The earliest record of Homo is the 2.8 million-year-old specimen LD 350-1 from Ethiopia, and the earliest named species are Homo habilis and Homo rudolfensis which evolved by 2.3 million years ago. Though fossils from the transition are scarce, the earliest members of Homo share several key traits with Australopithecus. The genus Homo evolved from Australopithecus. All but one of these lineages-representing the genus Homo and its sole extant species Homo sapiens-is now extinct. Following their split with chimpanzees and bonobos, the hominins diversified into many species and at least two distinct genera. Genetic measurements indicate that the ape lineage which would lead to Homo sapiens diverged from the lineage that would lead to chimpanzees and bonobos, the closest living relatives of modern humans, around 8вЂ“4 million years ago. Reconstruction of Lucy, the first Australopithecus afarensis skeleton found Prehistory (8 million years ago to 3000 BCE)

4.3 Late modern period (1800 to the present).

3 Post-classical history (500 CE to 1500 CE).

1.2 Paleolithic (3.3 million years ago to 10,000 BCE).

1 Prehistory (8 million years ago to 3000 BCE).

In the last quarter-millennium, the rates of population growth, economic production, technology, communications, commerce, weapon destructiveness, and environmental degradation have greatly accelerated. By this time, due to extensive world trade and colonization, the histories of most civilizations had become substantially intertwined. Outside this region, including Chinese and Indian civilizations, historical timelines unfolded differently up to the 18th century.

This scheme of historical periodization (dividing history into antiquity, post-classical, early modern, and late modern periods) was developed for, and applies best to, the history of the Old World, particularly Europe and the Mediterranean. By the 18th century, the accumulation of knowledge and technology had reached a critical mass that brought about the Industrial Revolution and began the late modern period, which started around 1800 CE and continues to the present. Events during this period included the Age of Discovery and the Age of Enlightenment. The early modern period lasted from about 1500 to 1800 CE. The 15th century introduction of movable type printing in Europe revolutionized communication and facilitated widespread dissemination of information, hastening the end of the Middle Ages and ushering in the Scientific Revolution. Post-classical history (the ' Middle Ages' from about 500 to 1500 CE) witnessed the rise of Christianity, the Islamic Golden Age, and the Renaissance (from around 1300 CE). With civilizations flourishing, ancient history saw the rise and fall of empires. Hinduism developed in the late Bronze Age on the Indian subcontinent, while the Axial Age witnessed the introduction of religions such as Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, and Jainism. The growing complexity of human societies necessitated systems of accounting and writing. Labor divisions led to the rise of a leisured upper class and the development of cities, which provided the foundation for civilization. As farming developed, grain agriculture became more sophisticated and prompted a division of labor to store food between growing seasons.

The earliest complex societies appeared in fertile river valleys.

The relative security and increased productivity provided by farming allowed communities to expand into increasingly larger units, fostered by advances in transportation. As agriculture advanced, most humans transitioned from a nomadic to a settled lifestyle as farmers in permanent settlements. During this period, humans began the systematic husbandry of plants and animals. This was followed by the Neolithic ('New Stone Age') era, which saw the Agricultural Revolution begin in the Near East's Fertile Crescent between 10,000 and 5,000 BCE. Humanity's written history was preceded by its prehistory, beginning with the Paleolithic ('Old Stone Age') era. Since the invention of writing, human history has been studied through primary and secondary source documents. It is understood and studied through archaeology, anthropology, genetics, and linguistics. Human history, also called world history, is the narrative of humanity's past.

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