NATURAL & HUMAN HISTORY TIMELINE 
Paul Orsay & Eric Hadley-Ives May 29, 2008
Button for link to Chinese version of this page
BLUE = Western Hemisphere;  PURPLE = Brit.Isles; GREEN = Europe;
BLACK = worldwide + universal;  BROWN = Africa;  PINK = Asia+Australia;
Blue-Gray= inanimate events; ORANGE = Russia;     RED = China;
BYA = billion yrs. ago, MYA = million yrs ago, KYA = thousand years ago

 

 

  Big Bang 13.7 BYA  
  Electrons & protons first able to combine to form matter 13.4 BYA  
  Galaxies form 13-12.7 BYA  
  Milky Way Galaxy forms 13-11 BYA  
  The Sun forms 5-4.5 BYA  
       
4.5 - 3.8 BYA  (Earth forms -cloud to solid, crust, oceans) HADEAN EON
Earth & Meteorites form 4.7-4.55 BYA
Moon forms 4.52-4.5 BYA
“Late Heavy Bombardment Period” - Meteorites bombard the Earth and Moon 4-3.8 BYA
   

 3.8 - 2.5 BYA  (oldest rocks - continents form)

ARCHEAN EON
First evidence of tectonic plate movement (Southwest Greenland) 3.8 BYA
First sea life / prokaryotes 3.6 BYA
First fossils
3.2-2.8 BYA
 
First large continental shields
2.8-2.5 BYA
 
     
2.5 - 0.543 BYA (single cells, eukarya, fungi, animals)
O2 catastrophe (photosynthesis makes O2);  Plate Tectonics
2.5 BYA
 
Eukaryote (mitochondria, nucleus with DNA)
2.5 BYA
Algae    1.5 BYA  
Rodinia breakup 1.3-0.8 BYA
Cryogenian “Snowball Earth” 850-600 MYA
Metazoa (animals); 656-573 MYA
Ediacaran Period ‘soft bodied’ marine fauna     635-542 MYA
543 MYA - Present________(multicelled life)_
Phanerozoic begins with the Paleozoic Era (Invertebrates, fish, tetrapods, reptiles) 543-240 MYA
“Cambrian Explosion”(abrupt rise/multicelled organisms) 542-530 MYA
1st trilobites 540-245 MYA
Cambrian Period (trilobites, brachiopods, molluscs) 540-505 MYA
1st fish 540 MYA
1st vertebrate (fish fossil found in China) 530 MYA
ORDOVICIAN PERIOD 505-438 MYA
1st of Six Great Extinctions between Ordovician Silurian - perhaps due to cooling? 463-433 MYA
North American Great Lakes under tropic seas 440-395 MYA
Silurian Period 438-408 MYA
First terrestrial animals: eurypterids & millepedes 428 MYA
Warming 420 MYA
Devonian Period wingless insects, silverfish, springtail 408-360 MYA
Bristletail (order Thysanura) 390 MYA
Earliest spider Attercopus fimbriungis
380 MYA
Plants with seeds appear. First land vertebrate (rhipidistian fishes became labyrinthodont amphibians) 375-360 MYA
First collision between North America and Europe. First Amphibian (labyrinthodonts) 370 MYA
2nd of Six Great Extinctions in late Devonian. Frasnian-Famennian & Devonian-Carboniferous. 364 MYA
Carboniferous Period wet and warm. Lush vegetation, forests and swamps. 359-299 MYA
Pangea, a single supercontinent forms. (Ouachita and Allegheny orogenies)
350-250 MYA
Building of the Ozark-Ouachita-Appalachian mountains (South America moves north)
340-300 MYA
Westlothiana lizziae The first reptile, or something like a reptile (East Kirkton limestone)
338 MYA
Africa (Gondwana) collides with North America, Variscan-Appalachian orogeny
320-290 MYA
Early cockroaches blattaria 300 MYA
Synapsid reptiles dominate the land
310-230 MYA
Permian Period early reptiles, snails. 290-245 MYA
Ural Mountains(final step in the formation of Pangea)
250 MYA
3rd of Six Great Extinctions “Great Dying” (at Permian/Triassic boundary)
70% of sea life an 95% of land life
(Volcano, Antarctic meteor, or depletion of atmospheric oxygen)

