Early Mesopotamian History: From the Dawn of Civilization to the Akkadian Empire
In this 20-week class students will be introduced to the spectacular history of Mesopotamia, the land between the rivers Tigris and Euphrates where the early Sumerians, and the Akkadians created their fascinating world
Spyridon (Spiros) Loumakis
Average rating:
4.9
Number of reviews:(776)
What's included
20 live meetings
20 in-class hoursHomework
1 hour per week. At certain points students will have to read carefully primary sources from ancient Near Eastern literature in English translation (chosen and distributed by me in advance), related to certain weeks' topic, in order to enrich class discussion, with the purpose of introducing the student in the skill of critical thinking,Assessment
An optional Mid-Term quiz for classes 1 to 10 will be distributed during the 11th week, and a second optional Final quiz for classes 11-20 at the end of the course.Grading
I do not believe that a letter grade is meaningful for an one-on-one tutorial. However, as I often do with my camps, which are small classes (up to 7 students), I communicate with the parents and the children directly, providing my personal comments, private feedback and an informal assessment. If students choose to do the quiz, this is a great opportunity to communicate directly in an individual level for personal feedback.Class Experience
US Grade 7 - 9
Intermediate Level
(A) Required Experience: This is a class for beginners or for those who have a basic knowledge on ancient Mesopotamian history and religions, and wish to refresh or enrich their knowledge on the material culture, the literary and artistic production, as well as the history of people and beliefs in Mesopotamia. (B) Teaching style and students interaction: The learning process of this class is based on a combination of a power-point presentation, a lecture that asks students to participate, class dialogue, questions based on the ongoing lecture, and new ideas based on the participants. There is not one universal solution to teach. Rather I combine techniques to achieve the maximum of my strengths and of my students. Having taught so far young kids, teenagers, University students and mature learners, I know that teachers need to approach students with understanding. After all, such a small class has the advantage of making the combined technique of ppt presentation-lecture-dialogue feasible and efficient. Thanks to Zoom, engaging students and interacting with them is always possible. (C) Specific topics to be covered Per Day: Day 1) Explanation of the terms "Mesopotamia" and "Fertile Crescent" - Geography, Climate and Topography in ancient Mesopotamia Day 2) The Ubaid Period (5500-3200 BCE) and the first urban settlement at Eridu Days 3) and 4) The Uruk period and the so-called Uruk Phenomenon (3300-3100 BCE) - First Known Human Writing System - The City and the Ziggurats of Uruk Days 5) and 6) Jamdat Nasr Period and its Impotance (3100-2900 BCE) - Advances in Art, Architecture and Writing - The Vase of Uruk Day 7) Introdution to the Early Dynastic period or the Highdays of the Sumerian People (2900-2350 BCE) Day 8) Art and Culture of Early Dynastic I-II Day 9) Art and Culture of Early Dynastic III Day 10) The great royal Ur Cemetery - Temple of Ninhursag Day 11) Lugal of Lagash - Lagash under Ur-Nanshe - Akurgal - Eanatum) Days 12) and 13) War of Lagash and Umma under Eanatum - Enmetena - Enannatum - The first legal code and the political propaganda of King Uru-ka-gina of the city of Lagash - First literary, historical and religious texts Day 14) The Early Dynastic cities of Umma and Adab Day 15) The Early Dynastic cities of Kish and Uruk - Lugal-Zage-Si, king of Uruk, unites all Sumeria as "king of Sumer" - the Rise of Akkadians as a new powerplayer in Mesopotamia Days 16) and 17) The Akkadian kings Sargon (2334–2279 BCE) and Naram-Sin (2254-2218 BCE) as the first known empire-builders in Mesopotamia and beyond Days 18) and 19) Art ans Culture of the Akkadians - Akkadian Imperial Administration Day 20) The Akkadian Empire and its Pantheon The above classes are also an introduction to the great art and architecture of the Mesopotamians, their pantheon and demons, their epic poems and other literary production, as well as to their libraries and scientific accomplishments
Learning Goals
In this course the students will be able to appreciate the beauty and importance of the study of history. Having studied myself history at a graduate and postgraduate level, and trained in archaeological excavations, ancient languages, and the use of various aspects of ancient material culture (art, architecture, coins etc), I want to bring this full picture to my classes.
