Sumerian culture

The Sumerians were people who inhabited southern Mesopotamia from around 3500 B.C. C. until 1800 a. C. They had formed twelve city states, the most famous being Ur and Sumer. In these cities a common language called Sumerian was followed. Although there are no modern descendants of Sumerians, the Sumerian culture lives on mainly due to their inventions. No other ancient culture has contributed as much to today’s world as the Sumerian culture. We know a lot about Sumerian culture because of the tone of their inventions too: writing.

The Sumerians formed the first human settlement putting an end to the nomadic customs of ancient man. They were an agricultural culture and grew crops in three areas. Within the cities they maintained highly cultivated gardens, while the cultivation of crops and other sources of food came from agricultural fields outside the city. The third region was remote from water resources mainly for grazing domestic animals, hunting, and gathering fuel. The salty, stagnant water from the canals was used for the cultivation of the highly nutritious date palms. For agriculture, the Sumerians needed irrigation. This paved the way for the development of canals and embankments to control the flooding of the Euphrates River. Large-scale cooperation was needed to continue construction of the irrigation canal, repair it, and finally address concerns and allocate water shares. This gave rise to the monarchy, the government and the laws. Sumerian culture continually invented and reinvented to perfection.

Sumerian villages were built on mounds with houses clustered in narrow streets. Some houses were two or three stories high, and the Sumerians had learned very early to make bricks and dry them in the sun or in a kiln. The cities were protected by a wall around it and the settlements of the poor were outside these walls with houses made of reeds plastered with clay. Like any other ancient society, Sumerian culture was centered on the gods. Cities were built around the sanctuary of a local god. The wealth of any city was reflected in the elaborate structures of its temples. Ramps and stairs led to the temples that stood on raised platforms. The temples were not just religious shrines, but the entire Sumerian culture and its people depended on them for daily life. The temple complex had accommodation for the priest, officials, accountants, singers, and musicians. It also served as a treasure house for the city and a storehouse for grain, tools, and weapons. Workshops for professions that were mainstream Sumerian culture were also located in the temple complex. These included bakers, potters, jewelers, furriers, and spinners and weavers. Sheep and goats intended for sacrifice to the temple gods were also kept within the complex.

Sheep, goats, oxen, donkeys, and dogs had been domesticated, although horses and camels were still unknown. The Sumerian culture has been responsible for various inventions as they have advanced as a race. The plow for agriculture, the wheel for trading carts, sailboats for transporting bulky goods upriver, and, above all, writing were invented to make it easier to remember the details of trade.