1 - Climate changes in the Levant during the Late Quaternary Period

Summary

At a rather early stage of the research to be reported in this book, it was decided to use the connections between climate changes, hydrological and socio-economic systems in the Levant in order to establish a basic reference sequence of climate changes during the Holocene. Once this had been accomplished, this sequence would be correlated with other regions over the globe. This decision was based on the following observations.

1. This region is a transition zone between two climate belts: the westerlies system and the sub-tropical or intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) overlying the Arabian–Sahara desert belt. The rate of movement of these two belts north and south affects the mean annual quantity of rain, as well as its variability from year to year. Consequently, the positions in the past of these belts that affect the Mediterranean region's climatic regime and hydrological cycle may provide information reflecting global climate changes.

2. The Nile, which reflects the easterlies and the tropical climate regime over eastern Africa, reaches the Mediterranean and its sediments reflect the history of the climate changes over its watershed.

3. The relatively moderate size of the Mediterranean region, causing climate changes to be rather synchronous (although not absolute) over most of the area, enables establishment of a regional climate change chronology.

4. The long history of human societies in this region, the abundance of documents and archaeological excavations, all facilitate investigation of the impact of climate changes on past socio-economic systems.