Why do civilizations create writing systems?
Writing was invented independently several times and in different parts of the world. Writing is only truly needed in complex societies. It helps in administration, since memory is not good enough to record a vast amount of information and detailed instructions. The earliest writing systems were in Mesopotamia, Mesoamerica, China, Egypt, and Europe. The first writing was usually pictographic to represent an idea, and eventually evolved into characters that showed phonetic sounds and ideas. These earliest writing systems took a long time to learn, so usually only elites or religious officials learned to read and write. This gave them immense power and influence.
