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Which early civilizations developed cities in Mesopotamia and Egypt?

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Dense crowd of people walking through the brightly lit Shibuya shopping district in Tokyo, Japan, surrounded by colorful store signs and billboards in Japanese and English. — city Crowds of people in Tokyo's Shibuya shopping district.

The development of early cities in Mesopotamia and Egypt was a foundational aspect of the urban revolution, a process where agricultural village societies evolved into complex urban civilizations.1

Mesopotamia

The Sumerians are credited with developing the world's earliest known urban and literate culture in southern Mesopotamia, beginning in the late 4th millennium BCE. These early cities served as centers for smaller settlements and were characterized by the presence of major shrines, granaries, and specialized crafts. Notable early city-states included:23
* Eridu
* Uruk (Erech)
* Kish
* Nippur
* Bad-tibira

Egypt

Urbanization in ancient Egypt occurred somewhat later than in Mesopotamia. Following the unification of numerous small states in the Nile valley during the 4th millennium BCE, Egypt was united under the 1st dynasty shortly after 3000 BCE. This period saw the establishment of a powerful monarchy and a complex bureaucracy that supported the growth of Egyptian civilization.12