According to philosopher and sociologist Adam Ferguson, civilization can be called a stage of social development characterized by the presence of social classes, writing, cities, the development of crafts and agriculture, and - most importantly - the rationalization of thinking.
Based on this definition, let's try to find out what the most ancient civilizations of our planet are known to historians, and also find out how they were formed, what they achieved and how they became part of the history of the Ancient World. The website also contains an article about the most mysterious civilizations in history.
The most ancient civilization
Sumerians
Origin period: between the 4th and 3rd millennium BC. 
The data available to historians indicates that it was the Sumerian civilization that preceded the others. The Sumerians came to the fertile lands between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, also known as Mesopotamia, at the end of the 4th millennium BC, driving out the proto-Sumerian tribes from their homes. The Sumerian civilization had a pronounced agricultural character, supported by an extensive irrigation system, on which the life of the first city-states of Mesopotamia depended (Kish, Uruk, Sippar, etc.). Irrigation canals contributed to the timely transportation of water to sown fields, drainage canals, dams and dams helped to avoid flooding of crops during the rapid flood of the Euphrates.
The Sumerians are considered the founders of cuneiform, the earliest form of writing known to science. The oldest monument of Sumerian writing is a tablet from the city of Kish, approximately dating back to 3500 BC. The system of symbols depicted on it is a transitional link from pictographic proto-writing to cuneiform.
With the development of writing, the formation of the foundations of civilization began: an urban revolution took place, the Sumerians sent settlers to create colonies in the remote lands of Mesopotamia, architecture improved, monumental temples with adjacent farms were erected, and social inequality worsened. According to archaeological research, the Sumerians had knowledge of copper mining and smelting, and were also very familiar with the wheel.
Each Sumerian city was an independent state - “nome” - with a leader and patron god. In such a city, the prototype of the ancient Greek city policies, up to 50-60 thousand people could live. However, there was still a kind of center - this was the nome of Nippur, which housed the sanctuary of Enlil, the main deity of the Sumerian pantheon, one of the most ancient religions in the world.
As for the social system of the Sumerians, the inhabitants of each nome could belong to one of four strata: nobility (temple priests, elders), artisans-traders, communal farmers and warriors. There were also slaves - debtors who placed themselves at the complete disposal of the creditor, and prisoners of war, located at the very bottom of the hierarchy.
Today, the history of the mysterious Sumerian civilization is overgrown with a huge number of conjectures, but it is known for certain that this people had knowledge about the heliocentric system of the world, knew about the circle of the zodiac, owned the sexagesimal number system (its echoes have reached us in the dial of the clock and the division of the year into seasons and months) and kept a historical chronicle.
Secrets of the first civilizations - Sumerians
In the 24th century BC. Sumerian civilization was conquered and absorbed by the Babylonian kingdom.
Ancient civilizations: secrets and hypotheses
Atlantis
About Atlantis, the civilization mentioned in Plato’s “dialogues,” we only know that it existed about 9 thousand years ago, was located on islands near the Strait of Gibraltar and sank to the bottom of the ocean due to a powerful earthquake. Most modern scientists agree that Atlantis is nothing more than an invention of the ancient Greek philosopher, but many researchers still do not give up hope of finding confirmation of its existence.
Lemuria (Mu)
In the epics of the inhabitants of Tibet, India and Polynesia one can find references to an ancient civilization called Lemuria. According to legends, about 80 thousand years ago, the waters of the Indian Ocean washed a continent inhabited by snake-headed proto-people.
In the mid-19th century, scientists suggested that the island of Madagascar may be part of a sunken continent. Later studies showed that about 60 million years ago Madagascar was part of the Hindustan Peninsula - perhaps there is no mystery, and the notorious Lemuria is part of the Hindustan Plate, previously separated from the Asian continent.
Hyperborea
Another mysterious northern continent, whose inhabitants are credited with creating the most ancient Slavic civilization. References to Hyperborea are very often found in ancient Greek mythology, but still the vast majority of researchers are inclined to the pseudo-historical nature of this location.
