The 11th century BC comprises all years from 1100 BC to 1001 BC. Although many human societies were literate in this period, some of the individuals mentioned below may be

apocryphal Apocrypha are works, usually written, of unknown authorship or of doubtful origin. The word ''apocryphal'' (ἀπόκρυφος) was first applied to writings which were kept secret because they were the vehicles of esoteric knowledge considered ...

rather than historically accurate.

The world in the 11th century BC

Events

1089 BC 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

Melanthus In Greek mythology, Melanthus ( grc, Μέλανθος) was a king of Messenia and son of Andropompus and Henioche. Mythology Melanthus was among the descendants of Neleus (the Neleidae) expelled from Messenia, by the descendants of Heracles ...

, legendary

King of Athens Before the Athenian democracy, the tyrants, and the Archons, the city-state of Athens was ruled by kings. Most of these are probably mythical or only semi-historical. The following lists contain the chronological order of the title King of Athens ( ...

, dies after a reign of 37 years and is succeeded by his son

Codrus Codrus (; ; Greek: , ''Kódros'') was the last of the semi-mythical Kings of Athens (r. ca 1089– 1068 BC). He was an ancient exemplar of patriotism and self-sacrifice. He was succeeded by his son Medon, who it is claimed ruled not as king but ...

. *

1069 BC 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

: Ramses XI dies, ending the

Twentieth Dynasty The Twentieth Dynasty of Egypt (notated Dynasty XX, alternatively 20th Dynasty or Dynasty 20) is the third and last dynasty of the Ancient Egyptian New Kingdom period, lasting from 1189 BC to 1077 BC. The 19th and 20th Dynasties furthermore togeth ...

. He is succeeded by Smendes I, who founds the Twenty-first Dynasty. *

1068 BC 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

, legendary

, dies in battle against Dorian invaders after a reign of 21 years.

Athenian Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates a ...

tradition considers him the last

king King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen regnant, queen, which title is also given to the queen consort, consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contempora ...

to have held absolute power. Modern historians consider him the last king whose life account is part of

Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the origin and nature of the world, the lives and activities o ...

. He is succeeded by his son

Medon Medon may refer to: * Medon (mythology), any of several persons with the name in Greek mythology * Medon (beetle), a genus in the family Staphylinidae * Médon, a town in Ivory Coast * Medon, Tennessee, a city in Madison County * Medon, a synonym ...

. *

1050 BC The 1050s BC is a decade which lasted from 1059 BC to 1050 BC. {{Decadebox BC, 105 Events and trends * 1057 BC–According to Josephus, Solomon's Temple finishes construction on January 19. This predates secular estimates by more than 120 years a ...

Philistines The Philistines ( he, פְּלִשְׁתִּים, Pəlīštīm; Koine Greek ( LXX): Φυλιστιείμ, romanized: ''Phulistieím'') were an ancient people who lived on the south coast of Canaan from the 12th century BC until 604 BC, whe ...

capture the

Ark of the Covenant The Ark of the Covenant,; Ge'ez: also known as the Ark of the Testimony or the Ark of God, is an alleged artifact believed to be the most sacred relic of the Israelites, which is described as a wooden chest, covered in pure gold, with an ...

from Israel in battle. (Approximate date) * 1048 BC: Medon,

, dies after a reign of 20 years and is succeeded by his son

Acastus Acastus (; Ancient Greek: Ἄκαστος) is a character in Greek mythology. He sailed with Jason and the Argonauts, and participated in the hunt for the Calydonian Boar. Family Acastus was the son of Pelias, then king of Iolcus, and Anaxi ...

. *

1046 BC The 1040s BC is a decade which lasted from 1049 BC to 1040 BC. Events and trends * 1048 BC—Medon, King of Athens, dies after a reign of 20 years and is succeeded by his son Acastus. * 1046 BC—Following the Battle of Muye, King Wu of Zhou ov ...

King Wu of Zhou King Wu of Zhou () was the first king of the Zhou dynasty of ancient China. The chronology of his reign is disputed but is generally thought to have begun around 1046 BC and ended three years later in 1043 BC. King Wu's ancestral name was ...

overthrows the last

Shang Dynasty The Shang dynasty (), also known as the Yin dynasty (), was a Chinese royal dynasty founded by Tang of Shang (Cheng Tang) that ruled in the Yellow River valley in the second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia dynasty a ...

King

Di Xin King Zhou (; ) was the pejorative posthumous name given to Di Xin of Shang () or King Shou of Shang (), the last king of the Shang dynasty of ancient China. He is also called Zhou Xin (). In Chinese, his name Zhòu ( 紂) also refers to a horse cr ...

and becomes first king of the

Zhou Dynasty The Zhou dynasty ( ; Old Chinese ( B&S): *''tiw'') was a royal dynasty of China that followed the Shang dynasty. Having lasted 789 years, the Zhou dynasty was the longest dynastic regime in Chinese history. The military control of China by th ...

(

—

256 BC __NOTOC__ Year 256 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Longus and Caedicius/Regulus (or, less frequently, year 498 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 256 BC for this year ...

) founded by his father

King Wen of Zhou King Wen of Zhou (; 1152–1050 BC, the Cultured King) was Count of Zhou during the late Shang dynasty in ancient China. Although frequently confused with his fourth son Duke of Zhou, also known as "Lord Zhou", they are different historical perso ...

. *

1044 BC The 1040s BC is a List of decades, decade which lasted from 1049 BC to 1040 BC. Events and trends * 1048 BC—Medon (mythology), Medon, Kings of Athens, King of Athens, dies after a reign of 20 years and is succeeded by his son Acastus. * 1046 BC ...

