Holocene

The present geological epoch, which began some 10,000 (bp) years ago (8300 BC). It falls within the Quaternary period (one of the four main divisions of the earth's history) and followed the Pleistocene Ice Age. The Holocene is marked by rising temperatures throughout the world and the retreat of the ice sheets. During this epoch, agriculture became the common human subsistence practice. During the Holocene, Homo sapiens diversified his tool technology, organized his habitat more efficiently, and adapted his way of life. The Holocene stage/series includes all deposits younger than the top of either the Wisconsinian stage of the Pleistocene Series in North America and the Würm/Weichsel in Europe.

The latest epoch of the Quaternary period, starting at 10,000 bp and extending to the present day. This epoch is, in reality, merely the most recent interglacial stage of the Quaternary, and the concept of a Holocene epoch is not a very useful one. In Britain, the term Flandrian is used to describe this interstadial. See Tables 4-7, pages 417-20.