Kelvin Fella

The coast of East Africa is reported to have experienced multi-centennial climatic variability and environmental transformations in the circa AD 500-1850 including abrupt (e.g., floods, tsunamis, storms), and gradual (e.g. dry/wet climatic conditions). However, it remains unknown how the early communities coped with, adapted to or were influenced by these extreme climatic shifts. The focus of this study is to explore communities’ responses to climate-induced changes during the last two millennia at Pangani Bay, Northern Tanzania coast. Pangani Bay is characterized by the presence of fertile low-lying alluvial plain which attracted settlement of the past communities, although the area would seem vulnerable to climatic events originating from both Indian Ocean and Pangani River. To achieve this study, an interdisciplinary approach combining techniques from archaeology, anthropology, and geology will be applied. In determining climatic changes and natural events techniques such as sedimentological analysis, mineralogical and elemental analyses, proxies i.e. mollusks and phytolith remains will be integrated. Human coping strategies to these phenomena will be determined through recovery, analysis and recording of archaeological remains i.e. archaeobotanical, fauna, artefacts, ecofacts, structures and features which are capable of informing changes in settlement pattern, subsistence strategies, technology, and other human activities along various climatic phases.