Mid-Holocene occupation of Egypt and global climatic change

Phillipps, Rebecca; Holdaway, Simon; Wendrich, Willeke; Cappers, Reinier

doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2011.04.004

Cited by 92 publications

(49 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…Although it cannot be determined to what extent early-and middle-Holocene precipitation in the Fayum exceeded present levels, the presence of now-dry wadi systems along the north shore of the Fayum depression ( Figure 1b) confirms significantly greater rainfall at some point earlier in the Holocene (Phillipps et al, 2012. At this time, we do not have firm evidence whether a northward shift in the summer monsoon or a southward shift in the Mediterranean winter rains was responsible for this increase in precipitation.…”

Section: Hydrology and Paleoclimatementioning

confidence: 96%

Early- and middle-Holocene wood exploitation in the Fayum basin, Egypt

Marston

Holdaway

2017

The Holocene

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The early and middle Holocene of North Africa was a time of dramatic climatic and social change, including rapid shifts in vegetation communities and the introduction of domesticated plants and animals. Recent research from the Fayum basin of Egypt, which holds archaeological evidence for early use of domesticates, aims to place inhabitants of that region within their contemporary environmental setting. We present here results of wood charcoal analysis from three early-and middle-Holocene deposits on the north shore of the Fayum and reconstruct both contemporary woodland ecology and patterns of anthropogenic wood use. In total, three woodland communities likely existed in the area, but inhabitants of this region made heavy use of only the local lakeshore woodland, emphasizing tamarisk (Tamarix sp.) for fuel. While seasonally watered wadi woodlands were not harvested for fuel, more arid locations on the landscape were, evidencing regional mobility between ecological zones. Results indicate that wood was locally abundant and that inhabitants were able to select only preferred species for fuel. This study provides further evidence for low-level food production in the Fayum that preserved critical ecosystem services, rather than dramatic niche construction to promote agriculture as seen elsewhere in middle-Holocene Southwest Asia.

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Section: Hydrology and Paleoclimatementioning

confidence: 96%

Early- and middle-Holocene wood exploitation in the Fayum basin, Egypt

Marston

Holdaway

2017

The Holocene

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“…In Upper Egypt, instead, there is a scanty evidence of occupation by hunter-gatherer communities seasonally moving from the Nile to both the Red Sea and the Western Desert oases (Vermeersch 2002). While climatic amelioration in the southern part of Egypt and southward was mainly related to the summer monsoon system, in the northern part of Egypt it seems to have been influenced also by Mediterranean winter rains (Moeyersons et al 1999;Phillipps et al 2012).…”

Section: The Greater Nile Valleymentioning

confidence: 96%

“…Major tributaries of the Nile, like Wadi Melik and Wadi Howar, as well as palaeolakes in southwestern Sudan, ran dry or diminished significantly (Gabriel and Kröpelin 1984;Kröpelin and Soulié-Märsche 1991;Nicoll 2004;Williams et al 2010). At least till around 6 cal kyr BP, Mediterranean rainfall brought wetter conditions in the Fayum, the Delta, the Oases, the Gilf Kebir and the Gebel Uweinat, and most certainly in the northern part of the Egyptian Nile Valley and the Eastern Desert (Phillipps et al 2012;Kröpelin 1987Kröpelin , 2005Moeyersons et al 1999).…”

Section: The Greater Nile Valleymentioning

confidence: 99%

Holocene Supra-Regional Environmental Changes as Trigger for Major Socio-Cultural Processes in Northeastern Africa and the Sahara

Gatto

Zerboni

2015

Afr Archaeol Rev

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This contribution presents the environmental changes that occurred over the last ten millennia in a vast region of North Africa, encompassing the Central Sahara, the Greater Nile Valley and the Horn of Africa. These areas are of particular significance in the continent because of the early socioeconomic transformations that occurred there. An up-to-date review of palaeoclimate research is proposed with the aim to highlight new theoretical approaches, analytical methods and innovative techniques. Results of recent research on high-resolution and well-dated palaeoenvironmental archives for proxy data have been used to understand the climatic variability at different scales of resolution. We trace the regional changes in Holocene palaeohydrology, mostly regulated by monsoonal precipitation, and their effects on the landscape, and highlight the occurrence of short-term climatic events, arid or humid that may have had disruptive consequences on human communities. The contribution also discusses the cultural dynamics that occurred in those regions because the latter were exploited by hunter/ gatherer groups from the onset of the Holocene until historical times. A reconstruction of patterns of human adjustment to climatic variability is here presented, focusing on key processes such as the origin of food production, social complexity and power, and the rise and fall of complex polities and interregional networks.Résumé Cette contribution présente les changements environnementaux survenus au cours des dix derniers millénaires dans une vaste région de l'Afrique du Nord, englobant le Sahara Central, la vallée du Nile, et la Corne de l'Afrique. Ces zones sont Afr Archaeol Rev (2015) 32:301-333 d'une importance particulière, car ce sont là que les processus de développement socio-économiques se sont initialement produits sur le continent. Une revue à jour de la recherche paléoclimatique est proposée dans le but de mettre en évidence de nouvelles approches théoriques, méthodes analytiques et techniques innovantes. Les résultats de recherches récentes sur des archives paléoenvironnementales à haute résolution et bien datées ont été utilisées pour comprendre la variabilité climatique à différentes échelles, traçant les changements régionaux dans la paléohydrologie de l'Holocène, principalement régis par les précipitations de mousson, et leurs effets sur le paysage et soulignant l'apparition de courts événements climatiques, aride ou humide, qui ont pu avoir des conséquences perturbatrices sur les communautés humaines. Cette contribution aborde également les dynamiques culturelles qui ont eu lieu dans ces régions depuis qu'elles ont été exploitées par des groupes de chasseurs/cueilleurs du début de l'Holocène aux périodes historiques. Une reconstruction des schémas d'adaptation humaine aux variations climatiques est présentée ici, en se concentrant sur des processus clés, tels que l'origine de la production alimentaire, la complexité sociale et le pouvoir; ainsi que sur l'essor et la chute de systèmes politiques complexes et de ...

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“…The authors in their references do not refer to some other publications (Haas, 1989;Sch€ on, 1996;Jennerstrasse 8 2002;Wendrich et al, 2009;Kindermann 2010;Barich et al, 2012;Phillipps et al, 2012) which have extensive lists of 14 C dates.…”

Section: Contents Lists Available At Sciencedirectmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comment on “The demographic response to Holocene climate change in the Sahara”, by Katie Manning and Adrian Timpson (2014)

Vermeersch

2015

Quaternary Science Reviews

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Mid-Holocene occupation of Egypt and global climatic change

Cited by 92 publications

References 36 publications

Early- and middle-Holocene wood exploitation in the Fayum basin, Egypt

Early- and middle-Holocene wood exploitation in the Fayum basin, Egypt

Holocene Supra-Regional Environmental Changes as Trigger for Major Socio-Cultural Processes in Northeastern Africa and the Sahara

Comment on “The demographic response to Holocene climate change in the Sahara”, by Katie Manning and Adrian Timpson (2014)

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