Prehistory

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For a timeline of events in the early history of the universe and prehistoric Ea
rth, see Timeline of prehistory.
Massive stone pillars at Gbekli Tepe, in southeast Turkey, erected for ritual use
by early Neolithic people 11,000 years ago.
Human history
and prehistory
before Homo (Pliocene epoch)
Prehistory
(three-age system)
Stone Age
Lower Paleolithic
Homo Homo erectus
Middle Paleolithic
Early Homo sapiens
Upper Paleolithic
Behavioral modernity
Neolithic
Cradle of civilization
Bronze Age
China Europe India Near East
Iron Age
Bronze Age collapse
China Europe India Japan Korea Near East Nigeria
Recorded history
Ancient history
Earliest records
Postclassical era
Modern history
Early Later Contemporary
Future
v t e
Prehistory means literally "before history", from the Latin word for "before," p
r, and Greek . Hum n p
eh
y  he pe
d f
m he me h  beh v
lly nd
c lly mde
n hum n f
 ppe
unl he ppe
nce f
ec
ded h
y fll
wng he nvenn f w
ng yem. Snce bh he me f elemen f mde

n hum n, nd he evlun f hum n cvl n, dffe
f
m
egn 
eg
n, p
eh
y 
 nd end  dffe
en mmen n me, dependng n he
eg
n cnce
ned.
Sume
n Mep m nd ncen Egyp we
e he f
 cvl n  develp 
he
wn c
p, nd  keep h
c l
ec
d; h k pl ce l
e dy du
ng
he e
ly B
nze Age. The neghbu
ng cvl n f he Ancen Mddle E 
we
e he f
  fllw. M he
cvl n
e ched he end f p
eh

y du
ng he I
n Age.[c n needed]
Cnen [hde]
1
Defnn: dffe
en
2
Sne Age
2.1
P lelhc
2.2
Melhc
2.3
Nelhc
2.4
Ch lclhc
3
B
nze Age
4
I
n Age
5
Tmelne
6
By
egn

pp
 che

7
See l
8
Refe
ence
9
Exe
n l lnk
Defnn: dffe
en pp
 che[ed]
A p
eh
c m n nd by.
The e
m "p
eh
y" c n
efe
 he v  p n f me nce he begnnng f
he Unve
e, bu m
e fen 
efe
  he pe
d nce lfe ppe
ed n E

h, 
even m
e pecfc lly  he me nce hum n-lke beng ppe
ed.[1][2]
The nn f "p
eh
y" beg n  u
f ce du
ng he Enlghenmen n he w

k f nqu
 n wh ued he w
d 'p
mve'  dec
be cee h  ex
ed bef
e w
en
ec
d.[3] The f
 ue f he w
d p
eh
y n Englh, h
weve
, ccu

ed n he F
egn Qu
e
ly Revew n 1836.[4]
In dvdng up hum n p
eh
y, h
 n ypc lly ue he h
ee- ge yem,
whe
e  chl
 f p
e-hum n me pe
d ypc lly ue he well-defned gelg
c
ec
d nd  ne
n n lly defned 
um b e whn he gelgc me
c le. The h
ee- ge yem  he pe
dz n f hum n p
eh
y n h
ee
cnecuve me pe
d, n med f
he

epecve p
edmn n l-m kng ec
hnlge: he Sne Age, B
nze Age, nd I
n Age. Th yem eme
ged du
ng 
he l e nneeenh cenu
y n he w
k f B
h, Ge
m n nd Sc ndn v n
che
lg, nqu
 n nd nh
plg.[5] Anhe
dvn f h
y nd p

eh
y c n be m de beween he w
en even h  c n be p
ecely d ed b
y ue f cnnuu c lend
d ng f
m cu

en nd he h  c n'. The l
 f cnnuy f c lend
d e m fen ccu
 when cvlz n f ll nd
he l ngu ge nd c lend
f ll n due. The cu

en cvlz n he
ef
e
le he bly  p
ecely d e even w
en h
ugh p
m
y u
ce  ev
en d ed  cu

en c lend
d ng.[
gn l
ee
ch?]
The ccu

ence f w
en m e
 l ( nd  he begnnng f lc l "h
c m
e") v
e gene
lly  culu
e cl fed whn ehe
he l e B
nze Age 

whn he I
n Age. H
 n nc
e ngly d n
e
c hemelve  ev
dence f
m w
en
ec
d nd
e cmng 
ely m
e upn evdence f
m he n
u
l nd c l cence, he
eby blu

ng he dncn beween he e
m "h

y" nd "p
eh
y".[6][7][8] Th vew h  been
cul ed by dvc e 
f deep h
y.
Th
cle  cnce
ned wh hum n p
eh
y, 
he me nce beh v
lly
nd n mc lly mde
n hum n f
 ppe
unl he begnnng f
ec
ded h

