Is Neolithic land use correlated with demography? An evaluation of pollen-derived land cover and radiocarbon-inferred demographic change from Central Europe
Is Neolithic land use correlated with demography? An evaluation of pollen-derived land cover and radiocarbon-inferred demographic change from Central Europe
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DOI：
10.1177/0959683614540952
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发表时间：
2014-10-01
期刊：
影响因子：
2.4
通讯作者：
Shennan, Stephen
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Lechterbeck, Jutta;Edinborough, Kevan;Shennan, Stephen
由于粮食生产经济的引入，中欧自然景观的转变始于新石器时代。本文通过区域性案例研究探讨了土地覆盖与人口变化之间的关系。研究区域是西博登湖地区，那里有非常详细的孢粉学和考古记录。我们使用伪生物化方法将九个花粉记录得出的土地覆盖变化与考古遗址的 C-14 日期概率密度函数（作为人口统计代理）进行比较。我们选择康斯坦茨湖地区作为区域示例，其中花粉信号整合了更大的空间模式。该地区的土地覆盖重建在中新石器时代过渡期间首次显示出显着影响。青铜时代初期的特点是耕地和牧场/草地增加，而落叶林地急剧减少。土地覆盖类别的变化显示出与 C-14 密度曲线的相关性：与新石器时代早期的次生林地的相关性最好，它反映了湖岸沉降动态。在青铜时代早期，放射性碳密度与开放的土地覆盖类别（如牧场、草地和耕地）相关，反映了土地利用策略的变化。两个档案之间密切的总体对应关系表明人口动态和土地覆盖变化具有内在联系。因此，我们将人类影响视为新石器时代植被变化的关键驱动因素。气候可能会对植被发育产生影响，但人类土地利用造成的变化从新石器时代就可以清楚地察觉到，至少在这些人口稠密的中海拔地区是这样。
The transformation of natural landscapes in Middle Europe began in the Neolithic as a result of the introduction of food-producing economies. This paper examines the relation between land-cover and demographic change in a regionally restricted case study. The study area is the Western Lake Constance area which has very detailed palynological as well as archaeological records. We compare land-cover change derived from nine pollen records using a pseudo-biomisation approach with C-14 date probability density functions from archaeological sites which serve as a demographic proxy. We chose the Lake Constance area as a regional example where the pollen signal integrates a larger spatial pattern. The land-cover reconstructions for this region show first notable impacts at the Middle to Young Neolithic transition. The beginning of the Bronze Age is characterised by increases of arable land and pasture/meadow, whereas the deciduous woodland decreases dramatically. Changes in the land-cover classes show a correlation with the C-14 density curve: the correlation is best with secondary woodland in the Young Neolithic which reflects the lake shore settlement dynamics. In the Early Bronze Age, the radiocarbon density correlates with open land-cover classes, such as pasture, meadow and arable land, reflecting a change in the land-use strategy. The close overall correspondence between the two archives implies that population dynamics and land-cover change were intrinsically linked. We therefore see human impact as a key driver for vegetation change in the Neolithic. Climate might have an influence on vegetation development, but the changes caused by human land use are clearly detectable from Neolithic times, at least in these densely settled, mid-altitude landscapes.