5,000-Year-Old Farming Society Discovered in Morocco

Archaeologists in Morocco have uncovered the remains of a 5,000-year-old farming society at the Oued Beht site, marking the oldest such discovery outside the Nile Valley, Live Science reported.

This site, comparable in size to ancient Troy, reveals evidence of a community that thrived between 3400 and 2900 B.C. Thousands of stone ax heads and painted pottery shards suggest a society engaged in agriculture and trade across the Mediterranean.

Moroccan archaeologist Youssef Bokbot, who initiated the excavation after the site lay dormant for 90 years, found a diverse genetic background among the inhabitants, including traditional pastoralists from the Sahara and individuals from the Iberian Peninsula and the Middle East.

The people cultivated barley, wheat, olives, and pistachios, and raised livestock, indicating a fully developed Neolithic society. This discovery challenges previous assumptions about North Africa’s prehistoric inhabitants, highlighting the region’s significant role in early agricultural history.