The rise and fall of history’s first empire - Soraya Field Fiorio

Prevodilac: Ivana Vojnić Tunić Lektor: Ivana Korom

History’s first empire rose out of a hot, dry landscape,

Prvo istorijsko carstvo nastalo je na vrućem, suvom predelu,

without rainfall to nourish crops, without trees or stones for building.

bez padavina da nahrane useve, bez drveta ili kamena za gradnju.

In spite of all this, its inhabitants built the world’s first cities,

Bez obzira na to, njegovi stanovnici podigli su prve gradove na svetu,

with monumental architecture and large populations—

sa impresivnom arhitekturom i ogromnom populacijom -

and they built them entirely out of mud.

i izgradili su ih u potpunosti od blata.

Sumer occupied the southern part of modern Iraq

Sumer je zauzimao južni predeo današnjeg Iraka,

in the region called Mesopotamia.

oblast pod nazivom Mesopotamija.

Mesopotamia means “between two rivers”—

Reč Mesopotamija znači "između dve reke" -

the Tigris and the Euphrates.

Tigra i Eufrata.

Around 5000 BCE, early Sumerians used irrigation channels, dams, and reservoirs

Oko 5000. pre n.e, stari Sumeri koristili su kanale za navodnjavanje, brane

i rezervoare kako bi usmerili vodu iz reke do ogromnih predela suve zemlje.

to redirect river water and farm large areas of previously bone-dry land.

Agricultural communities like this were slowly springing up around the world.

Slične zemljoradničke zajednice postepeno su nicale širom sveta.

But Sumerians were the first to take the next step.

Ali Sumeri su bili prvi koji su preduzeli naredni korak.

Using clay bricks made from river mud,

Koristeći opeku napravljenu od rečnog blata,

they began to build multi-storied homes and temples.

počeli su da grade višespratne kuće i hramove.

They invented the wheel—

Izumeli su točak -

a potter’s wheel, for turning mud into household goods and tools.

grnčarski točak, kako bi pretvorili blato u kućanske stvari i alate.

Those clay bricks gave rise to the world’s first cities,

Opeka je podstakla izgradnju prvih gradova na svetu,

probably around 4500 BCE.

najverovatnije oko 4500. godine pre nove ere.

At the top of the city’s social ladder were priests and priestesses,

Na vrhu društvene lestvice grada nalazili su se sveštenici i sveštenice,

who were considered nobility,

koji su smatrani plemstvom,

then merchants, craftspeople, farmers, and enslaved people.

zatim trgovci, zanatlije, zemljoradnici i robovi.

The Sumerian empire consisted of distinct city-states

Sumersko carstvo sastojalo se od pojedinačnih gradova-država

that operated like small nations.

koji su funkcionisali kao manje države.

They were loosely linked by language and spiritual belief

Međusobno su donekle bili povezani putem jezika i religioznih uverenja,

but lacked centralized control.

ali im je nedostajala centralna vlast.

The earliest cities were Uruk, Ur, and Eridu,

Prvi gradovi bili su Uruk, Ur i Eridu,

and eventually there were a dozen cities.

a naposletku ih je niklo mnogo.

Each had a king who served a role somewhere between a priest and a ruler.

Svaki je imao kralja čija uloga je bila neka između sveštenika i vladara.

Sometimes they fought against each other to conquer new territories.

Ponekad su se borili međusobno kako bi osvojili nove teritorije.

Each city was dedicated to a patron deity, considered the city’s founder.

Svaki grad imao je boga zaštitnika koji se, takođe, smatrao osnivačem grada.

The largest and most important building in the city was this patron god’s home:

Najveća i najvažnija građevina u gradu bila je kuća boga zaštitnika:

the ziggurat, a temple designed as a stepped pyramid.

zigurat, hram u obliku stepenaste piramide.

Around 3200 BCE, Sumerians began to expand their reach.

Oko 3200. godine pre nove ere, Sumeri su znatno uznapredovali.

The potter’s wheel found a new home on chariots and wagons.

Grnčarski točak mogao se naći na kočijama i zaprežnim kolima.

They built boats out of reeds and date palm leaves,

Gradili su brodove od trske i lišća datule,

with linen sails that carried them vast distances by river and sea.

sa jedrima od lanenog platna, pomoću kojih su prevaljivali velike udaljenosti.

