The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to ancient history:

Ancient history Ancient history is a time period from the beginning of writing and recorded human history to as far as late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the Sumerian cuneiform script. Ancient history cove ...

– study of ''recorded'' human history from the beginning of

writing Writing is a medium of human communication which involves the representation of a language through a system of physically inscribed, mechanically transferred, or digitally represented symbols. Writing systems do not themselves constitute h ...

at about 3000 BC until the

Early Middle Ages The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th or early 6th century to the 10th century. They marked the start of the Mi ...

. The times ''before

'' belong either to

protohistory Protohistory is a period between prehistory and history during which a culture or civilization has not yet developed writing, but other cultures have already noted the existence of those pre-literate groups in their own writings. For example, in ...

or to

prehistory Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use ...

. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 – 5,500 years, beginning with Sumerian

cuneiform Cuneiform is a logo-syllabic script that was used to write several languages of the Ancient Middle East. The script was in active use from the early Bronze Age until the beginning of the Common Era. It is named for the characteristic wedge-sh ...

, the oldest form of writing discovered so far. Although the ending date of ancient history is disputed, currently most

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

scholars use the

fall of the Western Roman Empire The fall of the Western Roman Empire (also called the fall of the Roman Empire or the fall of Rome) was the loss of central political control in the Western Roman Empire, a process in which the Empire failed to enforce its rule, and its vas ...

in 476 AD or the coming of Islam in 632 AD as the end of ancient history.

Nature of ancient history

What type of thing is ancient history?

Ancient history can be described as all of the following:

Essence of ancient history

Timeline of ancient history This timeline of ancient history lists historical events of the documented ancient past from the beginning of recorded history until the Early Middle Ages. Prior to this time period, prehistory civilizations were pre-literate and did not have w ...

Periodization

Periods in the Ancient Western world *

Classical antiquity Classical antiquity (also the classical era, classical period or classical age) is the period of cultural history between the 8th century BC and the 5th century AD centred on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ...

Timeline of classical antiquity Timeline of Classical antiquity see: *Timeline of ancient Greece *Timeline of Roman history See also *Timeline of Christianity * Timeline of post-classical history *History of Mesopotamia *Timeline of Middle Eastern history *Timeline of ancient ...

** Archaic period in classical antiquity (c. eighth to c. sixth centuries BC) ***

Iron Age Europe In Europe, the Iron Age is the last stage of the prehistoric period and the first of the protohistoric periods,The Junior Encyclopædia Britannica: A reference library of general knowledge. (1897). Chicago: E.G. Melvin. (seriously? 1897 "Junior ...

*** Archaic Greece ** Classical Greece (fifth to fourth centuries BC) **

Hellenistic period In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ...

(323 BC to 146 BC) **

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Ki ...

(fifth to first centuries BC) **

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post- Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediter ...

(first century BC to fifth century AD) *

Late Antiquity Late antiquity is the time of transition from classical antiquity to the Middle Ages, generally spanning the 3rd–7th century in Europe and adjacent areas bordering the Mediterranean Basin. The popularization of this periodization in English ha ...

(fourth to seventh centuries AD)

Ordinal periods

5th millennium BC The 5th millennium BC spanned the years 5000 BC to 4001 BC (c. 7 ka to c. 6 ka). It is impossible to precisely date events that happened around the time of this millennium and all dates mentioned here are estimates mostly based on geological an ...

4th millennium BC The 4th millennium BC spanned the years 4000 BC to 3001 BC. Some of the major changes in human culture during this time included the beginning of the Bronze Age and the invention of writing, which played a major role in starting recorded history. ...

40th century BC During the 40th century BC, the Eastern Mediterranean region was in the Chalcolithic period (Copper Age), transitional between the Stone and the Bronze Ages. Northwestern Europe was in the Neolithic. China was dominated by the Neolithic Yangshao ...

39th century BC The 39th century BC was a century which lasted from the year 3900 BC to 3801 BC. Events * The Post Track, an ancient causeway in the Somerset Levels, England, is built, c. 3838 BC. It is one of the oldest engineered roads discovered in Norther ...

** 38th century BC **

37th century BC The 37th century BC was a century which lasted from the year 3700 BC to 3601 BC. Events * In the south of England, a rapid expansion of monument building occurred around 3700 BC. * In the city of Uruk Uruk, also known as Warka or Warkah, was ...

** 36th century BC ** 35th century BC ** 34th century BC ** 33rd century BC **

32nd century BC The 32nd century BC was a century that lasted from the year 3200 BC to 3101 BC. Events * c. 3190–3170 BC? reign of King Double Falcon of Lower Egypt. There is a strong possibility that he appears on the Palermo stone, although half his name ...

