NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Mesopotamia (Roman province)

Mesopotamia refers to the region now occupied by modern Iraq, eastern Syria, and southeastern Turkey. The toponym comes from the Greek words μέσος "between" and ποταμός "river", referring to the basins of the Euphrates and the Tigris rivers and the area in between. Comparably, the Arabic term is بين نهرين Bayn Nahrain "between two rivers". geographical area watered by these two rivers is often referred to as the "Cradle of Civilization", since it was here that the first literate societies developed in the late 4th millennium BC. Mesopotamia was coined in the Hellenistic period without any definite boundaries, to refer to a broad geographical area and probably used by the Seleucids. The area became a short-lived province of the Roman Empire at the time of Trajan, with the name Provincia Mesopotamia. Scholars have suggested that the Akkadian term biritum/birit narim corresponded to a similar geographical concept and coined at the time of the Aramaicization of the region^[1]. It is however widely accepted that early Mesopotamian societies simply referred to the entire alluvium as kalam in Sumerian (lit. "land"). More recently terms like "Greater Mesopotamia" or "Syro-Mesopotamia" have been adopted to refer to wider geographies corresponding to the Near East or Middle East. The later euphemisms are Euro-centric terms attributed to the region in the midst of various 19th century Western encroachments^[2]. Mesopotamia can mean several things: Mesopotamia â€” the region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. ... The Euphrates (the traditional Greek name, Arabic: Ø§Ù„ÙØ±Ø§Øª; Al-Furat, Hebrew: ×¤Ö°Ö¼×¨Ö¸×ª Perath, Kurdish: Firat, Turkish: FÄ±rat, Old Persian: Ufrat, Syriac: Ü¦ÜªÜ˜Ü¬ or Ü¦ÜªÜ¬; Frot or PrÃ¢th, Akkadian: Pu-rat-tu) is the westernmost of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia (the other being the Tigris). ... The Tigris River (Arabic: Ø¯Ø¬Ù„Ø© Dijla, Hebrew: ×—×“×§×œ á¸¥iddeqel, Kurdish: DÃ®jle, Pahlavi: Tigr, Old Persian: TigrÄ-, Syriac: Ü•Ü©Ü Ü¬ Deqlath, Turkish: Dicle, Akkadian: Idiqlat) is the eastern member of the pair of great rivers that define Mesopotamia, along with the Euphrates, which flows from the mountains of Anatolia through Iraq (the name Mesopotamia... Assyriology is the historical and archaeological study of ancient Mesopotamia. ... Sumer (or Shumer, Egyptian Sangar, Bib. ... Uruk (Sumerian Unug, Biblical Erech, Greek OrchoÃ« and Arabic ÙˆØ±ÙƒØ§Ø¡ Warka), was an ancient city of Sumer and later Babylonia, situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates, on the line of the ancient Nil canal, in a region of marshes, about 140 miles (230 km) SSE from Baghdad. ... , For other uses, see UR. Ur seen across the Royal tombs, with the Great Ziggurat in the background, January 17, 2004 Ur was an ancient city in southern Mesopotamia, located near the original mouth of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers on the Persian Gulf and close to Eridu. ... Eridu (or Eridug) was an ancient city seven miles southwest of Ur . ... Kish [kish] (Tall al-Uhaymir) was an ancient city of Sumer, now in central Iraq. ... Lagash or Sirpurla was one of the oldest cities of Sumer and later Babylonia. ... The city of Nippur [nipoor] (Sumerian Nibru, Akkadian Nibbur) was one of the most ancient of all the Babylonian cities of which we have any knowledge, the special seat of the worship of the Sumerian god, Enlil, ruler of the cosmos subject to An alone. ... The Akkadian Empire usually refers to the Semitic speaking state that grew up around the city of Akkad north of Sumer, and reached its greatest extent under Sargon of Akkad. ... Akkad (or Agade) was a city and its region of northern Mesopotamia, situated on the left bank of the Euphrates, between Sippar and Kish (located in present-day Iraq, ca. ... Babylon was a city in Mesopotamia, the ruins of which can be found in present-day Babil Province, Iraq, about 50 miles south of Baghdad. ... An International Securities Identifying Number (ISIN) uniquely identifies a fungible security, its structure is defined in ISO 6166. ... Winged sphinx from the palace of Darius the Great at Susa. ... Relief from Assyrian capital of Dur Sharrukin, showing transport of Lebanese cedar (8th c. ... Assur, also spelled Ashur, from Assyrian AÅ¡Å¡ur, was the capital of ancient Assyria. ... , For other uses, see Nineveh (disambiguation). ... Human-headed winged bull, found during Bottas excavation. ... Nimrud is an ancient Assyrian city located south of Nineveh on the river Tigris. ... Babylonia, named for its capital city, Babylon, was an ancient state in the south part of Mesopotamia (in modern Iraq), combining the territories of Sumer and Akkad. ... Chaldea, the Chaldees of the KJV Old Testament, was a Hellenistic designation for a part of Babylonia. ... Elam (Persian: Ø§ÛŒÙ„Ø§Ù…) is one of the most ancient civilizations on record. ... Amorite (Hebrew â€™emÅrÃ®, Egyptian Amar, Akkadian Tidnum or AmurrÅ«m (corresponding to Sumerian MAR.TU or Martu) refers to a Semitic people who occupied the country west of the Euphrates from the second half of the third millennium BC, and also the god they worshipped (see Amurru). ... The Hurrians were a people of the Ancient Near East, who lived in northern Mesopotamia and areas to the immediate east and west, beginning approximately 2500 BC. They probably originated in the Caucasus and entered from the north, but this is not certain. ... Mitanni or Mittani (in Assyrian sources Hanilgalbat, Khanigalbat) was a Hurrian kingdom in northern Syria from ca. ... The Kassites were a Near Eastern mountain tribe of obscure origins, who spoke a non-Indo-European, non-Semitic language. ... Urartu (Biainili in Urartian) was an ancient kingdom in eastern Anatolia, centered in the mountainous region around Lake Van (present-day Turkey), which existed from about 1000 BC, or earlier, until 585 BC. The name may correspond to the Biblical Ararat. ... The Chronology of the Ancient Orient deals with the notoriously difficult task of assigning years of the Common Era to various events, rulers and dynasties of the 3rd and 2nd millennia BC. The chronology of this region is based on five sets of primary materials. ... The Sumerian king list is an ancient text in the Sumerian language listing kings of Sumer from Sumerian and foreign dynasties. ... This page lists the Kings of Assyria from earliest times. ... The following is a list of the Kings of Babylon, a major city of ancient Mesopotamia, in modern Iraq. ... The cuneiform script is one of the earliest known forms of written expression. ... The Sumerian language of ancient Sumer was spoken in Southern Mesopotamia from at least the 4th millennium BCE. Sumerian was replaced by Akkadian as a spoken language around 1800 BCE, but continued to be used as a sacred, ceremonial, literary and scientific language in Mesopotamia until the first century AD... Akkadian (liÅ¡Änum akkadÄ«tum) was a Semitic language (part of the greater Afro-Asiatic language family) spoken in ancient Mesopotamia, particularly by the Assyrians and Babylonians. ... Elamite is an extinct language, which was spoken in the ancient Elamite Empire. ... Hurrian is a conventional name for the language of the Hurrians (Khurrites), a people who entered northern Mesopotamia around 2300 BC and had mostly vanished by 1000 BC. Hurrian was the language of the Mitanni kingdom in northern Mesopotamia, and was likely spoken at least initially in Hurrian settlements in... This article is in need of attention. ... EnÃ»ma EliÅ¡ is the creation epic of Sumerian Babylonian mythology. ... Gilgamesh, according to the Sumerian king list, was the fifth king of Uruk (Early Dynastic II, first dynasty of Uruk), the son of Lugalbanda, ruling circa 2650 BCE. Legend has it that his mother was Ninsun, a goddess. ... Marduk [mÃ¤rdook] (Sumerian spelling in Akkadian AMAR.UTU solar calf; Biblical Merodach) was the name of a late generation god from ancient Mesopotamia and patron deity of the city of Babylon, who, when Babylon permanently became the political center of the Euphrates valley in the time of Hammurabi... Region can be used to mean either: any more or less well-defined geographical area of a country or continent, defined by geography, culture or history in political geography, an administrative subdivision of a country or of the European Union. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The Euphrates (the traditional Greek name, Arabic: Ø§Ù„ÙØ±Ø§Øª; Al-Furat, Hebrew: ×¤Ö°Ö¼×¨Ö¸×ª Perath, Kurdish: Firat, Turkish: FÄ±rat, Old Persian: Ufrat, Syriac: Ü¦ÜªÜ˜Ü¬ or Ü¦ÜªÜ¬; Frot or PrÃ¢th, Akkadian: Pu-rat-tu) is the westernmost of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia (the other being the Tigris). ... The Tigris River (Arabic: Ø¯Ø¬Ù„Ø© Dijla, Hebrew: ×—×“×§×œ á¸¥iddeqel, Kurdish: DÃ®jle, Pahlavi: Tigr, Old Persian: TigrÄ-, Syriac: Ü•Ü©Ü Ü¬ Deqlath, Turkish: Dicle, Akkadian: Idiqlat) is the eastern member of the pair of great rivers that define Mesopotamia, along with the Euphrates, which flows from the mountains of Anatolia through Iraq (the name Mesopotamia... The Arabic language ( ), or simply Arabic ( ), is the largest member of the Semitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family (classification: South Central Semitic) and is closely related to Hebrew and Aramaic. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Mesopotamia. ... Literacy is the ability to use text to communicate across space and time. ... Human relationships within an ethnically diverse society. ... (5th millennium BC â€“ 4th millennium BC â€“ 3rd millennium BC - other millennia) // Events Sumerian city of Ur in Mesopotamia (40th century BC); Sumerian hegemony in Mesopotamia, with the invention of writing, base-60 mathematics, astronomy and astrology, civil law, complex hydrology, the sailboat, the wheel, and the potters wheel, 4000... The term Hellenistic (established by the German historian Johann Gustav Droysen) in the history of the ancient world is used to refer to the shift from a culture dominated by ethnic Greeks, however scattered geographically, to a culture dominated by Greek-speakers of whatever ethnicity, and from the political dominance... The word Boundary has a variety of meanings. ... Physical map of the Earth (Medium) (Large 2 MB) Geography is the scientific study of the locational and spatial variation in both physical and human phenomena on Earth. ... The Seleucid Empire was one of several political states founded after the death of Alexander the Great, whose generals squabbled over the division of Alexanders empire. ... The Roman Empire was a phase of the ancient Roman civilization characterized by an autocratic form of government. ... Marcus Ulpius Nerva Traianus (September 18, 53 â€“ August 9, 117), Roman Emperor (98-117), commonly called Trajan, was the second of the Five Good Emperors of the Roman Empire. ... Akkadian (liÅ¡Änum akkadÄ«tum) was a Semitic language (part of the greater Afro-Asiatic language family) spoken in ancient Mesopotamia, particularly by the Assyrians and Babylonians. ... Alluvium is soil or sediments deposited by a river or other running water. ...