245-251 MYA
Triassic Period 245-208MYA

Mesozoic Era/Age of Reptiles

240-65 MYA
4th of 6 Great Extinctions,  (end Triassic) warming & vulcanism 214-199 MYA
1st mammal 210 MYA
Jurassic Period 208-144 MYA
Pangea begins to split into Gondwanaland and Laurasia 200 MYA
1st bird 150 MYA
Cretaceous Period 144-66.4 MYA
Gondwanaland and Laurasia split into seven continents 135 MYA
1st primate 80 MYA
Europe and North America separate to form the N. Atlantic ocean 70-45 MYA
Tertiary Period 66.4-1.6 MYA
Africa and South America separate to form the S. Atlantic ocean 65 MYA
5th of 6 Great Extinctions, Cretacious / Tertiary boundary Yucatan Meteor strike destroys dinosaurs? 65 MYA

 

CENOZOIC ERA, grazing mammals, grass, apes

65 - 0 MYA
India and Asia collide to form Himalaya mountains 60-45 MYA
Global warming 50 MYA
Global cooling 45 MYA
Africa & Europe collide to form Alps, Pyrennes & Carpathian mountains 40 MYA
Hominoids (ape, chimp. & hominids) & old world monkeys separate 30 MYA
Greenland separates from North America 16 MYA
Andes mountains form 15 MYA
Mediterranean sea forms 10 MYA
Oceans cool globally with drying in Africa 8-6 MYA
Chimps and Hominids (Homo ancestor line) split, in Africa 7.7-6.3 MYA
Sahelanthropus tchadensis, possible direct ancestor to man 7.4-6.5 MYA
Australopithecus Afarensis, "Lucy" probable direct ancestor to man 3.9-3 MYA
Hominids separate into Australopithecine & Homo lines 3-2.5 MYA
First Hominid made fire 3 MYA
North and South America rejoined 3 MYA
Severe global cooling and drying 2.8 MYA
First stone tools "Olduwan", Africa 2.6-1.5 MYA

 

AFRICAN LOWER PALEOLITHIC "Old Stone Age"

2.4 MYA
Homo Rudolfensis 2.3-1.9 MYA
Homo Habilus, probable direct ancestor to man 2.3-1.6 MYA
First Homo-made Habitation, Olduvai Gorge   2 MYA
First Homo leaves Africa for Europe, Near East & China c.2 MYA

 

PLEISTOCENE EPOCH "Great Ice Age" (consisting of 9 to 20 ice ages - each lasting 20 K to 100 K years)

1.8 MYA - 10 KYA
Homo Ergaster, probable direct ancestor to man 1.8-1.5 MYA
Homo Erectus, not a direct ancestor to man used Acheulean tools in Africa 1.8-0.4 MYA
Homo Erectus 1st in Rep.of Georgia (oldest disc.outside Africa) 1.8 MYA
Homo Erectus in China, E. Asia (formerly "Pekingensis") 1.8 MYA
Hand axes in France       1.7-0.3 MYA
Homo Erectus used Acheulean tools in Africa 1.5 MYA
Homo in Europe 1 MYA
H. Antecessor in Spain (1st European, ?ancestor of Neanderthal) 1 MYA

LOWER PALEOLITHIC

800-250 KYA
Homo Heidelbergensis ancestor to man and to Neanderthal, Europe & Asia 800 KYA
Controlled fire in Israel 700 KYA
Hominid tools in Great Britain (Pakefield site) 700 KYA
Acheulean tool used in Europe by H. Heidelbergensis 500-200 KYA
Neanderthal arises from Heidelbergensis in Africa c.500 KYA
English Channel 1st cut by sudden overflow from N.Sea lake 450-200 KYA
Homo Sapiens Sapiens (man) from Homo Heidelbergensis in Africa c.400 KYA
Illinoisan "Great" Glaciation (extends almost to Ohio river) (330), 240 & 128 KYA
Modern man (Homo Sapiens Sapiens) evolves the ability to speak ca.300 KYA

 

