Domestication | Definition, Of Plants, Of Animals, & Facts

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top-0 p-10 right-0" > <em class="material-icons font-26" data-icon="close"></em> </button> </div> <div class="section-content pl-10 pr-20 pl-sm-50 pr-sm-60 pl-lg-5 pr-lg-10 pt-10 pt-lg-0 bg-gray-50 clear-catfish-ad"> <div class="toc mb-20"> <div class="font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mx-15 mb-15 mt-20"> Table of Contents </div> <ul class="list-unstyled my-0" data-level="h1"><li data-target="#ref1"><div class="pl-25"><a class="link-gray-900 w-100" href="/science/domestication">Introduction</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"></div></li><li data-target="#ref283818"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><div class="ml-25"></div><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/domestication#ref283818">Origins of domestication</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"></div></li><li data-target="#ref283819"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><div class="ml-25"></div><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/domestication#ref283819">Domestication of animals</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"></div></li><li data-target="#ref283820"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><div class="ml-25"></div><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/science/domestication/Biological-and-genetic-changes">Biological and genetic changes</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"></div></li></ul> <a class="toc-extra-link link-gray-900" href="https://www.britannica.com/science/domestication/additional-info">References & Edit History</a> <a class="toc-extra-link link-gray-900" href="/facts/domestication">Related Topics</a> </div> <div class="tlr-media-slider pb-10 mb-30"> <a class="section-header link-gray-900 font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mb-10 mx-10" href="https://www.britannica.com/science/domestication/images-videos">Images</a> <div class="slider js-slider position-relative d-inline-flex align-items-center mw-100 "> <div class="slider-container js-slider-container overflow-hidden d-flex overflow-hidden text-nowrap 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In its strictest sense, it refers to the initial stage of human mastery of wild animals and plants. The fundamental distinction of domesticated animals and plants from their wild ancestors is that they are created by human labour to meet specific requirements or whims and are adapted to the conditions of continuous care and solicitude people maintain for them. See also <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/plant-breeding" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">plant breeding</a> and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/animal-breeding" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">animal breeding</a>.</p><span class="marker MOD1 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD2 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Domestication has played an enormous part in the development of humankind and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/material-culture" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">material culture</a>. It has resulted in the appearance of <span id="ref93809"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/agriculture" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">agriculture</a> as a special form of animal and <span id="ref93808"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/plant-breeding" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">plant</a> production. It is precisely those animals and plants that became objects of agricultural activity that have undergone the greatest changes when compared with their wild ancestors.</p><span class="marker MOD2 mod-inline"></span></section> <span class="marker h2"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref283818"> <h2 class="h1">Origins of domestication</h2> <span class="marker PREMOD3 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="250140" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/73/140873-050-4E096DFF/prehistoric-rock-paintings-Algeria.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/168592/250140"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/73/140873-050-4E096DFF/prehistoric-rock-paintings-Algeria.jpg?w=300"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/73/140873-050-4E096DFF/prehistoric-rock-paintings-Algeria.jpg?w=300" alt="Neolithic rock paintings" data-width="1600" data-height="1071" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/73/140873-050-4E096DFF/prehistoric-rock-paintings-Algeria.jpg" data-href="/media/1/168592/250140">Neolithic rock paintings</a><span>Prehistoric rock paintings of people and animals, Tassili n'Ajjer mountain range in the Sahara desert, Algeria, North Africa.</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">The first attempts at domestication of animals and plants apparently were made in the Old World during the <span id="ref93810"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Mesolithic" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Mesolithic Period</a>. <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/dog" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Dogs</a> were first domesticated in <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Central-Asia" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Central Asia</a> by at least 15,000 years ago by people who engaged in <a href="https://www.britannica.com/sports/hunting-sport" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">hunting</a> and <span id="ref93811"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/hunter-gatherer" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">gathering</a> wild <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="edible" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/edible" data-type="EB">edible</a> plants. The first successful domestication of plants, as well as <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/goat" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">goats</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/cattle-livestock" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">cattle</a>, and other animals—which heralded the onset of the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Neolithic" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Neolithic Period</a>—occurred sometime before 9500 <span class="text-smallcaps">bce</span>. It was not until the <span id="ref93812"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Neolithic" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Neolithic Period</a>, however, that primitive agriculture appeared as a form of social activity, and domestication was well