Final answer:
Cities began to appear around 5,500 to 6,000 years ago, with the earliest cities developing in Mesopotamia and evidence of similarly aged settlements in Peru.
Step-by-step explanation:
Although Homo sapiens have existed on Earth for at least 200,000 to 250,000 years, with the earliest forms of human writing originating in ancient Sumer, cities began to appear around 5,500 to 6,000 years ago. The development of agriculture roughly 10,000 years ago laid the foundation for the rise of cities.
Evidence suggests that by 5,500 years ago, cities had formed in the valley of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in Mesopotamia, and similarly aged urban settlements have been found in Peru. These developments mark the beginning of human civilization as we commonly measure it, through the growth of settled, urban communities.