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Chapter 3
Mesopotamia and the Fertile Crescent
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| irrigation | a way of supplying water to an area of land |
| surplus | more than needed/ extra amount |
| canals | human made waterways |
| urban | city |
| rural | countryside |
| city-state | consist of both urban and rural |
| silt | a mixture of rich soil and tiny rocks |
| priest | people who perform religious ceremonies |
| social hierarchy | dividing society by rank or class |
| division of labor | special jobs with special workers |
| empire | land with different territories under a single rule |
| polytheism | worship of many gods |
| monarch | king or ruler |
| alphabet | a set of letters that represent sounds in words |
| cuneiform | wedge-shaped writing first developed by Sumerians |
| Pictographs | picture symbols |
| Chariot | a horse-drawn cart used in battle |
| scribe | writer |
| Ziggurat | a pyramid shaped temple tower |
| architecture | the science of building |
| epics | long poems about a hero |
| city-state | consists of a city and all the countryside |
| Civilization | must have 5 features: a stable food supply, division of labor, social hierarchy, government and highly developed culture |
| Fertile Crescent | rich fertile farmland |