We will discuss together in class not just about events and personnalities of ancient Near Eastern history, but also about major Mesopotamian monuments, artifacts, literary and scientific texts in English translation, so as to understand the greatness of this region's very long history in its entirety. The epistemological approach according to which History means facts based on reliable primary sources, remains still relevant for me, if not necessary today.
Ancient History means also appreciating ancient cultures, respecting them, learning from their mistakes, and admiring them for their accompishments. History can be also used as a point of reference or a measure of comparison between an ancient pre-modern society and our contemporary post-modern world.
For students who are taking History classes in general at their school, this class can be used as a supplementary class to strengthen their general knowledge, advance their understading of history and sharpen their critical thinking.
Other Details
Pre-Requisites
For this class there are no prerequisites. It is the first in a series of three other classes that follow after [see section "Next Class"].
External Resources
Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.
Sources
Throughout the class and in the form of homework, students will discuss in class under my guidance and read at home before class illuminating sources that servive in ancient Mesopotamian languages (Sumerian, Akkadian, Babylonian). They are all provided by me in English translations. This is important so that students may understand Mesopotamian history from authentic Mesopotamian sources and the civilization of the Mesopotamian people by its own creators, and not from external sources which are biased and have minimal historical value, like the portrait of some of the Neo-Assyrian and Babylonian kings in the Hebrew Bible.
In addition, archaeology, art, architecture, epigraphy and the study of ancient cylinders and seals will be used, whenever relevant, to enlighten aspects of ancient Near Eastern history that are not so apparent in the Mesopotamian historical accounts listed above. My background in all these fields will guide students through these peculiar sub-fields of history, in order to be abe to "read" them and complete their knowledge.
The goal is to apprehend the bigger picture of ancient history in the Near East, and open the mind of modern learners by including aspects of so many different cultures and civilizations that shared the same geographical area in ancient Mesopotamia.
Finally, the class is not only based on my 10-years of experience in the scientific study of this era, but also on a long list of modern sources, of which a good sample is the following one:
A History of the Ancient Near East, ca. 3000-323 BC by Marc Van De Mieroop (Wiley-Blackwell, 2015)
The Oxford Handbook of Cuneiform Culture by Karen Radner and Eleanor Robson, eds. (Oxford University Press, 2020)
Ancient Near East: Historical Sources in Translation by Mark W. Chavalas (Wiley-Blackwell, 2006)
The Age of Agade: Inventing Empire in Ancient Mesopotamia by Benjamin R. Foster (Routledge, 2015)
A Dictionary of Ancient Near Eastern Mythology by Gwendolyn Leick (Routledge, 1998)
Babylonian Creation Myths by Wilfred G. Lambert (Eisenbrauns, 2013)
Cosmogony, Theogony and Anthropogeny in Sumerian Texts by de Jan Jw Lisman (Ugarit Verlag, 2013),
as well as on a careful and comprehensive use of archaeological data through the official reports of excavators published online or in physical copy by major University Press Publications or their official educational websites managed by the archaeological teams working in the related places (e.g. the Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures by University of Chicago; the Anthropology and Archaeology Museum of the University of Pennsylvania; the French or the German Archaeological School in Near East; the British School of Archaeology in Iraq; the American Oriental Society)
Joined March, 2020
4.9
776reviews
Teacher expertise and credentials
I have a B.A. and M.A. in Ancient History and Archaeology, as well as an M.A. in History and Philosophy of Religions. I have excavated in ancient sites, I speak ancient languages and I am currently finishing my PhD. Reviews
Live Group Class
$22
weekly or $440 for 20 classes1x per week, 20 weeks
60 min
Completed by 14 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 12-15
3-6 learners per class
