Eli5 How did ancient cities/settlements in inhospitable climates (I.e. the Sahara, the arctic circle etc) survive?
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Just because the climate is inhospitable in those places today, doesn’t mean it was always like that. The Sahara was not always a desert.
I was recently reading a book about Sumeria which roughly corresponds with Southern Iraq today. Sumeria had very little rainfall so the people at that time were dependent on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers and irrigation systems.
Despite the climate, there were areas of marshland where the rivers had flooded and the Sumerians drained these areas to create fertile farmland. Aside from farming of crops and animals, the Sumerians hunted and fished.
Sumeria also benefited from a highly-organised workforce which was government-controlled. Sumerians saw hard work as a religious duty (although labour strikes weren’t uncommon).
It was similar for Ancient Egypt which relied heavily on the river Nile.
Just because the climate is inhospitable in those places today, doesn’t mean it was always like that. The Sahara was not always a desert.
I was recently reading a book about Sumeria which roughly corresponds with Southern Iraq today. Sumeria had very little rainfall so the people at that time were dependent on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers and irrigation systems.
Despite the climate, there were areas of marshland where the rivers had flooded and the Sumerians drained these areas to create fertile farmland. Aside from farming of crops and animals, the Sumerians hunted and fished.
Sumeria also benefited from a highly-organised workforce which was government-controlled. Sumerians saw hard work as a religious duty (although labour strikes weren’t uncommon).
It was similar for Ancient Egypt which relied heavily on the river Nile.
Well there weren’t large settlements in either the Sahara or Arctic. Small communities could survive but any kind of large settlement needed a river. The Tigris and Euphrates for Mesopotamia. The Nile for Egypt. The Medjerda for Carthage and so on. No river no agriculture. No agriculture no city.
As for north? Well even today St. Petersburg is the northernmost city of substantial size and it was deliberately founded in the early 1700s as a port that would be accessible year round and it is in no way self-sufficient.
Well there weren’t large settlements in either the Sahara or Arctic. Small communities could survive but any kind of large settlement needed a river. The Tigris and Euphrates for Mesopotamia. The Nile for Egypt. The Medjerda for Carthage and so on. No river no agriculture. No agriculture no city.
As for north? Well even today St. Petersburg is the northernmost city of substantial size and it was deliberately founded in the early 1700s as a port that would be accessible year round and it is in no way self-sufficient.
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