Class 12 Anthropology Chapter 5 Concepts of Economic Anthropology Solutions with complete textual questions and answers, important additional exam-oriented questions and answers, and easy-to-understand solutions for effective exam preparation.
Class 12 Anthropology Chapter 5 Concepts of Economic Anthropology Solutions
Textual Questions & Solutions
A. Very Short Questions
- What is the oldest form of livelihood?
Ans: The oldest known form of livelihood is hunting and gathering, based primarily on the collection of wild plant foods and the hunting of animals.
- What is the first domesticated animal of man?
Ans: The dog is generally regarded as the first domesticated animal, although the exact timing and process of its domestication remain subjects of scholarly discussion.
- In which prehistoric period the fishing economy was started?
Ans: Fishing as a regular part of the human economy became well established during the Upper Palaeolithic, although evidence of the exploitation of aquatic resources occurs earlier.
- What is the main source of livelihood of the Todas of Nilgiri Hills?
Ans: The main traditional source of livelihood of the Todas of the Nilgiri Hills is pastoralism, especially the rearing of buffaloes and the production of dairy products.
- Name one pastoral tribe of North East India.
Ans: The Monpa of Arunachal Pradesh is one pastoral community of North-East India.
- In which prehistoric period was agriculture first started?
Ans: Agriculture was first established during the Neolithic Age.
- Name the prehistoric period from which the domestication of animal started?
Ans: Animal domestication began during the Neolithic Period, although the domestication of the dog may have begun earlier, during the Late Palaeolithic.
- Name one community of North East India that practice terrace cultivation.
Ans: The Apatanis of Arunachal Pradesh practise terrace cultivation.
B. Short Questions
- Name two communities who practices shifting cultivation.
Ans: Two communities that practise shifting cultivation are the Khasis and the Ao Nagas.
- Write the names of any six fishing implements used in rural parts of Assam.
Ans: The names of six traditional fishing implements used in rural parts of Assam are:
(i) Jaal.
(ii) Polo.
(iii) Jakoi.
(iv) Khaloi.
(v) Chepa.
(vi) Juluki.
- Write the names of any six agricultural implements used in the rural parts of Assam.
Ans: The names of six traditional agricultural implements used in rural parts of Assam are:
(i) Nangal.
(ii) Jeng.
(iii) Kobari.
(iv) Moi.
(v) Daa.
(vi) Kopou.
4 What do you mean by simple economy?
Ans: A simple economy is an economic system in which production is mainly intended to meet the basic needs of individuals, families, or communities. Production is generally small-scale and based on traditional knowledge, skills, and tools. Exchange may take place through barter, reciprocity, or other forms of mutual exchange. Such an economy is commonly associated with subsistence-oriented societies.
- Write the salient features of simple economy.
Ans: The salient features of a simple economy are as follows:
(i) People have relatively few and basic needs, such as food, clothing, and shelter.
(ii) Families or small communities produce much of what they need.
(iii) Production is generally small-scale and mainly intended to meet local needs.
(iv) People often perform several different economic activities rather than having highly specialized occupations.
(v) Traditional tools, techniques, and knowledge are commonly used.
(vi) Exchange may take place through barter, reciprocity, or limited use of money, depending on the society.
(vii) Large-scale industrial production, complex financial institutions, and extensive market systems are generally absent or limited.
- What do you mean by subsistence economy? Write the salient features of subsistence economy.
Ans: A subsistence economy is an economic system in which people produce goods and obtain resources primarily to satisfy their own basic needs rather than to produce mainly for sale in a market. Subsistence economies may include food gathering, hunting, fishing, pastoralism, and food production through agriculture.
The salient features of a subsistence economy are as follows:
(i) It relies mainly on family or community labour.
(ii) Traditional and relatively simple tools may be used for agriculture and other economic activities.
(iii) Economic activities depend considerably on environmental conditions, soil, water availability, climate, and other natural resources.
(iv) The distinction between producer and consumer is often less pronounced because people may consume a significant part of what they produce.
(v) Production is generally small-scale and primarily intended to meet local or household needs.
(vi) Exchange may occur within families, communities, or nearby areas through reciprocity, barter, or limited market exchange.
(vii) Surplus production is generally limited, although some subsistence communities may produce and exchange or sell surplus goods.
- What do you mean by food gathering economy? What are the different types of gathering economy?
Ans: A food-gathering economy is an economic system in which people obtain food mainly from naturally occurring resources rather than producing food through agriculture or animal husbandry. It includes the collection of wild plants and plant products, hunting, fishing, and the collection of other naturally available foods.
