Editing Neolithic (section)

=== The Americas ===
In [[Mesoamerican chronology|Mesoamerica]], a similar set of events (i.e., crop domestication and sedentary lifestyles) occurred by around 4500 BC in South America, but possibly as early as 11,000–10,000 BC. These cultures are usually not referred to as belonging to the Neolithic; in North America, [[List of archaeological periods (North America)|different terms]] are used such as [[Formative stage]] instead of mid-late Neolithic, [[Archaic period in the Americas|Archaic Era]] instead of Early Neolithic, and [[Paleo-Indians|Paleo-Indian]] for the preceding period.<ref name="W&P">{{cite book |first1 = Gordon R. |last1 = Willey |first2 = Philip |last2 = Phillips |title = Method and Theory in American Archaeology |url = https://archive.org/details/methodtheoryinam1958will |year = 1957 |publisher = University of Chicago Press |isbn = 978-0-226-89888-9 }}</ref>

The Formative stage is equivalent to the Neolithic Revolution period in Europe, Asia, and Africa. In the southwestern United States it occurred from 500 to 1200 AD when there was a dramatic increase in population and development of large villages supported by agriculture based on [[dryland farming]] of corn (maize), and later, beans, squash, and domesticated turkeys. During this period the bow and arrow and ceramic pottery were also introduced.<ref name="NRSW">{{cite journal |author1=Kohler TA |author2=M Glaude |author3=JP Bocquet-Appel |author4=Brian M Kemp |title = The Neolithic Demographic Transition in the North American Southwest |journal = [[American Antiquity]] |year = 2008 |volume = 73 |issue = 4 |pages = 645–669 |doi=10.1017/s000273160004734x|hdl = 2376/5746 |s2cid = 163007590 |hdl-access = free }}</ref> In later periods cities of considerable size developed, and some metallurgy by 700 BC.<ref>A. Eichler, G. Gramlich, T. Kellerhals, L. Tobler, Th. Rehren & M. Schwikowski (2017). "Ice-core evidence of earliest extensive copper metallurgy in the Andes 2700 years ago"</ref>