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The Archaeological and Genetic Foundations of the European Population during the Late Glacial: Implications for ‘Agricultural Thinking’

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 October 2005

Clive Gamble ,
William Davies ,
Paul Pettitt ,
Lee Hazelwood  and
Martin Richards
Clive Gamble
Affiliation:
Centre for Quaternary Research, Department of Geography, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, TW20 0EX, UK; [email protected].
William Davies
Affiliation:
Centre for Quaternary Research, Department of Geography, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, TW20 0EX, UK; [email protected].
Paul Pettitt
Affiliation:
Department of Archaeology, University of Sheffield, Northgate House, West Street, Sheffield, UK.
Lee Hazelwood
Affiliation:
AHRB Centre for the Evolutionary Analysis of Cultural Behaviour, University of Southampton, Avenue Campus, Highfield, Southampton, UK.
Martin Richards
Affiliation:
Faculty of Biological Sciences, L.C. Miall Building, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK.
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Abstract

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This article presents the initial results from the S2AGES data base of calibrated radiocarbon estimates from western Europe in the period 25,000–10,000 years ago. Our aim is to present a population history of this sub-continental region by providing a chronologically-secure framework for the interpretation of data from genetics and archaeology. In particular, we define five population events in this period, using dates-as-data, and examine the implications for the archaeology of Late Glacial colonization. We contrast this detailed regional approach to the larger project which we call the cognitive origins synthesis that includes historical linguistics in the reconstruction of population history. We conclude that only archaeology can currently provide the framework for population history and the evaluation of genetic data. Finally, if progress is to be made in the new interdisciplinary field of population history then both disciplines need to refrain from inappropriate agricultural thinking that fosters distorting models of European prehistory, and they should also pay less, if any, attention to historical linguistics.

With comments from L.G. Straus, J.-P. Bocquet-Appel, P.A. Underhill & R. Housley and followed by a reply from the author.

Keywords

radiocarbon datingLate Glacial colonizationgenetics and archaeologyS2AGES data basepopulation history, Europe
Type
Research Article
Information
Cambridge Archaeological Journal , Volume 15 , Issue 2 , October 2005 , pp. 193 - 223
Copyright
2005 The McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research