Summary In this chapter, we discuss climatic fluctuations in northern and eastern Africa during the Holocene and in particular the middle Holocene. The major emphasis is on the Sahara and the mountains of eastern Africa, because the climatic changes in these areas were very dramatic, and the evidence for those changes is the most visible. In addition, for the Sahara there are numerous radiocarbon age determinations tied to the climatic events in that area. Within the Sahara, we treat the eastern part in the greatest detail, primarily because extensive detailed work has been done there and the chronology of the entire sequence is controlled by a large series of radiocarbon dates from charcoal. Discussions of the cultural phenomena that accompanied the middle Holocene climatic fluctuations focuses on the Eastern Sahara and the Nile.
Journal articles from the Grassland Society of Southern Africa (GSSA) African Journal of Range and Forage Science as well as related articles and reports from throughout the southern African region.