  We combine predictions for several hierarchical cosmogonies with
observational evidence on damped Lyman alpha systems to establish a
correspondence between the high redshift galaxy population and the properties
of damped Lyman alpha systems. We assume that high redshift galaxies and damped
Lyman alpha systems are hosted by the same dark matter halos and require
consistency between the predicted halo space density, the rate of incidence and
the velocity width distribution of damped Lyman alpha systems, and the observed
galaxy luminosity function at the bright end. We arrive at the following
results: (1) predicted impact parameters between the damped absorption system
and the luminous part of the absorbing galaxy are expected to be very small
(0.3 - 1arcsec) for most galaxies; (2) luminosities of galaxies causing damped
absorption are generally fainter than m_R = 25 and damped Lyman alpha systems
are predicted to sample preferentially the outer regions of galaxies at the
faint end of the galaxy luminosity function at high redshift. Therefore, DLAS
should currently provide the best probe of the progenitors of normal
present-day galaxies.
