Hey YouTube, Jim here!
Welcome to Top10Archive!
With technological advancements, it makes you think that we're the most advanced civilization
this world has ever seen.
Or are we?
Today we’re looking at the 10 Most Advanced Ancient Civilizations that could probably
teach our global societies a thing or two.
10.
The Aztec Civilization Both the Aztecs and the Incas were powerful
civilizations in South America around the 1200 and 1300s A.D.
The Aztecs lived in present-day Mexico, and though they were previously rivals, living
in three big cities: Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, and Tlacopan, they united to take over the
Valley of Mexico.
They had a type of governor and small governments in each area.
This, of course, was interrupted by the arrival of the Spanish, which eventually led to the
fall of all the local empires.
Though brief, they essentially invented and distributed chocolate to the world, popularized
popcorn, and were amongst the first to ever make education mandatory for everyone.
9.
Phoenician Far less known is the Phoenician Empire.
It was ruled by a monarchy and made up of independent city-states.
The people of Phoenicia were sailors, shipbuilders, and traders, talented at making money in their
work.
The civilization was rich thanks to a rare purple dye they made from Murex snails, and
put on royal clothing.
They also made the first phonetic alphabet.
This, of course, came tumbling down once Alexander the Great came along, conquering the region
in 334 BC.
Still, their legacy lives on to this day.
The Greeks took on their writing system, then the Romans used a similar format.
Many of our languages now can be traced largely to the Phoenicians.
8.
Rama Empire From way back in 10,000 to 2,500 BC in the
regions of Pakistan and India, the Rama Empire is known for being architecturally gifted.
They’re said to have planned out entire cities before even beginning to build them.
They had sewage systems that far exceeded the complexity of those in Pakistan, India,
and many Asian countries even today.
When it was thriving, it held over one thousand cities and settlements with elaborate urban
design, impeccable water supply systems, and careful architectural design with moisture
resistance.
So what made them tumble?
It seems like they reduced trade with Mesopotamia and also had some climate change issues.
To add, they weren’t ready for an attack, having a rather small army with not-so-advanced
weapons.
7.
Inca Civilization We couldn’t leave this civilization out
of this list.
They were around from 1200 to 1542 AD in what today is Peru.
Back then, they’d reached from Southern Colombia to central Chile, an outstanding
stretch of land.
They were also great urban planners with roads built in the most sophisticated and extensive
ways of the time.
As an example, we have the Inca Trail, which leads to Machu Picchu.
The 2-4 day trek is a beautiful one and one that not all who visit Machu Picchu are brave
enough to take on.
It is, however, one of the legacies of this great civilization that hid an entire city
from us for hundreds of years.
6.
Ancient Greece We all knew Ancient Greece had to make an
appearance on our list.
Documented from 800 BC to 146 BC, this civilization was known for architecture, math, astrology,
philosophy, and literature.
They basically invented half of the things we talk about in school still.
There probably isn’t a day that goes by that we don’t use something inherited from
the Greeks.
This includes expressions, formulas, map-making, and so much more.
5.
Mayan Civilization Ah, the Mayans.
It’s crazy that, to this day, you can still hear Mayan if you travel to certain parts
of Central America.
Documented to have existed from 2000 BC to the early 16th Century AD, the Mayans were
truly people of the stars.
They were intelligent astronomers and mathematicians.
They are credited with the invention of the number zero and measuring a solar year accurately.
They also were expert agronomists, producing permanent raised fields, wild harvesting,
forest gardens, and terracing.
All things we continue to practice today.
Many archaeological sites left behind by the Mayans after the Spanish invasion remain and
can be visited.
4.
Mesopotamia Mesopotamia was a civilization that was around
from 6000 B.C. to approximately 600 A.D.
It was where we currently see the nations of Iraq, Turkey, Syria, and Iran.
Mesopotamia was incredibly rich in both culture and knowledge, so much in fact, it was often
called “the cradle of civilization”.
They literally invented the wheel and written language as well as the more contemporary
city, wine, and the domestication of animals.
They truly started many phenomena that make our civilization what it is today.
3.
Ancient China We know ancient China had a great deal to
do with our practices today, being the inventors of paper, the compass, and even gunpowder,
which was by accident.
(Bonus points to those archivists who remember what they were trying to make instead.)
They were one of the longest civilizations around, documented from 2100 BC to around
221 BC.
The Ancient Chinese were obsessed with time-keeping, and invented many different sundials, some
of which claimed to predict the following seasons' weather.
Before gunpowder, they also contributed the crossbow, which became the weapon of choice
in Europe, to the Qin Dynasty.
Of course, we can’t forget the Great Wall of China - political or not - which stands
as one of the greatest visual achievements of human capabilities.
2.
Ancient Rome For you history buffs out there, for arguments'
sake, let's just assume Ancient Rome was established around 753 BC, and that we're talking about
it's entire existence until it fell in 476 AD.
The amount of advancements in that time period in that area, are arguably the most influential
in the common era.
The empire began in Italy around the banks of Tiber and ended up taking over most of
Europe, Northern Africa, Britain, Western Asia, and a large part of the Mediterranean
Islands.
Perhaps this was why they made so many contributions to modern day civilizations.
From seemingly simple things like roads and highways, to more advanced things like their
nature-resistant mega cities that had advanced sewer systems and aqueducts.
And that’s the baby stuff.
They brought Roman numerals, newspapers, concrete, grid-based cities, better medicine, and, oh,
the Julian Calendar - the basis of what our calendar runs on today.
Bonus points to those of you who comment which calendar we currently use!
1.
Ancient Egypt Yes, we’re here, finally!
Number one!
An incredibly long-lived civilization with an epic style we all love to recreate every
Halloween, the Egyptians were a major empire from 3150 – 31 BC.
With the Sphinx and The Great Pyramid alone they’d have enough to blow our minds, but
they were so far beyond that.
They were progressive in medicine, great mathematicians, and unbelievable architects.
They were also progressive in gender equality.
Egyptian women had a great deal more opportunities than almost any other society of the time,
and had many great female pharaohs, like Hatshepsut and Cleopatra.
Their inventions and innovations to mankind are so vast, it's hard to even name anything
without missing something more important...
So, I'm just going to eat this apple while our video editor scrolls through the Wikipedia
page Thanks for watching!
Did you know answers to the bonus points info I mentioned?
Let us know in the comments and also tell us which of these ancient civilizations you
might have liked to live in the best!
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