4. the Akkadian Empire
Around 3000 BCE, the Sumerians had a significant cultural interchange with a group in northern Mesopotamia known as the Akkadians—named after the city-state of Akkad.
![](https://cte.univ-setif2.dz/moodle/pluginfile.php/19878/mod_book/chapter/3842/Akkadian_Empire.png)
The Akkadian language is related to the modern languages of Hebrew and Arabic. These languages are known as Semitic languages.
The term Semitic comes from the biblical character Shem, a son of Noah, the purported progenitor of Abraham and, accordingly, the Jewish and Arab people.
![Akkadian Cuneiform](https://cte.univ-setif2.dz/moodle/pluginfile.php/19878/mod_book/chapter/3842/283px-Cuneiform_script.jpg)
![Hebrew alphabets](https://cte.univ-setif2.dz/moodle/pluginfile.php/19878/mod_book/chapter/3842/hebrew.png)