The main types of food-gathering activities are:
(i) Gathering.
(ii) Hunting.
(iii) Fishing.
- What do you mean by pastoralism? Write the salient features of pastoralism.
Ans: Pastoralism is a livelihood system based primarily on the rearing and management of domesticated animals. Pastoralists obtain food and other products such as milk, meat, hides, wool, and fibre from their animals. Some pastoralists are nomadic, while others practise seasonal or semi-nomadic movement.
The salient features of pastoralism are as follows:
(i) Pastoralists rear domesticated animals such as cattle, sheep, goats, camels, horses, or yaks.
(ii) Many pastoralists move seasonally or periodically in search of pasture and water, although not all pastoralists are nomadic.
(iii) Pastoralism is particularly suited to grasslands, dry regions, mountains, and other environments where extensive crop cultivation may be difficult.
(iv) Some pastoral communities combine animal husbandry with cultivation, trade, hunting, or other economic activities.
(v) Pastoralists may exchange animal products such as milk, meat, hides, wool, or livestock for grain and other goods.
- What is terrace cultivation?
Ans: Terrace cultivation is a method of farming on sloping land in which the slope is divided into a series of level or gently sloping steps called terraces. Terraces reduce soil erosion and help retain water and soil. Crops are cultivated on the prepared terraces using appropriate agricultural tools and techniques.
C. Essay Type Question:
- What is shifting cultivation? Discuss the merits and demerits of shifting cultivation.
Ans: Shifting cultivation is an agricultural system in which a plot of land is cleared, often by cutting and burning vegetation, cultivated for a limited period, and then left fallow while the cultivators move to another plot. It is also commonly known as slash-and-burn cultivation. When the fallow period is sufficiently long, the natural vegetation and soil fertility can recover to a considerable extent.
Merits of Shifting Cultivation:
(i) When adequate fallow periods are maintained, the land can naturally regenerate and recover much of its fertility.
(ii) The ash produced by burning vegetation can temporarily add nutrients to the soil.
(iii) It generally requires relatively simple tools and limited external inputs such as chemical fertilizers and irrigation.
(iv) Family or community labour can be used collectively for clearing, planting, weeding, and harvesting.
(v) Mixed cropping is commonly practised, allowing cultivators to grow several crops on the same plot.
(vi) It can be adapted to hilly and forested environments where permanent cultivation may be difficult.
(vii) Under conditions of low population pressure and sufficiently long fallow periods, shifting cultivation can be a sustainable form of land use.
Demerits of shifting cultivation:
(i) Shortening of fallow periods can lead to declining soil fertility and reduced productivity.
(ii) Frequent clearing and burning can contribute to deforestation, habitat loss, and biodiversity decline.
(iii) Cultivation on steep slopes may increase soil erosion, particularly when vegetation cover is not restored quickly.
(iv) Repeated burning and clearing can affect local ecosystems and reduce the availability of forest resources.
(v) Increasing population pressure may make traditional long-fallow shifting cultivation difficult to maintain.
(vi) Agricultural production may become uncertain when soil fertility declines or when climatic conditions are unfavourable.
- What are the different types of subsistence economy? Mention the characteristics features of food gathering economy.
Ans: The major types of subsistence economy include:
(i) Food-gathering economy.
(ii) Pastoral economy.
(iii) Agricultural or food-producing economy.
Characteristics of food gathering societies
(i) Small in size: Food-gathering societies have generally been organised into relatively small and mobile groups, although their size and social organisation vary considerably.
(ii) Limited accumulation of material wealth: The accumulation of large quantities of material wealth is generally limited because mobility and the sharing of resources are important features of many food-gathering societies.
(iii) Importance of family and kinship: Family and kinship relationships play important roles in organising social and economic life.
(iv) Simple political organisation: Many food-gathering societies have relatively simple political structures, and important decisions may be made through discussion and consensus. However, political organisation varies among different societies.
(v) Limited occupational specialisation: Division of labour may exist, particularly according to age, sex, skill, or experience, but extensive occupational specialisation is generally limited.
(vi) Dependence on nature: Food-gathering communities depend heavily on naturally available resources such as wild plants, roots, tubers, fruits, seeds, honey, insects, fish, and wild animals.
(vii) Religious and spiritual beliefs: Food-gathering societies have diverse religious and spiritual traditions. Beliefs may include concepts of spirits, ancestors, sacred places, or supernatural forces, but these vary greatly from one society to another.
