Submerged Palaeolandscapes of the Southern Hemisphere (SPLOSH) – What is emerging from the Southern Hemisphere

Abstract

ABSTRACT The potential of submerged palaeolandscapes to address questions about global migrations, broad-scale climate and landscape change and human response to this has, to date, been concentrated in the Northern Hemisphere. The Southern Hemisphere has less land, more water and water barriers, higher floral and faunal endemicity and lower population but with indigenous populations that have maintained a connection with coastal and offshore landscapes for at least 40,000 years in Australasia and almost 170,000 years in South Africa. We provide an overview of current knowledge in South America, Southern Africa and Australasia and explore how new palaeogeographic and palaeoecological research, alongside related coastal archaeology, is helping to map out future directions for submerged cultural landscape research in these regions. A common theme across is the need to raise awareness of submerged cultural resources and indigenous knowledge of these as well as the multi-disciplinary approach needed to understand the unique landscapes in which they are preserved.