Stoneage

The Stone Age is a broad prehistoric period during which stone was widely used to make tools and implements. The term was introduced in the 19th century by archaeologist Christian J. Thomsen as part of the Three-Age System (Stone, Bronze, Iron) to classify early human technology and culture. The period spans vast stretches of time and varies by region, ending where metalworking and metallurgy became common.

Scholars usually subdivide the Stone Age into Paleolithic (Old Stone Age), Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age), and Neolithic (New Stone Age). The Paleolithic encompasses the first tool-making by hominins and hunter-gatherer economies, including a range of tool technologies and adaptations. The Mesolithic marks a transitional phase with regional developments in hunting, gathering, and microlithic tools. The Neolithic features farming and animal domestication, permanent settlements, and often pottery and more complex stone tools. Some regions also recognize a Chalcolithic (Copper) phase bridging to the Bronze Age.

Tool production in the Stone Age involved both flaked and ground stone technologies, enabling cutting, scraping, and hunting tasks. Control of fire, new knowledge of shelter construction, and the development of symbolic behavior and art appear at various times, especially in the later Upper Paleolithic. The spread of agriculture and village life in the Neolithic supported population growth and social complexity in many areas.

The Stone Age ends at different times around the world, as communities adopted metalworking and entered the Bronze Age and subsequently the Iron Age. The timing of this transition ranges from the late 4th millennium BCE to the 1st millennium BCE in various regions.