| A | B |
|---|
| Fertile Crescent | a large arc of fertile farmland that extended from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea |
| Mesopotamia | a region that means "between the rivers" in Greek |
| civilization | an advanced state of society, in which a high level of culture, science, and government has been reached |
| hunter-gatherer | a member of a society in which people live by hunting game and gathering edible plants only |
| silt | a mixture of rich soil and tiny rocks |
| fertile | rich in material that plants need to grow |
| irrigation | a way of supplying water to an area of land |
| canal | a human-made waterway |
| basin | a depression in the surface of the land |
| surplus | more than is needed |
| division of labor | when each worker specializes in a particular task or job |
| Sumerians | invented the world's first writing system |
| city-state | a political unit that included a central city and the surrounding countryside |
| urban | relating to a city |
| Gilgamesh | one of Uruk's kings who became a legendary figure in Sumerian literature |
| Sargon | an Akkadian emperor who was the first ruler to have a permanent army |
| empire | land with different territories and peoples under a single rule |
| polytheism | the worship of many gods |
| priests | people who performed or led religious ceremonies |
| social hierarchy | the division of society by rank or class |
| impact | effect, result |
| cuneiform | the world's first system of writing |
| pictographs | picture symbols |
| scribe | writer |
| epics | long poems that tell the stories of heroes |
| architecture | the science of building |
| ziggurat | a pyramid-shaped temple |
| cylinder seals | when rolled over clay, these would leave a distinct imprint |
| Babylon | an ancient city that was near modern-day Baghdad, Iraq |
| Hammurabi's Code | a set of laws that dealt with almost every part of daily life that was developed by one of Babylon's kings |
| chariot | a wheeled, horse-drawn cart used in battle |
| Hanging Gardens of Babylon | one of the Seven Wonders of the World that were at Nebuchadnezzar's palace, according to legend |
| Phoenicians | a wealthy trading society that was located in modern-day Lebanon; they were expert sailors |
| alphabet | a set of letters that can be combined to form words |
