Peuples et évolution climatique en Afrique nord-tropicale, de la fin du Néolithique à l’aube de l’époque moderne

• Main Authors: Jean Maley, Robert Vernet
• Format: Article
• Language: deu
• Published: Institut des Mondes Africains 2013-05-01
• Series: Afriques
• Subjects: archeology; climate change; dry phase; history; migration; paleoclimate
• Online Access: http://journals.openedition.org/afriques/1209

At the end of the Neolithic Era, during the third millennium BCE, there were fewer humid periods of weather, and the sub-Saharan Sahelian zone, from the Atlantic to Lake Chad, assumed its current geographical form. Since then, the climate has continued undergoing major variations. The succession of climatic episodes, humid or dry, is pointed out along with their complex interactions. These variations are placed in parallel to cultural phases of evolution in archeology and history. Climate-related events have always had heavy consequences on the peopling of this vast region, often subject to extreme natural conditions. The relative synchronism between the principal cultural trends from west to east across the Sahel seems to have often been subject to swings in the climate and the resulting environmental changes.