This covers the period before written records

• Paleolithic Era (Old Stone Age)
• Mesolithic Era (Middle Stone Age)
• Neolithic Era (New Stone Age)
• Bronze Age
• Iron Age

The rise and fall of early complex societies

• Sumerians in Mesopotamia
• Ancient Egypt
• Indus Valley Civilization
• Ancient China (Shang, Zhou Dynasties)
• Mesoamerican civilizations (Maya, Aztec, Olmec)
• Ancient Greece and Rome

• Early Middle Ages (Fall of the Western Roman Empire to around 1000 AD)
• High Middle Ages (1000 AD to around 1300 AD)
• Late Middle Ages (1300 AD to the Renaissance)
• Feudal systems, Crusades, and the rise of Islam

• European Renaissance and its impact on arts, science, and thought
• Age of Discovery, with explorers like Columbus, Magellan, and Vasco da Gama

• Reformation and Counter-Reformation
• Scientific Revolution
• Enlightenment
• Major empires like the Ottoman, Mughal, and Qing

• Industrialization and its global impact
• Nationalism and the birth of nation-states
• Imperialism and colonization
• Major revolutions (American, French, Russian)

• World Wars I and II
• Cold War and the rise of superpowers
• Decolonization and the end of empires
• Social, cultural, and technological developments

• Late 20th century to the present
• Globalization
• Digital revolution
• Major geopolitical shifts

• History of specific regions or countries (e.g., African history, Japanese history)
• Thematic studies (e.g., women's history, environmental history, history of science)