The Indus Valley Civilization

Mesopotamia was the foundation of western civilization. This was around 3500 BC when cities started evolving in world history. It was also known as the “land between the rivers.” The first city-states developed in southern Mesopotamia by the Sumerian citizens around 4000 BC. The history begins at Sumer; this society brings many things to the table for a starting civilization. In 3500 BC the Sumerian people learned their own writing system. They would write on cuneiforms, clay blocks which were easy to be transported but they were very fragile. The Sumerian people had an independent government which was ruled by a king, Sargon. The cities as well as

Mesopotamia was the a great city that revolved around shipping and trading as it was around water. The supplies helped this city grow and the economy helped create their own self-run civil government.

Known as the “cradle of civilization”, the ancient civilization of Mesopotamia was the first known society that began near rivers. The Tigris and Euphrates were natural barriers as well as a source of maintenance for a growth in population. The rivers served as a source throughout the Fertile Crescent within Mesopotamia. These rivers provided a means of transportation which ultimately led to trading and it had fertile soil. Through trading with other civilizations such as Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro, the economy of Mesopotamia would flourish as well as incorporate cultural diffusion. Settlements were mostly situated along the river banks since the land was more fertile. The Sumerians were one set of people who occupied Mesopotamia in Sumer. The two rivers were able to help them to have urbanization, thus domesticating animals. The city of Harappa and Mohenjo- Daro are also similar to the Mesopotamian civilization because they also built cities along the Indus River, and traded during the ancient times. This river civilization corresponds to that of the Nile River that is located in Egypt. Since Egypt was a desert, the Nile River provided a slew of resources. Tigris and Euphrates were also related to the Nile River because, whenever they flooded over, it was an advantage for farmers because it fertilized the

The earliest societies, such as Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt exhibiting indicator traits of civilization developed along the floodplains of great rivers, the Tigris and Euphrates in Iraq, and the Nile in Egypt. People had settled in Mesopotamia by 7000 B.C. and the First Dynasty of Egyptian

The Mesopotamian civilization was located in the valley between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. The soil was very fertile because of the layers of silt deposited over the years by the waterways. Agriculture was easily produced in this territory with the help of human intervention through irrigation and a drainage system. The abundance of food allowed for a greater population to form and eventually build up. With a larger society, the civilization was able to form a very refined culture.

The first civilizations and the rise of empires began with small groups or villages existing with the use of hunting, fishing, and foraging. (William J. Duiker and Jackson J. Spielvogel, World History, vol. 1, 1) Within a few thousand years, people learned how to cultivate food crops and this led to an increase in population. Increased food production resulted in larger communities. The cities began to expand their cultural and religious developments leading to the beginnings of civilization. (Duiker, World History, 1) The first civilizations emerged in Mesopotamia and Egypt during the fourth and third millennia B.C.E and had various components in common. Each of these civilizations was established in a river valley so they were able to provide and produce the agricultural resources needed to survive and uphold the population. (Duiker, World History, 1) Mesopotamia developed in the valley between the Tigris and Euphrates River known as “the land between the rivers.” These rivers provided irregular and catastrophic flooding for the city-state. They created an intensive irrigation system to improve their agriculture. The first people to create Mesopotamian civilization were known as the Sumerians. These people were the first city builders and created the major city’s named Eridu, Ur, Uruk, Umma, and Lagash. These cities were built with surrounding walls and defense towers. A six-mile-long wall enclosed the city of Uruk. Mesopotamia lacked

The people in the Indus Valley had an advanced civilization. They had an efficient working sewer system. It showed they were an advanced civilization because most people at that time did not have that sort of innovation. It carried waste away from houses so that the city will be clean and diseases free. They also had a grid system for their roads and pathways. It showed they have an advanced civilization because other civilizations did not have such an organized government system that could organize, construct and plan a grid system for the roads and pathways for the city. It shows that they had good architectural knowledge. Another reason why the people of the Indus Valley civilization were part of an advanced civilization is that of their

