Stone tool assemblages and models for the dispersal of Homo sapiens out of Africa

Groucutt, Huw S.; Scerri, Eleanor M. L.; Lewis, Lionel S.; Clark-Balzan, Laine; Blinkhorn, James; Jennings, Richard; Parton, Ash; Petraglia, Michael D.

doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2015.01.039

Cited by 82 publications

(57 citation statements)

References 130 publications

(202 reference statements)

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“…It seems that under archaeological grounds there are data in support of a southern route exit from Africa and across the Arabian Peninsula and the Indian subcontinent [30, 130, 132, 133, 138–141], but the lack of coetaneous fossil record leaves the hominid association to these stone tools unresolved. Even if they were modern humans, they did not leave any trace in the mtDNA gene pool of the extant populations of Arabia or India.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Carriers of human mitochondrial DNA macrohaplogroup M colonized India from southeastern Asia

et al. 2016

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BackgroundFrom a mtDNA dominant perspective, the exit from Africa of modern humans to colonize Eurasia occurred once, around 60 kya, following a southern coastal route across Arabia and India to reach Australia short after. These pioneers carried with them the currently dominant Eurasian lineages M and N. Based also on mtDNA phylogenetic and phylogeographic grounds, some authors have proposed the coeval existence of a northern route across the Levant that brought mtDNA macrohaplogroup N to Australia. To contrast both hypothesis, here we reanalyzed the phylogeography and respective ages of mtDNA haplogroups belonging to macrohaplogroup M in different regions of Eurasia and Australasia.ResultsThe macrohaplogroup M has a historical implantation in West Eurasia, including the Arabian Peninsula. Founder ages of M lineages in India are significantly younger than those in East Asia, Southeast Asia and Near Oceania. Moreover, there is a significant positive correlation between the age of the M haplogroups and its longitudinal geographical distribution. These results point to a colonization of the Indian subcontinent by modern humans carrying M lineages from the east instead the west side.ConclusionsThe existence of a northern route, previously proposed for the mtDNA macrohaplogroup N, is confirmed here for the macrohaplogroup M. Both mtDNA macrolineages seem to have differentiated in South East Asia from ancestral L3 lineages. Taking this genetic evidence and those reported by other disciplines we have constructed a new and more conciliatory model to explain the history of modern humans out of Africa.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12862-016-0816-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Carriers of human mitochondrial DNA macrohaplogroup M colonized India from southeastern Asia

et al. 2016

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“…Omo-Kibish, Aduma, Haua Fteah, Qafzeh), while other hominin fossils (Neanderthals) in southwest Asia are instead associated with features such as high frequencies of unidirectional-convergent Levallois reduction (e.g. Yellen et al, 2005;Shea, 2008;Hovers, 2009;Nishiaki et al, 2012;Groucutt, 2014;Groucutt et al, in 2015b).…”

Section: Timing Of Human Occupation At Mdf-61mentioning

confidence: 99%

Human occupation of the Arabian Empty Quarter during MIS 5: evidence from Mundafan Al-Buhayrah, Saudi Arabia

Groucutt

White

Clark-Balzan

et al. 2015

Quaternary Science Reviews

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International audienceThe Empty Quarter (or Rub' al Khali) of the Arabian Peninsula is the largest continuous sandy desert in the world. It has been known for several decades that Late Pleistocene and Holocene deposits, representing phases of wetter climate, are preserved there. These sequences have yielded palaeontological evidence in the form of a variety of vertebrate and invertebrate fossils and have been dated using various radiometric techniques. However, evidence for human presence during these wetter phases has until now been ephemeral. Here, we report on the first stratified and dated archaeology from the Empty Quarter, recovered from the site of Mundafan Al-Buhayrah (MDF-61). Human occupation at the site, represented by stone tools, has been dated to the later part of Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5 using multiple luminescence dating techniques (multigrain and single grain OSL, TT-OSL). The sequence consists primarily of lacustrine and palustrine sediments, from which evidence for changing local environmental conditions has been obtained through analysis of fossil assemblages (phytoliths and non-marine molluscs and ostracods). The discovery of securely-dated archaeological material at ∼100 to 80 ka in the Empty Quarter has important implications for hypotheses concerning the timing and routes of dispersal of Homo sapiens out of Africa, which have been much debated. Consequently, the data presented here fill a crucial gap in palaeoenvironmental and archaeological understanding of the southern Arabian interior. Fossils of H. sapiens in the Levant, also dated to MIS 5, together with Middle Palaeolithic archaeological sites in Arabia and India are thought to represent the earliest dispersal of our species out of Africa. We suggest that the widespread occurrence of similar lithic technologies across southern Asia, coupled with a growing body of evidence for environmental amelioration across the Saharo-Arabian belt, indicates that occupation of the Levant by H. sapiens during MIS 5 may not have been a brief, localized ‘failed dispersal’, but part of a wider demographic expansion

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“…19 for a different view see ref. 20). The two populations left similar material culture remains—in particular, lithic industries that include the Levallois technology.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The first Neanderthal remains from an open-air Middle Palaeolithic site in the Levant

Been

Hovers

Ekshtain

et al. 2017

Sci Rep

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The late Middle Palaeolithic (MP) settlement patterns in the Levant included the repeated use of caves and open landscape sites. The fossil record shows that two types of hominins occupied the region during this period—Neandertals and Homo sapiens. Until recently, diagnostic fossil remains were found only at cave sites. Because the two populations in this region left similar material cultural remains, it was impossible to attribute any open-air site to either species. In this study, we present newly discovered fossil remains from intact archaeological layers of the open-air site ‘Ein Qashish, in northern Israel. The hominin remains represent three individuals: EQH1, a nondiagnostic skull fragment; EQH2, an upper right third molar (RM3); and EQH3, lower limb bones of a young Neandertal male. EQH2 and EQH3 constitute the first diagnostic anatomical remains of Neandertals at an open-air site in the Levant. The optically stimulated luminescence ages suggest that Neandertals repeatedly visited ‘Ein Qashish between 70 and 60 ka. The discovery of Neandertals at open-air sites during the late MP reinforces the view that Neandertals were a resilient population in the Levant shortly before Upper Palaeolithic Homo sapiens populated the region.

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Stone tool assemblages and models for the dispersal of Homo sapiens out of Africa

Cited by 82 publications

References 130 publications

Carriers of human mitochondrial DNA macrohaplogroup M colonized India from southeastern Asia

Carriers of human mitochondrial DNA macrohaplogroup M colonized India from southeastern Asia

Human occupation of the Arabian Empty Quarter during MIS 5: evidence from Mundafan Al-Buhayrah, Saudi Arabia

The first Neanderthal remains from an open-air Middle Palaeolithic site in the Levant

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