The name Mesopotamia was given to the Middle Eastern civilisation that existed between the Euphrates and Tigris Rivers. The source of these rivers lies in modern Turkey and they cross Syria before ending in Iraq, where they unite. Mesopotamia is Greek for ‘a land between two rivers’. The Middle East is mostly dry and sandy. However, Mesopotamia is different because the two rivers kept the land fertile through regular flooding of the area. Like the Nile River in Egypt, the Euphrates and Tigris Rivers allowed the Mesopotamians to grow crops and to settle between these two rivers.
By the 7th century BC small farming settlements of people were established. Later on in southern Mesopotamia, people began to develop irrigation agriculture instead of just relying on the flooding of the two rivers. This led to the first of Mesopotamian towns called Eridu and Uruk. The economy of these two cities depended on improving irrigation methods, to grow enough food to keep up with the demand of the people in Mesopotamia.
The Mayans have a calendar that shows the 365 days based on the Sun's movement. The Aztecs also have the same calendar. This kind of calendar is called XiuhpohuallI. Another similarity between these two ancient civilizations is that they both have their own written language.