- Write the difference between food gathering economy and food collecting economy.
Ans:
| Food-gathering economy | Food-collecting economy |
| (i) Refers to an economic system in which people obtain food mainly from naturally available resources. | (i) The term is sometimes used more narrowly for the collection of naturally available plant foods. |
| (ii) It may include gathering wild plants, hunting, fishing, and collecting other naturally available foods. | (ii) It mainly involves collecting edible fruits, roots, tubers, leaves, seeds, nuts, and other plant products. |
| (iii) People may use a variety of simple tools suited to gathering, hunting, fishing, or trapping. | (iii) Simple tools such as digging sticks, baskets, and collecting containers may be used. |
| (iv) Examples include hunting animals, fishing, collecting wild fruits, roots, honey, and other natural foods. | (iv) Examples include collecting berries, roots, wild vegetables, nuts, and other edible plant products. |
- “Producing economy is superior to collecting economy” Dscuss.
Ans: A producing economy brought important changes to human economic and social life compared with an economy based mainly on collecting naturally available food. With the development of agriculture and animal domestication, people could produce food rather than depend entirely on naturally available resources. This encouraged more permanent settlements, food storage, population growth, and new forms of division of labour and exchange.
However, describing one economy as universally “superior” is an evaluative judgment. Food-gathering economies were well adapted to particular environments and could provide sustainable livelihoods under appropriate conditions. The transition to food production brought major advantages in food control and settlement, but it also introduced challenges such as increased labour, dependence on particular crops, disease, and social inequality in some societies.
- Describe the different stages of Jhum Cultivation. Name some communities practices shifting cultivation.
Ans: Shifting cultivation is practised in several parts of North-East India and is commonly known as Jhum cultivation. The people who practise it are often referred to as Jhumias. In this system, a suitable plot of land is selected, vegetation is cut and allowed to dry, and the dried vegetation is generally burned. The ash adds nutrients to the soil. With the onset of the rainy season, seeds of different crops are sown, often using simple tools. Mixed cropping is common. The crops are weeded, protected, harvested, and stored. After cultivation for a limited period, the plot is left fallow and cultivation shifts to another suitable plot.
The stages of Jhum cultivation are:
(i) Selecting a suitable forest patch or plot of land.
(ii) Performing customary rituals, where practised.
(iii) Cutting trees, bamboo, shrubs, and other vegetation.
(iv) Allowing the cut vegetation to dry.
(v) Collecting larger pieces of wood for use as fuel or other purposes.
(vi) Burning the dried vegetation.
(vii) Preparing the field for cultivation.
(viii) Sowing seeds using digging sticks, hoes, or other simple tools.
(ix) Weeding the fields.
(x) Protecting the crops from animals, birds, and pests.
(xi) Harvesting and storing the produce.
(xii) Performing customary rituals associated with harvest, where practised.
(xiii) Celebrating the harvest according to local customs.
(xiv) Leaving the plot fallow and shifting cultivation to another suitable plot.
Some communities that practise or have traditionally practised shifting cultivation in North-East India include the Khasis, Garos, Nagas, Karbis, Mizos, Adis, and other indigenous communities.
- “Shifting cultivation should be replaced by permanent cultivation”- Discuss with reasons.
Ans: Shifting cultivation is an agricultural practice in which a plot of land is cultivated for a limited period and then left fallow while cultivation shifts to another plot. The fallow period allows natural vegetation to regenerate and the soil to recover. Traditionally, when population density was low and fallow periods were long, this system could be adapted to local environmental conditions.
However, shortening of fallow periods because of increasing population pressure and reduced availability of land can cause declining soil fertility, deforestation, soil erosion, and loss of biodiversity. Permanent cultivation, when properly planned and adapted to local conditions, can reduce the need to clear new forest areas and can support continuous production from the same land through soil conservation, crop rotation, irrigation where appropriate, and other improved practices.
Therefore, rather than assuming that shifting cultivation should be replaced everywhere, the choice of agricultural system should take local environmental, economic, and social conditions into account. Where shifting cultivation has become unsustainable, carefully planned permanent cultivation or improved forms of rotational cultivation may provide alternatives.
Shifting cultivation is widely practised in parts of North-East India and is commonly known as Jhum cultivation. Different communities use different local names for shifting cultivation, and the terminology varies from region to region.
Additional Questions & Solutions
Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ)
- Who is widely regarded as one of the founding figures of Economic Anthropology?
