In the big picture, civilization is all about humans putting together an entire package of tools and systems: food, cities, writing, standardized measurement, coins, long-distance trade, legal and contractual arrangements, art, architecture, mathematics, scientific understanding, metallurgy, organized religion and political structures. This package arose from human settlements around the world over the past 3,000 years. In terms of where these developments took place, ancient Mesopotamia is special, for it was in that region, sometime around 3400 BCE, that all the key elements of civilization first appeared at once.
One of the most important things that early civilizations did was create urban centers with monumental infrastructures. They also developed a system of government administration, or bureaucracy. These governments were able to mobilize resources, for good and bad, on an enormous scale and in ways that could never have been done before.
The other thing that happened is that people got better at what they did. Farmers were able to grow crops more reliably and they started generating surpluses of food. These surpluses enabled people to focus on other work. People began specializing in crafts, becoming master potters, weavers, and builders; religious persons (or priests); soldiers; and other occupations that required special skills or expertise. These new kinds of jobs gave individuals a higher social standing than the hunter-gatherers who remained at lower levels of society.
People also developed a way to record information, so they could keep track of things. The earliest known form of written language, cuneiform, appeared in Mesopotamia and other places. Oracle bone inscriptions, which were tied to efforts to predict the future and possibly had spiritual associations, also came into use. A variety of other writing systems-including a wedge-shaped system known as hieroglyphics, incised slate tablets, and quipu-knotted strings used to keep records and perform calculations-also emerged in various places. But literacy, or the ability to read and write, was usually limited to educated elites, such as scribes and priests.
Cities developed, and they needed a stable source of food for their populations. They also needed to be protected from robbers and other raiders. They needed to provide services like large-scale irrigation projects that were beyond the scope of neighborhood groups.
As cities developed, people formed a hierarchy of economic classes-usually based on wealth and type of work performed. At the top of this hierarchy sat those who controlled the most land and riches. This group was referred to as the king or ruler. People who had less money and a different type of work were called serfs.
Eventually these economic differences led to the development of religions and other cultural traits. This process is called “civilization” because it marked a significant change in how we live, and what we value in our lives. The term was coined by the German sociologist Max Weber in 1887 to refer to civilization as an “ideal type” for societies to strive toward. Since that time many other theories of the origins of civilization have been put forth.