Synoptic table of the principal old world prehistoric cultures

The synoptic table of the principal old world prehistoric cultures gives a rough picture of the relationships between the various principal 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. Literate cultures are shown in brackets ().

Table

The Principal prehistoric cultures of the Old World
	Prehistoric Europe	Prehistoric Africa		Prehistoric Asia
Period & Climate	Europe	North Africa, West Africa and Sahara	Central Africa, South and East Africa	Middle East	South Asia, and Central Asia	East Asia and South-East Asia
1000 CE	(Middle Ages)	(Caliphate)	(Sahelian kingdoms) Mapungubwe	(Caliphate)	(Middle Kingdoms)	(Song Dynasty)
0 BCE/CE	Iron Age (and Roman Empire)	(Ancient North Africa), Nok, Ile-Ife	Bantu expansion	(Classical Antiquity)	(Iron Age India)	(Han Dynasty)
1000 BCE	Urnfield culture Bronze Age	Copper Age in Niger Nok	Bantu expansion	Late Bronze Age Early Iron Age	The development of the Indian Iron Age	Chinese Bronze Age, Late and Final Jōmon in Japan
2000 BCE	Bell beaker Chalcolithic corded ware domestication of the horse	Neolithic of Tichit Tenerean		Middle Bronze Age (Sumer)	Indus Valley civilisation Indus script	Chinese Neolithic of Longshan
3000 BCE	Yamna culture, enclosed villages Chalcolithic of Central Europe		Beginning of the Hunter-gatherer art of South Africa	Early Bronze Age	Regionalization Era
4000 BCE	Samara culture Lower Neolithic Danubian Neolithic	Mediterranean and Egyptian Neolithic	Beginning of Neolithic in East Africa	Uruk period Chalcolithic (copper metallurgy)	Mehrgarh	Neolithic of Yang-Shao rice-growing (?)
5000 BCE	Cardial and Linear Pottery (agriculture, stock-rearing, Pottery) Earliest European megaliths[1] Starčevo and Vinča culture agriculture, stock-rearing (pigs, bovine, sheep) Chalcolithic (copper metallurgy)	Neolithic of the Sahara/Sahel		Ubaid period ceramic Cyprus Megalith building more frequent. The practice, spreads south into [the [Levant]] and Cyprus[1][2]	Mehrgarh, Bhirrana in India	Hongshan culture of Northeast Asia (c. 4700 BCE)
6000 BCE	Tardenoisian cultures (gathering of legumes) Neolithic (Greece and the Eastern Mediterranean ) Sesklo and Choirokoitia			Neolithic with ceramic Ubaid period	Mehrgarh, Bhirrana (India)	Neolithic of northern China
7000 BCE	Sauveterrian cultures Komornica culture		Wiltonian	Pre-ceramic B Pre-ceramic A Neolithic in Asia Minor (wheat, barley)		Hunter gatherers in Jōmon (ancient Japan)
8000 BCE	Ahrensburg culture, Azilian and Asiloid cultures (northern Spain, southern France)	Capsian		Goats are domested in Zagros, Iran First towns Near East at Aşıklı Höyük and Jericho		Hoabinhian of Southeast Asia
9000 BCE	Backed point culture (Federmesser) Mezine (Ukraine)		Magosian	Natufian The odest known megaliths are built by the Hattians or their predecessors[2]	Kandivili
10,000 BCE Holocene began Wisconsin glaciation ends (10,000 BCE) Wisconsin glaciation at its peak(18,000 BCE)	Magdalenian Solutrean Epigravettian Hamburg culture	Ibero-Maurisian Mushabian Sebilian	Lupemban culture	Kebarian Athlitian Beginning of Neolithic religion at Göbekli Tepe (southern Anatolia)	Bhimbetka rock paintings south Asia	Pre-Jōmon ceramic (Japan)
20,000 BCE	Gravettian Pavlovian Aurignacian (art) Kostienki (western Russia)			Antelian Aurignacian (art)		Sơn Vi culture (northern Vietnam)
30,000 BCE	Châtelperronian Homo neanderthalensis, Homo sapiens Aurignacian (art) Szeletian culture (Hungary)	Aterian	Stillbay		Bhimbetka rock paintings, Balangoda Culture Angara Culture	Sen-Doki
40,000 BCE	Homo neanderthalensis, Homo sapiens			Jabroudian
50,000 BCE	Mousterian Homo neanderthalensis		Fauresmithian Homo sapiens	Mousterian Homo neanderthalensis	Soanian	Ngandong culture
80,000 BCE latest Wisconsin glaciation begins (93,000 BCE)	Homo neanderthalensis		Mousteroid Homo sapiens	Homo neanderthalensis
100,000 BCE g ends (128,000 BCE)	Upper Acheulean Homo neanderthalensis		Sangoan Homo sapiens	Homo neanderthalensis	Acheulean Soanian
200,000 BCE Wolstonian glaciation begins (350,000 BCE)	Homo neanderthalensis Tayacian (southern France)		Homo sapiens Acheulean	Homo neanderthalensis artwork 248,000 BCE[3] Acheulean
300,000 BCE	Middle Acheulean Homo neanderthalensis Clactonian (England)				Pre-Soanian
500,000 BCE	Lower Acheulean Homo heidelbergensis Homo neanderthalensis Worked pebbles	Lower Acheulean		Homo neanderthalensis	Bhimbetka cupules 290,000-700,000 BCE[4][5]	Homo erectus pekinensis
1,000,000 BCE	Worked pebbles Homo antecessor (northern Spain, England, France)	Homo erectus worked pebbles	Lower Acheulean Oldowan			worked pebbles
2,000,000 BCE			Homo habilis,[6]Homo ergaster

See also

• Detailed logarithmic timeline
• Evolution of human intelligence
• Human timeline
• Life timeline
• List of timelines
• List of years in archaeology
• Nature timeline
• Timeline of glaciation
• Timeline of historic inventions
• Timeline of human evolution

References

1. Egyptian pyramids=2630BCE (Djoser); French Carnac stones=3000~4500BCE; Dolmens=5000BCE in Western Europe, progressing to Russia, as well as progressing thru Italy & Cyprus then reaching Israel/Jordan/Syria 4000~3000BCE; Gilgal Refaim Stonehenge in Mideast associated w/the era & builders of Dolmens, aka "Rogem Hiri," also=3000-4000BCE but this is only the top-layer, an as-yet unexcavated layer is discovered underneath
2. A.: Gobekli Tepe PPNA level: ~9000 BCE. B.: Atlit Yam=semi-circle of megaliths in Mediterranean Sea south of Haifa (Natufians), "sudden" abandonment 6270 BCE~6700 BCE noted by archaeologist--see "Marchant, Jo (25 Nov 2009)" ref in Yam Atlit article--ergo, is necessarily older than 6270 BCE but no date of construction found.
3. Israel Museum exhibits figurine/sculptureNational Library of Australia
4. Chakravarty, Kalyan Kumar; Bednarik, Robert S. (1997). Indian Rock Art: And Its Global Context. Motilal Banarsidass Publ. p. 59. ISBN 9788120814646.
5. "Bhimbetka Petroglyphs". 2016-05-09.
6. Wilford, John Noble. "Fossils in Kenya Challenge Linear Evolution". New York Times. Retrieved 21 May 2013.