| Afterlife | An existence following death |
| Cuneiform | Wedge-shaped writing of the ancient Sumerians and other ancient peoples |
| Dynasty | Ruling family |
| Fertile Crescent | A geographical area of fertile land in the Middle East stretching in a broad semicircle from the Nile to the Tigris and Euphrates |
| Epic of Gilgamesh | The oldest work of literature, dating back over 5,000 years |
| Hammurabi | King of Babylon. Created one of the first written code of laws called the code of Hammurabi |
| Hebrews | One of the first groups of people to believe in one God |
| Hierarchy | System of ranks |
| Levee | A barrier built to contain the flow of water or to keep out flood waters |
| Mediterranean | Sea located North of Egypt |
| Mesopotamia | “Land between two rivers”. Area located between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers |
| Monotheistic | Believing in one God |
| Osiris | Egyptian God of the Nile River. Responsible for the annual flooding of the Nile |
| Persian Gulf | Body of water that lies southeast of Iraq and east of Saudi Arabia. Used as a trade route in the ancient Middle East |
| Phoenicians | Sailing and trading people who had many colonies on the Mediterranean coast |
| Silt | Rich soil deposited by floodwaters |
| Stylus | Wedge shaped reed used for writing cuneiform |
| Sumer | Name of the first civilization established in Mesopotamia |
| Sargon I | The first emperor of Sumer |
| Theocracy | A system of government by priests claiming the right to rule from the gods |
| The Fertile Crescent | An arc of land that began between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers and extended to the Mediterranean coast |
| Tigris and Euphrates Rivers | The land between these two rivers contained the early civilizations of Mesopotamia |
| Ur | The first important city in Mesopotamia |
| Ziggurat | A temple tower of ancient Mesopotamians, having the form of a terraced pyramid. |