Civil engineering | Definition, History, Functions, Branches, & Facts

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border-right-sm border-left-sm open"> <div class="drawer d-flex flex-column open"> <div class="left-rail-section-content"> <div class="topic-left-rail-header text-truncate bg-gray-50 position-relative text-right d-flex align-items-center"> <div class="tlr-title px-20 py-15 text-left"> <em class="material-icons text-gray-400 d-lg-none" data-icon="toc"></em> <a class="font-serif font-weight-bold text-black link-blue" href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/civil-engineering">civil engineering</a> </div> <button aria-label="Close" class="js-sections-close-button btn-link btn-sm btn d-lg-none position-absolute top-0 p-10 right-0" > <em class="material-icons font-26" data-icon="close"></em> </button> </div> <div class="section-content pl-10 pr-20 pl-sm-50 pr-sm-60 pl-lg-5 pr-lg-10 pt-10 pt-lg-0 bg-gray-50 clear-catfish-ad"> <div class="toc mb-20"> <div class="font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mx-15 mb-15 mt-20"> Table of Contents </div> <ul class="list-unstyled my-0" data-level="h1"><li data-target="#ref1"><div class="pl-25"><a class="link-gray-900 w-100" href="/technology/civil-engineering">Introduction</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"></div></li><li data-target="#ref64656"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><div class="ml-25"></div><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/technology/civil-engineering#ref64656">History</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"></div></li><li data-target="#ref64657"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><button class="h1-link-drawer-button btn btn-xs btn-circle d-flex rounded" type="button" aria-label="Toggle Heading"><em class="material-icons font-18" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_right"></em></button><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/technology/civil-engineering#ref64657">Civil engineering functions</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref64658"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/technology/civil-engineering#ref64658">Feasibility studies</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref64659"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/technology/civil-engineering#ref64659">Site investigations</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref64660"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/technology/civil-engineering#ref64660">Design</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref64661"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/technology/civil-engineering/Construction">Construction</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref64662"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/technology/civil-engineering/Construction#ref64662">Maintenance</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref64663"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/technology/civil-engineering/Construction#ref64663">Research</a></li></ul></div></li><li data-target="#ref64664"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><button class="h1-link-drawer-button btn btn-xs btn-circle d-flex rounded" type="button" aria-label="Toggle Heading"><em class="material-icons font-18" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_right"></em></button><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/technology/civil-engineering/Construction#ref64664">Branches of civil engineering</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref64665"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/technology/civil-engineering/Construction#ref64665">Construction</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref64666"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/technology/civil-engineering/Construction#ref64666">Transportation</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref64667"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/technology/civil-engineering/Maritime-and-hydraulic-engineering">Maritime and hydraulic engineering</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref64668"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/technology/civil-engineering/Maritime-and-hydraulic-engineering#ref64668">Power</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref64669"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/technology/civil-engineering/Maritime-and-hydraulic-engineering#ref64669">Public health</a></li></ul></div></li></ul> <a class="toc-extra-link link-gray-900" href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/civil-engineering/additional-info">References & Edit History</a> <a class="toc-extra-link link-gray-900" href="/facts/civil-engineering">Related Topics</a> </div> <div class="tlr-media-slider pb-10 mb-30"> <a class="section-header link-gray-900 font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mb-10 mx-10" href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/civil-engineering/images-videos">Images & Videos</a> <div class="slider js-slider position-relative d-inline-flex 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They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link font-12 "> The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</span></div> <div class="last-updated font-12 font-serif"> <span class="text-gray-700"> Last Updated: <time datetime="2025-01-27T00:00:00CST" >Jan 27, 2025</time> •</span> <a class="byline-edit-history" href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/civil-engineering/additional-info#history" rel="nofollow">Article History</a> </div></div> </div> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button d-none d-sm-block js-sections-inline-button module-spacing btn d-lg-none"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <div class="d-flex d-sm-none flex-row"> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm 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additional news items"> Show less <em class="material-icons" data-icon="expand_less"></em> </button> </div> </div><span class="marker before-article"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref1"><span class="marker PREMOD1 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph"><strong><span id="ref154278"></span>civil engineering</strong>, the profession of designing and executing structural works that serve the general public, such as <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/dam-engineering" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">dams</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/bridge-engineering" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">bridges</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/aqueduct-engineering" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">aqueducts</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/canal-waterway" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">canals</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/highway" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">highways</a>, power plants, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/sewerage-system" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">sewerage systems</a>, and other <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="infrastructure" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/infrastructure" data-type="MW">infrastructure</a>. The term was first used in the 18th century to distinguish the newly recognized profession from <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/military-engineering" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">military engineering</a>, until then preeminent. From earliest times, however, engineers have engaged in peaceful activities, and many of the civil engineering works of ancient and <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="medieval" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/medieval" data-type="MW">medieval</a> times—such as the Roman public baths, roads, bridges, and aqueducts; the Flemish canals; the Dutch sea defenses; the French Gothic cathedrals; and many other monuments—reveal a history of inventive genius and persistent experimentation.</p><span class="marker MOD1 mod-inline"></span></section> <span class="marker h2"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref64656"> <h2 class="h1">History</h2> <span class="marker PREMOD2 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The beginnings of civil engineering as a separate <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="discipline" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/discipline" data-type="MW">discipline</a> may be seen in the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/foundation-construction" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">foundation</a> in <span id="ref154279"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/France" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">France</a> in 1716 of the <span id="ref154280"></span>Bridge and Highway Corps, out of which in 1747 grew the <span id="ref154281"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Ecole-Nationale-des-Ponts-et-Chaussees" class="md-crosslink ">École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées</a> (“National School of Bridges and Highways”). Its teachers wrote books that became standard works on the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/mechanics" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">mechanics</a> of materials, machines, and hydraulics, and leading British engineers learned French to read them. As design and calculation replaced rule of thumb and <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="empirical" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/empirical" data-type="MW">empirical</a> formulas, and as expert knowledge was codified and formulated, the nonmilitary engineer moved to the front of the stage. Talented, if often self-taught, craftsmen, stonemasons, millwrights, toolmakers, and instrument makers became civil engineers. In Britain, <span id="ref154282"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/James-Brindley" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">James Brindley</a> began as a millwright and became the foremost canal builder of the century; <span id="ref154283"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Rennie" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">John Rennie</a> was a millwright’s apprentice who eventually built the new <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Old-London-Bridge" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">London Bridge</a>; <span id="ref154284"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Thomas-Telford" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Thomas Telford</a>, a stonemason, became Britain’s leading road builder.</p><span class="marker MOD2 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD3 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="208050" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media" data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/13/189513-050-D73988F5/John-Smeaton-Eddystone-Lighthouse-Plymouth-Hoe-England.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/119227/208050"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/13/189513-050-D73988F5/John-Smeaton-Eddystone-Lighthouse-Plymouth-Hoe-England.jpg?w=300"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/13/189513-050-D73988F5/John-Smeaton-Eddystone-Lighthouse-Plymouth-Hoe-England.jpg?w=300" alt="Eddystone Lighthouse: John Smeaton's tower" data-width="1600" data-height="1098" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/13/189513-050-D73988F5/John-Smeaton-Eddystone-Lighthouse-Plymouth-Hoe-England.jpg" data-href="/media/1/119227/208050">Eddystone Lighthouse: John Smeaton's tower</a><span>John Smeaton's Eddystone Lighthouse rebuilt on Plymouth Hoe, Plymouth, England.</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph"><span id="ref154285"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Smeaton" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">John Smeaton</a>, the first man to call himself a civil engineer, began as an instrument maker. His design of <span id="ref1301165"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Eddystone-Lighthouse-Eddystone-Rocks-English-Channel" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Eddystone Lighthouse</a> (1756–59), with its interlocking <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/masonry" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">masonry</a>, was based on a craftsman’s experience. Smeaton’s work was backed by thorough research, and his services were much in demand. In 1771 he founded the Society of Civil Engineers (now known as the <span id="ref154286"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Smeatonian-Society" class="md-crosslink ">Smeatonian Society</a>). Its object was to bring together experienced engineers, <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="entrepreneurs" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/entrepreneurs" data-type="MW">entrepreneurs</a>, and lawyers to promote the building of large <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/public-utility" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">public works</a>, such as canals (and later railways), and to secure the parliamentary powers necessary to execute their schemes. Their meetings were held during parliamentary sessions; the society follows this custom to this day.