The Invention of the Plow

practices in economically highly underdeveloped societies. The purpose of this essay is to present a conjecture about the origins of the plow which differs from the conventional ideas on the subject and to test this hypothesis against several leading rival theories by means of a cross-cultural survey of agriculture in a number of tribal and peasant societies. The results of this exercise provide important clues about the circumstances underlying the introduction of the plow. When economists analyse the introduction of a new invention, they generally argue their cases in terms of changes in relative prices of goods or factors of production. For the origin or adoption of the plow, such an approach does not appear feasible. However, two other approaches have been proposed which provide insight into this problem of origins and which deserve attention. The prevailing opinion on the subject appears to follow the "universalistic" approach and focuses primarily on the preconditions underlying the adoption of the plow. An alternative viewpoint is provided by the "popula