The earliest, but rather scarce, traces of human presence in this area date from the period of the Middle Paleolithic (150,000 – 35,000 BCE). The following Neolithic period (6,000 – 3,300 BCE) provides some more information on human activity, such as tools and pottery, mainly found in caves on the southern slopes (Makarska, Podgora) as well as on the northern sides of Biokovo (Župa). This period was marked by more frequent agricultural activity as well as cattle-breeding which would become one of the pillars of the local economy in times to come. In addition to this, there was also a noticeable development of trade with the inhabitants of nearby islands, as well as more removed areas. 

During the Eneolithic period (3,300-2,200 BCE) and especially in the Bronze and Iron Ages, the first tribal communities were formed. Today we call these communities by a single name – the Illyrians! These eras, and especially until the end of the BCE period, were marked by intense human activity in fortified settlements on higher elevations – hill-forts and settlements of a more open type on the southern slopes of Biokovo. Aside from these, Biokovo's landscape features hundreds of preserved tumuli - prehistoric stone burial mounds. In this period, animal husbandry starts to dominate the economic structure of this area. The present-day region of Dalmatia was named after one of the abovementioned Illyric tribes – the Delmati – whose name derives from the Illyrian word for sheep.

The age of Antiquity continued along similar cultural and economic lines, with the emergence of a new type of larger or smaller settlements such as the Novae municipium in the wider area of the present-day city of Imotski or Muccurum above the present-day city of Makarska (Makar) and others. In the tumultuous times of Late Antiquity (4th to 7th centuries AD), the population abandoned these settlements in great numbers, seeking shelter from invading tribes in the older prehistoric hill-forts. 

In the Middle Ages the area of the present-day geopark was territorially divided between the two then municipalities – Imota (which included regions north of Biokovo) and Paganija or Krajine (which included areas on the southern slopes of Biokovo). The period between the late 15th and second half of the 17th/early 18th century, was marked by Ottoman rule as well as intense Ottoman-Venetian wars and by the major migrations of the local population fleeing these troubles. The intensity of life on the border was especially evident on the southern slopes, which were frequently sites of heavy conflict and affliction. Numerous fortifications still found on the Biokovo slopes today, such as the fortified caves in Makro or Veliki Kaštel (eng. the Great Fort) in Kotišina village, tell us about the heavy toil of the local people who found shelter in them. In the second half of the 17th century the area on the southern slopes of Biokovo came under Venetian rule and as the conflicts subsided, life stabilized by the end of the century, resulting in population growth, the development of agriculture, animal husbandry and trade. As the administrative and cultural center of this area, the city of Makarska underwent a rich cultural and social development. Cattle-breeding, wine-growing and olive-growing, as well as transportation and trade, remained the main pillars of the local economy until the first quarter of the 20th century, when tourism started to grow significantly, primarily in the city of Makarska. The development of tourism in the 1960s, along with a series of earthquakes which occurred in 1962, marked a turning point in the way of life in this area. Much of the population from Biokovo's mountain villages migrated to the seaside, leaving traditional forms of agriculture behind in favor of tourism as the new sector of economic activity. Today more than 95% of people inhabit the narrow coastal strip, outside of the Geopark borders. In spite of this fact, the local population is still drawn to Biokovo Mountain and the villages on its slopes, as they are still essential parts of their tradition and identity

The development of settlements in the hinterland area took a different turn, and although it can be traced in continuity from the Middle Ages, there was no significant development until the early 18th century. Namely, agricultural areas were small, while the greater percentage of the largest piece of fertile land – the Imotski Field – was flooded most of the year until the first half of the 20th century. In animal husbandry there was a prevalence of smaller livestock such as goats and sheep. The locals practiced the transhumant seasonal migration of cattle to Biokovo's grazing pastures in the summer months, which is why the cattle-breeding industry is still existent today on Biokovo's northern sides, although on a smaller scale. More significant economic changes for a part of the population in the hinterland took place in the late 19th century, with the beginning of the drainage process of parts of the Imotski Field in order to create fertile land for growing tobacco. In the 1950s the drained Imotski Field was also increasingly planted with arable crops and vineyards, which in turn attracted a greater number of people to the settlements along the Field, while the mountainous area was drastically depopulated over the years. For this reason we have today 146 inhabitants per km² in the city of Imotski, 44 inhabitants per km² in the Proložac municipality, and 9.5 inhabitants per km² in the Zagvozd municipality (according to the population census from 2011). The tourist industry was almost non-existent in this area, and it was not until the early 21st century that it finally marked a speedy development, with a large number of holiday homes being built. In this sense, the hinterland branded itself as a different type of destination than those plagued by mass tourism on the coastal side of Biokovo. 

The direction of such development in the Geopark area within the last 60 years brought about significant changes in the landscape itself. The abandonment of traditional livestock rearing as the main economy sector and the decrease of agricultural land as a consequence of depopulation, have resulted in greater forestation or an increase in forest-covered areas – especially those with pine trees, and consequently quickly spreading forest fires on the southern slopes (the last major one was in 2017).