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How did human mentality and psychology lead to these huge changes? It continues to be a popular topic among historians and anthropologists and a serious discussion today. Let's highlight some of the oldest civilizations that have ever existed in the world.
Of course, we will talk about civilizations that, as we know, really exist, in contrast to those that are shrouded in myths and speculation (the civilizations of Atlantis, Lemuria and Rama...).
In order to correctly display the most ancient of civilizations in chronological order, it becomes necessary to look at the very cradle of civilization. Having said that, here is a list of the ten oldest civilizations that have ever existed in the world:
Inca civilization
Period: 1438 AD - 1532 AD
Starting place: current Peru
Current location:
Ecuador, Peru and Chile
The Incas were the largest Empire in South America during the pre-Columbian era. This civilization flourished in the areas of present-day Ecuador, Peru and Chile and had its administrative, military and political center located in Cusco, which is located in modern-day Peru. The Incas had their societies quite well developed, and the empire was prosperous from the very beginning.
The Incas were devout followers of the Sun God Inti. They had a king who was called "Sapa Inca", which means "child of the Sun". The first Incan emperor Pachacuti transformed it from a humble village into a great city laid out in the shape of a puma. He expanded the traditions of ancestor worship.
When the ruler died, his son took control of the people, but all his wealth would be distributed among his other relatives, who in return supported his political influence. This significantly led to the sudden rise in power of the Incas. The Incas continued to become great builders, they continued to build fortresses and places like Machu Picchu and the city of Cusco, which are still preserved on our planet.
Aztec civilization
Period: 1345 AD - 1521 AD
Starting location:
South-central region of pre-Columbian Mexico
Current location:
Mexican
The Aztecs came onto the “scene,” one might say, at a time when the Incas were emerging as powerful rivals in South America. Around the 1200s and early 1300s, people in what is now Mexico lived in their three major rival cities - Tenochtitlan, Texcoco and Tlacopan. Around 1325, these rivals formed an alliance, and thus the new state was brought under the authority of the Valley of Mexico. By the way, back then people preferred the name Mexica rather than Aztec. The rise of the Aztecs occurred during the century of the fall of another influential civilization in Mexico and Central America, the Mayans.
The city of Tenochtitlan was the military force that led the conquest of the new territory. But the Aztec emperor did not rule over every city, but had the subordination of the entire people. Local authorities remained in place, but were forced to pay various amounts to the Triple Alliance.
In the early 1500s, the Aztec civilization was truly at the height of its power. But then the Spaniards arrived with plans to expand their lands. This eventually led to a huge battle between the Incas and the alliance of Spanish conquistadors and local allies they assembled under the famous Hernán Cortés in 1521. The defeat in this decisive battle ultimately led to the fall of the once famous Aztec Empire.
Roman civilization
Period:
Place of origin:
Latini village
Current location:
Rome
Roman civilization entered the “picture of the world” around the 6th century BC. Even the story behind ancient Rome is a legend, full of myths. But at the height of their power, the Romans controlled the largest piece of land in that era - the entire current district that surrounds the modern Mediterranean Sea was part of ancient Rome.
Early Rome was ruled by kings, but after only seven of them reigned, the Romans seized control of their own city and ruled themselves. They then had a council known as the "senate" that ruled over them. From this moment we can already talk about the “Roman Republic”.
Rome also saw the rise and fall of some of the greatest emperors in human civilization, such as Julius Caesar, Trajan and Augustus. But over time, the empire of Rome became so vast that it was simply impossible to bring it to uniform rules. But eventually the Roman Empire was overrun by millions of barbarians from the north and east of Europe.
Persian civilization
Period: 550 BC - 465 BC
Place of origin:
Egypt in the west to Turkey in the north and through Mesopotamia to the Indus River in the east.