History

Mesopotamian history is very messy, from the emergence of urbanization in Southern Iraq in the 4th millennium BC to the arrival of Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC (which is seen as the hallmark of the Hellenization of the Near East, therefore supposedly marking the "end" of Mesopotamia). A cultural continuity and spatial homogeneity for this entire historical geograhy is popularly assumed (coined as "the Great Tradition") through millennia, though not unproblematic. Mesopotamia is understood to have housed some of the world's most ancient states with highly developed social complexity, acting as one of the famous four riverine civilizations where writing was first invented, along with the Nile valley in Egypt, the Indus Valley in the Indian Subcontinent and Yellow River valley in China. Ancient Mesopotamia was settled and conquered by numerous ancient civilizations. ... Image File history File links Used the blank world map from Wikimedia commons to create an inset to show where the map is. ... Image File history File links Used the blank world map from Wikimedia commons to create an inset to show where the map is. ...

Mesopotamia housed the cities such as Ubaid and Jemdet Nasr, as well as the Sumerian city states, and the Akkadian, Babylonian, Assyrian, and Armenian Empires. Some of the important historical Mesopotamian leaders were Ur-Nammu (king of Ur), Sargon (established the Akkadian Empire), Hammurabi (established the Babylonian Empire), Tiglath-Pileser I (established the Assyrian Empire), and Tigranes the Great. The tell (mound) of Ubaid near Ur in southern Iraq has given its name to the prehistoric culture which represents the earliest settlement on the alluvial plain of southern Mesopotamia. ... Jemdet Nasr is an archaeological site in modern Iraq. ... Sumer (or Shumer, Egyptian Sangar, Bib. ... Akkad (or Agade) was a city and its region of northern Mesopotamia, situated on the left bank of the Euphrates, between Sippar and Kish (located in present-day Iraq, ca. ... Babylonia, named for its capital city, Babylon, was an ancient state in the south part of Mesopotamia (in modern Iraq), combining the territories of Sumer and Akkad. ... Relief from Assyrian capital of Dur Sharrukin, showing transport of Lebanese cedar (8th c. ... Ur-Nammu (or Urnammu) was an ancient Sumerian king of Ur, fl. ... Sargon of Akkad, or Sargon the Great (Akkadian Sharru-kin, the true king, reigned 2334 BC - 2279 BC, short chronology), founder of the Dynasty of Akkad. ... This diorite head is believed to represent king Hammurabi Hammurabi (Akkadian, from Amorite Ë¤AmmurÄpi, The Kinsman is a Healer (Ë¤Ammu paternal kinsman + RÄpi healer); also transliterated Ammurapi, Hammurapi or Khammurabi) was the sixth king of Babylon. ... Tiglath-Pileser I (the Hebraic form of Tukulti-apil-Esharra, my trust is in the son of Esharra) was King of Assyria (1115 BC - 1077 BC). ... Coin of Tigranes II. The Greek inscription reads Î’Î‘Î£Î™Î›Î•Î©Î£ Î¤Î™Î“Î¡Î‘ÎÎŸÎ¥ ([coin] of King Tigranes). Tigranes the Greats Empire Tigranes the Great (Armenian: ÕÕ«Õ£Ö€Õ¡Õ¶ Õ„Õ¥Õ®) (ruled 95 BCE-55 BCE) (also called Tigranes II and sometimes Tigranes I and also known to be called Tigranes Karapietyan) was a king of Armenia. ...

"Ancient Mesopotamia" is taken to include the period from the late 4th millennium BCE until the rise of the Achaemenids in the 6th century BCE. This long period may be divided in (5th millennium BC – 4th millennium BC – 3rd millennium BC - other millennia) Events City of Ur in Mesopotamia (40th century BC). ... Achaemenid Empire The Achaemenid Dynasty was a dynasty in the ancient Persian Empire, including Cyrus II the Great, Darius I and Xerxes I. At the height of their power, the Achaemenid rulers of Persia ruled over territories roughly emcompassing some parts of todays Iraq, Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Israel, Lebanon... (7th century BC - 6th century BCE - 5th century BCE - other centuries) (600s BCE - 590s BCE - 580s BCE - 570s BCE - 560s BCE - 550s BCE - 540s BCE - 530s BCE - 520s BCE - 510s BCE - 500s BCE - other decades) (2nd millennium BCE - 1st millennium BCE - 1st millennium) The 5th and 6th centuries BCE were...

2nd and 3rd millennium dates are approximate, compare Chronology of the Ancient Near East. The Uruk period is a protohistoric sequence in the history of Mesopotamia which stretches from 4100 to 3300 BC, before the apparition of a writing system. ... Pottery jar from Late Ubaid Period The tell (mound) of Ubaid near Ur in southern Iraq has given its name to the prehistoric chalcolithic culture which represents the earliest settlement on the alluvial plain of southern Mesopotamia. ... Sumer (or Shumer, Egyptian Sangar, Bib. ... The Akkadian Empire usually refers to the Semitic speaking state that grew up around the city of Akkad north of Sumer, and reached its greatest extent under Sargon of Akkad. ... The Gutian kings came to some power in Mesopotamia in ca. ... The third dynasty of Ur reinstalled Sumerian rule after several centuries of Akkadian and Gutian kings (Sumerian Renaissance). ... Assyrian Empire Assyria in earliest historical times referred to a region on the Upper Tigris river, named for its original capital, the ancient city of Assur. ... The chronology of the first dynasty of Babylonia is debated, because there is a Babylonian King List A and a Babylonian King List B. Hereby we follow temporarily the regnal years of List A, because those are widely used, although we believe that the other list is better, at least... The Kassites were a Near Eastern mountain tribe of obscure origins, who spoke a non-Indo-European, non-Semitic language. ... Assyrian Empire Assyria in earliest historical times referred to a region on the Upper Tigris river, named for its original capital, the ancient city of Assur. ... Relief from Assyrian capital of Dur Sharrukin, showing transport of Lebanese cedar (8th c. ... Through the centuries of Assyrian domination, Babylonia enjoyed a prominent status, or revolting at the slightest indication that it did not. ... The Chronology of the Ancient Orient deals with the notoriously difficult task of assigning years of the Common Era to various events, rulers and dynasties of the 3rd and 2nd millennia BC. The chronology of this region is based on five sets of primary materials. ...

