{"id":4174,"date":"2014-03-28T17:33:15","date_gmt":"2014-03-28T17:33:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hellenic-culture.gr\/wordselidas-2\/"},"modified":"2024-07-31T16:34:01","modified_gmt":"2024-07-31T13:34:01","slug":"world","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/hellenic-culture.gr\/en\/world\/","title":{"rendered":"WORLD"},"content":{"rendered":"

[lollum_dropcap]T[\/lollum_dropcap]he\u00a0Neolithic\u00a0Era, or Period, from \u03bd\u03ad\u03bf\u03c2 (n\u00e9os, “new”) and \u03bb\u03af\u03b8\u03bf\u03c2 (l\u00edthos, “stone”), or\u00a0New Stone age, was a period in the development of human\u00a0<\/span>technology<\/span><\/a><\/span>, beginning about 10,200 BC, according to the\u00a0<\/span>ASPRO chronology<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world\u00a0<\/span>[1]<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0and ending between 4,500 and 2,000 BC.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Traditionally considered the last part of the\u00a0Stone Age<\/span><\/a><\/span>, the Neolithic followed the terminal\u00a0Holocene<\/span><\/a>\u00a0Epipaleolithic<\/span><\/a><\/i><\/span>\u00a0period and commenced with the beginning of\u00a0farming<\/span><\/a><\/span>, which produced the “Neolithic Revolution<\/span><\/a><\/span>“. It ended when metal tools became widespread (in the\u00a0Copper\u00a0Age<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>or\u00a0Bronze<\/span> Age<\/span><\/a>; or, in some geographical regions, in the\u00a0Iron Age<\/span><\/a><\/span>). The Neolithic is a progression of behavioral and cultural characteristics and changes, including the use of wild and domestic crops and of\u00a0domesticated animals<\/span><\/a>.[2]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The beginning of the Neolithic culture is considered to be in the\u00a0Levant<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0(Jericho<\/span><\/a><\/span>, modern-day\u00a0West Bank<\/span><\/a><\/span>) about 10,200\u20138,800 BC. It developed directly from the Epipaleolithic\u00a0Natufian<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>culture in the region, whose people pioneered the use of wildcereals<\/span><\/a><\/span>, which then evolved into true\u00a0farming<\/span><\/a><\/span>. The Natufian period was between 12,000 and 10,200 BC, and the so-called “proto-neolithic” is now included in the Pre-Pottery Neolithic (PPNA<\/span><\/a><\/span>) between 10,200 and 8,800 BC. As the Natufians had become dependent on wild cereals in their diet, and a sedentary way of life had begun among them, the climatic changes associated with the\u00a0Younger<\/span> Dryas<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>are thought to have forced people to develop farming. By 10,200\u20138,800 BC, farming communities arose in the Levant and spread to\u00a0Asia<\/span> Minor<\/span><\/a>, North Africa and North\u00a0Mesopotamia<\/span><\/a><\/span>. Early Neolithic farming was limited to a narrow range of plants, both wild and domesticated, which included\u00a0einkorn<\/span> wheat<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0millet<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0spelt<\/span><\/a><\/span>, and the keeping of\u00a0dogs<\/span><\/a><\/span>,\u00a0sheep<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0goats<\/span><\/a><\/span>. By about 6,900\u20136,400 BC, it included domesticated\u00a0cattle<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0pigs<\/span><\/a><\/span>, the establishment of permanently or seasonally inhabited settlements, and the use of\u00a0pottery<\/span><\/a><\/span>.[3]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Not all of these cultural elements characteristic of the Neolithic appeared everywhere in the same order: the earliest farming societies in the\u00a0Near East<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0did not use pottery. In other parts of the world, such as Africa,\u00a0South Asia<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0and Southeast Asia, independent domestication events led to their own regionally-distinctive Neolithic cultures that arose completely independent of those in Europe and Southwest Asia.\u00a0Early\u00a0Japanese<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0societies used pottery\u00a0before<\/i>\u00a0developing agriculture.[4]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Unlike the\u00a0Paleolithic<\/span><\/a><\/span>, when more than one human species existed, only one human species (Homo sapiens sapiens<\/span><\/a><\/span>) reached the Neolithic.[5]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>\u00a0Homo\u00a0floresiensis<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>may have survived right up to the very dawn of the Neolithic, about 12,200 years ago.[6]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Periods by pottery phase<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

