<P> The term `` cradle of civilization '' refers to locations where , according to current archeological data , civilization is understood to have emerged . Current thinking is that there was no single `` cradle '' , but several civilizations that developed independently , with the Fertile Crescent ( Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt ) understood to be the earliest . Other civilizations arose in Asia among cultures situated along large river valleys , such as Indo - Gangetic Plain in the Indian subcontinent and the Yellow River in China . The extent to which there was significant influence between the early civilizations of the Near East and those of East Asia is disputed . Scholars accept that the civilizations of Mesoamerica , mainly in modern Mexico , and Norte Chico in present - day Peru emerged independently from those in Eurasia . </P>
where is the oldest civilization known to man
the Fertile Crescent ( Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt )