The timeline lists events in the external environment that have influenced events in human history. This timeline is for use with the article on environmental determinism. For the history of humanity's influence on the environment, and humanity's perspective on this influence, see timeline of the history of environmentalism. See List of periods and events in climate history for a timeline list focused on climate.
Pre-Holocene (1.5 Mya)
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The time from roughly 15,000 to 5,000 BC was a time of transition, and swift and extensive environmental change, as the planet was moving from an Ice age, towards an interstadial (warm period). Sea levels rose dramatically (and are continuing to do so), land that was depressed by glaciers began lifting up again, forests and deserts expanded, and the climate gradually became more modern. In the process of warming up, the planet saw several "cold snaps" and "warm snaps", such as the Older Dryas and the Holocene climatic optimum, as well as heavier precipitation. In addition, the Pleistocene megafauna became extinct due to environmental and evolutionary pressures from the changing climate. This marked the end of the Quaternary extinction event, which was continued into the modern era by humans. The time around 11,700 years ago (9700 BC) is widely considered to be the end of the old age (Pleistocene, Paleolithic, Stone age, Wisconsin Ice Age), and the beginning of the modern world as we know it.
10th millennium BC
9th millennium BC
8th millennium BC
7th millennium BC
6th millennium BC
5th millennium BC
4th millennium BC
3rd millennium BC
2nd millennium BC
1st millennium BC
1st millennium AD
1st century
2nd century
3rd century
4th century
5th century
6th century
7th century
8th century
9th century
10th century
2nd millennium
11th century
12th century
13th century
14th century
15th century
16th century
17th century
18th century
19th century
20th century
3rd millennium
21st century
See also
References
External links
- Timeline of European Environmental History
- Environmental History Timeline