Earlier research suggested that nomadism developed
directly from the hunting of wild herd animals that eventu-
ally became domesticated, as might have been the case with
reindeer. Most nomadic animal keeping, however, seems to
have come from the need to exploit marginal areas so that the
animals would pose the least threat to the cultivated fi elds
of sedentary agriculture. Although friction and even warfare
sometimes took place between farmers and nomadic pasto-
ralist groups, intensifi ed by ethnic diff erences, the two could
also coexist in mutually benefi cial relationships.
In Europe their infl uence is represented by cultural con-
tact or direct incursions, apparent in the archaeological record.
It is thought that there were pre-Scythian waves of immigra-
tion from the southeast around the seventh century b.c.e., on
the basis of the fi nding of luxury artifacts in the Th raco-Cim-
merian style—a style that refers to the Th racians and Cim-
merians who lived in east-central Europe and north of the
Black Sea. Th ese artifacts include weapons, horse tacks, and
jewelry, recovered from a small number of burials. Th e work
of the Greek historian Herodotus from the fi ft h century b.c.e.
is probably the best-known classical source treating ancient
Eurasian nomads, especially the Scythians who ruled the east-
ern European steppe north of the Black Sea at the time. His
work also created negative stereotypes of strange and savage
nomads that play a role in present-day perceptions.
Arts and craft s that traveled with the nomads, such as
weapons and jewelry, as well as the remains of special mor-
tuary practices, including horse burials, are most commonly
used to identify nomads in the archaeological record. “No-
madic” infl ux in Europe culminated in the Great Migration
roughly between 300 and 700 c.e., representing a transition
from antiquity to the Middle Ages. It included, among other
Germanic tribes, the Franks, Goths, and Vandals, as well as
Bulgars and Slavic tribes. Equestrian peoples on the northern
and eastern fringes of the Roman Empire contributed eventu-
ally to its transformation and demise. Th is is best illustrated
by the short-lived rule of the Hunnish Empire, another no-
madic society, in the Carpathian Basin during the middle
of the fi ft h century c.e. It is therefore the warlike advance
guard of these people that is known from both archaeological
and historical sources of the Great Migration. Although their
equestrian military tactics must have relied on traditional
skills developed during a nomadic life, in fact, very little is
known of their animal husbandry practices and of the owner-
ship of their herds. It is known, however, that many of these
warriors were the most visible members of complex societies
with organized power centers that had a segment of the popu-
lation that was sedentary.
GREECE
BY SPYROS SIROPOULOS
Th e term nomad refers to a small social unit better known as
a “band” without a specifi c, permanent area of residence or
settlement. Bands usually number less than a hundred mem-
bers; the next largest kind of community is the tribe, with
people inhabiting permanent settlements, such as villages.
In the ancient world people were dependent upon the land;
landscape determined much of their way of life. Greece is a
small country, with many beaches, without many fertile ar-
eas, and with only a few valleys surrounded by mountains.
Traveling from one area to another in ancient times was not
extremely time-consuming or arduous because there are
no diffi cult passages through the Greek mountains. Many
people moved around with the seasons, leaving their marks
behind on the landscape. Archaeologists cooperate with ge-
ologists and others to study remains of ancient pollen traces
to read these marks. Th eir common eff orts can determine the
locations of ancient communities and whether they changed
the environment, by deforestation, by planting domesticated
trees, and by other types of cultivation.
From the beginning of the Neolithic Period in about
7000 b.c.e. domesticated animals, such as sheep, goats, oxen,
and swine, appeared. Th e dates of the domestication of cer-
tain a nima ls var y w it h t he regions. Scientists have dated fi nds
of domesticated sheep at 9000 b.c.e. in northern Iraq, cattle
in the sixth millennium b.c.e. in northeastern Iran, goats at
8000 b.c.e. in central Iran, pigs at 8000 b.c.e. in Th ailand and
7000 b.c.e. in Th essaly, donkeys at 7000 b.c.e. in Iraq, and
horses around 4000 b.c.e. in central Asia. Goats and sheep
soon became very popular. Swineherds and shepherds are of-
ten mentioned by Homer in the Odyssey, from the one-eyed
giant Polyphemus, who was a shepherd, to the swineherd Eu-
maius, who played a major role in Odysseus’s reestablishment
on the throne of Ithaca.
Th e Balkan region was always a good place for grazing
oxen, since the mild climate favors pastures. Animals were
kept mostly to provide a supply of meat. Pigs, too, were fa-
vored. Goats and sheep mainly provided milk; dairy products
were a substantial part of the ancient Mediterranean diet. Th e
wool and hides of these animals were valuable commodities,
too, since they not only served the practical needs of the com-
munity but were also used as trading materials. As for oxen,
they were useful not only for meat and milk but also oft en
served as draft animals, pulling carts and plows of farmers,
as late as Hellenistic times.
Th e needs of animals dictated, to a great extent, the way
of living in pastoral society. Seasonal migration in search of
pastures was essential. Of course, animal products alone were
not enough to sustain the pastoral communities. Small-scale
farming was practiced, and exchange of goods with farming
communities was common.
Th e social scale of the pastoral communities was usually
simple. Th e family was the principle social module, with the
elder person being the leader. Status was immediately related
to the number and the quality of the animals owned. For-
mation of larger bands was common when the weather was
good and the land was fertile. Antagonism toward neighbor-
ing bands was set aside, and smaller teams came together for
migration in order to ensure the protection and safety of all.794 nomadic and pastoral societies: Greece