Jean-Pierre Bocquet-Appel – författare

If we want to be able to tackle demographic issues over a long evolutionary duration, trying to reconstitute our human demographic history and thinking out and testing macro-demographic theories, we need to draw on sources other than written data and on techniques other than those commonly used by demographers.

Jean-Pierre BOCQUET-APPEL CNRS, Paris, France The written data used by demographers essentially cover the last five centuries. Since Homo ergaster moved out of Africa around 1. 8 million years ago and until the sub-contemporary periods, there is no data allowing us to reconstruct a demographic history that can be interpreted with the traditional tools of demography. If we want to be able to tackle demographic issues over a long evolutionary duration, trying to reconstitute our human demographic history and thinking out and testing macro-demographic theories, we need to draw on sources other than written data and on techniques other than those commonly used by demographers. This necessarily means using inf- mation of every kind, from archaeology, physical anthropology, pale- tology, primatology or genetics, along with relevant models of interpretation. The volume presented here has been developed from a core of papers selected for the paleodemographic session of the 25th World Population Congress (July 2005, Tours, France), to which further requested contri- tions have been added. The publication covers recent paleodemographic innovations, in terms of data, techniques and the detection of patterns making it possible to highlight hitherto unknown prehistoric demographic processes. Now that the anxiety over ways of defusing the population “time bomb”, which mobilized mainstream demographic thinking as from the 1960s (see, for authority, Bogue and Tsui 1979; Demeny 1979) has largely been dis- pated, the focus has shifted to other important issues.

The transition from hunting and gathering to farming – the Neolithic Revolution – was one of the most signi cant cultural processes in human history that forever changed the face of humanity. The biological issues addressed in this chapter are as follows: × Is there a demographic change from the Natu an to the Neolithic?

The transition from hunting and gathering to farming – the Neolithic Revolution – was one of the most signi cant cultural processes in human history that forever changed the face of humanity. Natu an communities (15,100–12,000Cal BP) (all dates in this chapter are calibrated before present) planted the seeds of change, and the Pre-Pottery Neolithic (PPN) (ca. 12,000–ca. 8,350Cal BP) people, were the rst to establish farming communities. The revolution was not fully realized until quite late in the PPN and later in the Pottery Neolithic (PN) period. We would like to ask some questions and comment on a few aspects emphas- ing the linkage between biological and cultural developments during the Neolithic Revolution. The biological issues addressed in this chapter are as follows: × Is there a demographic change from the Natu an to the Neolithic? × Is there a change in the overall health of the Neolithic populations compared to the Natu an? × Is there a change in the diet and how is it expressed? × Is there a change in the physical burden/stress people had to bear with? × Is there a change in intra- and inter-community rates of violent encounters? From the cultural perspective the leading questions will be: × What was the change in the economy and when was it fully realized? × Is there a change in settlement patterns and site nature and organization from Natu an to Neolithic? × Is there a change in human activities and division of labor?

Jean-Pierre BOCQUET-APPEL CNRS, Paris, France The written data used by demographers essentially cover the last five centuries. Since Homo ergaster moved out of Africa around 1. 8 million years ago and until the sub-contemporary periods, there is no data allowing us to reconstruct a demographic history that can be interpreted with the traditional tools of demography. If we want to be able to tackle demographic issues over a long evolutionary duration, trying to reconstitute our human demographic history and thinking out and testing macro-demographic theories, we need to draw on sources other than written data and on techniques other than those commonly used by demographers. This necessarily means using inf- mation of every kind, from archaeology, physical anthropology, pale- tology, primatology or genetics, along with relevant models of interpretation. The volume presented here has been developed from a core of papers selected for the paleodemographic session of the 25th World Population Congress (July 2005, Tours, France), to which further requested contri- tions have been added. The publication covers recent paleodemographic innovations, in terms of data, techniques and the detection of patterns making it possible to highlight hitherto unknown prehistoric demographic processes. Now that the anxiety over ways of defusing the population “time bomb”, which mobilized mainstream demographic thinking as from the 1960s (see, for authority, Bogue and Tsui 1979; Demeny 1979) has largely been dis- pated, the focus has shifted to other important issues.