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Climate shaped how Neolithic farmers and European hunter-gatherers interacted after a major slowdown from 6,100 bce to 4,500 bce

Author

Listed:
  • Lia Betti

    (University of Roehampton)

  • Robert M. Beyer

    (University of Cambridge
    University of Cambridge)

  • Eppie R. Jones

    (University of Cambridge)

  • Anders Eriksson

    (University of Cambridge
    Guys Hospital
    University of Tartu)

  • Francesca Tassi

    (University of Ferrara)

  • Veronika Siska

    (University of Cambridge)

  • Michela Leonardi

    (University of Cambridge)

  • Pierpaolo Maisano Delser

    (University of Cambridge
    Trinity College Dublin)

  • Lily K. Bentley

    (University of Cambridge)

  • Philip R. Nigst

    (University of Cambridge)

  • Jay T. Stock

    (University of Cambridge
    University of Western Ontario
    Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History)

  • Ron Pinhasi

    (University of Vienna)

  • Andrea Manica

    (University of Cambridge)

Abstract

The Neolithic transition in Europe was driven by the rapid dispersal of Near Eastern farmers who, over a period of 3,500 years, brought food production to the furthest corners of the continent. However, this wave of expansion was far from homogeneous, and climatic factors may have driven a marked slowdown observed at higher latitudes. Here, we test this hypothesis by assembling a large database of archaeological dates of first arrival of farming to quantify the expansion dynamics. We identify four axes of expansion and observe a slowdown along three axes when crossing the same climatic threshold. This threshold reflects the quality of the growing season, suggesting that Near Eastern crops might have struggled under more challenging climatic conditions. This same threshold also predicts the mixing of farmers and hunter-gatherers as estimated from ancient DNA, suggesting that unreliable yields in these regions might have favoured the contact between the two groups.

Suggested Citation

  • Lia Betti & Robert M. Beyer & Eppie R. Jones & Anders Eriksson & Francesca Tassi & Veronika Siska & Michela Leonardi & Pierpaolo Maisano Delser & Lily K. Bentley & Philip R. Nigst & Jay T. Stock & Ron, 2020. "Climate shaped how Neolithic farmers and European hunter-gatherers interacted after a major slowdown from 6,100 bce to 4,500 bce," Nature Human Behaviour, Nature, vol. 4(10), pages 1004-1010, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:nathum:v:4:y:2020:i:10:d:10.1038_s41562-020-0897-7
    DOI: 10.1038/s41562-020-0897-7
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    Cited by:

    1. Ekaterina Dolbunova & Alexandre Lucquin & T. Rowan McLaughlin & Manon Bondetti & Blandine Courel & Ester Oras & Henny Piezonka & Harry K. Robson & Helen Talbot & Kamil Adamczak & Konstantin Andreev & , 2023. "The transmission of pottery technology among prehistoric European hunter-gatherers," Nature Human Behaviour, Nature, vol. 7(2), pages 171-183, February.

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