</p><span class="marker MOD3 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD4 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Ecole-Polytechnique" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">École Polytechnique</a> was founded in Paris in 1794, and the Bauakademie was started in Berlin in 1799, but no such schools existed in Great Britain for another two decades. It was this lack of opportunity for scientific study and for the exchange of experiences that led a group of young men in 1818 to found the <span id="ref154287"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Institution-of-Civil-Engineers" class="md-crosslink ">Institution of Civil Engineers</a>. The founders were keen to learn from one another and from their elders, and in 1820 they invited Thomas Telford, by then the dean of British civil engineers, to be their first president. There were similar developments elsewhere. By the mid-19th century there were civil engineering societies in many European countries and the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/United-States" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">United States</a>, and the following century produced similar institutions in almost every country in the world.</p><span class="marker MOD4 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD5 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Formal education in <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/engineering" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">engineering</a> <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/science" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">science</a> became widely available as other countries followed the lead of France and Germany. In Great Britain the universities, traditionally seats of classical learning, were reluctant to embrace the new <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="disciplines" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/disciplines" data-type="MW">disciplines</a>. <span id="ref1301164"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/university-college" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">University College</a>, London, founded in 1826, provided a broad range of academic studies and offered a course in mechanical philosophy. <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Columbia-University" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">King’s College</a>, London, first taught civil engineering in 1838, and in 1840 Queen Victoria founded the first chair of civil engineering and mechanics at the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/University-of-Glasgow" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">University of Glasgow</a>, Scotland. <span id="ref1301163"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Rensselaer-Polytechnic-Institute" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute</a>, founded in 1824, offered the first courses in civil engineering in the United States. The number of universities throughout the world with engineering faculties, including civil engineering, increased rapidly in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Civil engineering today is taught in universities across the world.</p><div class="module-spacing"> </div><span class="marker MOD5 mod-inline"></span> </section> <span class="marker h3"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref64657"> <h2 class="h1">Civil engineering functions</h2> <span class="marker PREMOD6 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The functions of the civil engineer can be divided into three categories: those performed before <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/construction" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">construction</a> (feasibility studies, site investigations, and design), those performed during construction (dealing with clients, consulting engineers, and contractors), and those performed after construction (maintenance and research).</p><span class="marker MOD6 mod-inline"></span> <section data-level="2" id="ref64658"> <h2 class="h2">Feasibility studies</h2> <span class="marker PREMOD7 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">No major project today is started without an extensive study of the objective and without preliminary studies of possible plans leading to a recommended scheme, perhaps with <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="alternatives" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/alternatives" data-type="MW">alternatives</a>. Feasibility studies may cover <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="alternative" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/alternative" data-type="MW">alternative</a> methods—e.g., bridge versus tunnel, in the case of a water crossing—or, once the method is decided, the choice of route. Both economic and engineering problems must be considered.</p><div class="module-spacing"> <DIV class="marketing-INLINE_SUBSCRIPTION marketing-content" data-marketing-id="INLINE_SUBSCRIPTION"><style> .student-promo-banner-wrapper { container-type: inline-size; margin-bottom: 15px; } @container (min-width: 475px) { .student-promo-banner { flex-direction: row; } .student-promo-banner-img-wrapper { margin-bottom: 0; margin-right: 10px; justify-content: flex-start; } .student-promo-banner-text-wrapper { text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 10px; } .student-promo-banner-button-wrapper { margin-right: 0; } }</style> <div class="student-promo-banner-wrapper"> <div class="student-promo-banner d-flex flex-column align-items-center bg-blue rounded p-20"> <div class="student-promo-banner-img-wrapper mb-20 mr-0 d-flex justify-content-center"> <img class="rounded" style="max-width: 100px; min-width: 80px" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/marketing/BlueThistle.webp" /> </div> <div class="student-promo-banner-text-wrapper ml-0 mb-10 text-center text-white"> <div class="h2 mb-10">Get Unlimited Access</div> <div class="h4 font-weight-semi-bold">Try Britannica Premium for free and discover more.