"The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity."
A period when iron tools and weapons were introduced and the first empires, like the Assyrians and Babylonians, were established.
Chronology of Iron Age: Overview of the timeline, dates and periods that make up the Iron Age.
Settlement Patterns: Study of how people lived during the Iron Age; including their social organization, economic patterns, politics and religious beliefs.
Technology & Warfare: Study of the tools and weapons used during the Iron Age, including Iron making and innovations in warfare like the use of chariots.
Art & Culture: Exploration of the art forms and cultural expressions of Iron Age societies, including burial practices, artistic styles and religious beliefs.
Trade & Economy: A look at the economic activities evidenced in the Iron Age, including trade, agriculture, and crafts such as ceramics.
Iron Age Civilizations: A regional overview and study of the different Iron Age civilizations, such as the Celts, Etruscans, and Scythians.
Archaeology: Exploration of the methods and findings of Iron Age archaeological digs and research.
Religion and Mythology: Study of belief systems during the Iron Age, including beliefs in the afterlife, divine beings, and creation myths.
Archaeology: The study of the material remains of past human societies to reconstruct their cultures and societies.
Art history: The study of the visual arts and how they reflect the values and beliefs of a society during a particular period.
Anthropology: The scientific study of human societies and cultures, both past and present.
Linguistics: The study of language and its development over time, with particular emphasis on the role of languages in shaping cultural identity.
Genetics: The study of inherited traits and variations in genetic code, with particular emphasis on how these traits are passed down through generations and used to reconstruct past genealogies and relationships.
History: The study of past events, often focused on political and social developments.
Geology: The study of rocks and earth materials to understand the physical environment of past societies and how it influenced their development.
Material culture studies: The study of the physical objects and artifacts created by past societies, especially those used for everyday life, to understand their social and cultural values.
Ethnography: The study of contemporary cultures and societies, often used to illuminate aspects of past cultures and societies.
Paleontology: The study of fossils and other evidence of past life, including human ancestors and extinct animals.
"It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age."
"The concept has been mostly applied to Iron Age Europe and the Ancient Near East."
"The 'Iron Age' begins locally when the production of iron or steel has advanced to the point where iron tools and weapons replace their bronze equivalents in common use."
"The discovery of iron smelting and smithing techniques was invented in Anatolia, the Caucasus or Southeast Europe in the late 2nd millennium BC (c. 1300 BC)."
"This transition took place in the wake of the Bronze Age collapse, in the 12th century BC."
"The technology soon spread throughout the Mediterranean Basin region and to South Asia (Iron Age in India) between the 12th and 11th century BC."
"Its further spread to Central Asia, Eastern Europe, and Central Europe is somewhat delayed."
"Northern Europe was not reached until around the start of the 5th century BC."
"The Iron Age is taken to end, also by convention, with the beginning of the historiographical record."
"For the Ancient Near East, the establishment of the Achaemenid Empire c. 550 BC is traditionally and still usually taken as a cut-off date."
"In Central and Western Europe, the Roman conquests of the 1st century BC serve as marking for the end of the Iron Age."
"The Germanic Iron Age of Scandinavia is taken to end c. AD 800, with the beginning of the Viking Age."
"The Iron Age is taken to begin with the ironworking Painted Grey Ware culture."
"Recent estimates suggest that it ranges from the 15th century BC, through to the reign of Ashoka in the 3rd century BC."
"The use of the term 'Iron Age' in the archaeology of South, East, and Southeast Asia is more recent and less common than for Western Eurasia."
"In China, written history started before iron-working arrived, so the term is infrequently used."