Great reference, given that most people don’t know how many of the Old Testament stories, especially in Genesis, have roots in older Sumerian and Mesopotamian myths.
Perhaps Sumerian and Mesopotamian myths have their basis in older Genesis events (hence one would expect to find quite a few!) ?
This perspective would also better explain the glut of Flood stories in widely disparate and geographically separate ancient cultures (ie they all came as versions passed down after the event)
Sorry, but I fail to see how setting up a chicken-and-egg problem with Hebrew and other Middle Eastern cultural myths “would better explain” why human cultures otherwise separated in time and space would have similar stories involving disasters such as floods that could be expected to be common among early human civilizations.
Although my comment about Sumerian and Mesopotamian myths was just an aside, meaco I think that most scholars accept that these civilizations predate Hebrew culture. As Tom Arctus points out, you’ve set up something of an unsolvable problem. If you take the Genisis literally, then what is said there is automatically true and there is no basis for discussion. If, however, you accept that all mythos, Genesis included, are rooted in their culture, then you may want to read this site where Paul Collins, of University College, London says:
It also has a good chronology of ancient Mesopotamian history.
I might also refer you to the excellent series of Straight Dope Staff Reports on Who wrote the Bible? for interesting information on the age of the Genesis stories.