The Mesopotamian civilizations, namely the Sumerians, Assyrians, Babylonians, and Persians, were marked by significant advancements, in many parts due to their technological developments. Being located in a highly fertile region located between the Euphrates and Tigris Rivers, these societies developed many technologies that had to do with the large-scale agriculture needed to support a large and diversified population.

In order for the water from the rivers to reach the farmland, the Mesopotamians had to develop complex irrigation systems. Beginning around the year 700 BCE, the Assyrian king Sennacherib ordered the construction of the first great canals in the region, which supplied water to his new capital of Nineveh. This and other great waterworks allowed the civilizations of the region to engage in agriculture close to population centers. They even invented a device later known as the Archimedes Screw, which could move water uphill.

By using technology to create large and conveniently located fertile areas, the civilizations of Mesopotamia were able to feed and support a large population. To further support agriculture, these civilizations also made use of metal tools and the selective breeding of grains. Throughout history, we can see a direct correlation between a civilization's ability to feed its population and its ability to grow.

Large, agriculturally based societies are usually characterized by regimented social stratification. A peasant class is needed to work the fields, with the administration of a ruling class and the protection of a warrior class. By developing civilizations centered on agricultural production, Mesopotamian civilizations developed complex social hierarchies.

Maintaining communication within a large and diversified civilization was also a complex problem that required a solution. The Sumerians were quick to develop this solution in the form of writing. The Sumerians and the subsequent civilizations in the region were prolific writers. Their writings established codified laws necessary to the functioning of a large society, as well as the more mundane recordings of mercantile transactions. We often do not think of writing on clay tablets to be a technological advancement, but when it was first developed in the region, it was revolutionary indeed.