An Overview of Archaeological Research on the Early Neolithic in Albania

An intensive research on the Neolithic and Neolithisation process in Albania was conducted during the second half of the past century. The isolation of the country during the communist regime made impossible the cooperation with other foreign research institutions, as well as the use of other applications of advanced equipment and methods, therefore the result of the studies were limited. In addition, the evaluations and studies on the prehistory period were focused mainly on typological and cultural analysis of the archaeological assemblage. After 1990, the interdisciplinary research on the Prehistory period has provided new data on the economic and social life of communities that have lived in the territory of Albania. On the other side the radiocarbon dates shed new light on the beginning of Neolithisation process and the development of the new Neolithic way of life. Keywords: Early Neolithic, history of research, Albania, cultural evaluations, chronology