The world of pastoral societies from 1200-1500 was a "utopian" community that shared several key issues, making them different from settled agricultural communities and civilizations. Pastoral societies lived in small related encampments of kinfolk called clans. I  use the word "utopian" as to what one refers to their own "ideal society?" To the pastoral societies in the world between 1200-1500, they had an ideal life that still exists in the San people of southern Africa today. Their value system stressed equality, less productive economies, individual achievements encouraged to be strong, and women were offered greater roles in public life, productive labor, able to remarry after being a widower, allowed to divorce, and many opportunities for the freedom to learn skills, or even ride horse, have choices and some control. Nomads were never homeless, "they know where they are going and why."