Ages (historic periods of time)
Known as "periodization", the categorization of periods of time according to general technological characteristics
See also Turning Points
Periodization
- categories help to characterize periods of time for easy reference
- however, these categories are helpful in the general and not the specific applications
- i.e., a period of time may fall into one category, but that does not mean that every population or civilization follows that particular characterization
- ex.
| Paleolithic | Nelolithic | Bronze Age | Iron Age | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| <12,000 BC | ✓+ | |||
| 12,000 BC | ✓+ | ✓- | ||
| 4,000 BC | ✓ | ✓ | ✓- | |
| 1000 BC | ✓- | ✓+ | ✓ | ✓- |
| 1 AD | ✓- | ✓- | ✓- | ✓+ |
- the idea is that while farming may have developed in some places, hunting and gathering continued in most other places, until farming spread everywhere.
- so each of these "Ages" or "Periods" existed coincidentally
- additionally, social and political organization existed coincidentally within and across each of these periods
- for an historic example of a person who lived in three periods at once see Otzi the Iceman