Sumerians have intrigued archeologists and lay people ever since the discovery of the first ruins in the 19th century. Due to their profound influence on western culture, wild theories abound about their extra-terrestrial influence if not outright origin (example: https://galacticanthropology.org/2022/11/28/the- chronology-of-the-anunnaki-era/). The simple fact is, archeologists do not know where the Sumerians originated from. Their language was an isolate, meaning there are no other known related languages, past or present. Some archeologists argue that the Sumerians were indigenous to the area in which their culture thrived. Others posit that they migrated from Anatolia, Central Asia, the Zagros (Iran) or Bahrain (known as Dilmun in Sumer). Regardless of origin, the impact of the Sumerians on future civilizations is immense. Much of what we take for granted in the modern day has rudimentary roots in Sumer. One could argue that civilization began in the Sweetland - the area between the modern Euphrates and Tigris rivers.

What would we do without the wheel? Although it’s possible the wheel might have first been used in Turkiye or in Central Europe, certainly it was the Sumerians who developed it fully into wheeled transportation by adding axles. Probably the Sumerians started out by creating a potters wheel. which greatly accellerated the production of pottery (see section on pottery). Someone then had the brilliant idea that two wheels and an axle could be attached to a platform to make a cart pulled by an ox. The world has been on the move ever since.

The Wheel

Farming

While farming pre-dates the Sumerians, the Sumerians took agriculture to a level far beyond their predecessors using vast organized irrigation systems, and possibly inventing the plow. No contemporary culture developed farming to the level that Sumer did. Indeed, as a result of their vast irrigation systems, agricultural products and byproducts became a major trading resource, which in turn led to the rise of the world’s first cities. By 2700 BCE Uruk grew to an estimated population of 50,000 inhabitants.

Illustration of farmer using ancient plow

Writing

You’re reading. That is a new phenomenon. Archeologists estimate that humans (homo sapien sapien) have existed for roughly 300,000 years. Although cave art and symbols are thought to be some form of communication, written communication is estimated to be only about 5,500 years old. Most historians believe it was the Sumerians that developed the first writing, starting with pictographs and evolving into cuneiform as depicted in this tablet. Influenced by the Sumerians, the ancient Egyptians soon developed their own form of writing known as heiroglyphs. Writing began as an accounting system, a method of tracking trade and taxes. But over decades, it morphed into a full fledged writing system, capable of expressing human thought and emotion. Successor civilizations adapted cuneiform to their languages and the writing form lasted 3,000 years - long after the Sumerian language died out.

Although the Sumerians didn’t invent pottery, they most likely invented the potters wheel, which allowed for the specialized labor of pottery manufacturing. Mass manufacturing led to significant trade volumes with those cultures that were less advanced. The potters wheel in turn was likely the inspiration for creating a wheel and axle for transport, one of the greatest inventions of all time.

Illustration of an ancient pottery wheel

Potter’s Wheel

Metallurgy

The Sumerians invented the Bronze Age, full stop, distinguishing themselves from the neolithic cultures surrounding them. No longer dependent on animals or plants, or chipping rock, Sumerians learned how to melt ores to create tools, weapons and fashion jewelry. It was the leap civilization needed to emerge from the Stone Age. Along with writing, the wheel, and the building of true cities historians can safely say that civilization has begun.

Science

There are sixty seconds in a minute. Sixty minutes in an hour. 360 degrees in a circle. What do these have in common? Base 60 (sexagesimal number system). The Sumerians used base 60 instead of base 10 like we do. But we continue to use Base 60 for measuring time and measuring circumference. The Sumerians can be credited with developing geometric concepts, calculating area and multiplication tables. In addition, they tracked the movement of the stars and planets and laid the groundwork for the zodiac system.

Impact on Western Culture

It’s irrefutable the tremendous influence that ancient Greek society has had on western civilization (hello democracy). But what influenced the Greeks? Though indirect, passed on from successor cultures, the Sumerian influence of ancient Greece is also undeniable. Sumerians pioneered writing, mathematics, astronomy, and astrology, all of which later shaped Greek intellectual traditions. Greek scholars in the Classical and Hellenistic periods studied Mesopotamian astronomical records and mathematical methods, especially after increased contact via Persia and Alexander’s conquests. Scholars note that there are similarities between Homer and the Epic of Gilgamesh, including a heroic king, quests for fame (immortality), and wisdom. And let’s not forget the gods. Aphrodite, goddess of love, probably derived from the goddess Astarte, goddess of love and war in the Levant, which in turn derived from Ishtar, goddess of love and war in Akkadia/Babylon, which in turn derived from Inanna, goddess of love and war in Sumer. The Sumerian god Enlil, storm god and god of the bitter sea, incorporates attributes of both the storm god Zues and the sea god Poseidon. We are well versed in the city-states of Greece (Athens, Sparta, Corinth, Thebes, etc.) where each developed their own temple-centered administration, developed their own legal codes and practiced complex urban planning. But city-states originated in Sumer (Uruk, Ur, Kish, Eridu etc.). So too, much of the Judeo-Christian and Islamic worlds inherited much from Sumerian culture, starting with the creation myth. The Sumerian influenced and later Akkadian/Babylonian story of Enuma Elish describes creation emerging from primordial seas via divine intervention, while in Genesis, creation emerges from a black, formless desolation. Certainly the story of The Flood originated in Sumeria (complete with divine warning, wiping out of humans except a chosen one, birds sent to find land). The heavenly land of Dilmun of Sumerian mythology mirrors the Garden of Eden, while the creation of humans from clay is parallel to the creation of Adam. The Tower of Babel is thought by scholars to have originated from the building of first Sumerian and later Babylonian ziggurats.

Ancient Sumer