Synoptic table of the principal old world prehistoric cultures
==Purpose==
The table gives a rough picture of the relationships between the various principal [[Archaeological culture|cultures]] of [[Prehistory]] outside the [[Americas]], [[Antarctica]], [[Australia]] and [[Oceania]]. It also serves as an index of the broad features of that prehistory to be followed through links to articles. Drawing parallels between the sets of information here and in the [[Timeline of glaciation]] might also be informative in some cases.
==Table==
{| border=0 cellpadding="8" cellspacing="0" align="center"
|- bgcolor=#bbbdff
| colspan=8 | <center>'''The Principal [[Prehistory|prehistoric]] [[culture]]s of the [[Old World]]</center>
|- bgcolor=#bbfbff
!
![[Prehistoric Europe]]
!
![[History of Africa]] and
![[African archaeology]]
![[Near Eastern archaeology]]
![[History of Asia]]
!
|- bgcolor=#bbbdffff
! Period <small> & [[Climate]]
! [[Western Europe]]
! [[Central Europe]] <br />and [[Eastern Europe]]
! [[Prehistory of Central North Africa|North Africa]],<br />[[West Africa]] and [[Sahara]]
! [[Central Africa]],<br /> [[History of South Africa#Prehistory|South]] and [[East Africa]]
! [[History of the Middle East|Middle East]]
! [[History of South Asia|South Asia]], [[History of India|India]] and<br />[[History of Central Asia|Central Asia]]
! [[History of East Asia|Far East]] and [[History of Southeast Asia|South-East Asia]]
|-
|After the year 1,000 CE <br /><br /><br /><br />
|''[[Medieval]]''
|
|[[Iron Age]] of the<br /> [[Lake Chad|Chad]] [[drainage basin|Basin]]
|
|-bgcolor=#ddffbb
|[[1000|1,000]] [[Common Era|CE]]<br /><br /> <br /><br />
|Opening of the Middle Ages<br /><br /> End of ''Antiquity''
|[[Iron Age]]
|<br /><br /><br />Iron Age in [[Niger]], ''[[Roman Empire]]''
|[[Iron Age]] in [[Kenya]], [[Uganda]]<br />[[Tanzania]], [[Zambia]], [[Zimbabwe]]
|<br /><br /><br />''[[Roman Empire]]''
|
|
|-
|[[1 BCE]]<br /><br /><br /><br />
|[[Iron Age]]
|[[Iron Age]]
|[[Nigeria]], Great Lakes
|First cultivators <br />of the equatorial forest
|''Empire of [[Alexander the Great|Alexander]]''<br />''[[Persian Empire]]''<br />[[Phoenicians]]
|[[Mauryan]] Empire ([[India]])<br/>[[Steppe]] [[Scythia]]ns<br />[[India]]n [[Iron Age]]
|[[China|Chinese]] [[Iron Age]]<br />Chinese<br />[[Zhou]] period
|-bgcolor=#ddffbb
|[[1000 BCE|1,000 BCE]]<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
|[[Bronze Age]]<br /><br />
|[[Bronze Age]]<br />''[[Myceneans]]''
|[[Copper Age]] in [[Niger]]<br /><br /><br />
|development of [[Agriculture#History|agriculture]]<br />in [[East Africa]]
|<br /><br />''[[Hittites]]''<br />''[[Assyrians]]''
|development of<br />[[pastoralism]] in [[India]]<br />[[Bactria]]n towns
|[[China|Chinese]] [[Bronze Age]]<br />Chinese<br />[[Shang]] period
|-
|2,000 BCE<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
|[[Bell beaker]]<br />[[Chalcolithic]]<br />
|corded [[ceramic]]<br /><br /><br />[[domestication of the horse]]
|[[Neolithic]] of [[Tichit]]<br /><br />Tenerean
|
|<br />[[Akkad|Akkad Empire]]<br />[[Sumer]]ian Kingdom
|[[Indus Valley civilisation]]<br /><br />[[Writing#Writing in Historical Cultures|writing]]
|[[China|Chinese]] [[Neolithic]]<br />of [[Longshan]]
|-bgcolor=#ddffbb
|3,000 BCE<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
|<br />enclosed villages<br /><br />first [[megalith]]s
|<br /><br />[[Chalcolithic]]<br />of Central Europe
|
|Beginning of the [[Hunter-gatherer]] art<br />of [[South Africa]]
|[[Bronze Age]]
|
|
|-
|4,000 BCE<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br />
|<br /><br /><br />Lower [[Neolithic]]
|<br />[[Danubian culture|Danubian]] [[Neolithic]]<br /><br />
|Mediterranean<br />and [[Predynastic Egypt|Egyptian]]<br />[[Neolithic]]
|
|<br />[[Chalcolithic]]<br />([[Copper Age|copper metallurgy]])
|<br /><br />[[Neolithic]]<br />of [[Iran]]<br />
|[[Neolithic]]<br />of [[Yang-Shao]]<br />[[rice]]-growing (?)
