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Population variation within the Iron Age of southern Africa: an assessment using dental anthropological and cranio-mandibular metric techniques

Includes bibliographical references.

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Warren, Kerryn Ashleigh
Other Authors: Ackermann, R R
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: Department of Archaeology 2014
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access_status_str Open Access
author Warren, Kerryn Ashleigh
author2 Ackermann, R R
author_browse Ackermann, R R
Warren, Kerryn Ashleigh
author_facet Ackermann, R R
Warren, Kerryn Ashleigh
author_sort Warren, Kerryn Ashleigh
collection Thesis
description Includes bibliographical references.
format Thesis
id oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/9794
institution University of Cape Town (South Africa)
language eng
last_indexed 2026-06-10T12:32:34.479Z
license_str Not specified — see source repository
provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository
publishDate 2014
publishDateRange 2014
publishDateSort 2014
publisher Department of Archaeology
publisherStr Department of Archaeology
record_format dspace
source_str UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository
spelling oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/9794 Population variation within the Iron Age of southern Africa: an assessment using dental anthropological and cranio-mandibular metric techniques Warren, Kerryn Ashleigh Ackermann, R R Hall, Simon Archaeology Includes bibliographical references. Evidence for iron smelting, agriculture, elaborate pottery styles and increased sedentism appears abruptly in areas previously inhabited by hunter-gatherers and herders during the Early Iron Age (EIA) of southern Africa from around 250CE. Ceramic evidence connects these (cultural) populations to the second millennium Iron Age sites in eastern Botswana. This material culture differs from second millennium Late Iron Age (LIA) sites in South Africa which are attributed to migrations from east Africa and are connected, via the material culture, to modern Sotho-Tswana and Nguni speakers. Although the material culture of this period is well-studied, there is a gap in correlating Iron Age biological identity with the established cultural identity. Here I present an analysis of metric and nonmetric dental and cranial variation to better understand biological relationships among these samples. Specimens from the LIA, EIA and Eastern Botswana are compared with each other, and to specimens from Iron Age Zambian sites, modern Bantu-speakers and a historic Ndebele site from the midnineteenth century. This research indicates few differences between the EIA and LIA groups, although surprisingly a sample from eastern Botswana is more similar to the LIA group than the EIA group. The Iron Age samples are significantly different from the modern sample, while the historic sample lies intermediate to the Iron Age and modern samples, indicating that Iron Age peoples had a pattern of dental and cranio-mandibular variation that differs from what is seen in modern (admixed?) descendants. This research has important implications for our understanding of the sub-Saharan African dental complex, showing population differences within this complex (between Khoesan and Iron Age peoples) as well as variation over time (between Iron Age peoples and modern Bantuspeakers). This indicates that, while farmers within the Iron Age of southernmost Africa are generally homogenous, there are important differences between populations in sub-Saharan Africa that reflect complex and differing histories. 2014-11-28T09:35:18Z 2014-11-28T09:35:18Z 2013 Master Thesis Masters MSc http://hdl.handle.net/11427/9794 eng application/pdf Department of Archaeology Faculty of Science University of Cape Town
spellingShingle Archaeology
Warren, Kerryn Ashleigh
Population variation within the Iron Age of southern Africa: an assessment using dental anthropological and cranio-mandibular metric techniques
thesis_degree_str Master's
title Population variation within the Iron Age of southern Africa: an assessment using dental anthropological and cranio-mandibular metric techniques
title_full Population variation within the Iron Age of southern Africa: an assessment using dental anthropological and cranio-mandibular metric techniques
title_fullStr Population variation within the Iron Age of southern Africa: an assessment using dental anthropological and cranio-mandibular metric techniques
title_full_unstemmed Population variation within the Iron Age of southern Africa: an assessment using dental anthropological and cranio-mandibular metric techniques
title_short Population variation within the Iron Age of southern Africa: an assessment using dental anthropological and cranio-mandibular metric techniques
title_sort population variation within the iron age of southern africa an assessment using dental anthropological and cranio mandibular metric techniques
topic Archaeology
url http://hdl.handle.net/11427/9794
work_keys_str_mv AT warrenkerrynashleigh populationvariationwithintheironageofsouthernafricaanassessmentusingdentalanthropologicalandcraniomandibularmetrictechniques