y. The
e
e ep
e
cle f
he ve
ll h
y f he E
h nd he h

y f lfe bef
e hum n.
By defnn, he
e
e n w
en
ec
d f
m hum n p
eh
y,  d ng f
p
eh
c m e
 l  c
uc l. Cle
echnque f
d ng we
e n well-deve
lped unl he 19h cenu
y.[9]
The p
m
y
ee
che
 n hum n p
eh
y
e p
eh
c
ch elg nd
phyc l nh
plg wh ue exc v n, gelgc nd geg
phc u
vey,
nd he
cenfc n ly 
eve l nd ne
p
e he n u
e nd beh v
f
p
e-le
e nd nn-le
e peple.[1] Hum n ppul n genec nd h

c l lngu
e l p
vdng v lu ble ngh f
hee quen.[2] Cul
u
l nh
plg help p
vde cnex f
ce l ne
cn, by whch b
jec f hum n 
gn p  mng peple, llwng n n ly f ny
cle h
bu p
eh
y 

e n hum n p
eh
c cnex.[2] The
ef
e, d 
p
vded by wde v
ey f n u
l nd c l cence, uch  p lenlgy,
blgy,
ch elgy, p lynlgy, gelgy,
ch e 
nmy, cmp
ve lngu
c, nh
plgy, mlecul
genec nd m ny he
.
Hum n p
eh
y dffe
 f
m h
y n nly n e
m f  ch
nlgy bu n
he w y  de l wh he cve f
ch elgc l culu
e
he
h n n m

ed n n 
ndvdu l. Re
ced  m e
 l p
cee,
em n nd
f c


he
h n w
en
ec
d, p
eh
y  nnymu. Bec ue f h,
efe
e
nce e
m h  p
eh
 n ue, uch  Ne nde
h l 
I
n Age
e mde
n l b
el wh defnn meme ubjec  deb e.
The d e m
kng he end f p
eh
y n p
cul
culu
e 

egn, h  
, he d e when
elev n w
en h
c l
ec
d becme ueful c demc
e
u
ce, v
e en
muly f
m
egn 
egn. F
ex mple, n Egyp   gen
e
lly cceped h  p
eh
y ended
und 3200 BC, whe
e  n New Gune he
end f he p
eh
c e
 e much m
e
ecenly, 
und 1900 AD. In Eu

pe he
el vely well-dcumened cl c l culu
e f Ancen G
eece nd Ance
n Rme h d neghbu
ng culu
e, ncludng he Cel, nd  lee
exen 
he E
uc n, wh lle 
n w
ng, nd h
 n mu decde hw much we
gh  gve  he fen hghly p
ejudced ccun f hee "p
eh
c" culu

e n G
eek nd Rm n le
u
e.
Sne Age[ed]
P lelhc[ed]
M p f e
ly hum n mg
n, cc
dng  mchnd
 l ppul n genec. N
umbe

e mllenn bef
e he p
een ( ccu
cy dpued).
"P lelhc" me n "Old Sne Age," nd begn wh he f
 ue f ne l
. The P lelhc  he e
le pe
d f he Sne Age.
The e
ly p
 f he P lelhc  c lled he Lwe
P lelhc, whch p
ed e
 Hm  pen, begnnng wh Hm h bl ( nd
el ed pece) nd wh he e

le ne l, d ed 
und 2.5 mlln ye
 g.[10] Evdence f cn

l f f
e by e
ly hum n du
ng he Lwe
P lelhc E
 unce
 n nd h
  be lmed chl
ly upp
. The m wdely cceped cl m  h  H. e

ecu 
H. e
g e
m de f
e beween 790,000 nd 690,000 BP n e  Bn
 Y ' kv B
dge, I
el. The ue f f
e en bled e
ly hum n  ck fd, p

vde w
mh, nd h ve
lgh u
ce  ngh.
E
ly Hm  pen 
gn ed me 200,000 ye
 g, uhe
ng n he Mddle P l
elhc. An mc ch nge ndc ng mde
n l ngu ge c p cy l
e du
ng
he Mddle P lelhc.[11] Du
ng he Mddle P lelhc E
, he
e  he f

 defnve evdence f hum n ue f f
e. Se n Z mb h ve ch

ed bne
nd wd h  h ve been d ed  61,000 B.P. The yem c bu
 l f he de d, m
uc, e
ly
, nd he ue f nc
e ngly phc ed mul-p
 l
e
hghlgh f he Mddle P lelhc.
Th
ughu he P lelhc, hum n gene
lly lved  nm dc hune
-g he
e
.
Hune
-g he
e
cee ended  be ve
y m ll nd eg l
 n,[12] hugh hu
ne
-g he
e
cee wh bund n
eu
ce 
dv nced fd-
ge echnq
ue meme develped eden
y lfeyle wh cmplex c l 
ucu
e uch
 chefdm, nd c l 
fc n. Lng-d nce cn c m y h ve been e
 blhed,  n he c e f Indgenu Au
l n "hghw y."
Melhc[ed]
M n
cle: Melhc
Dugu c ne
The "Melhc," 
"Mddle Sne Age" (f
m he G
eek "me," "mddle," nd "
lh," "ne") w 
pe
d n he develpmen f hum n echnlgy beween h
e P lelhc nd Nelhc pe
d f he Sne Age.
The Melhc pe
d beg n  he end f he Plecene epch, me 10,000 BP,
nd ended wh he n
ducn f g
culu
e, he d e f whch v
ed by ge
g
phc
egn. In me
e , uch  he Ne
E , g
culu
e w  l
e dy un
de
w y by he end f he Plecene, nd he
e he Melhc  h
 nd p