|-bgcolor=#ddffbb
|5,000 BCE<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
|[[Cardium Pottery|Cardial]] <br /> ([[Agriculture#History|agriculture]], STOCK-rearing, [[pottery]])<br /><br />[[Tardenoisian]]<br />cultures
|<br /><br />agriculture, stock-rearing ([[pigs]], [[Oxen|bovine]], [[sheep]])
|[[Neolithic]] of the [[Sahara]]/[[Sahel]]<br /><br />
|
|[[irrigation|irrigated]] [[agriculture]] [[Prehistory of Cyprus#Ceramic Neolithic|ceramic Cyprus]]<br /><br /><br />
|(and Caucasian)<br /><br />[[irrigation]]
|cultivation of [[millet]] <br />[[pig]] rearing
|-
|6,000 BCE<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
|<br /><br /><br />[[Sauveterrian]] cultures <br />(gathering of [[legume]]s)
|in [[Greece]] <br />and the Eastern Mediterranean
|<br /><br /><br />[[ceramic]]
|
|[[Neolithic]] with [[ceramic]]<br />raising <br />sheep & goats<br />end of pre-ceramic B [[Prehistory of Cyprus#Aceramic Neolithic|aceramic Cyprus]]
|pre-ceramic of [[Iran]]<br />[[Afghanistan]] and <br />[[Balochistan (region)|Baluchistan]]
|[[Neolithic]] of northern [[China]]<br /><br />
|-bgcolor=#ddffbb
|7,000 BCE<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
|
|<br /><br /><br />Backed point <br />culture
|
|[[Wilton culture|Wiltonian]]
|Pre-ceramic B <br />([[wheat]], [[barley]])<br />[[Neolithic]]<br />Pre-ceramic A
|
|[[hunter gatherer]]s <br />of [[Jōmon]] (ancient [[Japan]])
|-
|8,000 BCE<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
|<br />[[Azilian]]<br /><br />and Asiloid cultures
|
|[[Capsian]]
|
|
|
|[[Hoabinhian]] of South-East Asia
|-bgcolor=#ddffbb
|9,000 BCE<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
|<br /><br /><br />late [[Gravettian]]
|late [[Gravettian]] plains<br />complex ([[Mezine]]<br />[[Kostienki]])
|
|<br />[[Magosian]]<br /><br />
|<br />[[Natufian culture|Natufian]]<br /><br />
|<br />[[Khandivili]]<br /><br />
|
|-
|10,000 BCE <small>[[Holocene]] began<br />[[Wisconsin glaciation|glacial]] ended (10,000 BCE)<br /><br />[[Wisconsin glaciation|glacial]] at its coldest (18,000 BCE)<br />
|[[Magdalenian]]<br />[[Solutrean]]<br />[[Epigravettian]]
|<br /><br />[[Epigravettian]]<br />
|<br />[[Prehistory of Central North Africa|Ibero-maurusian]]<br /><br />[[Sebilian]]<br />
|[[Lupemban culture]]<br /><br /><br />
|<br />[[Kebaran|Kebarian]]<br />[[Athlitian]]<br /><br />
|
|pre-Jōmon [[ceramic]] ([[Japan]])
|<small>[[Paleo-Siberian]] hunters move to [[North America]] (one possible timing)<br />
|-bgcolor=#ddffbb
|20,000 BCE<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
|<br /><br />[[Gravettian]]<br /><br />[[Aurignacian]] ([[art]])
|<br /><br />[[Pavlovian (culture)|Pavlovian]]<br /><br />[[Aurignacian]] ([[art]])
|
|
|<br /><br />[[Aurignacian]] ([[art]])
|
|
|-
|30,000 BCE<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
|<br /><br /> [[Chatelperronian]]<br />
|<br /><br /> [[Szeletian]]<br />
|<br /><br /><br />[[Aterian]]
|<br /><br /> [[Stillbay]]<br />
|[[Emirian]]<br /><br /><br />
|<br /><br /><br />[[Angara]] culture
|<br /><br /> [[Sen-Doki]]<br />
|-bgcolor=#ddffbb
|40,000 BCE<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
|
|
|
|
|[[Jabroudian#Amoudian blades|Amoudian]]<br /><br /><br />
|
|
|-
|50,000 BCE<br /><br /> <br /><br />
|[[Mousterian]]s <br />(earliest graves)<br /><br /><br />
|<br />[[Mousterian]] <br /><br /><br />
|<br /><br />[[Mousterian]]<br /><br />
|<br /><br />[[Fauresmithian]]<br /><br />
|<br />[[Jabroudian]]<br /><br />[[Mousterian]]<br />
