Mail, or post, is a method for transmitting information and tangible objects, wherein written documents A document , is a bounded physical or digital representation of a body of information designed with the capacity (and usually intent) to communicate. A document may manifest symbolic, diagrammatic or sensory-representational information. To document (verb) is to produce a document artifact by collecting and representing information. In, typically enclosed in envelopes An envelope is a common packaging item, usually made of flat material such as paper or cardboard. It is designed to contain a flat object, such as a letter or card and also small packages are delivered to destinations around the world. Anything sent through the postal system is called mail or post.^[1]

In principle, a postal service can be private or public. Governments often place restrictions on private postal delivery systems System is a set of interacting or interdependent entities forming an integrated whole. Since the mid nineteenth century The 19th century was a period in history marked by the collapse of the Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Holy Roman and Mughal empires. This paved the way for the growing influence of the British Empire, the German Empire and the United States, spurring military conflicts but also advances in science and exploration national postal systems have generally been established as government monopolies with a fee on the article prepaid. Proof of payment is often in the form of adhesive postage stamps A postage stamp is adhesive paper evidence of a fee paid for postal services. Usually a small rectangle attached to an envelope, the stamp signifies the person sending it has fully or partly paid for delivery. Postage stamps are the most popular way of paying for retail mail; alternatives include postal stationery such as prepaid-postage envelopes,, but postage meters A postage meter is a mechanical device used to create and apply physical evidence of postage to mailed matter. Postage meters are regulated by a country's postal authority; for example, in the United States, the United States Postal Service specifies the rules for the creation, support, and use of postage meters. A postage meter imprints an amount are also used for bulk mailing.

Postal systems often have functions other than sending letters. In some countries, a Postal Telegraph and Telephone A postal, telegraph, and telephone service is or was a government agency responsible for postal mail, telegraph, and telephone services. Such monopolies existed in many countries, though not in North America or Japan. Many PTTs have been partially or completely privatized in recent years. In some of those privatizations, the PTT was renamed (PTT) service oversees the postal system as well as having authority over telephone and telegraph systems. Some countries' postal systems allow for savings accounts and handle applications for passports.

Contents 1 Early postal systems 1.1 Persia 1.2 South Asia 1.3 China 1.4 Rome 1.5 Mongol Empire 1.6 Other systems 1.7 Postal reforms 1.8 Modern transportation and technology 2 Etymology 3 Modern mail 3.1 Organization 3.2 Payment 3.3 Rules and etiquette 3.4 Rise of electronic correspondence 3.5 Collecting 3.6 Deregulation 4 Types of mail 4.1 Letters 4.1.1 First-class 4.1.2 Registered and recorded mail 4.1.3 Repositionable notes 4.2 Postal cards and postcards 4.3 Other mail services 5 See also 6 Notes 7 References 8 External links

Early postal systems

Many early post systems consisted of fixed courier routes. Here, a post house on a postal route in 19th century Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a region lying in the Eastern part of Europe. The term is highly context-dependent and even volatile, as there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region". A related UN paper adds that "every assessment of spatial identities is essentially a social and cultural construct&

The art of communication by written documents carried by an intermediary from one person or place to another almost certainly dates back nearly to the invention of writing Writing is the representation of language in a textual medium through the use of a set of signs or symbols . It is distinguished from illustration, such as cave drawing and painting, and non-symbolic preservation of language via non-textual media, such as magnetic tape audio. However, development of formal postal systems occurred much later. The first documented use of an organized courier A courier is a person or a company employed to deliver messages, packages, and mail. Couriers are distinguished from ordinary mail services by features such as speed, security, tracking, signature, specialization and individualization of services, and committed delivery times, which are optional for most everyday mail services. As a premium service for the diffusion of written documents is in Egypt Egypt (pronounced /ˈiːdʒɪpt/ ; Arabic: مصر‎ Miṣr, pronounced [misˤɾ] ( listen); Arabic: مِصْر Miṣr [ˈmisˤɾ]; Egyptian Arabic: مَصْر Maṣr [ˈmɑsˤɾ]; Coptic: Ⲭⲏⲙⲓ, kīmi; Egyptian: 𓆎𓅓𓏏𓊖 Kemet), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula, where Pharaohs Pharaoh is a title used in many modern discussions of the ancient Egyptian rulers of all periods. In antiquity this title began to be used for the ruler who was the religious and political leader of united ancient Egypt. This was true only during the New Kingdom, specifically during the middle of the eighteenth dynasty. For simplification, however, used couriers for the diffusion of their decrees in the territory of the State (2400 BC). This practice almost certainly has roots in the much older practice of oral messaging and may have been built on a pre-existing infrastructure.

