Agricultural practices during the middle and late Yangshao periods (6000-4500 BP) in the Guanzhong Basin, North China

Abstract

The middle and late Yangshao (6000–4500 BP) were important periods for the emergence of early social complexity in prehistoric China. While the way ancient people came over the challenges from both environmental changes and human society was unclear. Here, we use flotation and plant stable isotope analysis of the Chakou site in Guanzhong Basin, located in the southern margin of the Loess Plateau, to determine human adaptation strategies in the early times. The results demonstrated that early agriculture was dominated by common millet during 5700–4900 BP. Meanwhile, manuring was applied to meet the challenge of increasing population pressure. In the late Yangshao period (4900–4500 BP), the proportion of foxtail millet increased and became the main crop in the area. Although the archaeological centre moved northwards, the same intensity of manuring was maintained. The stable nitrogen isotope value (δ15N) of charred millet indicated that manuring was widely used during 6000–4500 BP in northern China, among which the manuring level in the Guanzhong Basin was the highest. Synthesized with 37 site studies, the millet weight percentage from archaeological sites in northern China showed that the proportion of foxtail millet in northern China was higher than that of common millet after 5000 BP, whereas the reverse was true before that. These adjustments in agricultural strategies implied an attempt by these middle-late Yangshao people to ensure the sustainable development of agriculture and provide the basis for the emergence of early civilizations and social complexity in northern China. The results of this study may also aid present-day efforts to address unprecedented climatic and social changes.