The origin of writing systems can be primarily attributed to bureaucratic necessities rather than the need for representing language.

Bureaucracy played a significant role in the early civilizations of Egypt and Mesopotamia. It was a crucial element in the administration of urban institutions and the management of economic archives. The surviving administrative records of early states, however, provide only vague and sporadic clues regarding their relationships with societies beyond their political frontiers. Most of the economic archives studied are narrowly concerned with the internal affairs of urban institutions, rather than with long-distance trade. The earliest known writing systems, such as cuneiform inscriptions, were largely composed of ideograms - graphic symbols representing ideas rather than language units. These ideograms were often combined with numerical and metrological symbols, representing a wide range of items from domestic animals to professional roles. However, these symbols did not follow the linear structure of natural speech. Instead, they used a visual format similar to mathematical notation, dividing the tablet surface into boxes arranged in vertical columns, each containing a combination of ideograms and numerals. They were designed to fulfil the needs of bookkeeping, not to record literature or royal decrees. The subsequent adaptation of cuneiform writing to represent the grammar and syntax of spoken language took centuries to unfold. A major stimulus for this came around the middle of the third millennium BC, when the script was increasingly used to write elements of non-Sumerian languages. This cultural mixing and blending once again proved to be the mother of invention.

To understand cross-cultural relationships it is crucial to consider the social and ecological imperatives of civilizations.

Some information about the cross-cultural relationships with societies beyond their political frontiers is found in royal monuments erected in temples, tombs, and palaces. However, these monuments, primarily directed towards the inner elite and gods, depict a cosmic rather than secular cartography. They highlight the integral role of contact and exchange with foreign lands, but this role is primarily defined by ritual and political concerns. These representations reveal much about the internal workings of societies, particularly their institutions of sacral kingship. However, they offer limited value in reconstructing the true extent of contact between ancient societies. Therefore, it's crucial to consider the social and ecological imperatives that compelled early states into constant interaction with the outside world. For instance, the agrarian economies of Egypt and Sumer were entirely dependent on fertile alluvial soils deposited by their major river systems, necessitating interactions with external societies for resources.

The concept of kingship, once grounded in divine sanction, has been reshaped by societal norms and ideologies, pushing it from a central societal pillar to the margins of historical consciousness.

Kingship, as a concept, has been a central pillar in societies throughout history. Often, the right to rule was thought to come from gods, not from the people they ruled over. This was clear in ancient Middle East, where leaders rarely used their power without believing the gods wanted them to. The kings believed their right to make decisions came from the gods' blessings. However, what it means to be a king or queen has changed over time, especially in recent history. The old ideas of kingship have become less relevant and seem outdated. This is because society has changed a lot and needs new ways to keep people together and functioning well. An example of this is the last German emperor, Kaiser Wilhelm II. Even after he lost his political and economic power, he wrote about a long history of kings who were believed to have special connections with the supernatural. He thought the true power of a king was to be a link between people and these mysterious forces. But, his ideas were overshadowed by the growing popularity of more democratic ideas in central Europe. In conclusion, what it means to be a king or queen and their role in society has changed a lot over time. It has been influenced both by the belief in divine approval and by changes in what society values and believes.

The modern reception of the ancient Near East, a paradoxical birthplace and antithesis of civilization, shapes our understanding of the past and future through a complex interplay of historical, cultural, and ideological factors.

The modern reception of the ancient Near East is a complex and multifaceted phenomenon. For example, objects from ancient Egypt have become a big part of our culture. We can see this in how these items are shown in museums, used in buildings, and mentioned in popular culture. Our fascination with these ancient societies isn't just about history, but also shows deeper ideas and beliefs. For example, we often think of the ancient Near East as where civilization started, but we also see it as very different from our own culture. This isn't just something we inherited from ancient Greek and Roman sources. It's also because modern Europe had to deal with its own history of kings who were believed to be sacred and powerful families. The objects left behind by these ancient societies have stayed in our minds and appeared on our city streets at important times in our recent history. They have been used to represent changing times and connections to the distant past.

