prehistoric

Etymology

From pre- (“before”) + historic, q.v., similar to slightly earlier ante-historic.

adj

1. (properly) Of or relating to the epoch before written record.
   Was it then in a pre-historic time that the Romans wandered into these lands? 1832 October, Foreign Quarterly Review, page 369
   The cartoon image of prehistoric woman being dragged by the hair by her caveman-husband probably conditions the perceptions of archaeologists far more than they realize. 1981, William Irwin Thompson, The Time Falling Bodies Take to Light: Mythology, Sexuality and the Origins of Culture, London: Rider/Hutchinson & Co., page 137
2. (inexact or humorous) Ancient; very old, outdated, etc.