The most recent paleobotanical evidence indicates that during the transitional period from the late Paleolithic to the early Neolithic (30,000 to 10,000 BP)in northern China, vegetal food resource use moved from broad-spectrum gathering (Broad Spectrum Revolution)to intensive and specialized gathering of wild millets and that by around 10,000 BP, proto-domestication of millets came about. The appearance of the first tools and utensils linked to this gathering are in agreement with this process. In the sites located in the southern area of the Taihang mountains and north of the bow of the Yellow River, querns remain the only tool associated with this gathering and processing activity ; in the sites between the north and northeast of the Taihang mountain chain and the south of the Yanshan mountains, dating between 12,000 and 9,000 BP, tools and utensils such as the quern, sickle, lithic hoe and pottery represent integral evidence on intensive and specialized gathering that was to bring about domestication of wild millets: the first millets with domestic characteristics have been discovered in the sites of this region for around 10,000 BP. Hence, this area must have been the centre of origin for domestication of millets in northern China. Accompanied by advances in lithic technology, the domestication of millets in this region results from large-scale utilization of this vegetal resource, followed by climatic and environmental changes from the late Paleolithic to the early Neolithic, in particular, the extreme cooling in the Younger Dryas phase between 12,800 and 11,500 BP. Responding to this climatic pressure, as well as to demographic developments, the population of the area immigrated to the South. However, for those who left before ca. 10,000 BP, they were not yet equipped technically to domesticate the wild millets in their new lands and continued their traditional lifeway as‘hunter-gatherers’.%近年来取得的植物考古学证据表明，在距今约三万至一万年之间的旧时器时代晚期至新石器时代早期，北方地区对植物性食物的利用经历了由广谱采集到集约—专项采集的进程，并在距今一万年前后的东胡林遗址出现了对粟类植物的原初驯化。就器物而言，在年代介于距今24000至10000年前后的太行山南端—黄河北部弯道地区的各遗址中，都只有代表单一采集模式的石磨盘出现，而在介于约12000至9000的太行山北麓—燕山南麓和太行山东麓北段地区（即桑干河—永定河流域和拒马河—大清河流域）的多个遗址中，已出现了由石磨盘、陶器、石镰、石锄等代表粟类植物专项加工和集约采集模式的组合工具，由此构成了诱发驯化的必要条件并产生了具有早期驯化特征的品种。因此，后一地区应该是北方粟类植物的原初驯化中心。这一驯化过程的产生，是该区古人类在旧石器晚期发达的细石器文化的作用下，为适应末次冰期以来的气候和环境变化、特别是距今12800至11500年期间的新仙女木期降温事件造成的动物性食物的短缺，不断开发粟类食物资源引发的必然结果。同时，气候与食物资源的变化以及人口压力也必然导致该区人群的迁移，特别是寒冷时期的南迁。但是，早于距今一万年前的南下人群并没有承载对粟类植物进行驯化的技能，在新的聚居地仍然延续着传统的狩猎—采集模式。
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