Ubaid

Abstract

The Ubaid period was characterized by major climatic changes. During the beginning of this period, summers would have been somewhat hotter than today. Winter temperatures would have been colder. The beginning of the Ubaid Tradition was also marked by a wet monsoonal climatic regime, with rainfall beginning earlier in the fall and ending later in the spring. By the end of the Ubaid tradition, climatic conditions were well on their way toward modern values, with perhaps slightly higher annual temperatures and greater aridity at the end of the Ubaid than today. In northern Mesopotamia, annual seasonality appears to have been extreme. Summers were intensely arid. During the winter, violent rainstorms resulted in erosion of dry soils, incision of wadis, and possible destruction of settlements.