Language and writing

The earliest written language in Mesopotamia was Sumerian, a language isolate, even though now scholars agree that other languages were also spoken in early Mesopotamia alongside with Sumerian. Later a Semitic language, Akkadian, came to be the dominant language, although Sumerian was retained for administrative, religious, literary, and scientific purposes. Different varieties of Akkadian were used until the end of the Neo-Babalonian period. Then Aramaic, which had already become common in Mesopotamia, became the official language of the Achaemenid Persian Empire. Akkadian fell into disuse, although both it and Sumerian were still used in temples for some centuries. The Sumerian language of ancient Sumer was spoken in Southern Mesopotamia from at least the 4th millennium BCE. Sumerian was replaced by Akkadian as a spoken language around 1800 BCE, but continued to be used as a sacred, ceremonial, literary and scientific language in Mesopotamia until the first century AD... A language isolate, in the absolute sense, is a natural language with no demonstrable genealogical (or genetic) relationship with other living languages; that is, one that has not been demonstrated to descend from an ancestor common to any other language. ... 14th century BC diplomatic letter in Akkadian, found in Tell Amarna. ... Akkadian (liÅ¡Änum akkadÄ«tum) was a Semitic language (part of the greater Afro-Asiatic language family) spoken in ancient Mesopotamia, particularly by the Assyrians and Babylonians. ... Organisational use In some organisational analyses, administration can refer to the bureaucratic or operational performance of mundane office tasks, usually internally oriented. ... Religious is a term with both a technical definition and folk use. ... Literature is literally an acquaintance with letters as in the first sense given in the Oxford English Dictionary (from the Latin littera meaning an individual written character (letter)). The term has, however, generally come to identify a collection of texts. ... For the scientific journal named Science, see Science (journal). ... Aramaic is a Semitic language with a four-thousand year history. ... The Persepolis Ruins The Achaemenid dynasty (Old Persian:Hakamanishiya, Persian: Ù‡Ø®Ø§Ù…Ù†Ø´ÛŒØ§Ù†) - was a dynasty in the ancient Persian Empire. ... The Persian Empire was a series of historical empires that ruled over the Iranian plateau (IrÄn - Land of the Aryans) and beyond. ... The word temple has different meanings in the fields of architecture, religion, geography, anatomy, and education. ...

Royal libraries and museums

One of the largest collections of cuneiform writing comes from the archives of Ashurbanipal, the leader of Assyria. Around 650 BC he decided to create a library in Nineveh. As all temples in Babylonia had libraries, he sent his scribes to collect tablets from them. If a temple was unwilling to give away a tablet, the scribes had to make a copy. Soon the royal library in Nineveh was the largest in Assyria. Much of what we know about ancient Mesopotamia today comes from this library. Look up Cuneiform in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... A Specimen of typeset fonts and languages, by William Caslon, letter founder; from the 1728 Cyclopaedia. ... For other uses of the word Archive, see Archive (disambiguation) Archives refers to a collection of records, and also refers to the location in which these records are kept. ... Ashurbanipal, Assurbanipal or Sardanapal, (reigned 669 - 627 BCE), the son of Esarhaddon and Naqia-Zakutu, was the last great king of ancient Assyria. ... Relief from Assyrian capital of Dur Sharrukin, showing transport of Lebanese cedar (8th c. ... Centuries: 8th century BC - 7th century BC - 6th century BC Decades: 700s BC 690s BC 680s BC 670s BC 660s BC - 650s BC - 640s BC 630s BC 620s BC 610s BC 600s BC Events and Trends Occupation begins at Maya site of Piedras Negras, Guatemala 657 BC - Cypselus becomes the... A modern-style library in ChambÃ©ry In the traditional sense of the word, a library is a collection of books and periodicals, . It can refer to an individuals private collection, but more often it is a large collection that is funded and maintained by a city or institution. ... , For other uses, see Nineveh (disambiguation). ... The Angkor Wat Hindu temple in Cambodia is the largest in the world. ... Illustration of a 15th century scribe This is about scribe, the profession. ... Common disk-shaped tablets A pharmacological tablet is a medicinal or other active substance mixed with binder powders and pressed into a tablet form. ... A royal family is the extended family of a monarch. ... , For other uses, see Nineveh (disambiguation). ... For the span of recorded history starting roughly 5,000-5,500 years ago, see Ancient history. ...

The Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II founded a museum where important statues, objects and some tablets were displayed. This is an example of Babylonian literature. Nebuchadnezzar (or Nebudchadrezzar) II (ca. ... The National Gallery in London, a famous museum. ... The Babylonians were an ancient culture located in what is now Iraq. ...

Science and technology

Mesopotamian people developed many technologies, among them metalworking, glassmaking, textile weaving, food control, and water storage and irrigation. They were also one of the first Bronze age people in the world. Early on they used copper, bronze and gold, and later they used iron. Palaces were decorated with hundreds of kilograms of these very expensive metals. Also, copper, bronze, and iron were used for armor as well as for different weapons such as swords, daggers, and spears. Metalworking is the craft and practice of working with metals to create parts or structures. ... Glass can be made transparent and flat, or into other shapes and colors as shown in this ball from the Verrerie of Brehat in Brittany. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... High-altitude aerial view of irrigation in the Heart of the Sahara ( ) Irrigation is the replacement or supplementation of rainfall with water from another source in order to grow crops or plants. ... The Bronze Age is a period in a civilizations development when the most advanced metalworking has developed the techniques of smelting copper from natural outcroppings and alloys it to cast bronze. ... General Name, Symbol, Number copper, Cu, 29 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 11, 4, d Appearance metallic pinkish red Atomic mass 63. ... Assorted ancient bronze castings found as part of a cache, probably intended for recycling. ... General Name, Symbol, Number gold, Au, 79 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 11, 6, d Appearance metallic yellow Atomic mass 196. ... General Name, Symbol, Number iron, Fe, 26 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 8, 4, d Appearance lustrous metallic with a grayish tinge Atomic mass 55. ... Armor or armour (see spelling differences) is protective clothing intended to defend its wearer from intentional harm in combat and military engagements, typically associated with soldiers. ... The word swords can refer to: Swords, Dublin swords (blades) Swords, a suit in the Tarot SWORDS, a ground-based military robot This is a disambiguation page: a list of articles associated with the same title. ... For the typographical mark, see dagger (typography). ... A spear is an ancient weapon, used for hunting and war. ...

Mathematics

The Mesopotamians used a sexagesimal (base 60) numeral system. This is the source of the current 60-minute hour and 24-hour day, as well as the 360 degree circle. The Sumerian calendar also measured weeks of seven days each. This mathematical knowledge was used in mapmaking. Babylonian mathematics refers to any mathematics of the peoples of Mesopotamia, from the days of the early Sumerians to the fall of Babylon in 539 BC. In contrast to the sparcity of sources in Egyptian mathematics, our knowledge of Babylonian mathematics is derived from some 400 clay tablets unearthed since... The sexagesimal (base-sixty) is a numeral system with sixty as the base. ... A numeral is a symbol or group of symbols that represents a number. ... Hours is the name of the critically acclaimed second album by Welsh rock group Funeral for a Friend. ... A day is any of several different units of time. ... A degree (in full, a degree of arc, arc degree, or arcdegree), usually symbolized Â°, is a measurement of plane angle, representing 1ï¼360 of a full rotation. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ...

Astronomy

The Babylonian astronomers were very interested in studying the stars and sky, and most could already predict eclipses and solstices. People thought that everything had some purpose in astronomy. Most of these related to religion and omens.

Religion

Mesopotamian religion is the oldest religion recorded. Mesopotamians believed that the world was a flat disc, surrounded by a huge, holed space, and above that, heaven. They also believed that water was everywhere, the top, bottom and sides, and that the universe was born from this enormous sea. Mesopotamian religion was highly polytheistic, that is people believed in many gods. A disk or disc is anything that resembles a flattened cylinder in shape. ... Heaven is an afterlife concept found in many religions or spiritual philosophies. ... The deepest visible-light image of the cosmos, the Hubble Ultra Deep Field. ... Polytheism is belief in, or worship of, multiple gods or divinities. ...

