Sumer 50521 224591009 2008-07-09T15:39:12Z Lemccan 2517405 /* Architecture */ {{Ancient Mesopotamia}} '''Sumer''' ([[Sumerian language|Sumerian]]: {{lang|sux|&#x121A0;&#x12097;&#x120A0;}} ''{{lang|sux-Latn|[[Ki (earth)|ki]]-[[ENSI|en]]-'''ĝir<sub>15</sub>'''}}''<ref>''{{lang|sux-Latn|ĝir<sub>15</sub>}}'' means "native, local", in some contexts also "noble"[http://psd.museum.upenn.edu/epsd/epsd/e2182.html]. Literally, "land of the native (local, noble) lords". Stiebing (1994) has "Land of the Lords of Brightness" (William Stiebing, Ancient Near Eastern History and Culture). Postgate (1994) takes ''en'' as substituting ''eme'' "language", translating "land of the Sumerian tongue" ({{cite book|title=Early Mesopotamia: Society and Economy at the Dawn of History|author=John Nicholas Postgate|publisher=Routledge (UK)|year=1994}}. Postgate believes it likely that eme, 'tongue', became en, 'lord', through consonantal assimilation).</ref><ref name="SumerFAQ">[http://www.sumerian.org/sumerfaq.htm#s37 Sumerian Questions and Answers]</ref>, [[Akkadian language|Akkadian]]: ''Šumeru''; possibly Biblical ''[[Shinar]]'' ), located in southern [[Mesopotamia]], is one of the earliest known [[civilization]]s in the world. It lasted from the first settlement of [[Eridu]] in the [[Ubaid period]] (late 6th millennium BC) through the [[Uruk period]] (4th millennium BC) and the Dynastic periods (3rd millennium BC) until the rise of [[Babylon]] in the early 2nd millennium BC. The term "Sumerian" applies to all speakers of the [[Sumerian language]]. Although other [[cities]] pre-date Sumer ([[Jericho]], [[Çatalhöyük]] and others, either for seasonal protection, or as year-round trading posts) the cities of Sumer were the first to practice intensive, year-round [[history of agriculture|agriculture]] (from ca. 5300 BC). The surplus of storable foodstuffs created by this economy allowed the population to settle in one place instead of migrating after crops and herds. It also allowed for a much greater population density, and in turn required an extensive labor force and [[division of labor]]. This organization led to the necessity of record keeping and the development of [[history of writing|writing]] (ca. 3500 BC). == Origin of Name == The term "Sumerian" is the common name given to the ancient inhabitants of southern Mesopotamia by their successors, the [[Semitic]] [[Akkadians]]. The Sumerians called themselves ''sag-giga'', literally meaning "the black-headed people"<ref>{{cite book|author=W. Hallo, W. Simpson|year=1971|title=The Ancient Near East|publisher=New York: Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich|page=28}}</ref>. The [[Akkadian language|Akkadian]] word ''Shumer'' may represent this name in dialect, but it is unknown why the Akkadians called the southern land ''Shumeru''<ref name="Nimrod">{{cite journal|title=Nimrod before and after the Bible|author=K. van der Toorn, P. W. van der Horst|journal=The Harvard Theological Review|year=Jan 1990|volume=83|issue=1|pages=1–29}}</ref><ref name="SumerFAQ">[http://www.sumerian.org/sumerfaq.htm#s37 Sumerian Questions and Answers]</ref>. Biblical ''[[Shinar]]'', Egyptian ''Sngr'' and Hittite ''Šanhar(a)'' could be western variants of ''Šumer''<ref name="Nimrod" />. ==City states== {{see|Cities of the Ancient Near East}} [[Image:Ur3.JPG|thumb|240px|Map of Sumer]] By the late 4th millennium BC, Sumer was divided into about a dozen independent [[city-state]]s, whose limits were defined by canals and boundary stones. Each was centered on a temple dedicated to the particular patron god or goddess of the city and ruled over by a priestly governor ([[ENSI|ensi]]) or by a king ([[LUGAL|lugal]]) who was intimately tied to the city's religious rites. {| style="background:transparent" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" |- valign="top" | The five "first" cities said to have exercized [[Sumerian king list|pre-dynastic]] kingship:&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; # [[Eridu]] (''Tell Abu Shahrain'') # [[Bad-tibira]] (probably ''Tell al-Madain'') # [[Larsa]] (''Tell as-Senkereh'') # [[Sippar]] (''Tell Abu Habbah'') # [[Shuruppak]] (''Tell Fara'') Other principal cities: <ol start="6"> <li> [[Kish (Sumer)|Kish]] (''Tell Uheimir & Ingharra'') <li> [[Uruk]] (''Warka'') <li> [[Ur]] (''Tell al-Muqayyar'') <li> [[Nippur]] (''Afak'') <li> [[Lagash]] (''Tell al-Hiba'') <li> [[Ngirsu]] (''Tello or Telloh'') <li> [[Umma]] (''Tell Jokha'') <li> [[Hamazi]] <sup>1</sup> <li> [[Adab]] (''Tell Bismaya'') <li> [[Mari, Syria|Mari]] (''Tell Hariri'') <sup>2</sup> <li> [[Akshak]] <sup>1</sup> <li> [[Akkad]] <sup>1</sup> <li> [[Isin]] (''Ishan al-Bahriyat'') </ol> <small>(<sup>1</sup>location uncertain)</small><br> <small>(<sup>2</sup>an outlying city in northern Mesopotamia)</small> | Minor cities (from south to north): # [[Kuara (Sumer)|Kuara]] (''Tell al-Lahm'') # [[Zabala (Sumer)|Zabala]] (''Tell Ibzeikh'') # [[Kisurra]] (''Tell Abu Hatab'') # [[Marad]] (''Tell Wannat es-Sadum'') # [[Dilbat]] (''Tell ed-Duleim'') # [[Borsippa]] (''Birs