The University of Jordan :: Research Groups :: 9th Youth Geoscience Forum

Human dispersals out of Africa took place during multiple events connected with climatic and environmental amelioration periods since the last interglaciation (129–71 ka). The Levant region is considered as a gateway for these dispersals into southwest Asia and beyond. Here, we document wetland sediments with luminescence ages falling in the last glacial cycle in the southern Levant from three wetland sediments associated with prehistoric artefacts including Wadi Ghrandal and Gregra, along the Jordan rift valley and Wadi Hasa in Jordan Plateau showing protracted phases of moisture availability. The results show that wetlands persisted between 115±8–71±5 ka in Wadi Gharandal, 81±5–23±1 in Wadi Hasa, and 68±7–33±2 ka in Gregra. Wetland sediments in Wadi Gharandal containing Levallois artifacts yielded an age of 84 ka and Late-Middle paleolithic tools collected from Wadi Hasa suggest human occupation during the last glacial cycle in the Levant. Alongside the absence of archaeological and environmental records in Arabia during the last glaciation, the results here demonstrate that humid conditions supported human occupation in the Levant when Arabia was dry after 60,000 years ago.

Keywords

Luminescence dating, out of Africa, wetland sediments, Jordan, the Levant

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Sedimentology

9th Youth Geoscience Forum

The last glacial cycle window of human dispersal out of Africa through the Levant.