The rise and fall of history’s first empire - Soraya Field Fiorio

Discover history’s first empire: Sumer, located in Mesopotamia, which built the world’s first cities and created the first writing system.
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History’s first empire rose out of a hot, dry landscape, without rainfall to nourish crops, without trees or stones for building. In spite of all this, its inhabitants built the world’s first cities, with monumental architecture and large populations- and they built them entirely out of mud. Soraya Field Fiorio details the rise and fall of the Sumerian empire.
Lesson by Soraya Field Fiorio, directed by Tomás Pichardo-Espaillat.
Animator's website: www.tomatico.net/
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Thank you so much to our patrons for your support! Without you this video would not be possible! Leen Mshasha, Mariana Ortega, Danny Romard, James Bruening, Ricki Daniel Marbun, Malcolm Callis, Sabrina Gonzalez, Al the Scottish Wildcat, سلطان الخليفي, Alexander Walls, Della Palacios, Vik Nagjee, Hiroshi Uchiyama, Adi V, Andrew Bosco, Craig Sheldon, Rishi Pasham, Joanne Luce, Jason A Saslow, Mary Sawyer, Scott Gass, Ruth Fang, Mayank Kaul, Kathryn J Hammond, Max Shuai Tang, Terry Minion, Sami Khan, Rob Johnson, Abdullah Abdulaziz, Angelo Urzua-Milla, Tommy Lewis, leorene, Mahina Bachiller, Marcus Andre Nery, Bruce Vieira Lopes, Chef, Charmaine Hanson, Michael Goldberg, Lydia Pflieger, Paul Aldred-Bann, Manav parmar, Susan Wang, Utkarsh Dubey, Thawsitt, Xuebicoco, Jezabel, Maeve, Kim Humphrey and Kristen Damas.

[@fujihita2500]

An ancient civilization rose and fell in the span of 2800 years. A humbling reminder that 2020 years is only two-thirds of the Sumerian journey.

[@blueberrylane8340]

This is a good comment I feel should be highlighted.

[@Jobe-13]

Kinda gives me hope that the world isn’t even close to ending yet. I wonder where the world will be in the next 7000 years.

[@anjapurharleani4796]

@@Jobe-13 space

[@Jobe-13]

@@anjapurharleani4796 Yeah. Most likely. We’d be living on Mars, the Moon, and in other solar systems by then.

[@FallenLight0]

But the world now is globalized. We will either be destroyed by nuclear bombs or we'll be in the space.

[@AzureSkyCiel]

"In those days, in those distant days. In those nights, those ancient nights."

[@merrittanimation7721]

Full opening lines if anyone wants to know: "In those days, in those distant days, in those nights, in those remote nights, in those years, in those distant years; in days of yore, when the necessary things had been brought into manifest existence, in days of yore, when the necessary things had been for the first time properly cared for, when bread had been tasted for the first time in the shrines of the Land, when the ovens of the Land had been made to work, when the heavens had been separated from the earth, when the earth had been delimited from the heavens, when the fame of mankind had been established, when An had taken the heavens for himself, when Enlil had taken the earth for himself, when the nether world had been given to Erec-kigala as a gift; when he set sail, when he set sail, when the father set sail for the nether world, when Enki set sail for the nether world -- against the king a storm of small hailstones arose, against Enki a storm of large hailstones arose. The small ones were light hammers, the large ones were like stones from catapults. The keel of Enki's little boat was trembling as if it were being butted by turtles, the waves at the bow of the boat rose to devour the king like wolves and the waves at the stern of the boat were attacking Enki like a lion."

[@shweetaa]

@@merrittanimation7721 _Beautiful_

[@Shaman42069]

Lovely, where is that from?

[@shweetaa]

@@Shaman42069 It is from the tale of Gilgamish

[@merrittanimation7721]

@@Shaman42069 Specifically the story Gilgamesh, Enkidu and the Netherworld

[@amjadnawaz5122]

"what kind of scribe is a scribe who doesn't know Sumerian?" Everyone in the world: 😐

[@peacefulleo9477]

Bruh I studied about them in 10th grade

[@classicambo9781]

Except for Dr Finkel 🤣

[@limleang8678]

Not in developing countries! like me in Cambodia. People barely know English

[@redline2814]

We learned it in school tho, didn't we?

