Civilization

( Ur in Sumer )

Agriculture marked a dramatic change in how

people lived together. They began dwelling in
large, more organized communities, such as
farming villages and towns. From some of these
settlements, cities gradually emerged, forming the
backdrop of a more complex way of life-civilization.
 Villages Grow into Cities

Over the centuries, people settled in

stable communities that were based on
agriculture. Domesticated animals
became more common. The invention of
new tools- hoes, sickles, and plow sticks
– made the task of farming easier. As
people gradually developed the
technology to control their natural
environment, they reaped larger
harvests. Settlements with a plentiful
supply of food could support larger
populations.
 As the population of some early farming
villages increased, social relationship became
more complicated. The change from a nomadic
hunting-gathering way of life to settled village
life took a long time. Likewise, the change from
village life to city life was a gradual process that
spanned several generations.
Economic Changes ; To cultivate more land
and to produce extra
crops, ancient people in larger villages built
elaborate irrigation system. The resulting food
surpluses freed some villagers to pursue other jobs
and to develop skills besides farming. Individuals
who learned to become craftspeople created
valuable new products, such as pottery, metal
objects, and woven cloth. In turn, people who
became traders profited from a broader range of
goods to exchange – craftwork, grains, and many
raw materials. Two important inventions – the
wheel and the sail – also enabled traders to move
more goods over longer distances.
Social Changes ; A more complex and
prosperous economy
affected the social structure of village life. For
example, building and operating large irrigation
systems required the labor of many people. As other
special groups of workers formed, social classes with
varying wealth, power, and influence began to
emerge. A system of social classes would become
more clearly defined as cities grew.
Religion also became more organized. During
the Old Stone Age, prehistoric people’s religious
beliefs centered around nature, animal spirits,
and some idea of an afterlife. During the New
Stone Age, farming peoples worshiped the
many gods and goddesses who they believed
had power over the rain, wind, and other forces
of nature. Early city dwellers developed rituals
founded on these earlier religious beliefs. As
populations grew, common spiritual values
became lasting religious traditions.
 How Civilization
Develops
Most historians believe that one of the
first civilizations arose in Sumer. Sumer
was located in Mesopotamia, a region that
is part of modern Iraq. A civilization is often
defined as a complex culture with
five characteristics – (1) advanced cities,
(2) specialized workers, (3) complex
institution, (4) record keeping, and (5)
advanced technology.
(1)Advanced Cities ; Cities were the birthplaces
of the first civilizations. A city
is more than a large group of people living together.
The size of the population alone does not
distinguish a village from a city. One of the key
differences is that a city is a center of trade for a
larger area. Like their modern-day counterparts,
ancient city dwellers depended on trade. Farmers,
merchants, and traders brought goods to market in
the cities. The city dwellers themselves produced a
variety of goods for exchange.
(2)Specialized Workers; As cities grew, so did
the need for more
specialized workers, such as traders, government
officials, and priests. Food surpluses provided the
opportunity for specialization – the development of
skills in a specific kind of work. An abundant food
supply allowed some people to become expert at
jobs besides farming. Some city dwellers became
artisans – skilled workers who make goods by hand.
Specialization helped artisans develop their skill at
designing jewelry, fashioning metal tools and
weapons, or making clothing and pottery. The wide
range of crafts artisans produced helped cities
become centers of trade.
(3)Complex Institution; The soaring populations
of early cities made
government, or a system of ruling, necessary. In
civilizations, leaders emerged to maintain order
among people and to establish laws. Government is
an example of an institution – a long lasting pattern
of organization in a community. Complex institution,
such as government, religion, and the economy, are
another characteristic of civilization.
 With the growth of cities, religion became a
formal institution. Most cities had great temples
where dozens of priests took charge of religious
duties. Sumerians believed that every city
belonged to a god who governed the city’s
activities. The temple was the hub of both
government and religious affairs. It also served
as the city’s economic center. There food and
trade items were distributed.
Record Keeping ; As government, religion, and
the economy became more
complex, people recognized the need to keep
records. In early civilizations, government officials
had to document tax collections, the passage of
laws, and the storage of grain. Priests needed a
way to keep track of the calendar and important
rituals. Merchants had to record accounts of debts
and payments.
 Most civilizations developed a system of
writing, though some devised other methods of
record keeping. Around 3000 BC, Sumerian
invented a system of writing called cuneiform.
Earlier Sumerian writing consisted of pictograph
– symbols of the objects or what they
represented. The beginning of civilization in
Sumer also signaled the beginning of writing
history.
Improved Technology ; New tools and
techniques are
always needed to solve problems that emerge
when large groups of people live together. In early
civilizations, some farmers harnessed the powers
of animals and nature. For example, they used ox-
drawn plows to turn the soil. They also created
irrigation systems to expand planting areas.
 Sumerian artisans relied on new technology
to make their tasks easier. Around 3500 BC,
they first used the potter’s wheel to shape jugs,
plates, and bowls. Sumerian metalworkers
discovered that melting together certain
amounts of copper and tin made bronze. After
2500 BC metalworkers in Sumer’s cities turned
out bronze spearheads by the thousands. The
period called the Bronze Age refers to the time
when people began using bronze, rather than
copper and stone, to fashion tools and
weapons. The Bronze Age started in Sumer
around 3000 BC, but the date varied in other
parts of Asia in Europe.
 Civilization Emerges in Ur

