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The History of World Civilization

The Origin of Humankind

The origin of man is an issue that has puzzled scholars since time immemorial. Driven by

this curiosity, many archaeologists and paleontologists have devoted their lives to finding out the

beginning of life through excavation and study of fossils. Numerous prehistoric studies have

credited Africa as the cradle of humankind, and a place where evidence of ancient civilization

can be traced back to the period before the development of human culture. Louis Leaky, one of

the earliest notable paleoanthropologists, pioneered the view that humans evolved from Africa.

His argument was supported by the discovery of fossils of some of the earliest human forms in

East Africa.

Besides, Gregor Mendel, who is regarded as the father of modern genetics, demonstrated

that dark genes are dominant over the light ones, and the latter are recessive. Mendel’s argument

implies that the African people are the original humans and are the responsible birth of the

human race. Based on this archaeological evidence, Africans can be regarded as the first people

to exist before migrating to various parts of the world. Thus, it is arguable that African

civilization began with the origin of humankind in Africa, and, hence, the continent made

significant contributions to the advancement of the world’s evolution.

The Contribution of Africa in Global Civilization

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As the origin of humankind, Africa has been at the heart of civilization in the world. In

fact, many African nations inspired some great inventions and innovations that have greatly

influenced human development. However, despite this crucial participation in global

advancement, some scholars have continued to demean the role of Africa in civilization (James

2). In fact, some of the Western intellectuals have given the impression that the African continent

had little or no involvement in the materialization of civilization, which is why its people are

apparently primitive.

There are many innovations and inventions from Africa that disapprove this mistaken

perception of Western scholars. For instance, the great pyramids of Egypt are regarded as one of

the earliest inspirations of modern engineering. These wondrous structures are alleged to have

originated from mastabas of Nubia (Sudan), in the period between 2650 and 2575 BCE (James

56). Moreover, Africa was not short of scientific inventions since it is the Egyptians who

invented the concept of the right angle that later became the foundation of the Pythagorean

Theorem (Trigger29). Moreover, the Egyptians came up with the idea of the right angle, which is

the foundation of the Pythagorean Theorem.

Elsewhere, African nations are portrayed as among the most influential and esteemed in

the Old Testament of the Bible. In fact, the Bible is among the earliest and greatest inspirers of

civilizations. For instance, the records of the empires from the south of the Sahara Desert can be

traced way back to almost 3,000 years, which was later followed by the development of other

empires in Ethiopia and West Africa (James 67). These examples show that Africa had a

significant influence in the earliest developments of human civilization.

Taking African Civilization to Europe and the World

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After civilization was born in Africa, many Western scholars came in and took these

ideas to the rest of the world. Among the notable groups that were responsible for the spread of

African civilization were the Greeks. In the book titled Stolen Legacy by Dr. George G. M.

James, he argues that author the Greek themselves did not initially author the philosophy of the

Greek, but rather the persons from North Africa, especially the Egyptians (James 3). However,

the recognition of this contribution has undeservedly been given the Greeks for centuries,

although it genuinely belongs to the people of North Africa (James 34). Pythagoras was part of

the renowned Greeks scholars who introduced the philosophical, holy, and cultural lessons of the

people Egypt to the West. His philosophy was then adopted by his numerous followers such as

Nicomachus. Notably, Pythagorean ideas have been discovered in the workings of the

pronounced intellectuals like Plato and Aristotle (James 4). Due to the dominance of Egypt in

establishing African civilization, it is often cited as the link between Africa, Asia, and Europe

from the ancient times.

Additionally, the history of ancient Rome reveals that there were many black people in

ancient Rome as well as Rome's African provinces. The origin of these black people was Africa,

and they were involved in various industries as well as the military. In fact, Rome had several

provinces in North Africa as early as 146 BC, where Roman trade, industry, and military control

continued development (Trigger 19). Due to the interactions with Africans in the early stages of

civilization, the Romans were also involved in spreading African civilization to the Western

world.

Comparison with Mesopotamia Other World Civilizations

Early civilizations in the world began about 5000 years ago in select regions of the world.

