Climate Change and Social Sustainability: The Case of the 8.2-kyBP Climate Event and the Demise of the Neolithic Community at Çatalhöyük in Anatolia

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

The social strategy of imposed egalitarianism provided solid foundations for the unprecedented growth of the Neolithic community inhabiting the large settlement at Çatalhöyük for more than half a millennium. Its constituting elements comprised symmetry and balance among cross-cutting sodalities, as well as integration of domestic and ritual domains. However, the persistence of this social modus operandi started to disintegrate ca. 300 years before the ultimate abandonment of the settlement. This ongoing process was further strengthened by a significant deterioration of the local climate linked to the 8.2-kyBP event.

In this paper, I intend to unpack the slow demise of the imposed egalitarian social system and the impact of climate-induced changes. In particular, I will outline the character of the resilience strategy adopted by these communities in wetter and drier climates. These processes are manifested in the reorganization of the settlement’s occupation, changes in architecture and burial practices, as well as in the economy and subsistence basis. They will be examined in the context of changes in the natural environment and the exploitation of its immediate environs.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts   •
• Society for American Archaeology 89th Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA (2024)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 40197.0