Persia

The first credible claim for the development of a real postal system comes from Ancient Persia History of Iran has been intertwined to the history of a larger historical region, Greater Iran, which consists of the area from the Euphrates in the west to the Indus River and Jaxartes in the east and from the Caucasus, Caspian Sea, and Aral Sea in the north to the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman in the south but the point of invention remains in question. The best documented claim (Xenophon Xenophon , son of Gryllus, of the deme Erchia of Athens, also known as Xenophon of Athens, was a Greek historian, soldier, mercenary, and a contemporary and admirer of Socrates. He is known for his writings on the history of his own times, the 4th century BC, preserving the sayings of Socrates, and the life of ancient Greece) attributes the invention to the Persian King Cyrus the Great Cyrus the Great (c. 600 BC or 576 BC – December 530 BC), also known as Cyrus II or Cyrus of Persia, was the first Zoroastrian Persian emperor. He was the founder of the Persian Empire under the Achaemenid dynasty (550 BC)^[2], while other writers credit his successor Darius I of Persia Darius I of Persia , also known as Darius the Great, was the third king of kings of the Achaemenid Empire. Darius held the empire at its peak, then including Egypt, and parts of Greece. The decay and downfall of the empire commenced with his death and the coronation of his son, Xerxes I (521 BC). Other sources claim much earlier dates for an Assyrian postal system, with credit given to Hammurabi Hammurabi (Akkadian from Amorite ˤAmmurāpi, "the kinsman is a healer," from ˤAmmu, "paternal kinsman," and Rāpi, "healer"; ) was the sixth king of Babylon from 1792 BC to 1750 BC middle chronology (1728 BC – 1686 BC short chronology) He became the first king of the Babylonian Empire following the abdication of (1700 BC) and Sargon II Sargon II was an Assyrian king. Sargon II became co-regent with Shalmaneser V in 722 BC, and became the sole ruler of the kingdom of Assyria in 722 BC after the death of Shalmaneser V. It is not clear whether he was the son of Tiglath-Pileser III or a usurper unrelated to the royal family. In his inscriptions, he styles himself as a new man, (722 BC). Mail may not have been the primary mission of this postal service, however. The role of the system as an intelligence gathering apparatus is well documented, and the service was (later) called angariae, a term that in time turned to indicate a tax system. The Old Testament The Old Testament is the collection of books that forms the first of the two-part Christian Biblical canon. The contents of the Old Testament canon vary from church to church, with the Orthodox communion having 51 books: the shared books are those of the shortest canon, that of the major Protestant communions, with 39 books (Esther Esther , born Hadassah, is the eponymous heroine of the Biblical Book of Esther. According to the Bible she was a Jewish queen of the Persian king Ahasuerus (traditionally identified with Xerxes I). Her story is the basis for the celebration of Purim in Jewish tradition, VIII) makes mention of this system: Ahasuerus Xerxes the Great, also known as Xerxes I of Persia, (reigned 485–465 BC) was a Zoroastrian Persian Shahanshah (Emperor) of the Achaemenid Empire, king of Medes The Medes, were an ancient Iranian people who lived in the northwestern portions of present-day Iran. This area is known as Media (also Medea; Greek Μηδία, Old Persian Māda; the English adjective is Median, antiquated also Medean). They entered this region with the first wave of Iranian tribes, in the late second millennium BC (the Bronze, used couriers for communicating his decisions.