Cultural borrowings, encompassing material goods to ideologies, profoundly shape and evolve civilizations, as evidenced by the parallel development of Egypt and Mesopotamia.

Cultural borrowing significantly influenced the evolution of civilizations, particularly evident in the parallel development of Mesopotamia and Egypt. These societies were deeply attached to their guiding principles and were willing to endure inequalities to uphold them. Despite the interactions between these regions and the changes they underwent, certain fundamental ideas of how the world should be structured and ordered remained consistent for thousands of years. This is evident in the way these societies maintained their unique cultural identities while also absorbing and transforming influences from each other. For instance, Egypt selectively adopted technologies from Mesopotamia, such as tin-bronze, olive cultivation, wheeled vehicles, and woolly sheep rearing. However, these borrowings were transformed to fit the internal requirements of the Egyptian society, resulting in distinct Egyptian and Mesopotamian civilizations. This process of cultural borrowing and transformation underscores the importance of interaction and exchange in shaping civilizations, challenging the notion of civilizations as isolated entities.

Everyday practices are the overlooked building blocks of civilizations, shaping them from the ground up and enduring through time and change.

Everyday practices, such as styles of cooking, eating and drinking, forms of domesticity, bodily comportment, and notions of purity or pollution, are the fundamental building blocks of civilizations. These practices have their own histories and modes of transmission, shaping civilizations from the ground up. They endure through time and change, remaining constant even as societies evolve and interact with each other. Despite changes in almost every other field of life, these basic notions of how the world should be made and how humans should behave remain constant. These practices are often overlooked in the assessment of early civilizations, which tend to emphasize technological innovations or monumental achievements. However, they are the real 'stuff' out of which larger patterns of civilization are built.

The ancient Near East is not just a historical curiosity, but a vital part of modern Europe's cultural DNA, underscoring the complexity of cultural exchange and interconnectedness of human history.

The ancient Near East has left a profound imprint on the cultural landscape of modern Europe. This influence is not confined to the realm of academia or intellectual discourse, but is palpably present in the urban fabric of European cities. This enduring presence of ancient civilizations, often perceived as long lost in the sands of time, is a testament to their enduring relevance and impact. This influence is particularly evident during critical junctures in recent history. For instance, the ancient Near East has been invoked in the discourse surrounding major political upheavals and revolutions. The demise of dynastic states and sacral kingship in revolutionary Europe, for example, can be traced back to the cultural lineage of the ancient Near East. This suggests that the ancient Near East continues to shape modern European consciousness, not just as a historical curiosity, but as a vital part of its cultural DNA. The reception of the ancient Near East in modern Europe is not a one-way street, however. The ancient Near East has also been shaped by its interaction with modern Europe. This is evident in the way ancient Near Eastern artifacts and monuments are displayed and interpreted in European museums and cultural institutions. These institutions often present the ancient Near East in a way that reflects modern European values and perspectives and even ideological struggles, rather than those of the ancient civilizations themselves. This dynamic interaction between the ancient Near East and modern Europe underscores the complexity of cultural exchange. It challenges the notion of civilizations as isolated entities, and highlights the interconnectedness of human history. The ancient Near East is not just a distant past, but a living part of modern Europe's cultural landscape.

The conventional view of the ancient Near East as merely the cradle of Western civilization should be reexamined.

The conventional view of the ancient Near East as merely the cradle of Western civilization should be reexamined. Some scholars question the framing of Mesopotamia and Egypt as precursors to the West's rise, indicating other untold stories and connections. Moreover, recent criticisms of classical historians underscore the West's unrecognized cultural debt to the ancient Near East. These debates reveal political and economic realities in modern Middle Eastern states, where pre-Islamic past becomes a nexus for Western tourism, secular knowledge, and global markets, leading to ideological struggles over their representation. The ancient Near East's enduring societal structures, evident from centuries of research, reflect a deep commitment to societal norms despite constant change and interaction. This commitment brought about remarkable societal transformations and environmental reshaping, from Afghanistan to Turkey, and Lebanon's forests to Ararat's deserts. Historically, civilizations result from vast mixtures and borrowings, creating a grand narrative that exceeds any one society's scope. However, by idolizing civilizations or envisioning our future around an idealized image of them, we risk replacing old gods with new ones, revealing a perennial predicament, as ancient as it is modern.

