Civilization has never been a narrow, linear concept. As the first humans to develop civilization grew and developed, their societies changed and evolved in response to new challenges and opportunities. This is reflected in the way that the games of Civilization all start at different points on a spectrum, which highlights how complex human history really was and the boundless potential for cooperation and progress.
In the broadest sense, civilization is the development of a complex society that can sustain itself by producing food and making tools. This is a major step up from the hunter-gathering societies that lived for thousands of years before it. Generally speaking, civilizations are defined by writing, the state, cities and specialized labor (like craftspeople, religious specialists or soldiers). They produce a wide range of art and music as well as advanced technologies, but most importantly they create stable governments that regulate their citizens’ interactions with each other and with the outside world.
The term “civilization” comes from the Latin civis, meaning citizen. It is only when people become civilized that they can live together in cities and social groupings that are larger than families or tribes. In fact, some insects are also considered civilized because they live in groups. Civilization is also about a society’s culture, which plays an important role in education, knowledge growth and societal norms.
It is generally agreed that the invention of agriculture and the establishment of the first permanent settlements were the first steps towards civilization. The first farmers were able to store and replant seeds from one harvest to the next, and they could cultivate crops that produced fifty times more calories than hunting or gathering did. They were also able to raise livestock, which provided not only meat but also clothing and tools, allowing them to survive more reliably than hunter-gatherers.
These early farming communities soon grew into towns and cities. As population levels rose, they needed to protect themselves from outside attack and maintain their supply of food and water. Governments developed to govern these city states, and their citizens began to have rights and freedoms.
The development of civilizations brought a new standard of living to humanity, but it also brought problems like war, environmental degradation and inequality. Researchers are now taking a multidisciplinary approach to understanding the roots of civilization, and what we can learn from the past to tackle modern problems. This includes studying how ancient societies negotiated these shifts in power and technology by examining their cultural legacy in areas such as music, architecture and science.