[lollum_dropcap]I[\/lollum_dropcap]n the Middle East, cultures identified as Neolithic began appearing by in the 10th millennium BC.[1]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0Early development occurred in the\u00a0Levant<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>(e.g.\u00a0Pre-Pottery Neolithic A<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0Pre-Pottery Neolithic B<\/span><\/a><\/span>) and from there spread eastwards and westwards. Neolithic cultures are also attested in southeastern\u00a0Anatolia<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and northern Mesopotamia by c. 8,000 BC.<\/span><\/p>\n

The\u00a0prehistoric Beifudi site<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0near\u00a0Yixian<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>in Hebei Province, China, contains relics of a culture contemporaneous with the\u00a0Cishan<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0Xinglongwa<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>cultures of about 5,000\u20136,000 BC, neolithic cultures east of the\u00a0Taihang\u00a0Mountains<\/span><\/a><\/span>, filling in an archaeological gap between the two Northern Chinese cultures. The total excavated area is more than 1,200 square yards and the collection of neolithic findings at the site consists of two phases.[7]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Neolithic 1 \u2013 Pre-Pottery Neolithic A\u00a0<\/strong>(PPNA)<\/span><\/p>\n

[lollum_dropcap]T[\/lollum_dropcap]he Neolithic 1 (PPNA) period began roughly 10,000 years ago in the\u00a0Levant<\/span><\/a>.[1]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0A temple area in southeastern Turkey at\u00a0G\u00f6bekli\u00a0Tepe<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0dated to 10,000 BC may be regarded as the beginning of the period. This site was developed by nomadic hunter-gatherer tribes, evidenced by the lack of permanent housing in the vicinity and may be the oldest known human-made place of worship.[8]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0At least seven stone circles, covering 25 acres (100,000\u00a0m2<\/sup>), contain limestone pillars carved with animals, insects and birds. Stone tools were used by perhaps as many as hundreds of people to create the pillars, which may have supported roofs. Other early PPNA sites dating to around 9,500 to 9,000 BC have been found in\u00a0Jericho<\/span><\/a>,Palestine<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0and Jbeil (Byblos<\/span><\/a><\/span>), Lebanon..The start of Neolithic 1 overlaps the\u00a0Tahunian<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0Heavy\u00a0Neolithic<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>periods to some degree.<\/span><\/p>\n

The major advance of Neolithic 1 was true farming. In the proto-Neolithic\u00a0Natufian<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>cultures, wild cereals were harvested, and perhaps early seed selection and re-seeding occurred. The grain was ground into flour.\u00a0Emmer wheat<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>was domesticated, and animals were herded and domesticated (animal\u00a0husbandry<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0selective\u00a0breeding<\/span><\/a><\/span>).<\/span><\/p>\n

In the 21st century, remains of\u00a0figs<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>were discovered in a house in Jericho dated to 9,400 BC. The figs are of a mutant variety that cannot be pollinated by insects, and therefore the trees can only reproduce from cuttings. This evidence suggests that figs were the first cultivated crop and mark the invention of the technology of farming. This occurred centuries before the first cultivation of grains.[9]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Settlements became more permanent with circular houses, much like those of the Natufians, with single rooms. However, these houses were for the first time made of\u00a0mudbrick<\/span><\/a><\/span>. The settlement had a surrounding stone wall and perhaps a stone tower (as in Jericho). The wall served as protection from nearby groups, as protection from floods, or to keep animals penned. There are also some enclosures that suggest grain and meat storage.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Neolithic 2 \u2013 Pre-Pottery Neolithic B\u00a0<\/strong>(PPNB)<\/span><\/p>\n