ly defned. In
e  wh lmed gl c l mp c, he e
m "Epp lelhc"  

meme p
efe

ed.
Regn h  expe
enced g
e e
env
nmen l effec  he l  ce ge ended
h ve much m
e evden Melhc e
, l ng mllenn . In N
he
n Eu
pe,
cee we
e ble  lve well n
ch fd upple f
m he m
hl nd f
e
ed by he w
me
clm e. Such cndn p
duced dncve hum n beh vu

 h 
e p
ee
ved n he m e
 l
ec
d, uch  he M glem n nd Azl n
culu
e. Thee cndn l del yed he cmng f he Nelhc unl  l
e  4000 BC (6,000 BP) n n
he
n Eu
pe.
Rem n f
m h pe
d
e few nd f
beween, fen lmed  mdden. In f

eed
e , he f
 gn f def
e n h ve been fund, lhugh h w
uld nly begn n e
ne du
ng he Nelhc, when m
e p ce w  needed f

g
culu
e.
The Melhc  ch
ce
zed n m
e  by m ll cmpe fln l mc

lh nd mc
bu
n. Fhng  ckle, ne dze nd wden bjec, e.g. c
ne nd bw, h ve been fund  me e. Thee echnlge f
 ccu
n
Af
c , c ed wh he Azl n culu
e, bef
e p
e dng  Eu
pe h
ugh
he Ibe
-M u
u n culu
e f N
he
n Af
c nd he Keb
n culu
e f he L
ev n. Independen dcve
y  n lw y
uled u.
Nelhc[ed]
M n
cle: Nelhc
En
nce  he g nj

ph e emple cmplex f H g
Qm, M l , 3900 BC.[13]

An

y f Nelhc
f c, ncludng b
cele, xe he d, chel, nd p

lhng l. Nelhc ne
f c
e by defnn plhed nd, excep
f
pec ly em, n chpped.
"Nelhc" me n "New Sne Age." Unlke he P lelhc, when m
e h n ne hu
m n pece exed, nly ne hum n pece (Hm  pen  pen)
e ched he N
elhc.[14] Hm fl
een m y h ve u
vved
gh up  he ve
y d wn f 
he Nelhc, bu 12,200 ye
 g.[15] Th w 
pe
d f p
mve echnl
gc l nd c l develpmen. I beg n bu 10,200 BC n me p
 f he Md
dle E , nd l e
n he
p
 f he w
ld[16] nd endng beween 4,500 nd
2,000 BC. The Nelhc 
p
g
en f beh v
l nd culu
l ch
ce

c nd ch nge, ncludng he ue f wld nd dmec c
p nd f dmec 
ed nm l.
E
ly Nelhc f
mng w  lmed  n

w
nge f pl n, bh wld nd d
mec ed, whch ncluded enk
n whe , mlle nd pel, nd he keepng f
dg, heep nd g . By bu 6,9006,400 BC,  ncluded dmec ed c le n
d pg, he e blhmen f pe
m nenly 
e n lly nh bed elemen, n
d he ue f pe
y. The Nelhc pe
d  w he develpmen f e
ly vll ge
, g
culu
e, nm l dmec n, l nd he ne f he e
le
ec
de
d ncden f w
f
e.[17] The Nelhc e
cmmenced wh he begnnng f f

mng, whch p
duced he "Nelhc Revlun". I ended when me l l bec
me wdep
e d (n he Cppe
Age 
B
nze Age; 
, n me geg
phc l
egn
, n he I
n Age).The e
m Nelhc  cmmnly ued n he Old W
ld,  
pplc n  culu
e n he Ame
c  nd Oce n h  dd n fully develp m
e l-w
kng echnlgy
e p
blem.
The mnumen l buldng  Lun ul Mgnne n Ble
, I ly, 3500 BC.
Selemen bec me m
e pe
m nen wh me h vng c
cul
hue wh ngle

m m de f mudb
ck. Selemen mgh h ve u

undng ne w ll  keep d
mec ed nm l n nd p
ec he nh b n f
m he

be. L e
e
lemen h ve
ec ngul
mud-b
ck hue whe
e he f mly lved gehe
n n

gle 
mulple
m. Bu
 l fndng ugge n nce
cul whe
e peple p
e
e
ved kull f he de d. The Vn culu
e m y h ve c
e ed he e
le yem
f w
ng.[18] The meg lhc emple cmplexe f g nj

