People of Mesopotamia
Two cultural groups form the principle elements in the population of Mesopotamia
before the beginning of history and in the 3rd millennium BCE . These are the Sumerians and the Akkadians. They
lived peacefully together and created in mutual fertilization, by symbiosis and osmosis, the conditions for a common high civilization. Mesopotamian sources in all periods seem to be free of strong racial ideologies or ethnic stereotypes.
Enemies, both groups and individuals, may be cursed and reviled heavily, but
this applies more strongly to the ruler of a nearby city than to one of a
remote territory.
Sumerians
The people responsible for the first monumental temples and palaces, for the founding of the first city states and most likely for the invention of writing are the Sumerians. The first written signs are pictographic, so they can be read in any language and one can't infer a particular language. A pictogram of an arrow means 'arrow' in any language. A few centuries later, however, these signs were used to represent Sumerian phonetic values and Sumerian words. The pictogram for an arrow is now used to represent ti, the Sumerian word for 'arrow', but also for the phonetic sound ti in words not related to 'arrow'. So it is generally assumed that the Sumerians were also responsible for the pictographic signs, or
possibly together with the contemporaneous Elamites. If the Sumerians aren't the ones who actually invented writing than they are at least responsible for quickly adopting and expanding the invention to their economic needs.
before the beginning of history and in the 3rd millennium BCE . These are the Sumerians and the Akkadians. They
lived peacefully together and created in mutual fertilization, by symbiosis and osmosis, the conditions for a common high civilization. Mesopotamian sources in all periods seem to be free of strong racial ideologies or ethnic stereotypes.
Enemies, both groups and individuals, may be cursed and reviled heavily, but
this applies more strongly to the ruler of a nearby city than to one of a
remote territory.
Sumerians
The people responsible for the first monumental temples and palaces, for the founding of the first city states and most likely for the invention of writing are the Sumerians. The first written signs are pictographic, so they can be read in any language and one can't infer a particular language. A pictogram of an arrow means 'arrow' in any language. A few centuries later, however, these signs were used to represent Sumerian phonetic values and Sumerian words. The pictogram for an arrow is now used to represent ti, the Sumerian word for 'arrow', but also for the phonetic sound ti in words not related to 'arrow'. So it is generally assumed that the Sumerians were also responsible for the pictographic signs, or
possibly together with the contemporaneous Elamites. If the Sumerians aren't the ones who actually invented writing than they are at least responsible for quickly adopting and expanding the invention to their economic needs.