Although the beliefs described above were held in common among Mesopotamians, there were also regional variations. The Sumerian word for universe is an-ki, which refers to the god An and the goddess Ki. Their son was Enlil, the air god. They believed that Enlil was the most powerful god. He was the chief god of the Pantheon, as the Greeks had Zeus and the Romans had Jupiter. The Sumerians also posed philosophical questions, such as: Who are we?, Where are we?, How did we get here?. They attributed answers to these questions to explanations provided by their gods. Wiktionary has related dictionary definitions, such as: belief Belief is usually defined as a conviction to the truth of a proposition. ... A pantheon (Greek: Ï€Î±Î½, pan, all + Î¸ÎµÏŒÏ‚, theos, god), is a set of all the gods of a particular religion or mythology, such as the gods of Hinduism, Greek mythology, Norse mythology, and Egyptian mythology. ... Statue of Zeus Phidias created the 12-m (40-ft) tall statue of Zeus at Olympia about 435 BC. The statue was perhaps the most famous sculpture in Ancient Greece, imagined here in a 16th century engraving In Greek mythology, Zeus (in Greek: nominative: Î–ÎµÏÏ‚ ZeÃºs, genitive: Î”Î¹ÏŒÏ‚ DÃos) is... Adjective Jovian Atmospheric characteristics Atmospheric pressure 70 kPa Hydrogen ~86% Helium ~14% Methane 0. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require cleanup. ...

If someone was sick they prayed to the gods so that person would recover. As mentioned above, the Mesopotamian doctors were not medically advanced, so instead people asked help from the gods. Prayer is an effort to communicate with a God, or to some deity or deities, either to offer praise to the deity, to make a request of the deity, or simply to express ones thoughts and emotions to the deity. ...

Primary gods and goddesses

Look up AN on Wiktionary, the free dictionary AN may mean: NATO country code for Andorra IATA code for Ansett Australia (now defunct) a prefix in Army-Navy Equipment Code Designators the AAR reporting mark for Apalachicola Northern Railroad ISO country code for the Netherlands Antilles An may mean: an... Marduk [mÃ¤rdook] (Sumerian spelling in Akkadian AMAR.UTU solar calf; Biblical Merodach) was the name of a late generation god from ancient Mesopotamia and patron deity of the city of Babylon, who, when Babylon permanently became the political center of the Euphrates valley in the time of Hammurabi... Babylon was a city in Mesopotamia, the ruins of which can be found in present-day Babil Province, Iraq, about 50 miles south of Baghdad. ... Babylon was a city in Mesopotamia, the ruins of which can be found in present-day Babil Province, Iraq, about 50 miles south of Baghdad. ... Gula was a Babylonian goddess, the consort of Ninib. ... Nanna is the name of two deities: God of the moon in Sumerian mythology and Nanna, the wife of Balder in Norse mythology There is also a kind of Corsican music called nanna. ... In the study of mythology, a lunar deity is a god or goddess associated with or symbolizing the Moon: see Moon (mythology). ... Sin is a term used mainly in a religious context to describe an act that violates a moral code of conduct or the state of having committed such a violation. ... Enlil was the name of a chief deity in Babylonian religion, perhaps pronounced and sometimes rendered in translations as Ellil in later Akkadian. ... In Sumerian mythology, Utu is the offspring of Nanna and Ningal and is the god of the sun and of justice. ... Ishtar (Arabic: Ø¹Ø´ØªØ§Ø±) is the Assyrian counterpart to the Sumerian Inanna and to the cognate northwest Semitic goddess Astarte. ... Love is a profound feeling of tender affection for or intense attraction to another. ... Look up Sex in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Enlil was the name of a chief deity in Babylonian religion, perhaps pronounced and sometimes rendered in translations as Ellil in later Akkadian. ... Ninlil, first called Sud, is the daughter of Nammu and An in Sumerian mythology. ... Inanna was one of the most revered of goddesses among later Sumerian mythology. ... The name Nergal (or Nirgal, Nirgali) refers to a deity in Babylonia with the main seat of his cult at Cuthah represented by the mound of Tell-Ibrahim. ... Ninurta Lord Plough in Sumerian and Akkadian mythology was the god of Nippur, identified with Ningirsu with whom he may always have been identical. ... Nü Shu (女书 Hanyu Pinyin: nǚ shū), literally translated as Womens writing, is a writing system that was used exclusively among women in Jiangyong County in Hunan province of southern China. ... In Sumerian mythology, Utu is the offspring of Nanna and Ningal and is the god of the sun and of justice. ... It has been suggested that Nebo (god) be merged into this article or section. ... Adad in Akkadian and Ishkur in Sumerian are the names of the storm-god in the Babylonian-Assyrian pantheon, both usually written by the logogram dIM. The Akkadian god Adad is cognate in name and functions with northwest Semitic god Hadad. ... Ninurta Lord Plough in Sumerian and Akkadian mythology was the god of Nippur, identified with Ningirsu with whom he may always have been identical. ... Inanna was one of the most revered of goddesses among later Sumerian mythology. ... Ninurta Lord Plough in Sumerian and Akkadian mythology was the god of Nippur, identified with Ningirsu with whom he may always have been identical. ... In Sumerian and Akkadian mythology, Pazuzu was the king of the demons of wind, and son of the god Hanbi. ... Zu or zu can mean: Zulu language (ISO 639 alpha-2, zu) Zu (mythology), a lesser god in Akkadian mythology a German word, meaning to. As part of a family name, it can indicate belonging to the nobility and posession of a place, estate etc. ... Enlil was the name of a chief deity in Babylonian religion, perhaps pronounced and sometimes rendered in translations as Ellil in later Akkadian. ...

Burials

Archeologists found hundreds of graves in some parts of Mesopotamia. These graves tell us many things about Mesopotamian burial habits. In the city of Ur, most people were buried in family graves under their houses. Children were put in big jars and were taken to the family chapel. Other people were just buried into common city graveyards. A few people were wrapped in mats and carpets. In most graves some belongings of the people were with them, and there were 17 graves with very precious objects in them so it is assumed that these were royal graves. Archaeology or sometimes in American English archeology (from the Greek words αρχαίος = ancient and λόγος = word/speech) is the study of human cultures through the recovery, documentation and analysis of material remains, including architecture, artefacts, biofacts, human remains, and landscapes. ... Grave has multiple meanings: A grave (IPA: ) is a place for the dead, see tomb, burial, grave (burial) A grave accent (IPA: ) is a type of diacritical mark (as in French crÃ¨me de la crÃ¨me). ... Underwater funeral in Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea from an edition with drawings by Alphonse de Neuville and Edouard Riou. ... , For other uses, see UR. Ur seen across the Royal tombs, with the Great Ziggurat in the background, January 17, 2004 Ur was an ancient city in southern Mesopotamia, located near the original mouth of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers on the Persian Gulf and close to Eridu. ... A chapel is a private church, usually small and often attached to a larger institution such as a college, a hospital, a palace, or a prison. ... Graves at Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn, New York A cemetery is a place (usually an enclosed area of land) in which dead bodies are buried. ... Carpet is a general term given to any loom-woven or felted textile and to grass floor coverings. ...

Ziggurats

Ziggurats were huge temples built to worship the gods. They were built from clay and mud and had three or four parts. They were very high so that at times of flood they would stay dry. Many workers were required to build a ziggurat. There had to be enough people to dig clay, make bricks, and carry those bricks and put them together. The bricks were made from mud and crushed reeds. Only the Ur ziggurat survived because the builders in the later years learnt that firing the clay would make the bricks last longer. The Ziggurats were built in a pyramid shape, but with stairs leading up to the top plane- much like the hanging gardens. They were built to resemble mountains, both due to a practical envy of the wood and minerals in the Zargos Mountains, which seperate Mesopotamia from modern day Iran, and due to the tenant that the gods dwelled on mountains, and hence building an artifical mountain would allow people to better reach their gods and be more hospitable to their presence. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Worship usually refers to specific acts of religious praise, honour, or devotion, typically directed to a supernatural being such as a god or goddess. ... The Gay Head cliffs in Marthas Vineyard are made almost entirely of natural clays. ... Some mud. ... Dur-Untash, or Choqa Zanbil, built in 13th century BC by Untash Napirisha and located near Susa, Iran is one of the worlds best preserved ziggurats. ... An old brick wall in English bond laid with alternating courses of headers and Brick is an artificial stone made by forming clay into rectangular blocks which are hardened, either by burning in a kiln or sometimes, in warm and sunny countries, by sun-drying. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Culture

Music and songs

Some were written for the gods but many were written to describe important events. Although music and songs amused kings and rulers, they were also enjoyed by ordinary people who liked to sing and dance in their homes or in the marketplaces. Songs were sung to children who passed them on to their children. Thus songs were passed on through many generations until someone wrote them down. These songs provided a means of passing on through the centuries highly important information about historical events that were eventually passed on to us. Look up monarch in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... A ruler is an instrument used in geometry and technical drawing to measure short distances and/or to rule straight lines. ... A marketplace is the space, actual or metaphorical, in which a market operates. ... Generation (From the Greek Î³Î¹Î³Î½Î¼Î±Î¹), also known as procreation, is the act of producing offspring. ... This page is about centuries as units of time. ... Information as a concept bears a diversity of meanings, from everyday usage to technical settings. ... For other senses of this word, see history (disambiguation). ...

