Neolithic Cultures
V.K. Jain
Chapter – 5
Table of Contents
Introduction
- The Neolithic cultures mark the concluding phase of the Stone Age, characterized by the use of ground and polished tools and pottery, distinguishing them from the preceding Palaeolithic and Mesolithic cultures.
- The term “Neolithic” was first used by Danish prehistorian Thomsen in the 19th century to denote the technological progress of early humans.
- Gordon Childe emphasized the socio-economic significance of Neolithic cultures, associating them with the emergence of plant cultivation and animal domestication, leading to the growth of farming communities and a settled village life.
- Childe coined the term “Neolithic Revolution” to highlight this progress, suggesting that farming was invented in a single “nuclear region” in Mesopotamia or the Near East and then spread to other parts of the world.
- Modern research has disputed Childe’s hypothesis. Prehistorians agree that the transition to a farming-based economy was a major turning point in human civilization, but they disagree with Childe’s use of the term “Revolution”, as it implies a sudden change, while the transition was part of a long-drawn process.
- The transition to Neolithic life is now viewed as a “transformation” or “evolution” rather than a sudden revolution, and its beginnings can be traced to the earlier Palaeolithic and Mesolithic periods.
- Childe’s argument for the diffusion of agricultural activities from the Middle East to the rest of the world has also been challenged. Modern research suggests that farming developed independently in several regions, depending on geographical factors that permitted it.
- The shift from hunting and gathering to food-producing farming communities may be attributed to several factors, including the change in climate with the onset of the Holocene Age, the technological experience of earlier societies, and population growth.