e n ble f
he

gg nc 
ucu
e. Alhugh me l e Eu
 n Nelhc cee f
med cmp
lex 
fed chefdm 
even  e,  e evlved n Eu
 nly wh he

e f me llu
gy, nd m Nelhc cee ne he whle we
e
el vely
mple nd eg l
 n.[19] M clhng ppe
  h ve been m de f nm l k
n,  ndc ed by fnd f l
ge numbe
 f bne nd nle
pn whch
e d
e l f
f enng le he
. Wl clh nd lnen mgh h ve becme v l ble du

ng he l e
Nelhc,[20][21]  uggeed by fnd f pe
f
ed ne whch
(dependng n ze) m y h ve e
ved  pndle wh
l 
lm wegh.[22][23][
24]
Ch lclhc[ed]
M n
cle: Ch lclhc
.
P nng f Cppe
Age w lled cy, L Mll
e, Ibe

In Old W
ld
ch elgy, he "Ch lclhc", "Enelhc" 
"Cppe
Age"
efe

 

nn l pe
d whe
e e
ly cppe
me llu
gy ppe
ed lngde he
wdep
e d ue f ne l. Du
ng h pe
d, me we pn nd l we
e m
de f cppe
. Th pe
d w  ll l
gely Nelhc n ch
ce
. I 
ph
e f he B
nze Age bef
e  w  dcve
ed h  ddng n  cppe
f
med 
he h
de
b
nze. The Cppe
Age w  
gn lly defned 

nn beween
he Nelhc nd he B
nze Age. Hweve
, bec ue   ch
ce
zed by he u
e f me l, he Cppe
Age  cnde
ed
p
 f he B
nze Age
he
h n 
he Sne Age.
Ch lclhc cppe
mne n Tmn V lley, Negev Dee
, I
el
An
ch elgc l e n Se
b cn n he lde ecu
ely d ed evdence f
cppe
m kng  hgh empe
u
e, f
m 7,500 ye
 g. The fnd n June 2010 e
xend he knwn
ec
d f cppe
melng by bu 800 ye
, nd ugge h 
cppe
melng m y h ve been nvened n ep
e p
 f A nd Eu
pe 
h  me
he
h n p
e dng f
m ngle u
ce.[25] The eme
gence f me l
lu
gy m y h ve ccu

ed f
 n he Fe
le C
ecen, whe
e  g ve
e  he
B
nze Age n he 4h mllennum BC (he 
dn l vew), hugh fnd f
m 
he Vn culu
e n Eu
pe h ve nw been ecu
ely d ed  lghly e
le
h n 
he f he Fe
le C
ecen. Tmn V lley cn n evdence f cppe
mnng 9,
000  7,000 ye
 g. The p
ce f 
nn f
m Nelhc  Ch lclhc
n he Mddle E   ch
ce
zed n
ch elgc l ne l embl ge by
declne n hgh qu ly
w m e
 l p
cu
emen nd ue. N
h Af
c nd h
e Nle V lley mp
ed  
n echnlgy f
m he Ne
E  nd fllwed he N
e
E e
n cu
e f B
nze Age nd I
n Age develpmen. Hweve
he I
n Age
nd B
nze Age ccu

ed mul neuly n much f Af
c .
B
nze Age[ed]
M n
cle: B
nze Age
Ox-d
wn plw, Egyp, c . 1200 BCE.
The B
nze Age  he e
le pe
d n whch me cvl n h ve
e ched 
he end f p
eh
y, by n
ducng w
en
ec
d. The B
nze Age 
p
 h
e
ef
e hu cnde
ed  be p
 f p
eh
y nly f
he
egn nd cv
l n wh dped 
develped yem f keepng w
en
ec
d du
ng l
e
pe
d.[c n needed]
The nvenn f w
ng cncde wh he e
ly begnnng f he B
nze Age.
Sn fe
he ppe
nce f w
ng, peple 
ed c
e ng w
en ccun 
f even nd "keepng bk" f dmn
ve m e
.[c n needed]

The e
m B
nze Age
efe
 

pe
d n hum n culu
l develpmen when he m
 dv nced me lw
kng (  le  n yem c nd wdep
e d ue) ncluded e
chnque f
melng cppe
nd n f
m n u
lly ccu

ng uc
ppng f 

e, nd hen cmbnng hem  c  b
nze. Thee n u
lly ccu

ng 
e ypc
lly ncluded
enc 
cmmn mpu
y. Cppe
/n 
e
e

e, 
eflec
ed n he f c h  he
e we
e n n b
nze n Wee
n A bef
e 3000 BC. Th
e B
nze Age f
m p
 f he h
ee- ge yem f
p
eh
c cee. In h
 yem,  fllw he Nelhc n me
e  f he w
ld.
I
n Age[ed]
M n
cle: I
n Age nd Cl c l nquy
The I
n Age  n p
 f p
eh
y f
ll cvl n wh h d n
duced
w
en
ec
d du
ng he B
nze Age. M
em nng cvl n dd  du
n
g he I
n Age.
In
ch elgy, he I
n Age
efe
  he dven f fe

