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Enset (Ensete ventricosum) and the Archaeology of Southwestern Ethiopia

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Abstract

Enset (Ensete ventricosum) is an indigenous Ethiopian domesticate growing in what is known as the “enset zone” of southwestern Ethiopia. Few archaeological sites have been excavated in this region, and only one site has yielded remains of enset. However, the abundant megalithic and rock art sites in the region compensate for the paucity of the archaeological record. This review article provides an interpretative analysis of the existing body of work to shed new light on the beginning of agriculture in the “enset zone.” It integrates the region’s archaeological evidence, recovered through excavations, with the information from megalithic and unique rock art sites. The archaeological evidence of this zone indicates a late introduction of domestic stock and pottery. The unique megalithic and rock art traditions in this region are considered to be part of the distinct cultural adaptations related to the later phases of food production.

Résumé

Enset (Ensete ventricosum) est une culture indigène éthiopien domestique poussant dans ce qui est connu comme la “zone enset” du sud-ouest de l’Ethiopie. Peu de sites archéologiques ont été fouillés dans cette région et un seul site a donné des restes d’ensète. Cependant, les abondants sites mégalithiques et d’art rupestre de la région compensent la rareté des archives archéologiques. Cet article de synthèse fournit une analyse interprétative de l’ensemble des travaux existants pour jeter un nouveau éclairage sur le début de l’agriculture dans la «zone enset». Il intègre les preuves archéologiques de la région, récupérées lors de fouilles, avec les informations provenant de sites mégalithiques et d’art rupestre uniques. Les preuves archéologiques de cette zone indiquent une introduction tardive du bétail domestique et de la poterie. Les traditions mégalithiques et rupestres uniques de cette région sont considérées comme faisant partie des adaptations culturelles distinctes liées aux phases ultérieures de la production alimentaire.

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Acknowledgments

Thanks to the Authority for Research and Conservation of Cultural Heritage, the government body that supervises archaeological research in Ethiopia. I also would like to thank the anonymous reviewers and the editorial team of this journal for critical comments that improved the manuscript.

Funding

This review essay is a product of the research kindly financed by the L. S. B. Leakey Foundation and partly by the Research Office of Addis Ababa University.

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  1. Paleoanthropology and Paleoenvironment Programme, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

    Agazi Negash

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Negash, A. Enset (Ensete ventricosum) and the Archaeology of Southwestern Ethiopia. Afr Archaeol Rev 37, 627–637 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10437-020-09414-6

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