Sumerian Traditions And Beliefs Of Mesopotamia
Ancient Civilizations Egypt, Mesopotamia, and India are some of the early civilizations, that helped to shape the world as we know it. Each ancient civilization had many contributions to society. Some would include irrigation, grid like house system, and written languages. Ancient Egypt is one of the most common ancient civilizations. We all know them for the pyramid but that 's not all that they achieved.
The Mesopotamian and Hebrew societies lived in two very distinct sphere of influence, as they were Polytheist and monotheist, respectably. This difference ensured that each society would operate using different methods. The Gods ruling over the Mesopotamian people were extremely negative toward their subjects. Each group of Mesopotamians from the Sumerians to the Babylonians had different names for their gods; however, the gods operated in similar roles. Mesopotamian gods acted with the same feelings, attitudes, and dispositions as humans.
What will you be doing without any crops or living without writing? Well Mesopotamia created writing and they created irrigation systems which allowed people to grow a surplus (Sur-Plus Surplus means to have extra of something) of food, Mesopotamia was located between the Tigris and Euphrates river Mesopotamia was a successful civilization because their land were fertile and that allowed them to grow a surplus of food by the way did you know that Mesopotamia was the first civilization and they created writing. Mesopotamia impacted the world because they made irrigation systems which allowed them to grow a surplus of food, also they impacted the world because they created writing which allowed people to record events, remember stuff, and to learn. Mesopotamia impacted the world because they created writing which allowed them to learn, record events, and to remember stuff.
Some of the first civilizations started out in present day South America, Europe and the Middle East. Mesopotamia started coming together in 8000 B.C.E. located in present day Iraq and Syria, and the Chavin civilization was located in modern day Peru becoming prominent in 900 B.C.E. These two civilizations had many similarities in religious, political, and technological advancements mainly because the Mesopotamian civilization was a big influence to many others. Both the Mesopotamian and Chavin political structures were heavily based around their religion. Their leaders were not only monarchs, but they were also thought to be blessed with the power which also serves them as religious authority.
Ancient Mesopotamia was a civilization from 4,000 B.C., which was almost 6,000 years ago! A civilization is a large group of non-nomadic people with its language and set of rules, usually advanced for its time. Ancient Mesopotamia, located in the Fertile Crescent (Modern day Iran/Turkey), has been debated for years, with people asking, “should Ancient Mesopotamia be considered the first civilization?” Well, Mesopotamia should be considered the first civilization because of its social structure, politics, and achievements. Ancient Mesopotamia had an advanced social structure for its time.
The Sumerians practiced polytheism, the belief in more than one god. Sumerians believed these gods controlled every aspect of life, including rain, wind, and other elements of nature. 12 In larger Sumerian cities, temples were pyramid-shaped brick towers known as ziggurats. They rose upward in steps, with each level smaller than the one below.
Sumerian kings were treated as the main representatives of their civilization, granting them both special privileges and responsibilities. As rulers, they were granted the most power over the civilization as a whole, and they were often even considered as part god to emphasize their divine ability to lead their citizens. This is reflected in the introduction of Gilgamesh, who is initially described as a nearly perfect man, according to Sumerian standards. For instance, Gilgamesh is described as having accomplished several feats before his journey even began. In the first chapter alone, Gilgamesh is described as “[he] who opened passes in the mountains, who dug wells on the slopes the uplands, and crossed the ocean, the wide sea to sunrise; who scoured the world ever searching for life.
The Sumer region was in Mesopotamia, which is now the current Iraq. This area is very famous due to writing which was the cuneiform script on the clay tablets. The systematic record keeping, the plow, which was the agricultural development. Social and economic organization was also a well known factor, followed by, units of time which was the division of a day into 24 hours as well as one hour into 60 minutes. Also, mainly because of the settlement that took place there.
Samuel Noah Kramer was an expert in the Sumerian language and in Sumerian History. Samuel believed that history began at Sumer in 3300 BCE because of the discovery of the Sumerians tablets. The Sumerians were the first major civilization to settle in the area. They spoke a Non-Semitic language unlike the other groups, which were more Semitic. The groups that were Semitic were the Hebrews.
In the Ancient world, Life began around rivers. Throughout this essay I will be comparing and contrasting two of the prominent ancient civilizations, the Egyptians and the Sumerians. They had many cultural and governmental differences between them. Below are some examples. To start, each civilization began next to a river(s).
Civilization is the cooperation between individuals within a region. The first civilizations were Mesopotamian and Egyptian civilizations. Both civilizations acquired a different environment. However, their environment promoted religion, specifically polytheism. Although their environments were different, both civilizations were in harmony about the existence of many gods.
According to an English philosopher Thomas Hobbes, the life of the tribes in the 17th century was solidarity, nasty, brutish, short, and poor. In 3300 B.C., Sumerian civilization first began in the Tigris-Euphrates river valley in Mesopotamia (now Iraq). Civilization developed here when culture grows more complex. The rise of the agriculture allowed people to settle in villages and as villages grew into cities, society and culture grew more complex. These changes led to an advanced form of culture or known as civilization.
Thesis Statement: Mesopotamians and Hebrews are depicted as very different when it comes to religious beliefs, but actually seem to have many similarities in many ways and has led to many of their laws and social stratification correlating. Topic Sentence 1: Since the ancient Hebrews were Monotheistic and the Mesopotamians were Polytheistic, they are naturally assumed to be completely unlike each other; that is simply not the case with these specific civilizations. Topic Sentence 2: The Gods or God in both the Polytheistic and Monotheistic religions have similar traits, but the beliefs of the civilians in both cultures can be viewed as different.
There were also gods of lesser things such as love and scribal arts. Looking at Mesopotamia’s geography, you can see how it might have served as inspiration for deities. The Euphrates and Tigris rivers surrounding Babylon could’ve been inspirations for the many water gods like Apsu, Enki, and Tiamat, as could the Persian Gulf located nearby. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, the gods are depicted as harsh and wrathful because they decide to wipe out the human race with a flood just because they make too much noise (Ward p.20). The gods’ destructive nature is likely based off the chaos caused by flooding from the Tigris and Euphrates.
Ancient Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt were two early human civilizations that lived during the bronze age in harsh desert environments located not far from each other. Both civilizations were built around rivers that they depended on for survival. There is evidence that these rivers had great influence on both the societies politics and culture. Egypt was built around the very strong and reliable Nile River. Ancient Mesopotamia was established in the fertile crescent between the less reliable Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.
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