Breakthroughs to Agriculture

Flashcards covering the global transition from gathering and hunting to agriculture, including regional variations and economic impacts.

When did the global pattern of agriculture begin to unfold?

Around $12,000$ years ago.

What two terms are used to describe the deliberate cultivation of plants and the taming of animals?

"Neolithic Revolution" (New Stone Age) and "Agricultural Revolution."

How did the size of corn cobs change in the Americas between the start of domestication and the year $1500$?

Farmers transformed corn from a plant with a cob of an inch or so to one measuring about $6$ inches.

What is the definition of "domestication" according to the text?

The taming, and the changing, of nature for the benefit of humankind.

What does the term "intensification" mean in the context of the agricultural age?

Getting more food and resources from a much smaller area of land than was possible with gathering and hunting technology.

In what widely scattered parts of the world did the Agricultural Revolution occur independently?

The Fertile Crescent of Southwest Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, China, New Guinea, Mesoamerica, the Andes, and eastern North America.

Between which years did the Agricultural Revolution take place globally?

Between $4,000$ and $12,000$ years ago.

The Agricultural Revolution coincided with the end of which major climatic event?

The last Ice Age, which was a process of global warming that began some $16,000$ years ago.

What term do archeologists use for the variety of plants and animals used by gathering and hunting peoples?

A "broad-spectrum diet."

Which group of people were the likely innovators of deliberate farming, and why?

Women, because they had long been intimately associated with collecting wild plants.

What is "horticulture"?

A transition to agriculture using simple technology like the digging stick or hoe, rather than plows.

Which five plant species currently supply more than half of the calories that sustain human life?

Wheat, corn, rice, barley, and sorghum.

How many species of large mammals have been successfully domesticated?

$14$ species.

What countries today make up the region known as the Fertile Crescent?

Iraq, Syria, Israel/Palestine, Jordan, and southern Turkey.

What was the first cultivated crop in the Fertile Crescent, and when was it first grown?

Figs, dating back to about $9400 \text{ B.C.E.}$

What were some major innovations found in early agricultural settlements like those in the Fertile Crescent?

Sun-dried mud bricks, shrine-like buildings, displays of cattle skulls, elaborate burials (including skull removal), and sophisticated tools like polished axes and awls.

Which animal was domesticated in northeastern Africa near the Red Sea around $6,000$ years ago?

The donkey.

Which grain was first "tamed" in the eastern Sahara region of Africa?

Sorghum.

What were the only two major species of large mammals available for domestication in the Americas?

The llama and the alpaca.

What was the wild ancestor of maize (corn) in Mesoamerica?

A mountain grass that looks nothing like modern corn.

How did the geographical orientation of the Americas affect the spread of agriculture compared to Eurasia?

The north/south orientation of the Americas required crops to adapt to distinct climatic zones, slowing their spread, whereas the east/west axis of Eurasia allowed for faster spread through similar environments.