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In [[Western European]] and [[Middle East]]ern cultures, it has frequently been applied to the [[Ancient Near East]]ern [[Chalcolithic]] ([[Ubaid period]], [[Predynastic Egypt#Upper Egypt|Naqada culture]]), especially in the [[Fertile Crescent]] ([[Mesopotamia]] and [[Levant]]) and [[Egypt]], but also extended to sites in [[Asia Minor]] (Anatolia), [[Armenia]]<ref>[http://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=1WOPkmChaFsC&oi=fnd&pg=PP8&dq=Anatolia+cradle+of+civilization&ots=DzMwcnE_Rg&sig=X9IHQWUwo_UnvfTRFWm24HXPVoc#PPA1,M1] ''The Near East: Archaeology in the "Cradle of Civilization"'', Charles Keith Maisels, Routledge 1993, ISBN 0-415-04742-0</ref> and the [[Iranian Plateau]] ([[Elam]]). Other civilizations arose in [[Asia]], among cultures situated along large [[river]] valleys, notably the [[Indus River]] in the [[Indian Subcontinent]] (present day [[Pakistan]] and [[northern India]])<ref>{{cite web|url=http://history-world.org/indus_valley.htm|title=Indus River Valley Civilizations|publisher=history-world.org|accessdate=2008-06-10|last=|first=}}</ref> and the [[Yellow River]] in [[China]].<ref>

</ref> Civilizations also arose independently in [[Norte Chico civilization|Norte Chico]] in present-day Peru,<ref name=1491Book>{{cite book |last=Mann |first=Charles C. |authorlink=Charles C. Mann |title=[[1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus]] |origyear=2005 |year=2006 |publisher=Vintage Books |isbn=1-4000-3205-9|pages=199–212}}</ref> the Andes and in , [[Mesoamerica]], and [[Iron Age]] [[Sub-Saharan Africa]]. If [[history of writing|writing]] is considered an indicator of civilization, the earliest "cradle" to have writing was [[History of Sumer|Sumer]] ([[Jemdet Nasr]]) in Mesopotamia.

The earliest signs of a process leading to [[sedentism|sedentary]] culture can be seen in the [[Levant]] to as early as 12,000 BCBCE, when the [[Natufian culture]] became sedentary; it evolved into an agricultural society by 10,000 BCBCE.<ref>http://www.columbia.edu/itc/anthropology/v1007/baryo.pdf</ref> The importance of water to safeguard an abundant and stable food supply, due to favourable conditions for hunting, fishing and gathering resources including cereals, provided an initial ''wide spectrum economy'' that triggered the creation of permanent villages.<ref>''La protohistoire de l'Europe'', Jan Lichardus et al., Presses Universitaires de France, Paris. ISBN 84-335-9366-8, 1987, chapter II.2.</ref>

The earliest proto-urban settlements with several thousand inhabitants emerged in the [[Neolithic]]. The first cities to house several tens of thousands were [[Memphis, Egypt|Memphis]] and [[Uruk]], by the [[31st century BC|31st century ]] BCE (see [[Historical urban community sizes]]).

[[Historic]] times are marked apart from [[prehistoric]] times when "records of the past begin to be kept for the benefit of future generations";<ref>Carr, Edward H. (1961). ''What is History?'', p. 108, ISBN 0-14-020652-3.</ref> that is, with the development of [[history of writing|writing]]. If the rise of civilization is taken to coincide with the development of writing out of [[proto-writing]], the Near Eastern [[Chalcolithic]], the transitional period between the [[Neolithic]] and the [[Bronze Age]] during the [[4th millennium BC|4th millennium ]]BCE, and the development of proto-writing in [[Harappa]] in the [[Indus Valley]] of South Asia around 3300 BCE are the earliest incidences, followed by Chinese [[Neolithic signs in China|proto-writing]] evolving into the [[oracle bone script]], and again by the emergence of [[Mesoamerican writing systems]] from about 200 BCBCE.

