Neolithic founder crops
Encyclopedia
The Neolithic founder crops (or primary domesticates) are the eight plant
species
that were domesticated
by early Holocene
(Pre-Pottery Neolithic A
and Pre-Pottery Neolithic B
) farming communities in the Fertile Crescent
region of southwest Asia
, and which formed the basis of systematic agriculture
in the Middle East
, North Africa
, India
, Persia and (later) Europe
. They consist of flax
, three cereal
s and four pulses
, and are the first known domesticated plants in the world. Daniel Zohary and Maria Hopf, Domestication of Plants in the Old World, third edition. Oxford: University Press, 2000. Although domesticated rye
(Secale cereale) occurs in the final Epi-Palaeolithic strata at Tell Abu Hureyra
(the earliest instance of a domesticated plant species), it was an insignificant in the Neolithic Period of southwest Asia and only became common with the spread of farming into northern Europe
several millennia later.
Cereals
Pulses
Other
Plant
Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...
species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
that were domesticated
Domestication
Domestication or taming is the process whereby a population of animals or plants, through a process of selection, becomes accustomed to human provision and control. In the Convention on Biological Diversity a domesticated species is defined as a 'species in which the evolutionary process has been...
by early Holocene
Holocene
The Holocene is a geological epoch which began at the end of the Pleistocene and continues to the present. The Holocene is part of the Quaternary period. Its name comes from the Greek words and , meaning "entirely recent"...
(Pre-Pottery Neolithic A
Pre-Pottery Neolithic A
Pre-Pottery Neolithic A denotes the first stage in early Levantine Neolithic culture, dating around 9500 to 8500 BC. Archaeological remains are located in the Levantine and upper Mesopotamian region of the Fertile Crescent...
and Pre-Pottery Neolithic B
Pre-Pottery Neolithic B
Pre-Pottery Neolithic B is a division of the Neolithic developed by Dame Kathleen Kenyon during her archaeological excavations at Jericho in the southern Levant region....
) farming communities in the Fertile Crescent
Fertile Crescent
The Fertile Crescent, nicknamed "The Cradle of Civilization" for the fact the first civilizations started there, is a crescent-shaped region containing the comparatively moist and fertile land of otherwise arid and semi-arid Western Asia. The term was first used by University of Chicago...
region of southwest Asia
Southwest Asia
Western Asia, West Asia, Southwest Asia or Southwestern Asia are terms that describe the westernmost portion of Asia. The terms are partly coterminous with the Middle East, which describes a geographical position in relation to Western Europe rather than its location within Asia...
, and which formed the basis of systematic agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
in the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
, North Africa
North Africa
North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, Persia and (later) Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. They consist of flax
Flax
Flax is a member of the genus Linum in the family Linaceae. It is native to the region extending from the eastern Mediterranean to India and was probably first domesticated in the Fertile Crescent...
, three cereal
Cereal
Cereals are grasses cultivated for the edible components of their grain , composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran...
s and four pulses
Pulse (legume)
A pulse is an annual leguminous crop yielding from one to twelve seeds of variable size, shape, and color within a pod. Pulses are used for food and animal feed. The term "pulse", as used by the Food and Agricultural Organization , is reserved for crops harvested solely for the dry seed...
, and are the first known domesticated plants in the world. Daniel Zohary and Maria Hopf, Domestication of Plants in the Old World, third edition. Oxford: University Press, 2000. Although domesticated rye
Rye
Rye is a grass grown extensively as a grain and as a forage crop. It is a member of the wheat tribe and is closely related to barley and wheat. Rye grain is used for flour, rye bread, rye beer, some whiskeys, some vodkas, and animal fodder...
(Secale cereale) occurs in the final Epi-Palaeolithic strata at Tell Abu Hureyra
Tell Abu Hureyra
Tell Abu Hureyra is an archaeological site located in the Euphrates valley in modern Syria. The remains of the villages within the tell come from over 4,000 years of habitation, spanning the Epipaleolithic and Neolithic periods. Ancient Abu Hureyra was occupied between 11,000 and 7,500 years ago...
(the earliest instance of a domesticated plant species), it was an insignificant in the Neolithic Period of southwest Asia and only became common with the spread of farming into northern Europe
Northern Europe
Northern Europe is the northern part or region of Europe. Northern Europe typically refers to the seven countries in the northern part of the European subcontinent which includes Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Finland and Sweden...
several millennia later.
Cereals
- Emmer wheatEmmerEmmer wheat , also known as farro especially in Italy, is a low yielding, awned wheat. It was one of the first crops domesticated in the Near East...
(Triticum dicoccum, descended from the wild T. dicoccoides) - Einkorn wheatEinkorn wheatthumbnail|150px|left|Wild einkorn, Karadag, central TurkeyEinkorn wheat can refer either to the wild species of wheat, Triticum boeoticum , or to the domesticated form, Triticum monococcum...
(Triticum monococcum, descended from the wild T. boeoticum) - BarleyBarleyBarley is a major cereal grain, a member of the grass family. It serves as a major animal fodder, as a base malt for beer and certain distilled beverages, and as a component of various health foods...
(Hordeum vulgare/sativum, descended from the wild H. spontaneum)
Pulses
- LentilLentilThe lentil is an edible pulse. It is a bushy annual plant of the legume family, grown for its lens-shaped seeds...
(Lens culinaris) - PeaPeaA pea is most commonly the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the pod fruit Pisum sativum. Each pod contains several peas. Peapods are botanically a fruit, since they contain seeds developed from the ovary of a flower. However, peas are considered to be a vegetable in cooking...
(Pisum sativum) - ChickpeaChickpeaThe chickpea is a legume of the family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae...
(Cicer arietinum) - Bitter vetch (Vicia ervilia)
Other
- FlaxFlaxFlax is a member of the genus Linum in the family Linaceae. It is native to the region extending from the eastern Mediterranean to India and was probably first domesticated in the Fertile Crescent...
(Linum usitatissimum)
Further reading
- Daniel Zohary and Maria Hopf, Domestication of Plants in the Old World, third edition. Oxford: University Press, 2000. ISBN 0-19-850356-3