GWA Middle East Test Prt. 1 Flashcards
What continent(s) is the Middle East in?
Europe, Asia, & Africa
Define Middle East
Region between Europe & distant parts of Asia
What other name is the Middle East referred to
Near East
What is the nickname of the Middle East? Why?
“Crossroads”: Connects 3 continents
Why is the Middle East so valuable
1) Oil reserves; 49% comes from M.E.
2) Sea & trade routes; Suez canal built by French & Bosporus strait and Dardanelles
What region of the M.E. stretches from Turkey to Northern Iran
Northern Tier
What region of the M.E. is the World’s largest peninsula
Arabian Peninsula
What region of the M.E. stretches eastward from the Mediterranean sea to the Persian Gulf
Fertile Crescent
What region of the M.E. is the land area surrounding the Nile River
Nile Valley
What region of the M.E. goes from N. Africa and lands along the Mediterranean sea
The Maghreb (Mag-er-eb)
When did the world’s first civilization begin
3500 B.C.
What does Civitas mean
City
Where did the first civilization rise from
Mesopotamia
Where is Mesopotamia located today (country)
Iraq
What does Mesopotamia mean
“The Land Between the Rivers”
What two rivers is Mesopotamia located between
Tigris & Euphrates River
What region is Mesopotamia located in
Fertile Crescent
The 1st civilization developed in southern Mesopotamia, What was it called
Sumeria
How many independent city-states in Sameria comprised of
12 (Ex: Ur [The oldest], Lagash, Uruk, Eridu)
What was the one specual feature that each city-state had in Sumeria
Ziggurat
What was the purpose of a Ziggurat
Place of worship; Polytheism
What was the religion of Sumer
Polytheism
What was the one of the chief gods in Sumer called? Translation?
Sin/Nanna; “The Moon God”
What was around the base of the Ziggurat
Bazaar
What was the purpose of a Bazaar
Marketplace (Barter/trade for goods)
What great inventions did the Sumerians create (3)
-Sail
-Wagon wheel
-Arch
What was the Sumerian’s writing system called (First writing system in the world)
Cuneiform (Sound/Idea)
Those who mastered Cuneiform were called what
Scribe
What did Scribes use to sketch their clay tablets
Stylus
Who was able to decipher Cuneiform in the 1840’s? Where?
Sir Henry Rawlinson (English Archaeologist) in Western Iran Czargos Mt.
What was the rock that was deciphered called
Behistun rock
Mesopotamia is home to the world’s first Empire around 2350 B.C. During this time, who conquered all 12 Sumerian city-states
Sargon the Great of Akkad
What did Hammurabi of Babylon do
In 1709 B.C. he also conquered most of Mesopotamia and gave the world its first set of written laws
What was the world’s first set of written laws called
Hammurabi’s code
What was one rule of Hammurabi’s code
-Strike your father, they shall cut your hand (eye for an eye rule)
What is the world’s oldest known literacy work in Mesopotamia
The Epic of Gilgamesh
What is the story of The Epic of Gilgamesh about
King of Uruk & his travels to the after life
Where was the Egyptian civilization located (which region)
Nile River
How long is the Nile river
4160 miles
What were the two areas of Ancient Egypt
-Lower Egypt
-Upper Egypt (Bottom part of the river)
Which region of Ancient Egypt did most people settle? Why?
Lower Egypt; more fertile soil
How long did the Egyptian civilization last
3100 B.C. - 332 (30) B.C.
