Civilization

Civilization (also called ilbaximo or ilbaxnimo) is a term used for societies with complex structures: urban settlements, specialized labor, central administration, and shared cultural and religious practices. The term is defined in contrast to nomadic societies and small-scale agricultural communities without cities and state institutions.

Historians and anthropologists do not agree on a fixed definition of civilization. Most emphasize several characteristics: agricultural surplus drawn from cultivation, large concentrated populations in one place, diverse crafts and skills, taxation or redistribution of goods, and systems for recording and storing information such as writing or numerical notation.

Origins and development

The emergence of urban structures is linked to the transition from pastoral nomadism to settled agriculture and animal herding. When large populations concentrate in one place, systems become necessary to distribute water, land, and food, which requires administrative institutions. Early examples of this type of settlement appear in the valleys of major rivers: Mesopotamia, the Nile Valley, the Indus Valley, and the Yellow River in China.

General characteristics

Commonly cited characteristics include: (1) cities inhabited by people who do not farm but depend on what others produce; (2) specialized labor, with individuals skilled in particular crafts such as metalwork, construction, or accounting; (3) administration and law to adjudicate disputes; (4) religion and institutions with social authority; (5) art, monumental architecture, and recorded knowledge. Writing is particularly significant because it allows administration and commerce to function across distance.

Change and decline

Systems of this type are not permanent. History shows that major urban centers have transformed or diminished due to factors including drought and climate change, new territories becoming available or peace returning, warfare, epidemic disease, and the burden of taxation systems. Decline is usually not sudden but a gradual process in which populations shift to other forms of life. Knowledge, language, and religion often persist among successor societies.