Early Dynastic Period (Mesopotamia) Early Dynastic Period (Mesopotamia) The Early Dynastic period (abbreviated ED period or ED) is an archaeological culture in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq) that is generally dated to c. 2900–2350 BC and was preceded by the Uruk and Jemdet Nasr periods. It saw the invention of writing and the formation of the first cities and states. The ED itself was characterized by the existence of multiple city-states: small states with a relatively simple structure that developed and solidified over time. This development ultimately led to the unification of much of Mesopotamia under the rule of Sargon, the first monarch of the Akkadian
Mesopotamia used throughout the Greek Septuagint (c. 250 BC) to translate the Hebrew and Aramaic equivalent "Naharaim". An even earlier Greek usage of the name "Mesopotamia" is evident from "The Anabasis of Alexander", which was written in the late 2nd century AD, but specifically refers to sources from the time of Alexander the Great. In the "Anabasis", Mesopotamia was used to designate the land east of the Euphrates in north Syria. The Aramaic term "biritum/birit narim" corresponded to a similar geographical concept. Later, the term Mesopotamia was more generally applied to all the lands between the Euphrates and the Tigris, thereby