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V. Neolithic Agricultural Revolution
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Web Sites
Narration
There are major events in the history of the world that are quite transforming; the invention of agriculture in the Neolithic times was one of those events. The invention of agriculture enabled the human population to differentiate itself from the higher primates. By applying agricultural technologies in very simple forms, humans were able to increase the carrying capacity of the Earth's surface by many, many times. Every culture on the surface of the Earth engages in agriculture in some form. We obviously need food to eat, and cultures have developed practices for storing food until times of shortage, and for moving food from areas of high productivity to areas of high consumption.
In addition to the circulation of food, other aspects of food production attract the attention of human geographers. The spatial patterns of the dietary laws that govern consumption and production of crops and animals around the world have fascinated many geographers. Carl Sauer's seminal work, Agricultural Origins and Dispersals, published by the American Geographical Society in 1952, is the springboard for all contemporary geographical discussions about the origins of agriculture. Sauer believed there were 11 separate centers of plant and animal domestication. This great invention probably occurred first in the areas of the tropical seashores where settled fishermen were able to produce enough surplus food so that they could invest some of their wealth and time into the experimentation and nurturing of plants and animals. Sauer and others argue that large herd animals may have been domesticated first for ceremonies and then later used for other purposes. They conclude this because the religious personages in the early agricultural communities had the time to rear young herd animals to the stage at which they could actually participate in religious ceremonies. But of course, no one really knows for sure. The movement of humans around the surface of the Earth diffused plants and animals to nearly every possible environment. Some of the movements are well documented; others are only vaguely understood.
Web Sites
To view the following Web sites, please go to "See also" below.
The Teachers' Corner contains links to suggested Web sites. The College Board neither endorses, controls the content of, nor reviews the external Web sites included here. Please note that following links to external Web sites will open a new browser window. If you discover a link that does not work, please let us know by sending an e-mail to apctechsupport@collegeboard.org.
Agricultural Development
A description of agricultural development from subsistence farming to commercial agriculture.
Agriculture in the Roman Empire
Essay (with sources cited) describing the development of Roman Agriculture.
Ancient History page -- Mr. Donn's
This teacher has organized a variety of materials that may be used in the study of agriculture and other areas.
Domestication of Plants and Animals
This is a series of lectures from a geography course at the University of Oklahoma, which is extremely well organized and written. The main page has many topics linked to other "chapters" as well as links to independent pages. Best of all, the topics seem to fall right into many aspects of the AP Human Geography suggested outline! Well worth your visit. An example of agricultural diffusion exists; some pages have slide shows. A treasure!
Food Time Line
The frame on the left at this site contains an interesting time line for food development from 350 million B.C.E. forward.
Food Time Line (2)
This is an excellent, interactive, graphic-based food time line that starts in 17,000 B.C. and ends now. Each food is shown alongside a time line. When you click on the food a colorful page with descriptive text appears
Location! Location!
Location of the First Farmers. Description of the spread of agriculture with a simple map.
Origins of Agriculture
"The Origins of Agriculture and the Domestication of Crop Plants in the Near East" is a scientifically oriented article with graphics and a map.
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