Levalloisian

[ lev-uh-loi-zee-uhn, -zhuhn ]

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of a distinctive late Lower and Middle Paleolithic method of preparing a stone core so that preformed thin, oval or triangular flakes with sharp edges could be struck from it.

Levalloisian

/ ləˈvælwɑː; ˌlɛvəˈlɔɪzɪən /

adjective

1. of or relating to a Lower Palaeolithic culture in W Europe, characterized by a method of flaking flint tools so that one side of the core is flat and the other domed

Levalloisian

/ lĕv′ə-loi′zē-ən /

1. Relating to a technique for producing flaked stone tools that appeared in the late stages of the Acheulian (Lower Paleolithic) tool culture, characterized by a distinctive method of striking off flake tools from a prepared stone core. In the Levalloisian technique, large, sharp flakes were struck from the core with a single blow and could be used, possibly for skinning and butchering, without further flaking or finishing. Later refinements to the Levalloisian technique formed the basis for the Mousterian (Middle Paleolithic) technology.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Levalloisian¹

First recorded in 1930–35; Levallois(-Perret) + -ian