To supplement scarce resources, they built a trade network

Kako bi nadomestili oskudne resurse, razvili su trgovinsku mrežu

with the rising kingdoms in Egypt, Anatolia, and Ethiopia,

sa carstvima u usponu - Egiptom, Anadolijom i Etiopijom,

importing gold, silver, lapis lazuli, and cedar wood.

uvozeći zlato, srebro, lapis lazuli i kedrovinu.

Trade was the unlikely impetus

Trgovina je bila neočekivani podsticaj

for the invention of the world’s first writing system.

za izum prvog pisma na svetu.

It started as a system of accounting for Sumerian merchants

Prvo se koristilo kao sistem za vođenje knjiga sumerskih trgovaca

conducting business with traders abroad.

pri poslovanju sa strancima.

After a few hundred years, the early pictogram system

Nekoliko stotina godina kasnije, prvi oblik piktograma

called cuneiform turned into a script.

zvani klinasto pismo pretvorio se u pravo pismo.

The Sumerians drafted up the first written laws

Sumeri su sastavili prve pisane zakone

and created the first school system, designed to teach the craft of writing—

i osmislili prvi školski sistem, sa ciljem učenja veštine pisanja -

and pioneered some less exciting innovations, like bureaucracy and taxes.

i bili pioniri u manje uzbudljivim izumima, kao što su birokratija i porezi.

In the schools, scribes studying from dawn to dusk,

U školama, pisari su učili od zore do sumraka,

from childhood well into adulthood.

od detinjstva do odraslog doba.

They learned accounting, mathematics, and copied works of literature—

Izučavali su računovodstvo, matematiku i prepisivali književna dela -

hymns, myths, proverbs, animal fables, magic spells,

himne, legende, poslovice, basne, magične čini

and the first epics on clay tablets.

i prve epove na glinene ploče.

Some of those tablets told the story of Gilgamesh,

Na nekim od tih ploča bio je zapisan ep o Gilgamešu,

a king of the city of Uruk who was also the subject of mythical tales.

kralju grada Uruka, koji je bio predmet mnogih legendi.

But by the third millennium BCE, Sumer was no longer the only empire around,

Međutim, do 3. milenijuma pre nove ere, sumersko carstvo više nije bilo jedino,

or even in Mesopotamia.

čak ni u Mesopotamiji.

Waves of nomadic tribes poured into the region from the north and east.

Talasi nomadskih plemena nadošli su u region, sa severa i istoka.

Some newcomers looked up to the Sumerians, adopting their way of life

Neke pridošlice su se ugledale na Sumere, prihvatajući njihov način života

and using the cuneiform script to express their own languages.

i koristeći klinasto pismo da se izraze na svom jeziku.

In 2300 BCE, the Akkadian king Sargon conquered the Sumerian city-states.

2300. godine pre nove ere, akadski car Sargon osvojio je sumerske gradove-države.

But Sargon respected Sumerian culture,

Sargon je, međutim, poštovao sumersku kulturu

and Akkadians and Sumerians existed side-by-side for centuries.

i Akađani i Sumeri živeli su zajedno vekovima.

Other invading groups focused only on looting and destruction.

Ostali osvajači usresredili su se samo na krađu i razaranje.

Even as Sumerian culture spread,

Iako se sumerska kultura širila,

a steady onslaught of invasions killed off the Sumerian people by 1750 BCE.

stalan nalet invazija iskorenio je Sumere do 1750. godine pre nove ere.

Afterward, Sumer disappeared back into the desert dirt,

Nakon toga, Sumer se pretvorio u prašinu

not to be rediscovered until the 19th century.

i neće biti ponovo otkiven sve do 19. veka.

But Sumerian culture lived on for thousands of years—

Međutim, sumerska kultura nastavila je da živi hiljadama godina -

first through the Akkadians, then the Assyrians, then the Babylonians.

prvo preko Akađana, zatim Asiraca i naposletku Vavilonaca.

The Babylonians passed Sumerian inventions and traditions through

Vavilonci su preneli sumerske izume i tradiciju

along Hebrew, Greek, and Roman cultures.

u jevrejsku, grčku i rimsku kulturu.

Some persist today.

Neki od njih postoje i dan danas.