-
Area in Anatolia (modern-day Turkey) and northern Mesopotamia develop optimal conditions for agricultural revolution:
1) Even landscape with low, rolling foothills and valleys
2) Extremely fertile soil
3) Frequent rainfall -
Presence of stable, dependable food production led to the development of permanent settlements that would grow slowly into villages (bands of families that collaborate to achieve growing goals.
-
At this time, all of Mesopotamia's farming settlements were in the north. Due to climatic changes, Persian Gulf waters receded, allowing for gradual southward migration into the region soon to be Sumer.
-
Increased population density (more people in a smaller area) contributes to further migration.
-
An even greater amount of water recedes from the coastline, unearthing the most attractive land for new settlements -- a "paradise" that produced many high-yield harvests a year. By this time, major southern city-states are being built, such as Ur in 3800 BCE. Neighboring villages, which have shared in the prosperity of the region for some time, form these city-states that contribute a new level of complexity:
1) Larger social structure
2) Degree of specialization
3) Sense of identity -
According to Sumerian myth, a great flood destroys much of southern Mesopotamia, which forces the remaining city-states to unite under Etana of Kish ("lugal" or king). At this point, the balance of power shifts away from the ensi (priest-kings) and toward the aristocratic, land-owning "big men". -
In a series of military campaigns, Sargon the Great captures Sumer, uniting it with the many city states to the north. By the end, he had created an empire that connected the Persian Gulf and the Mediterranean Sea. -
Enheduanna, high priestess of Ur, writes and distributes her temple hymns. They are the oldest literary compositions in human history to have a credited author. -
The once-mighty empire falls to Guitian invaders from the east, leading to an extended period of instability in the region.
-
The story of Gilgamesh, a mythical king believed to rule the city of Uruk from 2800 to 2500 BCE, is chronicled in an epic tale that would solidify a sense of reverence for the old Sumerian civilization.
