Reporting Information: Etruscans: Founders of Western Civilization

I hadn't heard of the Etruscans until our professor taught us about them. I found their civilization extremely interesting since we had been seeing actual artifacts in the museums we were going to. I read in our textbook about how they shaped western civilization and decided to write on it!

Have you learned in school that democracies all over the world owe its credit to the Roman Empire? This statement is true, but only partially. Rome’s legacy is in debt to its mysterious predecessors: The Etruscans. Many people have not even heard of this ancient society, but the world today is shaped by their rich history. The Etruscans are an ancient civilization who first brought infrastructure, religion, and politics to the Italian Peninsula. The Etruscans helped pave the way for the Roman Empire to flourish, which in turn shaped Western civilizations as we know them today.

The Etruscans are thought to be an indigenous people who came to Italy from the East, conceivably Lydia, an ancient empire in Asia Minor (Cunningham pg. 87). The Etruscan’s homeland was located in the heart of Italy: Tuscany, which is named after the civilization. They thrived from 8th Century B.C. to 3rd or 2nd B.C. Although they prospered in Tuscany, the Etruscans were very intelligent people, and began to expand their domain past Tuscany into Northern and Southern Italy (“The Etruscans”). The epic legend of Rome’s rise to power is all due to the Etruscan influence on Roman life (Cunningham pg. 87).

Roman culture certainly includes investigating the influences that created it. The city of Rome itself had been first founded around 753 B.C. and was conquered by kings, although at the time it was a mere small country town (Cunningham pg. 88). As the Etruscans expanded, they took control over Rome and built the small town from the ground up. The word Rome is actually Etruscan and so are the names of the supposed founders Romulus and Remus. Etruscans have full responsibility for the architecture and urban development of Rome. Etruscan engineers drained the massive marsh that composed most of Rome, which was previously uninhabitable, but eventually became the city’s center: the infamous Roman forum. They created rectangular urban planning in the city, underground sewers, temples, shrines, arches, vaults, hydraulic engineering; and constructed roads and bridges. These inventive infrastructures shaped Rome, which became an example for many future civilizations to duplicate in the coming centuries (Butler). These truly innovative people not only succeeded in creating a city, but the future foundation of a soon to be empire.

The Etruscans not only influenced the infrastructure of Rome, but the culture, language, and politics as well. This civilization had a colossal effect on the growth of Rome and its culture, and Italian life today (Cunningham pg. 87). The Etruscans were a unique group with little known ties to any other culture, but they were influenced heavily with by Greek traders from the South. They adopted the Greek alphabet, and were the ones who introduced this alphabet to Rome, not the Greeks themselves as many stories falsely claim. This also set into motion the Greek influence that would be imprinted on Roman culture. They spread literacy throughout the Italian Peninsula; and Roman nobles even sent their sons to be educated in Etruscan schools, which eventually triggered Roman education in Greece; hence Alexander the Great being a student of the Greek philosopher, Aristotle (Butler).

Not only was their language and education impacted by the Etruscans, but the religion and government as well. The Etruscans were originally ruled by a monarchy, but started incorporating oligarchies into their politics. They were also the ones who created city-states. Therefore, the Etruscan elite prepared Rome with its politics: the monarchy/oligarchy and its army, along with urban infrastructure that transformed Rome into an advanced city-state. Many democracies today were born from Roman government, which is stemmed from the Etruscans. The Etruscans were polytheistic like the Greeks, and they believed in human sacrifice for the gods. They used prisoners of war were mostly used for this purpose. The prisoners of war would have to fight each other: Romans adopted this “religious” practice and turned it into gladiatorial entertainment and chariot races in amphitheaters a.e. the Colosseum (“The Etruscans”). These gladiators were later used as the Christian image of a demon, that were modeled after Etruscan demons. Romans also must give credit when its due: the staple of their identity which is the toga, which was originally Etruscan (Butler). Contributing to Roman civilization, the Etruscans had a continuous and lasting influence on the later Western culture.

Furthermore, under Etruscan control, the Romans were more “globalized” than ever. They became a substantial cultural entity with ties throughout Italy and beyond. Within a matter of a hundred years, Rome had learned everything they needed to know about advanced technology and culture from the Etruscans to overthrow them, sending the Etruscans back to their territory, and eventually climbing to power. The rise of the Roman Empire started the regression of the Etruscan civilization in Italy; their cities were conquered and eventually were taken over by the Romans (Cunningham pg. 88). Roman and Etruscan culture continues to affect our lives today: the road system of current Europe is based off Roman infrastructure over two thousand years ago, which was originally developed by the Etruscans; we use the Roman alphabet which was introduced by the Etruscans; and even after the fall of the Roman Empire, Rome was still the symbol of civilization, which later Western empires shaped themselves after. The world is as we know it today is because of the “legacy that Rome pass[ed] on to Western civilizations…[which were] inherited from its [Etruscan] predecessors” (Cunningham pg.83-85).

Works Cited

Butler, Chris. “The Etruscans & Their Influence on Rome (C.800-500 BCE).” The Flow of History, Flow of History, n.d.,www.flowofhistory.com/units/birth/4/FC27. Accessed 15 Mar. 2017.

Cunningham, Lawrence, et al. Culture & Values: a Survey of the Humanities. Seventh ed., Boston, MA, Cengage Learning, 2015.

N.a. “The Etruscans.” TimeMaps Atlas of World History, TimeMaps, n.d.,www.timemaps.com/civilizationetruscans. Accessed 15 Mar. 2017