The Oud (Arabic:العود) is a small, stringed musical instrument. The oldest pictorial record of the Oud dates back to the Uruk period in Southern Mesopotamia over 5000 years ago. It is on a cylinder seal currently housed at the British Museum and acquired by Dr. Dominique Collon. The image depicts a female crouching with her instruments upon a boat, playing right-handed. This instrument appears hundreds of times throughout Mesopotamian history and again in ancient Egypt from the 18th dynasty onwards in long- and short-neck varieties. Front and rear views of an oud. ... Uruk (Sumerian Unug, Biblical Erech, Greek OrchoÃ« and Arabic ÙˆØ±ÙƒØ§Ø¡ Warka), was an ancient city of Sumer and later Babylonia, situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates, on the line of the ancient Nil canal, in a region of marshes, about 140 miles (230 km) SSE from Baghdad. ... For images in Wikipedia, see Wikipedia:Images. ... A boat is a structure designed to float on, and provide transport over water. ... A person who is right-handed is more dextrous with their right hand than with their left hand: they will write with their right hand, and probably also use this hand for tasks such as personal care, cooking, and so on. ... // For other uses, see Dynasty (disambiguation). ...

The oud is regarded as a precursor to the European lute. Its name is derived from the Arabic word العود al-‘ūd 'the wood', which is probably the name of the tree from which the oud was made. (The Arabic name, with the definite article, is the source of the word 'lute'.) A precursor is something that existed before and was incorporated into something that came later. ... This article is about the continent. ... The lute is a plucked string instrument with a fretted neck and a deep round back. ...

Games

Hunting was popular among Assyrian kings. Boxing and wrestling feature frequently in art, and polo was probably popular, although with men sitting on the shoulders of other men rather than on horses. ^[3]. It has been suggested that Big-game hunter be merged into this article or section. ... Professional boxing bout featuring Ricardo DomÃnguez (left) versus Rafael OrtÃz Boxing, also called Western Boxing, prizefighting (when referring to professional boxing) or the sweet science (a common nickname among fans), is a sport and martial art in which two participants of similar weight fight each other with their... Wrestling is a sport in which two opponents attempt to control the other without the use of striking while winning points for various accomplishments (including takedowns, reversals, escapes, and near-falls). ... now. ...

Family life

Infant mortality was between 75 to 95 percent. As for schooling, only royal offspring and sons of the rich and professionals such as scribes, physicians, temple administrators, and so on, went to school. Most boys were taught their father's trade or were apprenticed out to learn a trade^[4]. Girls had to stay home with their mothers to learn housekeeping and cooking, and to look after the younger children. Unusual for that time in history, women had rights. They could own property and, if they had good reason, get a divorce. Housekeeping is the maintenance of a clean environment, usually in a house, but it also applies to industrial, commercial, and institutional settings. ... Cooking is an act of preparing food for eating. ... For the direction right, see left and right or starboard. ... // Use of the term In common usage, property means ones own thing and refers to the relationship between individuals and the objects which they see as being their own to dispense with as they see fit. ... Divorce or dissolution of marriage is the ending of a marriage before the death of either spouse, which can be contrasted with an annulment, which is a declaration that a marriage is void, though the effects of marriage may be recognized in such unions, such as spousal support, child custody...

Agriculture

Food supply in Mesopotamia was quite rich due to the location of the two rivers from which its name is derived, Tigris and Euphrates. Although land nearer to the rivers was fertile and good for crops, portions of land further from the water were dry and largely uninhabitable. This is why the development of irrigation was very important for settlers of Mesopotamia. Other Mesopotamian innovations include the control of water by dams and the use of aqueducts. Early settlers of fertile land in Mesopotamia used wooden plows to soften the soil before planting crops such as barley, onions, grapes, turnips, and apples. Mesopotamian settlers were some of the first people to make beer and wine. The unpredictable Mesopotamian weather was often hard on farmers; crops were often ruined so backup sources of food such as cows and lambs were also kept. As a result of the skill involved in farming in the Mesopotamian, farmers did not depend on slaves to complete farm work for them, with some exceptions. There were too many risks involved to make slavery practical (i.e. the escape/mutiny of the slave). Food distribution is a vital factor in public nutrition. ... The Tigris River (Arabic: Ø¯Ø¬Ù„Ø© Dijla, Hebrew: ×—×“×§×œ á¸¥iddeqel, Kurdish: DÃ®jle, Pahlavi: Tigr, Old Persian: TigrÄ-, Syriac: Ü•Ü©Ü Ü¬ Deqlath, Turkish: Dicle, Akkadian: Idiqlat) is the eastern member of the pair of great rivers that define Mesopotamia, along with the Euphrates, which flows from the mountains of Anatolia through Iraq (the name Mesopotamia... The Euphrates (the traditional Greek name, Arabic: Ø§Ù„ÙØ±Ø§Øª; Al-Furat, Hebrew: ×¤Ö°Ö¼×¨Ö¸×ª Perath, Kurdish: Firat, Turkish: FÄ±rat, Old Persian: Ufrat, Syriac: Ü¦ÜªÜ˜Ü¬ or Ü¦ÜªÜ¬; Frot or PrÃ¢th, Akkadian: Pu-rat-tu) is the westernmost of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia (the other being the Tigris). ... Fertile may be used in the following conrtext: Fertility, a term used to describe the ability of people or animals to produce healthy offspring. ... This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... High-altitude aerial view of irrigation in the Heart of the Sahara ( ) Irrigation is the replacement or supplementation of rainfall with water from another source in order to grow crops or plants. ... A family of Russian settlers in the Caucasus region, ca. ... DAMS is a racing team from France, involved in many areas of motorsports. ... This article is about the structure aqueduct, for the racecourse see Aqueduct Racetrack. ... A tree trunk as found at the Veluwe, The Netherlands Wood is derived from woody plants, notably trees but also shrubs. ... For the constellation known as The Plough see Ursa Major. ... Loess field in Germany Soil horizons are formed by combined biological, chemical and physical alterations. ... Binomial name Hordeum vulgare L. Barley (Hordeum vulgare) is a major food and animal feed crop, a member of the grass family Poaceae. ... For the parody newspaper, see The Onion. ... Species Vitis acerifolia Vitis aestivalis Vitis amurensis Vitis arizonica Vitis x bourquina Vitis californica Vitis x champinii Vitis cinerea Vitis x doaniana Vitis girdiana Vitis labrusca Vitis x labruscana Vitis monticola Vitis mustangensis Vitis x novae-angliae Vitis palmata Vitis riparia Vitis rotundifolia Vitis rupestris Vitis shuttleworthii Vitis tiliifolia Vitis... Binomial name Brassica rapa L. Subsp. ... For other uses, see Apple (disambiguation). ... A selection of bottled beers A selection of cask beers Beer is one of the worlds oldest alcoholic beverages, possibly brewed for the first time over 10,000 years ago, according to renowned beer writer Michael Jackson. ... Wine is an alcoholic beverage produced by the fermentation of the juice of fruits, usually grapes. ... The Buxton Memorial Fountain, celebrating the emancipation of slaves in the British Empire in 1834, London. ... Wiktionary has related dictionary definitions, such as: slave Slave may refer to: Slavery, where people are owned by others, and live to serve their owners without pay Slave (BDSM), a form of sexual and consenual submission Slave clock, in technology, a clock or timer that synchrnonizes to a master clock...