Notably, these civilizations were comparable in that they emerged along the banks of large

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rivers; hence they were commonly known as river civilizations. The main reason for this

phenomenon is that water was the backbone of the life of these communities. Some of these

regions included Mesopotamia, Egypt, China, and India, and the rivers with which they were

associated were the Tigris and the Euphrates, River Nile, the Yellow and Blue rivers, and the

Indus River respectively. Two of the most significant were Egypt and Mesopotamia (Hunt,

Martin, Rosenwein, and Smith 75). These regions inspired civilization in other parts of the

world.

A comparison of the Egypt and Mesopotamia shows certain similarities and variations in

lifestyles and patterns of development. For instance, in both Egypt and Mesopotamia, there was

strong political power, where kings were control of virtually everything (Trigger 27).

Additionally, society was hierarchical, and most of the land and wealth belonged to the

privileged classes. Both civilizations practiced extended trading although they varied regarding

economic overtone (Hunt, Martin, Rosenwein, and Smith 24). On the other hand, while majestic

structures and artifacts characterized architecture in Egypt, Mesopotamian art was notable for its

simplicity and a strong literary element that was absent in other civilizations (Trigger 34).

Additionally, while Mesopotamia is known for the development of agriculture, Egypt is known

for artistic and scientific inventions.

Role of Arabs and Islam Notes

Another community that had a significant impact on world civilization is the Arab

Muslims. Most of the contributions of Arab Muslims to civilization were made during the

Islamic Golden Age, which ran from the 8th century BC to 13th century BC (Atiyeh and Oweiss

12). However, the progress in knowledge during the Islamic Golden Age was mainly influenced

by the advancements in the civilizations, such as Ancient China, India, Egypt, and Greece

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(Atiyeh and Oweiss 22). The Arabs are credited with the development of mathematical concepts

such as trigonometric functions, algebra, geometry, and the calculations of equations and

integrations. For instance, the works of Ibn Moosaa titled Hisaab-Al Jab-Wal Muqaabala, which

was composed in the 8th century CE, contains more than 800 examples of the mathematical

calculations. Moosaa’s work was seminal and was later translated into Latin and became the

leading mathematics textbook in Europe until the 16th century CE (Atiyeh and Oweiss 51).

Apart from science, the Arab Muslims were also involved in papermaking and other industrial

advances. When the Arabs invaded North Africa in the 7th century CE, they brought with them a

new religion as well as language and customs. As a result, North African communities, such as

the Berbers, began to change their lifestyle in terms of communal relationships, foods, dressing,

and trade. The Arab invasion defined North Africa’s history by establishing Islamic centers that

enticed the arrival of various communities from various regions.

Europeans and Colonization

European colonization changed the path of African civilization completely. The

“Scramble for Africa,” was typified by the division and colonization of the continent by

European powers in the 19th and 20th centuries. These colonial powers had a massive impact on

Africa’s civilization. For instance, revolutionized transport, and trade in the continent (Arowolo

7). Although this was beneficial to the inhabitants, their policies impaired the traditional

economies of the colonized nations by changing the terms of land ownership and labor, leaving

many Africans poor and landless. As the Europeans established their empires, they obliterated

the existing kingdoms as well as their social and political structures (Arowolo 12). They also

brought various aspects of Western culture to the Africans. The effects of this transformation

have been longstanding since to date, and overseas business still eclipses local trade.

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Works Cited

Arowolo, Dare. "The effects of western civilisation and culture on Africa." Afro Asian Journal of

Social Sciences 1.1 (2010): 1-13.

Atiyeh, George N., and Ibrahim M. Oweiss. Arab Civilization: Challenges and Responses:

Studies in Honor of Dr. Constantine Zurayk. SUNY Press, 1988.

Hunt, Lynn, Thomas R. Martin, Barbara H. Rosenwein, and Bonnie G. Smith. The Making of the

West, Combined Volume: Peoples and Cultures. Vol. 2, Fourth Edition. Bedford/St.

Martin's, 2012. (Hunt, Martin, Rosenwein, and Smith 75).

James, George GM. Stolen legacy: The Greeks were not the authors of Greek philosophy, but the

people of North Africa, commonly called the Egyptians. Julian Richardson Associates

(1985).

Trigger, Bruce G. Early civilizations: Ancient Egypt in context. American Univ in Cairo Press,

1993.

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