What was the impact of agriculture on hunter-gatherers?
Shift to a Sedantary Lifestyle from a Nomadic Lifestyle
No longer had to chase game
Resulted in predictable food supply due to following harvests
Settled in one place
People built houses, villages, and cities as time went on
Allowed for higher population density
As time went on, families grew on the land they settled on and the population grew
Population Growth
Stable Food Supply
Increased birth rates
Improved Living Conditions
Resulting in a longer life spans for them
Settled Communities & Urbanization
More complex societies, for example, social hierarchies
Food Production
Increased Crop Yields
Creation of tools and techniques
Surplus and Storage
Stored food for the winter so they wouldn't go hungry
Different expertise were found out
People could specialize in different crafts and trade with others
Animal Domestication
Reliable Food Source
Gave them food security, not having to worry about when the next meal is
Labor and Transportation
Used horses as transportation
Protection and Defense
Domesticated some animals for security purposes
Survival & Conflict Advantages
Survival
Winter stockpile of food
Conflict
Helped develop warriors and defensive structures to help protect their land
Development of Civilization
Led to the rise of city-states
Allowed for social classes
Enabled technology & specialization
Made tecchnological advancements possible (pottery, writing systems, etc.)
Essential for modern civilization
Led to governments and laws
Theories for Why Agriculture Emerged
Climate Change
Warmer climate helped farming
Brain Development
Early humans may not have been able of farming
Population Pressure
Increased human numbers made farming easier and necessary
Global Spread of Agriculture
Middle East
First farming societies
Andes
Domestication of potatoes
China
Domestic of rice