History and Civics Question Bank for Class IX – “Mesopotamian Civilization”

15 Short Questions with Answers on “Mesopotamian Civilization” for Class IX Students (History and Civics ):

image source: 70ee57.medialib.glogster.com

Q1. From which word is the term ‘civilization’ derived?

Ans: The term ‘civilization’ comes from the Latin adjective civilis which refers to a citizen.

Q2. How has Robert M. Adams defined civilization?

Ans: Robert M. Adams defines civilization as a society with functionally interrelated sets of social institutions: class stratification, political and religious hierarchies complementing each other in the central administration of territorially organized states and lastly, a complex division of labour, with skilled workers, soldiers and officials existing alongside the great mass of peasant producers.

Q3. What do you understand by ‘Bronze Age Civilization’?

Ans: Bronze played a vital role in the growth of the first civilizations. Hence these civilizations came to be known as the Bronze Age Civilizations.

Q4. Name the regions, which witnessed the dawn of Bronze Age Civilization.

Ans: The areas, which witnessed the Bronze Age Civilization were around the Mediterranean and the Aegean Sea, the Indus Valley, the Hwang Ho Valley in China, the Valley of the Tigris and Euphrates in Iraq (Mesopotamia) and the Nile Valley in Egypt.

Q5. What does ‘Mesopotamia’ mean?

Ans: Mesopotamia means ‘the land between the rivers’.

Q6. Name some village cultures prior to the development of Mesopotamian civilization.

Ans: Hassuna, Samarra and Tell Hafaf are some of the village cultures prior to the Mesopotamian civilization.

Q7. Name the Sumerian king who founded the first empire.

Ans: Lugal Zaggesi was the Sumerian king who founded the first empire.

Q8. Into how many divisions was the city state divided?

Ans: The city state was divided into three parts: 1) the sacred area, 2) the walled city on the mound and 3) the outer town.

Q9. What was the function of the sacred area?

Ans: The sacred area functioned as an administrative centre.

Q10. How did irrigation help in agriculture?

Ans: Canals which were built across cornfields to combat floods helped in irrigating the land, which in turn increased the volume of agricultural produce. So, irrigation helped in increasing the volume of agricultural produce.

Q11. Name the raw materials that were imported.

Ans: Raw materials such as stone, timber, gold, silver and other metals were imported.

Q12. How was the society divided?

Ans: The society was divided into hierarchical order starting with the King, followed by the Priest, then the King’s Officers, followed by the Artisans and the lowest strata comprised of the Slaves and prisoners of war.

Q13. How were the temples in Mesopotamia known as?

Ans: The temples in Mesopotamia were known as ‘Ziggurat’ or temple tower.

Q14. What was the script developed by the Mesopotamians known as?

Ans: Cuneiform was a system of writing developed for the first time in Mesopotamia.

Q15. Who in Mesopotamia is credited for developing a legal system?

Ans: The ruler, who can be credited for enumerating an elaborate code of law in Mesopotamia, is Hammurabi.