Abstract: The way that humans have obtained food changed with the origin and development of agriculture. The Guanzhong area was a center of prehistoric culture. The exploration of human subsistence strategies in the Guanzhong area during the prehistoric period presents compelling evidence for the origins of agriculture, its development and dissemination, the influence of cultural communication relating to agriculture, and human adaptations to climatic variability in North China. In this paper, we examine the stable carbon and nitrogen isotopic composition of human and animal bones and the plant and faunal remains from different archaeological sites in the Guanzhong area during different prehistoric periods. The results indicate that geographical differences in environment, climatic variability, and cultural development and communication influenced human subsistence strategies in the Guanzhong area during the Neolithic period, resulting in spatial and temporal differences. Hunting and gathering were still important for the Laoguantai culture populations, along with millet agriculture. In the early Yangshao culture, millet agriculture became the main human subsistence strategy, although the levels of agricultural development differs significantly across sites. The pace of development of animal husbandry lagged behind crop cultivation. From the middle and late Yangshao culture to the early Longshan culture, rice and wheat were introduced into the Guanzhong area sequentially. Diversified agriculture consisting mainly of millet and a small quantity of rice was adopted. The rice was consumed by humans, but animals mainly relied on millet. During the Longshan culture, the proportion of millet declined, but that of rice increased in comparison, influencing both the diets of humans and animals. Meat was mainly obtained from animal husbandry, supplemented with hunting and fishing.

Key words: Guanzhong area; Prehistoric culture; Subsistence strategy; Stable isotopes; Plant and faunal remains