Transition from Hunting and Gathering to Agriculture

Introduction

• Major transition in human history.
• Transition involves trade-offs, not always positive.

Aşıklıhöyük

• Oldest settlement in East Central Anatolia (Cappadocia).
• Founded 10,400 years ago, with a 1000-year history of settlement.
• Significance: illustrates shift from hunter-gatherer to farming lifestyle.

Archaeological Findings

• Evidence of settlement includes round/oval-shaped houses.
• Yellowish layer identified as animal excrement using micromorphological and chemical analyses.
• Footprints found; evidence suggests sheep and goats were kept in settlements from 8300s onwards.

Impact on Human Societies

• Permanent settlements led to increased potential for disease.
• Changes in animal genomes led to new ecologies, attracting new life forms including pathogens.
• Hunter-gatherers potentially healthier than early Neolithic people (e.g., dental decay, bone development issues).
  • Modern health issues like obesity and diabetes may stem from dietary changes starting in Neolithic transition.

Societal Changes

• Hunter-gatherer societies had limited differences in status, power, and wealth.
• Farming societies laid groundwork for complex societies, allowing disparities in wealth and power.
• Major historical events (e.g., World Wars) unlikely without complex societies formed through agriculture.

Myths and Realities of Hunter-Gatherer Societies

• Not all hunter-gatherer societies were egalitarian or peaceful.
• Variability in violence and societal norms among different groups.

Advantages of Neolithic Societies

• Faster population growth offered strength in numbers.
• Agriculture formed the basis for complex cultural achievements (science, technology, arts, literature).

Conclusion

• Importance of understanding major historical narratives.
• Recognition of the complexity and diversity of the past, acknowledging that we do not know everything.