- Common features in the political and social systems of ancient civilizations
- Common characteristics in economic systems
- Common characteristics in cultural aspects
- References
The characteristics of ancient civilizations include aspects related to politics, social structure, economy, and culture. The word civilization refers to human societies with a complex structure, grouped into cities.
Most of the first civilizations, or ancient civilizations, settled near river or sea sources. Being fertile land, they allowed them to develop agriculture and facilitated the transport and exchange of goods.
Greece was one of the most influential civilizations of the Ancient Age.
The Nile Valley in Ancient Egypt, the island of Crete in the Aegean Sea, and the Euphrates and Tigris rivers in Mesopotamia were the cradle of some of these civilizations.
Common features in the political and social systems of ancient civilizations
Despite not having formal political systems, ancient civilizations shared some ideas that determined their social organization.
Power and wealth obeyed pyramidal structures. The top was occupied by a minority elite. The base comprised the majority of the population.
Thus, at the top of the pyramid were the king and the royal family. Then there were the artisans, merchants and managers of the state administration. The largest group was represented by farmers.
On the other hand, they were theocratic governments. That is, the rulers were considered religious leaders who represented, or were guided by, deities.
The need to conquer other territories and protect their own lands led to the creation of armed military forces.
Common characteristics in economic systems
In the Ancient Era, the growing sedentary lifestyle led to the development of agriculture and livestock. In many cases, food surpluses in turn favored trade and some economic stability.
The food surplus also allowed people to specialize in areas other than agricultural ones. Many were dedicated to pottery, jewelry, textile activities, among others.
They also developed metallurgy. Many of the metals used to create different objects included bronze, silver, gold, iron, tin, and copper.
On the other hand, in ancient civilizations a system of taxes and tributes worked. Taxes were a type of transfer of wealth from individuals to the state.
The tributes had to be paid by the weaker governments to those more powerful.
Common characteristics in cultural aspects
Ancient civilizations had writing systems, some very rudimentary. These were mainly used to communicate long distance and to keep records. However, only elite groups dominated the art of writing.
Another distinctive feature of these early civilizations is their architecture. The construction of large monuments, made of stone or clay, stands out specifically.
Many of these buildings were built for religious purposes. Although others served as meeting places, sports spaces, government institutions, palaces, and other purposes.
From the observations of the stars, they created lunar or solar calendars. This allowed them better control over the crops.
As their culture was highly influenced by religion, they also used these observations as a system to predict the future and to govern religious practices.
References
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- Civilization. (2011, February 21). National Geoghaphic Encyclopedia. Recovered from nationalgeographic.org
- Hirst, K. (2017, July 02). Ancient Monumental Architecture - Types and Characteristics
- The Public Nature of Enormous Buildings. Recovered from thoughtco.com.
- Hirst, K. (2017, July 12). Top Characteristics of Ancient Civilizations - Complexity at its Worst. Recovered from thoughtco.com.
- Huddleston, L. (2001, February). The Emergence of Civilization in the Ancient Near East. Recovered from history.unt.edu.
- Olson, R. (2009). Technology and Science in Ancient Civilizations. California: ABC-CLIO
- O'Neil D. (2006, July 10). Chiefdoms and States. Recovered from anthro.palomar.edu.
- Teocracy. (2014 November 04). Encyclopædia Britannica. Recovered from britannica.com
- Trigger, B. (2005). Understanding Early Civilizations: A Comparative Study. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.