Government

Kings

The Mesopotamians believed their kings and queens were descended from the city gods, but, unlike the ancient Egyptians, they never believed their kings were actually gods^[5]. Most kings named themselves “king of the universe” or “great king”. Another common name was “shepherd”, as kings had to look after their people. This article discusses the term God in the context of monotheism and henotheism. ... Map of Ancient Egypt Ancient Egypt was the civilization of the Nile Valley between about 3000 BC and the conquest of Egypt by Alexander the Great in 332 BC. As a civilization based on irrigation it is the quintessential example of an hydraulic empire. ... In a draw in a mountainous region, a shepherd guides a flock of about 20 sheep amidst scrub and olive trees. ...

Nebuchadnezzar was the most powerful king in Babylonia. He was thought to be the son of the god Nabu. He married the daughter of Cyaxeres, so the Median and the Babylonian dynasties had a familial connection. Nebuchadnezzar’s name means: Nabo, protect the crown! Belshedezzar was the last king of Babylonia. He was the son of Nabonidus whose wife was Nictoris, the daughter of Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar was the name of several kings of Babylonia. ... Babylonia, named for its capital city, Babylon, was an ancient state in the south part of Mesopotamia (in modern Iraq), combining the territories of Sumer and Akkad. ... Babylonia, named for its capital city, Babylon, was an ancient state in the south part of Mesopotamia (in modern Iraq), combining the territories of Sumer and Akkad. ... // For other uses, see Dynasty (disambiguation). ... Nebuchadnezzar was the name of several kings of Babylonia. ...

The first king of the first dynasty of Ur (around 2560) was Mesanepada. He made Ur Sumer’s main city.

Dynasty of Lagash c. 2494–2342 B.C. Elulu was a Babylonian King from unknown to 2254 BCE. He fought for the power in Akkad after the death of Shar-kali-sharri. ... // For other uses, see Dynasty (disambiguation). ...

Dynasty of Uruk c. 2340-2316 B.C. Fragmentary stele bearing the inscription Ur-Nanshe, son of Gunidu, to Ningirsu, Louvre Ur-Nanshe (or Ur-Nina) was the first king of the dynasty of Lagash, probably in the first half of the 24th century BC. He ascended after Lugal-Sha-Gen-Sur (Lugal-Suggur), who was the patesi...

There have been two monarchs, a comic book fictional character, a composer, and a singer and a metal band named Sargon: Sargon of Akkad Sargon II of Assyria Sargon the Sorcerer Sargon is the name of a metal band from Barcelona that mixes arab music with metal music. ... Rimush. ...

Power

When Assyria grew into an empire, it was divided into smaller parts, called provinces. Each of these were named after their main cities, like Nineveh, Samaria, Damascus and Arpad. They all had their own governor who had to make sure everyone paid their taxes; he had to call up soldiers to war, and supply workers when a temple was built. He was also responsible for the laws being enforced. In this way it was easier to keep control of an empire like Assyria. Although Babylon was quite a small state in the Sumerian, it grew tremendously throughout the time of Hammurabi's rule. He was known as “the law maker”, and soon Babylon became one of the main cities in Mesopotamia. It was later called Babylonia, which meant "the gateway of the gods." It also became one of history's greatest centers of learning. Relief from Assyrian capital of Dur Sharrukin, showing transport of Lebanese cedar (8th c. ... What exactly constitutes an Empire (from the Latin imperium, denoting military command within the ancient Roman government) is a topic of intense debate within the scholarly community. ... Province is a name for a secondary, or subnational entity of government in most countries. ... It has been suggested that Sebastia, Middle East be merged into this article or section. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Arpad is the name of: Arpad, a city in ancient Syria. ... A governor is a governing official, usually the executive (at least nominally, to different degrees also politically and administratively) of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the Head of state; furthermore the title applies to officials with a similar mandate as representatives of a chartered company which has... A soldier is a person who serves in an armed force for pay. ... The United States detonated an atomic bomb over Nagasaki on August 9, 1945. ... In classical economics and all micro-economics labour is one of three factors of production, the others being land and capital. ... The Angkor Wat Hindu temple in Cambodia is the largest in the world. ... A state is a set of institutions that possess the authority to make the rules that govern a society, having internal and external sovereignty over a definite territory. ... This diorite head is believed to represent king Hammurabi Hammurabi (Akkadian, from Amorite Ë¤AmmurÄpi, The Kinsman is a Healer (Ë¤Ammu paternal kinsman + RÄpi healer); also transliterated Ammurapi, Hammurapi or Khammurabi) was the sixth king of Babylon. ... Babylon was a city in Mesopotamia, the ruins of which can be found in present-day Babil Province, Iraq, about 50 miles south of Baghdad. ...

Warfare

As city-states began to grow, their spheres of influence overlapped, creating arguments between other city-states, especially over land and canals. These arguments were recorded in tablets several hundreds of years before any major war - the first recording of a war occurred around 3200BC but was not common until about 2500BC. At this point warfare was incorporated into the Mesopotamian political system, where a neutral city may act as an arbitrator for the two rival cities. This helped to form unions between cities, leading to regional states^[6]. When empires were created, they went to war more with foreign countries. King Sargon, for example conquered all the cities of Sumer, some cities in Mari, and then went to war with northern Syria. Many Babylonian palace walls were decorated with the pictures of the successful fights and the enemy, whether desperately escaping, or hiding amongst reeds. A king in Sumer, Gilgamesh, was thought two-thirds god and only one third human. There were legendary stories and poems about him, which were passed on for many generations, because he had many adventures that were believed very important, and he won lots of wars and battles. A city-state is a region controlled exclusively by a city. ... A LAND attack is a DoS (Denial of Service) attack that consists of sending a special poison spoofed packet to a computer, causing it to lock up. ... What exactly constitutes an Empire (from the Latin imperium, denoting military command within the ancient Roman government) is a topic of intense debate within the scholarly community. ... Sumer (or Shumer, Egyptian Sangar, Bib. ... The quintessential medieval European palace: Palais de la CitÃ©, in Paris, the royal palace of France. ... Your Grandma. ...

Laws

King Hammurabi, as mentioned above, was famous for his set of laws, The Code of Hammurabi (created ca. 1780 BC), which is one of the earliest sets of laws found and one of the best preserved examples of this type of document from ancient Mesopotamia. For more information, see Hammurabi and Code of Hammurabi. This diorite head is believed to represent king Hammurabi Hammurabi (Akkadian, from Amorite Ë¤AmmurÄpi, The Kinsman is a Healer (Ë¤Ammu paternal kinsman + RÄpi healer); also transliterated Ammurapi, Hammurapi or Khammurabi) was the sixth king of Babylon. ... An inscription of the Code of Hammurabi The Code of Hammurabi (also known as the Codex Hammurabi and Hammurabis Code), created ca. ... This diorite head is believed to represent king Hammurabi Hammurabi (Akkadian, from Amorite Ë¤AmmurÄpi, The Kinsman is a Healer (Ë¤Ammu paternal kinsman + RÄpi healer); also transliterated Ammurapi, Hammurapi or Khammurabi) was the sixth king of Babylon. ... An inscription of the Code of Hammurabi The Code of Hammurabi (also known as the Codex Hammurabi and Hammurabis Code), created ca. ...

