Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Holocene Coastal Geomorphology

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Coastal Science

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series ((EESS))

  • 119 Accesses

Definition

Holocene coastal geomorphology is a geoscience discipline dealing with materials (rock, sediments), forms, and forming processes (anorganic and organic) in the overlapping fringe between marine and terrestrial environments (called “littoral ”) during the Holocene period, in particular the time frame of a postglacial high sea level over the last about 7000 years to modern times. It is a wide field of science, with certainly tens of thousands of related publications. A text on this subject therefore has to be restricted to some general points.

Normally forming processes on Earth need time measured in geological scales (i.e., many thousands to millions of years) to show adequate results with mature forms. In contrast to this general rule, all coastal forms are not older than 6000–8000 years, when oceans again reached modern levels from a low-stand near −120 m during the last cold phase with extended glaciers (last glacial maximum (LGM) : Nicholls and Cazenave 2010; Scheffers...

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution

Institutional subscriptions

Bibliography

  • Bryant EA (2008) Tsunami – the underrated hazard, 2nd edn. Springer, Berlin, 330 pp

    Google Scholar 

  • Davidson-Arnott R (2010) Introduction to coastal processes and geomorphology. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 442 pp

    Google Scholar 

  • Davies JL (1980) Geographical variation in coastal development, Geomorphology texts, vol 4, 4th edn. Longman, London/Edinburgh, 214 pp

    Google Scholar 

  • Dillenburg SR, Hesp PA (2008) Geology and geomorphology of Holocene coastal barriers of Brazil. Lecture notes in earth sciences 107, Springer Berlín, 375 pp

    Google Scholar 

  • Erdmann W, Kelletat D, Scheffers A, Haslett SK (2015) Origin and formation of coastal boulder deposits in Galway Bay and on the Aran Islands, Western Ireland, Springer Briefs in Geography. Springer International Publishing, Cham, 125 pp

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Goto T, Satake K, Sugai T, Ishibe T, Harada T, Murotani S (2015) Historical tsunami and storm deposits during the last five centuries on the Sanriku coast, Japan. Mar Geol 367:105–117

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Haslett S (2008) Coastal systems, 2nd edn. Routledge, London, 214 pp

    Google Scholar 

  • Hopley D (ed) (2011) Encyclopedia of modern coral reefs. Springer, Dordrecht, 1236 pp

    Google Scholar 

  • Jöns H, Harff J (2014) Geoarchaeological research strategies in the Baltic Sea area: environmental changes, shoreline-displacement and settlement strategies. In: Evans AM, Flatman JC, Flemming NC (eds) Prehistoric archaeology on the continental shelf. Springer, New York, pp 173–192

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Kelletat D (2013) Physische Geographie der Meere und Küsten, 3rd edn. Borntraeger, Stuttgart, 290 pp

    Google Scholar 

  • Kelletat D, Scheffers A, Scheffers S (2007) Field signatures of the SE-Asian mega-tsunami along the west coast of Thailand compared to Holocene paleo-tsunami from the Atlantic region. Pure Appl Geophys 164(2–3):413–431

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lantuit H, Overduin PP, Wetterich S (2013) Recent progress regarding permafrost coasts. Permafr Periglac Process 24(2):120–130

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lim M, Rosser NJ, Petley DN, Keen M (2011) Quantifying the controls and influence of tide and wave impacts on coastal rock cliff erosion. J Coast Res 27(1):46–56

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marriner N, Morhange C (2007) Geoscience of ancient Mediterranean harbours. Earth Sci Rev 80:137–194

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Martínez ML, Maun MA, Psuty NP (2008) The fragility and conservation of the world's coastal dunes: geomorphological, ecological and socioeconomic perspectives. In: Martinez ML, Psuty NP (eds) Coastal dunes, Ecological studies, vol 171. Springer, Berlin/Heidelberg, pp 355–369

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • May SM, Engel M, Brill D, Squire P, Scheffers A, Kelletat D (2013) Coastal hazards from tropical cyclones and extratropical winter storms based on Holocene storm chronologies. In: Finkl CW (ed) Coastal Hazards, Coastal research library, vol 6. Springer, Dordrecht/New York, pp 557–585

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Nel R, Campbell EE, Harris L, Hauser L, Schoeman DS, McLachlan A et al (2014) The status of sandy beach science: past trends, progress, and possible futures. Estuar Coast Shelf Sci 150:1–10

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nicholls R, Cazenave A (2010) Sea–level rise and its impact on coastal zones. Science 328(18):1517–1520

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Paris R, Naylor LA, Stephenson WJ (2011) Boulders as a signature of storms on rock coasts. Mar Geol 283:1–11

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Provoost S, Jones MLM, Edmondson SE (2011) Changes in landscape and vegetation of coastal dunes in Northwest Europe: a review. J Coast Conserv 15(1):207–226

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scheffers A (2006) Sedimentary impacts of Holocene tsunami events from the intra-Americas seas and Southern Europe – a review. In: Scheffers A, Kelletat D (eds.) Tsunamis, hurricanes and neotectonics as driving mechanisms in coastal evolution. Zeitschrift für Geomorphologie, Suppl 146, 7–37.

    Google Scholar 

  • Scheffers A (2008) Tsunami Boulder Deposits. In: Shiki T, Tsuji Y, Yamazaki T, Minoura K (eds) Tsunamiites. Features and implications. Elsevier, Oxford, pp 299–318

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Scheffers A, Engel M, Squire P, Kelletat D, Scheffers S (2011) Beach ridge systems – archives for Holocene coastal change? Prog Phys Geogr 36:5–37

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scheffers A, Scheffers S, Kelletat D (2012) The coastlines of the world with Google Earth – understanding our environment, Coastal research library, vol 2. Springer, Dordrecht, 293 pp

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Shennan I, Milne G, Bradley S (2012) Late Holocene vertical land motion and relative sea-level changes: lessons from the British Isles. J Quat Sci 27(1):64–70

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Short AD (2006) Australian beach systems-nature and distribution. J Coast Res 22(1):11–27

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Trenhaile AS (2008) Modeling the role of weathering in shore platform development. Geomorphology 94:24–39

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fachgruppe der Didaktiken der Mathematik und der Naturwissenschaften, Institut für Geographiedidaktik, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany

    Dieter H. Kelletat

Authors
  1. Dieter H. Kelletat
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Dieter H. Kelletat .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Coastal Education & Research Foundation, Fletcher, North Carolina, USA

    Charles W. Finkl

  2. Coastal Education & Research Foundation , Coconut Creek, Florida, USA

    Christopher Makowski

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG

About this entry

Cite this entry

Kelletat, D.H. (2017). Holocene Coastal Geomorphology. In: Finkl, C., Makowski, C. (eds) Encyclopedia of Coastal Science . Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-48657-4_171-2

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-48657-4_171-2

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-48657-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-48657-4

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Earth and Environm. ScienceReference Module Physical and Materials ScienceReference Module Earth and Environmental Sciences

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation