Sumerian Civilisation

Sumerian civilisation developed in southern Mesopotamia through city-states, temple institutions, irrigation agriculture and some of the earliest known writing. Cities such as Uruk, Ur and Lagash became major political and religious centres whose rulers competed for land, water and regional influence.

Cuneiform administration preserved records of taxation, trade, labour and law as well as literary and religious texts. Sumerian political dominance changed over time under Akkadian and later Mesopotamian powers, but Sumerian language, scribal culture and religious traditions continued to shape the region long after independent city-states had declined.