The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to ancient India: Ancient India is the Indian subcontinent from prehistoric times to the start of Medieval India, which is typically dated (when the term is still used) to the end of the Gupta Empire around 500 CE. Depending on context, the term Ancient India might cover the modern-day countries of

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

, Sri Lanka,

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

, India, Nepal and Pakistan, though these territories had large cultural differences.

General history of Ancient India

An elaborate periodisation may be as follows:

Pre-history (Neolithic Age) (c. 8000–3500 BCE)

* Indian Pre-history Age (c. 10,000–3300 BCE) * Bhirrana culture (7570–6200 BCE) * Mehrgarh culture (c. 7000 –2500 BCE)

Bronze Age India (c. 3500–1750 BCE)

* Indus Valley Civilisation (c. 3300–1300 BCE) *

Ahar–Banas culture The Ahar culture, also known as the Banas culture is a Chalcolithic archaeological culture on the banks of Ahar River of southeastern Rajasthan state in India, lasting from 3000 to 1500 BCE, contemporary and adjacent to the Indus Valley civil ...

(c. 3000–1500 BCE) *

Ochre Coloured Pottery culture The Ochre Coloured Pottery culture (OCP) is a Bronze Age culture of the Indo-Gangetic Plain "generally dated 2000–1500 BCE," extending from eastern Punjab to northeastern Rajasthan and western Uttar Pradesh. Artefacts of this culture show ...

(c. 2600–1200 BCE) *

Cemetery H culture The Cemetery H culture was a Bronze Age culture in the Punjab region in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, from about 1900 BC until about 1300 BC. It is regarded as a regional form of the late phase of the Harappan (Indus Valle ...

(c. 1900–1300 BCE) * Indian Civilizations on peak Indus Valley Civilisation & "First Urbanization " (c. 3300–1750 BCE);

Iron Age (c. 1750–345 BCE)

* Iron Age India (c. 1750–345 BCE) **

Vedic civilization The Vedic period, or the Vedic age (), is the period in the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age of the history of India when the Vedic literature, including the Vedas (ca. 1300–900 BCE), was composed in the northern Indian subcontinent, betwe ...

(c. 1500–600 BCE) ***

Black and red ware culture Black and red ware (BRW) is a South Asian earthenware, associated with the neolithic phase, Harappa, Bronze Age India, Iron Age India, the megalithic and the early historical period. Although it is sometimes called an archaeological culture, the ...

(c. 1450–700 BCE) in Western

Ganges plain The Indo-Gangetic Plain, also known as the North Indian River Plain, is a fertile plain encompassing northern regions of the Indian subcontinent, including most of northern and eastern India, around half of Pakistan, virtually all of Bangla ...

***

Northern Black Polished Ware The Northern Black Polished Ware culture (abbreviated NBPW or NBP) is an urban Iron Age Indian culture of the Indian Subcontinent, lasting c. 700–200 BCE (proto NBPW between 1200 and 700 BCE), succeeding the Painted Grey Ware culture and Black ...

(c. 1200–500 BCE)Strickland, K. M., R. A. E. Coningham, et al., (2016)
"Ancient Lumminigame: A Preliminary Report on Recent Archaeological Investigations at Lumbini's Village Mound"
in Ancient Nepal, Number 190, April 2016, p. 10. *** Painted Grey Ware culture (c. 1200 or 700–300 BCE)Neogi, Sayantani, Charles A. I. French, Julie A. Durcan, Rabindra N. Singh, and Cameron A. Petrie, (2019)
"Geoarchaeological insights into the location of Indus settlements on the plains of northwest India"
in Quaternary Research, Volume 94, March 2020, p. 140. **

Brihadratha dynasty Brihadratha dynasty (Sanskrit: बृहद्रथ; IAST: Bṛhadratha) was the first ruling dynasty of Magadha. Brihadratha was the founder of the dynasty.Misra, V.S. (2007). ''Ancient Indian Dynasties'', Mumbai: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, , pp ...

(c. 1700–682 BCE) **

Gandhara Kingdom Gandhāra ( sa, गन्धार) was an Ancient Indian kingdom mentioned in the Indian epics Mahabharata and Ramayana. Gandhara prince Shakuni was the root of all the conspiracies of Duryodhana against the Pandavas, which finally resulted ...

(c. 1500–545 BCE) ** Kuru Kingdom (c. 1200–345 BCE) ** Indian Iron Age kingdoms (c. 600–345 BCE) ** Pandyan Kingdom (c. 600 BCE–650 CE) * Iron Age including

Vedic period The Vedic period, or the Vedic age (), is the period in the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age of the history of India when the Vedic literature, including the Vedas (ca. 1300–900 BCE), was composed in the northern Indian subcontinent, betwe ...