|<br /><br /><br /><br />[[Soanian]]
|<br /><br /><br />[[Ngandong culture|Ngandong]]<br />culture
|-bgcolor=#ddffbb
|80,000 BCE<br /><br /><br /><br /><small>latest [[Wisconsin glaciation|glacial]] began (95,000 BCE) <br />
|<br /><br /><br />[[Micoquian]]<br />
|
|<br /><br /><br />[[Micoquian]]<br />
|[[Mousteroid]]<br /><br /><br /><br />
|
|
|<br /><br />[[Ordos (culture)|Ordos<br /> culture]]<br />
|-
|100,000 BCE<br /><br /><br /><small>[[Wolstonian glaciation|glacial]] ended (135,000 BCE)<br /><br /><br />
|<br />Upper [[Acheulean]]<br /><br /><br /><br />
|<br />Upper [[Acheulean]]<br /><br /><br /><br />
|
|[[Sangoan]]<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
|
|<br /><br />[[Acheulean]]<br /><br />Soanian
|<br /><br />[[Fen (culture)|Fen]] Culture
|-bgcolor=#ddffbb
|200,000 BCE <br /><small>[[Wolstonian glaciation|glacial]] began (195,000 BCE)<br /><br />[[Kansan glaciation|glacial]] ended (240,000 BCE)<br/>[[Kansan glaciation|glacial]] began (285,000 BCE)<br />
|<br /><br /><br /><br />[[Tayacian]]<br /><br /><br />
|
|<br /><br /><br />[[Acheulean]]<br /><br /><br />
|<br /><br /><br />[[Acheulean]]<br /><br /><br />
|<br /><br /><br /><br />[[Acheulean]]<br /><br />
|
|
|-
|300,000 BCE<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
|<br />middle [[Acheulean]]<br /><br /><br /><br />[[Clactonian]]
|<br />middle [[Acheulean]]<br /><br /><br /><br />
|
|
|
|<br /><br /><br /><br />Pre-[[Soanian]]
|
|-bgcolor=#ddffbb
|500,000 BCE<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
|Lower [[Acheulean]]<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />[[Worked pebble culture|worked pebbles]]
|Lower [[Acheulean]]<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />[[Worked pebble culture|worked pebbles]]
|<br /><br /><br /><br />Lower [[Acheulean]]<br />
|
|
|
|[[Padjitanian]]<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
|-
|1,000,000 BCE<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
|[[Worked pebble culture|worked pebbles]]<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
|[[Worked pebble culture|worked pebbles]]<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
|<br /><br />[[Worked pebble culture|worked pebbles]]<br /><br /><br />
|lower [[Acheulian]]<br /><br /><br />[[Olduwan]]
|
|
|<br /><br />[[Olduwan culture|worked pebbles]]<br /><br /><br />
|-bgcolor=#ddffbb
|2,000,000 BCE<br /><br /><br />
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
|<br />
|- bgcolor=#bbddff
! Period <small> & [[Climate]]
! [[Western Europe]]
! [[Central Europe]] <br />and [[Eastern Europe]]
! [[Prehistory of Central North Africa|North Africa]],<br />[[West Africa]] and [[Sahara]]
! [[Central Africa]],<br /> [[History of South Africa#Prehistory|South]] and [[East Africa]]
! [[History of the Middle East|Middle East]]
! [[History of South Asia|South Asia]], [[India#History|India]] and<br />[[History of Central Asia|Central Asia]]
! [[History of East Asia|Far East]] and [[History of Southeast Asia|South-East Asia]]
|-
[[Category:Prehistory]]
[[Category:Chronology|Prehistory]]
[[Category:Archaeological cultures|*]]
[[Category:Archaeology timelines]]
[[es:Anexo:Tabla de culturas prehistóricas del Viejo Mundo]]
[[fr:Tableau synoptique des principales cultures préhistoriques du Vieux Monde]]
[[nl:Synoptische tabel van de voornaamste prehistorische culturen van de Oude Wereld]]
[[pt:Tabela sinóptica das principais culturas pré-históricas do Mundo Antigo]]