Civilization refers to the social organization of people and the complexity of their lives. It has been defined as a society that lives in cities and develops specialized occupations, crafts, arts, and technologies. In addition, the civilization has a system of government, an understanding of religion, and other cultural traits.
What is amazing about human civilization is that it emerged in many different places around the world at roughly the same time, on a large scale. It seems to have begun in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Shang China, and Maya-period Mesoamerica in about 3200 BCE. It also developed in a few locations in South America, in Peru and the Amazon Valley in eastern Africa, and in some parts of Asia.
The big question that historians have pondered about civilization is why it developed in these different places. What caused hunter-gatherers to become farmers and develop communities that became specialized? Scholars agree on a few basic principles.
First, the people needed to organize and work together. They also needed to start farming and produce a surplus of food. Eventually, they needed to settle in villages, and then towns, and then cities. They had to develop trade, economics, and other forms of social exchange.
They also needed to understand the natural world in order to manage crops and create sustainable living conditions. Agriculture and water management became the primary skills of early civilizations. They developed a variety of other skills such as metallurgy, mathematics, writing, contractual and tort-based legal systems, astronomy, architecture, and art. Some civilizations also had a sophisticated division of labor, organized religion, and complex political structures.
Another important factor was the ability to control disease and parasites. Early civilizations developed irrigation and clean drinking water systems, medical knowledge, and pesticides. This allowed them to grow food for a larger population and expand their empires.
One of the main theories of why early civilizations developed is the idea that they arose near fresh water sources. This probably made sense since early people, like prehistoric hunter-gatherers, gravitated toward water. It would have been difficult to support a densely populated city without a source of food, water, and energy.
Another theory is that the rise of civilizations was the result of a process called the Neolithic Revolution, when humans learned to cultivate and then domesticate plants. This allowed them to grow enough food to make a surplus and develop other technologies, such as pottery making, pottery wheel, and weaving. It was also possible to develop a large scale economy by trading surplus foods and other goods. Writing also enabled people to keep records of events and ideas, which was a big step forward.