Nimrud'') # [[Kutha]] (''Tell Ibrahim'') # [[Der (Sumer)|Der]] (''al-Badra'') # [[Eshnunna]] (''Tell Asmar'') # [[Nagar, Syria|Nagar]] (''Tell Brak'') <sup>2</sup> <small>(<sup>2</sup>an outlying city in northern Mesopotamia)</small> |} Apart from Mari, which lies full 330 km northwest of Agade, but which is credited in the [[Sumerian king list|king list]] to have "exercised kingship" in the Early Dynastic II period, and Nagar, an outpost, these cities are all in the Euphrates-Tigris alluvial plain, south of [[Baghdad]] in what are now the [[Babil Governorate|Bābil]], [[Diyala Governorate|Diyala]], [[Wasit Governorate|Wāsit]], [[Dhi Qar Governorate|Dhi Qar]], [[Al Muthanna Governorate|Al-Muthannā]] and [[Al-Qādisiyyah Governorate|Al-Qādisiyyah]] governorates of [[Iraq]]. == History == {{mainarticle|History of Sumer}} The Sumerian city states rose to power during the prehistorical [[Ubaid period|Ubaid]] and [[Uruk period|Uruk]] periods. Sumerian history reaches back to the 29th century BC and before, but the historical record remains obscure until the Early Dynastic III period, ca. the 26th century BC, when a now deciphered syllabary writing system was developed, which has allowed archaeologists to read contemporary records and inscriptions. Classical Sumer ends with the rise of the [[Akkadian Empire]] in the 23rd century. Following the [[Gutian period]], there is a brief "[[Sumerian renaissance]]" in the 21st century, cut short in the 20th century BC by [[Amorites|Amorite]] invasions. The Amorite "dynasty of [[Isin]]" persisted until ca. 1700 BC, when Mesopotamia was united under [[Babylonia]]n rule. *[[Ubaid period]]: 5300-4100 BC (Pottery [[Neolithic]] to [[Chalcolithic]]) *[[Uruk period]]: 4100-2900 BC (Late [[Chalcolithic]] to [[Early Bronze Age]] I) ** Uruk XIV-V: 4100-3300 ** Uruk IV period: 3300-3000 BC ** Uruk III = [[Jemdet Nasr]] period: 3000-2900 BC *Early Dynastic period ([[Early Bronze Age]] II-IV) ** Early Dynastic I period: 2900-2800 BC ** Early Dynastic II period: 2800-2600 BC ([[Gilgamesh]]) ** Early Dynastic IIIa period: 2600-2500 BC ** Early Dynastic IIIb period: ca. 2500-2334 BC * [[Akkadian Empire]] period: ca. 2334-2218 BC ([[Sargon of Akkad|Sargon]]) * [[Gutian period]]: ca. 2218-2047 BC ([[Early Bronze Age]] IV) * [[Ur III period]]: ca. 2047-1940 BC ===Ubaid period=== {{main|Ubaid period}} The [[Ubaid period]] is marked by a distinctive style of fine quality painted pottery which spread throughout [[Mesopotamia]] and the [[Persian Gulf]]. During this time, the first settlement in southern Mesopotamia was established at [[Eridu]], ca. 5300 BC, by farmers who brought with them the [[Samarra]]n culture from northern Mesopotamia. It is not known whether or not these were the actual Sumerians who are identified with the later Uruk culture. Eridu remained an important religious center when it was gradually surpassed in size by the nearby city of [[Uruk]]. ===Uruk period=== {{main|Uruk period}} The archaeological transition from the Ubaid period to the Uruk period is marked by a gradual shift from painted pottery domestically produced on a slow [[Potter's wheel|wheel]], to a great variety of unpainted pottery mass-produced by specialists on fast [[Potter's wheel|wheels]]. By the time of the [[Uruk]] period (ca. 4100-2900 BC calibrated), the volume of trade goods transported along the canals and rivers of southern Mesopotamia facilitated the rise of many large [[social stratification|stratified]], temple-centered cities (with populations of over 10,000 people) where centralized administrations employed specialized workers. It is fairly certain that it was during the Uruk period that Sumerian cities began to make use of slave labor captured from the hill country, and there is ample evidence for captured slaves as workers in the earliest texts. Artifacts, and even colonies of this Uruk civilization have been found over a wide area - from the [[Taurus Mountains]] in [[Turkey]], to the [[Mediterranean Sea]] in the west, and as far east as Central [[Iran]].{{Fact|date=April 2008}} The Uruk period civilization, exported by Sumerian traders and colonists (like that found at [[Tell Brak]]), had an effect on all surrounding peoples, who gradually evolved their own comparable, competing economies and cultures. The cities of Sumer could not maintain remote, long-distance colonies by military force.{{Fact|date=April 2008}} Sumerian cities during the Uruk period were probably theocratic and were most likely headed by a priest-king (ensi), assisted by a council of elders, including both men and women<ref>Jacobsen, Thorkild (Ed) (1939),"The Sumerian King List" (Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago; Assyriological Studies, No. 11.)</ref>. It is quite possible that the later Sumerian [[Pantheon (gods)|pantheon]] was modelled upon this political structure. The ancient [[Sumerian king list]] includes the early dynasties of several prominent cities from this period. The first set of names on the list is of kings said to have reigned before a major flood occurred. These early names may be fictional, and include some legendary and mythological figures, such as [[Alulim]] and [[Dumuzid, the Shepherd|Dumizid]].