Lithic Variability and Techno-Economy of the Initial Upper Palaeolithic in the Levant

Dirk Leder

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14

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Lithic Variability and Techno-Economy of the Initial Upper Palaeolithic in the Levant

Dirk Leder

Published in International Journal of Archaeology (Volume 6, Issue 1)

Received: 18 May 2018 Accepted: 6 June 2018 Published: 29 June 2018

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Abstract

The Levant forms a geographic bridge between Africa and Eurasia, making it a focal point for research on past human dispersals. The Initial Upper Palaeolithic (IUP) of the Levant is commonly associated with Homo sapiens’ dispersal from Africa to Eurasia, which is characterised by substantial changes in material culture when compared to the preceding Middle Palaeolithic. While many researchers have noticed considerable variability among these IUP lithic assemblages, a systematic evaluation is currently missing. The study presented here addresses this cavity by employing techno-typological data from relevant Levantine IUP assemblages. Statistical methods, namely principal component analysis (PCA) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) allow structuring these assemblages into distinct groups. These groups are then reviewed against palaeogeographic data and techno-economic behaviour patterns. Results show that IUP assemblages in the Mediterranean zone are similar to each other in regards to techno-typology, palaeogeography and techno-economic behaviour, being indicative of residential base camps. Contrastingly, assemblages in the semi-arid zone are more variable in regards to techno-typology and techno-economy, indicating more specialised activities such as hunting/butchering, which is often combined with local raw material exploitation.

Published in	International Journal of Archaeology (Volume 6, Issue 1)
DOI	10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14
Page(s)	23-36
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2018. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Initial Upper Palaeolithic, Middle-Upper Palaeolithic Transition, Levant, Lithics, Techno-Economy, Technological Organization, Human-Environment Interactions

References

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Dirk Leder. (2018). Lithic Variability and Techno-Economy of the Initial Upper Palaeolithic in the Levant. International Journal of Archaeology, 6(1), 23-36. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14

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Dirk Leder. Lithic Variability and Techno-Economy of the Initial Upper Palaeolithic in the Levant. Int. J. Archaeol. 2018, 6(1), 23-36. doi: 10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14

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AMA Style

Dirk Leder. Lithic Variability and Techno-Economy of the Initial Upper Palaeolithic in the Levant. Int J Archaeol. 2018;6(1):23-36. doi: 10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14

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@article{10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14,
  author = {Dirk Leder},
  title = {Lithic Variability and Techno-Economy of the Initial Upper Palaeolithic in the Levant},
  journal = {International Journal of Archaeology},
  volume = {6},
  number = {1},
  pages = {23-36},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ija.20180601.14},
  abstract = {The Levant forms a geographic bridge between Africa and Eurasia, making it a focal point for research on past human dispersals. The Initial Upper Palaeolithic (IUP) of the Levant is commonly associated with Homo sapiens’  dispersal from Africa to Eurasia, which is characterised by substantial changes in material culture when compared to the preceding Middle Palaeolithic. While many researchers have noticed considerable variability among these IUP lithic assemblages, a systematic evaluation is currently missing. The study presented here addresses this cavity by employing techno-typological data from relevant Levantine IUP assemblages. Statistical methods, namely principal component analysis (PCA) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) allow structuring these assemblages into distinct groups. These groups are then reviewed against palaeogeographic data and techno-economic behaviour patterns. Results show that IUP assemblages in the Mediterranean zone are similar to each other in regards to techno-typology, palaeogeography and techno-economic behaviour, being indicative of residential base camps. Contrastingly, assemblages in the semi-arid zone are more variable in regards to techno-typology and techno-economy, indicating more specialised activities such as hunting/butchering, which is often combined with local raw material exploitation.},
 year = {2018}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Lithic Variability and Techno-Economy of the Initial Upper Palaeolithic in the Levant
AU  - Dirk Leder
Y1  - 2018/06/29
PY  - 2018
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14
DO  - 10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14
T2  - International Journal of Archaeology
JF  - International Journal of Archaeology
JO  - International Journal of Archaeology
SP  - 23
EP  - 36
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2330-7595
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14
AB  - The Levant forms a geographic bridge between Africa and Eurasia, making it a focal point for research on past human dispersals. The Initial Upper Palaeolithic (IUP) of the Levant is commonly associated with Homo sapiens’  dispersal from Africa to Eurasia, which is characterised by substantial changes in material culture when compared to the preceding Middle Palaeolithic. While many researchers have noticed considerable variability among these IUP lithic assemblages, a systematic evaluation is currently missing. The study presented here addresses this cavity by employing techno-typological data from relevant Levantine IUP assemblages. Statistical methods, namely principal component analysis (PCA) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) allow structuring these assemblages into distinct groups. These groups are then reviewed against palaeogeographic data and techno-economic behaviour patterns. Results show that IUP assemblages in the Mediterranean zone are similar to each other in regards to techno-typology, palaeogeography and techno-economic behaviour, being indicative of residential base camps. Contrastingly, assemblages in the semi-arid zone are more variable in regards to techno-typology and techno-economy, indicating more specialised activities such as hunting/butchering, which is often combined with local raw material exploitation.
VL  - 6
IS  - 1
ER  -

