Enki in Sumerian mythology is the god of fresh waters, wisdom and the creator of man worshipped in Eridu. Together with the sky god Anu and the god Enlil, he formed a great triad of major deities. ¹⁾

Anzu or Imdugud is an enormous lion-headed bird in Mesopotamian mythology whose flapping wings were said to cause whirlwinds and sandstorms. In one myth, Anzu steals the tablet of destiny from Enki but is killed by the god of war Ninurta, who eventually returns the tablet to its rightful owner. ²⁾

According to Mesopotamian beliefs, humans were created to relieve the gods of their daily work. The intermediary between the gods and the people was established in the form of En, through whom the gods bestowed their grace on people and in return received the worship due to them. En combined the functions of king and priest, and in primitive society was a symbol of fertility. The dwelling place of En was a giparu (egipar), a temple area. ³⁾

The Sumerians (sum. saĝ-ĝi6-ga, translated as “black-headed”) were ancient people of unknown origin who created a highly developed civilization in southern Mesopotamia — Sumer — in the late fourth millennium B.C. They spoke the Sumerian language and cuneiform script. According to uncovered written sources, they called themselves “black-headed people who came from the East.” ⁴⁾

A ziggurat is a temple tower characteristic of Mesopotamian sacred architecture, with successive terraces descending in steps. Each ziggurat was the seat of a different god. Ziggurats were solid structures, for technical and technological reasons there were no rooms in them. These buildings were usually connected with temple complexes, which were located in the centers of Babylonian cities. ⁵⁾

Mesopotamia refers to a broad area that may include all of Iraq, eastern Syria, southeastern Turkey, parts of western Iran, and Kuwait. ⁶⁾

The exact name Mesopotamia means the territory between the rivers. From the earliest history, the name of this region was characterized by the distribution of the Tigris and Euphrates valleys. From the Greek language, the word “Mesopotamia” consists of two parts - “Meso” and “Potamos”. ⁷⁾

Because both rivers flooded every year, the Mesopotamian people decided to build one of the drainage systems, consisting of a network of canals that carried water away from the fields. Thanks to such a solution it did not lead to frequent flooding of the river waters. ⁸⁾

At the very beginning, with the theocratic ruler, the power was held by a priest, but over the years, a secular ruler was placed at the head of Mesopotamia. ⁹⁾

The people of Mesopotamia, known as the Sumerians arrived in the 4th and 3rd millennia BC. It was they who established the first city-states. They were also famous for buildings built on bricks. ¹⁰⁾

The Sumerian language was spoken in the southern part of the land in the Middle East, and it was not until about 2000 B.C. that it was excluded in a speech by the Akkadian language. The Sumerian language did not completely disappear; it was used for ceremonial, literary, and scientific records. ¹¹⁾

At the beginning of the 2nd millennium BC, the Amorite tribes reached the land of the Middle East and, together with the entire native population, formed such states as Assyria and Babylonia, which competed with each other until they fell prey to Persia in the 7th-6th centuries BC. ¹²⁾

The Mesopotamian intertidal region was highly developed due to the cultivation of grain and cotton as well as date palm and fruit trees. In addition, sheep and cattle breeding was well developed. Oil and even rock salt mining also became popular. ¹³⁾

The major Mesopotamian gods are Ishtar, Marduk, and Ashur. ¹⁴⁾

The most important achievements of Mesopotamian civilization were primarily the invention of bronze and the potter's wheel, as well as cuneiform writing and the use of the wheel. ¹⁵⁾