How did the nomadism of the eleventh and twelfth centuries lead to large empires in ways that had been impossible for hunter/gatherers of precivilization?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Answers will vary but correct responses should include: Nomadism lead to the formation of large empires due the fact that after successful conquests, the nomads could usually be absorbed and induced to adopt or tolerate settled ways of life. This enabled a culture to begin to set up the roots of a civilization that required a permanence that could not be accomplished by precivilization hunter/gathers that had to follow their food source. When nomads were able to find a way to meet their needs in one place and that location was stable, they could settle. They lacked the ability to produce certain commodities without the infrastructure and trading networks to support them. As settlements grew and were threatened by traveling nomads, many absorbed them into their culture and the process of civilization began. These civilizations continued to grow into empires that encompassed many of these nomadic tribes of precivilization.