Hasibul Kabir

2311665042

History always fascinates me, especially if it’s ancient history. That is why I chose to do
a course in world civilization in my short semester to pass my time learning more about
my interest. It’s almost the end of the semester, and I got to learn a lot about ancient
civilizations to modern civilizations. But the one civilization that caught my attention and
interest the most is the Ancient Mesopotamian Civilization. It's the world’s oldest
recorded civilization of human history and the cradle of civilization itself. I thoroughly
enjoyed researching and learning about the Ancient Mesopotamian civilization and how
their societies thrived thousands of years ago. What fascinated me even more about
them is how they were so much ahead of their time and how their inventions still left
some impacts for all other civilizations yet to come.

Around 10,000 years ago, small groups of nomadic people started settling down
between the Tigris and Euphrates River. They were mostly hunter-gatherers before. But
as they settled down and started living more stable lives, the Ancient Mesopotamians
started inventing all sorts of things to ease their workload and make their lives more
comfortable.
As their primary source of food was still based on agriculture, they achieved some
milestones in that area. One of it was the making of irrigation canals. They were the first
to design and build an irrigation system which was powered by the force of gravity. It
always makes me wonder that without even knowing about gravity, they were still able
to harness its power and use it for their benefit. The humans were finally starting to
make nature work for them.

Another feat the Mesopotamians were able to achieve as a civilization that no other
cultures had at that time was Writing. They were among the first to develop a
sophisticated system of writing, also known as Cuneiform writing. It contained about
1200 symbols. They used clay tablets to write onto using these symbols and pictures.
After inventing writing, they started keeping track of all sorts of things like history,
trades, and also epics. One of the oldest epics (Epic of Gilgamesh) was written on 12 clay
tablets. They wrote law codes and safety regulations as well.
After writing was invented, it became much easier to study and test new ideas. They
developed complex number systems. Sexagesimal, also known as the base 60 number
system, was used to create 360-degree circles and a seven-day week system. The
Babylonian calendar was based on a year with 12 months. Also, based on their
advancement in maths, they used constellations to make an accurate clock. Isn't it
amazing that what we use in our modern society today was invented way back in a time
when writing was just taking its first steps?

The ancient Mesopotamians made remarkable developments in architecture. They used

to build massive monumental buildings using the post-and-lintel system. Sun-baked clays
were used as the building materials for these structures. There were domestic structures
where regular peasants and laborers used to live, political structures where politically
powerful and influential people lived, and temples where priests lived to pray to their
gods. One of the most remarkable achievements of Mesopotamian architecture was the
Ziggurats. Hundreds of priests prayed in the ziggurats and made offerings to their gods.
It had similar looks as the pyramids built by the Egyptians.
Another significant achievement of the Mesopotamians was Transportation. Sumerian
people discovered how to make wheels, and with the wheels being invented,
transportation became much easier. The wheels were used as a load-bearing
transportation device. It not only provided an easy way to move objects but also led to
the invention of wheeled carts and chariots. The invention of the wheel changed human
transportation overnight.
They also had better boats controlled by wind energy using a sail. Original boats back
then were made of reeds, and they were able to harness the energy of the wind using
sails to make the boat glide through the water. Again they were using nature for their
benefits. Boats were absolutely necessary among the Mesopotamians because they
lived between two rivers and they were very much dependent on that river for
resources. Also, boats were used to trade between countries which was very important
back then.
To conclude my essay, I would like to say that I found it really intriguing to learn about
the origins of the basic civilization features present today. What we take for granted
today was a life-changing discovery for them thousands of years ago. Their inventions
played a massive role in shaping our modern societies today. Although it's true we
upgraded and updated those inventions drastically over time, it was them who took the
first steps towards modern civilizations. We are significantly influenced by their
inventions from Agriculture to Transportation, from the first sophisticated writing system
to advanced mathematics; all changed human history forever.