Current location:
Modern day Iran
There was a time when the ancient Persian civilization was, in fact, the most powerful empire in the world. Although only ruling for a little over 200 years, the Persians captured lands that covered more than 2 million square miles. From the southern parts of Egypt to parts of Greece, and then east to parts of India, the Persian Empire was known for its military strength and wise rulers. They created such a vast empire only 200 years later (until 550 BC), the Persian Empire (or Persis as it was called then) was previously divided into factions among a number of certain leaders.
But then King Cyrus II, who later became known as Cyrus the Great, came to power and united the entire Persian kingdom. He then went on to conquer ancient Babylon. In fact, its conquest was so rapid that by the end of 533 BC. he had already invaded India, far to the east. And even when Cyrus passed away, his bloodline continued its merciless expansion and even fought in the legendary battle with the brave Spartans.
At one time, ancient Persia ruled all of Central Asia, most of Europe and Egypt. But everything changed when the legendary soldier of Macedonia, the great Alexander, brought the entire Persian Empire to its knees and effectively “ended” civilization in 530 BC.
Ancient Greek civilization
Period: 2700 BC - 1500 BC
Starting location:
Italy, Sicily, North Africa and as far west as France
Current location:
Greece
The ancient Greeks may not have been the oldest civilization, but they are undoubtedly one of the most influential civilizations that has ever existed in the world. Although the rise of ancient Greece originated from the Cycladic and Minoan civilization (2700 BC - 1500 BC), there is evidence of burials discovered in the Franchti Cave in Argolis, Greece, which dates back to 7250 BC.
The history of this civilization is spread over such a huge period of time that historians had to divide it into different periods, the most popular of which were the Archaic, Classical and Hellenistic periods.
These periods also saw many ancient Greeks come into the spotlight - many of them changing the direction of the entire world forever. Many of them still talk about it to this day. The Greeks created the ancient Olympic Games, the concept of democracy and the Senate. They created the basis for modern geometry, biology, physics and much more. Pythagoras, Archimedes, Socrates, Euclid, Plato, Aristotle, Alexander the Great... the books of history are full of names whose inventions, theories, beliefs and heroics had a significant impact on subsequent civilizations.
Chinese civilization
Period: 1600 BC E. - 1046 BC
Starting location:
Yellow River and the Yangtze region.
Current location:
Country China
Ancient China - also known as Han China is undoubtedly one of the most varied stories about this civilization. The Yellow River Civilization is said to be the cradle of all Chinese civilization, as the earliest dynasties were founded here. It was around 2700 BC that the legendary Yellow Emperor began his reign in a moment that would later lead to the birth of many dynasties that would go on to rule the Chinese mainland.
In 2070 B.C. The Xia dynasty became the first power of all China, as described in ancient historical chronicles. From then on, many dynasties emerged that held control over China at different times until the end of the Qing Dynasty in 1912 with the Xinhai Revolution. And thus ended more than four thousand years of history of ancient Chinese civilization, which also fascinates historians and ordinary people to this day. But this would not have happened before they gave the world some of the most useful inventions and products such as gunpowder, paper, printing, compass, alcohol, cannons and many others.
Mayan civilization
Period: 2600 BC - 900 AD
Place of origin:
Around the present day Yucatan
Current location:
Yucatan, Quintana Roo, Campeche, Tabasco and Chiapas in Mexico and south through Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador and Honduras
The ancient Mayan civilization flourished in Central America from around 2600 BC and has been much talked about recently due to the timing of their famous calendar.
After the civilization was created, it continued to flourish and become one of the most complex civilizations with a rapidly growing population of 19 million people. By 700 BC. The Mayans had already developed their own way of writing, which they used to create their own solar calendars carved out of stone. According to them, the world was created on August 11, 3114 BC, this is the date from which their calendar starts. And the supposed end was December 21, 2012.