[@mr.knight8967]

Integral secantx By complex number kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZqTCcqmOob2Haa8 See for fun

[@Narrowcros]

The sumerians didnt just die off, they became incorporated into newer cultures and are still part of the population today in southern Iraq.

[@ayktklaslan]

@Not Suspicious Human Like it's the destiny of those lands from the beginning of history. Sad..

[@Narrowcros]

@Not Suspicious Human America, Iran, religious political parties and corrupt politicans...yes its going to be a long time before Iraq recovers.

[@AW-zu4kk]

@Walking The-Talk i am not a muslim, but i am pretty sure islam shia/sunni are only used by politician and warlords to justify their campaign. It's like how US use 9/11 to intefere with the war in middle east. What can unite people other than a common enemy.

[@tahagrt]

Thanks -> HOMEWORK DONE ;)

[@Great_Olaf5]

True, although their language has died, and we have no idea who among the modern inhabitants are descended from them, if they make up the majority of the population, or if they've been slowly displaced.

[@saumyashree4926]

Hats off for Ted-Ed animators 👏

[@CatDrinkingPoison]

Yes

[@mr.knight8967]

Integral secantx By complex number kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZqTCcqmOob2Haa8 See for fun

[@cheeseburgerlevel2868]

Every astronaut on vaccum of space: ●__●

[@lukedesjardins2257]

Fr tho

[@prometheus5770]

what for? depicting sumerians almost as subsaharan kangz ? lol

[@vadergamerboss6660]

Fun fact: The Sumerian people didn't actually disappear and were merely merged into the Akkadian people. But, if you go to the modern marshes of Iraq today, you'd see the only last living descendants of the Sumerians (the marsh Arabs) who's genes are made up of almost 71% Sumerian.

[@JustSpectre]

Are there any genetic studies published on this? Actually it's quite difficult to find any genetic studies regarding Sumerians. Perhaps it's because most of the skeletal remains was discovered at the beginning of 20th century, so it wouldn't be suitable for studying.

[@vadergamerboss6660]

@@JustSpectre There's a 2011 study that used data they gathered and data from the Iraqi government that published a full genetic map of the marsh Arabs (and mesopatamian Arabs as a whole). You should look that up.

[@m136dalie]

I find it hard to believe there are any 6000 year old samples from which you could perform proper DNA tests

[@JustSpectre]

@@m136dalie Well we have genetic samples of Neanderthals and woolly mammoths, so why not. The samples are not pristine, that's for sure, but they can still contain some interesting pieces of information. It's not a question of age, but of quality of preservation.

[@m136dalie]

@@JustSpectre I'm still very skeptical. After all, mammoths and Neanderthals can be identified based off anatomy. Distinguishing a Sumerian from a nomad who lived nearby poses more challenges.

[@sinishq_by_cosishq]

Hated History while studying in school, love it tremendously now cause of TED-Ed. When the education system makes you only parrot notes and topics just in order to clear the exam, you lose complete interest in these kind of subjects. And I feel bad for never giving history its due.

[@cibinthomas4007]

So true

[@adritabhattacharjee7255]

Nice name lol

[@sinishq_by_cosishq]

@@adritabhattacharjee7255 Haha Thanks man. :P

[@universe0848]

Yup....tanishq

[@viraj_singh]

your name = tan ishq

[@InDaWilderness]

So I'm actually a Ph.D. student in Assyriology (which includes the study of Sumer). I did enjoy many aspects if this video, but I do have to disagree on the premise. It is very hard to actually call the Sumerian culture an "empire." Yes its culture spread very far, but there was only a very limited political connection between the Sumerian cities. Because of this their political and military power only extended so far and very rarely outside of their own immediate territory. Thus, you can talk about then being one of the first civilizations - and a great one at that - but they really cannot be classified as an empire.

[@himanshuchauhan2304]

Would u think the sumerians were pushed to the Indian subcontinent after the rise of Judaism ? Then again to the southern Indian during vedic period ? My theory might be wrong about the present day south indian Dravidian race being the descendants of the sumerians.

[@GrammeStudio]

I was asking this question myself. Can we truly call it an empire when it's fragmented into multiple city states with no centralized control? multiple city states isn't even the issue, it's the lack of a single authority i.e. an emperor (hence the term "empire"). By definition, the description given by Ted falls short of criteria proposed by merriam-webster for what counts as an empire. Both the relevant meanings emphasize the need for there to be a single authority.

