Final answer:
Scholars estimate the population of Uruk by the end of the fourth millennium BCE to be between 50,000 to 80,000. Uruk became a major trade center with a redistributive economy supported by intensive agriculture and the first to use cuneiform writing.
Step-by-step explanation:
By the end of the fourth millennium BCE, scholars estimate that the population of the city of Uruk may have been between 50,000 to 80,000 inhabitants. The growth of Uruk into a large city was part of a broader process of urbanization in Sumer, Mesopotamia, where villages expanded into towns and eventually into cities like Uruk. As a major center for long-distance trade and with extensive trade networks, Uruk's economy relied on a redistributive system controlled by a centralized authority, typically the city-state government. Notably, Uruk was possibly the first large urban center in the world, supported by extensive agricultural surpluses and renowned for monumental architecture, including great temples and city walls. The development of cuneiform writing as a method of accounting for trade and inventory played a crucial role in managing Uruk's complex economy.