The [[Mesopotamia]]n civilization of [[Sumer]] emerges in the [[Ubaid period|Ubaid]] period (6500-3800 BCBCE) and [[Uruk period|Uruk]] period (ca. 4000 to 3100 BCBCE), culminating in the mid-3rd millennium before giving rise to the [[Akkadian Empire]] in the 24th century BCBCE. This is often identified as the first [[empire]] in history.

[[Eridu]] was the oldest Sumerian site, settled during the proto-civilized Ubaid period. Situated several miles southwest of [[Ur]], [[Eridu]] was the southernmost of a conglomeration of early [[temple]]-cities, in [[Sumer]], southern [[Mesopotamia]], with the earliest of these [[Hamlet (place)|settlement]]s dating to around 5000 BCBCE. By the 4th millennium BC BCE in [[Nippur]] — in connection with a sort of [[ziggurat]] and [[shrine]] — a [[wikt:conduit|conduit]] built of [[brick]]s in the form of an [[arch]]. [[Sumer]]ian inscriptions written on [[clay]] also appear in Nippur. By 4000 BC BCE an ancient [[Elam]]ite [[city]] of [[Susa]], in [[Mesopotamia]], also seems to emerge from earlier [[village]]s. Whilst the Elamites originally had their own script, from an early age they adapted the Sumerian [[cuneiform (script)|cuneiform]] script to their own language. The earliest recognizable cuneiform dates to no later than about 3500 BCBCE. Other villages that began to spring up around this time in the [[Ancient Near East]] ([[Middle East]]) were greatly impacted and shifted rapidly from a proto-civilized to a fully civilized state (e.g. [[Ebla]], [[Mari, Syria|Mari]] and [[Assur]]).

The rise of dynastic Egypt (known as Khemet) in the [[Nile Valley]] occurred with the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt in approximately 3200 BCBCE, and ended at around 343 BCBCE, at the start of the [[Achaemenid dynasty]]'s control of Egypt. It is one of the oldest civilizations in the world. Evidence also indicates human habitation in the southwestern corner of Egypt, near the [[Sudan]] border, before 8000 BCBCE. From around 7000 BC BCE to 3000 BC BCE the climate of the Sahara was much moister, offering good grazing land even in areas that are now very arid. Natural climate change after 3000 BC BCE led to progressive arification of the region. It has been suggested that as a result of these changes, around 2500 BC BCE early tribes from the Sahara were forced to concentrate along the [[Nile]] river where they developed a settled [[agriculture|agricultural]] [[economic system|economy]] and more centralized [[society]]. However it should be borne in mind that indigenous tribes would always have been present in the fertile Nile Valley and may have developed complex societies by themselves. Domesticated animals had already been imported from [[Asia]] between 7500 BC BCE and 4000 BC BCE (see ''[[Sahara#History|Sahara: History, Cattle period]]''), and there is evidence of [[pastoralism]] and cultivation of [[cereal]]s in the East [[Sahara]] in the 7th millennium BCBCE.

By 6000 BC BCE [[predynastic Egypt]]ians in the southwestern corner of [[Egypt]] were [[herding]] cattle. Symbols on [[Gerzeh|Gerzean]] pottery, ''c.''4th millennium BCBCE, resemble traditional [[Egyptian hieroglyph|hieroglyph]] writing. In [[ancient Egypt]] [[mortar (masonry)|mortar]] was in use by 4000 BCBCE, and ancient Egyptians were producing [[ceramic]] [[faience]] as early as 3500 BCBCE. [[Ancient Egyptian medicine|Medical institutions]] are known to have been established in Egypt since as early as circa 3000 BCBCE. Ancient Egypt gains credit for the tallest ancient [[Egyptian pyramids|pyramids]] and early forms of [[surgery]], [[Timeline of mathematics|mathematics]], and [[barge]] transport.

It is now recognized that the pre-Dynastic Egyptian states were part of a string of inter-related cultures along the Nile Valley as far south as Sudan. Some of these (notably Ta-Seti in what became Nubia and the city of pre-Kerma) had monarchies and urban development by 3000 BC BCE and thus , together with Ancient Egypt, these African empires represent the earliest black African human civilizations. Pre-Kerma became the basis of the first Kushite empire (Kerma, c.2500-1500 BC).