[lollum_dropcap]T[\/lollum_dropcap]he Neolithic 2 (PPNB) began around 8,800 BC according to the\u00a0ASPRO chronology<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0in the Levant (Jericho<\/span><\/a><\/span>, Palestine).[1]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>\u00a0<\/span>As with the PPNA dates there are two versions from the same laboratories noted above. But this terminological structure is not convenient for southeast\u00a0Anatolia<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and settlements of the middle Anatolia basin. This era was before the\u00a0Mesolithic\u00a0era<\/span><\/a><\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Settlements have rectangular mudbrick houses where the family lived together in single or multiple rooms. Burial findings suggest an\u00a0ancestor\u00a0cult<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0where people\u00a0preserved\u00a0skulls<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0of the dead, which were plastered with mud to make facial features. The rest of the corpse may have been left outside the settlement to decay until only the bones were left, then the bones were buried inside the settlement underneath the floor or between houses.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Neolithic 3 \u2013 Pottery Neolithic\u00a0<\/strong>(PN)<\/span><\/p>\n

[lollum_dropcap]T[\/lollum_dropcap]he Neolithic 3 (PN) began around 6,400 BC in the\u00a0Fertile Crescent<\/span><\/a>.[1]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0By then distinctive cultures emerged, with pottery like the\u00a0Halafian<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>(Turkey, Syria, Northern Mesopotamia) and\u00a0Ubaid<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>(Southern Mesopotamia). This period has been further divided into\u00a0PNA<\/b>\u00a0(Pottery Neolithic A) and\u00a0PNB<\/b>\u00a0(Pottery Neolithic B) at some sites.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Chalcolithic period began about 4500 BC, then the\u00a0Bronze Age<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0began about 3500 BC, replacing the Neolithic cultures.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

PERIODS BY REGION<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Fertile Crescent<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

[lollum_dropcap]\u0391[\/lollum_dropcap]round 10,200 BC the first fully developed Neolithic cultures belonging to the phase\u00a0Pre-Pottery Neolithic A<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0(PPNA) appeared in the fertile crescent.[1]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0Around 10,700 to 9,400 BC a settlement was established in Tell Qaramel, 10 miles north of\u00a0Aleppo<\/span><\/a><\/span>. The settlement included 2 temples dating back to 9,650.[10]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0Around 9000 BC during the PPNA, the world’s first town,\u00a0Jericho<\/span><\/a><\/span>, appeared in the Levant. It was surrounded by a stone and marble wall and contained a population of 2000\u20133000 people and a massive stone tower.[11]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>\u00a0<\/span>Around 6,400 BC the\u00a0Halaf\u00a0culture<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0appeared in Lebanon, Israel and Palestine, Syria, Anatolia, and Northern Mesopotamia and subsisted on dryland agriculture.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 1981 a team of researchers from the\u00a0Maison de l’Orient et de la M\u00e9diterran\u00e9e<\/span><\/a><\/span>, including\u00a0Jacques Cauvin<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0and Oliver Aurenche divided Near East neolithic chronology into ten periods (0 to 9) based on social, economic and cultural characteristics.[12]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0In 2002\u00a0Danielle\u00a0Stordeur<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Abb\u00e8s<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0advanced this system with a division into five periods.\u00a0Natufian<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>(1) between 12,000 and 10,200 BC,\u00a0Khiamian<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>(2) between 10,200-8,800 BC,\u00a0PPNA<\/span><\/a><\/span>: Sultanian (Jericho),\u00a0Mureybetian<\/span><\/a><\/span>, early PPNB (PPNB ancien<\/i>) (3) between 8,800-7,600 BC, middle PPNB (PPNB moyen<\/i>) 7,600-6,900 BC, late PPNB (PPNB r\u00e9cent<\/i>) (4) between 7,500 and 7,000 BC and a PPNB (sometimes called PPNC) transitional stage (PPNB final<\/i>) (5) where Halaf and\u00a0dark faced burnished ware<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0begin to emerge between 6,900-6,400 BCE.[13]<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/sup><\/span>They also advanced the idea of a transitional stage between the PPNA and PPNB between 8,800 and 8,600 BC at sites like\u00a0Jerf el Ahmar<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0Tell Aswad<\/span><\/a><\/span>.[14]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Southern Mesopotamia<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

[lollum_dropcap]\u0391[\/lollum_dropcap]lluvial plains (Sumer<\/span><\/a>\/Elam<\/span><\/a><\/span>). Little rainfall makes\u00a0irrigation<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>systems necessary.\u00a0Ubaid<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>culture from 6,900 BC.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