: On the death of Smendes I, king of Egypt, he is succeeded by two co-regents,

Psusennes I Psusennes I ( egy, pꜣ-sbꜣ-ḫꜥ-n-njwt; Greek Ψουσέννης) was the third pharaoh of the 21st Dynasty who ruled from Tanis between 1047 and 1001 BC. ''Psusennes'' is the Greek version of his original name Pasibkhanu or Pasebakhaenniu ...

and Neferkare Amenemnisu. *

1042 BC The 1040s BC is a decade which lasted from 1049 BC to 1040 BC. Events and trends * 1048 BC— Medon, King of Athens, dies after a reign of 20 years and is succeeded by his son Acastus. * 1046 BC—Following the Battle of Muye, King Wu of Zhou ove ...

King Cheng of Zhou King Cheng of Zhou (), personal name Ji Song (姬誦), was the second king of the Chinese Zhou dynasty. The dates of his reign are 1042–1021 BCE or 1042/35–1006 BCE. His parents were King Wu of Zhou and Queen Yi Jiang (邑姜). King Cheng w ...

succeeds King Wu as ruler of the Zhou Dynasty in China. *

1040 BC The 1040s BC is a decade which lasted from 1049 BC to 1040 BC. Events and trends * 1048 BC—Medon, King of Athens, dies after a reign of 20 years and is succeeded by his son Acastus. * 1046 BC—Following the Battle of Muye, King Wu of Zhou ove ...

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

, King of Israel, is born. *

1039 BC The 1030s BC is a decade which lasted from 1039 BC to 1030 BC. Events and trends * 1039 BC— Neferkare Amenemnisu, king of Egypt, dies. * c. 1039 BC—End of the Rebellion of the Three Guards in China. King Cheng subdues the hostile kingdom of ...

: Neferkare Amenemnisu, king of

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...

, dies. *

1026 BC The 1020s BC is a decade which lasted from 1029 BC to 1020 BC. Events and trends * 1027 BC — Traditional date for the end of the Shang Dynasty in China, and the beginning of the Zhou Dynasty. * 1026 BC — Saul the King becomes the first king o ...

Saul Saul (; he, , ; , ; ) was, according to the Hebrew Bible, the first monarch of the United Kingdom of Israel. His reign, traditionally placed in the late 11th century BCE, supposedly marked the transition of Israel and Judah from a scattered tri ...

becomes the first king of the

Israelites The Israelites (; , , ) were a group of Semitic-speaking tribes in the ancient Near East who, during the Iron Age, inhabited a part of Canaan. The earliest recorded evidence of a people by the name of Israel appears in the Merneptah Stele o ...

, according to the

Books of Samuel The Book of Samuel (, ''Sefer Shmuel'') is a book in the Hebrew Bible, found as two books (1–2 Samuel) in the Old Testament. The book is part of the narrative history of Ancient Israel called the Deuteronomistic history, a series of books ( Jo ...

. *

1020 BC The 1020s BC is a decade which lasted from 1029 BC to 1020 BC. Events and trends * 1027 BC — Traditional date for the end of the Shang Dynasty in China, and the beginning of the Zhou Dynasty. * 1026 BC — Saul the King becomes the first king ...

: Destruction of

Troy Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in present-day Turkey, south-west of Ç ...

VIIb₂. *

King Kang of Zhou King Kang of Zhou, personal name Ji Zhao, was the third sovereign of the Chinese Zhou Dynasty and son of King Cheng of Zhou. The dates of his reign are 1020–996 BC or 1005–978 BC. King Kang followed his father's policy and expanded the Zhou ...

succeeds King Cheng as ruler of the Zhou Dynasty in China. *

1012 BC The 1010s BC is a decade which lasted from 1019 BC to 1010 BC. Events and trends * 1019 BC - Reign of Shalmaneser II ends, succeeded by his son Ashur-nirari IV. * 1013 BC - Ashur-nirari IV is succeeded by his uncle, Ashur-rabi II, who ruled for 4 ...

, dies after a reign of 36 years and is succeeded by his son Archippus. * 1000s BC: Earliest evidence of

farming Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled peopl ...

in the

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

highlands. * 1000s BC:

Phoenician alphabet The Phoenician alphabet is an alphabet (more specifically, an abjad) known in modern times from the Canaanite and Aramaic inscriptions found across the Mediterranean region. The name comes from the Phoenician civilization. The Phoenician al ...

invented. *

1010 BC The 1010s BC is a decade which lasted from 1019 BC to 1010 BC. Events and trends * 1019 BC - Reign of Shalmaneser II ends, succeeded by his son Ashur-nirari IV. * 1013 BC - Ashur-nirari IV is succeeded by his uncle, Ashur-rabi II, who ruled for 4 ...

succeeds

Ish-bosheth Ish-bosheth ( he, , translit=ʼĪš-bōšeṯ, "man of shame"), also called Eshbaal (, ; alternatively spelled Ishbaal, "fire of Baal") was, according to the Hebrew Bible, the second monarch of the Kingdom of Israel who succeeded his father, Saul ...

. *

1000 BC The 1000s BC is a decade which lasted from 1009 BC to 1000 BC. Events and trends * 1006 BC— David becomes king of the ancient United Kingdom of Israel (traditional date). * Earliest evidence of farming in the Kenya highlands. * c. 1000 BC� ...

Latins The Latins were originally an Italic tribe in ancient central Italy from Latium. As Roman power and colonization spread Latin culture during the Roman Republic. Latins culturally "Romanized" or "Latinized" the rest of Italy, and the word Latin ...

arrive in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

Sovereign states

See: List of sovereign states in the 11th century BC.

The world in the 11th century BC

Events

Sovereign states

See also