Molecular distribution and stable isotopic compositions (d13C, dD) of n-alkanes and saturated fatty acids were investigated in a marine sediment core (GeoB16202-1, 773cm) collected in Parnaíba river basin to determine the sources of terrestrial organic matter deposited during the last 23000 years. The carbon isotopic compositions of n-alkanes and fatty acids were considered to infer vegetation changes according with climatic variations, while the hydrogen compositions provided information about millenary events in regional hydrology and its relationship with the global climate forcings. Long-chain n-alkanes (n-Nonacosane C29 and n-Hentriacontane C31) and saturated fatty acids C26 (hexacosanoic acid) and C28 (montanic acid) were the most abundant compounds determined, suggesting important contributions from terrestrial sources. The most negative values of d13C for C29 and C31 (-27.3 to -33.2 % VPDB – Vienna Pee Dee Belemnite) indicate a general predominance of C3 vegetation along the core. The carbon isotopic composition of the long-chain fatty acids (d13C of -27.3 and -34.5 % VPDB) varied in a similar range and exhibited a distribution highly correlated with the long-chain n-alkanes, which suggests a common origin and confirms the use of d13C from fatty acids as a paleovegetation proxy. The dD of the long-chain n-alkanes (-115 to -159 % SMOW– Standard Mean Ocean Water) varied in a more positive range than the composition of the fatty acids (-123 and -163 % SMOW) and both signs were positively correlated. The d13C of long-chain n-alkanes and fatty acids suggests expansion of C3 plants and the dD suggests greater precipitation during the Heinrich Stadial1 (HS1) and Younger Dryas (YD) events, which is consistent with previous studies that attribute a regime of more intense rainfall in Northeast of Brazil during these periods. Molecular distribution and isotopic compositions (d13C and dD) of palmitic acid (C16 ) reveal that the short-chain fatty acids correspond a combination of resynthesized material and/or a mixture of marine/terrestrial organic matter, while terrestrial plants are the principal sources of the fatty acids C26 and C28. The lower correlation between dD of fatty acids and dD of n-alkanes suggests that the hydrogen isotope signature of both groups of compounds is affected by different processes that need to be further investigated.