Patterns of Subsistence.

Anthropologists have been trying to classify different cultures around the world, most of the classifications they earlier came up with had an ethnocentric approach. Hence, recently during the 1930's the anthropologists had collected enough data to properly classify these cultures into different categories. They classifies the cultures as:

• Foraging (dealt with gatherers and hunters )
• Pastoralism ( large domestic animals were looked after)
• Horticulture (a small scale low intensity farming)
• Intensive agriculture (a large scale intensive farming)

Foraging:

Basically foraging deals with hunting and gathering, it is one of the oldest form of human subsistence where these foragers depend on what the environment they live in provides. They do not grow plants or keep animals but they do use dogs. Likewise, the male go for hunting while the women gather. They are not permanent residents of a certain area, due to many factors such as food and water these foragers have to move from one place to the other. There are three types of foragers:

• Pedestrian (they hunt and gather on foot)
• Equestrian (hunting large animals on horsebacks)
• Aquatic (hunt fish and marine usually on boats)

Out of these Equestrian and Aquatic follow the specialized subsistence pattern and the pedestrian is the most common form of foraging.

Pastoralism:

The people who follow this pattern of subsistence usually have large herds of animals to look after. The animals can be horses, cattle, sheep, goats, camels and reindeer. Pastoralism is also divided into two sections that is the Nomadism and Transhumance. Between these two section nomadism includes migration where there are no permanent settlements and they are self sufficient. On the other hand Transhumance includes the people along with their herds shifting between two settlements as the season changes. They also practice farming but on a small scale. Although the people interchange between villages the settlements are permanent, they do not depend on animals as much as the Nomadic Pastoralists do.

But due to factors such as food and environmental conditions even Pastoralists interchange between Nomadic Pastoralists and Transhumance Pastoralists.

Horticulture:

Horticulture deals with small scale farming by farmers with low intensity. Subsistence wise they also occasionally go hunting and gathering. These farmers do not use insecticides, pesticides or any other mechanical support. Hence they do not have irrigation, but are more productive. Population density is more in these settlements as compared to pastoralism and Foraging. Besides farming these farmers also help in buying, selling and exchange in local markets.

Intensive Agriculture:

It is the pattern of subsistence where the people involve in large scale farming, specially in populous societies. It is the primary food production pattern in most developed countries besides the countries where the land is too arid or cold. The spread of Intensive Agriculture has increased due to the widespread use of fertilizers, pesticides, irrigation and machines. They usually have permanent settlements with new jobs that have appeared due to Intensive Agriculture.

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