(c. 1750–600 BCE);

Pre-Classical Period (c. 600 BCE–250 CE)

* Pradyota dynasty (c. 682–544 BCE) *

Haryanka dynasty The Haryanka dynasty was the third ruling dynasty of Magadha, an empire of ancient India, which succeeded the Pradyota dynasty and Barhadratha dynasty. Initially, the capital was Rajagriha. Later, it was shifted to Pataliputra, near the pres ...

(c. 544–413 BCE) *

Shaishunaga dynasty The Shaishunaga dynasty (IAST: Śaiśunāga, literally "of Shishunaga") is the fourth ruling dynasty of Magadha, an empire of ancient India. According to the Hindu ''Puranas'', this dynasty was the second ruling dynasty of Magadha, succeeding ...

(c. 413–345 BCE) * Nanda Empire (c. 345–322 BCE) * Maurya Empire (c. 322–185 BCE) *

Sangam period The Sangam period or age (, ), particularly referring to the third Sangam period, is the period of the history of ancient Tamil Nadu, Kerala and parts of Sri Lanka (then known as Tamilakam) spanning from c. 6th century BCE to c. 3rd century CE. ...

(c. 300 BCE–300 CE) ** Pandyan Kingdom (c. 600 BCE–1650 CE) ** Chera Kingdom (c. 300 BCE–1102 CE) **

Chola Kingdom The Chola dynasty was a Tamil thalassocratic empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated to the 3rd century BCE ...

(c. 300 BCE–1279 CE) * Kalinga Empire (until 250 BCE) * Maha-Megha-Vahana Empire (c. 250 BCE–300 CE) * Satavahana Empire (230 BCE–220 CE) * Kuninda Kingdom (c. 250 BCE–350 CE) * Shunga Empire (c. 185–73 BCE) * Kanva dynasty (c. 73–26 BCE) *

Indo-Greek Kingdom The Indo-Greek Kingdom, or Graeco-Indian Kingdom, also known historically as the Yavana Kingdom (Yavanarajya), was a Hellenistic-era Greek kingdom covering various parts of Afghanistan and the northwestern regions of the Indian subcontinent ( ...

(180 BCE–10 CE) * Kanva Empire (75–26 BCE) * Kushan Empire (30–375 CE) *

Indo-Scythian Kingdom Indo-Scythians (also called Indo-Sakas) were a group of nomadic Iranian peoples of Scythian origin who migrated from Central Asia southward into modern day Pakistan and Northwestern India from the middle of the 2nd century BCE to the 4th centu ...

( c. 12 BCE–395 CE)

Classical Age (c. 250–500 CE)

There are varying definitions of this period. * Gupta Empire (c. 320–650 CE) *

Later Gupta dynasty The Later Gupta dynasty ruled the Magadha region in eastern India between the 6th and 8th centuries CE. The Later Guptas succeeded the imperial Guptas as the rulers of Magadha, but there is no evidence connecting the two dynasties; these appear ...

(c. 490–750 CE) * Vakataka Empire (c. 250–500 CE) * Pallava Empire (c. 275–901 CE) * Kadamba dynasty (c. 345–1347 CE) *

Western Ganga dynasty Western Ganga was an important ruling dynasty of ancient Karnataka in India which lasted from about 350 to 1000 CE. They are known as "Western Gangas" to distinguish them from the Eastern Gangas who in later centuries ruled over Kalinga (m ...

(c. 350–1024 CE) * Vishnukundina Empire (c. 420–624 CE) *

Maitraka dynasty The Maitraka dynasty ruled western India (now Gujarat) from approximately 475 to approximately 776 CE from their capital at Vallabhi. With the sole exception of Dharapaṭṭa (the fifth king in the dynasty), who followed the Mithraic mysteries ...

(c. 475–776 CE) *

Rai dynasty The Rai dynasty (c. 489–632 CE) was a polity of ancient Sindh. Scholarship Pre-Islamic Sindh has been the subject of voluminous scholarship concerning the eve of Arab conquests; otherwise, the paucity of source materials remains a severe hin ...

(c. 489–632 CE)

Culture in ancient India

Art in ancient India

* Music in ancient India **

Carnatic music Carnatic music, known as or in the South Indian languages, is a system of music commonly associated with South India, including the modern Indian states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, and Sri Lanka. It is o ...

Hindustani music Hindustani classical music is the classical music of northern regions of the Indian subcontinent. It may also be called North Indian classical music or, in Hindustani, ''shastriya sangeet'' (). It is played in instruments like the violin, sita ...

Language in ancient India

* Vedic Sanskrit *

Proto-Dravidian Proto-Dravidian is the linguistic reconstruction of the common ancestor of the Dravidian languages. It is thought to have differentiated into Proto-North Dravidian, Proto-Central Dravidian, and Proto-South Dravidian, although the date of divers ...

* (Scripts) **

Tamil-Brahmi Tamil-Brahmi, also known as Tamizhi or Damili, was a variant of the Brahmi script in southern India. It was used to write inscriptions in the early form of Old Tamil.Richard Salomon (1998) ''Indian Epigraphy: A Guide to the Study of Inscription ...

