The Big History of Civilizations

Course Overview

Course No. 8060

Use a cutting-edge historical approach to trace the story of human civilizations from our emergence as a species to the modern era.

This 36-lecture course by Professor Craig G. Benjamin explores:

• The multidisciplinary “Big History” methodology
• Key transitions from foraging to agriculture to industrialization
• Comparative development of civilizations worldwide
• Connections between environment, technology, and social structures
• Future scenarios for human civilization

Video Lectures

01: A Tale of Two Ancient Cities (30 min)

Examine Jericho and Anau as case studies introducing Big History concepts.

02: The Rise of Humanity (29 min)

Trace human origins from proto-humans to Homo sapiens using biological and anthropological evidence.

03: Foraging in the Old Stone Age (31 min)

Analyze Paleolithic family dynamics, migrations, and climate adaptations.

04: Origins of Agriculture (31 min)

Investigate how climate change, population growth, and innovation sparked farming revolutions.

05: Power, Cities, and States (30 min)

Explore the relationship between urban development and political power structures.

06: The Era of Agrarian Civilizations (30 min)

Chart 5,000 years of agricultural societies’ growth patterns and limitations.

07: Innovations of Mesopotamia (31 min)

Apply multidisciplinary analysis to Sumerian achievements and legacy.

08: The Downfall of Sumer (31 min)

Track Mesopotamian empires’ rises and falls through environmental and military lenses.

09: Egypt: Divine Rule in the Black Land (30 min)

Reconstruct pharaonic power through modern genetic and chemical research.

10: Society and Culture of Egypt (31 min)

Survey Egyptian urban life, trade networks, writing, and religious systems.

11: Early Mediterranean Civilizations (30 min)

Compare Phoenician, Hebrew, Minoan, and Mycenaean influences on trade and culture.

12: Mysteries of the Indus Valley (30 min)

Examine Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro’s advanced urban planning and technologies.

13: South Asian Civilizations and Beliefs (30 min)

Trace Hinduism/Buddhism’s emergence alongside Mauryan political developments.

14: China: Born in Isolation (29 min)

Analyze how geography shaped unique Shang/Zhou dynasty governance models.

15: China’s Dynasties and Influence (29 min)

Assess Qin/Han contributions from legal codes to paper/printing innovations.

16: The Importance of the Nomads (30 min)

Reevaluate steppe cultures’ climate adaptations and equestrian revolutions.

17: Oxus Civilization and Powerful Persia (30 min)

Discover Central Asia’s forgotten Oxus society and Persian imperial systems.

18: Greece in Its Golden Age (30 min)

Connect Greek geography to experimental governance models in city-states.

19: Greek Gods, Philosophy, and Science (29 min)

Explore mythology’s intersection with groundbreaking rational inquiry.

20: Alexander’s Conquests and Hellenism (29 min)

Measure one individual’s impact on economic/cultural exchange across continents.

21: Building the Roman Republic (29 min)

Track Rome’s transformation from monarchy to republic to imperial power.

22: Triumphs and Flaws of Imperial Rome (29 min)

Balance Roman achievements against systemic vulnerabilities to collapse.

23: New Ideas along the Silk Road (30 min)

Map tangible and intangible exchanges between Han China and the West.

24: Chaos and Consolidation in Eurasia (30 min)

Compare Han/Rome collapse aftermaths through Big History frameworks.

25: Islamic Expansion and Rule (30 min)

Analyze Mohammed’s legacy through Golden Age scholarly achievements.

26: Legacy of the Mongols (29 min)

Reassess steppe nomads’ Pax Mongolia and unexpected cultural impacts.

27: North American Peoples and Tribes (29 min)

Contrast Iroquois, Hopewell, and Pueblo developments with Afro-Eurasian patterns.

28: Agrarian Civilizations of Mesoamerica (29 min)

Correlate Olmec/Mayan/Aztec rises with unique isthmian geography.

29: Culture and Empire in South America (29 min)

Survey Andean/Amazonian civilizations from Nazca to Inca empires.

30: African Kingdoms and Trade (30 min)

Highlight sub-Saharan Mali/Ghana achievements often overlooked by historians.

31: Lifeways of Australia and the Pacific (31 min)

Reconstruct Polynesian migration chronologies and seafaring technologies.

32: The Advent of Global Commerce (30 min)

Identify 500-1750 CE expansion factors enabling modern economic systems.

33: The Industrial Revolution and Modernity (30 min)

Pinpoint Britain’s coal-powered transformation of global production systems.

34: The Transformative 20th and 21st Centuries (30 min)

Assess nationalism, capitalism and tech acceleration in the Anthropocene era.

35: Civilization, the Biosphere, and Tomorrow (29 min)

Model 2100 scenarios for energy, climate adaptation and population pressures.

36: Civilizations of the Distant Future (31 min)

Speculate on humanity’s potential trajectories across millennia using futurist frameworks.