View source for Tell Abu Hureyra

{{Short description|Archaeological site in Syria}}
{{Redirect|Abu Hureyra|the companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad|Abu Hurairah}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2019}}
{{Infobox ancient site
  |name = Tell Abu Hureyra
  |native_name = تل أبو هريرة
  |image =
  |alt =
  |caption =
  |map_type = Near East#Syria
  |map_alt =
  |map_size = 300
  |relief=yes
  |location = [[Raqqa Governorate]], [[Syria]].
  |region = [[Lake Assad]]
  |coordinates = {{coord|35.866|38.400|display=inline,title}}
  |type = settlement
  |part_of =
  |length =
  |width =
  |area =
  |height =
  |builder =
  |material =
  |built = c. 11,000 [[Common Era|BCE]]
  |abandoned =  c. 5,000 BCE
  |epochs = [[Epipaleolithic (Levant)|Epipaleolithic]]—[[Neolithic]]
  |cultures = [[Natufian culture]]
  |dependency_of =
  |occupants =
  |event =
  |excavations = 1972–1973
  |archaeologists = [[Andrew M. T. Moore]], [[Gordon Hillman]], Anthony Legge
  |condition = flooded by [[Lake Assad]]
  |ownership =
  |public_access =
  |website =
  |notes =
}}
'''Tell Abu Hureyra''' ({{langx|ar|تل أبو هريرة}}) is a [[prehistory|prehistoric]] [[archaeological site]] in the Upper [[Euphrates]] valley in [[Syria]]. The [[Tell (archaeology)|tell]] was inhabited between 13,300 and 7,800 [[Radiocarbon calibration|cal.]] [[Before Present|BP]]<ref name=":3" /> in two main phases: Abu Hureyra 1, dated to the [[Epipalaeolithic Near East|Epipalaeolithic]], was a village of sedentary [[hunter-gatherer]]s; Abu Hureyra 2, dated to the [[Pre-Pottery Neolithic]], was home to some of the world's first [[agriculture|farmer]]s.<ref name="Moore2000" /> This almost continuous sequence of occupation through the [[Neolithic Revolution]] has made Abu Hureyra one of the most important sites in the study of the origins of agriculture.

The site is significant because the inhabitants of Abu Hureyra started out as [[hunter-gatherer]]s but gradually moved to farming, making them the earliest known farmers in the world.<ref name="Moore2000" /> Cultivation started at the beginning of the [[Younger Dryas]] period at Abu Hureyra. Evidence uncovered at Abu Hureyra suggests that [[rye]] was the first cereal crop to be systematically cultivated. In light of this, it is now believed that the first systematic cultivation of cereal crops was around 13,000 years ago.<ref name="Hillman et al 2016">{{cite journal |last1=Hillman |first1=Gordon |last2=Hedges |first2=Robert |last3=Moore |first3=Andrew |last4=Colledge |first4=Susan |last5=Pettitt |first5=Paul |title=New evidence of Lateglacial cereal cultivation at Abu Hureyra on the Euphrates |journal=The Holocene |date=27 July 2016 |volume=11 |issue=4 |pages=383–393 |doi=10.1191/095968301678302823 |bibcode=2001Holoc..11..383H |s2cid=84930632 |url=https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1532728 }}</ref>

During the [[Late Glacial Interstadial]], Abu Hureyra site experienced climatic change.<ref name="Moore2000" /> Due to lake level changes and aridity, the vegetation expanded into lower areas of the fields. Abu Hureyra accumulated vegetation that consisted of grasses, oaks, and ''[[Pistacia atlantica]]'' trees.<ref name="Moore2000" /> The climate changed from warm and dry months to abruptly cold and dry months.<ref name="Hillman et al 2016" />

