10,000 yrs ago - Neolithic Revolution - appearance of first cities and states > complex forms of gov't arising 3500-2000 BCA - emergence of earliest civilizations state-building techniques - writing law codes - developing bureaucracies and tax collection systems - relying on elite classes i.e. aristocratic nobles or state officials to share political/administrative responsibility - creating infrastructure for transport and communications - mobilizing labor for building projects or military service - using religion/sociocultural norms to justify the right to rule centralized spectrum of governments monarachies oligarchies kingdoms nation states feudalism - weak monarchs delegate political power/divide territory to noble elites via city-states that coexist cooperatively sometimes compete fiercely other times > many regions in the past were bound together more by cultural and linguistic ties than by straight forawrd political unity sedentary/urban societies vs migratory/nomadic ppls - often involved conflict, but also played crucial role in transfer of ideas and technology classical periods - characterized by socioeconomic advancement, political cohesion, and enduring cultural legacy + unity, stability