Mesopotamian Society & Culture Research

Social Organization

In all Mesopotamian societies the king was the top of the power chain.  Sumerians
believed kings were given their power by gods; Assyrians believed that kings were
actually gods on earth.

Priests were the second layer in the power structure.  They were important because
religion was important to people.

The next level of power was held by the scribes.  They were important because
Mesopotamians were the first culture to read and write and scribes were educated people.

Merchants and artisans were the next level of power.  The helped develop Mesopotamian
society by trading goods and ideas through the large territory.  The creation of these two
classes was because there was a stable food supply.

The common people were the second from bottom and made their living off the land

Slaves were at the bottom of the structure and had no rights.  They had no last name as it
was taken away.  There were two types of slaves in Mesopotamia; captured prisoners
AND people sold into slavery to pay off debts.

Ref: N/A. (-, - -). Mesoptomia: Society & Culture. Retrieved from Blackville: http://blackville.nbed.nb.ca/sites/blackville.nbed.nb.ca/files/doc/teacher/656/chapter_3_notes.pdf