==History of research==
[[File:Plan of excavations at Abu Hureyra highlighting location of trenches A–G.jpg|thumb|Plan of excavations at Abu Hureyra highlighting location of trenches A–G]]
The site was excavated as a rescue operation before it was flooded by [[Lake Assad]], the reservoir of the [[Tabqa Dam]] which was being built at that time. The site was excavated by [[Andrew M. T. Moore]] in 1972 and 1973. It was limited to only two seasons of fieldwork. Despite the limited time frame, a large amount of material was recovered and studied over the following decades. It was one of the first archaeological sites to use modern methods of excavation such as "flotation", which preserved even the tiniest and most fragile plant remains.<ref name=Moore2000 /><ref name="Mithen" /> A preliminary report was published in 1983 and a final report in 2000.<ref name="Moore2000" />

Since around 2012 Moore and others have published several papers reporting on meltglass, nanodiamonds, microspherules, and charcoal and high concentrations of iridium, platinum, nickel, and cobalt from the site of Abu Hureyra, which they attribute to an [[impact event]] that destroyed the village around 10,800 BC.<ref name="Abu Hureyra">{{Cite Q|Q90119243|last1=Moore|first1=Andrew M. T.|author-link1=Andrew M. T. Moore|last2=Kennett|first2=James P.|author-link2=James P. Kennett|last3=Napier|first3=William M.|author-link3=William Napier (astronomer)|last4=Bunch|first4=Ted E.|last5=Weaver|first5=James C.|last6=LeCompte|first6=Malcolm|last7=Adedeji|first7=A. Victor|last8=Hackley|first8=Paul|last9=Kletetschka|first9=Gunther|last10=Hermes|first10=Robert E.|last11=Wittke|first11=James H.|last12=Razink|first12=Joshua J.|last13=Gaultois|first13=Michael W.|last14=West|first14=Allen|display-authors=8|name-list-style=vanc|quote=The wide range of evidence supports the hypothesis that a cosmic event occurred at Abu Hureyra ~12,800 years ago, coeval with impacts that deposited high-temperature meltglass, melted microspherules, and/or platinum at other YDB sites on four continents.|date=Mar 6, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite press release |title=Fire from the Sky |date=2020-03-06 |url=https://www.news.ucsb.edu/2020/019823/fire-sky |quote=Based on materials collected before the site was flooded, Kennett and his colleagues contend Abu Hureyra is the first site to document the direct effects of a fragmented comet on a human settlement. |last1=Fernandez |first1=Sonia |name-list-style=vanc |access-date=2021-08-07 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210706231340/https://www.news.ucsb.edu/2020/019823/fire-sky |archive-date=2021-07-06 |publisher=[[University of California, Santa Barbara]]}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{cite journal |display-authors=etal|last1=Hai Cheng |title=Timing and structure of the Younger Dryas event and its underlying climate dynamics |journal=[[PNAS]] |date=Sep 8, 2020 |volume=117 |issue=38 |pages=23408–23417 |doi=10.1073/pnas.2007869117 |doi-access=free |pmid=32900942 |hdl=10261/240073 |hdl-access=free |pmc=7519346 |bibcode=2020PNAS..11723408C }}</ref> The possible connexion of this impact hypothesis with the [[Younger Dryas]] has been rejected by experts in archaeology and impact science.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Holliday |first1=Vance T. |last2=Daulton |first2=Tyrone L. |last3=Bartlein |first3=Patrick J. |last4=Boslough |first4=Mark B. |last5=Breslawski |first5=Ryan P. |last6=Fisher |first6=Abigail E. |last7=Jorgeson |first7=Ian A. |last8=Scott |first8=Andrew C. |last9=Koeberl |first9=Christian |last10=Marlon |first10=Jennifer |last11=Severinghaus |first11=Jeffrey |last12=Petaev |first12=Michail I. |last13=Claeys |first13=Philippe |date=2023-07-26 |title=Comprehensive refutation of the Younger Dryas Impact Hypothesis (YDIH) |journal=Earth-Science Reviews |volume=247 |language=en |article-number=104502 |doi=10.1016/j.earscirev.2023.104502|bibcode=2023ESRv..24704502H |doi-access=free }}</ref>