The Persian The Achaemenid Empire (ca. 550–330 BCE), also known as the Persian Empire, was the successor state of the Median Empire, ruling over significant portions of what would become Greater Iran. The Persian and the Median Empire taken together are also known as the Medo-Persian Empire, which encompassed the combined territories of several earlier system worked on stations (called Chapar-Khaneh), where the message carrier (called Chapar) would ride to the next post, whereupon he would swap his horse with a fresh one, for maximum performance and delivery speed. Herodotus Herodotus was an ancient Greek historian who lived in the 5th century BC (c. 484 BC – c. 425 BC). He was born in Caria, Halicarnassus (modern day Bodrum, Turkey). He is regarded as the "Father of History" in Western culture. He was the first historian known to collect his materials systematically, test their accuracy to a certain described the system in this way: "It is said that as many days as there are in the whole journey, so many are the men and horses that stand along the road, each horse and man at the interval of a day’s journey; and these are stayed neither by snow nor rain nor heat nor darkness from accomplishing their appointed course with all speed".^[3]

South Asia

The use of the Scinde Dawk Scinde Dawk was a very old postal system of runners that served the Indus Valley of Sindh, an area of present-day Pakistan. The term also refers to the first postage stamps in Asia, the forerunners of the adhesive stamps used throughout India, Burma, the Straits Settlements and other areas controlled by the British East India Company. The name adhesive stamps to signify the prepayment of postage began on 1 July 1852 in the Scinde Sindh, Indus is one of the four provinces of Pakistan and historically is home to the Sindhi people. It is also locally known as the "Mehran" (مهران) and "Bab-ul-Islam" (باب الاسلام) The Door to Islam, because Islam in South Asia was first introduced via Sindh. Different cultural and ethnic groups also reside in/Sindh Sindh, Indus is one of the four provinces of Pakistan and historically is home to the Sindhi people. It is also locally known as the "Mehran" (مهران) and "Bab-ul-Islam" (باب الاسلام) The Door to Islam, because Islam in South Asia was first introduced via Sindh. Different cultural and ethnic groups also reside in district,^[4] as part of a comprehensive reform of the district's postal system.

The economic growth and political stability under the Mauryan empire The Maurya Empire was a geographically extensive and powerful empire in ancient India, ruled by the Mauryan dynasty from 321 to 185 BC. Originating from the kingdom of Magadha in the Indo-Gangetic plains in the eastern side of the Indian subcontinent, the empire had its capital city at Pataliputra (modern Patna). The Empire was founded in 322 BC (322–185 BC) saw the development of impressive civil infrastructure in ancient India Home to the ancient Indus Valley Civilisation and a region of historic trade routes and vast empires, the Indian subcontinent was identified with its commercial and cultural wealth for much of its long history. Four major religions, Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism originated here, while Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The Mauryans developed early Indian mail service as well as public wells, rest houses and other facilities for the common public.^[5] Common chariots called Dagana were sometimes used as mail chariots in ancient India.^[6]

In ancient times the kings, emperors, rulers, zamindars or the feudal lords protected their land through the intelligence services of specially trained police or military agencies and courier services to convey and obtain information through runners, messengers and even through pigeons. The chief of the secret service, known as the postmaster, maintained the lines of communication ... The people used to send letters to [their] distant relatives through their friends or neighbors.^[7]

Early stamps of India Home to the ancient Indus Valley Civilisation and a region of historic trade routes and vast empires, the Indian subcontinent was identified with its commercial and cultural wealth for much of its long history. Four major religions, Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism originated here, while Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam were watermarked A watermark is a recognizable image or pattern in paper that appears as various shades of lightness/darkness when viewed by transmitted light , caused by thickness or density variations in the paper. There are two main ways of producing watermarks in paper; the dandy roll process, and the more complex cylinder mould process with an elephant's head.

