The living environment of the ancient inhabitants of the Xinglong site in Kangbao, Hebei Province

<p indent="0mm"> The Xinglong site is a typical site of the Early to Middle Neolithic period on the southeastern margin of the Inner Mongolia Plateau. In this paper, we studied the living environment of the inhabitants during the Early to Middle Neolithic Period in the Xinglong site through the field geological and geomorphological survey, optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating and several paleoenvironmental indicators analysis of two typical profiles (HKX-P1 and HKX-P2), including spore-pollen, grain size, magnetic susceptibility, chroma, chemical elements, and loss on ignition (LOI). The results show that the area was a cold and dry, sparsely vegetated river-lake aggradation plain and desert environment before <sc>13,000 years</sc> ago. From the Last Deglaciation to the early Holocene, the climate in this area was cool and dry with frequent fluctuations, and the shallow lake between the valleys developed, forming a “barren desert plain-shallow lake oasis” environment. During the Paleolithic-Neolithic transition <sc>(13-10 ka BP),</sc> the inhabitants of the Xinglong site engaged in hunting and gathering activities by relying on oasis microenvironments within a barren desert or semi-desert landscape. During the early Holocene (approximately <sc>10 ka BP),</sc> this region experienced climatic fluctuations characterized by overall warming. Around 9–8.5 ka BP, the regional environment shifted from a barren desert to a steppe-dominated landscape, resulting in a significant increase in plant and animal resources. This environmental transition served as a critical driver for the rapid cultural flourishing of the Xinglong site during the Middle Neolithic period. Under the background of “steppe tableland–inter-hill shallow lake” environment, the inhabitants of the Xinglong site adopted a combinational subsistence strategy of long-distance hunting in a wide range of grassland and settling near an inter-hill shallow lake with good hydrothermal conditions and biotic resources, gradually formed a prosperous Neolithic culture. Around <sc>7 ka BP,</sc> climate change triggered lake regression and eutrophication in the vicinity of the Xinglong site, which likely served as an environmental driver for the cultural decline of the Middle Neolithic Xinglong culture. In summary, the changes of regional climate, hydrology, geomorphology, animals and plants, soil and many other environmental factors under the suitable environmental background of the early Holocene humid period are the important reasons for the rise and development of the Early Neolithic culture in the southeastern margin of the Inner Mongolia Plateau.