Introduction The cultural evolution of a person is a multi-linear and uneven process, in which there are periods of rapid changes of different nature. They are commonly referred to as turning points. This term describes phenomena more than it explains them. The accumulated data on the ancient history of the population of Primorye allow us to distinguish several periods when there was a rapid change in life support systems, cultural traditions, and the population, which we can describe as"turning points". These changes were particularly pronounced in coastal areas, where groups of marine hunter-gatherers and fishermen clashed with farmers. One of these areas is Peter the Great Bay and the continental territories surrounding it. So why do situations arise when a person's cultural evolution changes its trajectory and pace? We will try to explain some of these phenomena in the ecological paradigm. Ecological and cultural changes in Primorye in the Middle Holocene Considering the cultural evolution of the population on the territory of Primorye during the middle and early late Holocene, we can distinguish four major time intervals, regarded as turning points, when events related to changing cultural traditions and the complex interaction of ancient cultures based on marine and agricultural adaptations took place. It should be emphasized that the process of interaction of various adaptations can be traced on archaeological material precisely during periods of significant, if not catastrophic, natural changes. When moving on to reconstruction, there are two things to consider. First, ecological changes in the first and third intervals were not so significant, although they also affected the trajectory of cultural evolution of the ancient population of Primorye. Secondly, the accumulation of archaeological data is uneven both in quantitative and qualitative terms, so we have uneven information on the time intervals studied. All this is reflected in the reconstruction of eve ... Read more