Table Of ContentTHE NILE BASIN
The Nile Basin contains a record of human activities spanning the last million years.
However,theinteractionsbetweenprehistorichumansandenvironmentalchangesinthis
areaarecomplexandoftenpoorlyunderstood.Thiscomprehensivebookexplainsinclear,
non-technical terms how prehistoric environments can be reconstructed, with examples
drawn from every part of the Nile Basin. Adopting a source-to-sink approach, the book
integrateseventsintheNileheadwaterswiththerecordfrommarinesedimentcoresinthe
Nile Delta and offshore. It provides a detailed record of past environmental changes
throughout the Nile Basin and concludes with a review of the causes and consequences
ofplantandanimaldomesticationinthisregionandofthevariousprehistoricmigrations
out ofAfrica into Eurasia and beyond.A comprehensive overview, this book is ideal for
researchersingeomorphology,climatologyandarchaeology.
martin williams isAdjunctProfessorinEarthSciencesattheUniversityofAdelaide,
Australia.HehasworkedwitharchaeologistsintheSahara,NileValleyandEthiopia,and
haswrittenmorethan200researchpapersandadozenbooks,includingClimaticChangein
Deserts(2014),ALandBetweenTwoNiles(withDonaldAdamson,1982)andTheSahara
andtheNile(withHuguesFaure,1980).HereceivedtheFaroukEl-BazAwardforDesert
ResearchfromtheGeologicalSocietyofAmericain2008.
THE NILE BASIN
Quaternary Geology, Geomorphology and Prehistoric
Environments
MARTIN WILLIAMS
TheUniversityofAdelaide
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www.cambridge.org
Informationonthistitle:www.cambridge.org/9781107179196
DOI:10.1017/9781316831885
©MartinWilliams2019
Thispublicationisincopyright.Subjecttostatutoryexception
andtotheprovisionsofrelevantcollectivelicensingagreements,
noreproductionofanypartmaytakeplacewithoutthewritten
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Firstpublished2019
PrintedintheUnitedKingdombyTJInternationalLtd.PadstowCornwall
AcataloguerecordforthispublicationisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary.
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Names:Williams,M.A.J.,author.
Title:TheNileBasin:quaternarygeology,geomorphologyandprehistoricenvironments/
MartinWilliams.
Description:Cambridge,UnitedKingdom;NewYork,NY:CambridgeUniversityPress,2019.|
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
Identifiers:LCCN2018027622|ISBN9781107179196(Hardback)
Subjects:LCSH:Geology–NileRiverWatershed.|Geomorphology–NileRiverWatershed.|
NileRiverWatershed–Antiquities.|Geology,Stratigraphic–Quaternary.
Classification:LCCQE328.W552019|DDC556.2–dc23
LCrecordavailableathttps://lccn.loc.gov/2018027622
ISBN978-1-107-17919-6Hardback
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ForFrances,whosharesmyloveofwild,remoteandruggedplaces
Contents
Preface pagexiii
Acknowledgements xv
1 TheNileBasin:AnIntroduction 1
1.1 Introduction 1
1.2 EarlySpeculationabouttheNile 3
1.3 UniqueAttributesoftheNile 5
1.4 AimsandStructureofThisVolume 5
2 EvolutionoftheNileBasin 8
2.1 Introduction:HowOldIstheNile? 8
2.2 EthiopianUpliftandVolcanism 9
2.3 ErosionoftheEthiopianNileHeadwaters 11
2.4 TectonicHistoryofLakeVictoriaandtheUgandanNileHeadwaters 14