under way. (The Neolithic Period occurred at different times around the world but is generally thought to have begun sometime between 10,000 and 8,000 <span class="text-smallcaps">bce</span>.) Although the great majority of domesticated animals and plants that still serve humans were selected and developed during the Neolithic Period, a few notable examples appeared later. The <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/rabbit" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">rabbit</a>, for example, was not domesticated until the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Middle-Ages" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Middle Ages</a>; the <span id="ref93813"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/sugar-beet" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">sugar beet</a> came under cultivation as a sugar-yielding agricultural plant only in the 19th century; and <span id="ref93814"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/Mentha" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">mint</a> became an object of agricultural production as recently as the 20th century. Also in the 20th century, a new branch of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/animal-breeding" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">animal breeding</a> was developed to obtain high-quality <span id="ref93815"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/fur-animal-skin" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">fur</a>.</p><span class="marker MOD3 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD4 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="241535" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/90/211690-050-9ED1B325/Hemp-sackcloth-bags-rope.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/168592/241535"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/90/211690-050-9ED1B325/Hemp-sackcloth-bags-rope.jpg?w=300"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/90/211690-050-9ED1B325/Hemp-sackcloth-bags-rope.jpg?w=300" alt="hemp fibre products" data-width="1600" data-height="1076" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/90/211690-050-9ED1B325/Hemp-sackcloth-bags-rope.jpg" data-href="/media/1/168592/241535">hemp fibre products</a><span>Hemp sackcloth, bags, and rope.</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">Domestication of vegetatively reproducing plants, such as those with <span id="ref93816"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/tuber" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">tubers</a>, probably preceded domestication of the <span id="ref93817"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/seed-plant-reproductive-part" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">seed</a> plants—<a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/cereal" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">cereals</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/legume" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">legumes</a>, and other <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/vegetable" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">vegetables</a>. Some plants were domesticated for the strong <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/fiber-technology" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">fibres</a> in their stalks, which were used for such purposes as making <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/fishing-recreation" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">fishing</a> nets. <span id="ref93818"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/hemp" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Hemp</a>, one of the most ancient plants domesticated in India, is an example of a multipurpose plant: oil is obtained from its seeds, fibres from its stalk, and the <span id="ref93819"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/narcotic" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">narcotic</a> <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/hashish" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">hashish</a> from its <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/flower" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">flowers</a> and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/leaf-plant-anatomy" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">leaves</a>.</p><span class="marker MOD4 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD5 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="141691" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/95/138795-050-4F265384/Tobacco.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/168592/141691"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/95/138795-050-4F265384/Tobacco.jpg?w=300"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/95/138795-050-4F265384/Tobacco.jpg?w=300" alt="tobacco" data-width="600" data-height="784" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/95/138795-050-4F265384/Tobacco.jpg" data-href="/media/1/168592/141691">tobacco</a><span>Tobacco (<em>Nicotiana tabacum</em>).</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">Some plants were domesticated especially for the production of narcotics; such a plant is <span id="ref93820"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/common-tobacco" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">tobacco</a>, which was probably first used by <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Indigenous-American-peoples" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">American Indian</a> tribes for the preparation of a narcotic drink and only later for <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/smoking-tobacco" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">smoking</a>. The <span id="ref93821"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/opium" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">opium poppy</a> is another example of a plant domesticated solely for a narcotic. Beverage plants of many kinds were discovered and cultivated, including <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/tea-beverage" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">tea</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/coffee" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">coffee</a>, and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/plant/Cola-plant-genus" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">cola</a>. Only when humans reached a sufficiently high level of <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="culture" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/culture" data-type="MW">culture</a> did they begin to domesticate to fulfill <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="aesthetic" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aesthetic" data-type="MW">aesthetic</a> requirements for the beautiful and the bizarre in both plants and animals.