Sedentary societies The construction of monumental buildings like those of the Inca site of Machu Picchu are usually associated with a sedentary culture. (more) sedentism sociology Ask the Chatbot a Question More Actions Share Share Share to social media Facebook X URL https://www.britannica.com/topic/sedentary-society Feedback Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Feedback Type Select a type (Required) Factual Correction Spelling/Grammar Correction Link Correction Additional Information Other Your Feedback Submit Feedback Thank you for your feedback Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

　　External Websites Ask the Chatbot a Question Also known as: sedentarism, sedentary society, settled society Written by Teagan Wolter Teagan Wolter is Associate Editor of Anthropology at Encyclopædia Britannica. Teagan Wolter Fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree.... The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica Last Updated: Aug 26, 2025 • Article History Table of Contents Table of Contents Ask the Chatbot { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "FAQPage", "mainEntity": [ { "@type" : "Question", "name" : " How do archaeologists identify sedentism? ", "acceptedAnswer" : { "@type" : "Answer", "text" : "Archaeologists identify sedentism through evidence of year-round or long-term habitation. Some indicators are aspects of the built environment such as permanent houses, public buildings, and storage facilities. The presence of animals that live near humans, such as mice, is also indication that humans stayed at a single site for some time. Plants and animals used for food can indicate the season or seasons in which a settlement was inhabited." } } , { "@type" : "Question", "name" : " What are some hypotheses that explain the development and spread of sedentism? ", "acceptedAnswer" : { "@type" : "Answer", "text" : "Hypotheses that explain the development and spread of sedentism include the pull hypothesis (abundant resources led mobile groups to settle down in a certain area), push hypothesis (a lack of resources forced people to intensify food production), population growth hypothesis (proximity to other groups made it harder to move), and social competition hypothesis (people intensified their subsistence activities to gain resources for feasting or trade)." } } , { "@type" : "Question", "name" : " Do all sedentary societies practice agriculture? ", "acceptedAnswer" : { "@type" : "Answer", "text" : "No, not all sedentary societies practice agriculture. Some hunter-gatherers are able to maintain a sedentary or semisedentary lifestyle by settling in a location where they have access to a large number of resources. The people of the Natufian culture of the Levant were largely sedentary hunter-gatherers before agriculture was developed in the region. The people of the Ju014Dmon culture of Japan supported their permanent settlements primarily with wild resources for several thousand years." } } ] } Top Questions How do archaeologists identify sedentism? Archaeologists identify sedentism through evidence of year-round or long-term habitation. Some indicators are aspects of the built environment such as permanent houses, public buildings, and storage facilities. The presence of animals that live near humans, such as mice, is also indication that humans stayed at a single site for some time. Plants and animals used for food can indicate the season or seasons in which a settlement was inhabited.

　　What are some hypotheses that explain the development and spread of sedentism? Hypotheses that explain the development and spread of sedentism include the pull hypothesis (abundant resources led mobile groups to settle down in a certain area), push hypothesis (a lack of resources forced people to intensify food production), population growth hypothesis (proximity to other groups made it harder to move), and social competition hypothesis (people intensified their subsistence activities to gain resources for feasting or trade).

　　Do all sedentary societies practice agriculture? No, not all sedentary societies practice agriculture. Some hunter-gatherers are able to maintain a sedentary or semisedentary lifestyle by settling in a location where they have access to a large number of resources. The people of the Natufian culture of the Levant were largely sedentary hunter-gatherers before agriculture was developed in the region. The people of the Jōmon culture of Japan supported their permanent settlements primarily with wild resources for several thousand years.

　　sedentism, a way of life in which many members of a society live in one place year-round or nearly year-round. Mobility is not completely absent in sedentary societies—individuals and even whole communities may move in a sedentary society—but mobility is limited in terms of the number of individuals involved or in terms of frequency of movement. Sedentism is often contrasted with nomadism, a way of life in which people move regularly either following wild resources as hunter-gatherers or taking herds of animals to different pasture as part of mobile pastoralism. Most societies in the modern world are sedentary. Sedentary societies ...(100 of 901 words)

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