3400 BC to 2334 BC

Between the rivers

Mesopotamia, the land between the Tigris and the Euphrates, is home to some of the first cities and the first writing, cuneiform, which appears at Uruk before 3000 BC. Sumerian city states such as Uruk, Ur, Lagash and Umma flourish in the south, irrigating the plain and often fighting each other over land and water.