Hi everyone, this is Scott.

For maps, references, and images for each episode,

as well as links to all my social media,

please go to ancientworldpodcast.com.

And if you'd like to support the show,

please go to patreon.com forward slash the ancient world.

Thanks again for listening. Around 3,500 BC, the people of Uruk and the surrounding region embarked on a cultural expansion.

In the absence of written records, their exact motivations are unknown.

Whether a hunger for resources, a missionary zeal to shine the light of civilization, or simple

wanderlust, the Uruk expansion rolled across the northern plains and touched the surrounding

mountains. And when it collapsed around 3,100, the mountains quickly touched back. As I covered early on, the Kura Aroxies of the

Armenian Plateau embarked on their own expansion, spreading across the northern region of

Subartu, then driving southwest through the Levantine Highlands and southeast onto the Persian Plateau.

Per Roger Matthews and Hassan Faisali Nashley, Kura Aroxie's goals were likely modest.

More arable land, pasture for herded animals, and maybe good soil to grow vines in.

If they happen to cross new sources of metal, so much the better.

At the exact same time, another major cultural horizon emerged in the region of Sousa.

The city had been influenced by the Uruk expansion, with closely linked material remains, and the era's end saw the burning

of Sousa's Acropolis and the city's abandonment. In its wake, a new group of people entered the

city and decided to set up shop. Their origins are a bit of a mystery. Per the authors, the newcomers had strong connections to regions to the east, Fars in particular, suggesting Highland origins.

They apparently brought a truckload of confidence, because, before you know it, they also decided to take their culture down a path of radical expansion.

What are the culture's telltale signs? Well, the most visible sign was a brand new script,

...