Pallava script The Pallava script or Pallava Grantha, is a Brahmic script, named after the Pallava dynasty of South India, attested since the 4th century AD. As epigrapher Arlo Griffiths makes clear, however, the term is misleading as not all of the relevant sc ...

Gupta script The Gupta script (sometimes referred to as Gupta Brahmi script or Late Brahmi script)Sharma, Ram. '' 'Brahmi Script' ''. Delhi: BR Publishing Corp, 2002 was used for writing Sanskrit and is associated with the Gupta Empire of the Indian subcon ...

** Kadamba script

Religion in ancient India

History of Jainism Jainism is a religion founded in ancient India. Jains trace their history through twenty-four ''tirthankara'' and revere Rishabhanatha as the first ''tirthankara'' (in the present time-cycle). Some artifacts found in the Indus Valley civilizatio ...

History of Hinduism The history of Hinduism covers a wide variety of related religious traditions native to the Indian subcontinent. It overlaps or coincides with the development of religion in the Indian subcontinent since the Iron Age, with some of its tradition ...

Historical Vedic religion The historical Vedic religion (also known as Vedicism, Vedism or ancient Hinduism and subsequently Brahmanism (also spelled as Brahminism)), constituted the religious ideas and practices among some Indo-Aryan peoples of northwest Indian Subco ...

*** Vedas *** Vedic mythology ***

Vedic priesthood Priests of the Vedic religion are officiants of the ''yajna'' service. Yajna is an important part of Hinduism, especially the Vedas. Persons trained for the ritual and proficient in its practice were called ( ' regularly- sacrificing'). As mem ...

* History of Buddhism

Sport in ancient India

* Traditional games of India

Science and technology in ancient India

Science and technology in ancient India The history of science and technology in the Indian subcontinent begins with the prehistoric human activity of the Indus Valley Civilization to the early Indian states and empires. Prehistory By 5500 BCE a number of sites similar to Mehrgarh ...

** Indian mathematics ** Indian astronomy **

List of Indian inventions and discoveries This list of Indian inventions and discoveries details the inventions, scientific discoveries and contributions of India, including the ancient, classical and post-classical nations in the subcontinent historically referred to as India and th ...

Indian martial arts Indian martial arts refers to the fighting systems of the Indian subcontinent. A variety of terms are used for the English phrases “Indian martial arts”, deriving from ancient sources. While they may seem to imply specific disciplines (e.g. ...

Malla-yuddha Malla-yuddha (Sanskrit: मल्लयुद्ध, ) is the traditional form of combat-wrestling originating in India. It is closely related to Southeast Asian wrestling styles such as naban and is one of the two ancestors of kushti. Indian w ...

Kalaripayattu Kalaripayattu (; also known simply as Kalari) is an Indian martial art that originated in modern-day Kerala, a state on the southwestern coast of India. Kalaripayattu is known for its long-standing history within Indian martial arts, and is ...

* Ancient Indian medicine ** Siddha medicine **

Ayurveda Ayurveda () is an alternative medicine system with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. The theory and practice of Ayurveda is pseudoscientific. Ayurveda is heavily practiced in India and Nepal, where around 80% of the population repor ...

Architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing buildings ...

** Dravidian architecture * Indian in Sanskrit epics

Organizations concerned with ancient India

Museums with ancient Indian exhibits

* India (clockwise) ** National Museum, New Delhi **

Patna Museum Patna Museum is the state museum of the Indian state of Bihar. Started on 3 April 1917 during the British Raj to house the historical artefacts found in the vicinity of Patna, it is in the style of Mughal and Rajput architecture and is known l ...

Indian Museum, Kolkata The Indian Museum in Central Kolkata, West Bengal, India, also referred to as the Imperial Museum at Calcutta in colonial-era texts, is the ninth oldest museum in the world, the oldest and largest museum in India as well as in Asia. It has rare ...

** Government Museum, Bangalore **

Goa State Museum Goa State Museum, also known as the State Archaeology Museum, Panaji, is a museum in Goa, India. Established in 1977, it contains departments including Ancient History and Archaeology, Art and Craft, and Geology. The museum, as of 2008, had ab ...

Kutch Museum Kutch Museum is located in Bhuj, Kutch district of Gujarat, India. It is the oldest museum of Gujarat which was founded in 1877. It is located opposite Hamirsar Lake. The museum was earlier known as Fergusson Museum. History Kutch museum was ...

Bhuj Bhuj () is a Municipality and District Headquarters of Kutch District in the state of Gujarat, India. Etymology According to legend, Kutch was ruled by the Nāga chieftains in the past. Sagai, a queen of Sheshapattana, who was married to Kin ...

, Gujarat * United Kingdom **

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It documen ...

, London

Notes

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References

Sources

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External links

Ancient India - The British Museum

Ancient India - World History Encyclopedia

TimeMaps Civilization: Ancient India
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