section_path: Fall of civilizations
section_name: Fall of civilizations
paragraph_text: Fall of civilizations
  
  Civilizations are traditionally understood as ending in one of two ways; either through incorporation into another expanding civilization (e.g. as Ancient Egypt was incorporated into Hellenistic Greek, and subsequently Roman civilizations), or by collapsing and reverting to a simpler form of living, as happens in so-called Dark Ages.
  
  There have been many explanations put forward for the collapse of civilization. Some focus on historical examples, and others on general theory.