Southern Africa and modern human origins

Author:

Abstract

This paper argues that southern Africa was a remote part of the Old World in the late Pleistocene (125- 10 ka ago). Because of this isolated position there was continuity without significant replacement in the resident population. Isolation and the relatively recent spread of agriculture to the region has allowed a section of this population to survive into the present. They are the Bushmen (San). Studies of geographic patterning in conventional genetic markers and mitochrondrial DNA indicate that the Bushman clade has a long evolutionary history in southern Africa. Estimates of more than 100 ka for the continued presence of this population in the region are supported in archaeological investigations of sites with long sequences such as Klasies River main site and Border Cave. Human remains dating to the earlier part of the late Pleistocene have been recovered from these sites and the samples form a morphological series with the Klasies River remains possibly 20 ka older than those from Border Cave. There is no fossil record for the later Pleistocene, however, at a period when selection for a gracile morphology may have been pronounced. The cultural associations in the earlier late Pleistocene are with the Middle Stone Age. Expressions of cultural ‘style’ and the occurrence of similar artefact design types in the Middle and Eater Stone Ages can be interpreted with reference to the ethnographic present. Temporal continuity can be shown in the geographical distribution of stylistic markers and this suggests participation in a shared cognitive system. The inference is that the people in the earlier late Pleistocene had cognitive abilities that are comparable to those shown by their Holocene and modern descendants. The presence of the ancestors of a modern population in the earlier late Pleistocene in this region is perhaps expected if modern people had their origins in Africa.

Publisher

The Royal Society

Subject

General Agricultural and Biological Sciences,General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

Reference40 articles.

1. Ambrose S.H . & Lorenz K .G . 1990 Social and ecological models for the M iddle Stone Age in southern Africa. In The emergence o f modern humans (ed. P. M ellars) pp. 3-33. E dinburgh U niversity Press.

2. Accuracy of dates beyond the 14C dating limit using the aspartic acid racemisation reaction

3. Beaum ont P.B. 1978 Border Cave. M .A. thesis U niversity of C ape Tow n.

4. Beaum ont P.B. 1980 O n the age of Border Cave hom inids 1-5. Palaeont. afr. 23 21-33.

5. M odern m an in su b -S ah aran Africa prior to 49 000 BP: a review and evaluation w ith p articu la r reference to Border Cave. 5. Afr. J;de Villiers H.;Sci.,1978

同舟云学术

1.学者识别学者识别

2.学术分析学术分析

3.人才评估人才评估

"同舟云学术"是以全球学者为主线,采集、加工和组织学术论文而形成的新型学术文献查询和分析系统,可以对全球学者进行文献检索和人才价值评估。用户可以通过关注某些学科领域的顶尖人物而持续追踪该领域的学科进展和研究前沿。经过近期的数据扩容,当前同舟云学术共收录了国内外主流学术期刊6万余种,收集的期刊论文及会议论文总量共计约1.5亿篇,并以每天添加12000余篇中外论文的速度递增。我们也可以为用户提供个性化、定制化的学者数据。欢迎来电咨询!咨询电话:010-8811{复制后删除}0370

www.globalauthorid.com

TOP

Copyright © 2019-2024 北京同舟云网络信息技术有限公司
京公网安备11010802033243号  京ICP备18003416号-3