Time is based on the rotation of the earth, or more specifically, the earth's rotation. The earth rotates. It takes time for the earth to make one rotation. This time is first determined as a day.
In ancient times, when people did not have clocks, they used the stars to measure the time of day. The time it takes for a star to come to exactly the same place again is called a day.
The only reason why they decided on a day is because it was the most natural. The only reason why we decided on a day is because it was the most natural.
Once the time of day is determined, the next question is how many times to divide that time. Currently, the time of day is divided into 24 segments. This was also decided long ago, and there is a reason why the number 24 was chosen at that time.
To understand the meaning of 24, we must first know the meaning of the number 12. In ancient times, people made a calendar by looking at the moon. The moon waxes and wanes and returns to its original position in about 30 days. In other words, the reason why a month is approximately 30 days long is because of the ideas of the ancients, who made their calendars by looking at the moon.
By the way, the moon waxes and wanes in 30 days, and when it waxes and wanes 12 times, it will turn into a year. People in ancient times knew this. Therefore, the number 12 was very important as a dividing point between things.
When determining the time of year, that is, the number 12 was used to divide the day into several parts. This was the reason why the people of Mesopotamia divided the day into 12 hours long ago.
However, those who lived in Egypt divided the day into night and day, and then divided each into 12. The day would then be 12 hours long and the night 12 hours long, making a total of 24 hours in a day.