Cuneiform

1. Which civilization is credited with inventing cuneiform?

• A. The Egyptians
• B. The Sumerians
• C. The Romans
• D. The Greeks

2. What does the word 'cuneiform' literally mean?

• A. Clay tablet
• B. Reed writing
• C. Wedge-shaped
• D. Picture writing

3. What was the original purpose of early cuneiform?

• A. To tell epic stories
• B. To record religious laws
• C. To keep track of trade goods
• D. To send letters to kings

4. What tool did the Sumerians use to press marks into clay?

• A. A metal pen
• B. A wooden brush
• C. A reed stylus
• D. A stone chisel

1. Why is the idea that writing was 'invented all at once' considered a myth?

• A. It was actually invented by many different cultures simultaneously.
• B. It evolved slowly over hundreds of years from simple pictures.
• C. It was a secret language that took thousands of years to decode.
• D. The earliest records were actually carved into stone, not clay.

2. How did cuneiform change as it spread to other cultures like the Akkadians and Babylonians?

• A. It was abandoned in favor of paper writing.
• B. It became a secret code only for royalty.
• C. It was adapted to record their own unique languages.
• D. It lost all meaning and became strictly decorative art.

3. Based on the text, what can we conclude about the content of early cuneiform tablets?

• A. They were almost entirely focused on epic poetry.
• B. They were mostly mundane records rather than literature.
• C. They were used primarily to record the history of kings.
• D. They were only used to write down laws for the public.

4. If you were a Sumerian record-keeper, what is the best evidence that your writing system had evolved from pictographs?

• A. The signs began to look like simplified wedge shapes instead of detailed drawings.
• B. The tablets became much heavier and harder to carry.
• C. The stylus was replaced by a more complex quill pen.
• D. The writing switched from horizontal lines to vertical circles.