The ancient Mayans were culturally richer compared to many modern civilizations. The Mayans and Aztecs built pyramids, many of which were larger than those in Egypt. But their sudden decline and abrupt end have long been one of the most intriguing mysteries of ancient history: Why did the Mayans, an amazingly sophisticated civilization of more than 19 million people, suddenly collapse sometime in the 8th or 9th century? Although the Mayan people never completely disappeared, their descendants still live throughout Central America.
Ancient Egyptian civilization
Period:
3100-2686
Place of origin:
bank of the Nile River
Current location:
Egypt
Ancient Egypt is one of the oldest and culturally rich civilizations on this list. The ancient Egyptians are known for their stunning culture, standing pyramids, sphinx, pharaohs and the once magnificent civilization that lay along the banks of the Nile River. The civilization came together around 3150 BC (according to traditional Egyptian chronology) with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh. But this might not have been possible if early settlers had not appeared around the Nile Valley in early 3500 BC.
The history of ancient Egypt took place in a series of reigns of stable Kingdoms, separated by periods of relative instability known as the intermediate periods: the Old Kingdom of the Early Bronze Age, the Middle Kingdom of the Middle Bronze Age, and the New Kingdom of the Late Bronze Age.
Ancient Egypt gave the world pyramids, mummies that preserve ancient pharaohs to this day, the first of solar calendars, hieroglyphs and much more.
Ancient Egypt reached its apex by the New Kingdom, where pharaohs like Ramesses the Great ruled with such power that another modern civilization, the Nubians, also came under Egyptian rule.
Indus Valley Civilization
Period: 2600 BC -1900 BC
Place of origin:
Around the Indus River basins
Current location:
Northeast Afghanistan to Pakistan and northwest India
One of the oldest civilizations on this list is the Indus Valley Civilization. It lies at the very cradle of civilization, which arose in the Indus Valley region. This civilization flourished in areas stretching from what is today northeastern Afghanistan to Pakistan and northwestern India.
Along with Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, it was one of the three early civilizations of the Old World, and of the three most widespread - its area is 1.25 million km! Entire populations of people were settled around the basins of the Indus River, one of the major rivers in Asia, and another river called the Ghaggar-Hakra, which once ran through northeastern India and eastern Pakistan.
Also known as the Harappan civilization and the Mohenjo-Daro civilization, named after the excavations where the remains of the civilization were found, the peak phase of this civilization is said to have lasted from 2600 BC until around 1900 BC.
A sophisticated and technologically advanced urban culture is evident in the Indus Valley Civilization, making them the first urban centers in the region. The people of the Indus civilization achieved high precision in measuring length, mass and time. And, based on the artifacts found in the excavations, it is obvious that the culture was quite rich in arts and crafts.
Mesopotamian civilization
Period: 3500 BC -500 BC
Place of origin:
northeast, Zagros Mountains, southeast of the Arabian Plateau
Current location:
Iran, Syria and Türkiye
And now - the first civilization that ever arose on planet Earth after the evolution of people. The origins of Mesopotamia date back further, and there is no known evidence of any other civilized society before it. The time scale of ancient Mesopotamia is generally around 3300 BC. - 750 BC Mesopotamia is generally credited with being the first place where civilized societies truly began to take shape.
Somewhere around 8000 BC. people found the concept of agriculture and slowly began to domesticate animals both for food purposes and to assist in farming. Previously, all this was what created art. But all this was part of human culture, not human civilization. And then the Mesopotamians rose up, refined, added to, and formalized all of these systems, combining them to form the first civilization. They flourished in the regions of modern Iraq - then known as Babylonia, Sumer and Assyria.
Civilizations have arisen and disappeared in different places and at different periods. Some lived more, others less. There have been at least two “dark ages” in history, when civilization essentially disappeared from most of the planet (1200 - 700 BC and 400 - 900 AD).
The ability of human society to self-organize and produce food in large quantities were prerequisites for the emergence of civilization. The availability of food contributed to population growth only if it was well organized. For 5000 years, from 8000 to 3000. BC, the first settlements turned into real civilizations in the Middle East, Anatolia, Iran, India, Pakistan and China. Important stages on the path to civilization were artificial irrigation, the city-state, trade, metalworking and writing.
