Location and Lifestyle. Between circa 3300 and 331 B.C.E. many ethno-linguistic groups lived both contemporaneously and successively across the length and breadth of Mesopotamia. Despite ethnic variations, however, factors such as geography, climate, and availability of natural resources—coupled with Mesopotamia's strongly conservative urban traditions—ensured that some aspects of daily life remained much the same over the entire period.

Housing. Because wood and stone suitable for building were scarce in Mesopotamia, while mud was readily available on the banks of rivers and canals, houses were usually constructed of sun-dried mud bricks. The extensive use of wood was reserved for the wealthy. In urban areas workshops and housing for the rich and the poor could be found together in the same neighborhood.

Food and Drink. Bread and beer made from barley were the staples of the Mesopotamian diet. Mesopotamians also used millet, emmer wheat, and rye...