 | Term | Definition |
| |
irrigation |
the use of connected ditches, canals, dams, and dikes to move water to dry areas. |
| |
Sargon |
warrior who found the Akkadian Empire and so became the first ruler of an empire in the Fertile Crescent |
| |
scribe |
a person who writes |
| |
cuneiform |
an ancient wedge-shaped script used in Mesopotamia and Persia |
| |
Moses |
phrophet and lawgiver who, according to the Bible, led the Israelites out of Egyptian captivity and received the Ten Commandments |
| |
Phoenicians |
of or relating to ancient Phoenicia or its people, language, or culture |
| |
ziggurat |
a huge mud-brick temple built by the ancient Sumerians |
| |
monarchy |
the system of government in which a king or queen rules |
| |
Mesopotamia |
an ancient land in southwestern Asia; located between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers |
| |
dikes |
an embankment of earth and rock built to prevent floods |
| |
Tigris |
a river in southwestern Asia; begins in eastern Turkey and joins the Euphrates river |
| |
Euphrates |
a river that begins in Turkey, flows through Syria and Iraq, and empties into the Persian Gulf |
| |
agriculture |
the domestication of plants and animals |
| |
surplus |
an extra supply |
| |
city-states |
a city and its surrounding farmlands, with its own leaders and government |
| |
labor |
productive activity, esp. for the sake of economic gain |
| |
cultural diffusion |
the spread of ideas from one place to others |