{{Fact|date=April 2008}} The end of the Uruk period coincided with the [[Piora oscillation]], a dry period from c. 3200-2900 BC that marked the end of a long wetter, warmer climate period from about 9,000 to 5,000 years ago, called the [[Holocene climatic optimum]]. {{Fact|date=April 2008}} ===Early Dynastic Period=== {{Notable Rulers of Sumer}} The Dynastic period begins ca. 2900 BC and includes such legendary figures as [[Enmerkar]] and [[Gilgamesh]] &mdash; who are supposed to have reigned shortly before the historic record opens ca. 2700 BC, when the now decipherable syllabic writing started to develop from the early pictograms. The center of Sumerian culture remained in southern Mesopotamia, even though rulers soon began expanding into neighboring areas, and neighboring Semitic groups adopted much of Sumerian culture for their own. The earliest Dynastic king on the [[Sumerian king list]] whose name is known from any other legendary source is [[Etana]], 13th king of the first Dynasty of Kish. The earliest king authenticated through archaeological evidence is [[Enmebaragesi]] of Kish (ca. 26th century BC), whose name is also mentioned in the [[Gilgamesh epic]] &mdash; leading to the suggestion that Gilgamesh himself might have been a historical king of Uruk. ====1st Dynasty of Lagash==== [[Image:Stele of Vultures detail 02.jpg|thumb|left|Fragment of [[Eannatum]]'s Stele of the Vultures]] {{main|Lagash}} ca. 2500 - 2270 BC The dynasty of Lagash, though omitted from the king list, is well attested through several important monuments and many archaeological finds. Although short-lived, one of the first empires known to history was that of [[Eannatum]] of Lagash, who annexed practically all of Sumer, including [[Kish (Sumer)|Kish]], [[Uruk]], [[Ur]], and [[Larsa]], and reduced to tribute the city-state of [[Umma]], arch-rival of Lagash. In addition, his realm extended to parts of [[Elam]] and along the [[Persian Gulf]]. He seems to have used terror as a matter of policy - his stele of the vultures has been found, showing violent treatment of enemies. His empire collapsed shortly after his death. Later, [[Lugal-Zage-Si]], the priest-king of Umma, overthrew the primacy of the Lagash dynasty in the area, then conquered Uruk, making it his capital, and claimed an empire extending from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean. He was the last ethnically Sumerian king before the arrival of the [[Semitic]] king, [[Sargon of Akkad]]. ===Akkadian Empire=== {{main|Akkadian Empire}} ca. 2270 - 2083 BC ([[chronology of the ancient Near East|short chronology]]) The Semitic [[Akkadian language]] is first attested in proper names of the kings of Kish ca. 2800 BC<ref>Roux, Georges "Ancient Iraq" (Penguin Harmondsworth)</ref>, preserved in later king lists. There are texts written entirely in Old Akkadian dating from ca. 2500 BC. Use of Old Akkadian was at its peak during the rule of Sargon the Great (ca. 2270 – 2215 BC), but even then most administrative tablets continued to be written in Sumerian, the language used by the scribes. Gelb and Westenholz differentiate three stages of Old Akkadian: that of the pre-Sargonic era, that of the Akkadian empire, and that of the "[[Neo-Sumerian]] Renaissance" that followed it. Speakers of Akkadian and Sumerian coexisted for about one thousand years, until ca. 1800 BC, when Sumerian ceased to be spoken. [[Thorkild Jacobsen]] has argued that there is little break in historical continuity between the pre- and post-Sargon periods, and that too much emphasis has been placed on the perception of a "Semitic vs. Sumerian" conflict.<ref>See ''Toward the Image of Tammuz and Other Essays on Mesopotamian History and Culture'' by T. Jacobsen</ref> However, it is certain that Akkadian was also briefly imposed on neighboring parts of [[Elam]] that were conquered by Sargon. ===Gutian period=== {{main|Gutian dynasty of Sumer}} ca. 2083 - 2050 BC ([[chronology of the ancient Near East|short chronology]]) ====2nd Dynasty of Lagash==== [[Image:Head Gudea Louvre AO13.jpg|thumb|right|[[Gudea]] of [[Lagash]]]] {{main|Lagash}} ca. 2093 - 2046 BC ([[chronology of the ancient Near East|short chronology]]) Following the downfall of the [[Akkadian Empire]] at the hands of [[Gutian dynasty of Sumer|Gutian]]s, another native Sumerian ruler, [[Gudea]] of [[Lagash]], rose to local prominence and continued the practices of the Sargonid kings' claims to divinity. Like the previous Lagash dynasty, Gudea and his descendents also promoted artistic development and left a large number of archaeological artifacts. ===Sumerian renaissance=== [[Image:UR 17 01 2004 003.jpg|thumb|left|Ziggurat at [[Ur]]]] {{main|Sumerian renaissance}} ca. 2047-1940 BC ([[chronology of the ancient Near East|short chronology]]) Later, the [[3rd dynasty of Ur]] under [[Ur-Nammu]] and [[Shulgi]], whose power extended as far as northern Mesopotamia, was the last great "Sumerian renaissance", but already the region was becoming more Semitic than Sumerian, with the influx of waves of Martu ([[Amorites]]) who were later to found the [[Babylonia]]n Empire. The Sumerian language, however, remained a sacerdotal language taught in schools, in the same way that Latin was used in the Medieval period, for as long as cuneiform was utilised. ===Decline=== This period is generally taken to coincide with a major shift in population from southern Iraq toward the north. Ecologically, the agricultural productivity of the Sumerian lands was being compromised as a result of rising salinity. [[Soil salinity]] in this region had been long recognised as a major problem. Poorly drained irrigated soils, in an arid climate with high levels of evaporation, led to the buildup of dissalved salts in the soil, eventually reducing agricultural yields severely. During the [[Akkad]]ian and [[Ur III]] phases, there was a shift from the cultivation of [[wheat]] to the more salt-tolerant [[barley]], but this was insufficient, and during the period from 2100 BC to 1700 BC, it is estimated that the population in this area declined by nearly 3/5ths.<ref>{{cite journal| last=Thompson| first=William R.| year=2004| title=Complexity, Diminishing Marginal Returns and Serial Mesopotamian Fragmentation| journal=Journal of World Systems Research| url=http://jwsr.ucr.edu/archive/vol10/number3/pdf/jwsr-v10n3-thompson.pdf| format=pdf}}</ref> This greatly weakened the balance of power within the region, weakening the areas where Sumerian was spoken, and comparatively strengthening those where Akkadian was the major language. Henceforth Sumerian would remain only a [[literary language|literary]] and [[liturgy|liturgical]] language, similar to the position occupied by [[Latin]] in [[Middle Ages|medieval]] Europe. Following an [[Elam]]ite invasion and sack of [[Ur]] during the rule of [[Ibbi-Sin]] (ca. 1940 BC), Sumer came under [[Amorites|Amorite]] rule (taken to introduce the [[Middle Bronze Age]]). The independent Amorite states of the 20th to 18th centuries are summarized as the "[[Dynasty of Isin]]" in the [[Sumerian king list]], ending with the rise of [[Babylonia]] under [[Hammurabi]] ca. 1700 BC. == Population == [[Image:Sumer1.jpg|right|350px|thumb| First farmers from [[Samarra]] arrive in Sumer, and build shrine and settlement at [[Eridu]]]] The Sumerians were a non-Semitic people and were at one time believed to have been invaders, as a number of linguists believed they could detect a [[substrate language]] beneath Sumerian. However, the [[archaeological record]] shows clear uninterrupted cultural continuity from the time of the Early [[Ubaid period]] (5300-4700 BC [[Radiocarbon dating|C-14]]) settlements in southern [[Mesopotamia]]. The Sumerian people who settled here farmed the lands in this region that were made fertile by silt deposited by the [[Tigris]] and the [[Euphrates]] rivers. Despite the lack of corroborating written records, it is generally agreed that Sumerian speakers were farmers who moved down from the north, after perfecting irrigation agriculture there. The [[Ubaid]] pottery of southern Mesopotamia has been connected via ''Choga Mami Transitional'' ware to the pottery of the [[Samarra]] period culture (c. 5700-4900 BC [[Radiocarbon dating|C-14]]) in the north, who were the first to practice a primitive form of irrigation agriculture along the middle Tigris River and its tributaries. The connection is most clearly seen at Tell Awayli (''Oueilli'', ''Oueili'') near [[Larsa]], excavated by the French in the 1980s, where 8 levels yielded pre-Ubaid pottery resembling Samarran ware. Farming peoples spread down into southern Mesopotamia because they had developed a temple-centered social organization for mobilizing labor and technology for water control, enabling them to survive and prosper in a difficult environment. Alternatively, the Sumerians may have been an indigenous culture of hunter-fishers who lived in the reedy marshlands at the mouth of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, as the [[Marsh Arabs]] do today. This culture contributed to a cultural fusion with northern agriculturists, creating Sumerian language and civilisation.{{Fact|date=April 2008}} == Culture == Sumerian culture may be traced to two main centers, [[Eridu]] in the south and [[Nippur]] in the north may be regarded as a contrasting poles of Sumerian religion. The deity [[Enlil]], around whose sanctuary Nippur had grown up, was considered lord of the ghost-land, and his gifts to mankind were said to be the spells and incantations that the spirits of good or evil were compelled to obey. The world he governed was a mountain (E-kur from E=house and Kur=Mountain); the creatures that he had made lived underground. Eridu, on the other hand, was the home of the culture god [[Enki]] (absorbed into [[Babylonian mythology]] as the god [[Ea (Babylonian god)|Ea]]), the god of beneficence, ruler of the freshwater depths beneath the earth (the [[Apsû|Abzu]] from Ab=water and Zu=far), a healer and friend to humanity who was