Ancient Sumer History

Ancient Sumer was the civilization that was located in what is called Iraq today. This area was a fertile crescent location that may have been settled around 4000 B.C., though the exact date is unknown. It is also unknown where the Sumerians came from. It is likely they chose this area due to its rich ecozystem and initially peaceful Akkadian neighbours.

Was Sumer the First Civilization?

It has often been said that civilization began in the settlement of Sumer, which is the land found between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. This is now known to be false, as an earlier settlement was discovered after years of anthropological research. Around 7200 B.C. In the south central area of Turkey began a settlement of people called Cata Hoyuk (or Catal Huyuk). These Neolithic people developed their homes in the land known as Anatolia, where they constructed simple buildings out of rectangular-shaped mud bricks.

The people who first lived here in Sumer were hunter-gatherers, as most early tribes and civilizations were in ancient cultures. What set them apart from other early people were their beginnings in agriculture. They raised farm animals and also grew grains that would be stored for some time.

Sumerians May Have Invented Writing

Due to the archaeological discoveries of tablets and writing in the land of the Sumerian people, it is thought that they were the first civilization to have written records. They are the first known examples of writing that we have today. Pictures or hieroglyphs wereused initially, which evolved into symbols that corresponded to syllables. Everything was written on moist clay with reeds to make the inscriptions.

Evidence of this can be found on clay tablets, monuments, statues, and building bricks. Stories, prayers, laws, songs, letters, and other types of texts were recorded in the Sumerian language, giving us a glimpse into the rich culture of these ancient people.

Sumer Buildings and Achievements

City-states were built after Sumer was settled for some time, and its culture was advanced with frequent wars with the Akkadians. This resulted in the development of metallurgy that gave them products they could trade with other settlements.

Buildings like ziggurat temples were made, which were a notable achievement of the Sumer people. These were stepped structures that were similar to pyramids and gave priests a high place to keep safe from flood waters that came through the fertile crescent on a periodic basis. Usually these temples had other structures in the same complex, including living quarters, storage facilities, courtyards, and bathrooms. Some of these ziggurats and ruins can still be found today.

To find out more about the history of the ancient world, visit World Ancient History

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