Uncertainties about the rate and magnitude of future climate change have drawn attention to the climate variability following the Late Glacial-Early Holocene transition, c. 12-8 ka BP. Tephrochronology is a method that uses volcanic ash as isochrons in order to link, date and synchronise geological and palaeoclimatic records which could provide a better understanding of short rapid climate shifts but also the timing of these.

The main purpose of this thesis was to improve and refine the Late Younger Dryas-Early Holocene (c. 12-8 ka BP) tephrochronological framework with focus on dating and identification of new and previously known tephra horizons in the North Atlantic region. A special emphasis was to identify tephra horizons contemporary to short rapid climate events that occurred during the period; the Preboreal Oscillation (c. 11.3 ka BP), the Erdalen events (c. 10.0-9.8 ka BP), the 9.3 ka BP and the 8.2 ka BP events. Additional purposes have been to evaluate the potential of XRF ITRAX core-scanning to identify tephra in lake sediments but also as a tool in palaeoclimate studies.

The potential of tephrochronology for linking climate archives across the North Atlantic region is a main outcome in this thesis. Specific results include five new tephra horizons; four identified on the Faroe Islands and one in Central Norway. Two previously known tephras, the Hässeldalen and Askja-S tephras, were identified on the Faroe Islands for the first time and at new locations in Sweden which confirmed their widespread distribution in NW Europe. Several of these tephras have the potential to become marker horizons for some of the short rapid climate events which occurred during the Late Younger Dryas-Early Holocene but their importance is yet to be determined. Further results show that the XRF core scanner can be used successfully to identify high concentrations of basaltic tephra but also to identify palaeoclimatic events in lake sediments.