thought to have given us the arts and sciences, the industries and manners of civilization; the first law-book was considered his creation. Eridu had once been a seaport, and it was doubtless its foreign trade and intercourse with other lands that influenced the development of its culture. Its cosmology was the result of its geographical position: the earth, it was believed, had grown out of the waters of the deep, like the ever widening coast at the mouth of the [[Euphrates]]. Long before history is recorded, however, the cultures of Eridu and Nippur had coalesced. While Babylon seems to have been a colony of Eridu, Eridu's immediate neighbor, [[Ur]], may have been a colony of Nippur, since its moon god was said to be the son of Enlil of Nippur. However, in the admixture of the two cultures, the influence of Eridu was predominant. Historian [[Alan I. Marcus|Alan Marcus]] has been quoted as saying that "Sumerians held a rather dour perspective on life." One Sumerian wrote: "Tears, lament, anguish, and depression are within me. Suffering overwhelms me. Evil fate holds me and carries off my life. Malignant sickness bathes me." Another wrote, "Why am I counted among the ignorant? Food is all about, yet my food is hunger. On the day shares were allotted, my allotted share was suffering."<ref>[http://www.gial.edu/GIALens/vol1-2/K-Bruce-Paper.pdf The Wisdom Fest] by Kathleen L. Bruce, D. Miss.</ref> There is much evidence that the Sumerians loved music. It seemed to be an important part of [[religious]] and civic life in Sumer. [[Lyres]] were popular in Sumer; see [[Sumerian music]]. According to inscriptions describing the reforms of king [[Urukagina]] of [[Lagash]] (ca. 2300 BC), he is said to have abolished the former custom of polyandry in his country, on pain of the woman taking multiple husbands being stoned with rocks upon which her crime is written<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=mpjk74blFDgC&pg=PA62&dq=urukagina+%22two+men%22&client=firefox-a&sig=29we4cFBrgMpJ9qsy4zjpCywAQY ''Gender and the Journal: Diaries and Academic Discourse'' p. 62] by Cinthia Gannett, 1992</ref>. Though women were protected by [[cuneiform law|late Sumerian law]] and were able to achieve a higher status in Sumer than in other contemporary civilizations, the culture was male-dominated. The [[Code of Ur-Nammu]], the oldest such codification yet discovered, dating to the Ur-III "Sumerian Renaissance", reveals a glimpse at societal structure in late Sumerian law. Beneath the ''lu-gal'' ("great man" or king), all members of society belonged to one of two basic strata: The "''lu''" or free person, and the slave (male, ''arad''; female ''geme''). The son of a ''lu'' was called a ''dumu-nita'' until he married. A woman (''munus'') went from being a daughter (''dumu-mi''), to a wife (''dam''), then if she outlived her husband, a widow (''numasu'') who could remarry. ===Language and writing=== {{mainarticle|Sumerian language}} The most important archaeological discoveries in Sumer are a large number of tablets written in Sumerian. Sumerian pre-[[Cuneiform (script)|cuneiform]] script has been discovered on tablets dating to around 3500 BC. The Sumerian language is generally regarded as a [[language isolate]] in [[linguistics]] because it belongs to no known language family; [[Akkadian language|Akkadian]] belongs to the [[Afro-Asiatic languages]]. There have been many failed attempts to connect Sumerian to other [[language family|language groups]]. It is an [[agglutinative language]]; in other words, [[morpheme]]s ("units of meaning") are added together to create words. Sumerians invented picture-[[Logogram|hieroglyphs]] that developed into later [[Cuneiform script|cuneiform]], and their language vies with [[Ancient Egyptian]] for credit as the oldest known [[writing system|written human language]]. An extremely large body of hundreds of thousands of texts in the Sumerian language has survived, the great majority of these on clay tablets. Known Sumerian texts include personal and business letters and transactions, receipts, lexical lists, laws, hymns and prayers, magical incantations, and scientific texts including mathematics, astronomy, and medicine. Monumental inscriptions and texts on different objects like statues or bricks are also very common. Many texts survive in multiple copies because they were repeatedly transcribed by scribes-in-training. Sumerian continued to be the language of religion and law in Mesopotamia long after Semitic speakers had become the ruling race. Understanding Sumerian texts today can be problematic even for experts. Most difficult are the earliest texts, which in many cases don't give the full grammatical structure of the language. ===Religion=== {{mainarticle|Sumerian mythology}} Like other cities of Asia Minor and the Mediterranean, Sumer was a [[polytheism|polytheistic]], or [[henotheism|henotheistic]], society. Their lives were spent serving the gods in the form of man-made statues. There was no organized set of gods; each city-state had its own patrons, temples, and