** 31st century BC *

3rd millennium BC The 3rd millennium BC spanned the years 3000 through 2001 BC. This period of time corresponds to the Early to Middle Bronze Age, characterized by the early empires in the Ancient Near East. In Ancient Egypt, the Early Dynastic Period is followe ...

** 30th century BC **

29th century BC The 29th century BC was a century that lasted from the year 2900 BC to 2801 BC. Events * BC: Beginning of the Early Dynastic Period I in Sumer. * BC – 2600 BC: Votive statues from the Square Temple of Eshnunna (modern Tell Ashmar, Iraq) ...

28th century BC The 28th century BC was a century that lasted from the year 2800 BC to 2701 BC. Events *c. 2800 BC – 2700 BC: Seated Harp Player, from Keros, Cyclades, is made. It is now at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. *2775 BC – 2650 BC: Seco ...

27th century BC The 27th century BC was a century that lasted from the year 2700 BC to 2601 BC. Events *c. 2750–2600 BC: Early Dynastic II Period in Mesopotamia. *c. 2700 BC: The beginning of statuary in Egypt, with shale and limestone statues of Khasekhemwy ...

26th century BC The 26th century BC was a century that lasted from the year 2600 BC to 2501 BC. Events Crete * c. 2600–2400 BC: Early Minoan I period in Crete. Egypt * c. 2551–2526 BC: Reign of Khufu, second pharaoh of the Fourth Dynasty. The height of th ...

25th century BC The 25th century BC was a century that lasted from the year 2500 BC to 2401 BC. Events * c. 2900–2334 BC: Mesopotamian wars of the Early Dynastic period. * c. 2560 BC: Construction of the Great Pyramid of Giza is completed. * c. 2500 BC: ...

** 24th century BC **

23rd century BC The 23rd century BC was a century that lasted from the year 2300 BC to 2201 BC. Events * 2334 BC – 2279 BC: ( short chronology) Sargon of Akkad's conquest of Mesopotamia. *c. 2300 BC: Indus Valley civilisation (Harappan) flourishing in mode ...

** 22nd century BC **

21st century BC The 21st century BC was a century that lasted from the year 2100 BC to 2001 BC. Events Note: all dates from this long ago should be regarded as either approximate or conjectural; there are no absolutely certain dates, and multiple competing r ...

2nd millennium BC The 2nd millennium BC spanned the years 2000 BC to 1001 BC. In the Ancient Near East, it marks the transition from the Middle to the Late Bronze Age. The Ancient Near Eastern cultures are well within the historical era: The first half of the mil ...

20th century BC The 20th century BC was a century that lasted from the year 2000 BC to 1901 BC. The period of the 2nd Millennium BC Events * c. 2000 BC: ** Farmers and herders traveled south from Ethiopia and settled in Kenya. ** Dawn of the Capacha Cult ...

** 19th century BC ** 18th century BC ** 17th century BC **

16th century BC The 16th century BC is a century that lasted from 1600 BC to 1501 BC. Events * 1700 BC – 1500 BC: Hurrian conquests. * 1601 BC: Sharma-Adad II became the King of Assyria. *c. 1600 BC: The creation of one of the oldest surviving astronomical d ...

15th century BC The 15th century BC was the century that lasted from 1500 BC to 1401 BC. Events * 1504 BC – 1492 BC: Egypt conquers Nubia and the Levant. * 1500 BC – 1400 BC: The Battle of the Ten Kings took place around this time. * 1500 BC: Coalescen ...

** 14th century BC **

13th century BC In music or music theory, a thirteenth is the note thirteen scale degrees from the root of a chord and also the interval between the root and the thirteenth. The interval can be also described as a compound sixth, spanning an octave ...

** 12th century BC ** 11th century BC *

1st millennium BC The 1st millennium BC, also known as the last millennium BC, was the period of time lasting from the years 1000 BC to 1 BC ( 10th to 1st centuries BC; in astronomy: JD – ). It encompasses the Iron Age in the Old World and sees the trans ...

10th century BC The 10th century BC comprises the years from 1000 BC to 901 BC. This period followed the Late Bronze Age collapse in the Near East, and the century saw the Early Iron Age take hold there. The Greek Dark Ages which had come about in 1200 BC cont ...

9th century BC The 9th century BC started the first day of 900 BC and ended the last day of 801 BC. It was a period of great change for several civilizations. In Africa, Carthage is founded by the Phoenicians. In Egypt, a severe flood covers the floor of Luxor ...

