The Social Production of Soil

Abstract

The theoretical basis for an interdisciplinary analysis of the social history of soil is examined. A case is made that soil history is fundamental to any and all environmental history, not just to agricultural history, where such studies are often relegated. Conversely, an understanding of soil system history is argued to be essential for the understanding of the current state of a soil. Reviewing the state of the historical literature that is available to scientists, however, leads to the conclusion that environmental history has thus far included strikingly little consideration of the history of soil. That which has been written, including several recent volumes, has been concentrated heavily on the history of soil science rather than on the history of soil itself and tends to adopt a mechanistic interpretation of the relationship between societies and soil, often with a focus on fertility and degradation defined in simple additive terms. The persistence within the field of history of several ideas now considered outmoded in the world of science has minimized possible ways of conceptualizing the interactions of society and soil and contributed to the lack of historians' study of soil. Among these persistent concepts are the idea of soil as a geological given rather than as a historical product; conceptions of nature in general as homeostatic and cyclic rather than linear and historical; and conceptions of soil as an inert mineral material rather than as a living body. Other social sciences, such as archaeology and geology, have already progressed significantly along the path of writing a history of the social production of soil. Environmental historians should become conversant in contemporary soil science and engage this neglected but essential field with the particular expertise and approach that historians can provide. Equally, soil scientists interested in understanding both how the soil comes to be formed in the way that it is and in the possible futures of soils will benefit from becoming conversant with historical approaches outlined herein.