Other locations for agriucultural development?

According to sources I've found, locations where agriculture was developed independently are; the Fertile Crescent, China, The New Guinea Highlands, somewhere in the Sahel, central Mexico, the Northern Andes and in Eastern North America.

I have two questions.

1) Are there any other locations where agriculture could have developed? Jared's excellent Lands of Red and Gold talks about the development in Australia, but where else could it have occurred, and what plants or animals would need to be domesticated to make it so?

2) In Eastern North America, are there any ways to get a far more developed civilisation? Would having more animal domesticates allow them to resist diseases better when the Europeans show up, and be more developed when they do? What about other locations?

Anyone have any answers?

Kaurne said:

1) Are there any other locations where agriculture could have developed? Jared's excellent Lands of Red and Gold talks about the development in Australia, but where else could it have occurred, and what plants or animals would need to be domesticated to make it so?

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Lands of Ice and Mice deals with domesticates in the Arctic(!) you may want to check that out. Basically for humans to develop agriculture, you need a 'grain', i.e. a plant that produces a lot of complex hydrocarbons that can provide enough calories for people to live in one place permanently if they grow this plant intensively. This 'grain' could be a cereal like maize or wheat, or a root like cassava or yams. In theory, any place that has a lot of plant life could produce a 'grain', it's just a matter of evolution crafting a plant that happens to serve human calorie needs well and humans developing the cultural innovations to take advantage of this plant.

2) In Eastern North America, are there any ways to get a far more developed civilisation? Would having more animal domesticates allow them to resist diseases better when the Europeans show up, and be more developed when they do? What about other locations?

Click to expand...

Animal domesticates would not allow Native Americans to resist European diseases better (barring cross immunity, which I have used in my TL but TBH it's extremely unlikely to happen). What they would do is create the possibility for NA's to develop their own diseases which would kill off European settlers, sabotaging attempts at colonialism.

Domestic animals by themselves don't cause technological advancement, but they do create conditions allowing for more technological advancement. Possibly, livestock=more people=more people innovating, and depending on the animal it could be that livestock=easier transport=more connection between people=more innovation.

Kaurne said:

According to sources I've found, locations where agriculture was developed independently are; the Fertile Crescent, China, The New Guinea Highlands, somewhere in the Sahel, central Mexico, the Northern Andes and in Eastern North America.

I have two questions.

1) Are there any other locations where agriculture could have developed? Jared's excellent Lands of Red and Gold talks about the development in Australia, but where else could it have occurred, and what plants or animals would need to be domesticated to make it so?

2) In Eastern North America, are there any ways to get a far more developed civilisation? Would having more animal domesticates allow them to resist diseases better when the Europeans show up, and be more developed when they do? What about other locations?

Anyone have any answers?

Click to expand...

twovulture's answer is very useful. I agree with it completely.

For reading on Eastern North America, I suggest this excellent article. I'd suggest that a genetic variation in squashes as well as the earlier addition of Mesoamerican maize could produce high population densities in some parts of Eastern North America.

As for the first question, my off-the-top-of-the-head answer is: possibly Northern Iran, the Mekong Delta, or the Pacific Northwest.

Cheers,
Ganesha

for 1) https://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showthread.php?t=227623&highlight=cradle


for 2) have earlier contact would encourage more developed civilization and disease resistance, if Vinland colony survived for several hundred years, there will be technology and disease transfer.

see also

The American Stinky Pig: Or, Not ANOTHER American Domesticates TL! ( 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10) twovultures

Mississippi Rice (v2.0) ( 1 2 3) tormsen

for North American possibilities