Mousterian

or Mous·tie·ri·an

[ moo-steer-ee-uh n ]

/ muˈstɪər i ən /

adjective Anthropology.

of or relating to a Middle Paleolithic culture of Neanderthal man dating to the early upper Pleistocene Epoch (c100,000–40,000 b.c.) and consisting of five or more stone-artifact traditions in Europe whose characteristic tools are side scrapers and points.

pertaining to Paleolithic human relics having the workmanship, finish, and character of the flint scrapers found in the sands of Moustier, France.

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Origin of Mousterian

1885–90; < French moust(i)érien; see -ian

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for mousterian

Throughout Mousterian times the commonest game consisted of the wild horse, wild ox, and reindeer.
Men of the Old Stone Age|Henry Fairfield Osborn
On the other hand, in the late Mousterian we observe a trend toward the blade (lame) industry of the Upper Palolithic.
Men of the Old Stone Age|Henry Fairfield Osborn
The implements are of a roughly-chipped type resembling those of the Mousterian period.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Part 3|Various
In all Germany there are only about seven stations of unquestioned Mousterian age.
Men of the Old Stone Age|Henry Fairfield Osborn

A human skeleton was found in the floor of the grotto, and below strata characterised by Mousterian implements.
Prehistoric Man|W. L. H. Duckworth

British Dictionary definitions for mousterian

Mousterian

/ (muːˈstɪərɪən) /

noun

a culture characterized by flint flake tools and associated with Neanderthal man, found throughout Europe, North Africa, and the Near East, dating from before 70 000–32 000 bc

adjective

of or relating to this culture

Word Origin for Mousterian

C20: from French Moustérien from archaeological finds of the same period in the cave of Le Moustier, Dordogne, France

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for mousterian

Mousterian

[ mōō-stîr′ē-ən ]

Relating to a Middle Paleolithic tool culture that succeeded the Acheulian, ending around 35,000 years ago and traditionally associated with Neanderthals. While Mousterian tools show improvements in stone-flaking techniques over Acheulian tools, they remain largely unchanged over long periods of time and show little of the rapid innovation and specialization that characterize tool cultures of the Upper Paleolithic associated with modern humans.