ORIGIN OF FARMING

welcome back to class

The Early People

The history of agriculture is as old as man. Agricultural activities were started by the early people. The early people were wanderers and gatherers of fruits, nuts and roots. They lived in caves and under tree covers in the forest. The early people fed on vegetables, fruits and meat of animals which they gathered from their environment. The

early man hunted animals for food and domestication. He made his own tools for hunting and planting crops.

The Early Man as A Gatherer

The early man wandered around in his environment in search of food. He Collected

and ate fruits, nuts and vegetables. The seeds of the fruits eaten were thrown

carelessly around the surroundings of the cave. These germinated and grew to

fruit trees which later became useful to man as food. This is how the early people began to practice farming.

The Early Man as A Hunter

The early man hunted and ran after animals and birds to kill them for food.

He killed some, caught some alive and carried everything to his cave. He and his family ate the ones he killed. The early woman tried to rear the young animals captured alive by way of domestication. The early man also removed the skins of some of the big animals he killed and used them as clothes.

The early man farming

The early man hunting

The Early Man as A Toolmaker

The early man was able to gather vegetables, fruits and kill animals with the tools he made himself. The tools were made of wood, stone or metal.

The Early Man and Farming Activities

Crop farming

As the early people harvested and ate the fruits of the crops that grew around them, they scattered their seeds which later germinated and increased the population of the crop plants there. In this way, the gathering activities reduced as the early woman settled to try and raise new crops from these seeds and fruits. This was the beginning of

settled farming activities by the early man.

Livestock Farming

The young animals and birds which the early man brought home alive from his hunting activities were kept for rearing by his wife, the early woman. The woman fed the animals with the fruits, nuts and vegetable matter harvested from their surroundings. The animals grew to adult age and gave birth to young ones. The mature animals were later to be killed and the young ones left to grow to maturity. They too grew, gave birth to young ones and multiplication continued. Some of the birds (fowls) did not escape back to the bush. They were well fed and they began to lay eggs which later hatched to young birds. While some of the now old birds were killed for food, others were left to produce more eggs and young ones. This was the beginning of settled livestock farming.

Tool Making

The early man, who had by now become a crop and animal farmer, needed better tools for his crop and livestock farming activities. He also needed tools for processing his crops to improve the quality of his food. He discovered stone grinders for grinding grains, and for sharpening stones and wood. He discovered fire by rubbing hard stones against one another to create sparks that could produce flame and dry materials. The fire enabled him to:

a) cook his food,

b) warm and protect himself and his family, and

c) melt pieces of metal objects for making better and stronger tools, such as spears, axes and hoes.This was the beginning of primitive

Technology.

ASSIGNMENT