--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Before the discovery of agriculture…" description: "\"Before the discovery of agriculture mankind was everywhere so divided, the size of each group being determined by the natural fertility of its locality..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47b/arthur-keith-17817_agriculture_before-the-discovery-of-agriculture-mank_2867753.png" --- # Before the discovery of agriculture mankind was everywhere… ![“Before the discovery of agriculture mankind was everywhere so divided, the size of each group being determined by the natural fertility of its locality.” quote by Arthur Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47b/arthur-keith-17817_agriculture_before-the-discovery-of-agriculture-mank_2867753.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47b/arthur-keith-17817_agriculture_before-the-discovery-of-agriculture-mank_2867753.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47b/arthur-keith-17817_agriculture_before-the-discovery-of-agriculture-mank_2867753.png) > “Before the discovery of agriculture mankind was everywhere so divided, the size of each group being determined by the natural fertility of its locality.” [Arthur Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He notes that pre‑agricultural humans lived in small groups defined by local land fertility. **In simple terms:** Early humans lived in small, fertility‑based groups. Key Takeaway Adapt to local resources. Themes anthropology environment social organization history population dynamics Mood reflective analytical Type anthropological historical When to use this quote - hunter‑gatherer societies - resource scarcity - climate change Key Concepts archaeology ecology human geography Questions to Reflect On - How does environment shape culture? - What can we learn from small‑scale societies? A Different Perspective Modern societies differ vastly in scale and technology. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Agriculture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agriculture/) [Determined](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/determined/) [Discovery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discovery/) [Fertility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fertility/) [Mankind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mankind/) ## Related quotes > [With the introduction of agriculture mankind entered upon a long period of meanness, misery, and madness, from which they are only now being freed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/with-the-introduction-of-agriculture-mankind-entered-upon-a-long/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [We must remember that one determined person can make a significant difference, and that a small group of determined people can change the course…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonia-johnson/we-must-remember-that-one-determined-person-can-make-a-significant/) [Sonia Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonia-johnson/) > [As the Independent Group, we are determined to try to forge a different style of doing politics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luciana-berger/as-the-independent-group-we-are-determined-to-try-to-forge-a/) [Luciana Berger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luciana-berger/) > [A small group of determined and like-minded people can change the course of history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/a-small-group-of-determined-and-like-minded-people-can-change-the/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [Social services, not wealth per se, seem to be the key to lower birth rates. The Chinese, although among the poorest peoples of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donella-meadows/social-services-not-wealth-per-se-seem-to-be-the-key-to-lower-birth/) [Donella Meadows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donella-meadows/) > [Everyone has read about or knows someone who has gone through fertility treatments. It is an emotional nightmare, fueled by false hope and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-hood/everyone-has-read-about-or-knows-someone-who-has-gone-through/) [Ann Hood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-hood/) > [Women are like that they don't acquire knowledge of people we are for that they are just born with a practical fertility of suspicion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-faulkner/women-are-like-that-they-don-t-acquire-knowledge-of-people-we-are-for/) [William Faulkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-faulkner/) > [Her mighty lakes, like oceans of liquid silver; her mountains with their right aerial tints; her valleys, teeming with wild fertility; her tremendous cataracts,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washington-irving/her-mighty-lakes-like-oceans-of-liquid-silver-her-mountains-with/) [Washington Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washington-irving/) > [Also known as May Eve, May Day, and Walpurgis Night, happens at the beginning of May. It celebrates the height of Spring and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/selena-fox/also-known-as-may-eve-may-day-and-walpurgis-night-happens-at-the/) Selena Fox > [The main characteristic of Nature's farming can therefore be summed up in a few words. Mother earth never attempts to farm without live stock;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-main-characteristic-of-nature-s-farming-can-therefore-be-summed/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Fertility of the soil is the future of civilization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-howard/fertility-of-the-soil-is-the-future-of-civilization/) Albert Howard > [Perseverance gives power to weakness, and opens to poverty the world's wealth. It spreads fertility over the barren landscape, and buds the choicest flowers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-griswold-goodrich/perseverance-gives-power-to-weakness-and-opens-to-poverty-the-world-s/) Samuel Griswold Goodrich > [“What a vast fertility of pleasure books hold for me! I went in and found the table laden with books. I looked in and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/what-a-vast-fertility-of-pleasure-books-hold-for-me-i-went-in-and/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [“KINGDOM OF THE WOMB From her thighs, she gives you life And how you treat she who gives you life Shows how much you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzy-kassem/kingdom-of-the-womb-from-her-thighs-she-gives-you-life-and-how-you/) [Suzy Kassem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzy-kassem/) > [Men and women dream the same amount. The main difference in dream content relates to biology and life events. Women dream about their fertility,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-mcphee/men-and-women-dream-the-same-amount-the-main-difference-in-dream/) [Charles McPhee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-mcphee/) ## More by Arthur Keith > [It is just because civilization is ever evolving, changing, and becoming more complicated, that experts find it so difficult to define it in explicit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/it-is-just-because-civilization-is-ever-evolving-changing-and/) [Arthur Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/) > [Religious leaders and men of science have the same ideals; they want to understand and explain the universe of which they are part; they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/religious-leaders-and-men-of-science-have-the-same-ideals-they-want/) [Arthur Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/) > [My personal conviction is that science is concerned wholly with truth, not with ethics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/my-personal-conviction-is-that-science-is-concerned-wholly-with-truth/) [Arthur Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/) > [Man is by nature competitive, combative, ambitious, jealous, envious, and vengeful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/man-is-by-nature-competitive-combative-ambitious-jealous-envious-and/) [Arthur Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/) > [A drunkard is one thing, and a temperate man is quite another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/a-drunkard-is-one-thing-and-a-temperate-man-is-quite-another/) [Arthur Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/) > [In every man there is an instinctive and passionate reaction if his person or liberty is attacked.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/in-every-man-there-is-an-instinctive-and-passionate-reaction-if-his/) [Arthur Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/) > [Reason has not tamed desire: it is as strong as ever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/reason-has-not-tamed-desire-it-is-as-strong-as-ever/) [Arthur Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/) > [I prize the conditions under which I have lived because they have permitted me to choose my opportunities, to inquire into such matters as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/i-prize-the-conditions-under-which-i-have-lived-because-they-have/) [Arthur Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/) > [No tribe unites with another of its own free will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/no-tribe-unites-with-another-of-its-own-free-will/) [Arthur Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/) > [Civilization, we shall find, like Universalism and Christianity, is anti evolutionary in its effects; it works against the laws and conditions which regulated the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/civilization-we-shall-find-like-universalism-and-christianity-is-anti/) [Arthur Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/) > [We shall never understand the ethical system taught by Jesus unless we realize that he was a Jew, not only by birth, but that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/we-shall-never-understand-the-ethical-system-taught-by-jesus-unless/) [Arthur Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/) > [No tempting form of error is without some latent charm derived from truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/no-tempting-form-of-error-is-without-some-latent-charm-derived-from/) [Arthur Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/) > [Evolution is unproved and unprovable. We believe it only because the only alternative is special creation, and that is unthinkable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/evolution-is-unproved-and-unprovable-we-believe-it-only-because-the/) [Arthur Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/) > [Whichever theory we adopt to give a rational explanation of human existence, that theory must take into account and explain the mental nature we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/whichever-theory-we-adopt-to-give-a-rational-explanation-of-human/) [Arthur Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/) > [This world of ours has been constructed like a superbly written novel: we pursue the tale with avidity, hoping to discover the plot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/this-world-of-ours-has-been-constructed-like-a-superbly-written-novel/) [Arthur Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/) [Explore all 36 Arthur Keith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/) ## More Agriculture quotes > [Advances in technology will continue to reach far into every sector of our economy. Future job and economic growth in industry, defense, transportation, agriculture,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-bond/advances-in-technology-will-continue-to-reach-far-into-every-sector/) [Christopher Bond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-bond/) > [To husband is to use with care, to keep, to save, to make last, to conserve. Old usage tells us that there is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/to-husband-is-to-use-with-care-to-keep-to-save-to-make-last-to/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [As