Sumer

American  

[soo-mer] / ˈsu mər /

noun

1. an ancient region in southern Mesopotamia that contained a number of independent cities and city-states of which the first were established possibly as early as 5000 b.c.: conquered by the Elamites and, about 2000 b.c., by the Babylonians; a number of its cities, as Ur, Uruk, Kish, and Lagash, are major archaeological sites in southern Iraq.

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Sumer British  

/ ˈsuːmə /

noun

1. the S region of Babylonia; seat of a civilization of city-states that reached its height in the 3rd millennium _bc

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Example Sentences

Back in Guney, local resident Sumer said the issue of protecting water sources from overexploitation or pollution was ultimately a matter of survival.

From Barron's • May 15, 2026

Although written mathematical records appear much later in Sumer, the Halafian pottery points to an earlier and more intuitive form of mathematical reasoning.

From Science Daily • Dec. 16, 2025

The researchers present a new paleoenvironmental model showing that tidal rhythms influenced the earliest stages of agriculture and social organization in Sumer.

From Science Daily • Oct. 27, 2025

During a visit, the president of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, said, “Chile can do greater things,” which made locals hopeful one day the Sumer Olympics could come to their city.

From Washington Times • Nov. 5, 2023

The kings and priests of ancient Sumer wanted writing to be used by professional scribes to record numbers of sheep owed in taxes, not by the masses to write poetry and hatch plots.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond