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Summary of the Text
1. Archeological evidence is very scarce
from this era. Because of that, our
understanding of ancient foragers
has been shaped by studying
modern foraging communities in
places like Africa. The
anthropologist Richard Lee studied
these foraging communities in
Southern Africa in the 1970s.
2. We know from certain that levels of
productivity were very low
compared to modern standards.
Humans did not extract from their
environment enough food to
maintain a basic, healthy existence.
Low productivity in food also
ensured that population were low
compared to later periods,
averaging as little as one person per
square kilometer. Small numbers of
humans were scattered over large
areas.
3. Because each group needed a large
area to support itself, ancient
foragers probably lived most of the
time in small groups consisting of no
more than a few closely related
people. Most of these groups must
have been nomadic in order to take
advantage of the area around them.
What Trait of
society is this
However, we can also be sure that
many links existed between
neighboring groups. Almost all
groups encouraged marriage away
from one’s family. This, foraging
communities met with their
neighbors to swap gifts, stories,
rituals, to dance together and solve
problems. At such meetings, females
and males may have been moved
from group to group for marriage
or adoption.
4. Studies of modern foraging societies
suggest that family and kinship
provided the primary way of
thinking about rules. Notions of
kinship provided ALL the rules of
behavior that were needed to live
in a world in which most
communities included just a few
people. Most lived a life not
meeting more than a 100 people in
their whole life.
5. Family is also the basis of economy
in ancient foraging communities.
Exchanges were thought of as gifts.
This meant that the act of
exchanging was more important
What Trait of
society is this
What Trait of
society is this
that the item they were exchanging.
It was a way to make relationships
more concrete. Power relations
were also important. Justice and
discipline were imposed by the
family and the person in charge was
put based on gender, age,
experience and respect within the
family.
6. Burials and art objects leave many
clues about the spiritual world of
ancient foragers. Foragers thought of
the spiritual world and natural world
as part of their extended family. For
example, animals, plants, mountains
and lakes were thought of as family.
They believed all things were
animated by spirits and this helped
make sense of the world around
them.
7. Ancient foragers were very affluent.
In a world where they didn’t need to
possess or own anything, the things
they needed were everywhere around
them for their own use. Finally,
studies also confirmed that the health
of foragers was better than people
today. They lived most of the day in
leisure, and relaxing after spending a
few hours pursing their food and hunt.
On the other hand, their life was harsh
compared to modern standards and
their life expectancy was low as well.
What Trait of
society is this
What Trait of
society is this