Universität zu Köln

Zerl, Tanja ORCID: 0000-0003-3078-9922, Suhrbier, Stefan ORCID: 0000-0002-6324-7970, Scharl, Silviane ORCID: 0000-0002-5802-9813, Broich, Manuel ORCID: 0000-0003-0450-7135, Lindemann, Hannah, Nolde, Nadine ORCID: 0000-0001-6258-2323, Schick, Anna, Stobbe, Astrid and Röpke, Astrid ORCID: 0000-0003-2917-5122 (2025). Dynamics of early agriculture – multivariate analysis of changes in crop cultivation and farming practices in the Rhineland (Germany) between the 6th and early 4th millennium BCE. Journal of Archaeological Science, 183. pp. 1-15. Elsevier. ISSN 0305-4403

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Abstract

[Artikel-Nr.: 106369] First evidence for food production in continental Europe dates to the late 7th (Southeast Europe) and the 6th mill. BCE (Central and Western Europe). Early farming practices, however, were not static and underwent considerable changes and developments in the centuries and millennia following their arrival. Regionally varying processes of standardisation and diversification can be observed. To gain a deeper understanding of these processes on a regional scale, which also allows for a review and discussion of possible causes, we collected data on archaeobotanical macro remains from 72 sites in the Rhineland (Germany), dating from the later 6th to the early 4th mill. BCE. The Rhineland was selected due to its rich record in archaeobotanical material. As a multivariate analysis shows, a statistically significant correlation can be demonstrated between chronological development on the one hand and the crop spectrum on the other hand. Moreover, the diachronic patterns reveals a diversification of the cereal spectrum. Similarly, settlement patterns also changed, and sites were located on a greater variety of soils. As a change in environmental factors can be ruled out, we discuss risk management strategies and growing experience with agriculture as possible causes for the observed transformation. Moreover, this methodological approach makes it possible to include sites that yielded only a small number of samples which were previously considered unrepresentative. Using multivariate statistics, we can demonstrate that the sample size has no statistically significant influence on the results of our analysis.

Item Type:	Article
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID ORCID Put Code Zerl, Tanja UNSPECIFIED https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3078-9922 UNSPECIFIED Suhrbier, Stefan UNSPECIFIED https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6324-7970 UNSPECIFIED Scharl, Silviane UNSPECIFIED https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5802-9813 UNSPECIFIED Broich, Manuel UNSPECIFIED https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0450-7135 UNSPECIFIED Lindemann, Hannah UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED Nolde, Nadine UNSPECIFIED https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6258-2323 UNSPECIFIED Schick, Anna UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED Stobbe, Astrid UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED Röpke, Astrid UNSPECIFIED https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2917-5122 UNSPECIFIED
URN:	urn:nbn:de:hbz:38-810088
Identification Number:	10.1016/j.jas.2025.106369
Journal or Publication Title:	Journal of Archaeological Science
Volume:	183
Page Range:	pp. 1-15
Number of Pages:	15
Date:	November 2025
Publisher:	Elsevier
ISSN:	0305-4403
Language:	English
Faculty:	Faculty of Arts and Humanities
Divisions:	Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Fächergruppe 2: Archäologie, Altertumskunde und Kulturen des Mittelmeerraums > Institut für Ur- und Frühgeschichte
Subjects:	Customs, etiquette, folklore History of ancient world
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Keywords Language Neolithic ; Central Europe ; Change of farming practices ; Diversification ; Archaeobotany ; Redundancy analysis ; Diversity analyses English
['eprint_fieldname_oa_funders' not defined]:	Publikationsfonds UzK
Refereed:	Yes
URI:	http://kups.ub.uni-koeln.de/id/eprint/81008