Question 6 - Practice 2

Question 6

Practice 2

Lecture

Listen to a lecture. Take notes on the information presented.

M: There are several theories as to why certain ancient cities became prosperous, but one factor that cannot be disputed is the importance of water.

The success of ancient cities dependent on their water sources, and for this reason, many of the greatest ancient cities that we know of were located near prominent sources of water.

Think about the great civilizations of Greece and Rome, both settled along the Mediterranean Sea.

Historian suggest that water contributed to the success of ancient cities in two ways.

First off, water allowed certain cities to flourish because of its agricultural use. Having close access to fresh water allowed societies to grow their own food.

The Samarians, one of the earliest known civilizations, were able to settle down and form cities because they built irrigation ditches that transported water from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers to their crop fields.

Living near a source of water, therefore, made agriculture possible. And having an agricultural system meant that the Samarians didn’t have to travel long distances to hunt and forage for food, giving them more time to develop arts and culture.

It was their close proximity to water that allowed many of these ancient cities to thrive.

Living near water also allowed ancient peoples to develop trade. This was a critical component of civilizations like Greece and Rome because this trade made these cities prosperous.

The Ancient Egyptians, for example, used the Nile River to carry valuable cargo, or material goods, from one end of their empire to the other.

Eventually, extensive trade networks developed along such water highways and were used to import and export goods between civilizations.

In order to participate in and prosper from this trade, it was therefore incredibly important for ancient peoples to build their cities along water routes.