Digging stick
A digging stick, sometimes called a yam stick, is a wooden implement used primarily by subsistence-based cultures to dig out underground food such as roots and tubers, tilling the soil, or burrowing animals and anthills. It is a term used in archaeology and anthropology to describe similar implements, which usually consists of little more than a sturdy stick which has been shaped or sharpened and sometimes hardened by being placed temporarily in a fire. Fashioned with handles for pulling or pushing, it forms a prehistoric plough, and is also described as a type of hoe. By region . Americas. In Mexico and the Mesoamerican region, the digging stick was the most important agricultural tool throughout the region. The "coa" stick normally flares out into a triangle at the end and is used for cultivating maize. It is still used for agriculture in some indigenous communities, with some newer 20th-century versions having the addition of a little metal tip. Other digging sticks, according to Native Americans of the Columbia Plateau, have been used since time immemorial to gather edible roots like balsamroot, bitterroot, camas, and varieties of biscuitroot. Typical digging sticks were and are still about 2 to  3 feet in length, usually slightly arched, with the bottom tip shaved off at an angle. A 5 to 8 inch cross-piece made of antler, bone, or wood was fitted perpendicularly over the top of the stick, allowing the use of two hands to drive the tool into the ground. Since contact with the Europeans in the 19th century, Native Americans have also adapted the use of a metal in making digging sticks. Asia-Pacific. Australia. Digging sticks are used by many of the Aboriginal peoples of Australia, for digging up roots and tubers and for ceremonial use. The  Gunditjmara people of western Victoria used digging sticks, also known as "yam sticks", for digging yams, goannas, ants and other foods out of the ground, as well as for defence, for settling disputes and for punishment purposes as part of customary law. New Guinea. The Kuman people east-central New Guinea were horticulturists who used basic tools such as the digging stick, wooden hoe, and wooden spade in their daily lives. Eventually they started to use more sophisticated tools such as iron spades and pick-axes. Two main types of digging sticks both shared a similar shape but differed in  size: New Zealand. The Māori people traditionally use digging sticks, known as a "kō" to long pole was made of strong and long-lasting wood, with a footrest tied to the shaft and one end fashioned into a narrow blade. They were used for tilling soil ready for planging tubers, as well as for digging for roots or tubers, and in ceremonial use. East Africa. Ethiopia. The most common digging stick found in Ethiopia is the "ankassay" in Amharic, a Semitic language spoken in Ethiopia and the second-most spoken Semitic language in the world. The "ankassay" is a single  shaft that is about 4–5 feet in length with a socket-hafted pointed iron blade as the tip. Two other digging sticks are unique to the Harar region located in East-Central Ethiopia, which are considered to be unusual due to their function beyond the basic use of other digging sticks, and the use of one as a plough. The "deungora" is a particularly long digging stick is about 110 centimetres, or approximately 3.6 feet, in length with a socket-hafted pointed iron blade as the tip. What's unique about this digging stick is that a bored stone, about  15 centimetres in diameter, is attached at the opposing end. This stone shares the same form as other bored stones that have been discovered in archaeological sites in Africa. "Maresha" is the Gurage name, also the same word used by the Amhara, for a digging stick that differs in construction because of its forked form. It is used primarily to dig holes for construction, planting, and harvesting roots and tubers. This tool is used as a plow to turn over the soil of an entire field before planting. It is used to break clods of soil in areas where the  soil is hard or in areas that may be too steep for ploughing, and to dig holes for construction or to transplant domestic plants. When compared to the "ankassay", this digging stick can perform the same duties and in addition can be used as a hoe.