North Africa<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

[lollum_dropcap]D[\/lollum_dropcap]omestication of\u00a0sheep<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0goats<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0reached Egypt from the Near East possibly as early as 6,000 BC.[15]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>[16]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>[17]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>\u00a0Graeme Barker<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0states “The first indisputable evidence for domestic plants and animals in the Nile valley is not until the early fifth millennium bc in northern Egypt and a thousand years later further south, in both cases as part of strategies that still relied heavily on fishing, hunting, and the gathering of wild plants” and suggests that these subsistence changes were not due to farmers migrating from the Near East but was an indigenous development, with cereals either indigenous or obtained through exchange.[18]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0Other scholars argue that the primary stimulus for agriculture and domesticated animals (as well as mud-brick architecture and other Neolithic cultural features) in Egypt was from the Middle East.[19]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>[20]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>[21]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Europe<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

[lollum_dropcap]I[\/lollum_dropcap]n southeast\u00a0Europe<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>agrarian societies first appeared in the\u00a07th millennium BC<\/span><\/a><\/span>, attested by one of the earliest farming sites of Europe, discovered in\u00a0Vasht\u00ebmi<\/span><\/a><\/span>, southeastern\u00a0Albania<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and dating back to 6,500 BC.[22]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>[23]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0Anthropomorphic figurines have been found in the Balkans from 6000 BC,[24]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0and in Central Europe by c. 5500 BC. Among the earliest cultural complexes of this area are the\u00a0Sesklo<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>culture in Thessaly, which later expanded in the Balkans giving rise to\u00a0Star\u010devo-K\u00f6r\u00f6s<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0(Cris),\u00a0Linearbandkeramik<\/span><\/a><\/span>, and\u00a0Vin\u010da<\/span><\/a><\/span>. Through a combination of\u00a0cultural\u00a0diffusion<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0migration\u00a0of\u00a0peoples<\/span><\/a>, the Neolithic traditions spread west and northwards to reach northwestern Europe by around 4500 BC. The\u00a0Vin\u010da\u00a0culture<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>may have created the earliest system of writing, the\u00a0Vin\u010da signs<\/span><\/a><\/span>, though archaeologist Shan Winn believes they most likely represented\u00a0pictograms<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0ideograms<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>rather than a truly developed form of writing.[25]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>\u00a0<\/span>The\u00a0Cucuteni-Trypillian\u00a0culture<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>built enormous settlements in Romania, Moldova and Ukraine from 5300 to 2300 BC. The\u00a0megalithic<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>temple complexes of\u00a0\u0120gantija<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>on the Mediterranean island of\u00a0Gozo<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>(in the Maltese archipelago) and of\u00a0Mnajdra<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>(Malta) are notable for their gigantic Neolithic structures, the oldest of which date back to c. 3600 BC. The\u00a0Hypogeum of \u0126al-Saflieni<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0Paola<\/span><\/a>,<\/span>\u00a0Malta, is a subterranean structure excavated c. 2500 BC; originally a sanctuary, it became a\u00a0necropolis<\/span><\/a><\/span>, the only prehistoric underground temple in the world, and showing a degree of artistry in stone sculpture unique in prehistory to the Maltese islands.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

South and East Asia<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

[lollum_dropcap]T[\/lollum_dropcap]he earliest Neolithic site in South Asia is\u00a0Mehrgarh<\/span><\/a><\/span>, dated to 7500 BC, in the Kachi plain of\u00a0Baluchistan<\/span><\/a><\/span>, Pakistan; the site has evidence of farming (wheat and barley) and herding (cattle, sheep and goats).[26]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

In South India, the Neolithic began by 3000 BC and lasted until around 1400 BC when the Megalithic transition period began. South Indian Neolithic is characterized by Ashmounds since 2500 BC in Karnataka region, expanded later to\u00a0Tamil Nadu<\/span><\/a><\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

In East Asia, the earliest sites include\u00a0Pengtoushan culture<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0around 7500 BC to 6100 BC,\u00a0Peiligang culture<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0around 7000 BC to 5000 BC.<\/span><\/p>\n

