The Pre-Pottery Neolithic A (PPNA; c. 9600–8500 cal BC)
period in the Levant provides the earliest confirmed evidence for plant
cultivation anywhere in the world, marking a significant escalation in the
human management of plants towards fully fledged agricultural food
production. Until now, the majority of PPNA sites have been documented in
the Jordan Valley, the Wadi Araba and farther north along the Upper
Euphrates (e.g. Mureybet, Jerf el-Ahmar, Djade). By contrast, few PPNA sites
have so far been reported from the semi-arid to arid eastern part of the
Levantine interior. Among these is El Aoui Safa (Coqueugniot & Anderson
1996) and sporadic flint scatters elsewhere in the Harra.
Recent fieldwork in the Qa’ Shubayqa area in the Harra has
produced the first evidence for a more substantial settlement site in this
region.