[@paulpierce1001]

So, then what was Akkadia joining the city states and then expanding up the rivers into other city states as well as the east? That sounds like an empire. Is that not what the video is referring to? The Akkadian Empire not the Sumer Empire?

[@jarlnils435]

@@himanshuchauhan2304 that would mean that there is something like a race. For example, the goths were originally from the baltic sea, on their march south, through germania, pannonia, skythia, sarmatia, dacia and thracia. Than to the west to illyria, italia, gallia and iberia, where they founded the Gothic Kingdom. They had losses. They wandered over 100 years through europe. They had losses, had driven others from their land, others joined them and that in every region. When the goths came to iberia, the former germanic tribe was only cultural germanic but only 20% of it's people were still germans. Most were romans, gallo romans and members of various balkan tribes. They spoke not Gothic anything but a mixture of various latin dialects. Than in iberia they mixed with the native kantabrians, arevaci and other tribes and of course the romans. Than at some point the muslim invasion came. Most of the gothic kingdom was conquered and the invaders mixed with the people of the former gothic kingdom. Now there is maby 5% of the genes of the spanish people gothic. The sumerians, maby members of one city state, could have marched all the way through the desert to india but they would only be a few thousands. It is more likely that the dravidian people are descendants of the indus culture. The interesting thing is, that the hattians from the kingdom of Mittanni were related to the indus culture but not to any anatolian or mesopotamian neighbor of them.

[@himanshuchauhan2304]

@@jarlnils435 the Dravidian are genetically different from north indians buddy... Little bit different facial structures and I even find different mental throught process. I feel that Dravidian are more cooperative, calm and thoughtful, dedicated and very good religious and culture followers... North indians are more open minded... Revengeful kind of. These are not generalizations ofcourse... But my point is... We have been cohabiting with each other since ancient times. And u know racism is a thing. It has been in the past... Nobody can deny that. Skin color makes a lot of difference.. every animal is afraid of another animal who doesn't look like him. I am from India.... Our ancient manuscripts and culture speak of the things from which I came to conclude which I said earlier. I can be completely wrong and I accept it.

[@AverytheCubanAmerican]

*S O C I E T Y* Coming soon to a dank river valley near you.

[@KAYEscl0sed]

Hah! Bill Wurtz.

[@Sovietube]

b r u h

[@Jobe-13]

7000 years and the movie still isn’t over yet.

[@Sovietube]

@@Jobe-13 My favourite one was Society 8: Hitler's world tour It has a good storyline

[@Koronuru]

Look at Indus River Valley Civilization, they're gone! Guess who's not gone? CHINA!

[@saumyashree4926]

The Sumerians were very inventive people

[@blueeye2281]

Hey I saw u at the last rusty lake video!

[@thedeadman5528]

Ancient Indians also they invented trignometry and studied planetary positions ,around 500AD knowledge of india went to middle East through silk route from there it went to Europe ancient India was a land of great scientists and powerfull emperors they did the first plastic surgery and invented shampoo , and also made a lot of contributions in field of math ,science and architecture there monuments were designed by carving of rocks, knowledge exchange took place through silk route the indians invented algebra but the middle East were first to coin the name value of pi was also calculated but today all of the culture of great civilisation is forgotten or destroyed by foreign invasions the greatest civilisations were in Persia , sumeria , Indus valley( india) ,mayan ,Egyptian ,japanese civilisation

[@prathamsingh8660]

@@thedeadman5528 yeah I have read it as much as I have studied the Mayans , the Sumerians and the Indus valley civilization rose almost together . But were separated by their continents

[@blueeye2281]

@@saumyashree4926 me too

[@roberthawks1084]

Nah, I’m more impressed with the Winterians

[@snuffulufagussmithens7521]

I could’ve skipped a whole unit in social studies just by watching this

[@snuffulufagussmithens7521]

@SimplyCorrectAlways haha you’re right I probably could’ve skipped a whole year

[@fresti9015]

I could to- we just finished Mesopotamia LOL

[@nathanmargerum9619]

I know right

[@blusun.]

same-

[@annaborshunn]

Jokes on you, this is my assignment and later have to answer questions online

[@omarhanif9101]

Ted ed's animation has never failed to impress us

[@a.o.e7168]

Yeah Its Like a Masterpiece That makes me Facinated about Literature And arts

[@RJ-dd6zl]

Yeah

[@Alkalus]

We: Were you killed? Sumerian culture: _Sadly, yes. But I lived._

[@kirankanhai6907]

Is that an Ice Age 3 reference?? If so: that's so cool! I love that movie

[@cesare_1302]

@@kirankanhai6907 Indeed it was

[@kirankanhai6907]

@@cesare_1302 :)

[@LimingHe]

Lmao yes

[@arianagandhi7595]

Well yes, but actually no.

