this is a two question thing, #1 a symbol used in ancient writing, #2 nickname of Mesopotamia?

Answer 1

Ancient Mesopotamian writing was called Cuneiform and was the first form of a written language ever created. There were many nicknames of Mesopotamia: the fertile crescent, the cradle of civilization, and the land between the two rivers (Tigris and Euphrates) which is the meaning of Mesopotamia. The Mesopotamians (Sumerians, Babylonians, and Assyrians) helped influence society today by inventing the wheel, lens, first written language, number 0, glass, irrigation system (toilet), lock & key, Law--King Hammurabi's Code of Laws, and many other inventions which have helped shape life today.

Answer 2

If you are studying the Middle East then the writing symbols you are probably looking for are cuneiform symbols. This was possibly the first writing system invented and was used by the ancient Sumerians.

When I was in school the nickname for Mesopotamia was "the fertile crescent". This referred to the fact that it lay between the
Tigris and Euphrates rivers and was extremely good farmland.
Today this area lies mostly in what we know of as Iraq.

The Chinese also devised a unique writing system which consists of hundreds of thousands of individual pictographs ( although about 5000 are needed in modern usage). This writing system is still in use today in China and Japan.

Answer 3

Many of the ancient people of Mesopotamia wrote by carving wedges. The area is often called the fertile crescent.