Mesopotamian Society Preview Mesopotamian Religion Mesopotamians were polytheists They worshiped many different gods connected to nature and to particular aspects of life A Social Pyramid Mesopotamian society was organized into a social pyramid Your place on the pyramid was determined ID: 678271
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Slide1
Mesopotamian Society
6
th Grade UBD - Unit 3
- Mesopotamian SocietySlide2
Preview
Mesopotamian Religion
- Mesopotamians were polytheists. They worshiped many different gods connected to nature and to particular aspects of life.
A Social Pyramid
- Mesopotamian society was organized into a social pyramid. Your place on the pyramid was determined by your work. Most people stayed at the level they were born at for their entire lives.
A Series of Conquests
- Mesopotamia was a rich land that many people sought to conquer.Slide3
Reach Into Your Background
In Mesopotamian
society people had many
different
roles.
This created a vibrant civilization. How does religion and gender influence life today? (5 minutes)Slide4
Partner Activity
Work with a neighbor and compare your answer with theirs. What things are the same and what things are different?
(3 minutes)Slide5
Key Ideas- Mesopotamian Religion
Mesopotamia was one of the earliest civilizations to have an organized religion. Their religion helped to shape their society and culture.
Mesopotamian
city-states built ziggurats to worship their gods.
Mesopotamians
believed that their kings were chosen by the gods. Slide6
Religion in Mesopotamia
Religion played an important role in the daily life of ancient Mesopotamians.
The
Mesopotamians believed in polytheism
.
Each god or goddess was in charge of a part of nature or daily life. Slide7
Religion in Mesopotamia
The Mesopotamians wanted to honor their gods and goddesses and make sure they stayed in the city.
So
the people built large religious monuments called ziggurats.Slide8
Religion in Mesopotamia
To
keep the gods and goddesses happy, Mesopotamians left offerings, or gifts, for them.
The
gifts also were given to ask the gods to send blessings.Slide9
Key Term
Civilization
- A
ancient religious structure
built in the major cities of Mesopotamia that are similar to the pyramids.Slide10
Mesopotamian Ziggurats
Reading
Handout-
Mesopotamian
ZigguratsSlide11
Key Ideas- A Social
Pyramid
People from all levels of Mesopotamian society were important to the success of the civilization, but different groups had different amounts of power
.
The
king was the most important political and religious figure.Enslaved people were at the bottom of the social pyramid
. They had no power
.Slide12
Key Term
S
ocial Pyramid
-
A way
of illustrating the social organization of a particular society. The people with the most wealth are at the top. The people with the least money and the lowest social position are on the bottom.Slide13
Marks of Civilization
There are several marks of civilization.
One
of them is that work is specialized.
Everyone
contributes in some way to help meet society’s needs, but people do not have to do everything for themselves. Slide14
A Social Pyramid
Mesopotamian kings held a great deal of political and religious power.
They
determined the laws, collected taxes, and organized labor for large projects such as digging irrigation ditches. Slide15
A Social Pyramid
Mesopotamian people viewed their kings as conduits to their gods, so kings were also responsible for religious ceremonies.
Religion
gave kings the authority to rule, and in return kings fulfilled religious
obligations. Slide16
A Social Pyramid
Mesopotamia developed a stratified social-class society.
A person’s work determined his or her place in Mesopotamian society.
The
higher social levels had the fewest people.Slide17
A Social Pyramid
The king, priests, and other important leaders made up the top tier of Mesopotamian society.
Scribes
and other merchants were a step below the top
tier, and peasants
and slaves were found at the bottom layer of the social pyramid.Slide18
Artisans
Artisans specialized
in making various goods.
Mesopotamia
had bakers, iron workers, potters, and weavers. Slide19
How It's Made Bread
Video
- How It's Made BreadSlide20
Scribes
Scribes were also important members of society.
They
were the record keepers
.
They spent years learning to read and write cuneiform, the writing system used in Mesopotamia.Slide21
Key Term
Cuneiform
-
A
system of writing that was widely used in the ancient Middle East. Slide22
Farmers
Peasants farmed the land surrounding the cities.
They
sold their extra food to people living in the cities.
Farmers
also gave a certain amount of their crops to the king. Slide23
The Role of Women
In all social classes, men held more rights and responsibilities than women.
Most of Mesopotamia’s religious and political leaders were men
.Slide24
The Role of Women
In addition, men made household decisions.
Men decided
everything from what work would be done to whom their children would marry
.
Women had little power in Mesopotamian society, although they were granted some rights.Slide25
The Role of Women
Women’s roles in society were those of daughter, wife, or mother.
Women
usually did not learn to read or write.
Instead
, mothers taught their girls how to be good wives and mothers.Slide26
Mesopotamian Women
Reading Handout- Mesopotamian WomenSlide27
Key Ideas- A Series of Conquests
Mesopotamia many natural resources made it
a good place to live. It was also a valuable land for leaders to conquer and rule
.
The history of Mesopotamia is marked by four great empires. Between each empire’s rule and the next, there were moments of disorder before another leader conquered the region. Slide28
Conquering Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia was conquered by many empires, from the Akkadians all the way through the Neo-Babylonians.
Mesopotamia
was a valuable land for conquerors due to its rich land and well-traveled trade routes.Slide29
A Series of Empires
The Akkadian Empire was the first major empire in Mesopotamia. Sargon was the first king of the Akkadian Empire.
The Babylonian Empire conquered much of Mesopotamia after the fall of the Akkadian Empire.Slide30
A Series of Empires
The Assyrian Empire was the largest
of the four empires.
The Assyrians conquered other lands easily, but they had difficulty controlling their vast empire.
The Neo-Babylonian Empire, replaced the Assyrian Empire. Although it was not as large as the Assyrian Empire
it was very powerful. Slide31
Conquering Mesopotamia
Because Mesopotamia had rich agricultural land and a lively culture, many different empires conquered it.
Each
empire had an effect on the culture of Mesopotamia while also adopting certain parts of Mesopotamian culture.Slide32
Independent Activity
What has been the “muddiest” point so far in this lesson? That is, what topic remains the least clear to you? (4 minutes)Slide33
Partner Activity
Work with a neighbor and compare your muddiest point with theirs. Compare what things are the same and what things are different? (3 minutes)