alt=|A digging stick In archaeology and anthropology, a digging stick, or sometimes yam stick, is a wooden implement used primarily by subsistence-based cultures to dig out underground food such as roots and tubers  or burrowing animals and anthills. The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Retrieved July 24, 2008 The stick may also have other uses in hunting or general domestic tasks. They are common to the Indigenous Australians but also other peoples worldwide. The tool normally 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 plow , and is also a precursor of most modern agricultural handtools .Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Retrieved March 26, 2015, from Britannica.com website: URL By region Mexico and the Mesoamerican region In Mexico and the Mesoamerican region, the digging stick was the most important agricultural tool throughout the region.Study the Digging Stick Mexicolore.Uictli Mexicolore. Ethiopia and the Harar region      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.Simoons, Frederick J. "The Forked Digging Stick of the Gurage", "Zeitschrift für Ethnologie", Berlin, Retrieved February 27, 2015. 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 plow . The deungora is a particularly long digging stick is about 110 centimeters , 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 centimeters 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 plowing , 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. East-Central New Guinea The Kuman people of this region 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.Nilles, John. "The Kuman people: A study of cultural change in a primitive society in the Central Highlands of New Guinea." Oceania (1953): 1-27.%DIFDELCMD < %DIFDELCMD < %%% Two main types of digging sticks both shared a similar shape but differed in size: A larger and heavier digging stick with a diameter of about 4 centimeters and 2 meters in length, used for the purpose of turning over the soil surface for new gardens A smaller and lighter digging stick with a diameter of about 2 centimeters and 1 meter (or less) in length, mainly used for basic horticulture tasks
alt=|A digging stick of the Pacific Northwest coast alt=|Nuba person farming in the Nuba Mountains, Sudan 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 .Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Retrieved March 26, 2015, from Britannica.com website: Digging stick By region Americas In Mexico and the Mesoamerican region, the digging stick was the most important agricultural tool throughout the region.Study the Digging Stick Mexicolore.Uictli Mexicolore. 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. 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.Nilles, John. "The Kuman people: A study of cultural change in a primitive society in the Central Highlands of New Guinea." Oceania (1953): 1-27. Two main types of digging sticks both shared a similar shape but differed in size: A larger and heavier digging stick with a diameter of about and in length, used for the purpose of turning over the soil surface for new gardens; and A smaller and lighter digging stick with a diameter of about and (or less) in length, mainly used for basic horticulture tasks. New Zealand alt=|A Māori digging stick|upright=0.4 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.Simoons, Frederick J. "The Forked Digging Stick of the Gurage", "Zeitschrift für Ethnologie", Berlin, Retrieved February 27, 2015. 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. %DIFDELCMD < %DIFDELCMD < %%% 
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In archaeology and anthropology, a
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The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Retrieved July 24, 2008 The stick may also have other uses in hunting or general domestic tasks.
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They are common to the Indigenous Australians but also other peoples worldwide. The tool normally
It is a term used in archaeology and anthropology to describe similar implements, which usually
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plow
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a precursor of most modern agricultural handtools
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Digging stick
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Mexico and the Mesoamerican region
Americas
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Ethiopia and the Harar region
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.
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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.Nilles, John. "The Kuman people: A study of cultural change in a primitive society in the Central Highlands of New Guinea." Oceania (1953): 1-27.
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Two main types of digging sticks both shared a similar shape but differed in size:
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A larger and heavier digging stick with a diameter of about and in length, used for the purpose of turning over the soil surface for new gardens; and A smaller and lighter digging stick with a diameter of about and (or less) in length, mainly used for basic horticulture tasks.
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New Zealand alt=|A Māori digging stick|upright=0.4 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.
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East Africa Ethiopia
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plow
plough
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centimeters
centimetres
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centimeters
centimetres
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plowing
ploughing
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East-Central New Guinea
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The Kuman people of this region 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.Nilles, John. "The Kuman people: A study of cultural change in a primitive society in the Central Highlands of New Guinea." Oceania (1953): 1-27.
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Two main types of digging sticks both shared a similar shape but differed in size:
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A larger and heavier digging stick with a diameter of about 4 centimeters and 2 meters in length, used for the purpose of turning over the soil surface for new gardens A smaller and lighter digging stick with a diameter of about 2 centimeters and 1 meter (or less) in length, mainly used for basic horticulture tasks