u me llu
gy. The d
pn f 
n cncded wh he
ch nge n me p  culu
e, fen ncludn
g m
e phc ed g
culu
l p
cce,
elgu belef nd
c yl
e, whch m ke he
ch elgc l I
n Age cncde wh he "Ax l Age" n he
h
y f phlphy.
Tmelne[ed]
Fu
he
nf
m n: Tmelne f hum n evlun nd Tmelne f he Sne Age
All d e
e pp
xm e nd cnjecu
l, b ned h
ugh
ee
ch n he fel
d f nh
plgy,
ch elgy, genec, gelgy, 
lnguc. They
e ll
ubjec 
evn due  new dcve
e 
mp
ved c lcul n. BP  nd
f
"Bef
e P
een (1950)." BCE  nd f
Bef
e Cmmn E
".
Lwe
P lelhc
c. 2.8 mlln BP Genu Hm ppe
 
c
nv
u c venge

c. 2.5 mlln BP Evdence f e
ly hum n l
c. 600,000 BP Hunng-g he
ng
c. 400,000 BP Cn
l f f
e by e
ly hum n
Mddle P lelhc
c. 300,00030,000 BP Mue
 n (Ne nde
h l) culu
e n Eu
pe.[26]
c. 200,000 BP An mc lly mde
n hum n (Hm  pen  pen) ppe
n Af
c
, ne f whe ch
ce
c 
l ck f gnfc n bdy h 
cmp
ed  
he
p
m e. See e.g. Om
em n.
c. 170,000?83,000 BP Invenn f clhng [27]
c. 75,000 BP Tb Vlc n upe
e
upn.[28]
c. 70,00050,000 BP Hm  pen mve f
m Af
c  A .[29] (Recen ude nd
c e h  he
e m y h ve been w mg
n u f Af
c , he f
 h vng c
cu

ed  e
ly  130,000 BP.) In he nex mllenn , hee hum n g
up' dece
nd n mve n  uhe
n Ind , he M l y l nd, Au
l , J p n, Chn , S
be
 , Al k , nd he n
hwee
n c  f N
h Ame
c .[29]
c. 80,000-50,000? BP Beh v
l mde
ny, by h pn ncludng l ngu ge nd
phc ed cgnn
Uppe
P lelhc
c. 45,000 BP / 43,000 BCE Begnnng f Chelpe

n n culu
e n F
nce.
c. 40,000 BP / 30,000 BCE F
 hum n (Ab
gn l Au
l n) elemen n Sydn
ey,[30][31] Pe
h[32] nd Melbu
ne.[33]
c. 32,000 BP / 30,000 BCE Begnnng f Au
gn c n culu
e, exemplfed by he
c ve p nng ("p
e l
") f Ch uve C ve n F
nce.
c. 30,500 BP / 28,500 BCE New Gune  ppul ed by cln f
m A 
Au

l .[34]
c. 30,000 BP / 28,000 BCE A he
d f
endee
 l ughe
ed nd buche
ed by hum
n n he Veze
e V lley n wh   d y F
nce.[35]
c. 28,00020,000 BP G
ve n pe
d n Eu
pe. H
pn, needle, nd  w nven
ed.

c. 26,500 BP L  Gl c l M xmum (LGM). Subequenly he ce mel nd he gl c

e

e
e  g n (L e Gl c l M xmum). Du
ng h l e
pe
d hum n beng

eu
n  Wee
n Eu
pe (ee M gd len n culu
e,) nd ene
N
h Ame
c f

m E e
n Sbe
 f
he f
 me (ee P le-Ind n, p
e-Clv culu
e nd
Selemen f he Ame
c .)
c. 26,000 BP / 24,000 BCE Peple
und he w
ld ue fbe
  m ke b by-c

e

, clhe, b g, b ke, nd ne.[c n needed]
c. 25,000 BP / 23,000 BCE A elemen cnng f hu bul f
ck nd m m
mh bne  funded ne
wh   nw Dln Vnce n M
v n he Czech Repub
lc. Th  he lde hum n pe
m nen elemen h  h  ye been fund by

ch elg.[36]
c. 23,000 BP / 21,000 BCE Sm ll-c le 
 l culv n f pl n n Oh l II,
hune
-g he
e
' eden
y c mp n he h
e f he Se f G llee, I
el.[37
]
c. 16,000 BP / 14,000 BCE Wen culped n cl y deep nde he c ve nw knwn
 Le Tuc d'Audube
 n he F
ench Py
enee ne
wh   nw he b
de
f Sp
n.[38]
c. 14,800 BP / 12,800 BCE The Humd Pe
d begn n N
h Af
c . The
egn h
 wuld l e
becme he S h
 we nd fe
le, nd he Aqufe

