A preliminary survey of some areas of the Central and Northern Namib Desert was undertaken in order to identify geomorphic and sedimentary features that could potentially provide information on past climatic change in the region. Wherever possible, samples were collected for radiocarbon dating. The visits to the Skeleton Coast area were especially revealing: practically every river valley in this tract shows a sequence of terraces and deposits that would warrant a detailed study. In all, about 120 new radiocarbon dates were obtained for the region. These have supplied a wealth of individual results and, collectively, have enabled the construction of a tentative chronological sequence of the changes in climate for the past 40,000 yr. Three periods of increased aridity in the hinterland, but with decreasing intensity are postulated: during the Last Glacial Maximum, the early Holocene, and between A.D. 1200 and A.D. 1600. The Inter-Pleniglacial up to 23,000 yr B.P., the Late Glacial, and the period between about 4000 yr B.P and 1200 yr B.P., on the other hand, were more humid than today, also with decreasing intensity. Other indicators of past climate were also identified, but since they lie beyond the range of radiocarbon dating, they cannot as yet be placed in a chronological context. Of significance is the fact that convincing evidence was obtained for climatic change within the last millennium and, especially, the rainfall is found to have been increasing since the 16th century.