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Dirk Leder

Institute of Prehistoric Archaeology, CRC 806 – “Our way to Europe”, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany

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Dirk Leder. (2018). Lithic Variability and Techno-Economy of the Initial Upper Palaeolithic in the Levant. International Journal of Archaeology, 6(1), 23-36. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14

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ACS Style

Dirk Leder. Lithic Variability and Techno-Economy of the Initial Upper Palaeolithic in the Levant. Int. J. Archaeol. 2018, 6(1), 23-36. doi: 10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14

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Dirk Leder. Lithic Variability and Techno-Economy of the Initial Upper Palaeolithic in the Levant. Int J Archaeol. 2018;6(1):23-36. doi: 10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14

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@article{10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14,
  author = {Dirk Leder},
  title = {Lithic Variability and Techno-Economy of the Initial Upper Palaeolithic in the Levant},
  journal = {International Journal of Archaeology},
  volume = {6},
  number = {1},
  pages = {23-36},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ija.20180601.14},
  abstract = {The Levant forms a geographic bridge between Africa and Eurasia, making it a focal point for research on past human dispersals. The Initial Upper Palaeolithic (IUP) of the Levant is commonly associated with Homo sapiens’  dispersal from Africa to Eurasia, which is characterised by substantial changes in material culture when compared to the preceding Middle Palaeolithic. While many researchers have noticed considerable variability among these IUP lithic assemblages, a systematic evaluation is currently missing. The study presented here addresses this cavity by employing techno-typological data from relevant Levantine IUP assemblages. Statistical methods, namely principal component analysis (PCA) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) allow structuring these assemblages into distinct groups. These groups are then reviewed against palaeogeographic data and techno-economic behaviour patterns. Results show that IUP assemblages in the Mediterranean zone are similar to each other in regards to techno-typology, palaeogeography and techno-economic behaviour, being indicative of residential base camps. Contrastingly, assemblages in the semi-arid zone are more variable in regards to techno-typology and techno-economy, indicating more specialised activities such as hunting/butchering, which is often combined with local raw material exploitation.},
 year = {2018}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Lithic Variability and Techno-Economy of the Initial Upper Palaeolithic in the Levant
AU  - Dirk Leder
Y1  - 2018/06/29
PY  - 2018
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14
DO  - 10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14
T2  - International Journal of Archaeology
JF  - International Journal of Archaeology
JO  - International Journal of Archaeology
SP  - 23
EP  - 36
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2330-7595
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ija.20180601.14
AB  - The Levant forms a geographic bridge between Africa and Eurasia, making it a focal point for research on past human dispersals. The Initial Upper Palaeolithic (IUP) of the Levant is commonly associated with Homo sapiens’  dispersal from Africa to Eurasia, which is characterised by substantial changes in material culture when compared to the preceding Middle Palaeolithic. While many researchers have noticed considerable variability among these IUP lithic assemblages, a systematic evaluation is currently missing. The study presented here addresses this cavity by employing techno-typological data from relevant Levantine IUP assemblages. Statistical methods, namely principal component analysis (PCA) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) allow structuring these assemblages into distinct groups. These groups are then reviewed against palaeogeographic data and techno-economic behaviour patterns. Results show that IUP assemblages in the Mediterranean zone are similar to each other in regards to techno-typology, palaeogeography and techno-economic behaviour, being indicative of residential base camps. Contrastingly, assemblages in the semi-arid zone are more variable in regards to techno-typology and techno-economy, indicating more specialised activities such as hunting/butchering, which is often combined with local raw material exploitation.
VL  - 6
IS  - 1
ER  -

Copy | Download