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Introduction

Mesopotamia is a Greek word meaning “between the rivers”. The rivers are the Tigris and Euphrates which flow through modern Iraq. With its own geography Mesopotamia is made up of different regions. The geography in each area affected the way people lived. Northern Mesopotamia is made of hill and plains. The land is fertile because of rain, and the rivers and streams coming from the mountains. Because of this the earlier settlers used the land to farm and used stuff they found near mountains, such as timber, metal, and stone. The Southern part of Mesopotamia was made of marshy areas and flat plains. Because of this cities began to develop near the rivers.

The hot, arid lowlands, which include the desert and alluvial plains, stretch across most of Iraq. The lowlands have essentially two seasons, summer and winter. Summers, which extend from May to October, bring clear skies and hot daytime temperatures. At night, temperatures drop considerably. There is scant humidity during the summer, and no rain falls between June and September. During the winter, which lasts from December through February, the lowlands experience mild temperatures, ranging. The winter season also brings rainfall to the lowlands of southern Iraq, with annual rainfall. Most of the rainfall occurs between November and April. The arid lowland region, the highlands of northeastern are fairly damp. Very little rain falls during the summer, but annual winter rainfall averages. In the mountains, most of the winter precipitation falls as snow winters are considerably colder and longer in the highlands than the lowlands. Summers, which last from June to September, are hot and dry, with average temperatures.

At around 5000 BCE, some groups of herderers began to move north from the Arabian Peninsula. These peoples began migrating because of lack of rainfall, which caused the lakes and grasslands to dry up. At that same time, other people, from what is now Turkey, moved south due to overpopulation and bad weather. These two groups of people ended up in the Fertile Crescent. Most of these peoples decided to stay in Mesopotamia, the eastern part of the Fertile Crescent. Here, the new settlers were able to build their villages and start farming on the land. At around 3500 BCE, the Sumerians arrived in Mesopotamia. The Sumerians are thought to have come from either central Asia or Asia Minor. Religion also played a big role in Mesopotamia. The people of Mesopotamia believed that their world was controlled by gods and goddesses, demons and monsters. Large temples were built in the center of the city for these gods to “live in.” There were special rituals and offering directed toward their gods and goddesses.

Mesopotamian Goddess

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