The Neolithic and Chalcolithic of West Asia

Western Asia forms a broad belt around the formative zones of social and technological transformation that mark the millennia defined conventionally as the Neolithic and Chalcolithic periods. From the emergence of sedentary and food-producing communities to the formation of complex societies and urban settlements, the individual hotspots developed in lockstep while pursuing distinct and diverse pathways. The status of research differs widely across the regions, with the most detailed sets of data currently available for Central and Western Anatolia and some important recent work in South Caucasia, whereas the Iranian highlands and Pakistan remain underexplored.