IRRIGATION
It is no coincidence that the cradles of civilization were the river valleys of the Nile, Tigris, Euphrates, Indus and Yellow River. Obviously, people early realized that the land in these areas was rich, but the main source of wealth was the fertile layers of soil washed up annually during floods. The valleys were useless to early farmers until they learned to control or adapt to floods. The birth of civilization was partly associated with managing water levels in rivers and realizing the potential of the earth.
Thanks to extensive archaeological excavations, the history of the Tigris, Euphrates and Nile civilizations is best known. These three rivers carry water from the highlands inland to the sea through very dry areas. The contrast between the land near the river and some further away is impressive. The desert is located just a few hundred meters from the Nile. The land near the river is rich, but in order for it to flourish, it was necessary to provide irrigation to those parts of the valley that were not directly adjacent to the river.
The implementation of large irrigation projects required significant community effort and good organization. The fact that irrigation began to be introduced is a confirmation that effective authorities had emerged, although writing did not yet exist. After irrigation began, food production in the river valleys improved dramatically, and these areas became the richest and most densely populated areas on Earth.
The relative prosperity of these areas contributed to the specialization of labor, the development of the arts, and made it necessary to organize defense against potential enemies.
CITY-STATE
In summer, floods occur on the Tigris and Euphrates. People had to learn to regulate the water level in these rivers through dams and canals in order to cultivate the land. Nothing came easy in Mesopotamia. With the exception of land, there were few natural resources there. The building material was clay. To succeed, the local residents had to be resourceful. It is no coincidence that many of the era's major technological innovations, including the invention of the wheel, took place there. In 5000 - 3000 BC the plains through which these two rivers flow were inhabited by people. Large settlements in the area were separated from each other, first physically by moving rivers and swamps, and then politically.
By 3500 B.C. The inhabitants of the river delta, the Sumerians, created the first civilization. Their main city was Ur, located in the lagoon of the Persian Gulf, where its inhabitants, along with agriculture, were engaged in sea and river trade. The royal burials at Ur, dating back to 2600 BC, contain impressive treasures, including gold vases with the names of kings, helmets made of gold leaf, gold axes and daggers that were used for decorative purposes, and a large number of vases made of silver and copper . Some royal tombs had large crypts in which assistants of the monarchs were buried, apparently with the purpose of accompanying them in the afterlife. These tombs indicate severe social stratification in ancient cities.
The first Sumerian king known to history is Ur-Nammu, who built the great ziggurat of Ur. Later kings restored this gigantic mud brick structure and it still exists today. Massive walls were built to protect Ur, but they were demolished by the Elamites who captured the city around 2000 BC.
The city-state was the typical unit of political organization in the Middle East and eastern Mediterranean until the end of antiquity. Such cities often united into empires that lasted until the Romans arrived. Egypt was a major exception to the succession of city-states, but its relative isolation made it a unique case.
TRADE
Large-scale trade was paid for by surplus agricultural production, which appeared after river valleys began to be irrigated. Trade in surpluses promoted specialization of labor. People who lived near certain raw materials could devote themselves to crafts and sell the results of their labor for food. Residents of the mountains in the vicinity of Ur exchanged metal tools and ore for food. The location of the first civilizations on the banks of rivers and seas accelerated trade, since transport by water was cheap. Pottery could be transported over long distances by sea. Lebanese cedars were transported by ship to Egypt, where wood was in short supply.
Trade contributed to the development of the economy. The comparative advantages of the production of different regions allowed all participants in the trade to benefit.
Thanks to trade, the spread of ideas accelerated. Traders who found themselves in areas of other cultures quickly spread new ideas and discoveries. Countries that actively participated in trade were usually the most advanced.
