Prehistoric agriculture in western Norway – Evidence for shifting and permanent cultivation based on botanical investigations from archaeological sites

Abstract

Pollen and macrofossil samples from six archaeological sites in Hordaland in western Norway were analysed to gain an overview of the onset and development of agriculture and land-use practices in the region. Samples from soil profiles covering the time-period 7000cal. BCE to cal. 1200 CE were analysed. The results show that agricultural practices were in effect at the latest from the Late Neolithic (2300–1800cal. BCE) or the Early Bronze Age (1800–1200cal. BCE) at all sites and that different forest types were cleared and converted for farming. Hordeum vulgare was cultivated and animal husbandry existed. Plant macrofossil remains and pollen support and complement each other and indicate that the first period of agriculture did not have a pronounced effect on the vegetation around the sites. Both a kind of shifting cultivation and more permanent cultivation took place in the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age, whereas permanent cultivation with an increased emphasis on livestock and increased opening of the vegetation is indicated from the Late Bronze Age with further intensification in the Iron Age. The study demonstrates the potential of on-site analysis from archaeological sites in elucidating past land-use practices and the development of agriculture.