Apracharajas

The Apracharajas or Apracarajas (Gandhārī: 𐨀𐨤𐨿𐨪𐨕𐨪𐨗), also known as Avacarajas (Gandhārī: 𐨀𐨬𐨕𐨪𐨗), were a local ruling dynasty of Gandhāra attested solely from the reliquary inscriptions and coinage between 1st century BCE and 1st century CE. Their capital, known as Apracapura or Avacapura, was probably located in modern-day Bajaur, though from numismatic evidence and reliquary inscriptions, it appears that their territory at times encompassed the wider region of Gandhāra. The official language of Apracharajas was Gandhārī Prakrit, written in the Kharoṣṭhī script. They were contemporaries of Oḍirājas in Oddiyana, with whom they probably had matrimonial relations.

Based on their inscriptions and coinage, the Apracharajas are known to have patronised Buddhism. They constructed stupas and donated reliquaries in honor of the Buddha. The exact genealogical relation of Apracharajas with each other and their origin, however, remains less certain, and reconstruction of it depends on the seventeen Gandhārī language inscriptions associated with them.