Mesopotamia

Mesopotamia (Greek, “between the rivers”), ancient region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in southwestern Asia. Called “the cradle of civilizations” Mesopotamia mainly lies in Iraq, between the Armenian and Kurdish Mountains in the north and the Persian Gulf in the south. The north is mainly grassy, rolling plateau; the south is a sandy plain leading to marshes. Since ancient times the rivers have been used to irrigate the area; however, the ancient systems degenerated under Mongol invasion and Ottoman rule and were not replaced until the 20th century. Neolithic farming peoples settled Mesopotamia by 6000 B.C. By 3000 B.C. the Sumerians, who created the first system of writing (cuneiform), had developed a civilization of independent city-states in the south. From c.3000–625 B.C. Mesopotamia was dominated successively by Sumer, Akkad, the Sumerian dynasty of Ur, the empires of Babylonia and Assyria, and Chaldea. In 539 B.C. the Persian Empire absorbed Mesopotamia; in 331 B.C. it was conquered by Alexander the Great. It subsequently came under Roman, Byzantine, and Arab rule. The Abbasid caliphs made Baghdad their capital in 762, but prosperity collapsed with the Mongol invasion of 1289. After Ottoman rule (1638–1918), Mesopotamia was largely incorporated into Iraq. Today it is generally barren, but contains rich oil fields.