ABSTRACT
In the modern world, institutionalized power is a basic fact of life. With the exception of a small number of disputed territories, the deep oceans, and Antarctica, the entire globe is carved up into sovereign entities in which a central government holds authority. Today, most archaeologists have a more subtle understanding of the development of politically complex human societies. A number of anthropologists have developed schemes for categorizing the types of social organization found in societies around the world. The advantage of Childe’s list of criteria is that they are likely to leave visible traces in the archaeological record. Inequality is an essential element of all human societies. State societies are divided into primary states, which form without external influence from neighboring state societies, and secondary states, which form under the influence of neighboring state societies.