e full.[
39]
Melhc/Epp lelhc
c. 12,500  9,500 BCE N uf n culu
e: culu
e f eden
y hune
-g he
e

wh m y h ve culv ed Rye n he Lev n (E e
n Mede

ne n)
Nelhc
c. 9,4009,200 BCE Fg f p
henc
pc ( nd he
ef
e e
le) ype
e cul
v ed n he e
ly Nelhc vll ge Glg l I (n he J
d n V lley, 13 km n
h
f Je
ch). The fnd p
ed e he dmec n f whe , b
ley, nd legume,
nd m y hu be he f
 knwn n nce f g
culu
e.[40]
c. 9,000 BCE C
cle f T-h ped ne pll
 e
eced  Gbekl Tepe n he Su
he e
n An l Regn f Tu
key du
ng p
e-pe
y Nelhc A (PPNA) pe
d.
A ye unexc v ed 
ucu
e  he e
e hugh  d e b ck  he epp
lelhc.
c. 8,000 BC / 7000 BCE In n
he
n Mep m , nw n
he
n I
q, culv n 
f b
ley nd whe  begn. A f
 hey
e ued f
bee
, g
uel, nd up, eve
nu lly f
b
e d.[41] In e
ly g
culu
e  h me he pl nng ck  u
ed, bu  
epl ced by p
mve plw n ubequen cenu
e.[42] A
und
h me,

und ne we
, nw p
ee
ved  bu 8.5 mee
 hgh nd 8.5 m
ee
 n d mee
 bul n Je
ch.[43]
Ch lclhc
c. 3,700 BCE Cunef
m w
ng ppe
 n Sume
, nd
ec
d begn  be kep. A
cc
dng  he m j
y f pec l, he f
 Mep m n w
ng w 

l h  h d lle cnnecn  he pken l ngu ge.[44]
c. 3,300 BCE App
xm e d e f de h f "z he Icem n", fund p
ee
ved n c
e n he z l Alp n 1991. A cppe
-bl ded xe, whch 
ch
ce
c echn
lgy f h e
, w  fund wh he c
pe.
c. 3,000 BCE Snehenge cn
ucn begn. In  f
 ve
n,  cned
f c
cul
dch nd b nk, wh 56 wden p.[45]
By
egn[ed]
Old W
ld
P
eh
c Af
c
P
edyn c Egyp
P
eh
c Cen
l N
h Af
c
P
eh
c A
E  A :
P
eh
c Chn
P
eh
c Th l nd
P
eh
c K
e
J p nee P lelhc
E  A n B
nze Age
Chnee B
nze Age

Suh A
P
eh
y f Ind
Suh A n Sne Age
P
eh
y f S
 L nk
P
eh
y f Cen
l A
P
eh
c Sbe

Suhwe A (Ne
E )
P
eh
y f I
n
Au
gn c n
N uf n culu
e
Ub d pe
d
U
uk pe
d
Ancen Ne
E 
P
eh
c Eu
pe
P
eh
c C uc u
P
eh
c Ge
g
P
eh
c A
men
P lelhc Eu
pe
Nelhc Eu
pe
B
nze Age Eu
pe
I
n Age Eu
pe
Al nc f
nge
P
eh
c B
 n
P
eh
c I
el nd
P
eh
c Ibe

P
eh
c B lk n
New W
ld
P
e-Clumb n Ame
c 
P
eh
c Suhwee
n culu
l dvn
2nd mllennum BCE n N
h Ame
c n h
y
1 mllennum BCE n N
h Ame
c n h
y
1 mllennum n N
h Ame
c n h
y
P
eh
c Au
l
See l[ed]
A
ch e 
nmy
A
ch elgy
P le nh
plgy
P
eh
c mg
n
A
ch c Hm  pen
Beh v
l mde
ny
P
eh
c

L f Sne Age

P
eh
c
elgn
P
eh
c muc
P
eh
c w
f
e
P
eh
c medcne
Pe
dz n
Synpc  ble f he p
ncp l ld w
ld p
eh
c culu
e
Th
ee- ge yem
Hlcene
Yunge
D
y 
B nd cey
Lne ge-bnded cey
P n
b l d le
H
y f he f mly
Hum n evlun
Refe
ence[ed]
^ Jump up : b F g n, B
 n. 2007. W
ld P
eh
y: A b
ef n
ducn New
Y
k:P
ence-H ll, Sevenh Edn, Ch pe
One
^ Jump up : b c Renf
ew, Cln. 2008. P
eh
y: The M kng f he Hum n M