priest-kings. The Sumerians were probably the first to write down their beliefs, which were the inspiration for much of later [[Mesopotamian mythology]], [[religion]], and [[astrology]]. The Sumerians worshipped [[An]] as the full time god, equivalent to "heaven"-- indeed, the word "an" in Sumerian means "sky." His consort [[Ki (goddess)|Ki]], means "Earth". Collectively the gods were known as [[Anunna]] ((d)an-unna = "offspring of the lord"). An's closest cohorts were [[Enki]] in the south at the E'abzu temple in Eridu, [[Enlil]] in the north at the E'kur temple of Nippur, and [[Inanna]], the deification of Venus, the morning (eastern) and evening (western) star, at the E'anna temple (shared with An) at Uruk. The sun-god [[Utu]] was worshipped at Sippar, the moon god [[Mesopotamian mythology|Nanna]], was worshipped at Ur. These deities were probably the original matrix; there were hundreds of minor [[deity|deities]]. The Sumerian [[god]]s (Sumerian ''dingir'', plural ''dingir-dingir'' or ''dingir-re-ne'') thus had associations with different cities, and their religious importance often waxed and waned with those cities' political power. The gods were said to have created human beings from clay for the purpose of serving them. If the temples/gods ruled each city it was for their mutual survival and benefit - the temples organized the mass labor projects needed for irrigation agriculture. Citizens had a labor duty to the temple which they were allowed to avoid by a payment of silver only towards the end of the third millennium. The temple-centered farming communities of Sumer had a social stability that enabled them to survive for four millennia. Sumerians believed that the [[universe]] consisted of a flat disk enclosed by a tin [[dome]]. The Sumerian [[afterlife]] involved a descent into a gloomy [[Sumerian nether-world|netherworld]] to spend eternity in a wretched [[existence]] as a [[Gidim]] (ghost). [[Ziggurat]]s (Sumerian temples) consisted of a forecourt, with a central pond for purification.{{Fact|date=February 2008}} The temple itself had a central [[nave]] with aisles along either side. Flanking the aisles would be rooms for the priests. At one end would stand the [[podium]] and a [[mudbrick]] table for [[animal]] and [[vegetable]] [[sacrifice]]s. [[Wiktionary:Granary|Granaries]] and [[storehouse]]s were usually located near the temples. After a time the Sumerians began to place the temples on top of multi-layered square constructions built as a series of rising terraces, giving rise to the later Ziggurat style. === Agriculture and hunting=== The Sumerians adopted the agricultural mode of life which had been introduced into Lower Mesopotamia and practiced the same irrigation techniques as those used in Egypt.<ref>{{cite book| last = Mackenzie| first = Donald Alexander| year = 1927 | title = Footprints of Early Man| publisher = Blackie & Son Limited}}</ref> [[Robert McCormick Adams|Adams]] says that irrigation development was associated with urbanization,<ref>{{cite book| last = Adams| first = R. McC.| year = 1981 | title = Heartland of Cities| publisher = University of Chicago Press}}</ref> and that 89% of the population lived in the cities [http://cniss.wustl.edu/workshoppapers/gatpres2a.pdf]. They grew [[barley]], [[chickpea]]s, [[lentil]]s, [[wheat]], [[Date (fruit)|date]]s, [[onion]]s, [[garlic]], [[lettuce]], [[leek (vegetable)|leek]]s and [[Mustard plant|mustard]]. They also raised cattle, [[sheep]], [[goat]]s, and [[pig]]s. They used [[ox]]en as their primary beasts of burden and [[donkey]]s or [[equids]] as their primary transport animal. Sumerians caught many fish and hunted [[fowl]] and [[gazelle]]. Sumerian agriculture depended heavily on [[irrigation]]. The irrigation was accomplished by the use of [[shaduf]]s, [[canal]]s, [[Channel (geography)|channels]], [[dyke (construction)|dykes]], [[weir]]s, and [[reservoirs]]. The frequent violent floods of the [[Tigris]], and less so, of the [[Euphrates]], meant that canals required frequent repair and continual removal of [[silt]], and survey markers and boundary stones continually replaced. The government required individuals to work on the canals in a [[corvee]], although the rich were able to exempt themselves. After the flood season and after the Spring Equinox and the [[Akitu]] or New Year Festival, using the canals, farmers would flood their fields and then drain the water. Next they let oxen stomp the ground and kill weeds. They then dragged the fields with [[pickaxe]]s. After drying, they [[plowing|plowed]], [[harrow (tool)|harrowed]], and [[rake (tool)|raked]] the ground three times, and pulverized it with a [[mattock]], before planting seed. Unfortunately the high evaporation rate resulted in a gradual increase in the salinity of the fields. By the Ur III period, farmers had switched from wheat to the more salt-tolerant barley as their principal crop. Sumerians harvested during the dry [[autumn|fall season]] in three-person teams consisting of a [[reaper]], a [[binder]], and a [[sheaf arranger]]. The farmers would use [[threshing wagon]]s to separate the [[cereal]] heads from the [[stalk (botany)|stalk]]s and then use [[threshing sled]]s to disengage the grain. They then [[winnowing|winnowed]] the grain/chaff mixture. === Architecture === {{mainarticle|Sumerian architecture}} The Tigris-Euphrates plain lacked minerals and trees. Sumerian structures were made of plano-convex [[mudbrick]], not fixed with [[Mortar (masonry)|mortar]] or [[cement]]. Mud-brick buildings eventually deteriorate, so they were periodically destroyed, leveled, and rebuilt on the same spot. This constant rebuilding gradually raised the level of cities, which thus came to be elevated above the surrounding plain. The resultant hills, known as [[tell]]s, are found throughout the ancient Near East. The most impressive and famous of Sumerian buildings are the [[ziggurat]]s, large layered platforms which supported temples. Some scholars have theorized that these structures might have been the basis of the [[Tower of Babel]] described in [[Genesis]]. Sumerian [[Cylinder seal|cylinder]] [[Seal (device)|seal]]s also depict houses built from reeds not unlike those built by the [[Marsh Arabs]] of Southern Iraq until as recently as A.D. 400. The Sumerians also developed the arch, which enabled them to develop a strong type of roof called a dome. They built this by constructing several arches. Sumerian temples and palaces made use of more advanced materials and techniques, such as [[buttress]]es, [[recess]]es, [[Column|half column]]s, and [[clay nail]]s. === Economy and trade=== Discoveries of [[obsidian]] from far-away locations in [[Anatolia]] and [[lapis lazuli]] from northeastern [[Afghanistan]], beads from [[Dilmun]] (modern [[Bahrain]]), and several seals inscribed with the [[Indus Valley civilization|Indus Valley]] [[Indus script|script]] suggest a remarkably wide-ranging network of ancient trade centered around the [[Persian Gulf]]. The [[Epic of Gilgamesh]] refers to trade with far lands for goods such as wood that were scarce in Mesopotamia. In particular, cedar from Lebanon was prized. The Sumerians used slaves, although they were not a major part of the economy. Slave [[women]] worked as [[weaving|weavers]], pressers, [[miller]]s, and [[porter (carrying)|porter]]s. Sumerian [[pottery|potters]] decorated pots with [[cedar oil]] [[paint]]s. The potters used a [[bow drill]] to produce the [[fire]] needed for baking the pottery. Sumerian [[masonry|masons]] and [[jewelry|jewelers]] knew and made use of [[alabaster]] ([[calcite]]), [[ivory]], [[gold]], [[silver]], carnelian and [[lapis lazuli]]. ===Military=== [[Image:Standard of Ur chariots.jpg|frame|thumb|Early chariots on the [[Standard of Ur]], ca. 2600 BC.]] The almost constant wars among the Sumerian city-states for 2000 years helped to develop the military technology and techniques of Sumer to a high level. The first war recorded was between Lagash and Umma in ca. 2525 BC on a stele called the ''Stele of Vultures''. It shows the king of Lagash leading a Sumerian army consisting mostly of [[infantry]]. The infantrymen carried [[spear]]s, wore [[copper]] [[helmet]]s and carried [[leather]] or [[wicker]] [[shield]]s. The spearmen are shown arranged in what resembles the [[phalanx formation]], which requires training and discipline; this implies that the Sumerians may have made use of [[professional]] soldiers. [[Image:Stele of Vultures detail 01.jpg|right|400px|thumb|Battle formations on a fragment of the [[Stele of Vultures.]]]] The Sumerian military used carts harnessed to [[onager]]s. These early [[chariot]]s functioned less effectively in combat than did later designs, and some have suggested that these chariots served primarily as transports, though the crew carried battle-axes and [[lance]]s. The Sumerian chariot comprised a four or two-[[wheel]]ed device manned by a crew of two and harnessed to four onagers. The cart was composed of a [[basket|woven basket]] and the wheels had a solid three-piece design. Sumerian cities were surrounded by defensive [[City wall|wall]]s. The Sumerians engaged in [[siege|siege warfare]] between their cities, but the [[mudbrick]] walls failed to deter some foes. ===Technology=== Examples of Sumerian technology include: the [[wheel]], [[cuneiform]], [[arithmetic]] and [[geometry]], [[irrigation]] systems, Sumerian boats, [[lunisolar calendar]], [[bronze]], [[leather]], [[saw]]s, [[chisel]]s, [[hammer]]s, [[Brace (tool)]]s, [[Horse tack|bit]]s, [[nail (engineering)|nail]]s, [[pin]]s, [[jewelry ring|ring]]s, [[Hoe (tool)|hoe]]s, [[axe]]s, [[knife|knives]], [[lance]]points, [[arrow (weapon)|arrowheads]], [[sword]]s, [[adhesive|glue]], [[dagger]]s, [[Bladder|waterskin]]s, [[bag]]s, [[harness]]es, [[armor]], [[quiver]]s, [[war chariot]]s, [[scabbard]]s, [[boot]]s, [[sandal (footwear)|sandals]] and [[harpoon]]s. The Sumerians had three main types of boats: * clinker-built sailboats stitched together with hair, featuring [[bitumen]] waterproofing * skin boats comprising of animal skins and reeds * wooden-oared ships, sometimes pulled upstream by people and