Dbq Essay On The Sumerians

The beliefs and religion of the Sumerians and Egyptians lead to stable conditions for civilizations. The Sumerians were polytheistic, people believing in many gods. There has been over 3,000 gods and goddesses identified. For Sumerians, the most prominent building in the city was the temple. Ziggurats are massive towers dedicated to the chief god or goddess of their city which also stored surplus of food. When you look at document 6, you can see how high they built these towers so show the greatness of their past leaders. Sumerians used the form of government called theocracy's which believed their ruling depended solely on gods. Kings had great power such as leading armies, supervised buildings, organized workers and lived in large palaces. In a document is shares

The Nile river’s yearly flooding was the “miracle” of the Nile. The importance of the Nile unified Egypt and gave natural barriers and also provided protection and security. In document 1 you see this passage, “ When the Nile arises earth rejoices and all men are glad… That givest drink to the desert places which are far from water”. This quote helps in showing the importance of the yearly flooding of the Nile in Egypt. Religion provided a sense of security and timelessness for the Egyptians, including the use of pharaohs. From 2700 B.C. to 2200 B.C., rulers were called pharaohs. Everyday people obeyed the pharaoh because it helped maintain a stable world order and only the pharaoh had absolute power. In document 3 there's a passage saying, “ A pharaoh is a god by whose dealings one lives, the father and mother of all… without an equal.” This passage helps in showing the importance that the pharaoh was the most powerful force in government. Egyptians also had a specific lifestyle. Egyptian society was organized like a pyramid with the god-king at the top, followed by merchants, artisans, scribes and then farmers/peasants at the