</div> </div> <div class="student-promo-banner-button-wrapper d-flex justify-content-center align-items-center ml-auto mr-auto"> <a class="btn btn-m btn-orange" href="https://premium.britannica.com/premium-membership/?utm_source=premium&utm_medium=inline-cta&utm_campaign=august-2024">Subscribe</a> </div> </div> </div> </DIV></div><span class="marker MOD7 mod-inline"></span> </section> <section data-level="2" id="ref64659"> <h2 class="h2">Site investigations</h2> <span class="marker PREMOD8 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">A preliminary site investigation is part of the feasibility study, but once a plan has been adopted a more extensive investigation is usually <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="imperative" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/imperative" data-type="MW">imperative</a>. Money spent in a rigorous study of ground and substructure may save large sums later in <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="remedial" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/remedial" data-type="MW">remedial</a> works or in changes made necessary in constructional methods.</p><span class="marker MOD8 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD9 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Since the load-bearing qualities and stability of the ground are such important factors in any large-scale construction, it is surprising that a serious study of <span id="ref154289"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/soil-mechanics" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">soil mechanics</a> did not develop until the mid-1930s. <span id="ref154290"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Karl-Terzaghi" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Karl von Terzaghi</a>, the chief founder of the science, gives the date of its birth as 1936, when the First International Conference on Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering was held at <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Harvard-University" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Harvard University</a> and an international society was formed. Today there are specialist societies and journals in many countries, and most universities that have a civil engineering <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="faculty" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/faculty" data-type="EB">faculty</a> have courses in soil mechanics.</p><div class="one-good-fact-module"> </div><span class="marker MOD9 mod-inline"></span> </section> <section data-level="2" id="ref64660"> <h2 class="h2"><span id="ref154291"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/design-arts-and-technology" class="md-crosslink ">Design</a></h2> <span class="marker PREMOD10 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The design of engineering works may require the application of design theory from many fields—e.g., <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/hydraulics" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">hydraulics</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/thermodynamics" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">thermodynamics</a>, or nuclear <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/physics-science" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">physics</a>. Research in structural analysis and the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/technology" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">technology</a> of materials has opened the way for more rational designs, new design concepts, and greater economy of materials. The theory of structures and the study of materials have advanced together as more and more refined stress analysis of structures and systematic testing has been done. Modern designers not only have advanced theories and readily available design data, but structural designs can now be rigorously analyzed by computers.</p><span class="marker MOD10 mod-inline"></span> </section> </section><span class="marker end-of-content"></span><span class="marker after-article"></span></div> <div id="chatbot-root"></div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="ai-dialog-placeholder"></div> </div> </div> <aside class="col-md-da-320"></aside> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article> </div> </div> </div> </div> </main> <div id="md-footer"></div> <noscript><iframe src="//www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-5W6NC8" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript> <script type="text/javascript" id="_informizely_script_tag"> var IzWidget = IzWidget || {}; (function (d) { var scriptElement = d.createElement('script'); scriptElement.type = 'text/javascript'; scriptElement.async = true; scriptElement.src = "https://insitez.blob.core.windows.net/site/f780f33e-a610-4ac2-af81-3eb184037547.js"; var node = d.getElementById('_informizely_script_tag'); node.parentNode.insertBefore(scriptElement, node); } )(document); </script>  <script> window.ap3c = window.ap3c || {}; var ap3c = window.ap3c; ap3c.cmd = ap3c.cmd || []; ap3c.cmd.push(function() { ap3c.init('ZO4siT4cLwnykPnzZWJtd3Byb2Q', 'https://engage.email.britannica.com/'); ap3c.track({v: 0}); }); ap3c.activity = function(act) { ap3c.act = (ap3c.act || []); ap3c.act.push(act); }; var s, t; s = document.createElement('script'); s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.src = "https://engage.email.britannica.com/app.js"; t = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; t.parentNode.insertBefore(s, t); </script> <script class="marketing-page-info" type="application/json"> {"pageType":"Topic","templateName":"DESKTOP","pageNumber":1,"pagesTotal":3,"pageId":119227,"pageLength":1014,"initialLoad":true,"lastPageOfScroll":false} </script> <script class="marketing-content-info" type="application/json"> [] </script> <script src="https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-133/js/libs/jquery-3.5.0.min.js?v=3.133.9"></script> <script type="text/javascript" data-type="Init Mendel Code Splitting"> (function() { $.ajax({ dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: 'https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-133/dist/topic-page.js?v=3.133.9' }); })(); </script> <script class="analytics-metadata" type="application/json"> {"leg":"A","adLeg":"A","userType":"ANONYMOUS","pageType":"Topic","pageSubtype":null,"articleTemplateType":"PAGINATED","gisted":false,"pageNumber":1,"hasSummarizeButton":false,"hasAskButton":true} </script> <script type="text/javascript"> EBStat={accountId:-1,hostnameOverride:'webstats.eb.com',domain:'www.britannica.com', json:''}; </script> <script type="text/javascript"> ( function() { $.ajax( { dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: '//www.britannica.com/webstats/mendelstats.js?v=1' } ) .done( function() { try {writeStat(null,EBStat);} catch(err){} } ); })(); </script> <div id="bc-fixed-dialogue"></div> </body> </html>

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Civil engineering | Definition, History, Functions, Branches, & Facts | Britannica