</p><div class="module-spacing"> </div><span class="marker MOD5 mod-inline"></span> </section> <span class="marker h3"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref283819"> <h2 class="h1">Domestication of animals</h2> <span class="marker PREMOD6 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="186754" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/41/119041-050-8B84B093/goat.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/168592/186754"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/41/119041-050-8B84B093/goat.jpg?w=300"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/41/119041-050-8B84B093/goat.jpg?w=300" alt="domestic goat" data-width="1600" data-height="1049" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/41/119041-050-8B84B093/goat.jpg" data-href="/media/1/168592/186754">domestic goat</a><span>Domestic goat (<em>Capra hircus</em>).</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">The specific economic application of domesticated animals did not appear at once. <span id="ref93822"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/dog" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Dogs</a> probably accompanied hunters and helped them hunt wild animals; they probably also guarded human settlements and warned the inhabitants of possible danger. At the same time, they were eaten by humans, which was probably their main importance during the first stages of domestication. <span id="ref93823"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/domesticated-sheep" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Sheep</a> and <span id="ref93824"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/goat" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">goats</a> were also eaten in the initial stages of domestication but later became valuable for producing the commodities of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/milk" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">milk</a> and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/wool" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">wool</a>.</p><span class="marker MOD6 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD7 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The principal aim of <span id="ref93825"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/cattle-livestock" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">cattle</a> <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/breeding" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">breeding</a> in ancient times was to obtain meat and skin and to produce work animals, which greatly contributed to the development of agriculture. Cattle, at the initial stages of domestication, produced a small amount of <span id="ref93826"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/milk" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">milk</a>, <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="sufficient" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/sufficient" data-type="EB">sufficient</a> only to rear their calves. The development of high milk yield in cows with their breeding especially for milk production is a later event in the history of domestication.</p><div class="module-spacing"> <DIV class="marketing-INLINE_SUBSCRIPTION marketing-content" data-marketing-id="INLINE_SUBSCRIPTION"><style> .student-promo-banner-wrapper { container-type: inline-size; margin-bottom: 15px; } @container (min-width: 475px) { .student-promo-banner { flex-direction: row; } .student-promo-banner-img-wrapper { margin-bottom: 0; margin-right: 10px; justify-content: flex-start; } .student-promo-banner-text-wrapper { text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 10px; } .student-promo-banner-button-wrapper { margin-right: 0; } }</style> <div class="student-promo-banner-wrapper"> <div class="student-promo-banner d-flex flex-column align-items-center bg-blue rounded p-20"> <div class="student-promo-banner-img-wrapper mb-20 mr-0 d-flex justify-content-center"> <img class="rounded" style="max-width: 100px; min-width: 80px" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/marketing/BlueThistle.webp" /> </div> <div class="student-promo-banner-text-wrapper ml-0 mb-10 text-center text-white"> <div class="h2 mb-10">Get Unlimited Access</div> <div class="h4 font-weight-semi-bold">Try Britannica Premium for free and discover more.</div> </div> <div class="student-promo-banner-button-wrapper d-flex justify-content-center align-items-center ml-auto mr-auto"> <a class="btn btn-m btn-orange" href="https://premium.britannica.com/premium-membership/?utm_source=premium&utm_medium=inline-cta&utm_campaign=black-friday-2024">Subscribe</a> </div> </div> </div> </DIV></div><span class="marker MOD7 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD8 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="153559" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/43/147343-050-198916B9/Shepherd-horseback-sheep-flock-Mongolia.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/168592/153559"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/43/147343-050-198916B9/Shepherd-horseback-sheep-flock-Mongolia.jpg?w=300"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/43/147343-050-198916B9/Shepherd-horseback-sheep-flock-Mongolia.jpg?w=300" alt="Mongolia: shepherd with flock" data-width="1600" data-height="1071" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/43/147343-050-198916B9/Shepherd-horseback-sheep-flock-Mongolia.jpg" data-href="/media/1/168592/153559">Mongolia: shepherd with flock</a><span>A shepherd with his flock, Mongolia.</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">The first domesticated <span id="ref93827"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/horse" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">horses</a> were also used for meat and skin. Later the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/horse" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">horse</a> played an enormous role in the waging of war. Peoples inhabiting the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Middle-East" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Middle East</a> in the 2nd millennium <span class="text-smallcaps">bce</span> used horses in <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/chariot" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">chariot</a> battles. With time the horse began to be used as <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/transportation-technology" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">transportation</a>. In the 1st millennium <span class="text-smallcaps">bce</span> carts appeared, and the horses were harnessed to them; other riding equipment, including the saddle and the bit, seems to have appeared in later centuries.