Lost Civilization Under the Persian Gulf?
A new scientific study has revealed that one of the earliest civilizations might have existed under what is today the Persian Gulf. According to climate experts, the Ice Age came to an end about 8,000 years ago and the Indian Ocean flooded the Persian Gulf basin .
The region lies in the southern part of the Fertile Crescent . It would have been an area that received a lot of fresh water from the Euphrates and Tigris Rivers. At that time the area would have been a great place to live because the surrounding areas were deserts. The inhabitants probably lived in stone houses, raised animals and built the oldest boats in the world.
Archaeologists found new sites near the coastline of the Persian Gulf that date back to 25,000 Before Christ. The population may have come from the middle of the Persian Gulf basin . Rising water levels made them move to the edges of the gulf. Sea level data shows that the area had been dry for about 100,000 years before flooding began.
Archaeological sites in Yemen and Oman show that the population had stone tools like the ones that were discovered in Eastern Africa. Some people may have moved further eastwards to areas that were wetter.
Real evidence for a civilization in the Persian Gulf can only be found if scientists were able to find and excavate an underwater settlement .
Related Topics
Words
- according to = as said by …
- archaeologist = a person who studies old civilizations and the cultures that existed there
- basin = place where the surface of the earth is lower than in other areas
- data = information
- date back = go back
- discover = find
- edge = outside part of
- evidence = facts that show that something is true
- excavate = to dig carefully in order to find old objects or buildings
- Fertile Crescent = area in the Middle East that has a curved shape ; it is the land around the rivers Tigris and Euphrates; many important civilizations emerged there
- flood = to cover with water
- further = more
- inhabitant = a person who lives in a place
- raise = feed animals so that you can use them as food
- receive = get
- reveal = show
- rise = to go up
- scientist = a person who is trained in science
- sea level = the average height of the oceans
- settlement = group of houses where people live
- site = area where old buildings once stood
- study = piece of work that is done to find out more about a special topic
- surrounding = nearby
- tool = something that you hold in your hand , with which you can do a certain job