THE NORTH-WESTERN PONTIC REGION IN 14th—7th centuries BC

The natural environment and its changes influenced almost all aspects of life in ancient societies and largely determined their historical development. Reconstructing the changes in the natural conditions that existed in a particular area helps to recreate the history of the population living there. In the fifteenth to twelfth centuries BC, the Northern Pontic region experienced a period of elevated humidity, which coincides with the period of Sabatynivska culture. In the Northwestern Pontic region, the population density increased significantly at this time. Archaeological findings in the Northwest Pontic and Mediterranean regions testify to the existence of intensive ties between the settlements of Sabatynivska and later Bilozerska cultures and Achaean Greece. In the late 12th century BC, the climate in the Northern Pontic region became drier. During this period, Sabatynivska culture was replaced by Bilozerska culture, which existed in the twelfth and tenth centuries BC. The capital of the people of Bilozerska culture, according to the researchers, was a settlement of the 12th—9th centuries BC, which was located at the confluence of the Ingul River with the Bug estuary, on the territory of the modern city of Mykolaiv. In the tenth century BC, an economic crisis began to emerge among the tribes of Bilozerska culture. Agricultural cultures of the Late Bronze Age: Sabatynivska and Bilozerska are replaced by the cultures of the early nomads of Cimmerian culture. From the tenth century BC onward, the population of the Northwestern Pontic region declined, dropping by almost ten times. Archaeological studies have suggested that Cimmerian culture was based on the traditions of the Bilozerka and post-Zrubna population. It was located on the territory of the North-Western Pontic region and part of the southern forest-steppe zone. It is believed that in the 7th century BC, Scythian tribes drove Cimmerians out of the entire Northern Pontic region. Still, the population at that time remained unchanged compared to the previous period. The demographic landscape of the Northwestern Pontic region transformed significantly by the mid-sixth century BC as Greek colonists began to develop the northern shores of the Black Sea.