Interactions Between Western Iran and Mesopotamia From the 9th - 4th Millennia B. C.

Throughout prehistory, the cultures of Iran and Western Asia differed in important respects. Many of these differences can be attributed to the different geographic and environmental conditions in the two regions. Western Iran is largely a heavily divided mountainous region with difficult access whereas Mesopotamia is relatively flat and open to travel and trade. The early Holocene environment of the Mesopotamian plain was very dynamic and unstable, whereas the major changes in the Zagros involved the spread of cereal grasses and trees. These different environments affected the kinds of cultures and settlements that could occur. Other differences stem from the broader regions of interaction in which each area was involved. Interactions within Mesopotamia occurred between the north and south, while the Zagros was part of a northern and eastern sphere of interaction. These differences are reflected in the general absence of interaction between the Iran and Western Asia during the long period of prehistory.