8th century BC The 8th century BCE started the first day of 800 BC and ended the last day of 701 BC. The 8th century BC is a period of great change for several historically significant civilizations. In Egypt, the 23rd and 24th dynasties lead to rule from ...

7th century BC The 7th century BC began the first day of 700 BC and ended the last day of 601 BC. The Neo-Assyrian Empire continued to dominate the Near East during this century, exercising formidable power over neighbors like Babylon and Egypt. In the last ...

** 6th century BC **

5th century BC The 5th century BC started the first day of 500 BC and ended the last day of 401 BC. This century saw the establishment of Pataliputra as a capital of the Magadha Empire. This city would later become the ruling capital of different Indian king ...

4th century BC The 4th century BC started the first day of 400 BC and ended the last day of 301 BC. It is considered part of the Classical era, epoch, or historical period. This century marked the height of Classical Greek civilization in all of its aspec ...

3rd century BC In the Mediterranean Basin, the first few decades of this century were characterized by a balance of power between the Greek Hellenistic kingdoms in the east, and the great mercantile power of Carthage in the west. This balance was shattered ...

** 2nd century BC ** 1st century BC * first millennium * 1st millennium ** 1st century **

2nd century The 2nd century is the period from 101 ( CI) through 200 ( CC) in accordance with the Julian calendar. It is considered part of the Classical era, epoch, or historical period. Early in the century, the Roman Empire attained its greatest e ...

3rd century The 3rd century was the period from 201 ( CCI) to 300 ( CCC) Anno Domini (AD) or Common Era (CE) in the Julian calendar.. In this century, the Roman Empire saw a crisis, starting with the assassination of the Roman Emperor Severus Alexande ...

** 4th century **

5th century The 5th century is the time period from 401 ( CDI) through 500 ( D) ''Anno Domini'' (AD) or Common Era (CE) in the Julian calendar. The 5th century is noted for being a period of migration and political instability throughout Eurasia. It saw the ...

Ancient history by region

Ancient geographical regions

Ancient Africa

Ancient African history *

Ancient West Africa The history of West Africa has been divided into its prehistory, the Iron Age in Africa, the major polities flourishing, the colonial period, and finally the post-independence era, in which the current nations were formed. West Africa is west o ...

* Ancient North Africa ** Africa (Roman province) ** Ancient Egypt *** History of ancient Egypt ***

List of ancient Egyptian sites This is a list of ancient Egyptian sites, throughout all of Egypt and Nubia. Sites are listed by their classical name whenever possible, if not by their modern name, and lastly with their ancient name if no other is available. Nomes A nom ...

***

List of ancient Egyptian towns and cities This is a list of known ancient Egyptian towns and cities.
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/. Retrieved on 2016-03-05. T ...

Ancient Carthage Carthage () was a settlement in modern Tunisia that later became a city-state and then an empire. Founded by the Phoenicians in the ninth century BC, Carthage reached its height in the fourth century BC as one of the largest metropolises in t ...

** Ancient Libya ***

Cyrenaica Cyrenaica ( ) or Kyrenaika ( ar, برقة, Barqah, grc-koi, Κυρηναϊκή ��παρχίαKurēnaïkḗ parkhíā}, after the city of Cyrene), is the eastern region of Libya. Cyrenaica includes all of the eastern part of Libya between ...

** Mauretania *** Mauretania Caesariensis ***

Mauretania Sitifensis Mauretania Sitifensis was a Roman province in Northwest Africa. The capital was Setifis. History In the later division of the Roman Empire under the Emperor Diocletian, the eastern part of Mauretania Caesariensis, from Saldae to the river Ampsag ...

***

Mauretania Tingitana Mauretania Tingitana (Latin for "Tangerine Mauretania") was a Roman province, coinciding roughly with the northern part of present-day Morocco. The territory stretched from the northern peninsula opposite Gibraltar, to Sala Colonia (or Chella ...

* Ancient Central Africa * Ancient East Africa * Ancient Southern Africa

Ancient Asia

Ancient Asia The history of Asia can be seen as the collective history of several distinct peripheral coastal regions such as East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia and the Middle East linked by the interior mass of the Eurasian steppe. See History of the Mi ...

Ancient Near East The ancient Near East was the home of early civilizations within a region roughly corresponding to the modern Middle East: Mesopotamia (modern Iraq, southeast Turkey, southwest Iran and northeastern Syria), ancient Egypt, ancient Iran ( Elam, ...