nd." New Y
k: Mde
n Lb

y

Jump up ^ Eddy, M hew D nel (2011). "The Lne f Re n: Hugh Bl 
, Sp  l
y nd he P
g
eve S
ucu
e f L ngu ge". Ne nd Rec
d f he Ry l S
cey 65: 924. d:10.1098/
n
.2010.0098.
Jump up ^ Eddy, M hew D nel (2011). "The P
eh
c Mnd 
H
c l A

ef c". Ne nd Rec
d f he Ry l Scey 65: 18. d:10.1098/
n
.2010.0097
.
Jump up ^ M hew D nel Eddy (Ed.) (2011). P
eh
c Mnd: Hum n O
gn 
Culu
l A
ef c. Ry l Scey f Lndn.
Jump up ^ The P
eh
y f Ibe
 : Deb ng E
ly Sc l S
fc n nd he
S e eded by M
C
uz Be

c l, Len
d G
c S njun, Ann Glm n. Pg 36.
Jump up ^ H
c l A
ch elgy: B ck f
m he Edge. Eded by Ped
 P ul A. F
un
, M
n H ll, S n Jne. Pg 8.
Jump up ^ Th
ugh he Age n P len n A
ch elgy: An In
duc
y H ndbk.
By W le
E. R . Pg 49.
Jump up ^ G
lund, B. 1987. The b
h f p
eh
c ch
nlgy. C mb
dge:C m
b
dge Unve
y P
e.
Jump up ^ The Eence f Anh
plgy 3
d ed. By Wll m A. H vl nd, H
ld E.
L. P
n, D n W l
h, Bunny McB
d. Pg 83.
Jump up ^ R ce nd Hum n Evlun. By Mlf
d H. Wlpff. Pg 348.
Jump up ^ V nhng Vce : The Exncn f he W
ld' L ngu ge. By D nel
Nele, Suz nne Rm ne Me
n P
fe
f Englh L ngu ge Unve
y f Oxf

d. pp. 102103.
Jump up ^ hp://www.he
 gem l .
g/h g
qm.hml
Jump up ^ "W
ld Mueum f M n: Nelhc / Ch lclhc Pe
d". W
ld Mueum 
f M n. Re
eved 21 Augu 2013.
Jump up ^ Ly
; e l. (2008). "The 
gn f Hm fl
een nd 
el 
n  evlun
y p
cee unde
l n". Anh
plgc l Scence.
Jump up ^ Fgu
e 3.3 f
m F
 F
me
: The O
gn f Ag
culu
l Scee b
y Pee
Bellwd, 2004
Jump up ^ The Pe
fec Gf: P
eh
c M  c
e. The wn vce f wmen nd c
le n p
eh
c Eu
pe
Jump up ^ Wnn, Sh n (1981). P
e-w
ng n Suhe e
n Eu
pe: The Sgn Syem
f he Vn Culu
e c . 4000 BC. C lg
y: Wee
n Publhe
.
Jump up ^ Len
d D. K z Rgby; S. Sephen Hen
y Rgby (2000). Evlun
y O

gn f M
ly: C
-dcpln
y Pe
pecve. Uned kngdm: Imp
n Ac de
mc. p. 158. ISBN 0-7190-5612-8.
Jump up ^ H

, Su nn (2009). "Smh nd Cl, 
W
m nd Sf: Inveg 
nghe P
pe
e f Clh n P
eh
y". N
h Eu
pe n Sympum f
A
ch el
gc l Texle X. Ac dem .edu. Re
eved 5 Sepembe
2013.
Jump up ^ "Apec f Lfe Du
ng he Nelhc Pe
d" (PDF). Te che
' Cu

cu
lum Inue. Re
eved 5 Sepembe
2013.
Jump up ^ Gbb, Kevn T. (2006). "Pe
ced cl y dk nd L e Nelhc exle
p
ducn". P
ceedng f he 5h Ine
n n l Cng
e n he A
ch elgy 
f he Ancen Ne
E . Ac dem .
g. Re
eved 5 Sepembe
2013.
Jump up ^ G
een, Je n M (1993). "Un
velng he Engm f he B: The Spndle Wh

l  he Mdel f he Ru l Dk". A n Pe
pecve (Unve
y f H w '
P
e) 32 (1): 10524.
Jump up ^ Ck, M (2007). "The cl y lm wegh, n: E
ly Nelhc
u l c
vy, B
nze Age ccup n nd medev l cvy  Plehe R d, Leuch
, F
fe". T yde And Ffe A
ch elgc l Ju
n l 13: 123.
Jump up ^ "Se
b n e m y h ve hed f
 cppe
m ke
". ScenceNew. July
17, 2010.
Jump up ^ She , J. J. 2003. Ne nde
h l, cmpen nd he 
gn f mde
n h
um n beh vu
n he Lev n. Evlun
y Anh
plgy 12: 173187.
Jump up ^ "O
gn f Clhng Lce Indc e E
ly Clhng Ue by An mc lly
Mde
n Hum n n Af
c ". Mlecul
Blgy nd Evlun. Sepembe
2010.
Jump up ^ "Mun Tb E
upn - Ancen Hum n Unc hed, Sudy Cl m". Re
e
ved 2008-04-20.
^ Jump up : b Th  ndc ed by he M130 m
ke
n he Y ch
mme. "T

ce f D n P ," by G
y Sx, Scenfc Ame
c n, July 2008, p ge 5663.
Jump up ^ M cey, Rch
d (2007). "Sele
' h
y
ew
en: g b ck 30,000 ye

