What were the first cities?
The first true cities emerged in Sumer (southern Mesopotamia) around 4000-3500 BCE. Uruk is often considered the world's first city, reaching perhaps 40,000 inhabitants. Other early cities include Ur, Eridu, and Lagash in Mesopotamia, followed by cities in Egypt, the Indus Valley, and China.
The world's first cities emerged in southern Mesopotamia — modern-day Iraq — between roughly 4000 and 3000 BCE. Uruk is widely considered the first true city, growing from a temple town to a metropolis of perhaps 40,000 people by 3000 BCE, making it the largest human settlement the world had ever seen.
What made these settlements "cities" rather than large villages was their complexity. Cities had specialized institutions — temples, administrative buildings, markets — that served the surrounding region, not just the local population. They supported diverse occupations: priests, scribes, merchants, artisans, soldiers, and laborers. They required formal governance systems to manage irrigation, resolve disputes, and organize labor.
Other early Sumerian cities included Ur (famous for its Royal Tombs and ziggurat), Eridu (traditionally considered the oldest city in Sumerian mythology), Lagash, and Nippur. Each operated as an independent city-state controlling surrounding agricultural territory.
Beyond Mesopotamia, cities developed independently in other regions. Memphis and Thebes in Egypt arose after unification around 3100 BCE. Harappa and Mohenjo-daro in the Indus Valley appeared around 2600 BCE with remarkably planned grid layouts. The Shang Dynasty produced urban centers in China's Yellow River valley by 1600 BCE. The Olmec built La Venta and San Lorenzo in Mesoamerica by 1500 BCE. Each tradition of urbanism reflected different cultural values and organizational principles.