(alphabetical) ** Achaemenid Empire (First Persian Empire) **

Ancient history of Cyprus The ancient history of Cyprus shows a precocious sophistication in the Neolithic era visible in settlements such as at Choirokoitia dating from the 9th millennium BC, and at Kalavassos from about 7500 BC. Periods of Cyprus's ancient history ...

** History of ancient Egypt (see Egypt under Ancient Africa, above) **

Macedonian Empire Macedonia (; grc-gre, Μακεδονία), also called Macedon (), was an ancient kingdom on the periphery of Archaic and Classical Greece, and later the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. The kingdom was founded and initially ruled ...

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...

*** Sumer ***

Akkadian Empire The Akkadian Empire () was the first ancient empire of Mesopotamia after the long-lived civilization of Sumer. It was centered in the city of Akkad () and its surrounding region. The empire united Akkadian and Sumerian speakers under one ...

*** Babylonia ***

Assyria Assyria ( Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , romanized: ''māt Aššur''; syc, ܐܬܘܪ, ʾāthor) was a major ancient Mesopotamian civilization which existed as a city-state at times controlling regional territories in the indigenous lands of the ...

Parthian Empire The Parthian Empire (), also known as the Arsacid Empire (), was a major Iranian political and cultural power in ancient Iran from 247 BC to 224 AD. Its latter name comes from its founder, Arsaces I, who led the Parni tribe in conque ...

(Second Persian Empire) ** Sasanian Empire (Third Persian Empire) **

Ancient history of Yemen The ancient history of Yemen (South Arabia) is especially important because Yemen is one of the oldest centers of civilization in the Near East. Its relatively fertile land and adequate rainfall in a moister climate helped sustain a stable po ...

* Ancient East Asia ** Ancient China ***

Historical capitals of China This is a list of historical capitals of China. Four Great Ancient Capitals There are traditionally four major historical capitals of China referred to as the "Four Great Ancient Capitals of China" (). The four are Beijing, Nanjing, Luoyang and X ...

(includes a chronology which includes ancient times) **

Ancient Japan The first human inhabitants of the Japanese archipelago have been traced to prehistoric times around 30,000 BC. The Jōmon period, named after its cord-marked pottery, was followed by the Yayoi period in the first millennium BC when new invent ...

* Ancient South Asia **

Ancient India According to consensus in modern genetics, anatomically modern humans first arrived on the Indian subcontinent from Africa between 73,000 and 55,000 years ago. Quote: "Y-Chromosome and Mt-DNA data support the colonization of South Asia by m ...

*** List of ancient Indian cities

Ancient Europe

Ancient Europe The expression Ancient Europe may be used in a variety of senses: *The ancient concept of ''Europa'' in Greek geography, in origin "the landmass adjacent to Thrace" ** Europa (ancient geography) **Europa (Roman province), in the Diocese of Thrace * ...

* the territory of Europe (the continent according to its modern definition) in "ancient times": ** Bronze Age Europe ***

***

Roman imperial period (chronology) The Roman imperial period is the expansion of political and cultural influence of the Roman Empire. The period begins with the reign of Augustus (), and it is taken to end variously between the late 3rd and the late 4th century, with the beginning ...

***

Roman Iron Age The archaeology of Northern Europe studies the prehistory of Scandinavia and the adjacent North European Plain, roughly corresponding to the territories of modern Sweden, Norway, Denmark, northern Germany, Poland and the Netherlands. The regi ...

** List of ancient cities in Italy * the territories of Europe participating in

Classical Antiquity Classical antiquity (also the classical era, classical period or classical age) is the period of cultural history between the 8th century BC and the 5th century AD centred on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ...

Ancient Greece Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of Classical Antiquity, classical antiquity ( AD 600), th ...

Ancient Rome In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC ...

*** Ancient history of Transylvania

Ancient Mediterranean region

* Ancient Mediterranean Sea ** Ancient Aegean Sea ***

Aegean civilizations Aegean civilization is a general term for the Bronze Age civilizations of Greece around the Aegean Sea. There are three distinct but communicating and interacting geographic regions covered by this term: Crete, the Cyclades and the Greek mainland ...

**** Ancient history of the islands in the Aegean Sea ***** Ancient Cyclades ****** Ancient Amorgos ****** Ancient Anafi ****** Ancient Andros ****** Ancient Antiparos ******

Ancient Delos The island of Delos (; el, Δήλος ; Attic: , Doric: ), near Mykonos, near the centre of the Cyclades archipelago, is one of the most important mythological, historical, and archaeological sites in Greece. The excavations in the island are ...