The ‘Neolithic’ (defined in this paragraph as using polished stone implements) remains a living tradition in small and extremely remote and inaccessible pockets of\u00a0West Papua<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0(Indonesian New Guinea). Polished stone\u00a0adze<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and axes are used in the present day (As of 2008\u00a0CE) in areas where the availability of metal implements is limited. This is likely to cease altogether in the next few years as the older generation die off and steel blades and chainsaws prevail.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2012, news was released about a new farming site discovered in\u00a0Munam-ri<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0Goseong<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0Gangwon Province<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0South Korea<\/span><\/a><\/span>, which may be the earliest farmland known to date in east Asia.[27]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0“No remains of an agricultural field from the Neolithic period have been found in any East Asian country before, the institute said, adding that the discovery reveals that the history of agricultural cultivation at least began during the period on the\u00a0Korean Peninsula<\/span><\/a>“.[28]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0The farm was dated between 3600 and 3000 B.C. Pottery, stone projectile points, and possible houses were also found. “In 2002, researchers discovered prehistoric\u00a0earthenware<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0jade<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0earrings, among other items in the area”. The research team will perform\u00a0Accelerator mass spectrometry<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0(AMS) dating to retrieve a more precise date for the site.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

America<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

[lollum_dropcap]I[\/lollum_dropcap]n\u00a0Mesoamerica<\/span><\/a><\/span>, a similar set of events (i.e., crop domestication and sedentary lifestyles) occurred by around 4500 BC, but possibly as early as 11,000\u201310,000 BC. These cultures are usually not referred to as belonging to the Neolithic; in America\u00a0different terms<\/span><\/a>\u00a0are used such as\u00a0Formative stage<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0instead of mid-late Neolithic,\u00a0Archaic Era<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0instead of Early Neolithic and\u00a0Paleo-Indian<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>for the preceding period.[29]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>\u00a0<\/span>The Formative stage is equivalent to the\u00a0Neolithic Revolution<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0period in Europe, Asia, and Africa. In the Southwestern United States it occurred from 500 to 1200 C.E. when there was a dramatic increase in population and development of large villages supported by agriculture based on\u00a0dryland farming<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0of maize, and later, beans, squash, and domesticated turkeys. During this period the bow and arrow and ceramic pottery were also introduced.[30]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Social organization<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

[lollum_dropcap]D[\/lollum_dropcap]uring most of the Neolithic age, people lived in small\u00a0tribes<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0composed of multiple bands or lineages.[31]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0There is little\u00a0scientific evidence<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0of developed\u00a0social stratification<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0in most Neolithic societies; social stratification is more associated with the later\u00a0Bronze Age<\/span><\/a>.[32]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0Although some late Neolithic societies formed complex stratified chiefdoms similar to\u00a0Polynesian<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0societies such as the\u00a0Ancient Hawaiians<\/span><\/a>,<\/span> most Neolithic societies were relatively simple and egalitarian.[31]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0However, Neolithic societies were noticeably more hierarchical than the\u00a0Paleolithic<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0cultures that preceded them and\u00a0hunter-gatherer<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0cultures in general[33]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>[34]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0The\u00a0domestication of animals<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0(8000 BC) resulted in a dramatic increase in social inequality. Possession of livestock allowed competition between households and resulted in inherited inequalities of wealth. Neolithic pastoralists who controlled large herds gradually acquired more livestock, and this made economic inequalities more pronounced.[35]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>\u00a0<\/span>However, evidence of social inequality is still disputed, as settlements such as\u00a0Catal Huyuk<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0reveal a striking lack of difference in the size of homes and burial sites, suggesting a more egalitarian society with no evidence of the concept of capital, although some homes do appear slightly larger or more elaborately decorated than others.<\/span><\/p>\n

Families and households were still largely independent economically, and the household was probably the center of life.[36]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>[37]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0However, excavations in\u00a0Central Europe<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0have revealed that early Neolithic\u00a0Linear Ceramic cultures<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0(“Linearbandkeramik<\/i>“) were building large arrangements of\u00a0circular ditches<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0between 4800 BC and 4600 BC. These structures (and their later counterparts such as\u00a0causewayed<\/span> enclosures<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0burial mounds<\/span><\/a><\/span>, and\u00a0henge<\/span><\/a><\/span>) required considerable time and labour to construct, which suggests that some influential individuals were able to organise and direct human labour \u2014 though non-hierarchical and voluntary work remain strong possibilities.<\/span><\/p>\n

