Climate as a factor for Neolithic cultural collapses approximately 4000 years BP in China

Sun, Qianli; Liu, Yan; Wünnemann, Bernd; Peng, Yajun; Jiang, Xiaotong; Deng, Lanjie; Chen, Jing; Li, Maotian; Chen, Zhongyuan

doi:10.1016/j.earscirev.2019.102915

Cited by 66 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 215 publications

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“…Thus, it was speculated that there was no transgression, but there had been cataclysmic land-flooding events. From the curves of sea level changes during the Holocene in East China and their comparison with the global curve ( Figure 6), it can also be observed that there was no high sea level and transgression from 5.0 to 4.0 ka BP in Eastern China, including the Yangtze Delta [19,[141][142][143]. Another point worth noting is that, after 4.0 ka BP, as represented by the Maqiao Culture, the distribution area of each pre-historic culture contracted, a phenomenon that was simultaneously accompanied by two different modes of production (rice farming vs. hunting and gathering) and eco-nomic transitions [43,61,62].…”

Section: Archaeological Stratigraphy Research On Typical Sitesmentioning

confidence: 90%

“…Environmental archaeology is an interdisciplinary science combining archaeolog-ical science, geochronology, Quaternary geology, zoology, botany, sedimentology, stra-tigraphy, geochemistry, micropaleontology, remote sensing, GIS, and other natural sciences [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]. Primarily through the analysis and research of sediments from archae-ological site stratigraphy and the natural stratigraphic profile, environmental archae-ology reveals environmental processes occurring since the dawn of humanity, particu-larly human-related environmental issues during the Holocene [10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21]. The goal of environmental archaeology is to understand how the natural environment impacted the survival of ancient humans and how ancient humans lived and developed through their simultaneous adaptation to and influence on the environment [21][22][23][24][25][26].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Therefore, the integrated comparative study of archaeological strata and typical continuous records of environ-mental evolution in the research area can reveal the relationship between ancient hu-man activities and the paleoenvironment in the area. In addition, the international en-vironmental archaeology field now pays particular attention to the impacts of climate change-particularly abrupt climate change-on human activities, cultural develop-ment, and civilization processes [19,[45][46][47][48][49]. However, some issues about mismatches of scale in the application of paleoclimatic research to environmental archaeology have been focused by some scholars [50,51].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Holocene Environmental Archaeology of the Yangtze River Valley in China: A Review

Zhu

et al. 2021

Land

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The Yangtze River Valley is an important economic region and one of the cradles of human civilization. It is also the site of frequent floods, droughts, and other natural disasters. Conducting Holocene environmental archaeology research in this region is of great importance when studying the evolution of the relationship between humans and the environment and the interactive effects humans had on the environment from 10.0 to 3.0 ka BP, for which no written records exist. This review provides a comprehensive summary of materials that have been published over the past several decades concerning Holocene environmental archaeology in the Yangtze River Valley, to further understand large-scale regional Holocene environmental and cultural interaction within this area. The results show that: 1) in recent years, Holocene envi-ronmental archaeology research in the Yangtze River Valley has primarily taken paleoflood and sea-level change stratigraphical events to be the foundational threads for study. This began with research on the spatiotemporal distribution of archaeological sites, typical archaeological site stratigraphy, and research on background features concerning environmental evolution recorded by the regional natural sedimentary strata. 2) Significant progress has been made at the upper, middle, and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, indicating that Holocene environmental ar-chaeology research along the Yangtze River Valley is deepening and broadening. 3) Dramatic changes to Neolithic cultures that occurred approximately 4.0 ka BP were influenced by climate change and associated consequences, although the impacts differed on the various Neolithic cultures in the Yangtze River Valley. Local topography, regional climate, and varying survival strategies may have contributed to these differences. 4) Newly-published research pays particular attention to the sedimentary records of the past with resolutions as high as one year to several months, the degree to which humans altered the quality of their natural environment, and human adjustments to settlement and subsistence practices during periods of Holocene climate change. The application of technologies such as remote sensing, geographic information systems (GIS), and molecular biological analysis are also gradually being extended into the research field of Holocene environmental archaeology in the Yangtze River Valley.

