The Sumerian takeoff -- Factors hindering our understanding of the Sumerian takeoff -- Modeling the dynamics of urban growth -- Early Mesopotamian urbanism : why? -- Early Mesopotamian urbanism : how? -- The evidence for trade -- Early Mesopotamian urbanism in comparative perspective -- The synergies of civilization -- Conclusion: The Mesopotamian conjuncture -- Epilogue: Early Sumerian civilization : a research agenda
Summary
The alluvial lowlands of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in southern Mesopotamia are widely known as the "cradle of civilization" owing to the scale of the processes of urbanization that took place in the area by the second half of the fourth millennium BC. In Ancient Mesopotamia at the Dawn of Civilization, Guillermo Algaze draws on the work of modern economic geographers to explore how the unique river-based ecology and geography of the Tigris-Euphrates alluvium impacted the development of urban civilization in southern Mesopotamia. He argues that these natural conditions granted southern po
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 193-219) and index
