Intensive El Niño and the Iron Age of South-eastern Africa

Huffman, Thomas N.

doi:10.1016/j.jas.2010.05.017

Cited by 26 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…5 cal ka BP (Fig. 5h, Moy et al, 2002;Huffman, 2010;Rodbell et al, 1999;Sandweiss et al, 1996). It is difficult to disentangle the possible potential drivers of climate variability during the last ca.…”

Section: Climate-driving Mechanismsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Late Quaternary climate variability at Mfabeni peatland, eastern South Africa

et al. 2019

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Abstract. The scarcity of continuous, terrestrial, palaeoenvironmental records in eastern South Africa leaves the evolution of late Quaternary climate and its driving mechanisms uncertain. Here we use a ∼7 m long core from Mfabeni peatland (KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa) to reconstruct climate variability for the last 32 000 years (cal ka BP). We infer past vegetation and hydrological variability using stable carbon (δ13Cwax) and hydrogen isotopes (δDwax) of plant-wax n-alkanes and use Paq to reconstruct water table changes. Our results indicate that late Quaternary climate in eastern South Africa did not respond directly to orbital forcing or to changes in sea-surface temperatures (SSTs) in the western Indian Ocean. We attribute the arid conditions evidenced at Mfabeni during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) to low SSTs and an equatorward displacement of (i) the Southern Hemisphere westerlies, (ii) the subtropical high-pressure cell, and (iii) the South Indian Ocean Convergence Zone (SIOCZ), which we infer was linked to increased Antarctic sea-ice extent. The northerly location of the high-pressure cell and the SIOCZ inhibited moisture advection inland and pushed the rain-bearing cloud band north of Mfabeni, respectively. The increased humidity at Mfabeni between 19 and 14 cal kyr BP likely resulted from a southward retreat of the westerlies, the high-pressure cell, and the SIOCZ, consistent with a decrease in Antarctic sea-ice extent. Between 14 and 5 cal kyr BP, when the westerlies, the high-pressure cell, and the SIOCZ were in their southernmost position, local insolation became the dominant control, leading to stronger atmospheric convection and an enhanced tropical easterly monsoon. Generally drier conditions persisted during the past ca. 5 cal ka BP, probably resulting from an equatorward return of the westerlies, the high-pressure cell, and the SIOCZ. Higher SSTs and heightened El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) activity may have played a role in enhancing climatic variability during the past ca. 5 cal ka BP. Our findings highlight the influence of the latitudinal position of the westerlies, the high-pressure cell, and the SIOCZ in driving climatological and environmental changes in eastern South Africa.

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Section: Climate-driving Mechanismsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Late Quaternary climate variability at Mfabeni peatland, eastern South Africa

et al. 2019

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“…Reduced moisture availability toward the end of the MCA has been linked to the fragmentation, or ‘collapse,’ of the Mapungubwe state around 1290–1310 . Tyson et al, for example, interpreted the contemporaneous shift toward cool–dry conditions in the Cold Air Cave T7 series as evidence that ‘deteriorating climate was an important contributory factor [in state collapse]’ as it undercut the viability of floodplain agriculture.…”

Section: Zimbabwe Culture State Formation (1000–1500)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Climate, history, society over the last millennium in southeast Africa

Hannaford

Nash

2016

WIREs Climate Change

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Climate variability has been causally linked to the transformation of society in pre--industrial southeast Africa. A growing critique, however, challenges the simplicity of ideas that identify climate as an agent of past societal change; arguing instead that the value of historical climate--society research lies in understanding human vulnerability and resilience, as well as how past societies framed, responded and adapted to climatic phenomena. We work across this divide to present the first critical analysis of climate--society relationships in southeast Africa over the last millennium. To achieve this, we review the now considerable body of scholarship on the role of climate in regional societal transformation, and bring forward new perspectives on climate--society interactions across three areas and periods using the theoretical frameworks of vulnerability and resilience. We find that recent advances in palaeoclimatology and archaeology give weight to the suggestion that responses to climate variability played an important part in early state formation in the Limpopo valley (1000--1300), though evidence remains insufficient to clarify similar debates concerning Great Zimbabwe (1300--1450/1520). Written and oral evidence from the Zambezi--Save (1500--1830) and KwaZulu--Natal areas (1760--1828) nevertheless reveals a plurality of past responses to climate variability. These were underpinned by the organization of food systems, the role of climate--related ritual and political power, social networks, and livelihood assets and capabilities, as well as the nature of climate variability itself. To conclude, we identify new lines of research on climate, history and society, and discuss how these can more directly inform contemporary African climate adaptation challenges.2

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“…This is a map showing the location of Ingombe Ilede and Isamu Pati stratified Iron Age sites in Zambia (modified from Huffman, , pp. 2578).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dental Pathology, Trauma and Attrition in a Zambian Iron Age Sample: A Macroscopic and Radiographic Investigation

Gibbon

Grimoud

2012

Intl J of Osteoarchaeology

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Using morphological and radiographic methods, we analysed the dentitions of 24 individuals from Ingombe Ilede and Isamu Pati Zambian Iron Age archaeological sites. In this study, we determined the frequency and distribution of attrition, pathological conditions and dental trauma. This research also presents the first view of dental health for an Iron Age population in southern Africa. In total, 482 teeth were available for this study with 287 teeth missing, where 50 of these were lost antemortem and one individual had an erupted supernumerary first mandibular incisor. With the use of radiography and morphology, 21.5% (104/482) of the analysed teeth had at least one pathological condition or evidence of dental trauma. Some interesting dental aspects found and discussed in this paper are linear enamel hypoplastic lesions, radicular resorption, periapical lesions, fractures, dental modification and carious lesions. Many of these features were diagnosed with radiography, and this was especially important for those found below the cemento-enamel junction (p = 0.0202) that are less obvious with macroscopic investigation alone. Additionally, the quantity and direction of dental attrition was studied. There were observed sex differences with the direction of wear, likely representing a sex-specific cultural practice of using teeth as tools. Overall, the results show that this sample suffered relatively little from dental problems, and many of those observed features were associated with the traumatic procedure of dental modification, whereas others were age and diet-related. Additionally, with the use of radiography, rare dental fractures and other features were diagnosed; these results demonstrate the requirement for its application in dental studies on archaeological assemblages.

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Intensive El Niño and the Iron Age of South-eastern Africa

Cited by 26 publications

References 37 publications

Late Quaternary climate variability at Mfabeni peatland, eastern South Africa

Late Quaternary climate variability at Mfabeni peatland, eastern South Africa

Climate, history, society over the last millennium in southeast Africa

Dental Pathology, Trauma and Attrition in a Zambian Iron Age Sample: A Macroscopic and Radiographic Investigation

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