animals walking along the nearby banks == Legacy == Most authorities credit the Sumerians with the invention of the [[wheel]], initially in the form of the [[potter's wheel]]. The new concept quickly led to wheeled [[vehicles]] and mill wheels. The Sumerians' [[Cuneiform (script)|cuneiform]] writing system is the oldest for which there is evidence (excluding proto-writing such as the [[Vinča signs]] and the even older [[Jiahu Script|Jiahu signs]]). The Sumerians were among the first astronomers, mapping the stars into sets of constellations, many of which survived in the zodiac and were also recognized by the ancient Greeks<ref name="Thompson">[http://members.optusnet.com.au/~gtosiris/page11-4.html History of Constellation and Star Names]</ref>. The five planets that are visible to the naked eye have Sumerian names<ref name="SumerFAQ2">[http://www.sumerian.org/sumerfaq.htm#s39 Sumerian Questions and Answers]</ref>. They invented and developed arithmetic using several different number systems including a [[Mixed radix]] system with an alternating base 10 and base 6. This [[sexagesimal]] system became the standard number system in Sumer and Babylonia. They may have invented military formations and introduced the basic divisions between [[infantry]], [[cavalry]] and [[archery|archers]]. They developed the first known codified legal and administrative systems, complete with courts, jails, and government records. The first true [[city states]] arose in Sumer, roughly contemporaneously with similar entities in what is now [[Syria]] and [[Israel]]. Several centuries after the invention of cuneiform, the use of writing expanded beyond debt/payment certificates and inventory lists to be applied for the first time, about 2600 BC, to messages and mail delivery, history, legend, mathematics, astronomical records and other pursuits. Conjointly with the spread of writing, the first formal schools were established, usually under the auspices of a city-state's primary temple. Finally, the Sumerians ushered in the age of intensive [[agriculture]] and irrigation. [[Emmer wheat]], [[barley]], sheep (starting as [[moufflon]]) and cattle (starting as [[aurochs]]) were foremost among the species cultivated and raised for the first time on a grand scale. ==See also== {{commonscat|Sumer}} * [[Epic of Gilgamesh]] * [[History of Sumer]] * [[History of writing numbers]] * [[Marsh Arabs]] * [[Mesopotamia]] * [[Sumerian architecture]] * [[Kings of Sumer|Sumerian king list]] * [[Sumerian language]] ==References== {{Reflist}} == Further reading == * Ascalone, Enrico. ''Mesopotamia: Assyrians, Sumerians, Babylonians (Dictionaries of Civilizations; 1)''. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2007 (paperback, ISBN 0520252667). * Bottéro, Jean. ''Everyday Life in Ancient Mesopotamia''. * Crawford, Harriet. ''Sumer and the Sumerians''. * Leick, Gwendolyn. ''Mesopotamia''. * Lloyd, Seton. ''The Archaeology of Mesopotamia: From the Old Stone Age to the Persian Conquest''. * Nemet-Nejat, Karen Rhea. ''Daily Life in Ancient Mesopotamia''. * {{cite book | author=[[Samuel Noah Kramer|Kramer, Samuel Noah]] | title= The Sumerians: Their History, Culture and Character | publisher= [[University of Chicago Press]] | year=1963 | id=ISBN 0-226-45238-7}} * [[Samuel Noah Kramer|Kramer, Samuel Noah]]. ''Sumerian Mythology: A Study of Spiritual and Literary Achievement in the Third Millennium BC''. * Kramer, Samuel Noah. ''The Sumerians : Their History, Culture, and Character''. * Roux, Georges. ''Ancient Iraq''. * Schomp, Virginia. ''Ancient Mesopotamia: The Sumerians, Babylonians, And Assyrians''. * ''Sumer: Cities of Eden (Timelife Lost Civilizations)''. Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Books, 1993 (hardcover, ISBN 0809498871). * [[Leonard Woolley|Woolley, C. Leonard]]. ''The Sumerians''. ==External links== Geography * [http://www.utexas.edu/courses/classicalarch/images1/mapANEprecip.jpg Map of The Fertile Crescent] * The History Files [http://www.historyfiles.co.uk/MainFeaturesMesopotamia.htm Ancient Mesopotamia] * The History of the Ancient Near East [http://ancientneareast.tripod.com/Sumer.html Ancient Sumer] Language * [http://www.sumerian.org/ Sumerian Language Page], perhaps the oldest Sumerian website on the web (it dates back to 1996), features compiled lexicon, detailed FAQ, extensive links, and so on. * [http://etcsl.orinst.ox.ac.uk/ ETCSL: The Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature] has complete translations of more than 400 Sumerian literary texts. * [http://psd.museum.upenn.edu/ PSD: The Pennsylvania Sumerian Dictionary], while still in its initial stages, can be searched on-line, from August 2004. * [http://www.cdli.ucla.edu/ CDLI: Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative] a large corpus of Sumerian texts in transliteration, largely from the Early Dynastic and Ur III periods, accessible with images. * [http://www.geocities.com/zenel1/ Sumerian Language in Semitic Perspective] Semitic Sumerian Dictionary. 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