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Section: Archaeological Stratigraphy Research On Typical Sitesmentioning

confidence: 90%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Holocene Environmental Archaeology of the Yangtze River Valley in China: A Review

Zhu

et al. 2021

Land

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“…This event also played a significant impact on the transformation of civilization in China Liu, 2001, Wu andSun et al, 2019), and is argued to have led to significant culture change and transformations of subsistence strategies in China Liu, 2001, Wu andWang, 2004;Chen et al, 2015;Jia et al, 2016). In particular, the collapse of the Liangzhu Culture is considered a result of this event in southeastern China (Stanley et al, 1999;Li et al, 2010;Sun et al, 2019). This climate event potentially caused southward human migration, bringing millet and wheat dry-land farming to Jiangsu Province.…”

Section: Influential Factors On Human Settlement and Agricultural Systems In Holocene In Jiangsu Provincementioning

confidence: 99%

“…This event has been argued to lead to the demise of some ancient states, such as the Akkad Empire and the Harappa civilization (Weiss et al, 1993;Kerr, 1998;Cullen et al, 2000;Staubwasser et al, 2003). This event also played a significant impact on the transformation of civilization in China Liu, 2001, Wu andSun et al, 2019), and is argued to have led to significant culture change and transformations of subsistence strategies in China Liu, 2001, Wu andWang, 2004;Chen et al, 2015;Jia et al, 2016). In particular, the collapse of the Liangzhu Culture is considered a result of this event in southeastern China (Stanley et al, 1999;Li et al, 2010;Sun et al, 2019).…”

Section: Influential Factors On Human Settlement and Agricultural Systems In Holocene In Jiangsu Provincementioning

confidence: 99%

Agricultural Transformations and Their Influential Factors Revealed by Archaeobotanical Evidence in Holocene Jiangsu Province, Eastern China

Liu

James

et al. 2021

Front. Earth Sci.

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The development and adoption of agriculture has been investigated for decades, and remains a central topic within archaeology. However, most previous studies focus on the crop’s domestication centers, leading to gaps in knowledge, particularly in transitional zones between these centers. This paper reviews published archaeobotanical evidence and historical documents to reconstruct the trajectory of agricultural systems in Holocene Jiangsu Province. Comparing these new results to paleoclimate information, historical documents, and archaeological data enables us to better understand the underlying influences of past agricultural development. Our results indicate that a warm and wet climate may have promoted ancient peoples to first settle in Jiangsu between 8,500 and 6,000 BP and adopt rice farming. The continuous warm and wet climate may have facilitated the rapid development and expansion of rice agriculture, ultimately contributing to large-scale human settlement in 6,000–4,000 BP in Jiangsu Province. Between 4,000 and 2,300 BP during a cooler and drier climate millet agriculture diffused southward, facilitating a mixed rice and millet agricultural system. This mixed farming supported a continuesd widespread settlement and population growth in Jiangsu. After 2,300 BP, political instability in north China resulted in further southeastward migration, advanced planting technology was brought about to south China, facilitating highly developed agricultural systems and rapid population expansion in Jiangsu. Population growth led to the establishment of Jiangnan as the regional economic center, where people chose high-yielding rice and wheat rather than millet.

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Human activity and climate change triggered the expansion of rocky desertification in the karst areas of Southwestern China

Chen

Yuan

Cheng

et al. 2021

Sci. China Earth Sci.

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Climate as a factor for Neolithic cultural collapses approximately 4000 years BP in China

Cited by 66 publications

References 215 publications

Holocene Environmental Archaeology of the Yangtze River Valley in China: A Review

Holocene Environmental Archaeology of the Yangtze River Valley in China: A Review

Agricultural Transformations and Their Influential Factors Revealed by Archaeobotanical Evidence in Holocene Jiangsu Province, Eastern China

Human activity and climate change triggered the expansion of rocky desertification in the karst areas of Southwestern China

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