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History of the world, otherwise known as "World History", is the history of humankind ("Homo sapiens"), from the earliest times to the present, in all places on earth. It excludes non-human "natural history" and "geological history", except insofar as the natural world substantially affects human lives. World history encompasses the study of written records, from ancient times forward, plus additional knowledge gained from other sources, such as "archaeology". Ancient recorded history[1] begins with the invention, independently at several sites on Earth, of writing, which created the infrastructure for lasting, accurately transmitted memories and thus for the diffusion and growth of knowledge.[2][3] However, the roots of civilization reach back to the period before writing — humanity's prehistory.
Human prehistory begins in the Paleolithic Era, or "Early Stone Age". During the Neolithic Era (New Stone Age; to be precise, the Agricultural Revolution between 8500 and 7000 BCE in the Fertile Crescent), humans began the systematic husbandry of plants and animals — agriculture.[4][5][6] It spread to neighboring regions and also developed independently elsewhere, until most humans lived as farmers in permanent settlements.[7] The relative security and increased productivity provided by farming allowed these communities to expand. They grew over time into increasingly larger units in parallel with the evolution of ever more efficient means of transport.
Surplus food made possible an increasing division of labor, the rise of a leisured upper class, and the development of cities and thus, of civilization. The growing complexity of human societies necessitated systems of accounting, which led to writing.[8]
Civilizations developed on the banks of life-sustaining bodies of fresh water (lakes and rivers). By 3000 BCE, they had arisen in the Middle East's Mesopotamia (the "land between the Rivers" Euphrates and Tigris),[9] on the banks of Egypt's River Nile,[10][11][12] and in the Indus River valley.[13][14][15] Similar civilizations are believed also to have arisen at this time along the great rivers of China, but the archaeological evidence for extensive urban construction is less distinct.
The history of the Old World (Europe in particular) is commonly divided into Antiquity, up to 476 CE; the Middle Ages,[16][17] from the 5th through the 15th centuries, including the early European Renaissance; the Early Modern period,[18] from the 15th century to the late 18th, including the Age of Enlightenment; and the Late Modern period, from the Industrial Revolution to the present, including Contemporary History.
In Europe, the fall of the Western Roman Empire (476 CE) is commonly taken as signaling the end of antiquity and the beginning of the Middle Ages, during which (around the year 1300) the European Renaissance[19][20] emerges. In the mid-15th century, Johannes Gutenberg's invention of modern printing,[21] employing movable type, revolutionized communication, helping end the Middle Ages and usher in modern times and the Scientific Revolution.[22] By the 18th century, the accumulation of knowledge and technology, especially in Europe, had reached a critical mass that brought about the Industrial Revolution.[23]
In other parts of the world, in the ancient Near East,[24][25][26] ancient China,[27] ancient India and elsewhere, the historic timeline unfolded differently, but by the 18th century, due to extensive world trade and colonization, the histories of the many human civilizations had, in large measure, converged. In the last quarter-millennium, the growth of knowledge, technology, commerce, and of the potential destructiveness of war has accelerated, creating the opportunities and perils that now confront the many human communities that inhabit the planet.[28][29]
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Human prehistory begins in the Paleolithic Era, or "Early Stone Age". During the Neolithic Era (New Stone Age; to be precise, the Agricultural Revolution between 8500 and 7000 BCE in the Fertile Crescent), humans began the systematic husbandry of plants and animals — agriculture.[4][5][6] It spread to neighboring regions and also developed independently elsewhere, until most humans lived as farmers in permanent settlements.[7] The relative security and increased productivity provided by farming allowed these communities to expand. They grew over time into increasingly larger units in parallel with the evolution of ever more efficient means of transport.
Surplus food made possible an increasing division of labor, the rise of a leisured upper class, and the development of cities and thus, of civilization. The growing complexity of human societies necessitated systems of accounting, which led to writing.[8]
Civilizations developed on the banks of life-sustaining bodies of fresh water (lakes and rivers). By 3000 BCE, they had arisen in the Middle East's Mesopotamia (the "land between the Rivers" Euphrates and Tigris),[9] on the banks of Egypt's River Nile,[10][11][12] and in the Indus River valley.[13][14][15] Similar civilizations are believed also to have arisen at this time along the great rivers of China, but the archaeological evidence for extensive urban construction is less distinct.
The history of the Old World (Europe in particular) is commonly divided into Antiquity, up to 476 CE; the Middle Ages,[16][17] from the 5th through the 15th centuries, including the early European Renaissance; the Early Modern period,[18] from the 15th century to the late 18th, including the Age of Enlightenment; and the Late Modern period, from the Industrial Revolution to the present, including Contemporary History.
In Europe, the fall of the Western Roman Empire (476 CE) is commonly taken as signaling the end of antiquity and the beginning of the Middle Ages, during which (around the year 1300) the European Renaissance[19][20] emerges. In the mid-15th century, Johannes Gutenberg's invention of modern printing,[21] employing movable type, revolutionized communication, helping end the Middle Ages and usher in modern times and the Scientific Revolution.[22] By the 18th century, the accumulation of knowledge and technology, especially in Europe, had reached a critical mass that brought about the Industrial Revolution.[23]
In other parts of the world, in the ancient Near East,[24][25][26] ancient China,[27] ancient India and elsewhere, the historic timeline unfolded differently, but by the 18th century, due to extensive world trade and colonization, the histories of the many human civilizations had, in large measure, converged. In the last quarter-millennium, the growth of knowledge, technology, commerce, and of the potential destructiveness of war has accelerated, creating the opportunities and perils that now confront the many human communities that inhabit the planet.[28][29]
sell stock photos
hotel sicily