MIDDLE PALEOLITHIC Modern Man in Africa with Mousterian tools

250 -40 KYA
Mousterian tools used Europe, Africa & Near East 200-40 KYA
H.Neanderthalensis(not ancestor to man)in Europe & Asia  200-30 KYA
Homo Neanderthalensis in Europe 130-30 KYA
Sangamon Interglacial Stage (last full "interglacial' stage) 125-70 KYA
H. Sapiens Sapiens loses body hair & 1st wears clothes      c.114 KYA
Beringia land bridge forms between Asia & North America 100 KYA
Diverse "Homo" groups throughout World 100 KYA
Wisconsin Glaciation covers Gr.Lakes to mid Illinois, mid Indiana -called Würm Glaciation+ in Europe, 70-10 KYA
1st modern man leaves Africa in last of 3 "Homo" migrations c.50 KYA

 

UPPER PALEOLITHIC hunter/gatherers in Eurasia

40-11 KYA
Homo Sapiens develops culture and symbolic language 40 KYA
Homo Sapiens Sapiens (Modern Man) first migrates into Australia & China 40 KYA
First Homo Sapiens Sapiens (Modern Man) in Europe 40-35 KYA
Aurignacian culture in Europe 40-35 KYA
Neanderthals and other Homo groups exinct 30 KYA
Homo Sapiens Sapiens only Hominid group remaining on earth   30 KYA
Paleolithic art in Europe 35-10 KYA
Layered garments sewn with needles 30 KYA
Bird bone flute 23 KYA
Gravettian "M170" culture in Europe  22 KYA
1st man crosses Beringia to North America c spear & dog 18-12 KYA

 

--- 15,000 BC & later - DATES are BC, then AD ---

17 KYA =15K BC
Man enters Britain ? on foot from Iberian Peninsula 16-10 KYA
Wisconsin (Würm) Glaciation ends c.15K-10K BC
Rapid global warming begins 15K BC
Great Lakes form  14K-13K BC
Sahara very dry 13,5K-13K BC
Clovis big game hunters (1st Indians) in Gr. Lakes region 13K-10K BC
Rice cultivated N.Korea and dogs tamed in East Asia 13,000 BC
Figs cultivated along the Jordan river 11,400 BC
Megafauna extinct in North America 11,000 BC
"Younger Dryas", Gulfstream stops last major cold snap in Europe 11K-10K BC

HOLOCENE EPOCH early agriculture - Mesolithic Period (11,000 BC to 9.000 BC)

10,000 BC to Present
Pleistocene ice ages end (began 1.6 MYA)  6th Great Extinction begins         10,000 BC
Wooly mammoths extinct in Europe;1st domestic cat in near Middle East 10,000 BC
Pig domesticated in Near East; wheat in Iraq; barley in Turkey 10,000 BC
Indo-European language fragmentation in Europe established 10,000 BC
Mesolithic Period in Denmark till 3,900 BC 9,300 BC
Pig domesticated in Iran 9,000 BC
Eastern Sahara wet - 1st cattle are domesticated    8.5-3.3 K BC
Cattle+crops Mesoptamia.Syria +Israel 8,000 BC
All megafauna extinct Europe 8,000 BC
Jericho in Jordan settled; sheep in Iraq; cattle inTurkey 8,000 BC
First boats 7,500 BC
Established settlements & livestock in the Sahara      7.5-5.3 K BC
Copper age in the Middle East 7,000 BC
Wheel in Sumeria 6,600 BC
Catal Hüyük, Turkey settled 6,500 BC

 

