The earliest civilizations shared many common features. The most significant of these was that they grew out of farming settlements in river valleys. The four early river valley civilizations rose in Mesopotamia (modern day Iraq), Egypt, the Indus River Valley, and the Huang He valley.
They developed in the valley between the Tigris and Euphrates, along the Nile, the Indus and Ganges, and Yellow Rivers respectively.
Discussion Questions:
- What activity was the most important foundation of cities and civilization?
Agriculture. Farming began during the Neolithic Revolution as people began to plant seeds, grow their own food, domesticate animals and settle in villages. It was a slow process that occurred at different times around the world but can be dated a far back as 8000 BCE in the Middle East. The Neolithic Revolution also saw technological advances such as: the development of the plow and fertilization techniques; the invention of the loom and the wheel; the skill of baking clay bricks for building and hammering metals for weapons and jewelry; and the development of a calendar.
- Why was agriculture so important to the beginning of civilization?
It spurred the growth of cities. Civilization comes from the Latin word civitas which means city.
The development of agriculture allowed people to settle in one place, develop specialized skills, and eventually form governments. Cities grew and systems of irrigation to support farming were developed. Overseeing large irrigation projects was one of the first functions of government.
- Agriculture and surplus crops allowed some people to stop farming and learn specific skills. Did this lead to the start of a system of trade?
Yes. Civilizations developed an economy. Economy can be defined as the means by which people’s material needs are met through the use of their environment.
Agriculture led to surplus food so some people began to earn a living doing other things besides farming. People became metal workers, merchants, traders, and priests. Trade and commerce led to a need for record keeping which led to systems of writing and the new occupation of scribe.
- What were people with specialized skills called?
Artisans.
NCSS Thematic Standard: VIII Science, Technology, and Society.
NSS-WH.5-12.1 ERA 2: Early Civilizations and the Emergence of Pastoral Peoples, Standard 1.