==Location and description==
Abu Hureyra is a [[Tell (archaeology)|tell]], or ancient settlement mound, in modern-day [[Raqqa Governorate]] in northern [[Syria]]. It is on a plateau near the south bank of the [[Euphrates]], {{convert|120|km}} east of [[Aleppo]]. The tell is a massive accumulation of collapsed houses, debris, and lost objects accumulated over the course of the habitation of the ancient village. The mound is nearly {{convert|500|m|ft}} across, {{convert|8|m|ft}} deep, and contained over {{convert|1000000|m3}} of archaeological deposits.<ref name="Mithen" />{{RP|42}} Today the tell is inaccessible, submerged beneath the waters of Lake Assad.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Becker |first=Jeffrey |date=2018-07-18 |others=Clifflena Tiah |title=Tell Abu Hureyra: a Pleiades place resource |url=https://pleiades.stoa.org/places/456814175 |access-date=2022-12-26 |website=Pleiades: a gazetteer of past places |language=en}}</ref>

== Occupation history ==
=== First occupation (c. 11,300-9,400 BCE) ===
{{see also|Natufian culture}}
{{multiple image|perrow=2|total_width=500|caption_align=center
| align    = right
| direction =horizontal
| image1   = Superimposed structures within Trench E showing Neolithic 2A (10,600-9,300 cal BP) rectilinear structure atop Epipalaeolithic 1A (13,300-12,800 cal BP) pit dwellings in the foreground. Abu Hureyra, Syria.jpg
| image2   = Reconstruction of phase 1A (13,300-12,800 cal BP) pit dwellings showing a person seated on the open bench area in the foreground. Abu Hureyra, Syria.jpg
| footer=Remain of Epipalaeolithic 1A (11,300-10,800 cal BC) pit dwellings in the foreground, and reconstruction of phase 1A pit dwellings of Abu Hureyra.{{sfn|Smith|Oechsner|Rowley-Conwy|Moore|2022}}
}}
The village of Abu Hureyra had two separate periods of occupation: An Epipalaeolithic settlement and a Neolithic settlement. The Epipaleolithic, or [[Natufian culture|Natufian]], settlement was established c. 13,300 [[Before Present|years ago]] and lasted until 11,400 BP.{{sfn|Smith|Oechsner|Rowley-Conwy|Moore|2022}}<ref name="Moore2000">{{cite book |last=Moore |first=Andrew M. T. |title=Village on the Euphrates: From Foraging to Farming at Abu Hureyra |author2=Hillman, Gordon C. |author3=Legge, Anthony J. |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2000 |isbn=0-19-510806-X |location=Oxford |page=104 |author-link=Andrew M.T. Moore}}</ref> During the first settlement, the village consisted of small round huts, cut into the soft sandstone of the terrace. The roofs were supported with wooden posts, and roofed with brushwood and reeds.<ref name="Mithen" />{{RP|40-41}} Huts contained underground storage areas for food. The houses that they lived in were subterranean pit dwellings.<ref name="Hillman et al 2016"/> The inhabitants are probably most accurately described as "hunter-collectors", as they didn't only forage for immediate consumption, but built up stores for longterm food security. They settled down around their [[larder]] to protect it from animals and other humans. From the distribution of wild food plant remains found at Abu Hureyra it seems that they lived there year-round. The population was small, housing a few hundred people at most—but perhaps the largest collection of people permanently living in one place anywhere at that time.

The inhabitants of Abu Hureyra obtained food by hunting, fishing, and gathering of wild plants. [[Gazelle]] was hunted primarily during the summer, when vast herds passed by the village during their annual migration.<ref name=Mithen>{{cite book|last=Mithen|first=Steven|title=After the Ice: A Global Human History, 20000-5000 BC|year=2006|publisher=Harvard University Press|location=Cambridge|isbn=0-674-01570-3|edition=paperback|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/aftericeglobalhu00mith}}</ref>{{RP|41-42}} These would probably be hunted communally, as mass killings also required mass processing of meat, skin, and other parts of the animal. The huge amount of food obtained in a short period was a reason for settling down permanently: it was too heavy to carry and would need to be kept protected from weather and pests.

