Exploring a wide range of techniques developed by specialists in each discipline, this first volume of three deals with broad theoretical issues and provides a background to the detail of the further studies covered in volumes II and III. This collection deals with the controversial question of the origin of language; the validity of deep-level reconsruction; the sociolinguistic modelling of prehistory; and the use of oral tradition.

Archaeology, Language, and the African Past is an overview of theories and methods, a fusion of African linguistics and archaeology. Roger Blench provides a comprehensive look at the history of all African language families, incorporating the latest linguistic classifications, current evidence from archaeology, genetic research, and recorded history. This original and definitive volume examines the economic culture of the continent_from major crops and plant life to animals and livestock_from a multi-dimensional perspective. It provides students of linguistics, archaeology, and anthropology...

This text explores the origins, development and present situation of African domestic animals. The book presents an interdisciplinary overview of the origins of livestock, and provides a synthesis of what archaeozoology and archaeology can tell us about the prehistory of domestic animals in Africa.