Indonesia–Southeast Asia: Climates, settlements, and cultures in Late Pleistocene

Late Pleistocene is one of the important periods within the prehistoric chronology of the Archipelago. Chronologically it occupied the period between the oldest one, characterized by Paleolithic culture, and the Early Holocene, characterized by Preneolithic culture. Referring to the evidences found so far, this period covers the time around 45000 BP to Early Holocene or around 11800 BP. Different phenomena have colored this period. Natural phenomenon was marked by climate and sea level fluctuations, which brought changes to paleogeography and paleoenvironment. The second phenomenon was related to the appearance of early modern human (the oldest Homo sapiens) replacing the early human, Homo erectus. The emergence of Homo sapiens brought cultural phenomenon, such as (1) the exploration of wider geographical area within the archipelago, even to the other parts of Southeast Asia, western Melanesia, and Australia, (2) the change of activity orientation from open air to natural niches, such as caves and rock shelters, and (3) the development in technology and subsistence. To cite this article: T. Simanjuntak, C. R. Palevol 5 (2006).