[@karolinamikesova]

TED-Ed always works with absolutely phenomenal artists. Each video is unique and yet made in such a great way that everyone can understand it equally. Just Wow! Great work!

[@Bell_Matt]

They can afford it; look into their ticket prices.

[@a.o.e7168]

Yeah Ted ed arts and animation is Really Inspiring!

[@belle2515]

mud: exists* sumerians: 『 ＨＩＰＰＩＴＹ ＨＯＰＰＩＴＹ , ＹＯＵ ARE NOW ＭＹ PROPERTY 』

[@henri898]

lol

[@cesare_1302]

Uh... _we can make a city out of it_ ...

[@fathfez7991]

I'm sorry I didn't laugh

[@luismiguelnaperial2213]

@@fathfez7991 thanks for the info

[@Ozilus21]

*L I T E R A L L Y*

[@MC-nk8wr]

This music is so soothing and goes with the animation so well.

[@shakilmahmudarafat5021]

can someone tell me the music name? :p

[@sarthaktrip99]

@@shakilmahmudarafat5021 yes even i wanna know

[@misnomer6345]

Name?

[@carnelian7711]

Name anyone?

[@arjibbran2]

yes pls anyone?

[@kyconfii]

Ah, yes, gold, silver, lapis lazuli, and... wood

[@merrittanimation7721]

When you live on a flat plain with no trees wood is surprisingly precious.

[@gnochhuos645]

@@merrittanimation7721 Just steal the logs from villager houses and you are good

[@joerionis5902]

@@gnochhuos645 When I wake up

[@merrittanimation7721]

@@gnochhuos645 Unfortunately they spawned in the desert biome.

[@danzoom]

@@gnochhuos645 but desert villages don't have logs!

[@gabrielzak.7942]

Why the word "empire"? "Civilization" would be more appropriate

[@cremecrimson9035]

An empire is a collective of different cultures under a single rule.

[@nainaverma7822]

@Gabriel Zak Indus valley civilization was the first civilization. They did not appoint any emporer instead they had a parliamentry kind of structure where they discussed everything but no one was above anyone. This videos is talking about first emporer which is different.

[@ebrahimjamshid8328]

@@cremecrimson9035 but it wasnt under a single rule, they were distinct city states

[@Ramschat]

@@ebrahimjamshid8328 Distinct city states... Which eventually ended up ruled by one king. Thus, the first empire

[@nimrodbong8173]

@@fathfez7991 Can most caucasians trace thei lineage back to sumeria? Like most Indians can to IVC and most chinese can to the yellow river?

[@Opss56]

As an Assyrian I appreciate these videos. Thank you TedEd 💕

[@haitham1553]

as an iraqi I'm really proud of my arab ancestors the babylonins, sumerians , akadian and assyrians. fun fact:- some of the nomadic tribes who invaded southern Mesopotamia were actually turkic base(based on their language) some of the turkic words found in the ruins are still used to this very day by the turks themselves

[@nimrodbong8173]

I've always had respect for Iraq as a fellow descendant of a river valley civilization. I hope one day that all these countries will regain their former glory

[@horminmangfi5653]

Those ancestors you mentioned aren't Arabs

[@nimrodbong8173]

@@horminmangfi5653 They were arabified if you get what I mean

[@mohammadgm8463]

Hormin Mangfi ok then who are the Arabs & where did they came from ? I don’t know why exactly some non Arabs just automatically assume all ancient people of Arabia aren’t Arabs , it’s crazy when some say Dilmun (Modern day Bahrain) / Majan ( // Oman) / Al Magar ( // Saudia) / Sheba (// Yemen) etc long list of ancient civilizations are not Arabs yet they’re in Arab lands with undeniably same language branch & same dna 🧬 phenotype & still practice traditions ? I think you guys don’t fathom what Arab means .. still waiting for your answer btw, enlighten me

[@nimrodbong8173]

@@mohammadgm8463 akkadian and assyrians were certainly not arabs

[@TheMCCraftingTable]

Minecraft players: *spawn in a ginormous desert* dang theres nothing I can use Some random sumerian: hold my clay

[@husseinoskovjino9398]

The problem is that these deserts doesn’t have any plam pine and cedar trees even though I mean iraq is actually a forested steppe region but wait Why dont they add steppes in minecraft?

