Ancient Sumerian Civilization 5.

3 Stable Food Supply (courtesy of Simone Dominique) The Sumerians invented complex irrigation systems, and plows. Irrigation systems give the Sumerians fresh water to feed their plants. They also invented the plow. Before the plow, people used to use animal horns or sticks to poke holes in the ground and put seeds in the holes, and this was a very slow way of farming. The plow was faster- it was made out of wood, and one end was bent for cutting into the ground. Domesticated animals like oxen often pulled it. 5.4 Social Structure (courtesy of Grace Cooper) Social structure includes different jobs and social levels, and people at higher levels have greater status than others. To get a higher status in the Sumer you have to be a priest, a landowner or a government official. There are four levels in the social structure the first level is the highest level and thats where the priest, landowner and government official lived. The middle level is where the merchants and crafts people lived. The common level is where the farmers and fishermen live. The very bottom level is where the slaves lived. I would want to be a farmer because even though I will be hot out working I like to garden and water plants. 5.5 Government (courtesy of Gregory Dachtler) Q. Why do civilizations have a system of government? A. They had a government to make life orderly. Q. Who ruled Sumerian City-States? A. Kings ruled Sumerian city-states. Q. Why did Sumerians obey their king? A. The Sumerians obeyed their kings because they believed that the gods chose the kings and they had to obey the will of the gods. Q. What did the king do? A. The king enforced laws and collected taxes along with the duty of leading the army. Q. What was one of the kings most important jobs? why? A. One of the kings most important jobs was leading the army against attacking villages, so that they didnt steal their water and food. Q. What types of soldiers did the Sumerian army include?

A. A Sumerian army included professional warriors and temporary citizen-soldiers, along with chariot driving soldiers. Q. Who helped the king and how? A. The king was helped by officials under him that helped him with his duties and scribes that wrote the laws. 5.6 Religion (courtesy of Jackson Bender) A religious system is a set of beliefs, usually in gods, and a form of worship. It was extremely important in Sumer. They built temples and religious towers called ziggurats. They were as high as eight stories and as wide as 200 feet. They were so big that they could be seen from 20 miles away. They built special temples in the tops of them for the gods to live in. 5.7 The Arts (courtesy of Portia Balfour) Some creative forms of expression include paintings, music, and architecture. Some kinds of Sumerian metalworkers made practical objects such as weapons for fighting and cups for drinking. They also made mirrors and beautiful jewel for the ladies. The Sumerian architects designed temples for tradition and worship. They also made ziggurats, which is an ancient Mesopotamian temple tower. Sumerians believed that music brought joy to the gods and people alike. They also played interesting music that would fill temples. 5.8 Technology (courtesy of Tommy Freiburger Technology is practical tools or inventions. 2. The Sumerians most important invention was the wheel because it allowed them to carry things around quicker and ride in things like chariots and it was helpful to potters to spin clay. 3. Before the wheel was flipped onto its edge it was a potters wheel. 4. Arches are u or v shaped structures built above doorways. They were made of bricks. 5.9 Writing (courtesy of Jack Parsons) Ancient Sumerian Civilization The name of the written language used by Sumerians was called Cuneiform and it was created in 2400 B.C.E. The Sumerians wrote with Pictographs in Cuneiform. The earliest forms of Cuneiform show that the writer was recording information about the goods Sumerians exchanged with each other. Cuneiform started out with about 2,000 symbols but it then was reduced to about 700 symbols.

Cuneiform was based on a simple form of written communication, called pictographs