Historians divide the period from the beginnings of agriculture in places such as Mehrgarh (7000 bce) to the disintegration of the Harappan Civilization (five millennia later) into four broad stages: the Early Food Producing Era (7000–5500 bce), Regionalization or Early Harappan Era (5500–2600 bce), Integration or Mature Harappan Era (2600–1900 bce) and Localization or Late Harappan Era (1900–1300 bce).
