Human Geography By James Rubenstein

1. Human GeographyBy James Rubenstein • Chapter 10 • Key Issue 1 • Where Did Agriculture Originate? S. Mathews

2. Origins of Agriculture • The origins cannot be documented with certainty, because it began before recorded history. • Improvements in cultivating plants and domesticating animals evolved over thousands of years. S. Mathews

3. Agriculture • The deliberate modification of Earth's surface through cultivation of plants and rearing of animals to obtain sustenance or economic gain. S. Mathews

4. Crop • Any plant cultivated by people. S. Mathews

5. Hunters and Gatherers • Before the invention of agriculture, humans obtained the food they needed through hunting, fishing, or gathering. • They lived in small groups. • Frequency and direction of movement depended on the migration of game and the seasonal growth of plants. S. Mathews

6. Contemporary Hunters and Gatherers • Less than 0.005 percent of the world's population, still survive by hunting and gathering. • Contemporary hunting and gathering societies are isolated groups, but provide insight into human customs that prevailed in prehistoric times. S. Mathews

7. Invention of Agriculture • Over thousands of years, plant cultivation apparently evolved from a combination of accident and deliberate experiment. S. Mathews

8. Prehistoric people may have originally domesticated animals for non-economic reasons, such as sacrifices and other religious ceremonies, or household pets. S. Mathews

9. Vegetative Planting • Reproduction of plants by direct cloning from existing plants. • The earliest form of plant cultivation. S. Mathews

10. Seed Agriculture • Reproduction of plants through annual introduction of seeds, which result from sexual fertilization. • Practiced by most farmers today. S. Mathews

11. Location of Agricultural Hearths • Agriculture probably did not originate in one location, but began in multiple, independent hearths. S. Mathews

12. Location of First Vegetative Planting • Probably originated in Southeast Asia. • Food primarily obtained by fishing, so people may have been more sedentary. • First domesticated plants probably included roots, and tree crops. S. Mathews

13. Other early hearths may have emerged independently in West Africa and northwestern South America. S. Mathews

14. Origin and Diffusion of Vegetative Planting S. Mathews

15. Location of First Seed Agriculture • Probably originated in western India, northern China, and Ethiopia. • Diffused quickly from India to Southwest Asia, where important early advances were made, including the domestication of wheat and barley. S. Mathews

16. Southwest Asia was first to integrate seed agriculture with domestication of herd animals such as cattle, sheep, and goats. • This integration of plants and animals is a fundamental element of modem agriculture. S. Mathews

17. Diffusion of Seed Agriculture in the Eastern Hemisphere • Plants and animals domesticated in Southwest Asia spread into Europe, North Africa, and India. • Millet diffused from northern China to South Asia and Southeast Asia. • Rice probably came from Southeast Asia. S. Mathews

18. Diffusion of Seed Agriculture in the Western Hemisphere • Corn and squash originated around southern Mexico. • Squash, beans, and cotton probably first domesticated in northern Peru. • Herd animals were unknown until introduced by Europeans. S. Mathews

19. Seed Hearth S. Mathews

20. Classifying Agricultural Regions • The most fundamental differences in agricultural practices are between those in LDCs and those in MDCs. S. Mathews

21. Subsistence Agriculture • The production of food primarily for consumption by the farmer’s family. • Most predominant in LDCs. S. Mathews

22. S. Mathews

23. Commercial Agriculture • The production of food primarily for sale off the farm. • Primarily found in MDCs. S. Mathews

24. Five Principal Features of Farming • Purpose • Percentage of farmers in the labor force • Use of machinery • Farm size • Relationship to other businesses S. Mathews

25. Purpose of Farming • In LDCs most people produce food for their own consumption. Surplus may be sold, but may not even exist some years. • On commercial farming, farmers grow crops and raise animals primarily for sale. S. Mathews

26. Percentage of Farmers in the Labor Force • Less than 5% of the workers are engaged directly in farming in MDCs. • 55% or more of population are engaged in agriculture in LDCs. • Only 2% of labor force are farmers in the United States and Canada. S. Mathews

27. % of Labor Force in Agriculture S. Mathews

28. Use of Machinery • Machinery replaced manual labor on farms in MDCs and allow a small number of farmers to feed many people. • Transportation improvements and electronic devices aid in the movement of crops and cattle to market more efficiently. S. Mathews

29. Combines harvesting S. Mathews

30. Tractors/1000 People S. Mathews

31. Farm Size • Commercial farms are large as a consequence of mechanization; tractors and other machinery allow a large area to be cultivated in a small amount of time. • Subsistence farms are small due to dependence on manual labor; a family can cultivate only a small area at a time. S. Mathews

32. Prime Agricultural Land • The most productive farmland. • In the U.S. and other MDCs, the most productive farmland is being replaced by suburban areas surrounding large urban centers. S. Mathews

33. Relationship of Farming to Other Businesses • Although farmers are less than 2% of the U.S. labor force, more than 20% of U.S. labor works in food processing, packaging, storing, distributing, and retailing. S. Mathews

34. Agribusiness • Commercial agriculture characterized by integration of different steps in the food-processing industry, usually through ownership by large corporations. S. Mathews

35. Mapping Agricultural Regions • Attempts have been made to outline the agriculture currently practiced based on climate, but • environmental determinism has discouraged placing too much emphasis climate, and • cultural preferences explain other differences. S. Mathews