In South India Southern India, also known as the Dravida in the Indian anthem, is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area. South India lies in the peninsular Deccan Plateau and is bounded by the Arabian Sea in the, the Wodeyar dynasty The Wodeyar dynasty was an Indian royal dynasty that ruled the Kingdom of Mysore from 1399 to 1947, until the independence of India from British rule and the subsequent unification of British dominions and princely states into the Republic of India (1399 - 1947) of the Kingdom of Mysore The Kingdom of Mysore (1399–1947 AD) was a kingdom of southern India, traditionally believed to have been founded in 1399 in the vicinity of the modern city of Mysore. The kingdom, which was ruled by the Wodeyar family, initially served as a vassal state of the Vijayanagara Empire. With the decline of the Vijayanagara Empire (circa 1565), the used mail service for espionage purposes thereby acquiring knowledge related to matters that took place at great distances.^[8]

By the end of the Eighteenth century the postal system in India had reached impressive levels of efficiency. According to British national Thomas Broughton, the Maharaja Mahārāja is a Sanskrit title for a "great king" or "high king". The female equivalent title Maharani (or Maharanee) denotes either the wife of a Mahārāja or, in states where that was customary, a woman ruling in her own right. The widow of a maharajah is known as a Rajmata. The term Maharaj denotes separate noble and of Jodhpur Jodhpur pronunciation (Rajasthani: जोधाणा; Hindi: जोधपुर), is the second largest city in the Indian state of Rajasthan. It was formerly the seat of a princely state of the same name, the capital of the kingdom known as Marwar. Jodhpur is a popular tourist destination, featuring many palaces, forts and temples, set in the sent daily offerings of fresh flowers from his capital to Nathadvara (320 km) and they arrived in time for the first religious Darshan Darśana is a Sanskrit term meaning "sight" (in the sense of an instance of seeing or beholding; from a root dṛś "to see"), vision, apparition, or glimpse. It is most commonly used for "visions of the divine," e.g., of a god or a very holy person or artifact. One could "receive darshana" of the deity in at sunrise.^[9] Later this system underwent complete modernization when the British Raj The British Raj is the name given to the period of British colonial rule in South Asia between 1858 and 1947; it can also refer to the dominion itself, and even the region under the rule. The region, commonly called India in contemporary usage, included areas directly administered by Britain, as well as the princely states ruled by individual established its full control over India. The Post Office Act XVII of 1837 provided that the Governor-General of India in Council had the exclusive right of conveying letters by post for hire within the territories of the East India Company. The mails were available to certain officials without charge, which became a controversial privilege as the years passed. On this basis the Indian Post Office was established on October 1, 1837.^[10]

China

Main article: Chinese postal system The story of the postage stamps and postal history of China is complicated by the gradual decay of imperial China and the years of civil war and Japanese occupation in the 1930s and 1940s China China is seen variously as an ancient civilization extending over a large area in East Asia, a nation and/or a multinational entity 4-cent on 100-dollar silver overprint of 1949

China enjoyed postal relay stations since the Han dynasty The Han Dynasty was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin Dynasty (221–206 BCE) and succeeded by the Three Kingdoms (220–265 CE). It was founded by the peasant rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han. It was briefly interrupted by the Xin Dynasty (9–23 CE) of the former regent Wang Mang. This (206 BC-220 AD). During the Yuan Dynasty The Yuan Dynasty , Mongolian: Dai Ön Ulus/Дай Юан Улс), or Great Yuan Empire (simplified Chinese: 大元帝国; traditional Chinese: 大元帝國; pinyin: Dà Yuán Dìguó) was both the continuation of the Mongol Empire and the Mongol founded historical state in Mongolia and China, lasting officially from 1271 to 1368. Although the under Kublai Khan Kublai or Khubilai Khan (Mongolian: Хубилай хаан; Chinese: 忽必烈; pinyin: Hūbìliè), was the fifth Great Khan of the Mongol Empire from 1260 to 1294 and the founder of the Yuan Dynasty in China. As the second son of Tolui and Sorghaghtani Beki and a grandson of Genghis Khan, he claimed the title of Khagan of the Ikh Mongol Uls (, China was integrated into the much larger Örtöö system of the Mongol Empire The Mongol Empire (Mongolian: Монголын Эзэнт Гүрэн , Mongolyn Ezent Güren or Их Mонгол улс, Ikh Mongol Uls) was an empire from the 13th and 14th century spanning from Eastern Europe across Asia. It is the largest contiguous empire in the history of the world. It emerged from the unification of Mongol and Turkic tribes.

