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In the 12,000 years preceding the Industrial Revolution, human activities led to significant changes in land cover, plant and animal distributions, surface hydrology, and biochemical cycles. Earth system models suggest that this anthropogenic land cover change influenced regional and global climate. However, the representation of past land use in earth system models is currently oversimplified. As a result, there are large uncertainties in the current understanding of the past and current state of the earth system. In order to improve representation of the variety and scale of impacts that past land use had on the earth system, a global effort is underway to aggregate and synthesize archaeological and historical evidence of land use systems. Here we present a simple, hierarchical classification of land use systems designed to be used with archaeological and historical data at a global scale and a schema of codes that identify land use practices common to a range of systems, both implemented in a geospatial database. The classification scheme and database resulted from an extensive process of consultation with researchers worldwide. Our scheme is designed to deliver consistent, empirically robust data for the improvement of land use models, while simultaneously allowing for a comparative, detailed mapping of land use relevant to the needs of historical scholars. To illustrate the benefits of the classification scheme and methods for mapping historical land use, we apply it to Mesopotamia and Arabia at 6 kya (c. 4000 BCE). The scheme will be used to describe land use by the Past Global Changes (PAGES) LandCover6k working group, an international project comprised of archaeologists, historians, geographers, paleoecologists, and modelers. Beyond this, the scheme has a wide utility for creating a common language between research and policy communities, linking archaeologists with climate modelers, biodiversity conservation workers and initiatives.

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This paper discusses the complex use of the term ‘Sangoan’ and its placement between the Early Stone Age (ESA) and Middle Stone Age (MSA) using data from Simba Hill in Sango Bay. The purpose is to examine whether the Sangoan is Acheulean, Middle Stone Age, or an independent lithic industry at Sango Bay. Four specific objectives guided the study: reviewing the Stone Age terminology, Sangoan lithic typology, technology, and environmental characteristics. A detailed literature review of the Stone Age nomenclature shows patterns and trends of the Sangoan terminology; while a combined lithic assemblage from the archaeological surface survey and excavation yielded heavy and light-duty lithic tools. The 13 sites identified within the 202.6km surveyed had 73 lithic artefacts, while the excavation unit yielded 1344 lithic artefacts. The results suggest that the Sangoan typology at Sango Bay has five general lithic categories of shaped tools, backed pieces, cores, and debitage. Typologically, the conventional Sangoan lithics at Sango Bay include lanceolates, picks, cleavers, discoids, becs, points and core axes. Technologically, the Levallois lithic reduction strategy characterises the Sangoan with unifacial and bifacial retouch and core technology elements. The toolmakers at Sango Bay used local raw materials, suggesting they were not highly mobile in terms of raw materials. Conclusively, therefore, the Sangoan is a transitional lithic industry.

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