A Brief History of Irrigation

700 Words2 Pages

In 6000 BCE Irrigation began Mesopotamia (present day Iraq) using the water of the flooding Tigris/Euphrates rivers. The flood of water only occurred once a year From July through December. They used channels to guide the water wherever they want. These pictures will show how it used look like.

In 1800 BCE They Egyptian practiced the irrigation system. It was mostly the same idea with Mesopotamia. They used water flood of Nile rive which only occurred once a year same time. Until they developed the shaduf a device that used to raise water above the Nile level. This technology enabled farmers to irrigate crops near the riverbanks and canals during the dry summer.

This is picture of the shaduf

Then the ancient Nubians (Sudan) they developed a form of irrigation by using a waterwheel like device called Sakia between the third and second millennium BCE. Which used to be operated by animals. Sakia can pump up water from 10 meters depth, and is thus considerably more efficient than Shaduf, which only pumps water from 3 meters.

A picture of Sakia

Terrace irrigation evidenced in pre-Columbian America, early Syria, India, and China it was founded in 4th millennium BCE. Terrace is a piece of sloped plane that has been cut into a series of successively receding flat surfaces or platforms, which resemble steps, for the purposes of more effective farming.

Picture of tereca irriagtion

In the ancient Persia times (Iran) they developed Qanat technology about 800 BCE. Qanat a gently sloping underground channel or tunnel constructed to lead water from the interior of a hill to a village below. This technology allowed them to use the under ground water. And became primary source for irrigation.

Qanat picture

...

... middle of paper ...

...ll, easy to design, can be very inexpensive and much more benefits.

Technology advance step by step until big advancement come a long to change everything around us. Technology advancement never stops advancing. It always keep advancing to better in every possible way. Things that we used to see it as impossible before now became possible. Some advancement could advance other things too. For example: the diesel motor came then almost everything started to be automotive.

Conclusion;

Technology didn’t advance at once it took step by step. All the advancement we have today because of that. We are human we seek for perfection. That’s our nature. We will keep trying to advance to reach perfection. Irrigation will keep improving especially in trying to save water. Because we are facing big issue with our water sources lately. It became big issue in whole world.

Open Document