5th millennium BC

== 5th millennium BC==

The 5th millennium BC spanned the years 5000 through 4001 BC. It saw the spread of agriculture from Western Asia throughout Southern and Central Europe.

Urban cultures in Mesopotamia and Anatolia flourished, developing the wheel. Copper ornaments became more common, marking the beginning of the Chalcolithic. Animal husbandry spread throughout Eurasia, reaching China.

World population growth relaxes after the burst due to the Neolithic Revolution. World population is largely stable, at roughly 40 million, with a slow overall growth rate at roughly 0.03% p.a. == Culture==

Further information: Fertile Crescent and Predynastic Egypt Ubaid culture in Mesopotamia Yumuktepe and Gözlükule cultures in south Anatolia Badari culture on the Nile (c. 4400 BC – 4000 BC) Merimde culture on the Nile in Prehistoric Egypt (c. 4570 BC – 4250 BC)

Europe
c. 5000 BC: Metsamor Armenia neolithic stone circles. c. 5000 BC Farming reaches Atlantic coast of Europe from Ancient Near East c. 5000 BC, Metallurgy during the Copper Age in Europe Cycladic culture —a distinctive Neolithic culture amalgamating Anatolian and mainland Greek elements arose in the western Aegean before 4000 BC 4800 BC: Dimini culture replaces the Sesklo culture in Thessaly, Greece  (4800–4000 BC) c. 4500 BC: Settlement of Chirokitia in Cyprus c. 4500 BC: End of Neolithic IA (the Aceramic) in Cyprus 5000–4500 BC: Għar Dalam phase of Neolithic farmers on Malta, possibly immigrant farmers from the Agrigento region of Sicily

Cucuteni-Trypillian culture c. 4500 BC Plough is introduced in Europe c. 4500 BC: Proto-Indo-European is estimated to have been spoken as a single language from 4500 BC to 2500 BC Varna culture in the Balkans 4400-4100 BC Vinča culture in the Balkans (also endured in the 6th, 4th, and 3rd millennia) Proto-writing, such as ideographic Vinča symbols, Tartaria tablets (c. 5000 BC) Stroke-ornamented ware culture 4900–4600 BC: Arrangements of circular ditches are built in Central Europe (the Goseck circle was constructed c. 4900 BC) c. 4300 BC: Funnelbeaker Culture in north and east Germany c. 4250–3750 BC: Menhir alignments at Menec, Carnac, France are made 4100–3500 BC: New wave of immigration to Malta from Sicily leads to the Żebbuġ and Mġarr phases, and to the Ġgantija phase of temple builders Lengyel culture in Eastern Europe Stentinello culture in Italy Ceramic Mesolithic / Eneolithic Further information: Kurgan hypothesis In North-Eastern Europe a "ceramic Mesolithic" can be distinguished, found peripheral to the sedentary Neolithic cultures. It created a distinctive type of pottery, with point or knob base and flared rims, manufactured by methods not used by the Neolithic farmers. The earliest manifestation of this type of pottery may be in the region around Lake Baikal in Siberia, from as early as 7000 BC, and from there spread via the Dnieper-Donets culture to the Narva culture of the Eastern Baltic. Spreading westward along the coastline it is found in the Ertebølle culture of Denmark and Ellerbek of Northern Germany, and the related Swifterbant culture of the Low Countries.

Samara culture on the Volga Sredny Stog culture on the Dnieper Khvalynsk culture Dnieper–Donets culture Ertebølle culture, northern Europe Swifterbant culture, Netherlands Comb Ceramic culture in northeast Europe (4200–2000 BC) 4200 BC: Date of Mesolithic examples of Naalebinding found in Denmark, marking spread of technology to Northern Europe (Bender 1990)

East Asia
Further information: Neolithic China

Yangshao culture. c. 5000 BC, agriculture starts in Ancient Japan; beans and gourds are cultivated Yangshao culture on the Yellow River 5000–4000 BC: Bowl, from Banpo, near Xi'an, Shaanxi, is made; now kept at Banpo Museum Water buffalo are domesticated in China Proto-Austronesian culture is based on the south coast of China; they combine extensive maritime technology, fishing with hooks and nets and gardening (c. 5000 BC) c. 5000 BC: Beginning of the Hemudu culture in China, cultivation of rice. c. 5000 BC: Beginning of the Daxi culture in China. c. 5000 BC: Beginning of the Majiabang culture in China. c. 5000 BC: Beginning of the Yangshao culture in China. Americas Maize is cultivated in Mexico (c. 5000 BC) c. 5000 BC: Agriculture may have begun in the Americas.

Australia
c. 5000 BC to c. 3000 BC: Estimated dates for the Aboriginal rock carvings near Sydney. Sub-Saharan Africa Prior to the end of the African humid period (3900 BC) and the desiccation of the Green Sahara, Sub-Saharan Africa remains in the Paleolithic. The beginning of the Pastoral Neolithic falls still into the late phase of the Green Sahara, in the 6th or 5th millennium BC. As the grasslands of the Sahara began drying after 3900 BC, herders would spread into the Nile Valley and by the mid 3rd millennium BC into eastern Africa.

Environmental changes
Preceded by the Pleistocene Holocene Epoch ICS stages/ages (official)

Greenlandian (11.7*–8.236* ka) Northgrippian (8.236–4.2† ka) Meghalayan (4.2 ka–present) Blytt–Sernander stages/ages

Preboreal (10.3†–9† ka) Boreal (9–7.5† ka) Atlantic (7.5–5† ka) Subboreal (5–2.5† ka) Subatlantic (2.5 ka–present)
 * Relative to year 2000 (b2k).

†Relative to year 1950 (BP/Before "Present").

Atlantic

5000–4900 BC: The Older Peron transgression, a warm period that would dominate the 5th millennium, begins in this period According to Early Anthropocene Hypothesis, the early farming practices started to raise the atmospheric CO2-levels to preindustrial levels c. 4350 BC: Kikai Caldera in Japan forms in a massive VEI7 eruption Calendars and chronology 4713 BC: The epoch (origin) of the Julian Period described by Joseph Justus Scaliger occurred on January 1, the astronomical Julian day number zero 4241 BC: Eduard Meyer's (supposed, and long since rejected) date for the creation of the Egyptian calendar, based on his calculations of the Sothic cycle 4750 BC: Starting year for the Assyrian calendar, marking the traditional date of the foundation of Assur, around 2000 years before the actual date. October 23, 4004 BC: According to the Ussher chronology, created by James Ussher based on the Old Testament of the Bible, the universe is created by God at 6pm. 4300 BC: Theta Boötis became the nearest visible star to the celestial north pole; it remained the closest until 3942 BC when it was replaced by Thuban

Galaxy and Universe