NAME: DATE:
Environment: Middle East and Indus Valley (4000-1000 BCE)
Mesopotamia
Not long after the end of the last major Ice Age, some of the first
permanent human settlements began to take shape in the area that is now
modern day Iraq and eastern Syria. This area was a favorable place for early
human settlers for a number of reasons. First, the location had an abundance of
fresh water. There are two major rivers that wind through the region: the Tigris
and the Euphrates. In fact, the area is often referred to as Mesopotamia, which
is a Greek word meaning between two rivers. Second, the land, especially in
the wetter areas of the south, was rich in birds, fish, and other wild animals that
could be hunted for food. Finally, the area had two very important plants that
grew wild across the landscape: wheat and barley. As communities there
gradually learned to cultivate these two crops, they became staple foods that
eventually adopted grown in areas as far away as China in the east and Spain in
the west. Because of this long history of settlement, it is no wonder that some
of the earliest civilizations and empires emerged here. It was the early
Sumerians that developed possibly the earliest writing system. And it was the
great Mesopotamian empires of the Assyrians and Akkadians that ruled much
of the Near East for centuries.
Indus River Valley
One of the earlier groups that adopted the agricultural methods
developed in Mesopotamia was a civilization that arose in the Indus River valley
in western India and Pakistan. Farming in this area goes back to as far as 4000
BCE; and evidence for religious practices goes back even farther. But by about
2500 BCE the Indus River valley had a number of towns and even cities. Like
Mesopotamia, the river valley of the Indus was attractive to early settlers
because of the access to water, the rich land fed by the river, and the many fish,
birds, and other animals for hunting. Unlike Mesopotamia, which continued to
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be highly influential in the broader Near East for thousands of years, the Indus
River valley civilization seems to have begun to decline just about 700 years
after it reached its peak. Historians and Archaeologists are not entirely sure
what contributed to the decline. But two common theories are that either great
flood in the region or a great drought may have begun this decline. If either of
these theories are right, it would seem that the same river that made settlement
once so attractive in the valley was ultimately responsible for ending the
civilization as well.
Instructions
In this activity, you will use what youve learned about the two ancient
civilizations to come to some conclusions as to the connection between human
and physical geography. As you read, take notes in the graphic organizer
below. Then, use those notes to answer the essay question that follows.
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Reading Analysis
Use the graphic organizer below to take notes as you read.
What are some characteristics (human and geographic) of Mesopotamia?
What are some characteristics (human and geographic) of the Indus River
Valley?
What characteristics are similar and dissimilar between these two civilizations?
Applying Knowledge
Using what you have learned in the reading, answer the following
question: How did the geography in these two early civilizations influence
human activity? Be sure to use cite specific examples from the readings and
use your own understanding of the relationship between human and physical
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geography to speculate on things not discussed in the reading. Submit your
answer on a separate sheet of paper.
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