The Oldest Known Civilization Trivia Quiz

Answer: Mesopotamia

Known as a "Cradle of Civilization", the ancient land of Mesopotamia is located between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in modern-day Iraq. The annual flooding of the rivers provided water that was needed to grow crops, and created the need for a cooperative effort, which led to the building of a great civilization.

Answer: Ziggurat

The ziggurat, made in several layers almost like a step pyramid, was the central part of the temple complex in the community. Made of clay bricks, the bottom part was used as a storehouse for grain, as well as business meetings and other events. The leader of the community also lived in a level of the ziggurat; however, the top level was a shrine that was reserved as the home for the patron deity.

Answer: Sumerians

The Sumerians made many contributions to civilization that are still used today. Among other contributions, they are given credit for developing the wheel, the oldest known form of writing, and a mathematical system based on the number 60, which is the origin of the 60-minute hour and 360-degree circle.

Answer: Cuneiform

Cuneiform, which means "wedge-shaped", was usually written on a wet clay tablet using a wedge-shaped instrument made out of reed. The tablet would then be baked in order to make a permanent record. It was necessary to invent a method of writing so the business activities of the temple could be recorded. Unlike Egyptian hieroglyphics, cuneiform was not written using pictures; symbols, which represented syllables or sounds, were used.

Answer: City-States

The Sumerians lived in independent communities in Mesopotamia, such as Ur, Lagash, and Nippur. Sometimes the city-states engaged in peaceful trade with each other, and sometimes they were at war over the best farmland or in an attempt to prove whose god was strongest.

Answer: Royal Standard of Ur

Found in 1922 in the Royal Cemetery of Ur, the panels on the Royal Standard clearly show the use of a wheeled chariot, which provided the Sumerians with mechanized warfare. Their chariots were pulled by onagers.

Answer: Theocracy

The leader of the Sumerian community was called a priest-king. He was considered to be the gods' representative on earth. Because it was believed that the gods owned the best farmland, it was the responsibility of the priest-king and his officials to allocate land for farming and supervise the collection of grain, as well as maintenance of the important irrigation system.

Answer: Polytheism

The Sumerians believed in more than one god, but each city-state choose which god was most important to them. Anthropomorphic in nature, the gods looked and acted like humans. Anu, the sky god, was the ruler of all the gods. Enlil was the god of the wind.

Answer: Scribe

A person had to be educated in ancient Mesopotamia to be a scribe, which was a highly respected occupation. The cuneiform system of writing used about 1,500 distinct and variant symbols; however, the number of symbols was reduced by later people who inhabited Mesopotamia and adopted cuneiform writing.

Answer: Fertile Crescent

Shaped like a crescent on the map, the Fertile Crescent runs from the Persian Gulf, along the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. It also extends over the Mediterranean Sea and down the Nile River Valley of Egypt. It is believed that farming began in this area in approximately 9,000 BC.