Homebases in Paleolithic Archaeology

Abstract

The term “homebase” is defined as a residential site where local hunter‐gatherer group members reside, as a component of settlement and land use. Its characteristics can be identified archaeologically from the reconstruction of past occupation sites, by observations derived from nonhuman primates ecology and social life, and by the comparative observation of the lifeways of historical hunter‐gatherers. The role of homebases and their long‐term biocultural evolutionary significance is reviewed with reference to direct evidence informing us about daily and year‐round subsistence activities, social life, ideology, and group safety strategies. Prehistoric homebases could reflect sociocultural intensification through time with trends to growing complexity, as indicated by settlement sizes, and the richness, densities, and properties of their material contents.