Editing History of Sumer (section)

=== Pre- and protohistory ===
The [[Prehistory|pre-]] and [[protohistory]] of southern Mesopotamia is divided into the [[Ubaid period|Ubaid]] (c. 6500–3800 BC), [[Uruk period|Uruk]]  (c. 4000 to 3100 BC) and [[Jemdet Nasr period|Jemdet Nasr]] (c. 3100 to 2900 BC) periods. There is scholarly disagreement as to when the Sumerian presence began in the region, although it is generally assumed that the Sumerian language was used in southern Mesopotamia by the late Uruk period. Some scholars believe that the Sumerians migrated to the area as late as c. 3600 BC, whereas others believe that the Sumerian presence goes back to the early Ubaid period or even prior to that.<ref>{{cite book|first1=William H. Jr.|last1=Stiebing|title=Ancient Near Eastern History and Culture|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DoyTDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA40|publisher=Routledge|date=2016|isbn=978-1-315-51116-0|pages=39–40|access-date=2023-07-27|archive-date=2023-07-27|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230727002749/https://books.google.com/books?id=DoyTDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA40|url-status=live}}</ref>