Specialization by Sex of Common Tasks in 185 Pre-Industrial Societies

 

Source: Murdock & Provost 1973. Factors in the division of labor by sex: A cross-cultural analysis. Ethnology, 12(2): 203-225.

h/t Heather Heying

Specializaton by  sex is the norm, some tasks being almost exclusively run by one sex, others shared.  Because genetically based tasks like gestation and lactation are excluded from this list, the exclusively female list is shorter.

Since these are learned tasks, it's reasonable to conclude that gender, which is also learned, plays a big role but a role that has tens of thousands of years of pre-history.

(Heying adds these thoughts about expendable kinetic males:  

"Furthermore, there are initial inequalities in what each sex brings to the act—females have eggs, which are huge (for cells), and rich with nourishing cytoplasm; males have sperm, which are tiny, stripped down, and excellent at finding what they want. ... females across species are far more likely to provide love and nutrients to their young, and to seek a mate who will help with the care, often in the form of defense; while males across species are far more likely to look for easy opportunities—to “sow and go”—but also, when partnered, to actively defend those they love²
Men are (on average) bigger, stronger, more likely to be interested in taking risks, and more expendable. Women are (on average) smaller, less strong, less driven to take big risks, and less expendable.")