There is a large body of evidence for fortified settlements at\u00a0Linearbandkeramik<\/i>\u00a0sites along the\u00a0Rhine<\/span><\/a><\/span>, as at least some villages were fortified for some time with a\u00a0palisade<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and an outer ditch.[38]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>[39]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0Settlements with palisades and weapon-traumatized bones have been discovered, such as at the\u00a0Talheim Death Pit<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0demonstrates “…systematic violence between groups” and warfare was probably much more common during the Neolithic than in the preceding Paleolithic period.[34]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0This supplanted an earlier view of the Linear Pottery Culture as living a “peaceful, unfortified lifestyle”.[40]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Control of labour and inter-group conflict is characteristic of corporate-level or ‘tribal’ groups, headed by a charismatic individual; whether a ‘big man<\/span><\/a>‘ or a proto-chief<\/span><\/a><\/span>, functioning as a lineage-group head. Whether a non-hierarchical system of organization existed is debatable and there is no evidence that explicitly suggests that Neolithic societies functioned under any dominating class or individual, as was the case in the\u00a0chiefdoms<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>of the European\u00a0Early Bronze Age<\/span><\/a>.[41]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0Theories to explain the apparent implied egalitarianism of Neolithic (and Paleolithic) societies have arisen, notably the\u00a0Marxist<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>concept of\u00a0primitive communism<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Shelter<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

[lollum_dropcap]T[\/lollum_dropcap]he shelter of the early people changed dramatically from the\u00a0paleolithic<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0to the neolithic era. In the paleolithic, people did not normally live in permanent constructions. In the neolithic, mud brick houses started appearing that were coated with plaster.[42]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>\u00a0<\/span>The growth of agriculture made permanent houses possible. Doorways were made on the roof, with ladders positioned both on the inside and outside of the houses.[42]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0The roof was supported by beams from the inside. The rough ground was covered by platforms, mats, and skins on which residents slept.[43]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>\u00a0Stilt-houses<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0settlements were common in the\u00a0Alpine<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0Pianura Padana<\/span><\/a>\u00a0(Terramare<\/span><\/a>)<\/span> region.[44]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0Remains have been found at the\u00a0Ljubljana Marshes<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0in\u00a0Slovenia<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0and at the\u00a0Mondsee<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0Attersee<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>lakes in\u00a0Upper Austria<\/span><\/a><\/span>, for example.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Farming<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

[lollum_dropcap]\u0391[\/lollum_dropcap]\u00a0significant and far-reaching shift in human\u00a0subsistence<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and lifestyle was to be brought about in areas where crop\u00a0farming<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and cultivation were first developed: the previous reliance on an essentially\u00a0nomadic<\/span><\/a>\u00a0hunter gatherer<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>subsistence\u00a0<\/span>technique<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>or\u00a0pastoral transhumance<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0was at first supplemented, and then increasingly replaced by, a reliance upon the foods produced from cultivated lands. These developments are also believed to have greatly encouraged the growth of settlements, since it may be supposed that the increased need to spend more time and labor in tending crop fields required more localized dwellings. This trend would continue into the Bronze Age, eventually giving rise to permanently settled farming\u00a0towns<\/span><\/a><\/span>, and later\u00a0cities<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0states<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>whose larger populations could be sustained by the increased productivity from cultivated lands.<\/span><\/p>\n

The profound differences in human interactions and subsistence methods associated with the onset of early agricultural practices in the Neolithic have been called the\u00a0Neolithic Revolution<\/span><\/a><\/i><\/span>, a term\u00a0coined<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>in the 1920s by the Australian archaeologist\u00a0Vere Gordon Childe<\/span><\/a><\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

One potential benefit of the development and increasing sophistication of farming technology was the possibility of producing surplus crop yields, in other words, food supplies in excess of the immediate needs of the community. Surpluses could be stored for later use, or possibly traded for other necessities or luxuries. Agricultural life afforded securities that pastoral life could not, and sedentary farming populations grew faster than nomadic.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, early farmers were also adversely affected in times of\u00a0famine<\/span><\/a><\/span>, such as may be caused by\u00a0drought<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>or\u00a0pests<\/span><\/a><\/span>. In instances where agriculture had become the predominant way of life, the sensitivity to these shortages could be particularly acute, affecting agrarian populations to an extent that otherwise may not have been routinely experienced by prior hunter-gatherer communities.[35]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0Nevertheless, agrarian communities generally proved successful, and their growth and the expansion of territory under cultivation continued.<\/span><\/p>\n

