Neolithic Revolution PDF

Neolithic Revolution During theNeolithic period, human beings transfonued froma mobile to sedentary way of life witha radical shift from hunting and gatheiing to the domestication of plants and animals. Climatic change and an increased population of hunters and gathereis resulted ina decline inthe...

Neolithic Revolution During theNeolithic period, human beings transfonued froma mobile to sedentary way of life witha radical shift from hunting and gatheiing to the domestication of plants and animals. Climatic change and an increased population of hunters and gathereis resulted ina decline inthe number ofanimals and the availability of plants. As food gatherers were already aware of the growing cycle of most grass types, they began togrow those plants that were most common and yielded more edible seeds. 4“he big animals, which depended on dense bushes for sustenance, were reduced by hunting and theanimals that people could domesticate easily were smaller. The process of domestication took place independently in various parts of the world. In more elevated and wetter parts of the Horn, plants like eragrotis teff, dagussa (eleusine coracana), ring (guzotia), ensete ventricosuni etc. were cultivated. The discovery of polished axes, beads, ceramics, grinding stones, stone figures and animal remains in Emba-Fakeda around Adigrat in Tigray as well as Aqordat and Barentu in Eritrea is evidence of Neolithic material culture. Gobodaia rock shelter near Aksum has provided agricultural stone tools. Remains of domesticated cattle, chickpeas, and vegetables have been excavated from Lalibela Cave on the southeasteni shore of Lake Tana. Stone tools used forcutting grass and rock paintings of tamed animals have been found at the Laga Oda rock shelter in Chercher. Evidence fordomesticated cattle also comes from around Lake Basaqa near Matahara town. Playa Napata and Kado inthe Sudan, Cyrenaica in Libya and Futajalon in West Africa were among theknown places of domestication of animals like Nidamawa and Zebu (Bos indices) cattle, which in due couise expanded toEthiopia and theHorn. Economic Formations The domestication of plants and animals gave humanity two interdependent modes oflife: arable and pastoral farming. While there may be pure pastoralists, it is very rare to think ofa farmer withouta head of cattle or two. Likewise, in the Horn, these two forms of livelihood have coexisted and are quite often interrelated. However, topographic features and climatic conditions largely influenced economic activities in the region. A predominantly pastoral economy (rearing camel, goat, cattle, etc.) has characterized the eastern lowlands of Afar, Saho, and Somali as well as Karayu and Borana Oromo. While the Afar and Karrayu depend on theAwash River, the Somali have oweda great deal to the Wabi Shebelle and Genale (Jubba) rivers. Most ofthehighland population (the Cushites, Semites, and Northern Omotic groups) has been engaged inmixed farming since 10,000 years BP, whereas southern Omo predominantly practiced pastoralism and fishing. Many Omotic groups were also engaged in metallurgy, weaving, and other crafts as well as trade. The Nilotes along the Blue Nile and Baro-Akobo rivers have been shifting cultivators, with sorghum as the staple food. Millet, cotton, and other crops were also produced inthese sparsely populated western lowlands. Among themajority of Nilotic communities, cattle have high economic and social values, supplemented with apiculture, fishing and hunting. Judaism In northern and northwestel-n Ethiopia, the Bete-Israel (literally, ‘house of Israel’/ Ethiopian Jews), formerly known as “Falasha,” practiced Haynianot (religious practices different from Rabbinic Judaism). Many oftheir accounts trace the origin of the same people from the Dan Tribe that migrated to Ethiopia led by the sons of Moses during the Exodus (1400-1200 BC). Others claim they arrived with Menilek I, believed to be the son of King Solomon (r. 974-932 BC) ofIsrael and Queen Saba (Sheba), also known asAzeb (Makeda). Another group is said to have arrived in Ethiopia led by persons known asAzonos andPhinhas inthe sixth century AD. Still others are said to have been Jewish immigrants who intermarried with the Agaw groups. On the other hand, scholars like Taddese Tamrat and Kay Shelmay argue that they are remnants of Old Testament followers of Orthodox Christianity and local converts, not migrants. Christianity Christianity becamea state religion in 334 AD during thereign of King Ezana (r. 320-360), who dropped pre-Christian gods like Ares (the war god), Arwe (serpent-python god), Bahir (sea god) and Midir (earth god), and embraced Christianity. Instrumental in the conversion were two Syrian brothers, Aedesius and Frementius (Fremnatos). When Fremnatos (also known asKasate Birhane orAbba Salama) visited Alexandria, Patriarch Atnatewos (328-373) appointed him as the first Bishop of theEthiopian Orthodox Church (EOC). The consecration of bishops by the Coptic Church continued until 1959, whenAbune Basilios became thefirst Ethiopian Patriarch. Christianity was expanded among themass ofthepeople during thereign of Ella Amida II (478 86) by the Nine Saints, who came mostly from different regions of the Byzantine Empire. The saints built several churches, such as Debre Damo, and translated the Holy Bible and other spiritual texts into Ge'ez. The expansion of Christianity continued and gained fresh momentum during the Zagwe dynasty (1150-1270) and the early medieval period (1270-1527), when many churches and monasteries were constructed. These churches and monasteries are not mere religious centers, but have served as repositories of ancient manuscripts and precious objects of art throughout theages. The Jesuits attempted to convert EOC to Catholicism from the mid- sixteenth to the early seventeenth centuries, which Taddesse calls “evangelizing the evangelized.” However, this led to bloody anti-Catholic rebellions and civil war that directly led to the expulsion of the Jesuits in 1632. Missionaries' religious expansion was one of the dominant themes of the treaties concluded between European diplomats and Ethiopian authorities in the nineteenth century. The Catholic Giuseppe Sapeto (founder of the Lazarist mission), Giustino De Jacobis (founder of the Capuchin order) and Cardinal Massaja were themore prominent ones. The Anglican Church Missionary Society (ACMS), Church Missionary Society of London (CMSL), and Wesleyan Methodist Society ledby Gobat, Isenberg and Krapfintroduced and expanded Protestantism.