THE GENESIS AND EVOLUTION OF INSURANCE ACTIVITY IN THE ANCIENT PERIOD
THE GENESIS AND EVOLUTION OF INSURANCE ACTIVITY IN THE ANCIENT PERIOD

Summary/Abstract: Insurance activity has its origins in the ancient period. The earliest forms of insurance appeared in Mesopotamian, Greek, Roman, and ancient Egyptian law. Trade was the first field to benefit from these incipient forms of insurance due to the major risks to which transported goods were exposed. These risks were both natural and human-related. Natural risks included floods, earthquakes, and storms, while human-related risks consisted of theft and wars. Over time, insurance activity underwent numerous transformations until reaching the form used today. The ancient period marks the emergence of the first forms of insurance, which were perceived as organized systems of mutual aid within societies. In Mesopotamian law, the Code of Hammurabi represents a fundamental reference point, as it laid early foundations for the concepts of liability and individual rights and functioned as a legal norm facilitating the exchange of goods and services. Ancient Egypt is also notable as the place where burial associations originated. Each historical period is relevant to modern insurance, and the principle that continues to persist to this day is the risk distribution.

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