Mesolithic & Neolithic Age | KPSC KAS Preparation: All subjects - KPSC KAS (Karnataka) PDF Download

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Mesolithic Age: Mesolithic age or Middle Stone Age were subsequent to Palaeolithic age where 
they used small stone tools with sharp points. It is also called Micro lithic Age as the stones used 
are small in size. 
Hunting became extensive in the Mesolithic Age. As a result many animals became extinct. 
Mammoth is an example for such a species. Man discovered new sources of food in this period. 
They ate edible grass, dolphin, otter, whale, fishes, and so on.  
The important Mesolithic sites in India are 
? Bagor (in Rajastan)  
? Adamgarh (in Madhya Pradesh) 
 
The progress during Mesolithic age is represented 
in the below diagram.  
Neolithic Age: In Neolithic Age man started 
using polished stone tools. The beginning of 
cultivation was the major progress in this period 
that dates around eight thousand years back. 
Environmental changes, scarcity of food, 
population growth, etc. are pointed out as the 
major reasons that led to cultivation. Man began 
to cultivate and settle down in the river valleys. 
In the Neolithic Age, human beings began to rear 
animals for food. They began a settled life for the 
purpose of cultivation and domestication of 
animals. Wheat, barley, jute, different kinds of 
tubers, paddy, plantain, etc. were the major crops 
of that age. 
Wheels were used to carry goods from one place to another. The development of cultivation 
and permanent settlement led to a collective life. 
   
   
  
Page 2


 
   
 
  
 
Mesolithic Age: Mesolithic age or Middle Stone Age were subsequent to Palaeolithic age where 
they used small stone tools with sharp points. It is also called Micro lithic Age as the stones used 
are small in size. 
Hunting became extensive in the Mesolithic Age. As a result many animals became extinct. 
Mammoth is an example for such a species. Man discovered new sources of food in this period. 
They ate edible grass, dolphin, otter, whale, fishes, and so on.  
The important Mesolithic sites in India are 
? Bagor (in Rajastan)  
? Adamgarh (in Madhya Pradesh) 
 
The progress during Mesolithic age is represented 
in the below diagram.  
Neolithic Age: In Neolithic Age man started 
using polished stone tools. The beginning of 
cultivation was the major progress in this period 
that dates around eight thousand years back. 
Environmental changes, scarcity of food, 
population growth, etc. are pointed out as the 
major reasons that led to cultivation. Man began 
to cultivate and settle down in the river valleys. 
In the Neolithic Age, human beings began to rear 
animals for food. They began a settled life for the 
purpose of cultivation and domestication of 
animals. Wheat, barley, jute, different kinds of 
tubers, paddy, plantain, etc. were the major crops 
of that age. 
Wheels were used to carry goods from one place to another. The development of cultivation 
and permanent settlement led to a collective life. 
   
   
  
 
   
 
During the Neolithic Age human life spread 
far and wide. Population growth and the 
consequent necessity for cultivable and 
habitable land were the major causes for 
this. Water transportation facilitated the 
migration to different parts of the world. 
 
 
The important Neolithic sites are listed below. 
? Edakkal Caves, Wayanad, Kerala    
? Lake Villages of Switzerland    
? Jericho, Palestine     
? Jarmo, Northern Iraq 
 
Edakkal Caves:  Located in Ambukkutty mala of Western Ghats, Wayanad. Inside the caves are 
pictorial writings believed to date to at least 6,000 BCE from Neolithic man. Fred- Fawcett, the 
superintendent of police of the Malabar District discovered this caves in 1890.