Most Influential Civilizations?

[Buffalow]

Now, I'm going out on a limb here, but lets say that "aliens" came to visit Earth and we somehow managed to communicate with them. Now imagine that they landed in the Middle of Shit, Nebraska and they wanted to know all about Earths history but only had the attention span of an 8-year old and you could only summarize ten of the most influential countries, civilizations, kingdoms, empires; whatever in the history of Mankind.

Who would you pick?

I'd personally pick, in no perticular order:

1. United States of America (Obviously)
2. Roman Empire
3. Athenian Empire (Delian League)
4. Seljuk Turkish Empire
5. Byzantine Empire
6. Third Reich (Eh?)
7. USSR
8. Yuan Dynasty
9. Iroquois Nation (Had an Altered form of Republic that influenced Founding Fathers)
10. Napoleons Empire

Make your own list or disprove mine.

[Camarohusky]

1: Alexandrian Greece
2: Egypt, all of it
3: Chingis khan and the short empire he created
4: The Roman Republic
5: The British Empire
6: The United States
7: USSR
8: Spanish Empire
9: The Short lived Japanese Empire
10: The Qin Dynasty

[Tancrisism]

1. Greece
2. Rome
3. The Persian Empires
4. The Soviet Union
5. The Mongols
6. The Turks
7. The Egyptians
8. The English
9. The Chinese
10. The Spanish
11. The Babylonians and Sumerians
12. The Germans

Also in no particular order.

[Tancrisism]

I should add America to that list as well, seeing as how today it would definately fit.

Oh, and the Arabs, absolutely.

[Buffalow]

The Egyptians? What have they done except build the Pyramids?

[Britkid]

I can't believe you missed the British Empire. Anyway:

1. The British Empire.
2. The Roman Empire.
3. Ancient Egypt.
4. The Soviet Union.
5. The Third Reich
6. The Mongol Empire.
7. Napoleon's Empire.
8. USA (but not present day, maybe just after the Cold War).
9. The Holy Roman Empire.
10. The Ottoman Empire

[tawc]

Ancient
Egyptions
Greeks
Roman Empire

British Empire
Nazi Empire
United states
Soviet Union

And republic of china for future referance

[Tancrisism]

At 1/24/07 05:33 PM, TheRoyalEnglishman wrote: 8. USA (but not present day, maybe just after the Cold War).

Why not present day? America is still heavily influencing culture all over the world, and (militarily) some countires directly.

[Britkid]

At 1/24/07 05:35 PM, Tancrisism wrote: Why not present day? America is still heavily influencing culture all over the world, and (militarily) some countires directly.

I think that when all the countries were united against the USSR and communism and there wasn't the threat of terrorism there wasn't this split between the US and Europe. Also there's China and India who are on a definite upward curve.

[tawc]

At 1/24/07 05:37 PM, TheRoyalEnglishman wrote:

At 1/24/07 05:35 PM, Tancrisism wrote: Why not present day? America is still heavily influencing culture all over the world, and (militarily) some countires directly.

I think that when all the countries were united against the USSR and communism and there wasn't the threat of terrorism there wasn't this split between the US and Europe. Also there's China and India who are on a definite upward curve.

Americas still the dominating power of the world even if ti won't be for very long.
I think america and Europe will come more together with the rise of China and India.

[reviewer-general]

At 1/24/07 05:21 PM, Tancrisism wrote: I should add America to that list as well, seeing as how today it would definately fit.

Oh, and the Arabs, absolutely.

That makes FOURTEEN, genius....

1. Romans
2. Greece
3. Egypt
4. Nazi Germany
5. USSR
6. Ancient China
7. USA
8. British Empire
9. Carthage
10. Mayans, Inca, and Aztec (they can be group in as one)

Actually most 8 year olds I know wouldn't have the attention span to listen to even ONE of these.

[SouthAsian]

1.USA Empire.
2.British empire
3.Mongol/Moghul Empire
4.Ottoman/Arab empires
5.Chinese Empire
6.Roman empire
7..Babylonian/Assyrian empire
8.Egyptians
9. Alexander empire
10. Napoleons' influences

[Buffalow]

At 1/24/07 05:28 PM, Jezuz wrote:

Hm, form the first type of monarchy which influenced much of Europe later on, possibly?

Forgetting Ancient Sumer and Mesopotamia, AMIRITE?

[SolInvictus]

At 1/24/07 05:15 PM, Camarohusky wrote: 10: The Qin Dynasty

Qin Shihuangdi!!!!!!

[sdhonda]

Mesopotamia would be the top of my list. I was watching guns, germans ad steel earlier, and I do say they have been the most influential civilization of all time.

Egypt, china, the mongols, roman empire would also be pretty high.

As far as the modern world is concerned, its a 3 way between the british empire, US and the USSR.

[seventy-one]

To pick on civilization as the best or most most influential would be a travesty, because every civilization borrows from the old and gives to the future. A cycle really, of achievements that lead to more achievements. For example, without the Greco-Roman civilization there is no Rennassaince (or one could argue, no Arab civilization, then no Rennaissaince), no Scientific Revolution, and so on and so forth with all the civilizations.

