Impact of the Neolithic Revolution
Impact of the Neolithic Revolution
The Neolithic Era, also known as the New Stone Age, had a profound impact on civilization and how they lived. (Ramirez et al 13) There were advancements made in tools, agriculture and in the domestication of animals. All of the above led to the hunter gatherers of the past, or Nomads, to become families that settled down together and began raising their own food and crops. (Ramirez et al 10) Ultimately this created permanent settlements such as, villages, cities and ultimately empires; a new culture and society. (Watkins) During the New Stone Age the rise of more advanced tools enabled the one time Nomads to go from being hunter gathering societies into ones of a farming society. During the Paleolithic Era most tools were made from chipped stone. (Ramirez et al 13) With the coming of the Neolithic Era stones were now polished and metals were beginning to get used to create new and improved tools. Saws, axes, and plows were created, enabling these people to farm the land they inhabited. (Ramirez et al 15) So, while the invention of tools was important, it was the ability to farm that was a definite advantage of the tools. Another impact of the Neolithic Era was the domestication of animals. These people had the wherewithal to take the best selection of wild animals; dogs, sheep, pigs, boars, and cattle, and breed them so that they would be of more use. (Ramirez et al 14) They no longer had to hunt wild animals but learned how to raise them and use them as a source of milk, meat and even wool, to make yarn, which in turn made clothing. Domesticating the animals gave them another mode of transportation, no longer did they have to walk everywhere, and they could ride. After the domestication of animals came the domestication of plants. Having been gatherers, they used to search for wheat and barley. They saved the seeds from these plants and learned to plant them, at certain times of the year; thanks to the
The Neolithic Era, also known as the New Stone Age, had a profound impact on civilization and how they lived. (Ramirez et al 13) There were advancements made in tools, agriculture and in the domestication of animals. All of the above led to the hunter gatherers of the past, or Nomads, to become families that settled down together and began raising their own food and crops. (Ramirez et al 10) Ultimately this created permanent settlements such as, villages, cities and ultimately empires; a new culture and society. (Watkins) During the New Stone Age the rise of more advanced tools enabled the one time Nomads to go from being hunter gathering societies into ones of a farming society. During the Paleolithic Era most tools were made from chipped stone. (Ramirez et al 13) With the coming of the Neolithic Era stones were now polished and metals were beginning to get used to create new and improved tools. Saws, axes, and plows were created, enabling these people to farm the land they inhabited. (Ramirez et al 15) So, while the invention of tools was important, it was the ability to farm that was a definite advantage of the tools. Another impact of the Neolithic Era was the domestication of animals. These people had the wherewithal to take the best selection of wild animals; dogs, sheep, pigs, boars, and cattle, and breed them so that they would be of more use. (Ramirez et al 14) They no longer had to hunt wild animals but learned how to raise them and use them as a source of milk, meat and even wool, to make yarn, which in turn made clothing. Domesticating the animals gave them another mode of transportation, no longer did they have to walk everywhere, and they could ride. After the domestication of animals came the domestication of plants. Having been gatherers, they used to search for wheat and barley. They saved the seeds from these plants and learned to plant them, at certain times of the year; thanks to the
Bibliography: Ramirez, Susan Elizabeth and Peter Sterns and Sam Wineburg. World History Human Legacy. Orlando: Holt, Reinhart and Winston, 2008. Watkins, Jeffrey. Neolithic Revolution. http://regentsprep.org/Regents/global/themes/ change/neo.cfm. Oswego City: 1999-2003.