France, England, and Spain started started the Western World by their claiming of the land, and gave the Western World their traditions. I don't think the Western Civilization actually started until the first revolution from their mother country was succesful. Who was that, BTW? Ancient Greece inspired the way things are done in the Western World, but that was decided on by those who seperated from their civilization of origin.
Where did the Western Civilization truly begin?
- Thread starter IceBlaZe
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MrPresident
Anglo-Saxon Liberal
Britain, with the invention of the sandwich.
Architekt
Prince
Bacon Sarnie?
MrPresident
Anglo-Saxon Liberal
Of course.
superunknown
Fake Plastic Head
I think some of you guys are mixing up the term western civilization with the west (i.e. america).
Western Civilization is a term that describes culture and traditions in the ways of thinking and behaving, that mostly originates from Greece and Rome, and contitutes a paradigm that is mostly the same throughout the Western World (i.e. Europe and America).
There is simply no arguing that western civilization originates from Greece. Period.
Western Civilization is a term that describes culture and traditions in the ways of thinking and behaving, that mostly originates from Greece and Rome, and contitutes a paradigm that is mostly the same throughout the Western World (i.e. Europe and America).
There is simply no arguing that western civilization originates from Greece. Period.
smalltalk
monkey business
The Greeks have laid the philosohic grounds for our culture. Most of the Great Questions in philosophy and science have been raised by them. Their ideas have been discussed for centuries, without very much being added to them.
Otherwise, their culture does not blend very well with ours. Their comedies are not very funny, in the sense Shakespeare is funny. Their science and philosophy is very imaginative but often also very speculative. Their mathematics was nothing but geometry; if Pythagoras would be confronted with the contemporary rendering of his own a^2+b^2=c^2, he would not recognise it.
I don't think, western civilization started in Greece. It didn't at all start at one distinct place. It started at a certain time in history. People then came up with a new way of thinking. Copernicus, Bruno, Gallilei, Toricelli, Newton, Luther... a way of thinking based on experimentation and obvservation, rather than on dogma.
Otherwise, their culture does not blend very well with ours. Their comedies are not very funny, in the sense Shakespeare is funny. Their science and philosophy is very imaginative but often also very speculative. Their mathematics was nothing but geometry; if Pythagoras would be confronted with the contemporary rendering of his own a^2+b^2=c^2, he would not recognise it.
I don't think, western civilization started in Greece. It didn't at all start at one distinct place. It started at a certain time in history. People then came up with a new way of thinking. Copernicus, Bruno, Gallilei, Toricelli, Newton, Luther... a way of thinking based on experimentation and obvservation, rather than on dogma.
superunknown
Fake Plastic Head
Well, now you're getting into detail, but sure..I'm not saying you're wrong. Though I still believe it started in Greece.
i don't get it. i see very few similarities between american lifestyle/culture and european lifestyle/culture. if you're talking about sitting on chairs instead of pillows then i get it, but other then that... i just don't see how you could call that amount of land and people a "western civilization".
Been there, done this thread already. My vote was for Pope Stephen and the Franks in the 8th century A.D.
Silverflame
OBJECTION!
I like to think of "Western Civilization" as the industrialized powers during Imperialism, so Britain gets the edge. But that's just my interpretation.
barron of ideas
Barron
Of course we can argue, we are fanatics! If we all had the same ideas, there would be very few threads.
TrailblazingScot
I was kittenOFchaos
Hehe, but most people voted Greeks and why not as their unique unit is rather useful
barron of ideas
Barron
civilization begins when you are born and ends when you die.
You have to look at the whole world. You are right, European and American lifestyle/culture is different, but compared to the culture/lifestyles you see in the middles east, Asia, Africa and so on, they are radically different. When putting cultures into those types of broad categories, there is no other way to do it than to put America with Europe as a "western civilization." Plus, 90% of America's population is decendant from Europeans.
Anyway I think Greece had the earliest significant contribution to what Western Civilization has become. But I dont think there is one major source. It has evolved over thousands of years with many, many different sources.
ozscott75
Groper of Sand
Coincidence?
Sayounara
King
England is a new civ compared to others. Greece is the oldest and were once big in science so I picked Greece, Germany sorta makes more sense though.
Chinese = Beijing
Japanese = Kyoto
African = Zimbabwe
Middle Eastern = ????? What is it ???
Native Americans are mostly Mongols.
Chinese = Beijing
Japanese = Kyoto
African = Zimbabwe
Middle Eastern = ????? What is it ???
Native Americans are mostly Mongols.
History_Buff
Deity
- Joined
- Aug 12, 2001
- Messages
- 6,529
FIRST: WESTERN CIVILIZATION MEANS NA AND EUROPE
Sure. I'll delve in deeper. Note that my Germany should be Germanic people of the Roman - Medieval era.
Sure, a good deal of the known civilization started in Greece. But even Greek societies started from Germanic tribes that moved in from the north. Same with Rome. Germanic people, who migrated south.
More importantly however, the German people quickly annexed most of the Western Roman empire after Roma began its decline. This means that France, Spain, England and Germany, all all German people at this time. It is from these societies that all of the European nations as we know them developed. The Three colonizers, Spain, England and France, are all made up of Germanic people. It was these people that colonized the New World. It was also England, France and Germany that would be the main players on the world stage.
Plus, to a much lesser extent, both WWI and WWII kinda depended on Germany.
HighlandWarrior
Mr Political Analyser
- Joined
- Feb 10, 2003
- Messages
- 1,528
civ·i·li·za·tion ( P ) Pronunciation Key (sv-l-zshn)
n.
An advanced state of intellectual, cultural, and material development in human society, marked by progress in the arts and sciences, the extensive use of record-keeping, including writing, and the appearance of complex political and social institutions.
The type of culture and society developed by a particular nation or region or in a particular epoch: Mayan civilization; the civilization of ancient Rome.
The act or process of civilizing or reaching a civilized state.
Cultural or intellectual refinement; good taste.
Modern society with its conveniences: returned to civilization after camping in the mountains.
Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The Sumerians were the first ones to have a written language(mainly for record keeping), so in comparison to all the other barbarians they were "civilized" first.
n.
An advanced state of intellectual, cultural, and material development in human society, marked by progress in the arts and sciences, the extensive use of record-keeping, including writing, and the appearance of complex political and social institutions.
The type of culture and society developed by a particular nation or region or in a particular epoch: Mayan civilization; the civilization of ancient Rome.
The act or process of civilizing or reaching a civilized state.
Cultural or intellectual refinement; good taste.
Modern society with its conveniences: returned to civilization after camping in the mountains.
Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The Sumerians were the first ones to have a written language(mainly for record keeping), so in comparison to all the other barbarians they were "civilized" first.