". The Sydney M
nng He
ld. Re
eved 5 July 2014.
Jump up ^ "Ab
gn l peple nd pl ce". Sydney B
n. 2013. Re
eved 5 July 2
014.
Jump up ^ S nd
Bwdle
. "The Plecene P cfc". Publhed n 'Hum n elem
en', n D. Denn (ed) The C mb
dge H
y f he P cfc Il nde
. pp. 4150.
C mb
dge Unve
y P
e, C mb
dge. Unve
y f Wee
n Au
l . A
chve
d f
m he 
gn l n 16 Feb
u
y 2008. Re
eved 26 Feb
u
y 2008.
Jump up ^ G
y P
el nd, The F
 Reden f Melbu
ne' Wee
n Regn, (
ev
ed edn), H

l nd P
e, 1997. ISBN 0-646-33150-7. P
el nd  y n p ge
1: "The
e  me evdence  hw h  peple we
e lvng n he M
by
nng R
ve
v lley, ne
p
een d y Kel
, bu 40,000 ye
 g."
Jump up ^ J me T
ge
, The Peple' Ch
nlgy, 1994, ISBN 0-8050-3134-0
Jump up ^ Gene S. Su
, "Ice Age Hune
: A
 n Hdden C ge." In Mye

e f he Ancen W
ld, publc n f he N n l Geg
phc Scey, 1979.
P ge 1118.
Jump up ^ Su
, Gene S. (1979). "Ice Age Hune
: A
 n Hdden C ge". My
e
e f he Ancen W
ld. N n l Geg
phc Scey. p. 19.
Jump up ^ The O
gn f Culv n nd P
-Weed, Lng Bef
e Nelhc F
m
ng An Sn
e l., PLOS July 22, 2015 DOI: 10.1371/ju
n l.pne.0131422
Jump up ^ Su
, Gene S. (1979). "Ice Age Hune
: A
 n Hdden C ge". My
e
e f he Ancen W
ld. N n l Geg
phc Scey. pp. 810.
Jump up ^ "Shf f
m S v nn h  S h
w  G
du l," by Kenneh Ch ng, New Y

k Tme, M y 9, 2008.
Jump up ^ Klev e l. (2006 , b), Lev-Y dun e l. (2006)
Jump up ^ Kple, Kenneh F. nd O
nel , K
emhld Cne, ed., The C mb
dge W
l
d H
y f Fd, C mb
dge Unve
y P
e, 2000, p. 83
Jump up ^ "N-Tll: The Que Revlun," by D vd Huggn nd Jhn Reg nld, S
cenfc Ame
c n, July 2008, p ge 7077.
Jump up ^ F g n, B
 n M, ed. The Oxf
d Cmp nn  A
ch elgy, Oxf
d Unve

y P
e, Oxf
d 1996 ISBN 978-0-521-40216-3 p 363
Jump up ^ Gl ne
, Je n-J cque. The Invenn f Cunef
m: W
ng In Sume
.
T
n.Z n b,B h
n. B lm
e: The Jhn Hpkn Unve
y P
e, 2003. Ebk
.
Jump up ^ C
lne Alex nde
, "Snehenge," N n l Geg
phc, June 2008.
Exe
n l lnk[ed]
Subme
ged L ndc pe A
ch elgc l New
k
The Ne nde
h l e  Veldwezel-Heze
w e
, Belgum.
N
h P cfc P
eh
y  n c demc ju
n l pec lng n N
he  A n
nd N
h Ame
c n
ch elgy.
P
eh
y n Alge

nd n M
cc [1]
E
ly Hum n
cllecn f
eu
ce f
uden f
m he Cu
en y Mddle Sc
hl Lb

y.
[hde] v  e
P
eh
c echnlgy
P
eh
y melne ulne Sne Age ubdvn New Sne Age ynpc  ble
Technlgy h
y
[hw]
Tl
[hw]
A
checu
e
[hw]
A
 nd culu
e
C eg
e: P
eh
y
N vg n menu
N lgged nT lkCn
bunC
e e ccunLg nA
cleT lkRe dEdVew h

y
Se
ch

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M n p ge
Cnen
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Cu

en even
R ndm
cle
Dn e  Wkped
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Abu Wkped
Cmmuny p
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Recen ch nge
Cn c p ge
Tl
Wh  lnk he
e
Rel ed ch nge
Upl d fle
Spec l p ge
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Th p ge w  l  mdfed n 17 Decembe
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bun-Sh
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