An [[archaeological site]] in the Gulf of Cambay off the north western coast of India includes submerged townships that may predate the oldest civilizations of Mesopotamia and Egypt by as much as 4000 years.<ref>{{cite web|author=Badrinaryan Badrinaryan |url=http://www.archaeologyonline.net/artifacts/cambay |title=Gulf of Cambay: Cradle of Ancient Civilization|publisher=http://archaeologyonline.net |date= |accessdate=2015-03-18}}</ref> While much conjecture exists around the implications of this discovery, the recency of the finding means that a consensus theory has yet to be established.  Latest discoveries from [[Bhirrana]], however Haryana, in India since 2012 onwards, by archaeologist K. N. Dikshit indicate that [[Hakra]] ware from this area dates from as early as 7500 BCE, <ref name="milleniumold">{{cite web|url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/newdelhi/indus-valley-2-000-years-older-than-thought/article1-954601.aspx|title=Indus Valley 2,000 years older than thought}}</ref><ref name="indusmilleniumold">{{cite web|url=http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/asia-pacific/india/121116/indus-civilization-2000-years-old-archaeologists|title=Archeologists confirm Indian civilization is 2000 years older than previously believed, Jason Overdorf, Globalpost, 28 November 2012}}</ref> which makes [[Bhirrana]] the oldest tool site in Indus Valley civilization.<ref name="oldest">{{cite web | title=Haryana's Bhirrana oldest Harappan site, Rakhigarhi Asia's largest: ASI | url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chandigarh/Haryanas-Bhirrana-oldest-Harappan-site-Rakhigarhi-Asias-largest-ASI/articleshow/46926693.cms }}</ref> A piece of wood recovered from the site , possibly a tool, has been radio carbon dated to 7500 BCBCE, indicating settlement at a very early period.<ref>{{cite web|author=Tom Housden |url=http://www.news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/1768109.stm |title=Lost city 'could rewrite history'|publisher=http://news.bbc.co.uk|date= |accessdate=2015-03-18}}</ref> By 4000 BCBCE, a pre-[[Harappa]]n culture emerged, with [[trade]] networks including [[lapis lazuli]] and other raw materials. {{cn|date=April 2015}} Urban centers during this phase spanned what is now [[Pakistan]] and western [[India]]. The Harappan phase is known to have comprised several large cities, including [[Harappa]] (3300 BCBCE), [[Dholavira]] (2900 BCBCE), [[Mohenjo-Daro]] (2500 BCBCE), [[Lothal]] (2400 BCBCE), and [[Rakhigarhi]], and more than 1,000 towns and villages, often of relatively small size. The cities were perhaps originally about a mile square in overall dimensions, and their outstanding magnitude suggests political centralization, either in two large states or in a single great empire with alternative capitals. Or it may be that Harappa succeeded Mohenjo-daro, which is known to have been devastated more than once by exceptional floods.<ref>{{cite web|author=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9039205/Harappa |title=Harappa (Pakistan) - Britannica Online Encyclopedia |publisher=Britannica.com |date= |accessdate=2010-01-09}}</ref> The southern region of the civilization in Kathiawar and beyond appears to be of later origin than the major Indus sites. The villagers grew numerous crops, including [[pea]]s, [[sesame seed]], [[date (fruit)|dates]], and [[cotton]]. The [[Indus valley civilization]] is credited for a regular and consistent use of [[decimal|decimal fractions]] in a uniform system of [[ancient weights and measures]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www-history.mcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/history/Projects/Pearce/Chapters/Ch3.html |title=Early Indian culture - Indus civilisation |date= |accessdate=2009-04-18}}</ref><ref>

Furthermore, the streets were laid out in grid patterns along with the development of [[sewage]] and [[water]] systems. This civilization of planned cities came to an end around 1700 BC BCE due to drying of rivers flowing from the [[Himalayas]] to the Arabian sea and geological/climatic changes in the Indus valley civilization area which resulted in the formation of the [[Thar desert]]. As a result, the cities were abandoned and populations reduced and people moved to the more fertile Ganges–Yamuna river area. Much remains unknown as the [[Indus Valley script]] remains un-deciphered.