METAL WORKING
According to the data we know, metalworking began in the south of Turkey and northern Syria. Hammered copper pieces found there date back to 7000 BC. Long-term hammering makes the metal harder, but also brittle and therefore useless. Calcination over fire restores its malleability and again makes it suitable for human needs. It appears that the process of calcination was invented by man at a very early stage.
The first important breakthrough in metallurgy there was the discovery of casting - the extraction of metal from ore at high temperature. This greatly expanded the use of copper, as copper ore was much more abundant than raw copper. By 4000 B.C. small copper objects were widespread in the Middle East.
The second important step in the development of metallurgy there was the discovery of bronze around 3000 BC. This alloy of copper and tin was harder than copper and more suitable for the production of tools; it was easier to cast the necessary forms from it.
In Thailand, metalworking originated in 4000 BC, and bronze appeared there before 2000 BC. In the Andes Mountains of South America, metalworking began around 2000 BC. It is believed that this event occurred independently of the processes in the Middle East.
Iron has been known since 3000 BC, but man was able to adapt it to his needs much later. Some of the early items were made from meteorite iron. Ancient trade documentation contains evidence that in the 2nd millennium BC. iron was considered a more valuable metal than silver. One of two ceremonial daggers found in Tutankhamun's tomb from 1323 BC is made of iron (the other is made of gold). The use of iron became more common after 1200 BC. during the first Dark Age, partly because the end of trade limited access to copper and tin. Lacking these metals, blacksmiths had to make do with iron ore, improve their skills in handling it, and, ultimately, they mastered this cheaper metal.
WRITING
Writing appears to have been invented to keep trade records in early city-states.
Writing appeared in Mesopotamia on the eve of the Bronze Age around 3000 BC. Early writing was pictographic: each drawing represented an object. For example, a drawing of a horse's head meant a horse.
The main material for writing in Mesopotamia was the clay tablet. The discovery of a large number of surviving tablets has allowed historians to trace the transformation of pictographic writing into cuneiform. In this writing system, drawings gradually developed into sets of wedge-shaped lines that were drawn on clay with a special tool. Because clay tablets are much better preserved, we know a lot about the cultures that used cuneiform. Just after 3000 B.C. different types of writing appeared in Egypt, most likely under the influence of Mesopotamia. The most famous Egyptian script was hieroglyphics—a special pictographic script—used primarily for inscriptions in temples. Hieroglyphs were easier to depict on papyri in documents and in everyday life.
What is civilization? Civilization is a material and spiritual form of development and existence of society. In historical and philosophical meaning, this concept means the totality of material and spiritual achievements of mankind within a certain historical period.
Civilization can also be perceived as society itself, which was united by a historical era and the events that took place in it. Thus, civilization is an integral system that consists of a complex of political, economic, spiritual and social subsystems.
The emergence of civilization
The prerequisites for the emergence of the first civilizations appeared back in the days of primitive society. It was then that the first rudiments of spiritual and material culture arose.
The moment of the birth of the first civilization is considered to be the period when primitive man ceased to be a barbarian and began to gradually adapt to social life. The first step of civilization was the collective way of life of man.
Being part of a tribe, a person conscientiously performed his social functions: kept the fire going, hunted in the forest, took care of children. The first civilizations are called cosmogenic. They covered the Ancient World and the Middle Ages.
The society that lived in these civilizations was completely dependent on natural conditions, hence the name “cosmogenic civilizations” (dependence on the environment).
Stages of development of civilizations
Cosmogenic civilizations have been replaced by technogenic (industrial) civilization. The basis of this civilization was the use of machines as the main tools of labor, as well as the introduction of science directly to the production process.
Technogenic civilization was characterized by hired labor, which increased the level of production hundreds of times. In the sphere of social relations, inequality remained, which provoked uprisings and revolutions.
In the era of industrial civilization, there was a huge leap in the cultural and spiritual development of people. For the first time, society learned to regulate and reform social and economic relations.