2.5 TectonicandStructuralControloftheNileandItsTributaries 15
2.6 VolumeoftheNileCone 16
2.7 Conclusion 17
3 ClimateandHydrology 19
3.1 Introduction 19
3.2 ClimatesoftheNileBasin 19
3.3 NileHydrologyandNileFloods 26
3.4 Conclusion 32
4 GeologyandSoils 33
4.1 Introduction 33
4.2 Geology 35
4.3 Soils 47
4.4 Conclusion 58
5 Vegetation,LandUseandHumanImpact 59
5.1 Introduction 59
5.2 NaturalVegetationZones 60
5.3 CurrentLandUse 66
vii
viii Contents
5.4 HumanImpactontheNaturalVegetationandSoils 70
5.5 ControllingtheFloods:Dams,ReservoirsandDisease 77
5.6 Conclusion 79
6 TheEthiopianHighlands 81
6.1 Introduction 81
6.2 CenozoicUpliftandVolcanism 81
6.3 CenozoicErosion:TheBlueNileandTekezzeGorges 83
6.4 MioceneandPlioceneEnvironmentsinEthiopia 84
6.5 QuaternaryEnvironments 85
6.6 TheLatePleistoceneBlueNile 93
6.7 TheEarlyHoloceneBlueNile 93
6.8 Conclusion 96
7 TheUgandanLakePlateau 97
7.1 Introduction 97
7.2 CenozoicDisruptionofDrainage 97
7.3 OriginoftheUgandanLakes 100
7.4 LateQuaternaryFluctuationsofLakesVictoriaandAlbert 101
7.5 LateQuaternaryFluctuationsofLakeChalla 104
7.6 The‘AfricanHumidPeriod’ 105
7.7 KilimanjaroHoloceneIceCoreRecords 106
7.8 Conclusion 106
8 TheSuddSwampsandtheWhiteNile 107
8.1 Introduction 107
8.2 TheSudd 108
8.3 TheWhiteNile 111
8.4 WhiteNileIslands 118
8.5 PrehistoricOccupationoftheWhiteNileValley 119
8.6 Conclusion 124
9 LakeTurkanaandOverflowintotheSobat 127
9.1 Introduction 127
9.2 LakeTurkana 129
9.3 QuaternarySedimentsintheLowerOmoValley 129
9.4 OverflowofLakeTurkanaintotheWhiteNile 130
9.5 Conclusion 131
10 TheKhorAbuHablFanandtheDesertDunesofKordofanandDarfur 132
10.1 Introduction 132
10.2 TheUmmRuwabaFormationandtheKhorAbuHablFan 132
10.3 DesertDunesandTheirEnvironmentalSignificance 136
10.4 TheDesertDunesofKordofanandDarfur 139
10.5 FreshwaterMolluscaandHoloceneLakes 142
10.6 Conclusion 142
Contents ix
11 TheGeziraAlluvialFanandBlueNilePalaeochannels 143
11.1 Introduction 143
11.2 AgeandOriginoftheGezira 145
11.3 BlueNilePalaeochannels 148
11.4 Source-BorderingDunes 158
11.5 PrehistoricOccupationSites 160
11.6 Conclusion 163
12 TheAtbara 164
12.1 Introduction 164
12.2 ColdClimateLandformsandGlaciationintheSemien
Highlands 166
12.3 DenudationRatesintheTekezzeBasin 171
12.4 QuaternaryAlluvialFormationsintheAtbaraValley 172
12.5 HoloceneEnvironments 173
12.6 QuaternaryFossilsandPrehistoricArtefacts 174
12.7 Conclusion 174
13 JebelMarraVolcano 176
13.1 Introduction 176
13.2 GeologicalHistoryofJebelMarra 178
13.3 FloraofJebelMarraandItsSignificance 180
13.4 PiedmontSediments 181
13.5 DeribaCraterLakesandLatePleistoceneHighLakeLevels 187
13.6 PleistoceneandHoloceneErosionandSedimentation 192
13.7 Conclusion 194
14 TheDesertNile 196
14.1 Introduction 196
14.2 DecipheringNileAlluvialHistory 198
14.3 PleistoceneErosionandSedimentationinSouthernEgypt 200
14.4 LateQuaternaryDepositionalEnvironmentsinNorthernSudan 202
14.5 Meta-analysisoftheDesertNileHoloceneFluvialArchive 210
14.6 Conclusion 210
15 WestoftheNile:TheWesternDesertofEgyptandtheEastern
Sahara–Part1 211
15.1 Introduction 211
15.2 EarlyExploration 212
15.3 WadiHowarandAdjacentAreas 213
15.4 TheDarbelArba’inDesert:Oyo,ElAtrunand
SelimaOasis 222
15.5 Conclusion 226
