Comparison of subsistence between South and North of China during the transitional period from the Paleolithic to the Neolithic

Archaeological evidence reveal that the beginning of farming and sedentary lifestyle in China occurred around 8000 years ago. Therefore, the transitional period from the Paleolithic to the Neolithic,15000-8500 BP, was crucial for understanding the motives and processes of the origin of agriculture. Archeological data demonstrate that there are significant differences in the cultural aspect between the southern and northern regions of China during the transitional period, but strong similarities within their respective distribution areas. For example, the surrounding environment of the sites, the characteristics of features, the stylistic elements displayed by stone tools, bone tools and ceramics, the component of animal and plant remains, etc. Analysis indicates that food procurement of the transitional period based on standards such as nutritional value, difficulty in obtaining and processing, and palatability. In situations where conditions did not permit, ancient people became to accept food types with low nutritional value, high processing difficulty, and poor palatability, such as seeds of grass, which became cereals after the origin of agriculture.