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Niveau : 3ASLLE
Avril 2015
Third Term English Exam N° 01 Duration :03h30
Subject two
Read the text below and answer the activities:
The emergence of regular trade practices in the Ancient Near East can be traced to the first
civilizations that formed early communities, eventually becoming the city-states of Mesopotamia. Even
before Sargon created the first empire, Mesopotamia city-states were engaged in trade with each other
and with foreign civilizations such as the Indus valley communities. Ancient texts frequently mention
the semi-precious stone lapis lazuli which came from modern-day Afghanistan.
Early Mesopotamians traded their grains, wool, and textiles for gold, stone for building, spices, and
wood. Mesopotamia was an arid, barren region with few natural resources. Hence, most of the foreign
trade in other goods was state-controlled by the kings whose “creditors” were a pseudo-merchant class
accountable for their import and export expenditures.
Early Mesopotamia trade, according to some scholars, might have played a role in the gradual shift
from a barter economy to one that used commodities such as silver or grain in payment .After the
Sargon period, Mesopotamia developed a uniform standard of weights and measurements, further
attesting to a more sophisticated system of import and export norms.
During the time of Sargon and up to later Assyrian dominance, Mesopotamia traded grain, wool, and
textiles for honey, raisins, resins, spices, and bitumen used for ship-building. Evidence of extensive trade
has been documented through archaeological finds of thousands of stone tablets that recorded exports
and imports by Mesopotamia scribes.
Adapted from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Part one: Reading and Interpreting (14 points)
A/ Comprehension. (7 points)
1/ the text is: (0.5pt)
a/ a radio news report
b/ a web article
c/ a newspaper article
2/ Put “true” or “false” in front of each statement according to the text. (2pts)
a- Early Mesopotamians practiced inter states trade.
b- Mesopotamian kings had no monopoly on foreign trade.
c- Mesopotamian was rich with raw materials.
d- Mesopotamian used silver as a medium of payment.
3/ Answer the following questions according to the text. (2pts)
a/ What kind of relationships did the Mesopotamians have with the neighbouring civilizations?
b/ What were the main imports of the Mesopotamians? Why?
4/ Choose the idea that best summarizes the text. (0.5pt)
a/ The problems of the foreign trade in Ancient Mesopotamian.
b/ Expansion of trade in Mesopotamian.
c/ Emergence and decline of trade in Mesopotamian.
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5/ what or who do the underlined words refer to? (2pts)
*which (§1)
*whose (§2)
*their (§2)
one (§3)
B/ Text Exploration
(7 points)
1/ Find in the text words closest in meaning to the following. (0.5pt)
a/ Exchange goods for goods, without using money = …………
b/ Amount of money spent on something = ……………………
2/ Complete the chart as show in the example. (1pt)
verb
Noun
Adjective
-to trade
-trade
-trading
-……………..
-export
-………………….
-…………….
-………………..
-measured
3/ Ask the questions on the underlined words answer.(0.5pt)
The expansion of trade in the Near East affected the economic prosperity of civilizations.
4/ Complete sentence (b) so that it means the same as sentence (a) (1.5 pts)
A/ - a/ they are exploring the area
b/ The area…………………………………….
B/ - a/ “When are they going to visit the pyramids”? He asked
b/ He asked………………………………………….
C/- a/ students should study about ancient civilisations.
b/ it’s about time……………………………………………………
5/ Combine the following statements using the connectors in brackets, make any changes (1.5pt)
a/ The Egyptians were proud of their country. It was an occupied land (although)
b/ The Pharaohs succeeded to unify Egypt, their nation became stable and gained respect from their
neighbours (after)
c/ The Ancient Greeks began their history as city-states. The Ancient Romans began their history as
city-states (Both…………and)
6/ Fill in the gaps with only one word from the following list. (1pt)
Trade – measurements – import – commerce – export – exchange.
Trade and …………….greatly contributed to the rise and economic prosperity of ancient civilizations.
Each successive civilization expanded ……………..Trade led to uniform weights and ……………..And
to the promotion of a multiculturalism based on an …………..of ideas and innovations.
7/ Classify the following words according to their final “ed” pronunciation. (1pt)
Engaged – traded – developed – played.
/d/
/t/
/d/
Part two: Written Expression (6 points)
*Choose only one topic (A or B)
Topic A: Explain why most of the ancient civilizations developed along rivers. You may use these
ideas: water for house hold/ agriculture/
breeding / transport/ building…
Topic B: How can we put an end to bribery in our country? Write a paragraph to express your opinion.
Good luck
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- Tel-Fax : 021.87.10.51 :