ORIGINS
The roots of democracy trace back to ancient Athens in the 5th century BCE, where the first experiments with direct democracy took place. Athenian democracy was characterized by the idea that every citizen had a direct role in decision-making (Ober, 1998). Cleisthenes, known as the "Father of Athenian Democracy," established a system where citizens could vote on laws and policies directly, a stark contrast to the autocratic rule that dominated much of the ancient world (Raaflaub, 2007).
However, the concept of democracy did not end with ancient Greece. The Roman Republic (509–27 BCE) introduced representative elements of democracy where elected officials represented the interests of the people, though still limited to a select group of citizens (Polybius, 2003).
The modern revival of democratic ideals began during the Enlightenment in the 17th and 18th centuries. Thinkers like John Locke and Montesquieu advanced the ideas of natural rights and the separation of powers, which influenced the creation of modern democratic states (Locke, 1689; Montesquieu, 1748). Locke argued for the right of people to overthrow unjust governments, a concept that would later inspire the American and French Revolutions (Locke, 1689).
In the 18th century, the American Revolution (1775–1783) and the French Revolution (1789–1799) marked significant moments in the evolution of democracy. The American Revolution resulted in the establishment of a federal republic with a system of checks and balances outlined in the U.S. Constitution, which remains a model of democratic governance (Wood, 1991). Meanwhile, the French Revolution's Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen laid the groundwork for democratic ideals in France and beyond (Hunt, 1984).
The 19th and 20th centuries saw a rapid expansion of democratic ideas, influenced by key figures such as Abraham Lincoln in the United States, who preserved the Union and advanced the cause of freedom through the Emancipation Proclamation (Lincoln, 1863). The 20th century brought about decolonization, where many nations gained independence and adopted democratic systems, contributing to the global spread of democratic governance (Huntington, 1991).
