Knowra Ancient Near East Ancient Near East The Ancient Near East is a historical region centered on western Asia and northeastern Africa, encompassing early civilizations in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Anatolia, and the Levant.
Sumer : An ancient civilization of southern Mesopotamia known for early cities, cuneiform writing, and monumental temples. Sumerian city-states were among the region’s earliest urban societies.
Mesopotamia : A historical region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, home to successive urban civilizations. It forms the region’s eastern core and includes many of its earliest states.
Ancient Near Eastern trade : The exchange of goods across western Asia and northeastern Africa in antiquity. Trade moved metals, timber, luxury goods, and ideas between regions with different resources.
Neolithic Revolution : The transition in many regions from foraging to farming and settled communities. Agriculture and permanent settlement preceded the region’s first cities.
Alphabet : A writing system whose basic signs represent the consonants or sounds of a language. Alphabetic scripts developed in the region and transformed how writing could be learned and used.
Akkadian Empire : A Mesopotamian empire founded by Sargon of Akkad in the third millennium BCE. Its expansion united much of Mesopotamia under one ruler.
Levant : A historical region along the eastern Mediterranean coast, including present-day Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan. Its coastal and inland societies form a major western zone of the Ancient Near East.
Diplomacy in the Ancient Near East : The negotiation of alliances, marriages, treaties, and disputes among ancient Near Eastern rulers. Royal correspondence and treaties reveal a shared diplomatic system among competing courts.
Ubaid period : A prehistoric period in southern Mesopotamia marked by farming settlements and distinctive pottery. Its villages preceded the emergence of Sumerian urban centers.
Code of Hammurabi : A Babylonian law collection inscribed under King Hammurabi in the eighteenth century BCE. It became a famous witness to Mesopotamian ideas of law and royal justice.
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