Introduction
The effect of Geography and resources on early civilization cannot he underestimated. This is because geography has played a critical since the beginning of civilization and in the history of humankind. Mesopotamia that is widely cradle by historians as the cradle of mankind draws its name from the Greek word meaning –between two rivers. The two rivers were of critical importance to the inhabitants of Mesopotamia that they named them Tigris and Euphrates. Without Geography, knowledge on the exact origin of human civilization would have been vague and the origin of civilization would have had no specific region of reference.
Main body
In addition to the above, the origin of civilization in the context of Mesopotamia is also depicted by resource factor provided by the rivers. According to Barnes and David (1935), “the rivers served as a method of transportation and a trade route and by using them, the Mesopotamians were able to trade with other people for things they lacked.” The water resource availed by the presence of river Tigris and Euphrates ensured continuous economic interaction that created the opportunity for shared values and interactions. This affected the development of civilization over the years.
Another demonstration of the role of geography and resource on civilization can be drawn form Egyptian civilization. According to Fassbender (2008), “this mighty river was truly the life’s blood of Egyptian civilization in that it is predictable, relatively reliable, and above all fertile annual flooding ensured a sustainable level of agricultural wealth.” This illustrates the pivotal role of geography and resources in defining the development of civilization.
The towns surrounding the water resource areas such as the Nile and Mesopotamian recorded increase in the population due trade activities while the inland towns became depopulated. Geographical convenience and economic activities were the major drivers of civilization during these periods in the history of human civilization.
The geographically positioned river Nile provided Egypt with a convenient transport system that enabled movement of good within its territory that stretched from Kerma in what is now Sudan, and as far east as the Euphrates. “This transportation of goods and ideas played an important role in the formation of the unified Egyptian state in the first place helped to define the boundaries of Egypt proper and accelerated the development of its civilization” (Fassbender, 2008).
In the enhancement of the development of civilization, the Nile played a pivotal role in giving the Egyptians a sense of direction. The Nile served as the compass direction that enabled early Egyptians to determine whether the direction at any given time. According to Fassbender (2008), “Egyptians shared with us the concepts of North and South, East and West, but for them, these were no mere abstractions in that with the exception of a relatively short stretch of the Nile in the vicinity of Thebes, the Nile flows basically from south to north.”
Conclusion
Last, both Egypt and Mesopotamia has access to most rich resources that accelerated their rates of civilizations. Endowed with rich and fertile agricultural lands, Egypt had the capacity to survive and become a successful region. This was only made possible by its geographical position and availability of water as a resource. The geographical impact on the development of civilization has been demonstrated to go beyond waterways. There are suggestions over the decades that “geographical placement determined the destiny of the entire world” (Barnes & David, 1935).
References
Barnes, H.E. and David,H. (1935). The history of western civilization. Virginia: Harcourt, Brace and Company
Fassbender, M. (2008). How the physical geography of ancient Egypt shaped the development of its civilization. Web.