Civilisation is the formalisation of the interaction between people and groups, particularly the organisation of forms of economic, social, political, intellectual, architectural, artistic and religious life. Little of this was possible in the Late Palaeolithic when man was a nomadic hunter/gatherer with little disposable time, but in the Neolithic, once he became mainly sedentary and started to control his food environment, at least partially, by agriculture and animal husbandry, food became more varied and plentiful. Good quality food storage ensured a more stable and leisurely life and man’s “standard of living” improved significantly, relaxing restraints on fertility imposed by the previous need for mobility. Also food was made more nutritious and safer by cooking so people lived longer. It would give possibly toothless older people more time to pass on their experiences and beliefs to younger members of the tribe, which became increasingly more effective with improvements in spoken language. Once man had the basic goods for daily life he could turn to the outside world and develop social interaction, trade and alliances with his neighbours. The virtuous circle of increased time, information and stored knowledge meant relatively rapid development of ideas to improve their way of life. Residing in one area for longer periods made it sensible to invest time and materials to improve their environment, so technology improved, leading to better control of the wild animal population, construction of shelters, more effective stone tools and weapons, and, in time, improved pottery kilns and metal smelting. The social side was very important so rituals and symbols were used to reinforce group identity and eventually they developed into religions. Communal activities, such as irrigation, welded groups together, and “ownership” split into a family’s household goods and communal belongings such as sheepfolds, barns, public buildings and fortifications.

An upward spiral of food supplies created surpluses, as crop yields increased, supporting rapid population growth. Between 8,000 BC, when the human population of the world was made up of a few million – mainly hunter/gatherers, and 4,000 BC, the population increased sixteenfold. People lived in permanent villages giving rise to the pattern of village communities remaining today. Time was now available for some people to specialise in a craft such as weaving, pottery and carving, which meant more trading between people and communities. Usually these crafts were passed down from generation to generation. River systems were used extensively for communication and transport.

Humans are basically acquisitive when they have the opportunity, so once goods became available those who were able to started to enjoy amassing them. Having control over possessions permitted some to rule over others and possessions became an aim. This is the basis of the negative effects of what we call “civilisation” - seeking wealth and power and the imbalance of these that inevitably leads to annexation and war. A dichotomy already existed between the “civilised” world and the barbarian world outside. Sedentary “rich” communities would be targets for hungry wanderers to invade. Also, the excess food in good times, which led to large population growth, might not be sustainable in harder times, for example when climate changes caused droughts. These effects were likely to cause people to move or be driven out of their homelands and migrate to “better” areas. In turn these migrants might push others out of their lands so there would be a chain of displacements and onward migrations. The onslaught of nomadic peoples eager to enjoy the fruits of civilisation became a recurrent theme of world history. Although great fortifications were built to keep them out, it was not until the advent of effective firearms in the 15th century AD that the balance was tilted in favour of the civilised peoples.