Minoan civilization flourished on the island of Crete from the early 3rd millennium BCE and dominated the Aegean into the mid-2nd millennium. The name "Minoan" was given by the early-20th-century archaeologist Arthur Evans, after the legendary king Minos.

Minoan society was organised around great "palace complexes," the most famous of which is Knossos. These were not merely royal residences but storage centres, workshops, ritual spaces, and administrative hubs. The absence of fortifications is striking; they seem to have entrusted defence to the sea and to their fleet.

Minoan wall paintings — leaping dolphins, female figures, bull-leaping scenes — speak a more dynamic and naturalistic visual language than those of Egypt or Mesopotamia. They developed two writing systems: Linear A (still undeciphered) and Linear B, later adapted by the Mycenaeans for Greek.

The civilization was deeply affected by the volcanic eruption of Thera (Santorini) in the 16th century BCE and by the subsequent rise of the Mycenaeans. By around 1100 BCE its political life had ended — but it laid the groundwork for Greek mythology and Aegean trade culture.