(i) V. Gordon Childe
(ii) Bronislaw Malinowski
(iii) L. H. Morgan
(iv) E. B. Tylor
Ans: (ii) Bronislaw Malinowski.
- A subsistence economy is mainly concerned with—
(i) Producing goods primarily for export
(ii) Maximising industrial profit
(iii) Producing goods mainly to satisfy basic needs
(iv) Developing complex banking systems
Ans: (iii) Producing goods mainly to satisfy basic needs.
- Which of the following is a characteristic feature of shifting cultivation?
(i) Cultivating the same field continuously without fallowing
(ii) Clearing and cultivating a plot for a limited period before leaving it fallow
(iii) Depending entirely on irrigation
(iv) Using only mechanised agricultural equipment
Ans: (ii) Clearing and cultivating a plot for a limited period before leaving it fallow.
- Which community of Arunachal Pradesh is traditionally associated with terrace cultivation?
(i) Apatani
(ii) Basseri
(iii) Toda
(iv) Khasi
Ans: (i) Apatani.
- What is meant by ‘fallow land’?
(i) Land used permanently for grazing
(ii) Land cultivated throughout the year
(iii) Land temporarily left uncultivated for recovery
(iv) Land used only for commercial plantations
Ans: (iii) Land temporarily left uncultivated for recovery.
- The Basseri of Iran are traditionally associated with—
(i) Terrace cultivation
(ii) Sheep and goat pastoralism
(iii) Fishing
(iv) Rice cultivation
Ans: (ii) Sheep and goat pastoralism.
- Which of the following is a common feature of a subsistence economy?
(i) Production mainly for maximum profit
(ii) Extensive dependence on complex financial institutions
(iii) Production mainly to meet the needs of the household or community
(iv) Large-scale industrial production
Ans: (iii) Production mainly to meet the needs of the household or community.
Short Answer Type Questions
- Who is known as the father of Economic Anthropology?
Ans: Bronislaw Malinowski is widely regarded as one of the founding figures of Economic Anthropology.
- What is the meaning of ‘subsistence economy’?
Ans: A subsistence economy is an economic system in which people produce goods and obtain resources mainly to satisfy their own basic needs rather than primarily for sale or profit.
- What does shifting cultivation involve?
Ans: Shifting cultivation involves clearing a plot of land, often by cutting and burning vegetation, cultivating it for a limited period, and then leaving it fallow while moving to another plot.
- Name one tribe practising terrace cultivation in Arunachal Pradesh.
Ans: The Apatani tribe practises terrace cultivation in Arunachal Pradesh.
- What is meant by “fallow land”?
Ans: Fallow land is agricultural land that is temporarily left uncultivated to allow the soil and natural vegetation to recover.
- What is the economic role of the Basseri tribe in Iran?
Ans: The Basseri are traditionally pastoralists who depend mainly on sheep and goat herding and related pastoral activities for their livelihood.
- Define Economic Anthropology.
Ans: Economic Anthropology is a subfield of social anthropology that studies how people produce, distribute, exchange, and consume goods and resources in different cultural settings. It examines economic activities such as production, exchange, reciprocity, barter, and gift-giving in both traditional and modern societies.
- What are the main features of a subsistence economy?
Ans: The main features of a subsistence economy are:
(i) Production is primarily intended to meet the needs of the producer or household rather than to generate profit.
(ii) Exchange may involve barter, reciprocity, or limited use of money, depending on the society.
(iii) Traditional tools and relatively simple technologies are commonly used.
(iv) Mutual cooperation, sharing, and community participation often play important roles in economic activities.
- What is shifting cultivation? Give any two merits and two demerits.
Ans: Shifting cultivation is an agricultural system in which a plot of land is cleared, often by cutting and burning vegetation, cultivated for a limited period, and then left fallow while cultivation shifts to another plot.
Merits:
(i) When sufficient fallow periods are maintained, it allows the soil and natural vegetation to recover.
(ii) It generally requires simple tools and relatively few external inputs.
Demerits:
(i) When fallow periods are shortened, it can contribute to deforestation and loss of biodiversity.
(ii) Cultivation on steep slopes and repeated clearing can increase soil erosion.
- What are the main features of a primitive economic system?
Ans: The main features of a traditional or simple economic system are:
(i) Production is mainly intended to meet family or local needs rather than to maximise profit.
(ii) Exchange may take place through barter, reciprocity, sharing, or limited use of money.
(iii) Production is generally small-scale, and surplus may be limited.
(iv) Economic activities often depend on mutual aid, cooperation, and traditional practices. 0 0 0
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