FIRSTFARMERS
THE HUNTERS and gatherers of the late Paleolithic Period made other important advances .They tamed, or domesticated wild animals such as wolves, which became the first hunting dogs. The people also realized that the seeds from grasses they picked could be sown in the ground to produce more plants.
Once these discoveries had been made, people could settle in permanent groups and form communities. The first farming communities began about 12,000 years ago. Farmers planted early forms of wheat and barley that grew wild on the hillsides, and domesticated animals such as sheep and goats for milk and meat.
The farmers needed sunshine and water for their crops. The first communities settled on the banks of rivers in the hot lands of the Middle East and North Africa. Some farmed the fertile soil on the banks of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq). Others settled in the valley of the River Nile in Egypt.
The First Cities
Once these discoveries had been made, people could settle in permanent groups and form communities. The first farming communities began about 12,000 years ago. Farmers planted early forms of wheat and barley that grew wild on the hillsides, and domesticated animals such as sheep and goats for milk and meat.
The farmers needed sunshine and water for their crops. The first communities settled on the banks of rivers in the hot lands of the Middle East and North Africa. Some farmed the fertile soil on the banks of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq). Others settled in the valley of the River Nile in Egypt.
The First Cities
PLOUGHING THE LAND
Farming was slow and laborious using these methods. Farmers could only grow enough food for themselves and their families, which meant that every able person in the community had to farm to survive.
Some new tools were needed to enable food to be produced more efficiently. One was the invention to the plough. The first plough was probably a bough with forked branches that could be pulled along the grounds to turn the soil.
Most of our evidence about early ploughs comes from wall paintings and carvings. We know that a simple scratch plough was used in Mesopotamia from about 4500 BC and in ancient Egypt from about 2600 BC.
The First Cities