[@noobatthetower8747]

@@husseinoskovjino9398 why would they add steppes when open plains already exist

[@husseinoskovjino9398]

@comet :0 laughable because we don’t have savannahs at all

[@husseinoskovjino9398]

@comet :0 in Iraq there isn’t any savannah And no the plateau isn’t a savannah

[@husseinoskovjino9398]

@comet :0 o

[@learnwithmanik1426]

Ted Ed is one of the best channels. They have inspired me to create my own channel, which is out of my comfort zone. Am looking for support for more videos.

[@mirsami00]

This historical type animation is perfect for History related videos... TED ED is just amazing

[@heinaghost411]

I absolutely love the animation and the transitions! Thank you again Ted Ed for another wonderful video!

[@CarlsAnne]

I play Civ 6 which has Sumeria as a playable nation with Gilgamesh as the leader. I've seen them countless times in the game, so it's really pleasant to be able to know more about the nation, why the Ziggurat is an element in the game and where the city names came from!

[@typhoonofideas]

Great video. It gives a bit of awe to realize how much time has passed since then and how many concepts/ideas take root in the deep past.

[@rohanpotukuchi8424]

The last time I was this early Mesopotamia was still being built

[@rishikeshwagh]

The last time I was this early, my girl said "ugh not again"

[@sluggish_moxie2011]

😂 good one!

[@itsharuto7670]

dang, son, the last time I was early was before Pangaea even split up. UwU

[@dragonniz]

That was enlightening, and beautifully done. Thank you! ❤️

[@animeyahallo3887]

The last time I was this late, Gilgamesh and Enkidu are still fighting.

[@litdm9988]

🤣🤣🤣

[@yesno8273]

Only BC kids remember this one

[@samuraijosh1595]

Fate reference?

[@samuraijosh1595]

@William Napitupulu then what else?

[@samuraijosh1595]

@William Napitupulu do you even know what I'm referring to? I'm referring to fate anime series....

[@ntluck1592]

Interestingly enough, it is thought that the Greek pantheon was heavily inspired off of Sumerian gods. Their trade network through Phoenicia to Greece helped spread many of what we now know as Ancient Greek culture and ways of life

[@hamoodykhalid3340]

love from iraq 🇮🇶🇮🇶❤️❤️ hope one day become great as old days

[@rimacalid6557]

We will one day, we did it once again with the house of wisdom and we will do it again in the future, it's the prophecy of Muhammad pbuh

[@farhanraja6572]

@@rimacalid6557 pbuh

[@rimacalid6557]

@@farhanraja6572 thank you

[@letsomethingshine]

@@rimacalid6557 Pay no heed to a Diogenes (true wealth of wisdom be upon him) philosopher, lest you do not listen well and harden your hearts out of fear and jealousy enough unto anger as to shatter precious pearls: But careful, as "the future" was the promise of Sargon of Akkad as well. And it would be the promise of the Christians also, or anybody else, if you just let them equality and then to conquer. Promises are just promises. Especially when they come from the self-interested and empowered/rich who are like power-hungry foreigners and wolfs among you. Trust not in promises "not kept yet until later," that could have been delivered YESTERDAY. Kindness may be the head of wisdom, but the heart of wisdom is awareness. So listen without malice please. Once [humble and independent Diogenes] saw the officials of a prosperous temple leading away some one who had stolen a bowl belonging to the wealthy treasurers, and said, "Look! The great thieves are leading away the little thief.” “In a rich man's house there is no place to spit but his face.” ― Diogenes of Sinope When some one reminded him that the people of Sinope had sentenced him to exile [for insulting the laws by attempting to show that the economy was manufactured like a scroll or statue is also manufactured], he said, 'And I sentenced them to stay at home.' "I am a citizen of the world." “Of what use is a philosopher who doesn't hurt anybody's feelings?” “Blushing is the color of virtue.” ― Diogenes of Sinope. Joyous humility begins the open grace of the good listener. But the wrongman seeks out excuses desperately.

