Final answer:
In chiefdoms, a rudimentary form of a taxation system typically began with a tribute system, where commoners paid their chiefs in labor, food, or products. This system allowed for the accumulation and redistribution of wealth, necessary for maintaining social order and funding government projects and infrastructure.
Step-by-step explanation:
The commonly functioning rudimentary beginning of a taxation system in chiefdoms is the tribute system. In this system, commoners were required to pay tribute to their chiefs in various forms such as labor, food, and other products. For instance, the peoples of the Hawaiian Islands, prior to European contact, operated under a multilevel system where a portion of agricultural surplus was relayed up a hierarchy of local to regional chiefs. The tribute then financed government operations, infrastructure, and the hierarchical redistribution in chiefdoms.
Another historical tribute system was the shōen system in Japan, where instead of taxes, farmers paid their harvest as rent to estate proprietors, who in turn managed and redistributed these resources. This kind of economic system was an early form of taxation, allowing chiefs to accumulate wealth which they could redistribute to reinforce social order and finance projects such as monument building, military expeditions, and public works that benefited the community.
Even in the Polynesian Pacific, the intensive cultivation of crops under chieftaincy required a return of labor or resources to the chief for the use of land. These resources allowed chiefs to undertake large projects and maintain their power.