Other prey included large wild animals such as [[onager]], [[sheep]], and [[cattle]], and smaller animals such as [[hare]], [[fox]], and [[bird]]s, which were hunted throughout the year. Different plant species were collected, from three different eco-zones within walking distance (river, forest, and steppe). Plant foods were also harvested from "wild gardens" with species gathered including wild cereal grasses such as [[einkorn wheat]], [[emmer wheat]], and two varieties of [[rye]].<ref name="Mithen" />{{RP|41}} Several large stone tools for grinding grain were found at the site.

Abu Hureyra 1 had a variety of crops that made up the system. Their resources consisted of 41% ''[[Rumex]]'' and ''[[Polygonum]]'', 43% rye and [[einkorn]], and the remaining 16% lentils.<ref name=":0" />

=== Depopulation ===
After 1,300 years the hunter-gatherers of the first occupation mostly abandoned Abu Hureyra, probably because of the [[Younger Dryas]], an intense and relatively abrupt return to glacial climate conditions which lasted over 1,000 years,<ref name="Mithen" /> or because of the purported [[impact event]].<ref name="Abu Hureyra"/> The drought disrupted the migration of the gazelle and destroyed forageable plant food sources. The inhabitants might have moved to [[Mureybet]], less than 50&nbsp;km to the northeast on the other side of the Euphrates,<ref>Mithen, ''After the Ice'', p. 62: "It seems likely that those who abandoned Abu Hureyra simply crossed the river and began a new village at Mureybet"</ref> which expanded dramatically at this time.

=== Second occupation (ca. 8,600–5,800 BCE)===
{{See also|Pre-Pottery Neolithic A|Khiamian|Pre-Pottery Neolithic B}}
[[File:Beads pendants Abu Hureyra Ashmolean.jpg|thumb|left|Beads pendants from Abu Hureyra, ca 8700-6000 BC. [[Ashmolean Museum]]]]
The second occupation covers a period from ca. 10,600–7,800 cal BP in the [[Neolithic]].{{sfn|Smith|Oechsner|Rowley-Conwy|Moore|2022}} In comparison to Abu Hureyra 1, Abu Hureyra 2 had a different accumulation of resources, consisting of 25% ''Rumex''/''Polygonum'', 3.7% rye/einkorn, 29% barley, 23.5% [[emmer]], 9.4% wheat-free threshing, and 9.4% lentils.<ref name=":0" />

[[File:Fertile crescent Neolithic B circa 7500 BC.jpg|thumb|upright=1|The [[Fertile Crescent]] c. 7500 BC, with main [[Pre-Pottery Neolithic]] sites. Central and southern [[Mesopotamia]] lacked sufficient rainfall to be settled by humans yet.]]
It is from the early part of the Younger Dryas that the first indirect evidence of agriculture was detected in the excavations at Abu Hureyra, although the cereals themselves were still of the wild variety.<ref>{{cite book |contributor-last=Hillman |contributor-first= Gordon C. |date=2000 |contribution=Overview |first1=A.M.T. |last1=Moore |first2= G.C. |last2=Hillman |first3=A.J. |last3=Legge |title=Village on the Euphrates: From Foraging to Farming at Abu Hureyra |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |pages= 420–421<!--416-422-->}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Bar-Yosef |first=Ofer |date=2002 |chapter=The Natufian culture and the early Neolithic: Social and economic trends in Southwestern Asia |editor1-first=P. |editor1-last=Bellwood |editor2-first=C. |editor2-last=Renfrew |title=Examining the Farming/Language Dispersal Hypothesis |series=McDonald Institute Monographs |publisher=University of Cambridge |location=Cambridge |pages=113–126}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Bar-Yosef |first=Ofer |date=2002 |chapter=Natufian |editor1-first=B. |editor1-last=Fitzhugh |editor2-first=J. |editor2-last=Habu |title=Beyond Foraging and Collecting: Evolutionary Change in Hunter-Gatherer Settlement Systems |publisher=Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers |location=New York |pages=91–149}}</ref><ref>Dow, Olewiler and Reed 2005</ref> It was during the intentional sowing of cereals in more favourable refuges like Mureybet that these first farmers developed domesticated strains during the centuries of drought and cold of the Younger Dryas. When the climate abated about 9500 BCE they spread all over the Middle East with this new bio-technology, and Abu Hureyra grew to a large village eventually with several thousand people. The second occupation grew domesticated varieties of rye, wheat and barley, and kept sheep as livestock. The hunting of gazelle decreased sharply, probably due to [[overexploitation]] that eventually left them extinct in the Middle East. At Abu Hureyra they were replaced by meat from domesticated animals. The second occupation lasted for about 2,000 years.