[@imserdar]

Everything comes down to an ideology in my opinion. If you want to become great as in the olds, you will have to change the ideology in the society.

[@xeno4162]

Amazing video, keep up the good work TedEd. I learned a lot. Thanks

[@kyconfii]

5:20 dude idk your car looks like it might roll away...

[@muthanna9]

This is how I hope one day my country will be seen, for it's great past not it's bloody present I can't express with words how happy this little video made me

[@parth1210]

Can't give this channel enough praise. Kudos!

[@samamry9032]

Thank you for taking such effort to make such nice interesting videos like this possible.

[@chikop.h.9391]

Mud: *exist Sumerian Gods: "Lets make a doll for our cute Gilgamesh"

[@hitler-chanofficial8483]

Oo man of culture 😎😎

[@blueeye2281]

I don't know how you guys do such good animations. Kudos to the animators.

[@adityakarkera747]

Thank you Ted for making such good informative videos.

[@cloe412]

I’m so impressed by them using clays and leaves to build cities and ships. With all the devices and technology, I can’t do anything.

[@JaybeePenaflor]

Thanks, Sumerians for your lasting inventions and innovations! Subsequent civilizations and empires that rose from the Near East and the fertile crescent learned much from you, effectively conquering those who conquered you.

[@Jobe-13]

Stuff like this really helps to remind me of the world’s beauty and humans’ potential for good, despite all the chaos that’s been going on. Just wonderful stuff.

[@stephenmeier4658]

The music for this is wonderful

[@Mr_Jester980]

Clays and muds: *exist* Sumerians: I'm about start this man's whole career.

[@lewismassie]

Every now and again I'll be watching KZbin videos at 2am about the ancient peoples just like I am now, and I'll suddenly get this deep overwhelming feeling of just how much of human history has been forgotten. The Sumerians, the Indo-Europeans, the Indus River Valley Civilisation are all gone but not quite. Go into your city and find the oldest man-made object you can and look at it. Whether it was put there 10, 100, 1000, 10000 years ago it doesn't matter. Remember that someone put it there. They had a name, a spouse, parents, children, a favourite song, a nickname. They collected trinkets, went drinking with their friends, told jokes. They felt joy, sadness, anger, love. They breathed the same air in their lungs as you. They felt the ground under their feet and looked up at the same moon and stars. Remember they were no different to you. So much has been forgotten

[@ohshoot6082]

That's exactly what Iraq is now. When they hear the word "Iraq," the first thing that comes to their mind is war. It saddens me that we were once the best country in the world, and now we are nothing, but ashes. I'm losing hope in humanity... 😔

[@kamius1]

Amazing lessons in history of mankind. Thanks for great video.

[@angtasp3640]

Loved the colours starting with brown and green symbolising origin and growth , ending it with red & crimson,colour does add a lot of dimension.

[@hopefulhyena3400]

I also read somewhere that the mesopotamian culture also produced the earliest known lute-type instrument, which would mean that not only can we thank them for writing, but also many instruments from the shamisen to ukulele to guitar to banjo.

[@vivamathew5347]

The transitions in the animation of this video is amazing! ❤️

[@abhimanyugupta1989]

The music in the beginning is so soothing, just the right one for meditation

[@abdullahmehboob4757]

Another great video as always! 👍

[@mustafabarzanji9280]

Wonderful video. Though I should point out that at that time, Mesopotamia was significantly greener than it is today. Also, Indus Valley was another important trade partner.

[@usa_summer9656]

Okay so I just learned about 2 weeks ago. The Hittites were the first group to rule. (After sumerians) They used iron weapons and chariots to attack and win battle. The kassities were the next group to rule. The Assyrians also used iron weapons and chariots to win battles. They also spread terror before battles by burning crops and stealing from markets. And the Chaldeans were last (ish) The phonecians were the ones who used the boats to sail. They had mountains on either side of them, so they traded via the sea. They traded mostly cedar wood (as said in the video) I’m sorry if I got anything wrong we took the test like a week ago.

[@cloudyreader1152]

The music and dulcet tones of the narrator are enough to give me goosebumps. Also, any mention of Gilgamesh brings a tear to my eye as Fate/stay night fan.

[@shakilmahmudarafat5021]

The music is so amazing, I would like to listen to it few more times.

[@Hacksolotl]

“Great empires are not maintained by timidity.”