Neolithic Period

6 K-3 K BC
Modern climate conditions reached 6,000 BC
Agriculture in Greece; cattle in Turkey; rice in Thailand 6,000 BC
English Channel opens due to rising sea levels 6,000 BC
Rising Mediterranean overflows into the Black Sea 5,600 BC
Sahara desert is again dry 5,500 BC
Copper smelting in Persia 5,500 BC
Corn is grown in Mexico 5,500 BC
Earliest estimated arrival of Celtic Language in British Isles c.5,200 BC
Beringia floods closing the route from Asia to N. America 5,000 BC
MID-HOLOCENE WARM PERIOD 5 K-3 K BC
First Irrigation in Mesopotamia 5,000 BC
Wheat and Barley agriculture Nile Valley 5,000 BC
Camel domesticated in Arabia; 5K - 2K BC
Dimini, Greece settled 5,000 BC
Wine first made from wild grapes, Greece 5,000 BC
Sumerians burned oil in lamps 4,500 BC
Horse tamed in Europe 4,300 BC
Bronze Age begins in the Middle East 4,000 BC
Cu smelting Israel c.4,000 BC
Celtic fishermen from the Iberian Peninsula settle England 4,000 BC
Farming in England China and Peru 4,000 BC
Horses tamed and ridden in Kazakhstan & Ukrainian steppes 4,000 BC
Small villages in Mesopotamia 4,000 BC
Neolithic Period begins in Denmark till 1700BC 3,900 BC
Jerusalem settled 3,500 BC
Corn grown Americas 3,500 BC
First civilization in Mesopotamia 3,500 BC
Cuneiform writing first used in Sumeria 3,400 BC
Wheel + First City States in Mesopotamia  3,250 BC
Narmer first unifies Egypt 3,150 BC
Copper age begins, Europe; Neolithic Period begins, Ireland 3,000 BC
Increasing lactose tolerance among cattle raisers in N. Europe 3,000 BC
Horse tamed in Russia 3,000 BC
Large Pyramid built in Ukraine 3,000 BC
Hieroglyphics in Egypt 3,000 BC
Menes first Egyptian Pharoah; First dam at Memphis 3,000 BC

 

Neolithic Period (continued)

Present Sahara desert forms  3,000 BC
Great Pyramid built 2,900 BC
Egypt Old Kingdom 2,868 -2,160 BC
Cycladic culture, Aegean Sea 2.8K-2K BC
Step-Pyramid, Egypt  2,700 BC
Papyrus first used in Egypt           2.5K-2K BC
Akkadians, first language to use vowels 2,500 BC
Stonehenge built in England; Bronze age begins in Ireland 2,400 BC
Bronze age begins in England         2.5K-600 BC
Avebury stone circle, England         2,300 BC
300yr  Global drought 2.3K-2K BC
Achaeans invade from North bring Mycenaen & Greek languages   2,200 BC
Egypt Middle Kingdom ca.2,040 -ca.1,640 BC

 

 

2K -1000 BC
Phoenicians in Eastern Mediterranean, Celts in Europe 2,000 BC
Minoan civilization begins 2,000 BC
Irrigation in Egypt, mathematics in Babylonia 2,000 BC
Judaism begins; first song written, Syria 2,000 BC
Potato grown in Argentina 2,000 BC
Ancient Hittite Empire 1.8 K-1,269
Hammurabi's Code of Laws, Mesopotamia 1,792+ BC
Santorini volcano erupts in Aegean 1,645 BC
Hyksos conquer Egypt 1,640 BC
Hittites conquer Mesopotamia 1.6K-1.2K BC
Mycenaean Greece 1.6K-1.2K BC
Egypt enslaves Jews 1.6 K-1,280
Egyptian New Kingdom (peak of Egypt’s power) 1,550-1070
Persians (Indo-European) migrate from central Asia to Iran c.1,500 BC
Ayrans moved from same Indo-European group into N. India c.1,500 BC
Sunflower cultivated in the Midwest US; Olmec cultivated Cocoa bean 1,500 BC
First Sanskrit texts 1,500 BC
Minoan civilization ends c.1,450 BC
Akhenaten begins first Monotheism in Egypt    1,353-1,336
Tutankhamun restores Polytheism in Egypt 1,334-1,322
Rameses II 1290-1220
Moses and Jews leave Egypt 1,280 BC
Peace treaty between Egypt and the Hittites 1,269 BC
Assyrians sack Babylon 1,240 BC
Trojan War   1,200 BC
Hittite Kingdom destroyed 1,200 BC
1st traces Etruscan civilization in Italy (probably from W. Turkey) 1,200 BC
Olmec civilization begins in Centr.Amer.(lasts to 400BC) 1,200 BC
Dorians with iron weapons destroy Mycenae and begin Greek Dark Ages  "Dorian or Geometric Period" 1,150-500 BC
Iron age begins the Middle East   1,100 BC
Aryans (Medes+Persians) move onto the Iranian Plateau 1,100 BC
Chinese characters are being used (end of Shang Dynasty) 1,046 BC
Assyrian Empire 1100-612 BC
King David 1010-970 BC