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What Makes Civilization? - Book Summary (2024)

David Wengrow

The book explores the origins and development of civilization, focusing on the parallel growth of Egypt and Mesopotamia. It delves into the interactions between these societies, their guiding principles, and how their histories have shaped modern perceptions of civilization.

Key Ideas

Civilizations are dynamic entities that rise, fall, merge, and disappear over time. This dynamism is evident in the birth of civilization in the Near East, where Egypt and Mesopotamia emerged as dynastic polities around the third millennium BC. These societies, while distinct in their forms, were not isolated entities. They were part of a broader social and technological milieu, feeding from a common 'cauldron of civilization'.

The concept of civilization is undergoing a transformation, reinvigorated after a brief post-colonial slumber. This transformation is influenced by the arguments of scholars like Samuel Huntington and Francis Fukuyama, who have presented contrasting views on the future of civilizations. Huntington's 'Clash of Civilizations' theory argues that future conflicts will be cultural rather than ideological or economic, while Fukuyama's 'End of History' theory suggests that the worldwide spread of liberal democracies may signal the endpoint of humanity's sociocultural evolution.

However, these theories have been met with both acceptance and criticism. Some see them as revelatory wisdom, while others condemn them as monstrous abstractions that fuel the flames of fundamentalism. Despite the controversy, these theories have sparked a renewed interest in the study of civilizations, inviting commentary from archaeologists and anthropologists.

In this context, the parallel development of Egypt and Mesopotamia cannot be adequately understood as two distinct and bounded civilizations. Instead, they should be seen as part of a larger interconnected network of societies, whose interactions were an integral part of their constitution. This perspective challenges the notion that isolation was the natural condition of past societies and suggests that civilizations are not the pinnacle of human achievement but part of a larger narrative of the past.

David Wengrow's "What Makes Civilization?" explores the origins and development of civilization, focusing on the ancient Near East. Wengrow challenges the conventional view of isolated civilizations, arguing instead for a complex network of social and technological interactions that shaped societies. He emphasizes the importance of everyday practices in the formation of civilizations and highlights the continuities that transcend our conventional distinctions between prehistory and history. Wengrow also reflects on the concept of civilization itself, its implications in the modern world, and the ideological struggles it incites.

Main Facts:

The parallel development of Egypt and Mesopotamia cannot be adequately understood as that of two distinct and bounded civilizations. They both fed from a common 'cauldron of civilization'.
Everyday practices such as styles of cooking, eating and drinking, forms of domesticity and bodily comportment, notions of what is pure or polluted are the real 'stuff' out of which larger patterns of civilization are built.
The concept of civilization has always been linked to the desire for universal history, a history that transcends written records, extending back in time to the origins of our species, outwards in space to encompass the full range of contemporary human diversity.
Civilizations are shown to be the outcome of mixtures and borrowings, often of quite arbitrary things, but always on a prodigious scale.
The concept of civilization, reinvigorated after a brief post-colonial slumber, is undergoing a further transformation.
The ancient Near East is often viewed as the 'cradle of Western civilization', but this conventional image can no longer be taken for granted.
The study of civilizations draws us into a grand narrative of the past, a story built from the ground up by routine human activities, surpassing the limited purview of any one society.
The desire to realize a sense of order, and the sacrifices demanded in the process, produced astonishing flows of materials, transforming societies and reshaping environments from Afghanistan to Turkey, and from the forests of Lebanon to the deserts of Arat.
The concept of civilization was a profoundly optimistic concept, whose adherents believed in the possibility of human progress.
The idea of civilization has always been linked to the desire for universal history, a history that transcends written records, extending back in time to the origins of our species, outwards in space to encompass the full range of contemporary human diversity.