Contributions to Civilization: The Sumerians, Hebrews, and Egyptians

1248 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Sumerian civilization culture and religion

Some of the world’s greatest civilizations have advanced and prospered next to the protective embrace of some of the world’s greatest rivers. The Sumerians, Hebrews, and Egyptians all prospered from the great rivers which their mighty civilizations once resided by, earning them the title of river valley civilizations. These now extinct societies were the first true civilizations of the ancient world. These civilizations prospered thanks to their riverine environments and as a result of this prosperity were able to advance skills, pursue knowledge, and develop culture. Ancient cultures such as the Sumerians, Hebrews, and Egyptians made a variety of contributions to civilization, some of which can still be seen to this very day.
The Sumerians, an ancient civilization nestled in between the great Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, made a variety of contributions to civilization. From advancements in literature, government, law, education, and agriculture the contributions of this once great society have a profound effect on our society even today. Possibly one of the greatest Sumerian contributions to civilization today, the invention of writing, has proven to be an irreplaceable component to the advancement of civilization in both the past and the present. The following excerpt from an article compiled by The Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago describes the significance of this Sumerian development, “The invention of writing was the dawn of the information revolution. This great technological advance allowed news and ideas to be carried to distant places without having to rely on a messenger's memory” (“Ancient Mesopotamia”). Thanks to the Sumerian’s invention of writing ancient civilizations and today’s society can re...

... middle of paper ...

...ns. All these contributions have had a profound impact on civilization and many continue to have an impact on today’s society. Thanks to the contributions made by these once great societies not only were they able to prosper but also civilization was able to and continues to be able to prosper.

Works Cited
"Ancient Mesopotamia: The Invention of Writing." The Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. University of Chicago, n.d. Web. 22 Oct 2013.
"Egypt: Secrets of an Ancient World." National Geographic. National Geographic Society, n.d. Web. 22 Oct 2013.
Fiero, Gloria. The Humanistic Tradition. 6th ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill, 2011. Print.
Goldman, Jonathan L., ed. "Monotheism." Webster's New Pocket Dictionary. 2000. Print.
Tsuneishi, Monica. "How Ancient Papyrus Was Made." University of Michigan. University of Michigan, 04 Sept. 2013. Web. 22 Oct 2013.

Show More
Related

  • Comparing Mesopotamia and Egypt

    1090 Words  | 3 Pages

    Before the beginning of history, people from across the land gradually developed numerous cultures, each unique in some ways while the same time having features in common. Mesopotamia and Egypt are important to the history of the world because of religious, social, political and economic development. Mesopotamia was the first civilization, which was around 3000 B.C., and all other countries evolved from it. Mesopotamia emerged from the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. The soil was rich and agriculture was plentiful. The Semitic nomads occupied the land around Akkad. The Sumerians established the city-states. Villages became urban centers. Because of the formation of the city-states everything flourished. However, Mesopotamian agriculture lacked stones; therefore mud brick became their major building block. Their diet consisted of fish from the rivers. The rivers were flooded frequently destroyed the cities. Mesopotamians made their living from crops and pottery.

    Read More

  • Analyzing Early Mesopotamian Civilization

    1087 Words  | 3 Pages

    When analyzing ancient civilization and how it began, there are many elements and aspects that should be considered. Questions such as how did civilization begin? What lead to its creation? Where did it begin, and why in that particular location? Many of these questions can be examined and answered by researching what many believe is the world’s earliest civilization, Mesopotamia. It is widely believed that this region was chosen and supported one of the world’s first civilizations. This area was settled over 10,000 years ago by a group of people known as the Sumerians (Cunningham & Reich, 2010).

    Read More

  • Mongol DBQ

    720 Words  | 2 Pages

    Other key aspects of civilization were the presence of a writing and communication system, and religious tolerance. Even though writing was not common among the Mongols, it was used sparingly, an...

    Read More

  • How Did Culture Influence The Culture Of Mesopotamia

    1251 Words  | 3 Pages

    Mesopotamia was a great nation that influenced many other nations that surrounded it. When I began this research, I did not know much about Mesopotamia and its culture or historical background. I did keep in mind the different factors that influenced the culture of the people as well as how it compared to our culture now. It was a big commercial industry, that included metalworking. Metal was an important, but very rare so Mesopotamia was a hot spot for silver, copper, and gold. This meant that many foreigners would come in and out of the land. In this paper I will be comparing the cultural differences of our time now and the time back then. I will also compare the theology of the people, how families worked back then, how economy was a factor

    Read More

  • The Roles Of Amenhotep III By Lachlan Cash

    842 Words  | 2 Pages

    W. Raymond Johnson, The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, (1996), pp. 65-82, Date viewed 19th may, http://www.jstor.org/stable/pdfplus/3822115.pdf?&acceptTC=true&jpdConfirm=true

    Read More

  • The Three River Valley Civilizations

    321 Words  | 1 Pages

    There have been many contributions from a very long time ago that still influence life today. Specifically the three River Valley Civilizations, Egypt, China and Mesopotamia. Starting in around 3500 B.C. the first of the River Valley Civilizations was formed in southwestern Asia, and soon grew into these three major contributions to society today.

