Rise Of Ancient Civilizations

Three major civilizations rose in the Middle East. All of them had similar locations, religions, social structures, and government. The three locations for these great civilizations were Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Indus River Valley. They all had a similar rise and a decline. For starters; the location for these civilizations are extremely important in creating an effective civilization. For example, Mesopotamia, was located between two rivers, the Tigris and Euphrates which gave the cities clean water, fertile soil, and trade routes. The concept of building around a river is very similar to Egypt, which was located around the Nile, and Indus River valley, which was near the Indus River and the Ghaggar-Hakra River. Most of these civilizations
were located in deserts or very dry areas, so theses rivers would be the only water source for many miles. In fact, Egypt had their whole calendar based off of the cycle of the Nile.
Location could also serve as a natural barrier, like the Himalayas protecting India or the desert surrounding Egypt, which made it hard for invaders to attack them. The rivers were also a good source of food. You could fish for fish and hunt the predators that came to eat the fish. Mesopotamia was located on a flood plain which made the soil very fertile which led to a surplus in farming and because of the extra farming, not everyone had to farm and hunt just to survive, people could now focus on other things like pottery, creating a written language, developing socially, politically, and economically, and creating an effective, productive civilization. The river would also be used to trade and barter. The government controlled the trading, but the amount of trading each civilization did was amazing. Both the Mesopotamian and Indus River valley societies relied heavily on trade because it was an easy way to gain rare materials in exchange for materials that they have an abundance of. Their entire community seemed to revolve around trade.We know today that the Indus River valley people traded with Mesopotamia because they have found seals, that were made by the Indus people in
Mesopotamia.

The three civilizations were all polytheistic meaning that they believed in multiple gods. In Mesopotamia, the Sumarans had An (god for male), Ki (god for female) and together, Anki, they formed the universe. They also worshiped animals and the belief in the existence of individual spirits that inhabit natural objects and other phenomenon. Also, the Neo-Babylonians had named their Gods after the planets. Religion had an impact on the social factors as well. In Mesopotamia, the stored money in the temples and the priests were in change of guarding the money. If you were some sort of priest, or "decedent from god" then you would be ranked higher up on the caste system. For example, in the Indus river valley, they had Priests on top. This is the same as Egypt who had Pharaohs on top, and these people were usually prophets of God or decedents of God and was given extreme and divine power. In Mesopotamia, they believed in reincarnation and finding Atman. If you followed your duty in life you would not have to be reborn again into a higher caste system. There were also various ranks, ranging from nobility, and scribes to slaves. In the caste system, it was essential that everyone was able to read and write during Hammurabi's rule (1759 BCE) because he had his rules written on an eight foot high stone. The Sumarians were one of the first people to develop a writing system. It was called cuneiform. Cuneiform was extremely complex, consisting of 1,000 characters, made by wedge shaped marks on clay tablets. Once again, the river is extremely important because the Sumarians got their clay from the river. The Sumarians used writing for keeping track of taxes, financial records, and trade records. They also created a 12 month calendar, had a spoken language, and numbers and multiplication and division. The Egyptians also had a writing system, called Hieroglyphics. Hieroglyphics were usually written down on papyrus, which comes from the papyrus plant which grows along the Nile. Again, the river plays a part in creating of the civilization.

The decline of Mesopotamia was due to the Persians taking over in 539 BCE under Cyrus.
There were also irrigation problems. The techniques that made farming possible, also led to its decline. After irrigation water sits in one place for a long time, it leaves behind mineral salts which erodes the group for farming. The Egyptians decline was because of the Persians, Hyksos, Greek, and Roman invasions. The Indus river valley was also due to invasion and attack. To create an empire, you need a good location, and a solid government. But to maintain it, you need a strong army, because in all of the civilizations, an invading army conquered them, but if you are completely military based, you would would have too many people dying, and not enough reproduction. It is a very fine balance between military, and trading and being
peaceful.

The first group of people to arrive in Mesopotamia were the Sumarians. They created a writing system called cuneiform that was extremely complex and advanced. Everything was being written down, the Sumarians were very good at After a while, it was not only records that were being written down, but soon because stories, poems, and songs as people became more educated and more people learned how to write. Everything that was being written down were on clay tablets that the Sumarians could obtain from the rivers. Writing became even more important when Hammurabi (1759 BCE) decided to write down all the laws on an eight foot high stone. It was now essential that everyone was capable of reading, so they could follow the laws. Writing was only one of the hundred other achievements the Sumarians and other Mesopotamians would reached. The Sumarians also created irrigation, had a spoken language, created numbers, multiplication and division, and a 12 month calendar. In Mesopotamia, the civilizations often prayed to many Gods making them polytheistic. For example, the, and the Sumarians In Mesopotamia, trade routes were very important, after the Sumarians were conquered by Sargon the Great, they first took control over the rivers because they were essential for trading, and good ways to send supplies, and extra soldiers.

In Mesopotamia, they prayed to many Gods therefore making them Polytheistic. The Sumarians prayed at a central location, a ziggurat, which was usually located in the middle of the city. They worshiped An, the god for male, and Ki, the god for female, and when you combined the two, you got Anki or the universe. An and Ki's father was Enlil or the god of war. In terms of government and education, Mesopotamian civilizations