The Early Settlement of Southern Mesopotamia: A Review of Recent Historical, Geological, and Archaeological Research

The archaeological overview of the ancient Near East provided by Nissen in this volume covers the years 9000-2000 B. C. By necessity, the book briefly treats the Paleolithic and the Early Neolithic developments in the greater Near East; recent strides made in the fields of Paleolithic and Neolithic archaeology could not be detailed. The heart of the book focuses on two facets of human settlement in southern Mesopotamia between 5000-2000 B. C. The first relates to the evidence for the earliest settlements in the region. Recent work in geology, archaeology, and cuneiform studies suggests a close relationship between changing sea levels, shorelines, river channelization, and the key settlement strategies of the early urban city states. Particularly important may be the relationship to the larger Arabo-Persian gulf as a whole. The second facet involves the nature of settlement, the rise of urbanization and its impact on crafts/skills such as writing, the changes in kin-based society, the permutations of political change, ethnic contrasts, and the continued changes in long-distance trade strategies. Nissen's unique analysis of these two facets justifies including the volume in the ranks of distinguished historical treatments of the ancient Near East.