[[Archaeological site]]s such as [[Sanxingdui]] and [[Erlitou culture|Erlitou]] show evidence of a [[Bronze Age]] [[civilization]] in China. The earliest bronze knife was found at [[Majiayao culture|Majiayao]] in Gansu and Qinhai province dated 3000 BCBCE.

The [[Yellow River]] was irrigated around 2205 BCBCE, reputedly by [[Yu the Great]], starting the semi-mythical [[Xia Dynasty]]. [[Archaeologist]]s disagree whether or not there is archaeological evidence to support the existence of the Xia Dynasty, with some suggesting that the [[Bronze Age]] society, the [[Erlitou culture]], was the site of this ancient, first recorded dynasty of [[China]]. The earliest archaeologically verifiable dynasty in recorded [[Chinese history]], the [[Shang Dynasty]], emerged around 1750 BCBCE. The Shang Dynasty is attributed for bronze artifacts and [[oracle bone]]s, which were turtle shells or cattle scapulae with markings reminiscent of ancient [[Chinese characters]] and found in the [[Huang He]] valley in [[Yinxu|Yin]], a capital of the [[Shang Dynasty]]. Turtle shells from the Shang Dynasty have been carbon-dated to around 1500 BCBCE.

Chinese civilization originated with city-states in the Yellow River valley. 221 BC BCE is the commonly accepted year when China became culturally and politically unified under a large centralized empire, the [[Qin Dynasty]], founded by Emperor [[Qin Shi Huang Di]]. Successive dynasties in Chinese history developed bureaucratic systems that enabled the Emperor of China to control the large territory from the center.

The oldest known civilization in [[South America]], as well as in the [[Western Hemisphere]] as a whole, the [[Norte Chico civilization]] - c. 3200 BC BCE - 1800 BC BCE - comprised several interconnected settlements on the [[Peru]]vian coast, including the urban centers at [[Aspero]] and [[Caral]]. The presence of an early form of [[quipu]] (an Andean recording medium) at Caral indicates its potential influence on later Andean societies, as well as the antiquity of this unique recording system. The stone pyramids on the sites are thought to be contemporary to the great pyramids of Giza. Unusually among Andean cities, no evidence of fortifications, or of other signs of warfare, have yet been found in the Norte Chico.

The [[Olmec]] civilization was the first [[Mesoamerican]] civilization, beginning around 1600-1400 BC BCE and ending around 400 BCBCE. This civilization is considered the mother culture of the Mesoamerican civilizations. The Mesoamerican calendar, numeral system, writing, and much of the Mesoamerican pantheon seem to have begun with the Olmec.

Some elements of agriculture seem to have been practiced in Mesoamerica quite early. The [[Maize#Origin|domestication of maize]] is thought to have begun around 7,500 to 12,000 years ago. The earliest record of lowland maize cultivation dates to around 5100 BCBCE.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.scienceblog.com/community/older/2003/I/20035654.html |title=Agriculture's origin may be hidden in 'invisible' clues |publisher=Scienceblog.com |date=2003-02-14 |accessdate=2009-04-18}}</ref> Agriculture continued to be mixed with a hunting-gathering-fishing lifestyle until quite late compared to other regions, but by 2700 BCBCE, Mesoamericans were relying on maize, and living mostly in villages. Temple mounds and classes started to appear. By 1300/ 1200 BCBCE, small centres coalesced into the Olmec civilization, which seems to have been a set of city-states, united in religious and commercial concerns. The Olmec cities had ceremonial complexes with earth/clay pyramids, palaces, stone monuments, acqueducts and walled plazas. The first of these centers was at San Lorenzo (until 900 bcBCE). La Venta was the last great Olmec centre. Olmec artisans sculpted jade and clay figurines of Jaguars and humans. Their iconic giant heads - believed to be of Olmec rulers - stood in every major city.

The Olmec civilization ended in 400 BCBCE, with the defacing and destruction of San Lorenzo and La Venta, two of the major cities. It nevertheless spawned many other states, most notably the [[Mayan civilization]], whose first cities began appearing around 700/ 600 BCBCE. Olmec influences continued to appear in many later Mesoamerican civilizations.

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