Prehistoric Humans Timeline

(c. 7 million years ago – c. 3000 BCE)

Prehistoric humans refers to the long history of human ancestors before written records began. This era spans millions of years, from the earliest hominids in Africa through the Stone Age, covering major milestones such as bipedalism, tool-making, fire use, art, agriculture, and the rise of early civilizations. More Less

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Origins of Modern Humans

Omo remains in Ethiopia

200,000 BC

The Omo remains, excavated between 1967 and 1974 in Omo National Park, Ethiopia, and dated to 200,000 years ago, were long held to be the oldest known fossils of Homo sapiens before older finds at Jebel Irhoud.

Image source: Omo remains

Peopling of Asia, Europe & the Americas

ESEA lineage originates in Mainland Southeast Asia

52,000 BC

Yang (in 2022) concluded that a distinctive 'Basal-East Asian population' referred to as 'East- and Southeast Asian lineage' (ESEA), ancestral to modern East Asians, Southeast Asians, Polynesians, and Siberians, originated in Mainland Southeast Asia at around 50,000 BC and expanded through multiple migration waves southwards and northwards.

Image source: Early human migrations

Tianyuan Man lives near Beijing

40,000 BC

Tianyuan Man is an early modern human from near Beijing. A 2017 study of his ancient DNA found that the individual is related to modern Asian and Native American populations, linking Upper Paleolithic East Asians to later populations across two continents.

Image source: Tianyuan man

Western Hunter-Gatherers descend from Cro-Magnons

40,000 BC

Evidence published in 2014 from genome analysis suggests that modern native Europeans partly descend from 'Western Hunter-Gatherers', a lineage derivative of the Cro-Magnon population of Europe who inhabited the continent after the arrival of modern humans.

Image source: Western hunter-gatherer

Homo sapiens reach Byzovaya in the Urals

30,000 BC

Evidence for the presence of Homo sapiens, based on 2011 excavations at the site of Byzovaya in the Urals (Komi Republic), indicates that modern humans had reached high-latitude northeastern Europe by around 30,000 years ago.

Image source: Komi cuisine

Ancestry of the Ainu people of northern Japan

20,000 BC

A 2016 study presented an analysis of the population genetics of the Ainu people of northern Japan as key to the reconstruction of the early peopling of East Asia, tracing their descent from ancient lineages of the Japanese archipelago.

Image source: Ainu people

Ancient North Eurasians expand into Europe

15000 BC

Ancient North Eurasians expanded to Europe in the context of the Indo-European expansion, contributing the third major lineage identified in 2014 genome analysis as ancestral to modern native populations of Europe.

Image source: Ancient North Eurasian

Early European Farmers arrive from the Near East

7000 BC

Early European Farmers were introduced to Europe from the Near East during the Neolithic Revolution, bringing agriculture and forming one of the three distinct lineages that, according to 2014 genome analysis, largely make up modern native European populations.

Image source: Early European Farmers

First Caribbean settlers arrive in the Greater Antilles

4000 BC - 3500 BC

The oldest remains in the Caribbean are known from the Greater Antilles (Cuba and Hispaniola) dating between 4000 and 3500 BCE, and comparisons between tool-technologies suggest these peoples moved across the Yucatán Channel from Central America.

Image source: Pre-Columbian era

Later Caribbean migrants arrive from South America

2000 BC

All evidence suggests that later migrants to the Caribbean from 2000 BCE onwards originated from South America, via the Orinoco region, gradually replacing or absorbing earlier arrivals.

Image source: History of the Caribbean

Thule culture emerges in western Alaska

1000 CE

The Thule culture emerged from western Alaska around CE 1000, developing sophisticated hunting technologies suited to the Arctic and beginning an eastward expansion across the North American Arctic.

Image source: Thule people

Thule people displace the Dorset culture

1000 CE - 1500 CE

The Thule culture gradually displaced the Dorset culture across the Canadian Arctic, becoming the dominant Arctic people and giving rise to the modern Inuit.

Image source: Dorset culture

Inuit descend from the Thule culture

1300 CE

The Inuit are the descendants of the Thule culture, inheriting its Arctic adaptations and maritime hunting traditions as they spread across Greenland and the North American Arctic in the late prehistoric period.

