The emergence of agriculture in New Guinea

Abstract

In this paper, foraging theory is used to explore how agriculture arose from pre-existing subsistence practices in the Highlands of New Guinea. In the first half of this paper several key lines of evidence for prehistoric subsistence practices from the early to mid Holocene are reviewed. These reviews provide a foundation for differentiating agriculture from other subsistence practices in the region. In the second half of the paper, several themes from foraging theory are adopted to show behavioural continuity in the emergence of agriculture from pre-existing foraging strategies in the Highlands of New Guinea. Show more