Ur, one of the earliest cities in Sumer, stood

on the banks of the Euphrates River in what is
now southern Iraq. Some 30,000 people once
lived in this ancient city. Ur was the site of a
highly sophisticated civilization.
 After excavating from 1922 to 1934, English
archaeologist Leonard Woolley and his team
unraveled the mystery of this long-lost
civilization. From archaeological evidence,
Woolley concluded that around 3000 BC, Ur was
a flourishing urban civilization. People in Ur lived
in well-defined social classes. Rulers, as well as
priests and priestesses, wielded great power.
Wealthy merchants profited from foreign trade.
Artists and artisans created lavish jewelry,
musical instruments, and gold daggers.
Woolley’s finds have enabled historians to
reconstruct Ur’s advanced culture.
An Agricultural Economy; Imagine a time nearly
5000 years ago. Outside
the mud-brick walls surrounding Ur, ox-driven plows
cultivate the fields. People are working barefoot in
the irrigation ditches that run between patches of
green plants. With stone hoes, the workers widen
ditches to carry water into their fields from the
reservoir a mile away. This large-scale irrigation
system was developed to provide Ur with food
surpluses, which keep the economy thriving. The
government officials who direct this public works
project ensure its smooth operation.
Life in the City; A broad dirt road leads from
the fields to the city’s wall. Inside,
city dwellers go about their daily lives. Most live
in windowless, one-story, boxlike houses packed
tightly along the street. A few wealthy families
live in two-story houses with an inner courtyard.
Down another street, artisans work in their shops.
A metalworker makes bronze by mixing molten
copper with just the right quantity of tin. Later, he
will hammer the bronze to make spearheads –
weapons to help Ur’s well-organized armies
defend the city. As a potter spins his potter’s
wheel, he expertly shapes the moist clay into a
large bowl. These artisans and other craftworkers
produce trade goods that help Ur prosper.
Ur’s Thriving Trade; The narrow streets open
into a broad avenue
where merchants squat under awnings and trade
farmer’s crops and artisans’ crafts. This is the city’s
bazaar, or marketplace. Coins are not used to
make purchases because money has not yet been
invented. But merchants and their customers
know roughly how many pots of grain a farmer
must give to buy a jug of wine. This way of trading
goods and services without money is called
Barter. More complicated trades require a scribe.
He carefully forms cuneiform signs on a clay
tablet. The signs may show how much barley a
farmer owes a merchant for a donkey.
The Temple: Center of City Life; Farther down
the main avenue
stands Ur’s tallest and most important building – the
temple. Like a city within a city, the temple is
surrounded by a heavy wall. Within the temple gate, a
massive, tiered structure tower’s over the city. This
pyramid-shaped monument is called a Ziggurat,
which means ‘‘mountain of god.’’ On the exterior of
the ziggurat, a flight of perhaps 100 mud-brick stairs
leads to the top. At the peak, priests conduct rituals to
worship the city god who looms over Ur. Every day,
priests climb these stairs. They often drag a goat or
sheep to sacrifice. The temple also houses storage
areas for grains, woven fabrics, and gems – offerings to
the city’s god. Sumerians had elaborate burial rituals
and believed in an afterlife.
 An early city, such as Ur, represents a model
of civilizations that continued to arise
throughout history. While the Sumerians were
advancing their culture, civilizations were
developing in Egypt, China, and elsewhere in
Asia.