</p><span class="marker MOD8 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD9 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The <span id="ref93829"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/donkey" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">donkey</a> and the <span id="ref93830"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/camel" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">camel</a> were used only for load transport and as means of conveyance; their unpalatability ruled out their use as a preferred <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/food" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">food</a>.</p><span class="marker MOD9 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD10 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="250141" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/29/210229-050-CCE27C4F/chickens-hens-rooster.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/168592/250141"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/29/210229-050-CCE27C4F/chickens-hens-rooster.jpg?w=300"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/29/210229-050-CCE27C4F/chickens-hens-rooster.jpg?w=300" alt="chickens" data-width="1600" data-height="1067" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/29/210229-050-CCE27C4F/chickens-hens-rooster.jpg" data-href="/media/1/168592/250141">chickens</a><span>Chickens eating watermelon in a barnyard. </span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">The first domesticated <span id="ref93831"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/chicken" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">hens</a> perhaps were used for sport. <span id="ref93832"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/sports/cockfighting" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Cockfighting</a> was instrumental in bringing about the selection of these <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/bird-animal" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">birds</a> for larger size. Cocks later <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="acquired" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/acquired" data-type="EB">acquired</a> religious significance. In <span id="ref93833"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Zoroastrianism" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Zoroastrianism</a> the cock was associated with protection of good against evil and was a symbol of light. In <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/ancient-Greece" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">ancient Greece</a> it was also an object of sacrifice to gods. It is probable that <span id="ref93834"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/egg-biology" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">egg</a> production of the first domesticated hens was no more than five to ten eggs a year; high egg yield and improved meat qualities of hens developed at later stages of domestication.</p><span class="marker MOD10 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD11 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="141291" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/72/133472-050-2BE73062/Mother-cat-kittens-bronze-wood-sculpture-Egypt.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/168592/141291"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/72/133472-050-2BE73062/Mother-cat-kittens-bronze-wood-sculpture-Egypt.jpg?w=300"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/72/133472-050-2BE73062/Mother-cat-kittens-bronze-wood-sculpture-Egypt.jpg?w=300" alt="Egyptian bronze sculpture" data-width="847" data-height="682" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/72/133472-050-2BE73062/Mother-cat-kittens-bronze-wood-sculpture-Egypt.jpg" data-href="/media/1/168592/141291">Egyptian bronze sculpture</a><span>Mother cat with kittens, solid cast bronze and wood sculpture from Egypt, c. 7th–1st century <span class="text-smallcaps">bce</span> or later; in the Brooklyn Museum, New York.</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">Early domestication of the <span id="ref93835"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/cat" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">cat</a> was probably the result of the pleasure experienced from keeping this animal. The cat’s ability to catch <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/mouse-rodent" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">mice</a> and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/rat" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">rats</a> was surely another reason that impelled people to keep cats at home. In <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/ancient-Egypt" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">ancient Egypt</a> the cat was considered a sacred animal.</p><span class="marker MOD11 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD12 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Some animals were domesticated for utilitarian purposes from the very beginning. Here belongs, first of all, the <span id="ref93836"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/rabbit" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">rabbit</a>, whose real domestication was carried out from the 6th to the 10th century <span class="text-smallcaps">ce</span> by French monks. The monks considered newborn rabbits “fish” and ate them during <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Lent" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Lent</a> when the church calendar indicated <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="abstinence" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/abstinence" data-type="EB">abstinence</a> from meat.</p><span class="marker MOD12 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD13 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="125876" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/58/129358-050-082EEC52/Bee-honeycomb.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/168592/125876"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/58/129358-050-082EEC52/Bee-honeycomb.jpg?w=300"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/58/129358-050-082EEC52/Bee-honeycomb.jpg?w=300" alt="Honeycomb" data-width="1600" data-height="1067" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/58/129358-050-082EEC52/Bee-honeycomb.jpg" data-href="/media/1/168592/125876">Honeycomb</a><span>A western honeybee (<em>Apis mellifera</em>) on a honeycomb.