Here's why:
* Ancient Practice: Milking cows is a practice that dates back thousands of years. It likely arose independently in different parts of the world as people domesticated cattle and realized they could use their milk as a food source.
* No Written Record: There are no written records from the very earliest times to tell us exactly when or where milking first occurred.
* Evolutionary Development: The practice likely evolved gradually over time, starting with simply observing the behavior of calves nursing and then eventually learning to extract milk themselves.
What we do know:
* Domestication of Cattle: The domestication of cattle, a necessary precursor to milking, occurred around 10,000 years ago in different parts of the world, including the Near East, South Asia, and Europe.
* Evidence in Archaeological Sites: Archaeological evidence, such as pottery shards with milk residue, suggests that milking was widespread in ancient civilizations, including those in Europe, Asia, and Africa.
In summary, while we can't say definitively where or when milking was "discovered," it's a practice that has been around for a very long time, and likely arose independently in different regions of the world as humans learned to domesticate and utilize cattle.