The Rise and Fall of Sumer and Akkad

The Sumerians were the first known people to settle in Mesopotamia over 7,000 years ago.  Located in the southernmost part of Mesopotamia between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers (modern day Iraq), Sumer was often called the cradle of civilization. By the 4^th millennium BC, it had established an advanced system writing, spectacular arts and architecture, astronomy and mathematics. The Akkadians would follow the Sumerians, borrowing from their culture, producing a new language of their own, and creating the world’s first empire.

The origin of the Sumerians remains a mystery till this day.   They called themselves Saggiga (the “black-headed” or “bald-headed ones”) and their country, Kengi (“civilized land”).  Some believe they came from around Anatolia or modern day Turkey.  Others suggest they might have come from India and were Caucasian in origin.  They were established in southern Babylonia, in what is now Iraq, by at least 3500 BC.