In the 70s of the 20th century, a new type of civilization emerged - post-industrial (information). This was due to the fact that technogenic civilization had completely exhausted its abilities and possibilities for further social development.
The onset of a new civilization was accompanied by global crisis problems for humanity: the threat of environmental security, wars, and the depletion of natural resources.
The basis of post-industrial civilization is the information space and the saturation of technological processes. The most ambitious achievement of information civilization is the emergence of the Internet space.
Civilization is one of the stages of development of human society, along with barbarism and savagery. This is an integral system localized in time and space, characterized by its economic, political, social and spiritual structure
Literally translated from Latin, “civilization” means state, civil. This is a certain stage in the development of society, which is characterized by its orderliness, the separation of society from nature and the emergence of contradictions between artificial and natural factors of development. Social factors of life and artificial productive forces predominate, and the rationalization of thinking progresses.
It is not always possible to answer how civilization is born from chaos. All tribes had a primitive communal system, but not all of them grew to civilization. The British historian and cultural scientist, one of the developers of civilization theory Arnold Joseph Toynbee (1889 - 1975) believed that those communities that were in stable natural conditions tried to adapt to them without changing anything. Conversely, if communities experienced constant or sudden changes in the environment, they were forced to change the model of their community, making it fit the surrounding circumstances. The era of ancient civilizations dates back more than one thousand years and covers the period of formation of cities and states around the world.
The initial stage of the formation of civilization is associated with the transition of people from hunting and gathering to agriculture and cattle breeding, and the transition to a sedentary lifestyle. A sign of civilization is the formation and development of urban culture, architecture, and monumental sculpture. We find these signs among the Aztecs, Mayans, Egyptians and other ancient peoples. At the second stage, pottery and other workshops appeared, crafts emerged, and writing emerged. In the future, writing develops dynamically. Historians distinguish between progressive civilizations (quickly forming nations) and backward ones, developing unevenly, which is noticeable in industrial and post-industrial culture. Civilizations are divided by stages of development and are agricultural and industrial, as well as by geographical location and characteristic features of the economy. This is what official science says.
The ancient civilization of Gobekli Tepe
However, not everything is so smooth. Today, the oldest civilization can be considered, traces of which were discovered in 1994 on the Armenian Highlands, the Göbekli Tepe civilization. According to the dating of archaeologists, the first construction work of skilled builders and stonemasons here began in the 12th millennium BC - the civilization of Egypt had not yet been built and the pyramids had not been built, the Mayan civilization did not exist, 6 thousand years remained before the construction of Stonehenge... And here are primitive people The Neolithic era, which, according to popular belief, had to wander through forests and mountains in search of game and roots, armed with stone tools, erected a monolithic temple complex and decorated it with stone carvings of amazing complexity and beauty. Here, scattered across the stone of the temple are skillful images of animals - lions, scorpions, birds, wild boars, foxes, including three-dimensional ones. For such processing of building stone, complex, by no means simple, stone tools were required.
For the first time in human history, the people of Gobekli Tepe stopped their endless wanderings and began to build a temple. According to scientists, this required gathering at least 500 - 600 people in this place. Such a number of builders cannot be fed by hunting. And this is where agriculture enters the historical arena. It is in this sequence - first the gathering of a large number of people in one place and construction, and then farming and cattle breeding. First a temple, then a house, then a village, then a city. These people were not primitive in our minds. They had crafts, culture (and writing), art - it was civilization!
From 1995 to this day, German archaeologist Klaus Schmidt, privat assistant professor at the German Archaeological Institute in Berlin, has been working on excavations of the complex. 4 buildings out of 20 have been opened. There is still a lot of unknown and surprising things. Local residents knew how to process metals, and such alloys are unknown to modern science. For some reason, the settlers abandoned this place in the 8th millennium BC. Moreover, they didn’t just leave, they covered their complex with sand, which contributed to its preservation. For what? Why? One thing is certain - they went east to Mesopotamia and west to the Mediterranean Sea (Black did not exist then). And they brought crafts, agriculture and culture with them to these fertile places. Mesopotamia and Egypt did not arise out of nowhere; they were given birth to by the ancient civilization of Gobekli Tepe.
