Final answer:
The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, occurred from 8,000 BCE to 3,000 BCE. It marked the transition from a hunter-gatherer lifestyle to one based on agriculture and animal domestication. The transition is believed to have first occurred in the Near East.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Neolithic period, also known as the New Stone Age, occurred between 8,000 BCE and 3,000 BCE. During this time, people transitioned from a hunter-gatherer lifestyle to one based on agriculture and the domestication of animals. The transition from the Mesolithic to the Neolithic did not occur at the same time everywhere, but it is believed to have first occurred in the Near East, specifically in present-day Iraq, Syria, and Turkey.