Sumerians were people who populated southern Mesopotamia from around 3500 BC to 1800 BC. They had formed twelve city states, the most widely known and esteemed being Ur and Sumer. A mutual language called Sumerian was followed allround these cities. Though there are no innovative day descendants of Sumerians, Sumerian culture lives on principally due to their inventions. No other ancient culture has contributed so much to today’s world as the Sumerian culture. We recognise so much when it comes to the Sumerian culture due to tone of their inventions too – writing.
The Sumerians formed the basi humane settlement bringing to an end the nomadic ways of ancient man. They were an agricultural culture and raised crops in three areas. Inside the cities they kept highly cultivated gardens, while the cultivation of crops and other feed roots came from agricultural fields outside the city. The third region was away from water resources mainly for grazing of the domesticated animals, hunting and for collection of fuel. The salty and stagnant water from the canals were applied for growing the highly nutritious date-palms. In order for agriculture, the Sumerians necessitated irrigation. This paved way to the development of canals and embankments to control flood waters from the Euphrates River. Large scale joint operation was necessitated to keep the irrigational canal building continuing, repairing them and at long last to address worries and allot water shares. This gave rise to monarchy, government and laws. The Sumerian culture continuously developed and reinvented to perfection.
Sumerian villages were built on mounds with houses clustered together on narrow lanes. Some houses were two to three stories high and the Sumerians had learnt very early how to make bricks and arid them in the sun or a kiln. The cities were protected by a wall all around it and the poor people’s settlements were outside these walls with houses made of reeds plastered in clay. Like each other ancient society, the Sumerian culture was centered on gods. The cities were built around the shrine of a local god. Any city’s wealth was reflected in the elaborate structures of it is temples. Ramps and staircases led to the temples which stood on raised platforms. Temples were not only religious shrines but the entire Sumerian culture and it is humans depended on them for every day life. The temple complex had quarters for the priest, officials, accountants, singers and musicians. It likewise served as a treasure house for the city and a storehouse for grains, tools and weapons. Workshops for professions which were the mainstream of Sumerian culture were in the temple complex as well. These included bakers, pottery makers, jewelers, leatherworkers and spinners and weavers. Sheep and goat meant for sacrifice to the temple gods were likewise kept within the complex.
Sheep, goat, oxen, donkeys and dogs had been domesticated even though horses and camels were still unknown. The Sumerian culture has been responsible for various inventions as they modern as a race. The plow for agriculture, the wheel for marketing carts, sail boats for moving bulky goods up the river and above all writing was developed to make having little impact the occupation of remembering details of trade.
