Food Production and Societal Development in Anthropology

Food Production and Farming

Cultivating plants and domesticating animals to replace foraging.

Accelerated Mass Spectrometry

Technique for precise radiocarbon dating by measuring isotopes.

Archaeobotany/Paleoethnobotany

Study of ancient plant remains to understand past agriculture.

Elements of Animal Domestication

Traits making animals suitable for domestication like docility and group living.

Breeding

Controlled reproduction to promote desirable traits.

Containment

Restriction of animal movement to manage domestication.

Feeding

Importance of diet adaptability in domesticable animals.

Sociality

Group living tendency in animals, aiding domestication.

Flotation

Archaeological technique to recover seeds and small remains by floating them in water.

Foot tethering

Tying animals by the foot to restrict movement.

Hierarchy

Ranked social organization; important in managing domesticated animals.

Holocene

Epoch starting ~11,700 years ago; agriculture develops.

Interpersonal Violence

Increased violence in settled societies over resources.

Monumental Architecture

Large public structures reflecting social organization and central authority.

Population Densities

Number of people in an area; farming allowed larger densities.

Rachis

Plant part connecting seeds; tougher in domesticated cereals.

Sedentarism

Living permanently in one place, often from farming.

Social Structure

Organized patterns of relationships in societies.

Specialization

Emergence of specific jobs due to food surplus.

Teosinte

Wild ancestor of maize.

The Recovery Revolution

Adoption of better archaeological recovery methods like flotation.

The Three Sisters

Corn, beans, and squash planted together to aid mutual growth.

Theories of Farming

Ideas explaining why agriculture developed.

Boserup Model

Theory that population growth drives farming.

Circumscription and Sedentism

Limited resources and settled living push for hierarchy.

Climatic

Climate changes influenced farming origins.

Ecological

Environment and resource availability shaped farming.

Hilly Flanks

Theory that farming began in Near Eastern uplands.

Oases

Theory that humans and animals domesticated near water sources during dry periods.

Settling In

Gradual move from mobile to settled life.

Transportation

Use of animals for moving goods and people.

Domesticated Plants and Animals

Near East: wheat, barley, sheep; East Asia: rice, millet, pigs; Mesoamerica: maize, beans, squash; South America: potatoes, llamas; Africa: sorghum, cattle.

Three Sisters

Corn: supports beans; Beans: fix nitrogen; Squash: shades soil.

Livestock Domestication

Meat, milk, labor vs. dogs for companionship, cats for pest control.

Plant Storage Solutions

Pits, granaries, ceramic vessels.

Health Repercussions

Poorer diet, new diseases, cavities, shorter stature.

Acequias

Communal irrigation canals.

Adena and Hopewell

Early mound-building cultures of Eastern North America.

Ancestral Pueblo

Southwest culture known for cliff dwellings.

Bands

Small egalitarian foraging groups.

Big Man

Leader who gains influence by personal achievement.

Burial Mounds

Earthworks over graves.

Cahokia

Major Mississippian settlement with large mounds.

Chaco Canyon

Center of Ancestral Pueblo culture.

Chief

Hereditary leader in a ranked society.

Chiefdoms

Centralized leadership with social ranking.

Eastern Moundbuilders

Adena and Hopewell cultures.

Economic Inequality

Unequal distribution of wealth.

Effigy Mounds

Animal-shaped earth mounds.

Egalitarian

Equal access to resources and status.

Great Houses

Large ceremonial structures at Chaco.

Heterarchy

Multiple and flexible rankings in society.

Hohokam

Southwest culture known for irrigation.

Institutional Variability

Diversity in political and economic organization.

Kinship

Social ties by blood or marriage.

Kivas

Ceremonial underground structures.

Lapita Culture

Ancestral Pacific Islanders known for pottery.

Mesa Verde, Colorado

Cliff dwellings site.

Mica

Mineral used in ceremonial artifacts.

Mississippian Culture

Mound-builders of the Southeastern U.S.

Mode of Production

Organization of production and distribution.

Pithouses

Semi-subterranean homes.

Pueblos

Stone or adobe communal dwellings.

Reciprocity

Exchange of goods to reinforce social bonds.

Resources

Essential natural materials.

Soapstone Effigy Pipes

Ceremonial pipes shaped like animals.

Social Complexity

Specialized roles and social hierarchy.

Sociopolitical Inequality

Unequal political power.

Surplus

Excess production beyond immediate needs.

Technology

Tools and innovations.

Tribes

Larger kin-based horticultural societies.

Unilineal Social Evolution

Outdated theory of social stages.

Factors influencing inequality

Surplus, trade control, religious authority, military strength.

Big Man vs. Chief

Big Man = earned influence; Chief = inherited, centralized authority.

Infighting in Chiefdoms

Competition for resources and status.

Settlement Choices

Defensive positions, fertile land near rivers.

Agency Theories

Focus on individual actions in state formation.

Bureaucracy

Hierarchical, rule-based administration system.

Capital

Resources used to generate wealth and power.

Economic Power/Capital

Wealth and resource control.

Ideological Power/Capital

Influence over belief systems.

Political Power/Capital

Control over governance structures.

Social Power/Capital

Influence through social networks.

Centralization

Concentration of political power.

City-States

Independent urban centers with surrounding territories.

Civilization

Complex societies with cities, social classes, and writing.

Coercive State Control

Use of force to maintain power.

Dynasty

Family rule across generations.

Environmental Model

State formation driven by environmental challenges.

Horizontal Integration

Cooperation among similar status groups.

Ideology Theories

Power maintained through shared beliefs.

Intergenerational Wealth/Power

Wealth and status passed through families.

Redistribution Model

Centralized collection and distribution of goods.

State

Centralized political unit with authority over a population.

The Hydraulic Hypothesis

States form to manage irrigation.

The Urban Revolution

Transition from villages to cities.

Warfare Model

States form through conquest and defense.

Wealth Accumulation

Gathering of surplus resources to maintain elite status.

Civilization Factors

Cities, writing, social hierarchy, centralized government, monumental architecture.

Agency vs. Ideology Theory

Agency = individuals' actions; Ideology = belief systems create states.