Sumerian Timeline Fifth millennium: Early developments in Sumer Fourth millennium: Protoliterate period Third millennium: Rival kings & periods of unification includes Early Dynastic, Sargonic, & Ur III periods Second millennium's first half: Ascendancy of Amorite dynasties of Isin, then Lar...
Sumer (pronounced "Shoomer"), Biblical Shi-nar, is the oldest known civilization in the world. The people who arrived in the plain between the Tigris and Euphrates over 5,000 years ago handed down to us the art of writing, the wheel, and the foundation of many of our myths and legends. city statescu...
The Deluge The Legend The legend of the Deluge, the epic flood that covered the world as punishment for mankind's wickedness is perhaps the most well-known legend in the world. The Biblical account of the Deluge states that "God saw that the wickedness of man was great" and resolved to destroy all o...
This is an attempt to list verified rulers of Sumerian city-states along with their approximate corresponding dates of rule. All dates listed are approximate and before the common era (B.C.). Many of these kings were found in the Sumerian King List. Items in red have not been verified for accuracy. ...
The Sumerian King List was first compiled by Sumerian scribes circa 2100 B.C. Although the list is an invaluable historical resource, it does suffer from issues regarding dating as many early rulers were attributed reigns of extraordinary lengths, such as 36,000 years. This is most likely due to the...
Pre-Sumerian Evidence of inhabitation of the lands that would become Sumer date prior to 5500 B.C. It is probable that earlier settlements existed, but the rising waters of the Persian Gulf forced the settlers further north. These initial settlements were located around the marsh lands of the south....
Sumerian and Akkadian Myths Myths The Akkadian myths are in many ways dependent on Sumerian materials, but they show originality and a broader scope in their treatment of the earlier Sumerian concepts and forms; they address themselves more often to existence as a whole. Fairly close to Sumerian pro...
amelu: Highest order of class in the Sumerian caste system. Included priests, government officials, and professional soldiers.an-ki: Translates to "heaven-earth." Used to denote the universe.Annunaki:a-zu: A doctor.dikud: A professional judge.emesh: One of the two Sumerian seasons. Equates to summer...
Deity: Displays the name of the deity along with a notation of any other pantheons they belong to.Patron City: Center of worship of the deity.Description: A brief description of the deity's duties.Symbol: Symbol commonly used to denote the deity.Relationships: Relationships with other deities.Commen...
Homo sapiens inhabiting China (c. 75000 BC)Ainu thriving in Japan (c. 38000 BC)Jomon culture in Japan (c. 12000 BC)first pottery in Japan (c. 10000 BC)stone age settlements thriving in Canaan (c. 7000 BC)rice cultivation in Yangtze Valley (c. 6500 BC)first settlements on Crete (c. 6000 BC)Ubaid Peri...
Religion Religion was an intricate part of the daily life of a citizen of Sumer. Accordingly, the largest and most important structure in the city was the temple. Each city had a patron deity to which its main temple was dedicated. However, a multitude of gods were recognized and some of them might ...
Development Sumerian religion has its roots in the worship of nature, such as the wind and water. The ancient sages of Sumer found it necessary to bring order to that which they did not understand and to this end they came to the natural conclusion that a greater force was at work. The forces of nat...