[@letsomethingshine]

Yes, their first mistake (unless they saw it as, or it actually was, an improvement) was allowing Sargon of Akkad to "benevolently" take them over.

[@imserdar]

@@letsomethingshine Sumerians didn’t let Sargon the Great to take them over. Sargon defeated Lugalzagesi king of Uruk in a battle and took over the rule of Uruk as a result. Sumerians actually always formed some type of internal opposition to the Akkad’s rule.

[@shaksiyat]

Why is Ted Ed's comment section so competitive

[@mlogical4099]

Yeah, no one accepts ur application easily

[@Voltaire8559]

This is the best comment section ever! From memes to academic discussions, there’s something for everybody. Thank you Ted. Still waiting for when you will actually show up to your talk.

[@SioPao105]

The narration is superb...soothing and clear.

[@chugger2836]

Ah yes. The history of Babylon is incomplete without Gilgamesh

[@neutrinosadaf3709]

The first name ever recorded in writing was 'kushim' name of accountant in the Sumerian civilization.

[@letsomethingshine]

"accountant" of beer making from barley grains, really, no? Kushim means Holy Shim, no?

[@constantinodelgado8509]

Currently teaching about them in my 6th grade Social Studies class. This is great, thanks!

[@ikeekieeki]

awesome, thank you for this video and animation

[@TristanSamuel]

I was LITTERALLY just doing schoolwork on Hammurabi, and this gets uploaded XD

[@kekero540]

I swear if someone calls the Bronze Age Middle East a desert again I’m gonna force them to build a giant ziggurat.

[@JadeTrading]

Thank you for sharing🙌

[@stifanos6338]

i love the background music. you feel its stories

[@grubert3535]

There were far more trees in the region back then. The levant experienced massive deforestation over time as a result of exporting lumber to Mesopotamia.

[@harveybeaver9731]

The first great military strategy: you can starve out the resistance when you capture all of the cities surrounded by deserts.

[@SnowKat-mn9qh]

This video brought back all my memories of 6th grade history class, where I learned this for the first time. I remember that my teacher made us Mesopotamia-shaped sugar cookies when we started the unit. He was cool.

[@athenaparthenos9092]

This is why I love history so much!!❤️

[@christinawheeler3275]

Did a project on cuneiform in high school after I read the Epic of Gilgamesh and Inanna: Queen of Heaven and Earth. This is such a great, in-depth summary!

[@smithyman33]

I’m sure the climate was much different in southern Iraq back then.

[@Adenoidsqwe]

Nope

[@DragonwolfoftheSands]

There's still marsh there today, calling it barren desert is like calling ancient Egypt barren desert. They built on wetlands and rivers in an arid region.

[@1RAGEACE]

@@DragonwolfoftheSands Fertile Cresant

[@himanshuchauhan2304]

The rivers must have been good to create good fertile land in that time.

[@letsomethingshine]

@@DragonwolfoftheSands Yes, calling it an arid region (with important rivers) is more fair than calling it a desert.

[@creationmultimedia6940]

TED-Ed is a great channel which I am following. Always waiting for new Video attraction.

[@vishank7]

Amazing as always TED!😄💎👌

[@blueeye2281]

Me: Wait the Sumerians were the first empire? Ted Ed: *Always have been* The Assyrians: We have been tricked, backstabbed and quite possibly bamboozled!

[@sanzidamaliha]

they said at the assarian video..that it was the first true empire.

[@blueeye2281]

@@sanzidamaliha yeah so is the Sumerians first false empire?

[@fathfez7991]

The answer to the first empire is neither Sumer or Assyria. It's the Akkadia

[@blueeye2281]

@@fathfez7991 r u sure? Cuz I'm not very good at this historical things. If so I'll adapt Akkadia as the first empire. Btw where was this empire?

[@fathfez7991]

@@blueeye2281 Well yes, the Sumer (Started 4000 ~ 4500 BCE) is the first complex civilization that the golden age is from 3000 BCE (4th millenium BCE), right 300 years after the first South Asian bronze age civilization which is Indus Valley from around 3300 BCE. The Sumer is not an 'empire' definitionly, since it has no emperor. It is a union of cities, each governed ny a council of the people, priests, or kings as the video explains. Not a kingdom, nor empire. On the other hand, the Akkadians from approximately 2350 BCE, has the first emperor, Sargon. Marking the first empire in human history.

