Our Prehistory
The history of humanity before civilization is populated by an array of cultures throughout the millennia and across the continents. The earliest humans followed diverse customs and survival strategies, explored the unknown, adapted to exotic ecosystems, thrived in good times, and fell into oblivion in others. This podcast relates that story, starting with the origin of our species and tracing the development of human life before written records.
Episodes
49. Ritual and Violence in Africa
19,000 to 12,000 years ago ... As shifts to social dynamics took place in Africa, both human creativity and brutality flourished.Support the show
48. Broad Spectrum Origins in Africa
25,000 to 12,000 years ago ... Human life was gradually changing across Africa at the end of the Pleistocene. One element of this transformation was a shift in what people ate.Support the show
47. Last Glacial Maximum of Africa [Preview]
25,000 years ago ... Right at the peak of the Last Ice Age, most people living on the African continent finally embraced microlithic tools, an innovation that had been around for tens of thousands of years.Support the show
46. Spread of the Late Stone Age
45,000 to 30,000 years ago ... Signs of Late Stone Age culture start appearing across sub-saharan Africa, hinting at long-distance contact between once isolated peoples.Support the show
45. Late Stone Age of Africa
60,000 to 45,000 years ago ... Signs of cultural change started to appear among hunter gatherers in Africa, leading to the end of the Middle Stone Age, a period that had lasted hundreds of thousands of years.Support the show
44. Post Clovis [Preview]
12,800 to 11,700 years ago ... In the cold of the Younger Dryas, at the peak of megafauna extinction, the descendants of Clovis fragmented into a range of new cultures across North America.Support the show
43. American Megafauna Extinctions
Around 13,000 years ago, a wide range of large animal species started disappearing. The circumstances strongly implicate humans.Support the show
42. Fishtail Points and Early South America
13,000 to 12,000 years ago... From megafauna hunters in Tierra del Fuego to Amazonian rock painters, the formation of early South America hunter gatherer societies was a complex process, and a sudden burst of distinct human cultures appeared at the end of the Ice Age.Support the show
41. Clovis and the Western Stemmed Tradition [Preview]
The first North American cultures appeared around 13,000 years ago, when megafauna roamed a continent still largely devoid of humans. Support the show
40. Arrival in America
Homo sapiens, the only hominin to colonize every continent on the planet, finally reaches America. But who were the first Americans and when did they arrive? Support the show
39. Terminal Pleistocene of Southeast Asia
19,000 to 11,700 years ago ... In the Himalayan foothills of Thailand and the southern islands of Wallacea, the adoption of new funerary rituals, ornaments, and tools by hunter gatherer societies coincided with global warming and large human migrations.Support the show
38. Rock Art of Southeast Asia [Preview]
53,000 to 13,000 years ago ... Recent dating of rock paintings in Indonesia has redefined our understanding of the oldest art produced by humans and raised the possibility of an extremely old and widespread Pan-Eurasian and Sahulian style.Support the show
37. Rainforest Adaptations in Asia
The first Homo sapiens to reach Southeast Asia quickly learned how to survive in rainforests, overcoming the unique challenges of this rainy biome.Support the show
36. Hoabinhian and Indian Microlithic
Incredibly stable traditions of stone tool making remained in use for tens of thousands of years in South and Southeast Asia.Support the show
35. Cultural Variation of the Final Paleolithic [Preview]
19,000 to 11,700 years ago ... Stirring of future fundamental transformations in the human way of life begin in parts of northeast Asia at the end of the Paleolithic.Support the show
34. Invention of Pottery
20,000 to 11,700 years ago ... As the planet thawed after the Last Glacial Maximum, human life continued to evolve. A range of technologies appeared among the groups living in East Asia, one of which would eventually play a role in shaping our modern world. Support the show
33. Microblades
30,000 to 20,000 years ago ... A powerful new stone tool technology broke through longstanding cultural boundaries.Support the show
32. Middle Upper Paleolithic [Preview]
35,000 to 25,000 years ago ... The first major changes to the cultures of Siberia and Japan take place after the arrival of Homo sapiens result in peak in artistic production.Support the show
31. Origin of the Late Paleolithic of East Asia
50,000 to 30,000 years ago ... The start of a new period of prehistory in China, Korea, and Japan began with the arrival of Homo sapiens and the quick development of regionally distinctive cultures.Support the show
30. Colonization of Asia
60,000 to 40,000 years ago ... As Homo sapiens dispersed across Asia, they followed two different routes and these movements shaped the earliest cultures of this continent.Support the show
29. Sahulian Terminal Pleistocene [Preview]
20,000 to 12,000 years ago ... As the world warmed, humans extended their reach in Sahul, migrated away from the rising seas, developed new funerary rituals, and learned new ways to manage animal populations.Support the show
28. Last Glacial Maximum of Sahul
28,600 to 17,700 years ago ... Global cooling altered the ecosystems of Sahul and forced its human populations to adapt. Support the show
27. Pleistocene Rock Art of Sahul
50,000 to 12,000 ... Prehistoric paintings and engravings provide insights into the rituals, technology, and worldviews of Australians, tens of thousands of years ago.Support the show
26. Early Sahulian Lifeways [Preview]
50,000 to 30,000 years ago ... Isolated from people on other continents, the oldest traditions of Sahulians evolved along a unique cultural pathway.Support the show
25. Arrival in Sahul
65,000 to 40,000 years ago ... By crossing the ocean between Asia and the coasts of New Guinea and Australia, Homo sapiens dispersed to and colonized a third continent.Support the show
24. Upper Paleolithic of Europe: Revolution and Equilibrium
48,000 to 11,000 years ago ... Long term trends reveal dramatic changes in social complexity and the impact of climate, population size, and migration on cultural variation.Support the show