    Read More

  • River Nile Essay

    1420 Words  | 3 Pages

    Ancient Egypt is very well-known as a barren desert in the geography of Africa, yet it is also acclaimed as the “breadbasket of the world.” This grandiose name is often associated with the river Nile, which is strongly believed as one of the most prominent factors for the vivacity of ancient Egypt. Moreover, many historians confidently conclude that the river Nile perhaps is responsible for not only breathing life into this once uninhabitable piece of land, but also for manipulating the behaviour and culture of its people. Therefore, it can be surmised that the river Nile remains one of the most significant and influential factors in the agriculture, trade, and culture of ancient Egypt.

    Read More

  • How Did The Industrial Revolution Affect The Development Of New English Language Typefaces?

    3479 Words  | 7 Pages

    Humans have been using written language to communicate ideas with one another since as early as 3200 BCE in Mesopotamia. Since then, every great civilization has had a written language, each with its own unique characteristics. However, it was the writin...

    Read More

  • History Of Ancient Civilizations

    597 Words  | 2 Pages

    Today, in the 21st century, historians all over the world continue to study ancient civilizations. Archaeologists have found a lot of evidence of ancient civilizations existence that could help to reveal mysteries of the ancient world. Earliest civilizations go through the complex processes of survival, social adaptation and cultural development. Ancient civilizations flashed like stars in the horizon of history, than evolved and flourished, and then destroyed after certain period of time. But they left incredible knowledge of material and spiritual cultures for future generations. Considering the details of origins of ancient civilizations such as ancient Egypt and Greek through the history, modern people could see growth and decline of their cultures, values and scientific achievements which influenced the development of contemporary world.

    Read More

  • History of Writing

    1443 Words  | 3 Pages

    Sumerians created writing in 3200 B.C., which at the time, was used for recording and communication. However, from 10,000- 40,000 B.C., cave paintings...

    Read More

  • The Epic of Gilgamesh and Sumerian Culture

    805 Words  | 2 Pages

    Gilgamesh is introduced as knowing all things and countries including mysteries and secrets that went on a long journey and had his story engraved on stone. This gives us a little information on the writing technique in Sumeria. Sumerian art was complex. Clay was the Sumerians' most widely used material. Sumerian available because of the invention of cuneiform writing before 3000 B.C. The characters consist of wedge-like strokes, impressed on clay tablets. This system of writing developed before the last centuries of the 4th millennium B.C. in the lower Tigris and Euphrates valley, probably by the Sumerians The history of the script is strikingly like that of the Egyptian hieroglyphic. This must have been the technique that Gilgamesh uses in order to transcribe his story onto these clay tablets. It was reinforced in the story by mentioning it at the beginning and end of the Epic.

    Read More

  • The History of Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt

    1309 Words  | 3 Pages

    Mesopotamia is a rich flat plain created by deposits from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. At the southern end of this plain developed the first recognizable civilization, in the area known as Sumer. In 3000 B.C. Sumer contained a dozen or more city-states, each ruled by its own king and worshiped its own patron deity. The citizens of these city-states were classified into three classes: nobles and priests, commoners, and slaves. In the center of a Sumerian city usually stood a tower culminating in a temple for the patron god of the city. The Sumerians believed that this patron god owned the whole city. The Geography of this city helped a lot with the trade, and led to mathematics as well. The Sumerians developed a precise system of mathematical notation called the sexagesimal, in which the number sixty is the main element. We even use this system in our world today! The Sumerian’ chief contribution to later civilizations was writing, even though their script was pictographic.

    Read More

  • Similarities in the Artwork of Mesopotamia, Ancient Egypt, the Aegean cultures, and Ancient Greece

    955 Words  | 2 Pages

    Mesopotamia’s first invention was a form of writing called cuneiform which was written on clay tablets with a sharp reed called a stylus. This permitted for recording events and writing formal laws. The Sumerians, a civilization in Mesopotamia designed the wheel which was used to help transfer heavy objects to and from places. They also began constructing daggers, spears and chariots, which has led to their successful wars. The Mesopotamians were also responsible for the first laws and the discoveries of glass, sailboats, and ziggurats. With interest high in religion and mythology, Sumerians and their successors worshiped gods and goddesses just like Egyptians, Greeks, and Aegean cultures.

    Read More

  • Beliefs Of Ancient Sumerians

    765 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Sumerians were the most incredible people who ever lived on the face of the earth. They created civilization when most of the rest of the world was still living in the Stone Age. The Sumerian civilization was already ancient when it ended in 2004 B.C., twenty centuries before Julius Caesar, sixteen centuries before Socrates, and seven centuries before Tutankhamen. The Egyptians were the only people with a civilization comparable to the Sumerians. There is no mention of the Egyptians in the Sumerian archives and there is no direct evidence that they had a noticeable influence on one another, except for their ability to build giant pyramids.

    Read More

  • Rise and Decline of Ancient Civilizations

    884 Words  | 2 Pages

    Plato once quoted, “Necessity is the mother of invention”. During the Prehistoric era, early humans needed to survive in the environment around them, thus creating close-knit nomadic hunter-gathers. With the rise of the Agricultural Revolution, early humans adapted new ways of finding food creating food surpluses that started a population boom. From farming villages to major cities, it created civilizations that once rose and fell. These civilizations created a large impact that affects today.

    Read More

More about Contributions to Civilization: The Sumerians, Hebrews, and Egyptians

Open Document