 

10th - 7th Centuries BC " Rise of Empires & Religions"

1000-601 BC
First known villages on present day site of Rome 1,000 BC
Solomon's temple 1,000 BC
First Phoenician and Hebrew alphabets - with no vowels 1,000 BC
Olmecs in the Americas use "glyphs" 1,000 BC
Kingdom of Israel divides into North (Israel) & South (Judah) 931 BC
First Greek City States 900 BC
First Etruscan towns in the Italian Peninsula 900 BC
1st split between Irish & Welsh Celtic languages 900 BC
First Celts from Northern Europe arrive in England 833-800 BC
Greeks adopt Phoenician alphabet 814 BC
Phoenicians colonize Eastern Mediterranean and Carthage 814 BC
Iron Age begins in Western Europe 800 BC
Paper currency used in Ancient China 800 BC
Greeks colonize Mediterranean Sea and Black Sea 800-750 BC
Traditional date of founding of Rome 753 BC
Homer's "Iliad" -date uncertain c.750-700 BC
Greek Dark Age ends 750 BC
Assyrians overthrow Damascus 732 BC
Assyrians conquer Israel     722 BC
Phoenicians circumnavigate Africa 672 BC
Assyrians rule Egypt 671-651 BC
Ancient Greeks found Byzantium  660 BC
1st coinsstruck in Lydia 650 BC
Assyrian Assurbanipal destroys Elamites 639 BC
Zoroaster or Zarathustra teaches monotheism c.621-558 BC
Etruscan Kings rule Italian Peninsula & Rome 616-509 BC
Babylonians & Medes conquer Assyria 612 BC

 

6th - 4th CENTURIES BC " Rise of Empires & Religions"

600-301 BC
Migrations of the Jews 600-500 BC & 500-400 BC
Lao Tzu: Taoism, China                                                           6th cent.
Babylonians capture Jerusalem  597 BC
Babylonians destroy the Temple and exile the Jews 586 BC
Croesus King of Lydia captures Greek cities 559 BC
Cyrus King of Persia 559-529 BC
Confucius, Chinese philosopher c.551-479 BC
Cyrus (Achmaenid Dynasty) conquers the Medes and Lydia 550 BC
Cyrus conquers Babylon Empire frees Jews & controls Fertile Crescent 539 BC
Cambysses son of Cyrus conquers - Persia rules Egypt for 100 years 525 BC
Latins expel the Etruscan king and form a Roman Republic 509 BC
Judaism fully developed; Bible first written; 500 BC
Buddha begins Buddhism 500 BC
Iron Age Denmark (ends 750 AD) 500 BC
Pericles of Athens 495-429 BC
Darius K. of Persia invades Greece in 1st Persia Wars 490-478 BC
Greeks defeat Xerxes K. of Persia at Salamis & Platea 485-465 BC
Herodotus 484-c.424 BC
Victory against Persia at Salamis & Platea begins Greek Classical Period (ends 323 BC) 480 BC
Battle of Thermopylae, Spartans delay a large Persian force 480 BC
Athenian Democracy 464-402 BC
Thucydides c.460-400 BC
Zeno’s paradoxes (the arrow, the dichotomy) 450 BC
Parthenon 447-438 BC
Socrates 439-c.399 BC
Second Peloponnesian War, Sparta defeats Athens 431-404 BC
Olmec civilization in central America ends (began 1200 BC) 400 BC
Arabic numerals first developed in India 400-300 BC
London founded; Celts move into England 390 BC
Celts (Gauls) sack Rome 390 BC
Aristotle 384-322 BC
Phillip II King of Macedon 358-336 BC
Hand drilled oil well China to 800 ft. 347 BC
Persia conq. Egypt, dynasties end c Dynasty XXX (began 3100 BC) 343 BC
Phillip defeats Athens 339 BC
First Roman coins