23. Tanged-Point and Flat-Blade Cultures [Preview]
12,850 to 11,670 years ago ... The last gasp of the Ice Age led people across northern Europe to adopt a different way of life, one that resembled the customs of long lost cultures. Cultures: Swiderian, Ahrensburgian, Desnenian, Bromme, Laborian.Support the show
22. Younger Dryas of Southern Europe
12,850 to 11,670 years ago ... In the Mediterranean Basin of Europe, the resilience of stone age societies was on display during the last gasp of the Ice Age. Support the show
21. Bølling-Allerød of Europe
14,700 to 12,800 years ago ... A dramatically warmer world and the proliferation of woodlands led people in Europe to a radically different way of life. Some groups thrived, other societies crumbled. Cultures: Azilian, Federmesser, Epimagdalenian, and Late Epigravettian.Support the show
20. Late Epigravettian [Preview]
19,000 to 15,000 years ago ... Among the cultures of eastern and southern Europe that came after the Last Glacial Maximum, the Mezinian of the Dnieper River basin left behind the most diverse set of remains. Also, a new genetic lineage appeared in Italy.Support the show
19. Magdalenian Expansion
The final 2,000 years of the Magdalenian culture witnessed a major geographic expansion of hunter gatherer society in western and central Europe. Simultaneously, a new type of hunting weapon was invented and an old artistic theme made a reappearance. Support the show
18. Magdalenian Origin
The greatest heights of Upper Paleolithic cave paintings and engraved portable art were reached after the Last Glacial Maximum ended and human populations grew.Support the show
17. Solutrean [Preview]
As the hunter gatherers of southwestern Europe endured the Last Glacial Maximum, a unique culture arose, characterized by fine stone points and a rich artistic repertoire.Support the show
16. Last Glacial Maximum
The peak of the Last Ice Age drastically altered the course of European prehistory. Around 25,000 years ago, as the glaciers reached their maximum extent, the Gravettian ended and was replaced with a variety of local cultures. In central and eastern Europe this period is called the Epigravettian.Support the show
15. Gravettian Art
The Gravettian saw a flourishing of hunter gatherer art. Engravings of bison, Venus figurines, and rich burials hint at a shifting Ice Age ideology and social organization.Support the show
14. Gravettian Technology [Preview]
The Aurignacian culture of Europe ended 33,000 years ago and was replaced by the Gravettian. Sometimes overlooked, this period of prehistory saw an intriguing peak in Ice Age culture and the precocious development of technologies not often associated with hunter gatherers.Support the show
13. Aurignacian Art
The oldest European sculptures, paintings, and musical instruments appeared around 40,000 years ago. What does Aurignacian art reveal about the worldview of ancient hunter gatherers?Support the show
12. Aurignacian Technology
In the absence of Neanderthals, Homo sapiens developed the Aurignacian culture, which spanned Europe. These people continued the trend toward technological complexity that had begun during the out of Africa migrations.Support the show
11. Neanderthal Extinction [Preview]
Our most detailed insight into a prehistoric encounter and coexistence of two intelligent hominin species comes from the 8,000 year period before the eradication of the Neanderthals, when Homo sapiens migrated into Europe.Support the show
10. Out of Africa Part 3
One branch of Homo sapiens expanding out of Africa migrated through southern Asia and adapted to tropical environments. Bows and arrows, microlithic tools, and seafaring were some of their technological innovations.Support the show
9. Out of Africa Part 2
The permanent expansion of Homo sapiens out of Africa began about 60,000 years ago. After intimate encounters with Neanderthals in Southwest Asia, some of them moved into Europe and Northern Asia. How did these Eurasian migrants adapt to foreign climates and ecosystems?Support the show
8. Neanderthals [Preview]
Eagle talons around their necks, painted faces, and stone-tipped spears in hand, Neanderthals were not dumb brutes. Join me on this crash course and learn about the species with whom we share the most in common.Support the show
7. Out of Africa Part 1
Footprints on lake margins, contact between hominin species, and changing fortunes in arid landscapes characterize the earliest attempts of Homo sapiens to leave Africa.Support the show
6. Middle Stone Age of North Africa
Despite the relatively harsh and fluctuating environmental conditions of North Africa, Middle Stone Age people there developed aspects of modern human behavior earlier than anywhere else.Support the show
5. Middle Stone Age of Tropical Africa
The crossroads of human evolution, tropical Africa supported several different populations of Homo sapiens between 130,000 and 40,000 years ago. They expanded, contracted, migrated, and eventually revealed their growing capacity for innovation.Support the show
4. Middle Stone Age of Southern Africa
Before our species left Africa for good, human creativity began to emerge along the southern tip of the continent in the form of new technology, symbolic objects, and greater social organization. Distinct cultures were finally appearing.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ourprehistorySupport the show
3. Dawn of the Middle Stone Age
The very first members of our species adopted innovative stone tools, hunted a variety of large animals, sat around campfires and used pigments. But were they as smart as we are today?Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ourprehistorySupport the show
2. Origins of Homo Sapiens
The earliest members of our species appeared around 300,000 years ago in Africa. As they spread across the continent and split into different genetic lineages, they encountered other hominin species and weathered millennia of fluctuating climates.Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ourprehistorySupport the show
1. Introduction
Welcome to Our Prehistory. Why is the earliest history of our species worth learning about? Find out in this introductory episode where I lay out the plan for this podcast.Support the show
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