to locate these themes in the story, and even less introspection to relate to them.
Mesopotamia means “between the rivers” and is found by the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. Around 3300 B.C , the oldest civilization formed in Mesopotamia, in a land called Sumer. Mesopotamia was part of the fertile crescent. The fertile crescent is a fertile arc of land from the eastern coast of the Mediterranean sea, through Mesopotamia,to the Persian gulf.
The Mesopotamian empire “ Tapped into rivers, built reservoirs, and dug canals, so they could irrigate fields of Barkley, wheat and peas”(Pg. 26). This was the first irrigation system. They started to acquire migrants. With the Sumerian people creating these new irrigation systems to get better agriculture, they became the top people in Mesopotamia. Semitic people soon started to migrate towards Mesopotamia. With all of these people migrating they create the “ First Cities”. Or City States”, “ Sumerian cities were centers of political and military authority, and their jurisdiction extended into the surrounding areas”(Pg. 27). With these first cities they created a government that had authority so they could maintain order, because these cities
The Sumerians believed that this world was made into the world it is today through the power of these gods. It is said in their texts that the world was very inhospitable and violent. The gods would make the earth more hospitable. This could be taken to mean that the Sumerians had a pretty low opinion of their environment. Also the use of gods reveals that of course they were polytheistic. It also tells us a little about Mesopotamians and how they seemingly saw themselves as a very small part of this larger plan. To continue he gods did not like doing the labor of making earth hospitable. So in their place they made humans to do work for them.
An epic is a very long poem, normally from ancient oral tradition. A great example of an epic is The Epic of Gilgamesh. The Epic of Gilgamesh was written in 2700 BC. This makes it the oldest book ever written! The epic was discovered by Hormuzd Rassam in the 1800’s. This astonishing epic is known to be written by the Sumerians, but there is no specific person who is said to have written it. The writer or writers of The Epic of Gilgamesh are from ancient Mesopotamia or today’s Iraq. This epic is very important because it is one of the oldest pieces of literature known! It makes references to stories in the bible, and it overall tells a great story! Though, what exactly is The Epic of Gilgamesh about?
and what it represents. The two civilizations I will focus on are the Sumerians and the
Sumerians were name for their major area of Sumer. They also invented the earliest form of writing (cuneiform) and the method of counting seconds and minutes.
An epic is a long heroic poem, typically from an ancient story, narrating the deeds and adventures of a hero. One example of an epic is The epic of Gilgamesh, this epic is an important piece of literary work to us because its the oldest epic written and recorded in history which predates Homer’s writings by 1500 years. It gives us insights about their lives at an early time and age. The Epic of Gilgamesh was modernly discovered at the third dynasty of Uruk, written on 2150-1400 BC. Real author’s of the epic poem is still anonymous until today. The recent completed,edited version of the book was discovered not long around the 600 BC, who signed the book by a Babylonian author and editor named Sin-Leqi-Unninni. Although The Epic of Gilgamesh
Mesopotamia and Harappan societies have long been compared throughout the history of archaeology. Mesopotamia, also known as, 'the land between the rivers,' was named for the triangular area between the Tigris and the Euphrates river, (Nov. 7 lecture). In recent use, it covers a broader area referring to most of what is now Iraq. This adds ancient Assyria and Babylonia to the scope of Mesopotamia (Schultz and Lavenda 1995:310). Parts of Mesopotamia were not inhabited at all until approximately 8000 BC when plants and animals were domesticated, bringing about an agricultural revolution. This allowed nomads and cave dwellers to become farmers and herders.(Whitehouse 1977:129).)