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Era

The Neolithic Period

NEE-oh-LITH-ik
Also Known As New Stone Age
Prehistory and the Ancient World
The Neolithic Period

The Neolithic, or New Stone Age, is the final division of the Stone Age in Asia, Europe and Africa, conventionally dated from about 10,000 BCE to about 2,000 BCE. It is defined not by a fixed span of calendar time but by the Neolithic Revolution, the shift from a hunting and gathering way of life to farming, animal domestication and permanent settlement, which is why the period begins and ends at very different calendar dates in different regions: it opens earliest in the Fertile Crescent and reaches other regions thousands of years later.

Facts
Disputed
Start Year
-10,000 1
Conventionally opened around 10,000 BCE with the beginnings of farming in the Fertile Crescent; the transition happened at very different calendar dates in different regions.
End Year
2000 BCE 1
Conventionally closed around 2,000 BCE; regions reached the Bronze Age, and so left the Neolithic, at very different times.
Geographic Scope
Conventionally applied to Asia, Europe and Africa; because the period is defined by the adoption of farming and settlement rather than a fixed calendar date, its boundaries fall at very different times region by region, and some regions had no clearly demarcated Neolithic at all. 1
FAQs

How is the start of the Neolithic connected to the end of the last ice age?

The earliest Neolithic, about 10,000 BCE in the Middle East, coincides with the retreat of the glaciers and the start of the Holocene.

The earliest Neolithic began in the Middle East about 10,000 BCE, and Encyclopaedia Britannica notes that this point coincides with the retreat of the glaciers after the Pleistocene ice ages and the start of the Holocene epoch. Neolithic peoples then generally cultivated cereal grains, built permanent dwellings and gathered in villages.
Connections

Associated With

The Neolithic Revolution, Events

The transition to farming defines the period

In Era

Prehistory, Eras
Source Wikipedia

Preceded By

The Mesolithic Period, Eras

Why this is disputed. Period boundaries and the exact sequence are debated among historians.

The Paleolithic Period, Eras
Source Wikipedia

Succeeded By

The Chalcolithic Period, Eras

Why this is disputed. Period boundaries and the exact sequence are debated among historians.

In the Other Atlases

Era Of Origin For

Adzuki Bean

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Alpaca

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Angus Cattle

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Apple

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Arrowroot

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Source Wikipedia: ArrowrootHistorytier 2
Quote, History
Archaeological studies in the Americas show evidence of arrowroot cultivation as early as 7,000 years ago.
Banana

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Barley

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Berkshire Pig

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Buckwheat

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Carabao

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Source Carabao (Wikipedia)History
Quote, History
multiple fragmentary skeletal remains recovered from the upper layers of the Neolithic Nagsabaran site
Cassava

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Cattle

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Chickpea

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Chili Pepper

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Common Bean

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Cotton

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Date Palm

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Donkey

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Duroc Pig

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Emmer Wheat

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Faba Bean

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Fig

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Source Wikipedia: FigHistorytier 2
Quote, History
Nine subfossil figs of a parthenocarpic (and therefore sterile) type dating to about 9400–9200 BC were found in the early Neolithic village Gilgal I (in the Jordan Valley, 13 kilometres or 8 miles north of Jericho).
Flax

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Foxtail Millet

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Goat

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Goose

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Grape

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Guinea Pig

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Hemp

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Source Wikipedia: HempHistorytier 2
Quote, History
An archeological site in the Oki Islands of Japan contained cannabis achenes from about 8000 BC, probably signifying use of the plant.
Iberian Pig

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Landrace Pig

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Lentil

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Source Wikipedia: LentilHistorytier 2
Quote, History
carbonized remains of lentil seeds have been recovered from widely dispersed places such as Tell Ramad in Syria (6250–5950 BC)
Llama

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Maize

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Millet

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Mithun

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Olive

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Onion

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Peanut

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Pig

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Pigeon Pea

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Source Pigeon pea (Wikipedia)History
Quote, History
By at least 2800 BCE in peninsular India, where its presumptive closest wild relatives Cajanus cajanifolia occurs in tropical deciduous woodlands, its cultivation has been documented.
Potato

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Pumpkin

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Quinoa

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Source Quinoa (Wikipedia)Leadtier 2
Quote, Lead
It was first used to feed livestock 5,200–7,000 years ago
Rapeseed

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Source Wikipedia: RapeseedCultivationtier 2
Quote, Cultivation
Crops from the genus Brassica, including rapeseed, were among the earliest plants to be widely cultivated by humankind as early as 10,000 years ago.
Rice

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Saanen Goat

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Salers Cattle

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Source Oklahoma State University, Department of Animal and Food Sciences: Salers Cattle - Breeds of LivestockBreed history
Quote, Breed history
The historical journey for the Salers breed, was first recorded by archaeologists as depicted from ancient drawings in cave dwellings dated some 7,000 years ago.
Sheep

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Sorghum

Also in Agriculture and Farming Atlas: originating in this era.

Showing 1 to 50 of 71 in Era Of Origin For, page 1 of 2.

Found In

Africa

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Asia

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Europe

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Sources
1. Wikipedia
Wikipedia
  • Neolithic, introduction
    the final division of the Stone Age in Asia, Europe and Africa.
  • Neolithic, Origin
    the introduction of farming, domestication of animals, and change from a hunter-gatherer lifestyle to one of settlement.
  • In Era: Prehistory, Neolithic, in relation to Prehistory
    the final division of the Stone Age in Asia, Europe and Africa.
  • Preceded By: The Paleolithic Period, Neolithic, succession from the Paleolithic
    the final division of the Stone Age in Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BC to c. 2,000 BC).
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