Abu Hureyra 2 was broadly contemporary with [[Körtik Tepe]] and [[Tell Mureybet]].

== Transition from foraging to farming ==
Some evidence has been found for cultivation of [[rye]] from 11050 BCE<ref name="Moore2000" /> in the sudden rise of pollen from weed plants that typically infest newly disturbed soil. Peter Akkermans and Glenn Schwartz found this claim about epipaleolithic rye, "difficult to reconcile with the absence of cultivated cereals at Abu Hureyra and elsewhere for thousands of years afterwards".<ref name="AkkermansSchwartz2003">{{cite book|author1=Peter M. M. G. Akkermans|author2=Glenn M. Schwartz|title=The archaeology of Syria: from complex hunter-gatherers to early urban societies (c. 16,000–300 BC)|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_4oqvpAHDEoC&pg=PA72|access-date=27 June 2011|year=2003|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-79666-8|pages=72–}}</ref> It could have been an early experiment that didn't survive and continue. It has been suggested that drier climate conditions resulting from the beginning of the Younger Dryas caused wild cereals to become scarce, leading people to begin cultivation as a means of securing a food supply. Results of recent analysis of the rye grains from this level suggest that they may actually have been domesticated during the Epipalaeolithic. It is speculated that the permanent population of the first occupation was fewer than 200 individuals.<ref name='foodfuel'>{{cite journal |last=Hillman |first=Gordon C. |author2=A. J. Legge |author3=P. A. Rowle-Conwy | year=1997 |title=On the Charred Seeds from Epipalaeolithic Abu Hureyra: Food or Fuel? |journal=Current Anthropology |volume=38 |issue=4 |pages=651–655 | doi=10.1086/204651 |s2cid=144151770 }}</ref> These individuals occupied several tens of square kilometers, a rich resource base of several different ecosystems. On this land they hunted, harvested food and wood, made charcoal, and may have cultivated cereals and grains for food and fuel.<ref name='foodfuel'/> 

The first domesticated morphologic cereals came about at the Abu Hureyra site around 10,000 years ago.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Wilcox|first=George|date=February 2009|title=Late Pleistocene and early Holocene climate and the beginnings of cultivation in northern Syria|journal=Archaeology|volume=19|issue=1|page=156|bibcode=2009Holoc..19..151W|doi=10.1177/0959683608098961|s2cid=129444462|id={{ProQuest|220530920}}}}</ref> Amongst the species found at the site, cereals such as rye and emmer wheat are predominant.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Daniel Zohary |author2=Maria Hopf |title=Domestication of Plants in the Old World |url=https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=C1H6_XWJS_gC&newbks=0&hl=en&source=newbks_fb&redir_esc=y |accessdate=13 October 2025 |year=2000 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=0-19-850356-3 |pages=216}}</ref>

== Agriculture ==
[[File:Abu Hureyra - grinding stone.jpg|thumb|300px|right|Stones used to grind cereal grains, Abu Hureyra, c. 9500–9000 BC. [[British Museum]].]]
The village of Abu Hureyra had impressive agricultural advances for the time period. The rapid growth of farming led to the development of two different domesticated forms of wheat, barley, rye, lentils, and more due in part to a sudden cool period in the area.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/agriculture|title=Origins of agriculture – Early development|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en|access-date=14 November 2019}}</ref> The cool period affected the supply of wild animals such as gazelle, which at the time was their main source of protein. Since their food supply became scarce it was critical that they find a way to provide for the population, this led to extensive agricultural efforts as well as the domestication of sheep and goats to provide a steady protein source.<ref name=":1" /> Another helpful factor was the ability to grow legumes, which fix nitrogen levels in the soil. This improved the fertility of the soil and allowed for the crop plants to flourish.<ref name=":1" />