And then they were already city-states- Ur, Uruk, Kish, formed in Mesopotamia about 5000 years ago, in the valley of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Around the same time, the civilization of Ancient Egypt arose. At the turn of the 3rd - 2nd centuries BC, Indian civilization appeared, and in the 2nd century BC - Chinese civilization. At the same time, the Cretan-Mycenaean civilization, the predecessor of the ancient Greek states, grew in the Balkans. The development of civilizations in pre-Columbian America began at the turn of our era.
The Birth of Civilizations
All the first civilizations were of the river type and appeared in the valleys of large rivers, zones of favorable tropical and subtropical climate. This became the reason for the need to get together - large irrigation structures were needed. It was necessary to organize for joint work and allocate managers. The emergence of coastal-type civilizations occurred in a similar way - they also needed organization for navigation and establishing relations with neighboring tribes.
Man tried to resist nature, but this struggle went on with varying degrees of success. The ancient civilization of Atlantis is notorious, which perished, as the historian says, from the immersion of the continent into the ocean, and the Minoan civilization, which perished during the eruption of the Santorini volcano... The era of civilizations, which dates back thousands of years, knows many examples of the death of flourishing cultures. The reasons can be very different, and some are still unknown and baffle researchers. According to one version, the death of the Mayan civilization is explained by a long drought, which resulted in famine and epidemics. Perhaps an earthquake and climate change brought the Olmec civilization to a sad end in Central America. An unknown epidemic has claimed the mysterious African civilization of Nok.
Conquest by other civilizations and assimilation led to the disappearance of Ancient Egypt and the Etruscan civilization, the Chimu civilization that existed in pre-Columbian America. Civil strife, unrest, and overpopulation were the cause of the death of the Huari civilization, which existed in the Andes one and a half thousand years ago. Internal problems weakened the state, led to the activation of an external enemy and, ultimately, to conquest, such as the Aegean civilization.
Complex fates of civilizations
However, the disappearance of one civilization often becomes the beginning of another, secondary one. The death of civilization does not mean the death of a people. There is migration and the creation of a new structure of society. Thus, the death of Greek civilization became the basis for the emergence of Roman and then European civilization. Civilization development includes the following stages: origin (formation), development, flourishing and extinction. Not all civilizations go through these stages completely. The cycle of some is interrupted for various reasons - natural disasters, clashes with other cultures. We talked about the initial stage above, where and how the emergence of civilization begins. Now let's move on to the next phases. At the stage of development of civilization, a certain social order is formed, a model of individual behavior and corresponding social structures are formed. The development of civilization involves strengthening and spreading influence to neighboring regions, expanding territories, improving the management system, developing the economy and culture, and creating a new ideology or religious cults.
The flourishing of civilization involves the finally established social institutions, the transition from development to the protection of conquered positions, and, consequently, to stagnation. At the same time, society does not realize that the movement forward has stopped, considering this the highest point of development. All this leads to internal tension and external clashes, crisis phenomena. The decline of civilization leads to an aggravation of the economic, social and political situation, and a spiritual breakdown. With the weakening of government institutions, conflicts are growing. The death of civilization becomes inevitable - from internal or external reasons.
Even when they collapsed, the civilizations of the ancient world left behind a vast legacy - technical devices, scientific discoveries and cultural developments that formed the basis of human experience. Until now, we use the time counting system laid down in Ancient Babylon - an hour consists of 60 minutes, a minute - of 60 seconds. In mathematics we use the theorem of Pythagoras and Thales, in physics - the law of Archimedes - all this was given by Ancient Greece, in astronomy - the Julian calendar, it comes from Ancient Rome. And we inherited a lot more from our great ancestors. This is our common wealth. There, in the depths of ancient civilizations, lie the origins of the modern world, our beginning.
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