Prehistoric archaeology is the branch of archaeology that studies human societies before the existence of written records. This field investigates the origins and evolution of humankind, the development of tools, social organization, subsistence strategies, art, and symbolic systems. It combines data from multiple disciplines such as geology, paleoanthropology, paleobotany, and climatology to reconstruct the lifeways of ancient human populations., including the evolution of hominins, the use of tools, the control of fire, early art, and the beginnings of agriculture. The term "prehistory" (from Latin prae = before, and historia = history) highlights this chronological distinction.