Prehistory of India

Stone Age

Archaeologists and scholars have traced the history of India back a long way. They have tried to reconstruct the historical evolution of India from the prehistoric period or prehistory. India had a prehistory with the Stone and Iron Ages. The Stone Age is generally classified into three stages. The Paleolithic Age, the Middle Stone Age, and the Neolithic Age. This division is made on the basis of the stone tools used by the people of each period and their way of life.

Paleolithic Age

The first stage of the Stone Age is called the Paleolithic Age. The word is derived from the words 'paleo' and 'lithic'. 'Paleo' means ancient and 'lithic' means stone. The Paleolithic Age flourished during the Ice Age. Paleolithic people used rough, unpolished stone tools. Their main stone tools were hand axes, axes, cleavers, and stone axes. Paleolithic people in India made their weapons from flint. Paleolithic people were hunters and gatherers. They did not produce food. They did not know how to make fire or make pottery. They would move from one place to another in search of food. They lived in natural caves and small shelters built among the treetops.

Mesolithic Age

The transition period from the Paleolithic Age to the Neolithic Age is called the Mesolithic Age. This stage between the Paleolithic and Neolithic periods is believed to have begun in India around 9000 BC. The Mesolithic people used small stone tools known as 'microliths'. Their main weapons were sharp knives, spears and arrows. 'Microliths' were made from flat layers of crystalline rocks. The Mesolithic people were hunters and herders. They lived by hunting, fishing and gathering food. Later, they began to domesticate animals. In the late Middle Ages, some of them also learned to make fire.

Neolithic Age

The Neolithic Age in India is believed to have begun around 6000 BC. The transition to the Neolithic Age occurred at different times in different parts of India. The Neolithic Age was a turning point in human life. It was during this period that humans began to cultivate. They also started domesticating animals. They abandoned their nomadic lifestyle and settled in one place. With this, agricultural villages emerged. These agricultural communities were able to produce crops. They made pottery to store the surplus grains and other things.

Iron Age

At the end of the Neolithic Age, metals were discovered and the 'Iron Age' began. The first metal discovered was copper. Although humans started using copper, stone weapons and tools were not abandoned. Therefore, the period when stone and copper weapons were used is called the Stone Age. Its remains have been found in Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Bengal. The first large villages in India were established by the people of this age. Technology was very advanced in the iron Age. Metallurgy was well known to them. Advances in technology helped people engage in specialized professions. People in the Stone Age and Bronze Age did not have writing skills.

Bronze Age

They discovered the technique of making hard bronze by mixing lead or zinc with copper. Gradually, humans developed the technology to make bronze. As the use of bronze increased, that period came to be known as the Bronze Age.