Another significant change undergone by many of these newly-agrarian communities was one of\u00a0diet<\/span><\/a><\/span>. Pre-agrarian diets varied by region, season, available local plant and animal resources and degree of pastoralism and hunting. Post-agrarian diet was restricted to a limited package of successfully cultivated cereal grains, plants and to a variable extent domesticated animals and animal products. Supplementation of diet by hunting and gathering was to variable degrees precluded by the increase in population above the carrying capacity of the land and a high sedentary local population concentration. In some cultures, there would have been a significant shift toward increased starch and plant protein. The relative nutritional benefits and drawbacks of these dietary changes and their overall impact on early societal development is still debated.<\/span><\/p>\n

In addition, increased population density, decreased population mobility, increased continuous proximity to domesticated animals, and continuous occupation of comparatively population-dense sites would have altered\u00a0sanitation<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>needs and patterns of\u00a0disease<\/span><\/a><\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Technology<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

[lollum_dropcap]T[\/lollum_dropcap]he identifying characteristic of Neolithic technology is the use of polished or ground stone tools, in contrast to the flaked stone tools used during the Paleolithic era.<\/span><\/p>\n

Neolithic people were skilled farmers, manufacturing a range of tools necessary for the tending, harvesting and processing of crops (such as\u00a0sickle<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>blades and\u00a0grinding stones<\/span><\/a><\/span>) and food production (e.g.\u00a0pottery<\/span><\/a><\/span>, bone implements). They were also skilled manufacturers of a range of other types of stone tools and ornaments, including\u00a0projectile points<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0beads<\/span><\/a>,<\/span> and\u00a0statuettes<\/span><\/a><\/span>. But what allowed forest clearance on a large scale was the polished\u00a0stone axe<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0above all other tools. Together with the\u00a0adze<\/span><\/a><\/span>, fashioning wood for shelter, structures and\u00a0canoes<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>for example, this enabled them to exploit their newly-won farmland.<\/span><\/p>\n

Neolithic peoples in the Levant, Anatolia, Syria, northern Mesopotamia and\u00a0Central Asia<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0were also accomplished builders, utilizing mud-brick to construct houses and villages. At\u00a0\u00c7atal h\u00f6y\u00fck<\/span><\/a><\/span>, houses were\u00a0plastered<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and painted with elaborate scenes of humans and animals. In\u00a0Europe<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0long houses<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0built from\u00a0wattle and daub<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0were constructed. Elaborate\u00a0tombs<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>were built for the dead. These tombs are particularly numerous in\u00a0Ireland<\/span><\/a><\/span>, where there are many thousand still in existence. Neolithic people in the\u00a0British Isles<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0built\u00a0long barrows<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0chamber tombs<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0for their dead and\u00a0causewayed camps<\/span><\/a><\/span>, henges, flint mines and\u00a0cursus<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>monuments. It was also important to figure out ways of preserving food for future months, such as fashioning relatively airtight containers, and using substances like\u00a0salt<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>as preservatives.<\/span><\/p>\n

The peoples of the\u00a0Americas<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>and the\u00a0Pacific<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>mostly retained the Neolithic level of tool\u00a0technology<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>until the time of European contact. Exceptions include copper\u00a0hatchets<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0spearheads<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>in the\u00a0Great Lakes<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0region.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Clothing<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

[lollum_dropcap]M[\/lollum_dropcap]ost clothing appears to have been made of animal skins, as indicated by finds of large numbers of bone and antler pins which are ideal for fastening leather.\u00a0Wool<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>cloth and\u00a0linen<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>might have become available during the later Neolithic,[45]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>[46]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0as suggested by finds of perforated stones which (depending on size) may have served as\u00a0spindle whorls<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0or\u00a0loom<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>weights.[47]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>[48]<\/span><\/a><\/sup>[49]<\/span><\/a><\/sup><\/span>\u00a0The clothing worn in the Neolithic Age might be similar to that worn by\u00a0\u00d6tzi the Iceman<\/span><\/a><\/span>, although he was not Neolithic (since he belonged to the later\u00a0Copper age<\/span><\/a>)<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n