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  • Essay / The Neolithic Revolution and Social Change

    The Neolithic Revolution is so called because it marked the transition from small, nomadic hunter-gatherer peoples to larger, more permanent horticultural settlements. It started around 10,000 years ago, people learned to grow crops instead of relying solely on nature to provide them with everything they needed. They also began breeding certain types of animals for food and domestication. There is no exact factor that led to the Neolithic Revolution. There are a few theories as to why this started, these factors can also vary from country to country. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay The revolution started after the last ice age, so many scientists thought it started because of climate change. In areas like the Fertile Crescent, wild wheat and barley began to grow and people in these areas consumed these grains. It has also been hypothesized that developments in the human brain led to their stabilization. Archaeologists have discovered religious objects and artistic images created by some of the earliest people of the Neolithic period. These discoveries would be considered the “ancestors” of human civilization. The Neolithic era began when humans completely abandoned their hunter-gatherer lifestyle and devoted themselves to agriculture. It started with small gardens to feed their families, but grew into large crops to feed not only themselves but also other villagers. People did not settle in by the dozens; they were able to settle in groups of hundreds thanks to the storage of surplus harvests in objects such as terracotta pots. Indeed, they have accumulated a lot of knowledge about plants during the many years they have lived off natural vegetation. They also created a range of advanced stone tools. The transition from wanderers to settlers led them to cooperate with each other in tending the land (weeding, watering, etc.), storing agricultural products, and raising children. The Neolithic Revolution not only brought about agricultural change, it also brought about social change. People relied more on each other and created new social models. Which was expressed in stories, myths, ceremonies and rituals. Social class and any authoritarian state remained absent in the 4000 BC and 3000 BC. There was also no evidence of male supremacy. In fact, there were statues of women suggesting a high status for them. One development that has not gone unnoticed is the development of weapons of war and hunting. The land that people worked on was not privately owned by each household or lineage (a group of people related by blood or marriage). was responsible for certain areas but owned the entire village. Private property did not really exist at that time. Everyone had to share the food; it was to ensure that no one would die of hunger. Especially those who have many young children. “Prestige does not come from individual consumption, but from the ability to contribute to filling the deficiencies of others. » In other words, no one starves unless everyone does. Households with fewer mouths to feed provided assistance to families with many mouths to feed, especially if they had young children. Just like today, children represented the future workforce,so that families with the greatest number of children were those most protected against disappearance. Generally, a woman could not afford to have more than one child at a time. She might have another one when the others all start walking. Birth rates were spaced 3 to 4 years apart. Populations have increased steadily and quadrupled in 2 millennia. The Neolithic era began with around ten million people and grew to around 200 million. Disputes encountered by previous hunter-gatherers were resolved by splitting the group or leaving individuals. In a settled community, food supplies were threatened and more likely to be looted from other villages. War was now a problem that people faced. This led to a sort of council made up of senior figures from each lineage. Once agriculture was established throughout the world, trade began. They discovered it could radically improve their lives. Fish, game, animal skins, fabrics or drinks were most often exchanged with others. Breeding and raising animals has become increasingly popular. These changes led to a final social change: the first development of social ranks. “Chiefdoms” emerged with certain groups or individuals enjoying higher status than others. However, it is not like the upper classes we know today. A leader must supervise surplus food, tools, weapons and other goods. They must also provide whatever families or individuals need. These leaders had to work harder than anyone else to keep the village happy and healthy. The effects of the Neolithic revolution that still remain today are the domestication of certain plants. In the Fertile Crescent, wheat and barley were first, but they were also responsible for lentils, chickpeas, peas and flax. Domestication has also led to genetic manipulation, in plants or animals. This allowed farmers to select more desirable traits. This is abundantly clear when we look at an animal or plant today and then look at its ancestors. For example, wheat falls and breaks when it is ripe. Early humans bred it to stay on the stem for easier harvesting. Around the same time, Asians began growing rice and millet. Scientists have discovered archaeological fragments of Stone Age rice fields in Chinese swamps dating back at least 7,700 years. In Mexico, squash cultivation began around 10,000 years ago and corn crops began around 9,000 years ago. The first livestock were domesticated from animals that Neolithic humans hunted for meat. Domestic pigs, for example, came from wild boars. Early farm animals also included sheep and cattle. These originated in Mesopotamia between 10,000 and 13,000 years ago. The water buffalo and yak were domesticated soon after in China, India and Tibet. Oxen, donkeys, and camels appeared much later, around 4,000 BC, when humans developed trade routes for transporting goods. Due to the increase in population and natural events such as droughts, floods or frosts, people have had to resort to different methods to maintain their habitat. lives. One was to invade other villages and the other was to create more intensive and productive forms of agriculture. As.