List of political entities in the 5th century BC

The development of states—large-scale, populous, politically centralized, and socially stratified polities/societies governed by powerful rulers—marks one of the major milestones in the evolution of human societies. Archaeologists often distinguish between primary (or pristine) states and secondary states. Primary states evolved independently through largely internal developmental processes rather than through the influence of any other pre-existing state. The earliest known primary states appeared in Mesopotamia c. 3700 BC, in Egypt c. 3300 BC, in the Indus Valley c. 2500 BC, India c. 1700 BC, and in China c. 1600 BC. As they interacted with their less developed neighbors through trade, warfare, migration, and more generalized ideological influences, the primary states directly or indirectly fostered the emergence of secondary states in surrounding areas, for example, the Hittites in Anatolia, the Minoan and Mycenaean states of the Aegean, or the Nubian kingdoms in the Sudan. According to Professor Gil Stein of the University of Chicago Oriental Institute, "The excavations and archaeological surveys of the last few decades have vastly increased both the quantity and quality of what we know about ancient states and urbanism. Archaeologists have broadened the scope of their research beyond the traditional focus on rulers and urban elites. Current research now aims at understanding the role of urban commoners, craft specialists, and village-based farmers in the overall organization of ancient states and societies. Given the immense geographical scope encompassed by the term 'the Ancient World'". The notion of a sovereign state arises in the 16th century with the development of modern diplomacy. For earlier times, the term "sovereign state" is an anachronism. What corresponded to sovereign states in the medieval and ancient period were monarchs ruling by the grace of God, de facto feudal or imperial autocrats, or de facto independent nations or tribal confederations. This is a list of sovereign states that existed between 500 BC and 401 BC.

Sovereign states

Sovereign stateYearsAchaemenid Empire550–330 BCAdena culture1000–200 BCAmmon – 332 BCAnga1380–550 BCAthens510–322 BCAvanti900–322 BCBithynia297–74 BCCappadocia320 BC – 17 ADCarthaginian Empire650–146 BCChavín culture900–200 BCChedi600–300 BCChen 855–479 BCChera5th century BC – 1102 ADChola2645 BC – 1279 ADChorrera1800–300 BCChu1030–223 BCColchis1300 – 2nd century ADCorinth700–338 BCCyrene631–525 BCDʿmtc. 980 BC – c. 400 BCDardanian kingdom c.448 BC – 28 BCEdom1200–125 BCGandhara800 BC–500 ADGojoseon 2333–108 BCHan 403–230 BCKalinga1376–285 BCKamboja 1450–195 BCKasi 600–345 BCKikata 2000–1700 BCKosala1000–266 BCKuru1376–285 BCKush 1070 BC – 350 ADLu 856–256 BCLycaonia8th century–200 BCMacedonia8th century–146 BCMahajanapadas600–345 BCMalla RepublicsMannai1110–616 BCMaya civilization2000 BC – 900 ADMinaea580–85 BCMoab1300–400 BCMysia1320–301 BCNanda Empire424–321 BCOlmec1400–400 BCPanchala700–323 BCPandya1350–460 BCPaphlagonia1480–183 BCParacas culture600–175 BCPisidia8000 BC – 11th century ADQi 1046–241 BCQin 845–221 BCRoman Republic509–27 BCSaba12th/8th century BC – 275 ADScythia8th century BC – 2nd century ADSparta11th century – 195 BCSurasena1000–323 BCTa Netjeru/Land of Punt2400–1069 BCThebes3200–30 BCVajjika League – Văn Lang2879–258 BCVatsa1100–323 BCWei 403–225 BCYan 865–222 BCZapotec civilization700 BC – 1521 ADZheng 806–375 BCZhou1045–256 BC

See also List of Bronze Age states List of Iron Age states List of Classical Age states List of states during Late Antiquity List of states during the Middle Ages

References