On ‘sedentism’ in the Later Epipalaeolithic (Natufian) Levant

Abstract

A poorly defined notion of ‘sedentism’ continues to feature prominently in archaeological discussions of the Epipalaeolithic/Neolithic transition in Levantine prehistory. While acknowledging the valuable contribution of previous studies on the subject, this article argues that interpretations of the archaeological evidence are being hampered by the continued adherence to ‘sedentism’ as a concept for explaining social transformations in settlement and landscape, and that there is little more to be said from this perspective. I suggest that recent perspectives on ‘social landscapes’ will help further our understanding of this period in human history. In the specific case of the Later Epipalaeolithic (the Natufian and other ‘cultural entities’), this engagement would be profitably grounded in discussion of the histories of human communities' perceptions and uses of space, place and landscape, and how these perceptions and uses changed over time. It is argued that the Early Natufian – when, it is claimed, sedentism first appears in the Levantine sequence – needs to be studied in its own right as a particular set of social practices and traditions, and not as some kind of ‘precursor’ to the Neolithic almost three millennia later.