Architecture

The study of ancient Mesopotamian architecture is based on available archaeological evidence, pictorial representation of buildings and texts on building practices. Scholarly literature usually concentrates on temples, palaces, city walls and gates and other monumental buildings, but occasionally one finds works on residential architecture as well.^[7] Archaeological surface surveys also allowed for the study of urban form in early Mesopotamian cities. Most notably known architectural remains from early Mesopotamia are the temple complexes at Uruk from the 4th millennium BC, temples and palaces from the Early Dynastic period sites in the Diyala River valley such as Khafajah and Tell Asmar, the Third Dynasty of Ur remains at Nippur (Sanctuary of Enlil) and Ur (Sanctuary of Nanna), Middle Bronze Age remains at Syrian-Turkish sites of Ebla, Mari, Alalakh, Aleppo and Kultepe, Late Bronze Age palaces at Bogazkoy (Hattusha), Ugarit, Ashur and Nuzi, Iron age palaces and temples at Assyrian (Kalhu/Nimrud, Khorsabad, Nineveh), Babylonian (Babylon), Urartian (Tushpa/Van Kalesi, Cavustepe, Ayanis, Armavir, Erebuni, Bastam) and Neo-Hittite sites (Karkamis, Tell Halaf, Karatepe). Houses are mostly known from Old Bablylonian remains at Nippur and Ur. Among the textual sources on building construction and associated rituals, Gudea's cylinders from the late 3rd millennium are notable, as well as the Assyrian and Babylonian royal inscriptions from the Iron Age. Archaeology or sometimes in American English archeology (from the Greek words αρχαίος = ancient and λόγος = word/speech) is the study of human cultures through the recovery, documentation and analysis of material remains, including architecture, artefacts, biofacts, human remains, and landscapes. ... Uruk (Sumerian Unug, Biblical Erech, Greek OrchoÃ« and Arabic ÙˆØ±ÙƒØ§Ø¡ Warka), was an ancient city of Sumer and later Babylonia, situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates, on the line of the ancient Nil canal, in a region of marshes, about 140 miles (230 km) SSE from Baghdad. ... Map of Mesopotamia showing the Diyala River The Diyala River is a river and tributary of the Tigris that runs through Iran and Iraq. ... The third dynasty of Ur reinstalled Sumerian rule after several centuries of Akkadian and Gutian kings (Sumerian Renaissance). ... The city of Nippur [nipoor] (Sumerian Nibru, Akkadian Nibbur) was one of the most ancient of all the Babylonian cities of which we have any knowledge, the special seat of the worship of the Sumerian god, Enlil, ruler of the cosmos subject to An alone. ... Enlil was the name of a chief deity in Babylonian religion, perhaps pronounced and sometimes rendered in translations as Ellil in later Akkadian. ... , For other uses, see UR. Ur seen across the Royal tombs, with the Great Ziggurat in the background, January 17, 2004 Ur was an ancient city in southern Mesopotamia, located near the original mouth of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers on the Persian Gulf and close to Eridu. ... Nanna is the name of two deities: God of the moon in Sumerian mythology and Nanna, the wife of Balder in Norse mythology There is also a kind of Corsican music called nanna. ... The Bronze Age is a period in a civilizations development when the most advanced metalworking has developed the techniques of smelting copper from natural outcroppings and alloys it to cast bronze. ... Ebla is not to be confused with Elba. ... The Mari (also known as Cheremis in Russian and Ã‡irmeÅŸ in Tatar) are a Volga-Finnic people in the Volga area, the natives of Mari El, Russia. ... Alalakh is the name of an ancient city and its associated city-state of the Amuq River valley, located in the Hatay region of southern Turkey near the city of Antakya (ancient Antioch), and now represented by an extensive city-mound known as Tell Atchana. ... Old Town viewed from Aleppo Citadel Aleppo (or Halab Arabic: â€Ž meaning he milked, ) is a city in northern Syria, capital of the Aleppo Governorate. ... Kültepe is the modern Turkish name for an ancient city in central eastern Anatolia, which was also called Kârum Kanesh merchant-colony city of Kanes in Assyrian (rendered Karum Kaniş in Turkish). ... Hattusa (also known as Hattusas or Hattush) was the capital of the Turkey, and was set in a loop of the Kizil Irmak river in central Anatolia, about 145 km (90 miles) east of Ankara. ... Entrance to the Palace of Ugarit Ugarit (modern site Ras Shamra Ø±Ø£Ø³ Ø´Ù…Ø±Ø©; in Arabic) 35Â°35Â´ N; 35Â°45Â´E) was an ancient cosmopolitan port city, sited on the Mediterranean coast of northern Syria a few kilometers north of the modern city of Latakia. ... Ashur (×Ö·×©Ö¼××•Ö¼×¨ in Hebrew, ÜÜ«Ü˜Üª in Assyrian), was the son of Shem, the son of Noah. ... Nuzi was an ancient city southwest of Kirkuk in modern Iraq, located near the Tigris river. ... Assyrian may refer to: List of Assyrian settlements Anything from Assyria, an ancient empire in Mesopotamia Anything from Assyria (Roman province), a province of the Roman Empire Assyrian people, a present-day Middle Eastern ethnic group Several Christian denominations: Assyrian Church of the East Assyrian Church of the Easts... This article is about an (ancient) city in Iraq. ... Khorsabad (Khursabad), village in Iraq, 15 km northeast of Mosul, with well-preserved ruins of the large, rectangular Dur-Sharrukin. ... , For other uses, see Nineveh (disambiguation). ... Babylonia was an ancient state in Iraq), combining the territories of Sumer and Akkad. ... Babylon was a city in Mesopotamia, the ruins of which can be found in present-day Babil Province, Iraq, about 50 miles south of Baghdad. ... Urartian can refer to: The ancient kingdom of Urartu the Urartian language spoken there the family of Hurro-Urartian languages This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Armavir (ÐÑ€Ð¼Ð°Ð²Ð¸Ñ€ in Russian) is city in the Krasnodar Krai in Russia. ... Yerevan (Armenian: Երեվան or Երևան; sometimes written as Erevan; former names include Erivan and Erebuni) (population: 1,201,539 (1989 census); 1,088,300 (2004 estimate)[1]) is the largest city and capital of Armenia. ... Bostam (or Bastam) is an ancient town founded in the sixth century AD in Semnan province of Iran. ... The Neo-Assyrian Empire in the 9th to 7th centuries BC The so-called Neo-Hittite or post-Hittite states were Luwian-speaking political entities of Iron Age Syria that arose after the collapse of the Hittite Empire around 1180 BC and lasted until roughly 700 BC, the time of... Hunting scene relief in basalt found at Tell Halaf, dated 850-830 BCE Tell Halaf is an archaeological site in the Al Hasakah governorate of northeastern Syria, near the Turkish border. ... Iron Age Axe found on Gotland This article is about the archaeological period known as the Iron Age, for the mythological Iron Age see Iron Age (mythology). ...

Houses

The materials used to build a Mesopotamian house were the same as those used today: mud brick, mud plaster and wooden doors, which were all naturally available round the city^[8], although wood could not be naturally made very well during the particular time period described. Most houses had a square center room with other rooms attached to it, but a great variation in the size and materials used to build the houses suggest they were built by the inhabitants themselves [1]. The smallest rooms may not have coincided with the poorest people; in fact it could be that the poorest people built houses out of perishable materials such as reeds on the outside of the city, but there is little direct evidence for this^[9].

The Palace

The palaces of the early Mesopotamian elites were large scale complexes, and were often lavishly decorated. Earliest examples are known from the Diyala River valley sites such as Khafajah and Tell Asmar. These third millennium BC palaces functioned as a large scale socio-economic institutions, therefore, along with residential and private function, they housed craftsmen workshops, food storehouses, ceremonial courtyards, and often associated with shrines. For instance, the so-called "giparu" (or Gig-Par-Ku in Sumerian) at Ur where the Moon god Nanna's priestesses resided was a major complex with multiple courtyards, a number of sanctuaries, burial chambers for dead priestesses, a ceremonial banquet hall, etc. A similarly complex example of a Mesopotamian palace was excavated at Mari in Syria, dating from the Old Babylonian period. The quintessential medieval European palace: Palais de la CitÃ©, in Paris, the royal palace of France. ... Map of Mesopotamia showing the Diyala River The Diyala River is a river and tributary of the Tigris that runs through Iran and Iraq. ... Nanna is the name of two deities: God of the moon in Sumerian mythology and Nanna, the wife of Balder in Norse mythology There is also a kind of Corsican music called nanna. ... The Mari (also known as Cheremis in Russian and Ã‡irmeÅŸ in Tatar) are a Volga-Finnic people in the Volga area, the natives of Mari El, Russia. ... The term Old Babylonian is a period in Mesopotamian history that refers, roughly, to the period between the end of the Third Dynasty of Ur (c. ...

Assyrian palaces of the Iron Age, especially at Kalhu/Nimrud, Dur Sharrukin/Khorsabad and Ninuwa/Nineveh, have become famous due to the pictorial and textual narrative programs on their walls, all carved on stone slabs known as orthostats. These pictorial programs either incorporated cultic scenes or the narrative accounts of the kings' military and civic accomplishments. Gates and important passageways were flanked with massive stone sculpture of apotropaic mythological figures. The architectural arrangement of these Iron age palaces were also organized around large and small courtyards. Usually the king's throneroom opened to a massive ceremonial courtyard where important state councils met, state ceremonies performed. Nimrud is an ancient Assyrian city located south of Nineveh on the river Tigris. ... Khorsabad (Khursabad), village in Iraq, 15 km northeast of Mosul, with well-preserved ruins of the large, rectangular Dur-Sharrukin. ... , For other uses, see Nineveh (disambiguation). ...

