Ch. 1: Theory of Urban Genesis

URBAN GENESIS AT CHACO: Case Study of the Origin of Civilizations Chapters: 1 2 3 4 5 6

1.31 A Theoretical Model of Urban Genesis

How do cities originate? By what social and cultural processes? What are the distinctive material traces of this process? As mentioned above, urban societies often obliterate the material traces of their own beginnings. Furthermore, the process of primary urban genesis is inherently prehistoric: the technology of writing seems to have been developed by urban societies in order to serve the needs of already-complex economic and political systems. Ironically, a great deal of writing has since been devoted to the process of secondary urbanization: it is the history of imperial conquests, colonization, and acculturation of non-urban societies by urban ones, either by choice or by force. Yet this substantial portion of the historical record is of limited use for explaining the process of primary urban genesis.

Without direct evidence we must use a theoretical model to explain this process of cultural transformation. The model must enable us to discriminate causative factors from the secondary byproducts of social and cultural change. It must also allow for the unique aspects of each incidence of primary urban genesis. The archaeological record indicates that primary urban genesis occurred several times across the world, in very different contexts. If the process of urban genesis involves a common set of traits and transformations, then the model must hold up when tested against each incidence of Urban Revolution, wherever and whenever it occurs.

The Chaco Phenomenon, as a possible instance of primary urban genesis, is certainly unique in terms of the physical forms that were created. If viewed in terms of form alone, it is difficult to compare the Chaco site to the remains of any other culture, complex or simple. But if the sudden changes in Chacoan design are viewed as indicators of changes in the structure of Chacoan cultural institutions, then the event known as the Chaco Phenomenon strongly resembles the changes that other societies have undergone while becoming urban civilizations.