In a period of little over a decade, excavations have transformed our characterization of Middle Niger prehistory from hidden and humble to one of the world's most original theatres of change. After situating the Middle Niger evidence for geomorphology, domestication, organization of society and production, and belief systems against a backdrop of current concerns in West African prehistory, we suggest future research directions of particular potential. The Middle Niger lends a new perspective on current thinking about the prehistorian's enterprise, most notably about the symbolic component of the world as socially constructed, cross‐cultural studies, and the integrity of our traditional analytical categories.
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