The civilization role of the TadrartAcacus region in the central sahara during Neolithic period

Abstract

Most regions of the Central Sahara during the Neolithic period received numerous and diverse studies by researchers and specialists in the field of prehistory. However, at the same time, we do not see the necessary attention given to the region of Tadrart Acacus despite its distinguished cultural heritage and its civilizational role, which provides an important record in the history of Saharan societies at that time.

Most specialists in the field of Saharan prehistory agree that the Tadrart Acacus region was a place of settlement for the human groups that inhabited the Central Sahara (currently Algeria and Libya), leaving behind several cultural manifestations. Although writing did not exist during that period, rock art enabled us to infer the general reality of Tadrart Acacus during the period of climatic moderation. This was reflected in the communities’ focus on daily life activities that provided food and basic necessities of living. They were also creative in their cultures, as they developed the idea of building houses and decorating them with colors. Inside these dwellings, places designated for cooking with fire were found, along with a diversified diet based on plant and animal sources.

It is also not unlikely, according to what rock paintings reveal, that these Saharan societies developed the idea of tailoring clothes, which evolved from simplicity into numerous and diverse innovations. We should also not forget the effective role of women during that period, as their status was distinguished. Most daily activities represented in the Sahara prominently depict women, and sometimes they appear as the central element, since they were concerned with aesthetics (such as hairstyles and jewelry), child-rearing, herding, cooking, and sharing with their husbands the burdens of agriculture, herding, and even hunting.