'''Mesopotamia''' ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|m|ɛ|s|ə|p|ə|ˈ|t|eɪ|m|i|ə}}, from the {{lang-grc|Μεσοποταμία}} "[land] between rivers"; {{lang-ar|بلاد الرافدين}} ''bilād ar-rāfidayn''; {{lang-syr|ܒܝܬ ܢܗܪܝܢ}} ''[[Beth Nahrain]]'' "land of rivers") is a name for the area of the [[Tigris–Euphrates river system]], corresponding to modern-day [[Iraq]], [[Kuwait]], the northeastern section of [[Syria]] and to a much lesser extent southeastern [[Turkey]] and smaller parts of southwestern [[Iran]].
Widely considered to be the [[cradle of civilization]] by the [[Western world]], [[Bronze Age]] Mesopotamia included [[Sumer]] and the [[Akkadian Empire|Akkadian]], [[Babylonia]]n, and [[Assyria]]n empires, all native to the territory of modern-day Iraq. In the [[Iron Age]], it was controlled by the [[Neo-Assyrian Empire|Neo-Assyrian]] and [[Neo-Babylonian Empire]]s. The indigenous Sumerians and Akkadians (including Assyrians Chaldeans of Sumer, Akkad and Babylonians) Babylon dominated Mesopotamia from the beginning of written history (c. 3100 BC) to the fall of Babylon in 539 BC, when it was conquered by the [[Achaemenid Empire]]. It fell to [[Alexander the Great]] in 332 BC, and after his death, it became part of the Greek [[Seleucid Empire]].
Around 150 BC, Mesopotamia was under the control of the [[Parthian Empire]]. Mesopotamia became a battleground between the [[Ancient Rome|Romans]] and Parthians, with parts of Mesopotamia coming under ephemeral Roman control. In AD 226, it fell to the Sassanid Persians and remained under Persian rule until the 7th century [[Muslim conquest of Persia]] of the [[Sasanian Empire]]. A number of primarily neo-Assyrian and Christian native Mesopotamian states existed between the 1st century BCE and 3rd century CE, including [[Adiabene]], [[Osroene]], and [[Hatra]].