Image source: Inuit

Interbreeding & Archaic Humans

Neanderthal genes enter East Asian populations

50,000 BC

A 2013 study found Neanderthal introgression of 18 genes within the chromosome 3p21.31 region (HYAL region) of East Asians, reflecting interbreeding between Neanderthals and the ancestors of modern East Asian populations.

Image source: Neanderthal genetics

EDAR gene mutation shapes East Asian traits

30,000 BC

A 2013 study associated several phenotypical traits associated with Mongoloids with a single mutation of the EDAR gene, dated to roughly 30,000 years ago, which spread widely among ancestral East Asian populations.

Ancient Eurasians migrate back into Africa

3000 BC

Research shows evidence that ancient Eurasians migrated into Africa, with Eurasian admixture in modern Sub-Saharan Africans ranging from 0% to 50%, varying by region and generally higher in the Horn of Africa and parts of the Sahel zone.

Image source: Back-to-Africa movement

Eurasian admixture enters Sub-Saharan Africa

3000 BC

Some evidence, including a 2016 study by Busby et al., suggests admixture from ancient and recent migrations from Eurasia into parts of Sub-Saharan Africa, reshaping the genetic landscape of the continent.

Image source: Genetic history of Africa

Austronesian Expansion

Austronesians colonize Island Southeast Asia

3000 BC - 1500 BC

Using advanced sailing technologies like catamarans, outrigger boats, and crab claw sails, Austronesian peoples built the first sea-going ships and rapidly colonized Island Southeast Asia at around 3000 to 1500 BCE.

Image source: Austronesian peoples

Austronesians reach Micronesia

2200 BC - 1000 BC

From the Philippines and Eastern Indonesia, Austronesian voyagers colonized Micronesia by 2200 to 1000 BCE, crossing open ocean to settle the scattered islands of the western Pacific.

Image source: Micronesians

Lapita culture established in Island Melanesia

1600 BC - 1000 BC

A branch of the Austronesians reached Island Melanesia between 1600 and 1000 BCE, establishing the Lapita culture, named after the archaeological site in Lapita, New Caledonia, where their characteristic pottery was first discovered.

Image source: Lapita culture

Lapita back-migrations return to Island Southeast Asia

1500 BC

Back-migrations from the Lapita culture merged back into Island Southeast Asia in 1500 BCE, creating bidirectional flows of people and culture across the region.

Lapita voyagers settle Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and Fiji

1200 BC

Austronesian seafarers ventured into Remote Oceania, reaching Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and Fiji by 1200 BCE, marking one of the great maritime expansions of prehistory.

Image source: Near Oceania and Remote Oceania

Samoa and Tonga settled

900 BC - 800 BC

Continuing their eastward expansion across Remote Oceania, Austronesian settlers reached Samoa and Tonga by around 900 to 800 BCE, laying the foundations of Polynesian culture.

Image source: Polynesians

Back-migration into Micronesia

200 BC

Around 200 BCE, further back-migrations from the Lapita cultural sphere merged into Micronesia, adding new layers to the population history of the Pacific islands.

Polynesians colonize Hawaii

900 CE

From central Polynesia, navigators using advanced double-hulled canoes further colonized Hawaii by 900 CE, completing one of the longest open-ocean settlement journeys of the prehistoric world.

Image source: Ancient Hawaii

Rapa Nui (Easter Island) settled

1000 CE

Polynesian voyagers reached Rapa Nui (Easter Island) by 1000 CE, one of the most remote inhabited islands on Earth, where they developed a distinctive culture famous for its monumental statues.

Image source: Easter Island

New Zealand settled by Polynesians

1200 CE

The ancestors of the Māori colonized New Zealand by 1200 CE, marking the final major landmass settled by humans during the prehistoric Austronesian expansion across the Pacific.

Image source: Māori people

Key Facts

The earliest known hominids, such as Sahelanthropus tchadensis, appeared in Africa around 7 million years ago.
Homo habilis, one of the first tool-making humans, emerged around 2.4 million years ago during the Lower Paleolithic.
Homo sapiens evolved in Africa approximately 300,000 years ago and migrated across the globe over tens of thousands of years.
The Neolithic Revolution, beginning around 10,000 BCE, marked humanity's transition from hunter-gatherer societies to farming and settled communities.
Prehistory ended at different times in different regions, generally when writing systems developed, such as around 3000 BCE in Mesopotamia.

Source

This Prehistoric Humans timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

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