FOR more than four decades I have watched the Bushmen of the northern Kalahari make the transition from a nomadic lifestyle to life in permanent communities – and it has not been pretty.
Sedentism causes many social changes. If you are sedentary you can build a house and own things of all sorts. Many possessions will be passed down generations, so inequality accumulates. With only one or perhaps two harvests per year, you must store food rather than share it with your social group as nomadic people do.
If you have an argument with a neighbour you can no longer walk…
