Spatial and temporal variations in prehistoric human settlement and their influencing factors on the south bank of the Xar Moron River, Northeastern China

The Possible Stimulation of the Mid-Holocene Period’s Initial Hydrological Recession on the Development of Neolithic Cultures along the Margin of the East Asian Summer Monsoon

“…Even though the vicissitudes of prehistoric culture were mainly driven by climate fluctuations [24,163], similar climatic conditions would generate distinct social outcomes (the flourishing or collapse of culture) because of imperative subsistence strategies regulating the relationship between humans and the environment [164,165], the various degrees of climatic deterioration, and the impact of the contextual factors of those cultures [24,164]. More economical and socially specialized societies might be more vulnerable to any abrupt environmental transition [29].…”

“…During the HO in the northeastern fringe, the strengthened monsoon brought more precipitation to the Western Liaohe basin, and hence, favorable climate benefits for the thriving of early Neolithic cultures, such as during the Xinglongwa and Zhaobaogou periods. Rain-watered agriculture began to develop at the time [5] when fishing, hunting, and gathering were the primary subsistence strategies [27,164]. Analysis of stable carbon isotopes in human bones revealed that C3 plants obtained by gathering were part of the daily diet in the region [26,166].…”

“…Flotation results demonstrated that foxtail millet and broomcorn millet became the most important crops during the Hongshan phase in the West Liao River Basin [167]. As the hydroclimate was not humid enough for practicing large-scale agricultural activities, the mid-late Hongshan culture could have been sustained at a low production level for the long term, and Hongshan humans engaged in other subsistence strategies [164]. Rice-starch grains of the Hongshan phase from grinding stones indicated that, at 4000 BC-the earliest evidence, rice appeared in the Liaodong peninsula [168].…”

Austronesian influence and Transeurasian ancestry in Japanese

“…The Xinglongwa people subsisted on a broadspectrum strategy, based on various wild and cultivated plants, including roots, beans, and nuts (Shelach, 2000;Hunt et al, 2008;Weber and Fuller, 2008;Zhao, 2011;Liu et al, 2012;Liu et al, 2016). The strengthening of monsoon around 6200bc increased precipitation and contracted dunefields, facilitating cultivation and leading to its expansion during the ensuing Zhaobaogu (5400-4500bc) and Hongshan cultures (4500-2900 bc) (Jia et al, 2017). Although the Xinglongwa culture was contemporary to the Peiligang (6750-4850 bc) and Cishan (6000-5000 bc) cultures south and north of the Yellow River, it was clearly culturally distinct.…”

“…Houwa people engaged in fishing and hunting as their main economy, but millet agriculture and animal husbandry were also part of their subsistence pattern (Xu, 1995: 74). Around 2800 bc, a weakening of the monsoons and a reduction in precipitation led to a major demographic decline and the collapse of the Hongshan culture (Jia et al, 2017). As the Hongshan population levels were too low to give rise to resource scarcity (Peterson and Drennan, 2011: 106;Drennan and Dai, 2017: 464), the spread of millet agriculture to the Russian Far East around 2700bc was not driven by a population boost, but rather by climate change.…”