</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">For the sake of <span id="ref93837"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/honey" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">honey</a>, the <span id="ref93838"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/bee" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">bee</a> was domesticated at the end of the Neolithic Period. Honey has played an enormous role in human <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/nutrition" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">nutrition</a> since ancient times; it ceased being the sole <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/sweetener" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">sweetening agent</a> only about 200 years ago. Bees also provided <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/wax" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">wax</a> and bee <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/venom" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">venom</a>, which was used as <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/medicine" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">medicine</a>. Bees were used also, to a limited extent, in <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/war" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">warfare</a>, hives being thrown among enemy troops to rout them.</p><span class="marker MOD13 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD14 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">To obtain <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/silk" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">silk</a>, the <span id="ref93839"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/silkworm-moth" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">silkworm</a> was domesticated in China no later than 3000 <span class="text-smallcaps">bce</span>, and by 1000 <span class="text-smallcaps">bce</span> the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/technology" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">technology</a> of silkworm breeding and raising had been thoroughly documented.</p><span class="marker MOD14 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD15 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Shepherdy and <span id="ref93840"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/nomadism" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">nomadic</a> <span id="ref93841"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/animal-breeding" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">animal breeding</a>, which determined the social and economic organization and the way of life of some peoples to a great extent, appeared at later stages of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/human-development" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">human development</a>, after the accumulation of a large number of domestic animals. Rudiments of nomadic animal breeding in <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Eurasia" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Eurasia</a> appeared no earlier than 1000 <span class="text-smallcaps">bce</span>, considerably after the domestication of animals took place.</p><div class="one-good-fact-module"> </div><span class="marker MOD15 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD16 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The process of domestication in the New World took place somewhat later than in the Old World and independently of the latter, since humans first appeared in the New World only during the end of the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/Pleistocene-Epoch" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Pleistocene Epoch</a> (which lasted from 2.58 million to 11,700 years ago), long after settlement of the Old World.</p><span class="marker MOD16 mod-inline"></span> </section> <span class="marker end-of-content"></span><span class="marker after-article"></span></div> <div id="chatbot-root"></div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="ai-dialog-placeholder"></div> </div> </div> <aside class="col-md-da-320"></aside> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article></div> </div></div> </div> </main> <div id="md-footer"></div> <noscript><iframe src="//www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-5W6NC8" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript> <script type="text/javascript" id="_informizely_script_tag"> var IzWidget = IzWidget || {}; (function (d) { var scriptElement = d.createElement('script'); scriptElement.type = 'text/javascript'; scriptElement.async = true; scriptElement.src = "https://insitez.blob.core.windows.net/site/f780f33e-a610-4ac2-af81-3eb184037547.js"; var node = d.getElementById('_informizely_script_tag'); node.parentNode.insertBefore(scriptElement, node); } )(document); </script>  <script> window.ap3c = window.ap3c || {}; var ap3c = window.ap3c; ap3c.cmd = ap3c.cmd || []; ap3c.cmd.push(function() { ap3c.init('ZO4siT4cLwnykPnzZWJtd3Byb2Q', 'https://engage.email.britannica.com/'); ap3c.track({v: 0}); }); ap3c.activity = function(act) { ap3c.act = (ap3c.act || []); ap3c.act.push(act); }; var s, t; s = document.createElement('script'); s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.src = "https://engage.email.britannica.com/app.js"; t = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; t.parentNode.insertBefore(s, t); </script> <script class="marketing-page-info" type="application/json"> {"pageType":"Topic","templateName":"DESKTOP","pageNumber":1,"pagesTotal":2,"pageId":168592,"pageLength":1222,"initialLoad":true,"lastPageOfScroll":false} </script> <script class="marketing-content-info" type="application/json"> [] </script> <script src="https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-130/js/libs/jquery-3.5.0.min.js?v=3.130.14"></script> <script type="text/javascript" data-type="Init Mendel Code Splitting"> (function() { $.ajax({ dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: 'https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-130/dist/topic-page.js?v=3.130.14' }); })(); </script> <script class="analytics-metadata" type="application/json"> {"leg":"C","adLeg":"C","userType":"ANONYMOUS","pageType":"Topic","pageSubtype":null,"articleTemplateType":"PAGINATED","gisted":false,"pageNumber":1,"hasSummarizeButton":false,"hasAskButton":false} </script> <script type="text/javascript"> EBStat={accountId:-1,hostnameOverride:'webstats.eb.com',domain:'www.britannica.com', json:''}; </script> <script type="text/javascript"> ( function() { $.ajax( { dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: '//www.britannica.com/webstats/mendelstats.js?v=1' } ) .done( function() { try {writeStat(null,EBStat);} catch(err){} } ); })(); </script> <div id="bc-fixed-dialogue"></div> </body> </html>

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Domestication | Definition, Of Plants, Of Animals, & Facts | Britannica