In 5000 bc, Sumerians were the first people to migrate to Mesopotamia. Nobody knows exactly where they come from but according to The Origins of Sumerians it states that the only possible location of their homeland is between the Caspian Sea and the Hindu Kush and Kopet Mountains, which is Turkmenistan. The migration began when a persistent drought forced them to abandoned the land and move to the land of Mesopotamia because of the nearby rivers Tigris and Euphrates were good enough. to drink from. This helped changed their lifestyle from being hunter gatherers, or going place to place foraging for food, to becoming agriculture and domesticating wild animals because of the discovery of irrigation or to store water supply and wonderful rich soil that provided good crops due to it being in the Fertile Crescent and great place to live due to the nearby rivers.
In order to sustain the civilization, everybody needs play a position or role to help the civilization succeed, trading and exchanging other foods and other goods, and turning this land to a productive farmland, able to sustain larger population coming to Mesopotamia because of food supply. The Sumerian civilization included many surrounding city-states in Mesopotamia. Ancient Mesopotamian houses were built from mud bricks or reed depending on where they lived. If you lived near rivers or wetlands, your house would have been made out of reed, but if you lived in drier areas, your house would have been made out of sun-dried mud bricks. The average house was small one-story structure made of mud-brick. People who lived in one-story houses had all their resources and living areas on the 1 floor.
People with more resources probably lived in 2 story houses, which was plastered and whitewashed and had about ten or even twelve rooms, equipped with wooden doors, although wood was not common in some cities of Sumer. But for a three story house, the 1st floor was a courtyard and entryway. Children played here, livestock was kept here, and if the weather was okay, it was possible for them meals were their. The next two floors would be were where the family lived, if you lived in 3 story house. Their sleeping and sitting rooms were on these two levels as well as food storage. Every house had a flat roof that was treated as a second living room or a place where they could cook food and eat it. The Sumerian civilization included many surrounding city-states in Mesopotamia. Furniture was decorated with gold clothes, gilded with medals, which included luxurious beds made out of reed and stuffed with goat hair, and would have more options back then on their furniture, such as armrest on chairs for the wealthy.
People who were poor had beds made out of reed, or straw woven mats. In order to sustain their civilization, Mesopotamians needed to trade to get the items they needed. The currency of Sumerians that they called Shekel, which is coin of a symbol of value of one bushel of wheat. Mesopotamians usually relied on Phoenicians, or sailors who guided ships, as a trading system to trade goods through the ocean water to trade with other countries. Phoenicians traded with other culture for resources and goods across the Mediterranean Sea, because they became experts at navigation, or the art of steering from place to place and developed knowledge of wind patterns and ocean currents. The Phoenicians imported goods, or goods sold in a country and produced in another country, such as raw materials like gold, silver, tin, copper, iron, ivory, and precious stones. Phoenicians also exported goods across the Mediterranean Sea, or good that is produced within the country and sold outside the country’s border, such as pine, cedar logs, wine, olive, oil, salt, fish, and other goods. Phoenicians legacy ended, but much of their culture was passed down to others, such as creating a new form of writing and was called cultural diffusion. Hairstyles became an important part of culture for men and women in Mesopotamia.
Like women, men would. Kings started wear a full bread and would style their hair braided into a bun. Women would wear their hair long twisting them into larger buns decorated with pins and ribbon. Wealthiest would style their hair beautifully and would decorate them with gold and silver jewelry. The golden helmet was a popular hairstyle for men made by an expert that looked like waves around the face with a bun tied in the back. The most common rituals included making offering or honoring their gods. Sometimes, rituals were used to praise their Gods in ziggurats, but also asking for a request. Some important food that the Mesopotamians ate was beer and wheat. In their culture, beer was one of the blessings of the civilizations. Some of their holidays were connected with the moon like New Years and in the lunar months, they were given 6 holidays where the took part in playing games and entertainment. Clothing was typically made from sheepskin or wool. Wool was mostly used to make skirts with designs on them.
The men wore kilt-like skirts and the women wore longer dresses. They enjoyed wearing jewelry, especially rings. Both men and women wore makeup. Sumerians practiced polytheism or the belief in more than one god. They thought their God looked and acted like people but controlled every aspect of life. They thought each God had a role to play in life. Sumerians thought that the only people that could talk to god was the priests. They were mediators between god and the people. They go to ziggurats, or a brick-shaped pyramid temple, to honor and worship their main gods. They thought the temples would come closer to heaven, therefor they would be closer to god. Prayers, that were practiced in inaugurates, were way to praise their gods and also ask for a request or request. Prayers were also divided into groups or sections of what kind of request you want or ask.
