The History of Walking

Origins: Walking begins (4-7 Million Years Ago)

Sahelanthropus tchadensis (7 million years old) and Ardipithecus ramidus (4.4 million years old)—shows early adaptations for bipedalism in their skeletons, long before large brains evolved. Anthropologists propose energy efficiency gains, heat regulations, freedom of hands useful for carrying tools or food or weapons, and environmental change as woodlands turned to savannas as being reasons why humans’ ancestors chose walking. They chose walking to survive.

Walking Shapes the Human Body (4 Million to Present)

Over millennia natural selection favored those who could walk for distances. Long legs, spring-like arches, S-Shaped spine, and strong gluteal muscles were chosen again and again. Humans became "endurance walkers." Human lifestyle came to depend on foraging larger distances, migration, and hunting. Between 100,000 and 60,000 years ago, our ancestors walked out of Africa and to Australia, Europe, and Asia. They reached the Americas too, mostly on foot. The canoe also plays a role here.

Walking in Ancient Civilizations

Ancient civilizations had two main types of families: rural and urban. The rural people were mainly agrarian walking to maintain crops and livestock. Livestock domestication became very popular, though most walked beside their working animals. Those who hunted animals or forged also walked. The rural people often would walk or ride into towns to get more unique goods, ranging from delicacies to innovations for their work. There they would meet the urban families.

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The urban cities were compact walkable environments. Streets were narrow, distances short, and for most there was no alternative. Here guilds and merchants conducted business.

#The Decline of Walking

It is difficult to determine whether there was a peak in walking, but there is a decline.

Walking in the Industrial Age

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As civilization became more evolved, domesticated travel, such as on a horse, became more common, though it was still seen as a luxury for the upper class. Trains, bicycles, buses, automobiles changed that. The democratization of travel started in cities with trains, trams, subways, and buses appearing across major metropolises in the early 19th century. Now a commute of several miles could take an hour, and civilization exploded. With the widespread adoption of cars in the early 20th century, individual motorized transportation became widespread popularized by companies from Detroit.

Walking became the antithesis of efficiency, and so it was passed aside. Though in some ways, walking then became a space for thoughtful intention. It became a way to hold a moment, be reflective, and be present. Walking as a protest became a political tool such as in women's suffrage marches, Gandhi's Salt March, and civil rights marches in the U.S.

Modern Walking

Walking trends are largely on the decline. A resurgence for some is underfoot as health benefits from walking and the adjacent benefits of being outside call to those caged by the digital, sedentary world.

Walking shaped the human species, allowed us to evolve and survive, explore the world, and enabled ancient communication and trade. It is an equalizer of the human species, and one of the oldest human behaviors. The reason for walking has changed over time, but the need for it has not.