Wurz, S, Van Peer, P., Deacon, H.J., Le Roux N.J., Gardner, S. 2005. Inter-regional patterns in stone tools: a comparison of stage 5 assemblages from the South and North Africa. African Archaeological Review 22(1):1-24. (original) (raw)
Dispersals of anatomically modern humans out of eastern Africa, are reflected in the fossil record of western and northern Africa and the Levant. These dispersals are supported by genetic studies, but difficult to detect in the archaeological material record. The Multiple Dispersal Model (Lahr and Foley 1998), also known as the Biogeographic Model, is one of the prominent multiple dispersal models, related to the Single Origin and 'Out of Africa' Models. It hypothesizes that throughout the Middle Stone Age (MSA) there were several waves of dispersals out of eastern Africa. Periods of climatic amelioration during the late Pleistocene (End of MIS 6 to MIS 4) over the Sahara, Negev and Arabian deserts blurred geographical boundaries between sub-tropical Africa and the Levant. Thus ecological corridors were created allowing modern human range expansions across environmental gradients and dispersals into neighboring geographical regions. Archaeological research in eastern Africa, the Nile valley and the southern Levant resulted in evidence for lithic variability within the assemblages, although mismatching research methodologies hampered inter-site variability studies. The explanations for processes and causes underlying lithic variability focus on two main sets of interpretations, functional and social/cultural. The first set assumes a passive interaction between humans and their environment, meaning that they 'react' and 'adapt' to changing environmental conditions mainly (or only) by shifting and redefining subsistence strategies, toward which lithic artifacts are geared. The second set draws on behavioral and social dynamics as the agents behind variability and adaptability to the changing environment. The contribution of each of these sets of explanations to assemblage variability must be assessed through lithic analysis prior to a study of inter-assemblage variability. In this study, the past behavioral strategies of human interaction with their physical as well as social environments are inferred through the chaîne opératoire concept. Once this was done for each of the assemblage an inter-assemblage comparison was conducted and patterns of inter-group contacts were deduced. In comparative studies a common language needs to be created. In this study a common set of attributes and measurements were observed and recorded for each assemblage. These variables were then used to analyze the lithic assemblages quantitatively and qualitatively, to infer technological processes. On the premise that technology is a social product, the chaîne opératoire concept was used to interpret behavioral processes and choices made by the knappers. These were inferred from the quantified techno-typological traits of the studied assemblages. The first article outlines interactions between the Nile valley and Ethiopia. The Khormusan industry is a discrete Nile Valley lithic tradition. The industry has two distinctive characteristics that set it apart from other MP industries within its vicinity. One is the use of a wide variety of raw materials; the second is an apparent correlation between raw material and technology used, suggesting a cultural aspect to raw material management. Other sites which reflect similar raw material variability and technological traditions are the BNS and KHS sites in the Omo Kibish Formation (Ethiopia) dated to ~100 ka and ~190 ka respectively. Based on a lithic comparative study conducted, it is suggested that Khormusan site 1017 can be seen as representing behavioral patterns which are indicative of East African Middle Stone Age (MSA) technology, adding support to the hypothesis that the Nile Valley was an important dispersal route used by modern humans prior to the long cooling and dry trend beginning with the onset of MIS 4. The second article looks at the Nubian technology as a possible indicator for modern human dispersals during the end of MIS 6 through MIS 5. If archaeological assemblages are used to infer population movements and diffusion of technological knowledge, then “technological packages” need to be identified. These packages consist of distinct technological practices and their particular combinations. The Nubian technology has been recognized in several assemblages from the Negev Highlands, which also have a different “technological package” compared to well-known Middle Paleolithic assemblages from the central Negev (the Avdat/Aqev sites). The Negev Highlands sites seem to have closer ties with the Late Nubian Complex sites from the Nile Valley and to a lesser extent to the Nubian assemblages from Arabia. Identifying the permutations of the technological packages within the Negev Highland assemblages is a step in recognizing past human interactions and networks during MIS 5, between the Nile Valley, the Negev and Arabia. The third article presents an in-depth study of MSA lithic assemblages from Ethiopia. This has enabled the identification of regional lithic technological packages as well as the diffusion of technological traits between prehistoric groups. Incorporating the technological relations of the Khormusan industry with these MSA industries, as well as the broad geographical span of the Nubian technology has enabled the mapping of 'interaction spheres'. These spheres are thought to reflect social networks and possible movement trajectories across the landscape, and are formulated based on recognized lithic variability. Following the current study across eastern Africa, the Nile Valley, the southern Levant and Arabia several different interaction spheres are recognized, during the late Pleistocene (end of MIS6 to initial MIS4). These spheres are thought to portray complex sets of interactions that allowed for the diffusion of technological traits, both by range expansions and dispersals as well as the maintenance of social networks. It seems that the Nile Valley displays a large amplitude of variability when compared to neighboring areas, adding support to the hypothesis that this region was an important dispersal route used by modern humans prior to the long cooling and dry trend beginning with the onset of MIS 4.