TET - What Makes a Civilization? (Lesson)

What Makes a Civilization?

So what happens when people stay put?

The simplest answer is they develop a civilization. In practice, though, it isn't simple- it takes time- a lot of time. In the beginning, we know that humans ran around the planet chasing their food and we know this from archaeological evidence they left behind. (This was before "littering" was a crime. Plus, their versions of "graffiti" were cave drawings that depicted their chases.) During the Paleolithic Period humans used primitive tools and migrated all over the place. Sometimes the Paleolithic Period is called "Big Geography" as this was the period when their wanderings led to the "peopling of the Earth." But sometime around 9000 BCE, the Agricultural Revolution began as people started staying put and planting their food. They left the Paleolithic Period behind and entered the Neolithic Period. But not everyone did so at the same time. Click through the timeline below to see how this unfolded.

 

Agricultural Revolution Timeline

As you can see, the cultivation of food and the subsequent settlements occurred at different times around the planet. But in each case, early civilizations followed the cultivation of food and these are the civilizations that will be discussed in this unit. If you look at the map below, you can compare what you learned in the timeline above and see the cultural diffusion of the agricultural revolution.

 

Spread of Agriculture

When people gathered together to form a civilization, they tended to do so in areas where the land suited their needs. As we all know- people need water, food and shelter. Therefore, ancient civilizations formed in areas where nature took care of those needs. In Mesopotamia, that area was located between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. The term "Mesopotamia" literally means "land between the rivers." In North Africa, that area was along the Nile River. In modern-day India and Pakistan, a civilization emerged along the Indus River. The predecessors of modern-day China formed their civilization along the Yellow (or Huang He) River. We refer to these civilizations as the Ancient River Civilizations and there were four...

• Mesopotamia or Sumer (circa 3500 BCE)
• Egypt or Nile River Valley Civilization (circa 3100 BCE)
• Indus River Valley Civilization (circa 2600 BCE)
• Yellow River or Huang He Civilization (circa 1700 BCE)

Of course, these weren't the only locations where people gathered to live. Archaeologists determined that Stonehenge, in England, was constructed sometime between 3000 and 2000 BCE- so we know that there were cultures practicing village life elsewhere. But not all villages and cultures are deemed early civilizations. If you compare the timeline of the Agricultural Revolution with the above list describing when the different civilizations emerged, you can see that just planting food wasn't enough to create a civilization. There are certain factors that must be present to qualify a grouping of people as an early civilization-

• CITY: The settlement needs to be an "urban" environment- this basically means that it constitutes a city with a sufficient population and an infrastructure (the basic structures and organizations that are needed for the operation of a society) with the advances in technology that make life easier. (For these ancient civilizations, think of irrigation systems or methods of security and public works.)
• FOOD: The settlement must produce a surplus of food. (Only in this way will there be people whose hands won't be tied to the land and will have the time to work in other areas.)
• SOCIAL STRUCTURE: The population has a division of labor based on specialization. (Some will grow food to feed the community, some will govern, some will lead the community religiously, some will build the community's infrastructure, there will be wealthy and poor, powerful and weak, and so on and so on...)
• CULTURE: The population of a civilization will have created their own unique way of life. (They will have a form of religion, they will have a form of writing, they will have a form of government and economy, they will express themselves through art and architecture, and they will have means of entertainment...)

And while most of the ancient civilizations were located along rivers- not all were. But they were always located by some body of water- whether it be sea or ocean. For example,...

• Olmec Civilization (circa 1200 BCE on the Gulf of Mexico)
• Phoenician Civilization (circa 3200 BCE on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea)
• Norte Chico Civilization (circa 3500 BCE on the coast of Peru)
• Minoan Civilization (circa 3600 BCE on islands in the Aegean Sea)
• Mycenaean Civilization (circa 1600 BCE on the Peninsula of Greece)
• Hittite Civilization (circa 1600 BCE on the Anatolian Peninsula)

The emergence of these civilizations- river valley and others alike- corresponded with each location's entering into the Bronze Age. The Bronze Age started when humans discovered that the mixing of copper and tin resulted in a tougher, harder metal known as bronze. With this new durable metal, people were able to fashion tools that better performed with the rigors of an agricultural life- basically, with better tools they became better producers. More food allowed for more people to live closer together. With more people living closer together, new systems of social structure developed. With social structure, came prosperity and a need for defense. Fortunately, bronze wasn't just perfect for hoes and spades; it worked very well in weapon technology. Those with the greater weapons conquered neighbors with lesser weapons and settlements grew in size and population- which, of course, led to the production of more food, more social structure, more conquering until... there was a CIVILIZATION.

 

 

 

Recap Section

 

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