[[File:Gazelle head Abu Hureyra.jpg|thumb|left|Gazelle head, carved granite pebble (6800–6500 BC), Abu Hureyra. [[Ashmolean Museum]] AN 2008.32.<ref>Director's Report - The Ashmolean Museum. August 2007-July 2008. University of Oxford</ref>]]
This massive increase in agriculture had a cost. Those who lived in the village of Abu Hureyra experienced several injuries and skeletal abnormalities. These injuries mostly came from the way the crops were harvested. In order to harvest the crops the people of Abu Hureyra would kneel for several hours on end. The act of kneeling for long durations would put the individuals at risk for injuring the big toes, hips, and lower back.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|url=https://www.thoughtco.com/abu-hureyra-syria-170017|title=Abu Hureyra: Agriculture in the Euphrates Valley|website=ThoughtCo|language=en|access-date=14 November 2019|last3=Archaeology.}}</ref> There was cartilage damage in the toe that was so severe the metatarsal bones would rub together. In addition to this injury another common injury was for the last dorsal vertebra to be damaged, crushed, or out of alignment due to the pressure used during the grinding of grains.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://docgo.net/the-eloquent-bones-of-abu-hureyra|title=The Eloquent Bones of Abu Hureyra – Documents – The Best Way to Share & Discover Documents|website=DocGo.Net|language=en|access-date=14 November 2019|archive-date=8 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200808050607/https://docgo.net/the-eloquent-bones-of-abu-hureyra}}</ref> These skeletal abnormalities also can be found on the teeth of the Abu Hureyra people. Since the grain was stone ground many flakes of stone would still be left in the grain which over time would wear down the teeth. In rare cases women would have large grooves in their front teeth which suggests they used their mouth as a third hand while weaving baskets. This dates basket weaving as far back as 6500 BC and the fact so few women had these grooves shows that basket weaving was a rare skill to have.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.uh.edu/engines/epi960.htm|title=No. 960: Grain in Abu Hureyra|website=www.uh.edu|access-date=14 November 2019}}</ref> These baskets were extremely important to the success of the agriculture because the baskets were used to collect or spread seeds, and were also used to collect or distribute water.<ref name=":2" />

==Sources==
* {{cite journal |last1=Smith |first1=Alexia |last2=Oechsner |first2=Amy |last3=Rowley-Conwy |first3=Peter |last4=Moore |first4=Andrew M. T. |title=Epipalaeolithic animal tending to Neolithic herding at Abu Hureyra, Syria (12,800–7,800 calBP): Deciphering dung spherulites |journal=PLOS ONE |date=14 September 2022 |volume=17 |issue=9 |article-number=e0272947 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0272947 |pmid=36103475 |pmc=9473395 |bibcode=2022PLoSO..1772947S |doi-access=free |language=en |issn=1932-6203}}<!---{{sfn|Smith|Oechsner|Rowley-Conwy|Moore|2022}}--->

==See also==
{{Portal|Asia}}
*[[Battle of Siffin]] (657 CE, First Fitna). Siffin has been identified with Abu Hureyra.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{Commons category-inline|Abu Hureyra}}
*{{cite web |url=http://www.britarch.ac.uk/ba/ba51/ba51news.html#farming |title=World's first farming found in Near East |access-date=27 September 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120211111803/http://www.britarch.ac.uk/ba/ba51/ba51news.html|archive-date=11 February 2012|publisher=British Archaeology}}
*{{cite news |title=First farmers discovered |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/489449.stm |work=BBC News |date=28 October 1999 |access-date=9 May 2008 }}

{{Epipalaeolithic Southwest Asia}}
{{Neolithic Southwest Asia}}
{{Wheat|hide=yes}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Stone Age sites in Syria|Abu Hureyra]]
[[Category:Natufian sites]]
[[Category:Former populated places in Syria]]
[[Category:Archaeological sites in Raqqa Governorate]]
[[Category:Tells (archaeology)|Abu Hureya]]
[[Category:Pre-Pottery Neolithic]]
[[Category:Epipalaeolithic]]