Rome

The first well documented postal service is that of Rome Rome (English pronunciation: /ˈroʊm/; Italian: Roma listen , pronounced [ˈroːma]; Latin: Rōma) is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated municipality (central area), with over 2.7 million residents in 1,285.3 km2 (496.3 sq mi). While the population of the urban area was estimated by Eurostat to have been 3.46. Organized at the time of Augustus Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus was the first ruler of the Roman Empire, which he ruled alone from January 27 BC until his death in AD 14.[note 1] Born Gaius Octavius Thurinus, he was adopted posthumously by his great-uncle Gaius Julius Caesar in 44 BC, and between then and 31 BC was officially named Gaius Julius Caesar. In 27 BC the Senate awarded (62 BC–AD 14 Year 14 was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar), it may also be the first true mail service. The service was called cursus publicus The cursus publicus was the state-run courier and transportation service of the Roman Empire, later inherited by the Byzantine Empire. It was created by Emperor Augustus to transport messages, officials, and tax revenues from one province to another. The service was still fully functioning in the first half of the sixth century in the Byzantine and was provided with light carriages called rhedæ with fast horses. Additionally, there was another slower service equipped with two-wheeled carts (birolæ) pulled by oxen. This service was reserved for government correspondence. Another service for citizens was later added.

Mongol Empire

Genghis Khan Genghis Khan , IPA: [tʃiŋɡɪs xaːŋ]( listen); probably 1162–1227), born B. Temüjin ( pronunciation (help·info), was the founder, Khan (ruler) and Khagan (emperor) of the Mongol Empire, which became the largest contiguous empire in history after his death installed an empire-wide messenger and postal station system named Örtöö within the Mongol Empire The Mongol Empire (Mongolian: Монголын Эзэнт Гүрэн , Mongolyn Ezent Güren or Их Mонгол улс, Ikh Mongol Uls) was an empire from the 13th and 14th century spanning from Eastern Europe across Asia. It is the largest contiguous empire in the history of the world. It emerged from the unification of Mongol and Turkic tribes. During the Yuan Dynasty under Kublai Khan, this system also covered the territory of China. Postal stations were used not only for the transmission and delivery of official mail, but were also available for traveling officials, military men, and foreign dignitaries. These stations aided and facilitated the transport of foreign and domestic tribute, and trade in general. By the end of Kublai Khan's rule there were more than 1400 postal stations in China alone, which in turn had at their disposal about 50000 horses, 1400 oxen, 6700 mules, 400 carts, 6000 boats, over 200 dogs and 1150 sheep.^[11]

The stations were 15 to 40 miles apart and had reliable attendants working for the mail service. Foreign observers, such as Marco Polo have attested to the efficiency of this early postal system.^[11]

Other systems

Another important postal service was created in the Islamic world by the caliph Mu'awiyya; the service was called barid, by the name of the towers built to protect the roads by which couriers travelled.

Well before the Middle Ages and during them, homing pigeons were used for pigeon post, taking advantage of a singular quality of this bird, which when taken far from its nest is able to find his way home due to a particularly developed sense of orientation. Messages were then tied around the legs of the pigeon, which was freed and could reach his original nest.

Mail has been transported by quite a few other methods throughout history, including dogsled, balloon, rocket, mule, pneumatic tubes and even submarine.

Charlemagne extended to the whole territory of his empire the system used by Franks in northern Gaul, and connected this service with the service of missi dominici.

Many religious orders had a private mail service, notably Cistercians' one connected more than 6,000 abbeys, monasteries and churches. The best organization however was created by the Knights Templar. The newly instituted universities too had their private services, starting from Bologna (1158).

Popular illiteracy was accommodated through the service of scribes. Illiterates who needed to communicate dictated their messages to a scribe, another profession now quite generally disappeared.

In 1505, Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I established a postal system in the Empire, appointing Franz von Thurn und Taxis to run it. The Thurn and Taxis family, then known as Tassis, had operated postal services between Italian city states from 1290 onwards. Following the abolition of the Empire in 1806 the Thurn and Taxis postal system continued as a private organisation, continuing to exist into the postage stamp era before finally being absorbed into the postal system of the new German Empire after 1871.

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