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The Population Ecology of Man in the Early Upper Pleistocene of Southern Africa

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 May 2014

Richard B. Lee
Richard B. Lee
Affiliation:
University of California, Berkeley
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Extract

The object of this essay is to study the effect of shifting Pleistocene climates on the numbers and distribution of early man. The geographical setting for the study is southern Africa. Chronologically, it is concerned with the cultures of the First Intermediate Phase—the Fauresmith and the Sangoan, which flourished in this region during the period 50,000–40,000 B.C.

The main body of the work is devoted to a description of the ecological zones of southern Africa and an evaluation of these zones in terms of their suitability for hominid occupation. Three maps of ecological zones are employed: the first shows the vegetation as it exists under the present climate; the second and third plot the zones as they might appear under conditions of higher and lower rainfall respectively. The regions of southern Africa are then classified on the basis of their long-term favourability for hominid occupation.

The use of this framework enables one to reinterpret the distribution of archaeological materials and to produce revised estimates concerning the numbers of men in the Pleistocene.

Type
Research Article
Information
Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society , Volume 29 , December 1963 , pp. 235 - 257
Copyright
Copyright © The Prehistoric Society 1963

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