Massive amounts of ivory furniture pieces were found in many Assyrian palaces pointing out an intense trade relationship with North Syrian Neo-Hittite states at the time. There is also good evidence that bronze repousse bands decorated the wooden gates. Assyrian may refer to: List of Assyrian settlements Anything from Assyria, an ancient empire in Mesopotamia Anything from Assyria (Roman province), a province of the Roman Empire Assyrian people, a present-day Middle Eastern ethnic group Several Christian denominations: Assyrian Church of the East Assyrian Church of the Easts... The Neo-Assyrian Empire in the 9th to 7th centuries BC The so-called Neo-Hittite or post-Hittite states were Luwian-speaking political entities of Iron Age Syria that arose after the collapse of the Hittite Empire around 1180 BC and lasted until roughly 700 BC, the time of...

Economy

There was a large difference in money and wealth between rich and ordinary people. Ordinary people were highly dependent on their crops, because they had very little money. Rich people had many slaves and usually lots of money. An example of Money. ... Wealth from the old English word weal, which meant well-being or welfare. The term was originally an adjective to describe the possession of such qualities. ... Look up rich in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Pope Pius XI, depicted in this window at Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace, Honolulu, was ordinary of the universal Roman Catholic Church and local ordinary of Rome. ... This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... An example of Money. ... Wiktionary has related dictionary definitions, such as: slave Slave may refer to: Slavery, where people are owned by others, and live to serve their owners without pay Slave (BDSM), a form of sexual and consenual submission Slave clock, in technology, a clock or timer that synchrnonizes to a master clock...

1 mina = Silver half-shekel struck in the Greek Colony of Taras, during the Punic occupation. ... General Name, Symbol, Number silver, Ag, 47 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 11, 5, d Appearance lustrous white metal Atomic mass 107. ...

More recent history

Writing was important because we wouldn't be as developed today without language and writing ImageMetadata File history File links Mesolapis. ... ImageMetadata File history File links Mesolapis. ... Achaemenid Empire The Achaemenid Dynasty was a dynasty in the ancient Persian Empire, including Cyrus II the Great, Darius I and Xerxes I. At the height of their power, the Achaemenid rulers of Persia ruled over territories roughly emcompassing some parts of todays Iraq, Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Israel, Lebanon... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Babylonia, named for its capital city, Babylon, was an ancient state in the south part of Mesopotamia (in modern Iraq), combining the territories of Sumer and Akkad. ... Relief from Assyrian capital of Dur Sharrukin, showing transport of Lebanese cedar (8th c. ... For other uses of this term see: Persia (disambiguation) The Persian Empire is the name used to refer to a number of historic dynasties that have ruled the country of Persia (Iran). ... Alexander the Great (Greek: [1], Megas Alexandros; July 356 BC â€” June 11, 323 BC), also known as Alexander III, king of Macedon (336â€“323 BC), was one of the most successful military commanders in history, conquering most of the known world before his death; he is frequently included in a... The Seleucid Empire was a Hellenistic successor state of Alexander the Greats dominion. ... // Prehistory Archaeologists refer to the Shulaveri-Shomu culture of the central Transcaucasus region, including modern Armenia, as the earliest known prehistoric culture in the area, carbon-dated to roughly 6000 - 4000 BC. However, a recently discovered tomb has been dated to 9000 BC. Another early culture in the Armenian Highland... Parthian Empire at its greatest extent, c60 BCE. The Parthian Empire was the dominating force on the Iranian plateau beginning in the late 3rd century BCE, and intermittently controlled Mesopotamia between ca 190 BCE and 224 CE. Parthia was the arch-enemy of the Roman Empire in the east and... For other uses of this term see: Persia (disambiguation) The Persian Empire is the name used to refer to a number of historic dynasties that have ruled the country of Persia (Iran). ... Ctesiphon, 1932 Ctesiphon (Parthian: Tyspwn as well as Tisfun) is one of the great cities of ancient Mesopotamia and the capital of the Parthian Empire and its successor, the Sassanid Empire, for more than 800 years located in the ancient Iranian province of Khvarvaran. ... Parthian Empire at its greatest extent, c60 BCE. The Parthian Empire was the dominating force on the Iranian plateau beginning in the late 3rd century BCE, and intermittently controlled Mesopotamia between ca 190 BCE and 224 CE. Parthia was the arch-enemy of the Roman Empire in the east and... Nickname: The Eternal City Location within Province of Rome in the Region of Lazio Coordinates: Region Lazio Province Province of Rome Mayor of Rome Walter Veltroni Area - City 1,285 kmÂ² (496. ... The Tetrarchs, a porphyry sculpture sacked from a Byzantine palace in 1204, Treasury of St. ... Osroene (also: Osrohene, Osrhoene) ( Syriac: ܡܠܟܘܬܐ ܕܒܝܬ ܥܣܪܐ ܥܝܢܶܐ), also known by the name of its capital city, Edessa (modern Sanli Urfa, in Syriac: ܐܘܪܗܝ), was one of several kingdoms arising... The Persian Empire was a series of historical empires that ruled over the Iranian plateau (IrÄn - Land of the Aryans) and beyond. ... Sassanid Empire at its greatest extent The Sassanid dynasty (also Sassanian) was the name given to the kings of Persia during the era of the second Persian Empire, from 224 until 651, when the last Sassanid shah, Yazdegerd III, lost a 14-year struggle to drive out the Umayyad Caliphate... Ctesiphon, 1932 Ctesiphon (Parthian: Tyspwn as well as Tisfun) is one of the great cities of ancient Mesopotamia and the capital of the Parthian Empire and its successor, the Sassanid Empire, for more than 800 years located in the ancient Iranian province of Khvarvaran. ... Motto: Persian: EsteqlÄl, ÄzÄdÄ«, jomhÅ«rÄ«-ye eslÄmÄ« (English: Independence, freedom, (the) Islamic Republic)[citation needed] Anthem: SorÅ«d-e MellÄ«-e ÄªrÄn Capital Tehran Largest city Tehran Official language(s) Persian (Farsi) Government Islamic Republic - Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei - President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Revolution Overthrew Monarchy... Caliph is the title for the Islamic leader of the Ummah, or community of Islam. ... The Arabs (Arabic: Ø¹Ø±Ø¨) are an ethnic group who are predominantly speakers of the Arabic language, mainly found throughout the Middle East and North Africa. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The Sassanid Empire or Sassanian Empire (Persian: Sasanian) is the name used for the fourth Iranian dynasty, and the second Persian Empire (226 - 651). ... The Arabs (Arabic: Ø¹Ø±Ø¨) are an ethnic group who are predominantly speakers of the Arabic language, mainly found throughout the Middle East and North Africa. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... , For other uses, see Nineveh (disambiguation). ... Baghdad ( translit: ) is the capital of Iraq and of Baghdad Governorate. ... The Arab Empire could refer to: The Umayyad Caliphate The Abbasid Caliphate This is a disambiguation page: a list of articles associated with the same title. ... The Safavid Empire at its 1512 borders. ... The Ottoman Turks were the ethnic subdivision of the Turkish people who dominated the ruling class of the Ottoman Empire. ... now. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Baghdad ( translit: ) is the capital of Iraq and of Baghdad Governorate. ... Location of Basra Basra (also spelled BaÅŸrah or Basara; historically sometimes written Busra, Busrah, and the early form Bassorah; Arabic: , Al-Basrah) is the second largest city of Iraq with an estimated population of c. ... Combatants Allied Powers: France Italy Russia Serbia United Kingdom United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary Bulgaria Germany Ottoman Empire Commanders Douglas Haig John Jellicoe Ferdinand Foch Georges Clemenceau Luigi Cadorna Nicholas II Aleksei Brusilov Woodrow Wilson John Pershing Wilhelm II Paul von Hindenburg Reinhard Scheer Franz Josef I Conrad von... Hashemite (Arabic Ù‡Ø§Ø´Ù…ÙŠ) traditionally refers to those belonging to the Banu Hashim, or clan of Hashem, a clan within the larger Quraish tribe. ... now. ...

Contents

History

Language and writing

Royal libraries and museums

Science and technology

Mathematics

Astronomy

Religion

Primary gods and goddesses

Burials

Ziggurats

Culture

Music and songs

Games

Family life

Agriculture

Government

Kings

Power

Warfare

Laws

Architecture

Houses

The Palace

Economy

More recent history

See also

References

External links

Contents

History GA_googleFillSlot("encyclopedia_square");

Language and writing

Royal libraries and museums

Science and technology

Mathematics

Astronomy

Religion

Primary gods and goddesses

Burials

Ziggurats

Culture

Music and songs

Games

Family life

Agriculture

Government

Kings

Power

Warfare

Laws

Architecture

Houses

The Palace

Economy

More recent history

See also

References

External links

History