Compare and contrast Food foraging culture & Pastoral culture?

Question

besides "Graze and herd animals", what is special in pastoral culture? I am pretty familiar with food foraging culture, just need some insight about pastoral culture and what's the major differences with food foraging. thanks!

Answer 1

Pastoralists have a dependence on the herding and utilization of their animals!  They do this over vast distances surviving primarily from the resources provided from these animals.  Usually the area they habituate is relatively sparse so it is important to know the seasons so that your animals can be at the right place at the right time to be able to consume the food requirements that they need to thrive.  Otherwise pastoralist subsistence also involves milking the animals and sometimes letting blood although the actual slaughter of animals is usually reserved for special occasions because the animals are usually revered much more as a sustainable food source then as a one off.  Because of this desolate habitat and the importance of the animals towards their subsistence, pastoralist societies have less reliance on foraging, although I have yet to meet pastoralists who did not do some foraging as well.  I have met many East African pastoralist groups and have actually worked on some conservation projects in their territories where we worked and integrated our projects with their communities, so I do have some personal experience in this area.  Anyways, I don't know what else to say about this because the major difference is the animal culture of pastoralists, not just herding them, but how they utilize their byproducts as well.  I hope this helps?

Answer 2

Free time. A lot of the first signs of civilization came shortly after we started planting crops and having an abundance of food. Also, we see a shift in power, with land owners and farmers gaining as much power or more than warriors.