The development and expansion of a Neolithic way of life

Abstract

The Neolithic was a critical period in cultural and technological development, witnessing the transition from a way of life based upon hunting and foraging to one based primarily upon farming. Alongside these changes in basic subsistence strategies, there were also changes in the nature of settlement, especially the move toward longer-term or permanent residence in one location, the development of durable housing structures of packed mud or mud brick, and the first use of pottery. In addition to these material changes, the Neolithic is regarded by some scholars as a period of dramatic change in human beliefs and ideologies, during which individuals and societies restructured their relationships with one another and with the natural world. Many of the material and cultural foundations of developments in later prehistoric and early historic Iran were laid in the Neolithic period.