Many believe that agricultural transformation was the real beginning of civilization, and that it was based on successful domestication of suitable species of animals and plants. The ability to raise crops and livestock, while resulting in larger and more secure supply of food, definitely required attachment to controllable sections of land, and hence brought about the growth of permanent settlements and of larger coordinated communities. The economic and physical security so gained accelerated the process of population growth and necessitated further expansion and intensification of production.
