Modeling the role of voyaging in the coastal spread of the Early Neolithic in the West Mediterranean

The earliest dates for the West Mediterranean Neolithic indicate that it expanded across 2,500 km in about 300 y. Such a fast spread is held to be mainly due to a demic process driven by dispersal along coastal routes. Here, the authors model the Neolithic spread in the region by focusing on the role of voyaging to understand better the core elements that produced the observed pattern of dates. The authors also explore the effect of cultural interaction with Mesolithic populations living along the coast. The simulation study shows that (i) sea travel is required to obtain reasonable predictions, with a minimum sea-travel range of 300 km per generation; (ii) leapfrog coastal dispersals yield the best results (quantitatively and qualitatively); and (iii) interaction with Mesolithic people can assist the spread, but long-range voyaging is still needed to explain the archaeological pattern.

• Record URL:
  https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1613413114
• Record URL:
  http://www.pnas.org/content/114/5/897.abstract
• Authors:
  • Isern, Neus
  • Zilhão, João
  • Fort, Joaquim
  • Ammerman, Albert J
• Publication Date: 2017-1-31

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Web
• Features: References;
• Pagination: pp 897-902
• Serial:
  • Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
  • Volume: 114
  • Issue Number: 5
  • Publisher: National Academy of Sciences
  • EISSN: 1091-6490
  • Serial URL: http://www.pnas.org/

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Archaeology; Culture (Social sciences); History; Mathematical models; Ocean travel; Simulation
• Geographic Terms: Mediterranean Region
• Subject Areas: History; Marine Transportation;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01633929
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: May 1 2017 9:37AM