Jaded_Railman
Banned
Didn't Athenian democracy start up in the 490s or 480s, after the start of the Roman Republic (510? 505?). The idea of democracy has existed before Athens, and in areas where Greco-Roman civilization never came into contact, either. The Iroquois, for example. As for others, I can't name any off the top of my head.
There's conjecture that the Romans fudged their dates (of course, they didn't actually USE dates for year numbering) a bit to try and get in the founding of the Republic to be earlier than the 'freeing' of Athens. There's a few years where there are no consuls with no real reason for it, suggesting that they simply stretched their dating back a bit.