Deck 2: Mesopotamia

Question 1

Explain the significant social issues in Sumer.

Answer 1

Answers would include a discussion of social hierarchy,gender roles and expectations,and the influence of Hammurabi's Law Code.

Question 2

The hunter gatherers of the Near and Middle East who switched to agriculture at the end of the last Ice Age were the

A) Sumerians
B) Amorites
C) Natufians
D) Assyrians
E) Hittites

Answer 2

Natufians

Question 3

Which of the following would best describe early Mesopotamia?

A) More people lived in the towns than in the rural areas.
B) Most urban jobs could be obtained with little or no educational background.
C) While many people were directly or indirectly involved in food production, one of the most important tasks was to obtain a fresh supply of water on a daily basis.
D) Slaves were found in al parts of the Sumerian lands.
E) Although livestock was plentiful and vegetables could be easily grown, Mesopotamians had to import their grains.

Answer 3

While many people were directly or indirectly involved in food production, one of the most important tasks was to obtain a fresh supply of water on a daily basis.

Question 4

The earliest towns and cities were found in

A) Southwest Asia.
B) East Africa.
C) Northern Europe.
D) North America.
E) South America.

Question 5

Explain the effect of climatic change and the environment on the early civilizations.

Question 6

Which of these statements is the least applicable to the Sumerians?

A) They were the builders of the first large cities.
B) They brought Mesopotamia under united rulers as early as 3000 B.C.E.
C) They developed a sophisticated writing system.
D) Basic geometry is said to stem from them.
E) They probably pioneered the use of the wheel for transportation.

Question 7

All of the following were occupations in Sumerian society EXCEPT

A) clerk.
B) masonry.
C) shopkeeper.
D) jewelry making.
E) mining.

Question 8

In the time of Sumer,Mesopotamia

A) saw few technological advancements.
B) was racked by strife and warfare.
C) was incredibly peaceful.
D) had no clear political leaders.
E) had few problems with water.

Question 9

The first urban civilization was the

A) Sumerians.
B) Hittites.
C) Natufians.
D) Egyptians.
E) Amorites.

Question 10

Cuneiform was

A) a pictorial script from which all writing derives.
B) a written language corresponding to oral language.
C) an alphabet.
D) a script written in wedge-shaped characters.
E) the written language of the Egyptians.

Question 11

Describe Sumerian cultural achievements,including religion,writing,literature,and mathematics.

Question 12

Elaborate on life in Mesopotamia.

Question 13

The Levantine Corridor

A) had high water tables.
B) included modern day Israel and Syria.
C) was home to one of the earliest civilizations in Mesopotamia.
D) All of the options are correct.
E) None of the options are correct.

Question 14

Most of Sumerian commerce was based on

A) metals.
B) religion.
C) ceramics.
D) foodstuffs.
E) silk.

Question 15

Which of the following is true of early civilizations?

A) They rarely had trade networks.
B) Agriculture is the only component needed for a civilization.
C) Civilizations had a combination of elements including government and social structure.
D) They did not include any rural areas but were based solely in large cities.
E) None of the options are correct.

Question 16

The purpose of the ziggurat was primarily

A) religious.
B) economic.
C) political.
D) ceremonial.
E) artistic.

Question 17

Describe the Sumerian decline in the larger context of Mesopotamia.

Question 18

Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the early Sumerian civilization.

Question 19

The main significance of the Akkadian Empire was that

A) Sumerian culture was spread throughout the Middle East.
B) Cuneiform was developed.
C) it outlasted other ancient empires.
D) it first manufactured bronze.
E) the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers were finally tamed.

Question 20

One of the most important tasks for Sumerian women and children was

A) following the orders of male family members.
B) tilling the crops.
C) maintaining a supply of fresh water.
D) gathering nuts and berries.
E) keeping the homes clean and dry.