Through the archeological discoveries, we can infer some details into the lives of the people who originated in the cities of Mesopotamia. The root word of Mesopotamia refers to ‘between rivers’, this infers to the region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, figure 1. Because the environment influenced people to settle, we can see a change in their political, social, and economic structure as they begin to form a complex society. This is the period where we see a complex engineering system as people started to develop canals and other technologies for a more efficient agricultural development. An early culture to settle in the lowlands of Mesopotamia were the Hassuna culture, their civilization were characterized by “small settlements with a few hundred inhabitants, who lived in rectangular houses with several rooms” (Feuerbach, 2015). Another culture to settle in this area were the Samarran culture; even

Life was good in the Indus Valley, they were able to make their own clothes since spindles were found at the site. They grew their own food, food was plentiful, and they had many huge cities with numerous arts and craft, and craftsmen in their cities. They built homes in their cities, and they had livestock. This early civilization was quite advanced. They had religion and religious ceremonies. Their cities were so well planned that compared to our cities they were much better laid out. Anyhow, they had entertainment, and a very diverse cultural life. This civilization is truly marvelous and unique considering the

Mesopotamia and the Indus Valley civilizations have long been compared throughout history and were both some of the earliest civilizations in the world. Mesopotamia, also known as, 'the land between the rivers,' was named for the triangular area between the Tigris and the Euphrates rivers. This area has been extended and now covers modern day Iraq, adding ancient Assyria and Babylonia to that land. The Indus civilization is often referred to as the Harappan civilization from the first city discovered called Harappa. The Indus civilization existed in the vast river plains of what are now Pakistan and northwestern India between the Indus and Ganges rivers from about 2800 BC to 1800 BC. Though these two territories had many things in common

The ancient Indians were highly influenced by the Ganges river, in fact that was one of the reasons they stayed around so long. This river gave them fertile soil, and also played a big role in their religious practices. The ancient Indian civilization lasted from 3300 BC to 1500 BC. (Kokila) Ancient India had very broad social pyramid requirements and the classes were servants, farmers, warriors and king, and the highest class which was above the king. If it were not for the Ganges River or any other natural resource in the Indus Valley the ancient Indian civilization would not have survived very long.

The Indus valley civilizations was an intriguing and sophisticated ancient culture and also a major contributor in the development of what later came to be known as “Hinduism” . The civilization was founded “accidentally” in the 19th century when the British engineers were searching for ballast for a railway line in north-western India (which is now modern day Pakistan) and found the remains of what seemed to be an ancient city which was only known only to locals until then. In the early 20th century, when other similar sites were uncovered, archaeologists realized the significance of the discovery, which turned out to be one of the most prospering civilizations of the ancient world. It is called The Indus Valley Civilization because most of its settlements are situated along the banks of the Indus River .The largest and most important of this civilization were its two prospering cities known as Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa. These names are of post–Indus origin as they were given with reference to the towns built much later on the ruins of these ancient cities. During their prosperous period,, Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa had a population of around 40-50 thousand, which was a lot by ancient standards. Both of these cities were highly organized and strategically planned, and displayed remarkably similar features during their excavation. Given the structure of the cities, archaeologists suggest that there may have been a central authority for code enforcement and the Harappan

Mesopotamian civilization began in the Fertile Crescent between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, and was where agriculture, the Bronze Age, and writing (cuneiform wedges to ideograms/combination of pictures, to phonetic writing) developed.

The peaceful, wealthy and structured Indus Valley Civilisation fell apart between the time of 1900BC and 1700BC. The combination of floods in some areas, drought, anarchy and supposedly natural disasters brought the Civilisation that was once flourishing between 2600BC and 1900BC to the ground. Some historians speculate the Indus Valley Civilisation was devastated by a great war. Hindu poems titled the Rig Veda (1500BC) explain northern invaders conquering the Indus Valley cities. But, despite the physical annihilation of the Indus Civilisation, only the cities fell into ruins. Farmers in the Indus Valley continued living in their villages, and the monsoons “de-urbanized” them. The Indian Religion Hinduism appears to have close connections with the ancient Indus religion. Some of the Hindu gods are very similar to the gods shown on Indus Valley seals. The Indus Valley people considered water as being Holy, and the Hindus believe they are 'purified' in a religious way when they bathe in the sanctified Ganges River. The Indus Valley Civilisation was destroyed from the outside, but many features of the Civilisation and people lived on.

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).)