LARGEST CITIES IN THE WORLD THROUGHOUT HISTORY
Added on: 5th May 2016
MUREYBET
Mureybet is an ancient settlement mound, located on the west
bank of the Euphrates in Ar-Raqqah Governorate, northern Syria.
The site was excavated between 1964 and 1974 and has since
disappeared under the rising waters of Lake Assad. According
to many archaeologists Mureybet was a small village occupied
by hunter-gatherers and it is believed that around 8000 BC
it was the biggest city in the world with a total population
of about 500 people.
DELHI
Delhi is the capital territory of India and has been continuously
inhabited since the sixth century BC. Throughout most of its history,
Delhi has served as a capital of various kingdoms and empires
and has been seized, ransacked, and rebuilt several times.
In 2014, Delhi became officially the world’s second most
populous city after Tokyo, more than doubling its population
since 1990 to 25 million, according to a UN report, even though
many analysts believe that Delhi’s unofficial population
is far greater than Tokyo’s.
BASTA
Located near as-Sadaga, around 15 miles south of Petra, Basta
is a Neolithic village that dates back to the 7th millennium BC.
It’s estimated that at some point around 7000 BC Basta
became the largest city in the world with 1,000 people.
BEIDHA
Beidha is another major Neolithic archaeological site located a
few miles north of Petra near Siq al-Barid in Jordan. It is included
in Petra’s inscription as a UNESCO World Heritage Site
and it also existed as the world’s largest city sometime around
7000 BC with about 2,000 citizens.
ÇATALHÖYÜK
Çatalhöyük was a very large Neolithic and Chalcolithic proto-city
settlement in southern Anatolia, which existed from approximately
7500 BC to 5700 BC, and flourished around 7000 BC. It is the
largest and best-preserved Neolithic site found to date, while it
is believed that around 6500 BC it became the largest city
in the world with more than 3,000 people.
TELL BRAK
Tell Brak was an ancient city in Syria. Tell Brak is the current name
of the tell and the city’s original name is unknown. During the
second half of the third millennium BC, the city was known as
Nagar and later on, Nawar and was famous for being at some
point (probably around 5000 BC) the biggest city in the world
with more than 4,000 people.
MEXICO CITY
According to the most recent definition agreed on by the
federal and state governments, the Greater Mexico City
population is 21.2 million people, making it the largest
metropolitan area in the western hemisphere and the
largest Spanish-speaking city in the world. Also, during the late
1980’s there were rumours that Mexico City was unofficially
the largest metropolitan area in the world but that was never
officially verified.
SUSA
Susa (located in modern Iran) was one of the most important cities
of the Ancient Near East. In historic literature, Susa appears in
the very earliest Sumerian records: for example, it is described
as one of the places obedient to Inanna, patron deity of Uruk,
in Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta. According to some historians
Susa was also the world’s largest city around 3500 BC with
more than 8,000 people.
LONDON
Οne of the world’s most visited cities today, London has something
for everyone: from history and culture to fine food and good times.
In 1825, while the British Empire reached across the globe
bringing in immense wealth for the English elite, London was
becoming the largest city in the world with more than 1.3 million
people, despite incredibly high crime rates and poverty
among the masses.
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