Editing History of the Isle of Man (section)

===Mesolithic===
The Isle of Man effectively became an island around 8,500 years ago at around the time when rising sea levels caused by the melting glaciers cut [[Mesolithic]] Britain off from continental Europe for the last time.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryMagazine/DestinationsUK/Isle-of-Man/ |title=The History of The Isle of Man |last=Johnson |first=Ben |website=Historic UK}}</ref> There had earlier been a land bridge between the Isle of Man and Cumbria, but the location and opening of the land bridge remain poorly understood.<ref>{{cite book |editor-last1=Hiverrell |editor-first1=Richard |editor-last2=Thomas |editor-first2=Geoffrey |name-list-style=amp |date=2006 |title=A New History of the Isle of Man, Volume 1 - The Evolution of the Natural Landscape |edition=1st |publisher=Liverpool University Press |pages=295–296 |isbn=0-85323-587-2}}</ref>

The earliest traces of people on the Isle of Man date back to the Mesolithic Period (Middle Stone Age, 8000 BC - 4000 BC).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://manxnationalheritage.im/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/MOTM-EarlyPeople-AMesolithic.pdf |title=The Manx Mesolithic (8000 BC-4000 BC) |date=May 2020 |website=Manx National Heritage}}</ref> The first residents lived in small natural shelters, [[Hunter-gatherer|hunting, gathering and fishing]] for their food. They used small tools made of [[flint]] or bone, examples of which have been found near the coast. Examples of these artifacts are kept at the [[Manx National Heritage]] museum.