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The History of the Ancient World: From the Earliest Accounts to...
Susan Wise Bauer tells ancient (political) history as an entertainingly detailed story. Her approach to the civilizations of the Mediterranean, Mesopotamia, the Indus Valley, and China is unusual, because instead of covering one civilization through time, she shows what each was doing during a given period. It is a great read for people who want an overview of the entire "Old World".

Cuneiform
"Most cuneiform can be read without difficulty provided the reader knows what language is represented. Though invented by the Sumerians, the system was also adopted by various Semitic-speaking peoples ... and even some Indo-Europeans...."

Ur
Ur was an ancient city in Sumer

Nippur
Nippur is an ancient Mesopotamian city now called Niffer or Nuffar.

Alluvium and Alluvial Plains
Alluvium is a deposit from flowing streams that makes the area soil fertile.

Anatolia - Timeline of Anatolia
Timeline of events and rulers in that area of ancient Turkey now known as Anatolia where once the Hittites lived.

Hammurabi
Profile of the famous Babylonian lawgiver, Hammurabi.

Iraq - Ancient Mesopotamia
Information on ancient Iraq, Mesopotamia, Sumer, Akkad, Babylon, and Assyria, from the Library of Congress.

Timelines of the Ancient Near East
Index of timelines of the history of the Ancient Near East.

Carthage and the Phoenicians
Background to the Punic Wars between the Phoenicians and Romans.

Fertile Crescent
This colorful term refers to a geographical area most of which is also referred to as the Neareast.

Cuneiform - Ancient Wedge-Shaped or Cuneiform Writing
Cuneiform was the wedge-shaped writing used in Mesopotamia. There are many remnants of this ancient writing because cuneiform was used on clay which, unlike writing on paper or hieroglyphs on pspyrus, was preserved by fire.

Decapolis
Decapolis means ten cities and it was an ancient group of ten cities in eastern Palestine.

Asia Minor
Short glossary entry on ancient Asia Minor.

The Battle of Salamis
In The Battle of Salamis, Barry Strauss explains the treacherous part Artemisia, Queen of Halicarnassus, may have played in the battle between the Persian allies and the Greeks.

Gilgamesh
Basics on the important legendary king of Uruk, Gilgamesh of Epic of Gilgamesh fame.

Ziggurat - Step Pyramids - Ziggurats
Ziggurats were ancient mudbrick temples like step pyramids. There are remains of Ziggurats at Ur.

Tophet
Tophet was an area where the Phoenicians buried children.

Fifth Century B.C. Timeline
Events during the fifth century in Greece and Rome, which include the Persian Wars.

Race and Slavery in the Middle East
By Bernard Lewis. The earliest slaves were captives taken in warfare. Kidnapped children also became slaves.

Royal Game of Ur
"The Royal Game of Ur gets its name from two boardgames which were found in tombs by Sir Leonard Wooley, who was carrying out excavations in the ancient city of Ur in the 1920s."

Shining New Light on Assyrian Palace
Explore ancient Near Eastern art at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Included are features on King Ashurnasirpal II, excavations at Nimrud, and a map of the Assyrian empire.

Ancient Oriental Seals
Photocopy of 1924 volume from the University of Chicago libraries entitled Ancient Oriental Seals in the Collection of Mr. Edward T. Newell.

Recommended Reading on the Ancient Near East
Reading guide about Ancient Near Eastern, Egyptian, and Nubian people and cultures. Some selections for kids.