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Long-Term Processes in the History of Humanity
Langfristige Prozesse in der Menschheitsgeschichte
[journal article]
Abstract "Humanity" is no longer an ideal but a reality. Its history does not date back a few hundreds of generations, as was still believed in the 18th century; it encompasses many tens of thousands of generations. A synthesis of historical, sociological, anthropological, archaeological, and biological appr... view more
"Humanity" is no longer an ideal but a reality. Its history does not date back a few hundreds of generations, as was still believed in the 18th century; it encompasses many tens of thousands of generations. A synthesis of historical, sociological, anthropological, archaeological, and biological approaches is now possible. An attempt in this direction is made here in the form of a few simple overall "process models." The three major ecological transformations brought about by humans serve as benchmarks: the domestication of fire, the rise of agriculture, and the "industrial revolution." Each new stage in control over nature signalled a simultaneous increase in dependency on that which was being controlled. Against this background, secular trends of growth, concentration, specialisation, organisation, and stratification of human populations have been dominant over the last ten millennia.... view less
Classification
History
Sociology
Free Keywords
history of humanity; ecological transformations; process models; control and dependency; agrarianisation; dominant long-term trends; regimes; transformation; agrarian societies
Document language
English
Publication Year
2023
Page/Pages
p. 45-61
Journal
Historical Social Research, 48 (2023) 1
Issue topic
Long-Term Processes in Human History
ISSN
0172-6404
Status
Published Version; peer reviewed