Question 21

Semitic in ancient history refers to

A) the Holocaust.
B) a language family.
C) a religion.
D) a region in Southwest Asia.
E) None of the options are correct.

Question 22

The ultimate victor in Mesopotamia after the Sumerians were the

A) Amorites.
B) Hittites.
C) New Babylonians.
D) Assyrians.
E) Persians.

Question 23

The world's first farming civilization settled in a section of the Near East called the ____________________.

Question 24

For Sumerians,the true reason for marriage was

A) family.
B) sex.
C) economic prosperity.
D) social mobility.
E) religious mandate.

Question 25

Mesopotamia was located between the ____________________ and ____________________ rivers.

Question 26

Considered the most important and lasting of the Sumerian accomplishments is/are

A) ziggurats.
B) a law code.
C) the development of writing.
D) mathematics.
E) a calendar.

Question 27

It could be most accurately stated of Hammurabi's Code that

A) it was the first code of law ever drafted.
B) it did not deal extensively with family and social matters.
C) punishment depended upon the violator's rank in society.
D) it attempted to outlaw slavery.
E) it dealt exclusively with business matters.

Question 28

In terms of sex

A) it was for procreation only.
B) it was merely a necessary sin.
C) there was a double standard regarding sex and adultery for men and women.
D) Sumerians never discussed the issue.
E) None of the options are correct.

Question 29

The government in Mesopotamia can best be described as

A) a democracy.
B) a theocracy and monarchy.
C) complete anarchy.
D) an oligarchy.
E) a republic.

Question 30

Most slaves in Mesopotamia seem to have been

A) criminals.
B) debtors.
C) women.
D) children.
E) Africans.

Question 31

____________________ unified Mesopotamia and founded the Akkadian Empire.

Question 32

Which of the following best explains Sumerian religion?

A) The influence of multiple religions through trade.
B) The destructive nature of warfare and a need to explain death.
C) The overwhelming peace and ability among the people to contemplate religion.
D) The lack of control the people had over the environment, especially when the environment was so important for food production.
E) All of the options are correct.

Question 33

Which of the following would be most descriptive of Sumerian religion?

A) Their many gods were all male.
B) All gods were free of human characteristics.
C) Sumerian gods existed within a human imposed hierarchy.
D) Sumerian gods existed without intervening at all in human lives.
E) Sumerian religion has been described as paternalistic.

Question 34

Mesopotamians viewed time as

A) static.
B) in flux.
C) tangible.
D) elusive.
E) cyclic.

Question 35

The Hittites were the first to

A) develop writing.
B) write down their religious beliefs.
C) use gold as currency.
D) smelt iron.
E) sail across the Persian Gulf.

Question 36

Sumer was never able to achieve

A) a solid social structure.
B) a thriving economy.
C) a rigid government with a clear law code.
D) a unified political system over all of Mesopotamia.
E) It achieved all of the options.

Question 37

____________________ were the usual basis of early agriculture.

Question 38

The most numerous class in Sumerian society were

A) nobility.
B) freemen.
C) slaves.
D) priests.
E) Both C and D.

Question 39

All of the following help to explain the decline of Mesopotamia until the 9?? century EXCEPT

A) environmental degradation.
B) population growth that outpaced agricultural production.
C) the lack of any clear leadership in Babylon.
D) a climate that included extreme heat and sandstorms.
E) Both A and B.

Question 40

Women under Hammurabi

A) could divorce.
B) could enter into a contract.
C) could gain custody of her children.
D) could own property.
E) All of the options are correct.

Question 41

____________________ were the stepped pyramids in Sumer.

Question 42

The first people to smelt iron were the ____________________.

Question 43

The Sumerian language,as set down in written,wedge-shaped character form,is known as ____________________.

Question 44

The best known and a biblical example of a ziggurat might be the ____________________.

Question 45

____________________ was the worst of all offenses between a husband and wife in Sumer.

Question 46

____________________ is the first epic in world literature.