First knowledge
For everyone
The basic skills and knowledge humanity acquired before writing: stone toolmaking, the use of fire, language, farming, counting and finally writing itself. Because the dates of most of these are not known with certainty, their pages list different dating views side by side.
For specialists
Traces of prehistoric knowledge are studied through the archaeological record (lithic industries, burnt bone and sediments, symbolic objects), fossil anatomy and genetic data. Dating relies on radiocarbon, argon–argon, uranium- series and thermoluminescence methods. Each method has its own age range and its own uncertainties.
Claims
- Inferences about prehistoric knowledge rest on archaeological remains and on how those remains are dated.[1]
Connections
New research in this branch
Notable in peer-reviewed journals
- Wither heritage? How does a generative Artificial intelligence model envision humanity’s cultural heritage in 30 years’ time? — Dirk H. R. Spennemann · 2026-09-10 · Futures
- Reproducing Historic Inorganic Compounds: Reference Materials for Identifying Compounds in the Clemens‐Winkler Collection (Part 3) — Marcus Herbig, Uwe Böhme, Georg Franze et al. · 2026-10-22 · European Journal of Inorganic Chemistry
- Verifying the Composition of Sealed Historic Objects: Analytical Studies of the Clemens Winkler Collection (Part 2) — Marcus Herbig, Richard Neubert, Anika Rogoll et al. · 2026-10-22 · European Journal of Inorganic Chemistry
- Reconstructing Historic Synthesis Routes: Selected Objects From the Clemens–Winkler Collection (Part 1) — Marcus Herbig, Richard Neubert, Anika Rogoll et al. · 2026-10-22 · European Journal of Inorganic Chemistry
Turkish-language papers
- Apollonia ad Rhyndacum kentinden dokuz taş oyun tablası — Gonca GÜLSEFA · 2026-03-26 · Nevşehir Hacı Bektaş Veli Üniversitesi SBE Dergisi
- The First Excavation of a Tumulus in the Lake Van Basin: Şabaniye Tumulus — Erdal POLAT · 2025-12-31 · Anadolu Araştırmaları / Anatolian Research
- İslam Medeniyetinde Şehir ve İslam Şehrinin Temel Unsurları — İskender Güneş, Akif ÇARKÇI · 2025-12-31 · Düzce İlahiyat Dergisi
- Arkeolojik Veriler Işığında Amorium Antik Kenti'nde Oyun Kültürü: Oyun Tablaları ve Oyun Taşları — Mehmet KURT · 2025-12-26 · Ortaçağ Araştırmaları Dergisi
Sources
- Book (2020). Archaeology: Theories, Methods and Practice. Thames & Hudson, 8th edition
Search the literature
Look for scholarly work on this topic in other indexes:
Cite this page
Athena contributors. (2026). First knowledge. Athena: The tree of human knowledge. Retrieved November 1, 2026, from https://latifkedi.github.io/athena/en/d/ilk-bilgiler/
@misc{athena_ilk_bilgiler,
title = {First knowledge},
author = {{Athena contributors}},
year = {2026},
howpublished = {\url{https://latifkedi.github.io/athena/en/d/ilk-bilgiler/}},
note = {Athena: The tree of human knowledge. Accessed: 2026-11-01}
}Added: September 27, 2026 · Last changed: September 28, 2026 · Page history