Though, I guess there are civilizations that have little influence on our current civ (such as the Mayan civilization).

But if you want to be technical about it, the most influential would either be the very first, or the one right before in time to us.

The all-time best Civilization though, is the one I made on the deity level of Civilization III, nobody got in my way...

[Tancrisism]

At 1/24/07 05:51 PM, reviewer-general wrote:

At 1/24/07 05:21 PM, Tancrisism wrote: I should add America to that list as well, seeing as how today it would definately fit.

Oh, and the Arabs, absolutely.

That makes FOURTEEN, genius....

I transcend numeric boundries.

[packow]

uh... The Hebrews? How have they possibly been omitted?

[Camarohusky]

At 1/24/07 09:00 PM, seventy-one wrote: To pick on civilization as the best or most most influential would be a travesty, because every civilization borrows from the old and gives to the future.

That in no way means we can't rank them. I chose my 10 based on how they took what was before them and effected, if not completely changed the world around them. If you want, I will go back through my list and give a little explanation of each based on these guidelines.

A cycle really, of achievements that lead to more achievements. For example, without the Greco-Roman civilization there is no Rennassaince (or one could argue, no Arab civilization, then no Rennaissaince), no Scientific Revolution, and so on and so forth with all the civilizations.

I hate counter-factual history. You have no way of knowing whether a Greco-Roman Society wouldn't have been replaced by a comprable different society. Especially when there is a span of over a millenium between. Counterfactual dosn't work very well even considering periods of a few months of years, let alone centries or millenia.

[fli]

It's REALLY pointless to say which one is most influential unless we figure out in which way a society if influential.

For me, I would say the Irish.
They preserved the written language, the old literary texts (and transcribbed them too)--

We wouldn't have our alphabet right now had they not saved it from being destroyed altogether by certain other societies.

[cellardoor6]

At 1/25/07 01:22 AM, packow wrote: uh... The Hebrews? How have they possibly been omitted?

For real.

Well it might have something to do with the Anglo-saxon take on history. Christian-dominated society doesn't take too kindly to the achievements of 'teh j00'.

But enlighten these fools, what exactly did the Hebrews do? (other than encountering God, being God's chosen etc...)

I have Hebrew ancestors and I don't even know.

[Slizor]

For me, I would say the Irish.
They preserved the written language, the old literary texts (and transcribbed them too)--

I agree. The thing of particular importance about the Irish is that they have kept a lack of a sense of time and the idea that work should be enjoyed, not endured.

[Buffalow]

Just for the record, it doesn't have to be an Ancient civilization to be on your list or whatever, I added the United States and the Soviets on mine.

[White-hole]

At 1/25/07 05:27 AM, fli wrote:

For me, I would say the Irish.
They preserved the written language, the old literary texts (and transcribbed them too)--

Were we really a seperate civilisation from the rest of christion Europe though? and also, didnt the Byzantine empire do the much the same thing? Anyway, this thread is too europe centered, my empires would be as follows...
1. Mongol empire.
2. Alexander the greats empire.
3. The Roman Empire
4. Charels the fifths spanish empire (held back the Ottomans and spearheaded American colanisation.
5. The T'ang empire
6. The Muslim empire(640s-900s)
7. The British Empire
8. The Byzantine empire
9. The Partian Empire
10 The Ottoman empire

[SyntheticTacos]

At 1/25/07 05:29 AM, cellardoor6 wrote:

But enlighten these fools, what exactly did the Hebrews do? (other than encountering God, being God's chosen etc...)

Well, if there was no Judaism then there would be no Christianity or Islam, and you can see how all these influence the world today. o.o; Centuries and centuries of "Christian" rule in Europe... the inquisition, the Holocaust, holy roman empire... if there had been no Jews the world would be very different today.

[fahrenheit]

I like how some people say "Ancient China".

Thats the equivelant of saying, he speaks Chinese.

[seventy-one]

At 1/25/07 05:09 AM, Camarohusky wrote: I chose my 10 based on how they took what was before them and effected, if not completely changed the world around them.

I guess it is less arbitrary than I thought. But are we defining influential as how they effected their world or ours?

I hate counter-factual history. You have no way of knowing whether a Greco-Roman Society wouldn't have been replaced by a comprable different society. Especially when there is a span of over a millenium between. Counterfactual dosn't work very well even considering periods of a few months of years, let alone centries or millenia.

But we're not talking about what could have been if civilizations didn't exist. We're talking about what would have been if their achievements never existed, and no equivelant civilization had taken their place.

[MortifiedPenguins]

Well, what areas are we talking about here.

I mean, for America itself I would elect the Greeks, Romans and English.

But in the middle east for example, Enlightenment ideals never gained strength so thier more major influcencers could be the Persians, Turks and Saracens.

[Kasualty]

I don't see how Nazi Germany was the most influential.

[Kasualty]

I meant, I don't see how made the top 10.