[@corleone7918]

Makes you wonder why this has been overlooked in the lore for so long.

[@madhavkulkarni8121]

kudos to ted-ed! animators killing it as all ways

[@nicholasleaf3646]

Only one correction, the archeological evidence shows that THE first cities were built 10 000 BC, 5000BC before Sumers.

[@tanayawani]

exactly and it was the Harappan civilization

[@ZaidT]

Cities does not mean that they were or part of civilizations

[@ZaidT]

@@tanayawani It only dates to c. 3300 - c. 1300 BCE. Mesopotamian civilizations were way older

[@disrael2101]

You makes me love and be so curious about our human ancestors and history, school was never able to create that spark in me unlike your amazing engaging interesting storytelling

[@heart3356]

But I bet school was able to spark in you an unjustified hate and dehumanizing Palestinians

[@user-sk5by4nx6x]

This is so cool because my learning this in my school.Also this helped me a lot

[@evaporatedmilkee6263]

Did not need to watch this but I found very useful info about the wheel which I needed for a presentation.

[@albertamalachi3560]

tl;dr: The Sumerians invented many things. Including stuff like bureaucracy, taxes, and schools. Me: They forgot homework. The Sumerians supposedly *invented homework* too!

[@davestylehenry]

I had tax homework in accounting

[@thespanishinquisition2200]

It’s good to know that beer has always been a priority for humans

[@nickyrathor007]

This is a beautiful video, did total justice to Sumerian history.

[@farhani29]

You did it again, Ted-Ed. ❤️

[@davidhumphrey2593]

“Oh yes, the first mighty civilization, because we find it’s ruins in desert, must come from desert, right?” NO!! It is always possible for landforms to change over thousands of years, and so I personally believe it is most likely that the Mesopotamian land was covered in what we could call “farm-able” land back in the day, and then later by geologic means became a desert #themoreyouknow

[@joshuadietz3602]

Someone somewhere in ancient Mesopotamia: "Yo Philip let's not reinvent the fire here man. We can use our pottery round thing also for transportation dawg!"

[@mime514]

This animation is gorgeous ❤

[@iuvyne]

Thanks so much, this helped with my history homework :D

[@istolejungkooksbananamilk5746]

same lol this is the link to my history homework

[@aiko9393]

"MINE!" -Gilgamesh

[@random_stuff507]

Fate🖤

[@beberoro1]

Assyrian here 😊 My baby sister is named after the Sumerian city “Ur” spelled differently than the originally but i love it

[@beberoro1]

Assyrians had a part in those invasions as well, it wasn’t just the Sumerians :)

[@ALIKN1-1]

Just don’t backstab us like neo Assyria did XD

[@mohammedizzat5416]

​@@ALIKN1-1r not a summerian my guy

[@ALIKN1-1]

@@mohammedizzat5416 they are :)))

[@mohammedizzat5416]

@@ALIKN1-1 your indian summerians are marsh arabs

[@leen1705]

The bgm really makes this a masterpiece of Ted Ed!

[@daniaflores8013]

Thanks TED. Now I can use this to study for my World History Exam 🙂

[@ravneetsingh3205]

Doesn't exactly sound like an empire since it didn't really have a central authority (like an emperor) or a centralized taxation system or a central army. Sounds more like a coalition of city states which happen to share some aspects of their culture, kinda like ancient Greece.

[@-ahmed121]

It’s amazing to consider that it the first city in human history and it have social ladders and religious beliefs

[@himanshuchauhan2304]

Even animals have those social ladders. Humans existed on this earth since a long long time

[@someonethatexists46]

That’s so fascinating!

[@proactiveomnipresentvessel6569]

TedEd is big reason why im intrested in social studies, history and riddles

[@erikprank4611]

It seems to me, that there is confusion here with the terms Empire and Civilization, or at least you use those terms in unorthodox way. Secondly, it seems to me that you are mixing the Ubaid culture and the Sumerians, and call them both Sumerians. As for Ubaid culture, we don't really know what language they spoke.

[@Noidonteatbabiesstopasking]

And with the term desert apparently

[@emmam8555]

comments: *exist* me: “can I see them?” youtube: *no*

[@zee446]

What you mean, you can't see them?

[@fathfez7991]

I don't get it?

[@metallsnubben]

If you click "sort by" and change from I think "top comments" to "new" it shows them all... for SOME reason