the first Member of Congress from western Washington to serve on the House Agriculture Committee in over 50 years, I am proud to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-larsen/as-the-first-member-of-congress-from-western-washington-to-serve-on/) [Rick Larsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-larsen/) > [Conventional agriculture has never succeeded in feeding the world, and it's never produced anything good to eat. For the future, we need to look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-barber/conventional-agriculture-has-never-succeeded-in-feeding-the-world-and/) [Dan Barber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-barber/) > [I would say my fraternity was nothing but a bunch of farm boys; we weren't really in the whole fraternity scene, but yeah, that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-bryan/i-would-say-my-fraternity-was-nothing-but-a-bunch-of-farm-boys-we/) [Luke Bryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-bryan/) > [I grew up in Italy, and our country is a country of great agriculture and food produce. It wasn't like I was urban and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabella-rossellini/i-grew-up-in-italy-and-our-country-is-a-country-of-great-agriculture/) [Isabella Rossellini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabella-rossellini/) > [Farmers, get out your sense of humor. Congress meets to relieve you again next week.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-rogers/farmers-get-out-your-sense-of-humor-congress-meets-to-relieve-you/) [Will Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-rogers/) > [Because Iran understands Afghanistan far better than Americans do, making Iran a partner in a long-term effort to transform Afghan agriculture makes sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-kinzer/because-iran-understands-afghanistan-far-better-than-americans-do/) [Stephen Kinzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-kinzer/) > [Sara Scherr and Jeff McNeely have given us a thoughtful, sensible book about a topic of great importance to the world. There is no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ismail-serageldin/sara-scherr-and-jeff-mcneely-have-given-us-a-thoughtful-sensible-book/) [Ismail Serageldin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ismail-serageldin/) > [People want development, modern thinking. They want to encourage and support research in agriculture and other fields.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharad-pawar/people-want-development-modern-thinking-they-want-to-encourage-and/) [Sharad Pawar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharad-pawar/) > [Growing corn, which from a biological perspective had always been a process of capturing sunlight to turn into food, has in no small measure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/growing-corn-which-from-a-biological-perspective-had-always-been-a/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [When politicians talk of loan waiver, they are accepting that agriculture is not economically viable. They are giving a wrong signal that farming is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-s-swaminathan/when-politicians-talk-of-loan-waiver-they-are-accepting-that/) [M. S. Swaminathan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-s-swaminathan/) > [Nitrogen-based fertilizers, which came into wide use after World War II, helped prompt the agricultural revolution that has allowed the Earth to feed its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tatiana-schlossberg/nitrogen-based-fertilizers-which-came-into-wide-use-after-world-war/) [Tatiana Schlossberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tatiana-schlossberg/) > [Agriculture is one economic activity that does not obey the laws of demand and supply.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/agriculture-is-one-economic-activity-that-does-not-obey-the-laws-of/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [More than a mere alternative strategy, regenerative agriculture represents a fundamental shift in our culture’s relationship to nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-eisenstein/more-than-a-mere-alternative-strategy-regenerative-agriculture/) [Charles Eisenstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-eisenstein/) [Browse all 889 Agriculture quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agriculture/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Before the discovery of agriculture mankind was everywhere so divided, the size of each group being determined by the natural fertility of its locality.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Arthur Keith" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/before-the-discovery-of-agriculture-mankind-was-everywhere-so-divided/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Agriculture" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/before-the-discovery-of-agriculture-mankind-was-everywhere-so-divided/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47b/arthur-keith-17817_agriculture_before-the-discovery-of-agriculture-mank_2867753.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47b/arthur-keith-17817_agriculture_before-the-discovery-of-agriculture-mank_2867753.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47b/arthur-keith-17817_agriculture_before-the-discovery-of-agriculture-mank_2867753.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Before the discovery of agriculture mankind was everywhere so divided, the size of each group being…” — Arthur Keith", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Arthur Keith", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Before the discovery of agriculture mankind...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/before-the-discovery-of-agriculture-mankind-was-everywhere-so-divided/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/before-the-discovery-of-agriculture-mankind-was-everywhere-so-divided/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```