The Origins of Sedentism and Agriculture in Western Asia

doi:10.1017/CHO9781139017831.089

3.4 - The Origins of Sedentism and Agriculture in Western Asia

from VII. - Western and Central Asia

Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 August 2014

Ofer Bar-Yosef

Edited by

Colin Renfrew and

Paul Bahn

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Ofer Bar-Yosef: Affiliation:
Harvard University
Colin Renfrew: Affiliation:
University of Cambridge

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Summary

Introduction

Sedentism or reduced mobility of a human group is a socioeconomic aspect related to a choice of designated locality that becomes a settlement, whether occupied all year round or only over a few months. The “when”, “where” and “why” this type of habitation was chosen by a society – often described as “small-scale”, “intermediate” or “middle range” – can be identified in the record, but we need to briefly review the issues already discussed in the literature concerning this kind of social organisation, which is often regarded as non-egalitarian (Arnold 1996; Johnson & Earle 2000; Price & Fienman 1995 and papers therein).

In describing the complex social structure of non-egalitarian societies, whether related to power and labour, household sizes, evidence for inequality and physical conflicts (Ames 1995; Roscoe 2008, 2009), authors rely on ethno-historical information and much less on the archaeological records (Kelly 1992). However, in most, if not all, of these cases, the transition from the so-called simple or egalitarian hunting and gathering groups of the Late Palaeolithic and Early Holocene to societies of foragers and farmers is hardly explained and often debated. Unfortunately historical records, including most oral traditions, do not provide ample information for the primordial time of these ethno-linguistic groups who became farmers. One of the exceptional cases is the biblical story about the expulsion of humans from the “Garden of Eden”. Ignoring the ethical issue of why it happened and who was responsible for the move out, the biblical writer stated that the difference is between being affluent foragers and hard-working farmers and herders.

Type: Chapter
Information: The Cambridge World Prehistory , pp. 1408 - 1438

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CHO9781139017831.089 [Opens in a new window]

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Print publication year: 2014

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