Impact_of_the_Neolithic_Revolution

Writing Assignment Impact of the Neolithic Revolution The Neolithic Age was the beginning of established societies for modern man. This made way for the advancement in technology, economy and the advancement of society. By raising sheep and goats and food crops like barley and wheat they were able to domesticate animals and food. An economic system emerged after more of the nomadic bands started to settle as farmers. The most important advances was food, development of agriculture allowed them to learn how to farm and raise their own crops for food and eventually for trade, this changed peoples lives. Advances in tool making made planting and harvesting of crops much easier. They learned to polish and shape tools with sharper edges. With new settlements sprouting up the population grew quickly. They had larger families and with farming they could maintain them. This would allow them to have more help on the farms and be able to grow and harvest more crops. They would also pool their labor and resources with there neighbors. People began to experiment with seeds and figured out they could produce more seeds for larger crops Also with the domestication of animals such as cattle they could use them to pull the plows to till the ground instead of doing it by hand. This allowed them to produce more crops, this took less time and allowed them to have more time to do crafts and tools. Goats and sheep produced wool and they created yarn and in turn learned to spin the yarn to make cloth and blankets. They developed pestles and grindstones learned to us clay to make pottery this was used for cooking with, storing grains, oils and water. By producing more food and products it started the trade industry. Things such as obsidian, from Southwest Asia, which was a dark volcanic glass that was used to make tools, jewelry and mirrors. Social status began to emerge due to agriculture and trade made the societies. From this more complex and prosperous societies emerged, some had more wealth than others and others rose to positions of authority. They were for overseeing the planting and harvesting of crops, running the building projects or planning defense. This authority was given to men and the dominated over women. Religion became more formalized and buildings were needed for religious purposes. People began to worship gods and goddesses, animals or the elements, air, water, fire and earth. An example is one worshiped bulls, another thunder god and others may have worshiped their ancestors. There were negative effects also warfare increased as they began to fight over land, crop failure due to being more dependent on farming, disease increased by being more populated it spread more quickly. Some diseases were even transferred from animals such as the flu, measles, and smallpox. All of these advancements in society, technology, and economy Paved the way for modern civilization. This change in the way prehistoric man went from roaming hoards to being settled agriculturist has allowed for the establishment of society. Sources: Textbook www.williams.edu/Economics/wp/AshrafMichalopoulos-Neolithic.pdf