Sumerians, Akkadera, Where the Sumerians came from is not clear. Language scholars suggest that the Sumerian language is related to Mongolian, Turkish, or Hungarian and conclude that the Sumerians immigrated to Mesopotamia from the east.
The Sumerians irrigated their lands using an extensive canal system created by the priests. The holy princes ruled the country and headed the "temple economy."
At the end of the 4th millennium, larger cities were formed, which ensured more efficient irrigation of the country. Cities became prosperous and trade became more and more important. The settlements retained their independence; a single empire did not exist at that time.
The increasing demands on the organization of the temple economy brought about a change. Around 2700 BC writing has been improved. This area was originally intended for accounting purposes only.
Other inventions that were critical to the economy were the wheel and the potter's wheel. The most important city of the Sumerians was Uruk, the city of Gilgamesh. The epic about this ruler is considered the first literary document of the people.
From 3000 BC nomads from the north immigrated to southern Mesopotamia. The records of the Sumerian king, who also reports the flood, document these migrations through the appearance of Semitic names.
Historians attribute this era to the early dynastic period, which ended in the 23rd century. In this era, the unity of spiritual and temporary power collapsed. Palaces were built for kings who didn't just serve as a representation. The kings of this time were called "lugal" (great man). The rulers also declared the supremacy of their power, in particular by approving it in the form of a burial after death, along with their entourage. Several of these royal tombs have been found near Uruk.
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Accaders
Sargon Akkad ended the early dynastic era. Sargon created the first empire of the Middle East, uniting many city-states. All Mesopotamia, parts of Syria, Iran and Asia Minor, belonged to his sphere of influence.
Assyrians
Akkad city became his seat of government. Akkadian replaced Sumerian. The conquests led to economic and cultural ties with the subjects or new neighbors. Access to the Persian Gulf led to a flourishing maritime trade.
Culture influenced the life of Egypt in the empire of Sargon I. This was reflected in the picturesque images, as well as in the position of the ruler as God or his substitute.
Akkad did not rule for long, numerous unrest and the invasion of the Gutegers ended the era. However, this first great civilization survived, in the myths of the peoples, so the Assyrians recalled Sargon I, and, almost 100 years later, Guteger was exiled, and the Sumerian city-states restored their strength and greatness.
The city of Uruk became the center again.
The so-called Uruk III dynasty lasted from 2047 to 1939 BC. This time was characterized by strict management and the establishment of statutory relations. This ended the Sumerian period in Mesopotamia. The cities have lost their power.
Babylonians
It is unknown when the city of Babylon was founded. It was only under the rule of Hammurabi that the city became the center of attention and became so important that the Greeks referred to Mesopotamia as Babylonia.
Hammurabi was known to posterity because he wrote one of the first collections of laws. In its 280 points, labor regulated civil law, criminal and administrative law.
It included individual decisions, often characterized by sharpness. However, historians are not sure if this code of law was consistently followed. Hammurabi's empire disintegrated in the following centuries. The Kassites came to the throne, and the Hittites were entrenched in the west.
From the 15th century, Babylon re-entered the world. Especially with Egypt, there was a closer relationship, as numerous Babylonian princesses were married to Egyptians.
Assyrians
In the 14th century, Assyria became a new power. The city of Assur lay on the upper Tigris. Historians suspect that the city was originally ruled by Akkad. At the head was the king, who also saw himself as a representative of the god Assur. In addition, merchants enjoyed significant claims to power in the country.
Assur, geographically located on the main trade routes, traded with Iran, Babylon and modern-day Turkey. In the 18th century, Shamshi-Adat united all of Assyria in the north of Mesopotamia. In the first half of the 17th century, Assyria collapsed again and the Old Assyrian Empire disappeared.
Under Assur-Uballit I (1353-1318 BC) Assyria regained its influence. Numerous conquests led to economic recovery again.
King Tukulti-Ninurta considered himself a representative of the god Assur. He called himself "the ruler of the four continents" and clearly stated his claim to power. But with his death, this era of the Middle Assyrian Empire ended. The last rise was experienced by the empire with King Assur-dan III (935-912 BC), who was able to free many cities from the ruling Aramaic.
However, the Assyrians had already adopted elements of scripture and language from their Aramaic conquerors. The kings Aspernasirpal II (883-859 BC) and Salamanassar III (858-824 BC) extended the Assyrian sphere of power to Syria. After some setbacks and internal strife, Tiglath-Pileser III (745-727 BC), having come to power, decided to conquer Babylon, Phenicia, Palestine and Israel.
The quest for victory reached its climax after 50 years in the conquest of Egypt by Esarhaddon (681-669 BC). Assurbanipal (669-627 BC) was the last important ruler.
Greek historians viewed this ruler as a weak politician. Today's historians cannot confirm this verdict. We see him as an experienced politician who read a lot. His library is an important source of Mesopotamian history. 18 years after the death of Assurbanip, the Assyrian Empire finally perished.