****** Ancient Folegandros ****** Ancient Ios (island) ****** Ancient Kea (island) ****** Ancient Kimolos ****** Ancient Kythnos ****** Ancient Milos ****** Ancient Mykonos ****** Ancient Naxos (island) ****** Ancient Paros ****** Ancient Santorini ****** Ancient Serifos ****** Ancient Sifnos ****** Ancient Syros ****** Ancient Tinos **

Ancient Sicily The history of Sicily has been influenced by numerous ethnic groups. It has seen Sicily controlled by external powers – Phoenician and Carthaginian, Greek, Roman, Vandal and Ostrogoth, Byzantine Greek, Aghlabid, Fatimid, Kalbid, Norman, A ...

** Sea of Sardinia *** Ancient Balearic Islands *** Ancient Corsica *** Ancient Sardinia

Cradles of civilization

Fertile Crescent The Fertile Crescent ( ar, الهلال الخصيب) is a crescent-shaped region in the Middle East, spanning modern-day Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine and Jordan, together with the northern region of Kuwait, southeastern region of ...

** **

Ancient Mesopotamia The history of Mesopotamia ranges from the earliest human occupation in the Paleolithic period up to Late antiquity. This history is pieced together from evidence retrieved from archaeological excavations and, after the introduction of writing i ...

Ancient political entities

Ancient states

= Ancient states, by era

= *

List of Bronze Age states The Bronze Age (c. 3300–1200 BC) marks the emergence of the first complex state societies, and by the Middle Bronze Age (mid-3rd millennium BC) the first empires. This is a list of Bronze Age polities. By the end of the Bronze Age, complex ...

* List of Classical Age states *

List of Iron Age states The Iron Age is an archaeological age, the last of the three-age system of Old World prehistory. It follows the Bronze Age, in the Ancient Near East beginning c. 1200 BC, and in Europe beginning after c. 800 BC. It is taken to end with the be ...

List of states during Late Antiquity Late Antiquity is a historiographical term for the historical period from c. 200 AD to c. 700 AD, which marks the transition from Classical Antiquity to the Middle Ages. Precise boundaries for the period are a matter of debate, but historian ...

= Ancient states, by ordinal period

List of political entities in the 1st century ;List of political entities in the 1st century BC, Political entities in the 1st century BC – List of political entities in the 2nd century, Political entities in the 2nd century – List of sovereign states by year, Political entities by year ...

List of political entities in the 2nd century ; This is a list of political entities that existed between 101 and 200 AD. Political entities 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 st ...

List of political entities in the 3rd century This is a list of political entities that existed between 201 and 300 AD. ; Political entities in the 2nd century – Political entities in the 4th century – Political entities by year Sovereign states See also *List of Bronze Age ...

List of political entities in the 4th century ; Political entities in the 3rd century – List of political entities in the 5th century, Political entities in the 5th century – Lists of sovereign states by year, Political entities by year This is a list of sovereign state, political entit ...

List of political entities in the 5th century ; Political entities in the 4th century – Political entities in the 6th century – Political entities by year This is a list of political entities in the 5th century (401–500) AD. Political entities See also *List of Bronze Age states ...

Ancient sites

List of ancient cities in Illyria This is a list of settlements in Illyria founded by Illyrians (southern Illyrians, Dardanians, Pannonians), Liburni, Ancient Greeks and the Roman Empire. A number of cities in Illyria and later Illyricum were built on the sites or close to the ...

* List of ancient cities in Serbia *

List of ancient cities in Thrace and Dacia This is a list of ancient cities, towns, villages, and fortresses in and around Thrace and Dacia. A number of these settlements were Dacian and Thracian, but some were Celtic, Greek, Roman, Paeonian, or Persian. A number of cities in Dacia ...

Place these?

Ammon Ammon ( Ammonite: 𐤏𐤌𐤍 ''ʻAmān''; he, עַמּוֹן ''ʻAmmōn''; ar, عمّون, ʻAmmūn) was an ancient Semitic-speaking nation occupying the east of the Jordan River, between the torrent valleys of Arnon and Jabbok, in ...

Canaan Canaan (; Phoenician: 𐤊𐤍𐤏𐤍 – ; he, כְּנַעַן – , in pausa – ; grc-bib, Χανααν – ;The current scholarly edition of the Greek Old Testament spells the word without any accents, cf. Septuaginta : id est Vetus T ...

* Chaldea * Babylonia * Ur *

Uruk Uruk, also known as Warka or Warkah, was an ancient city of Sumer (and later of Babylonia) situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates River on the dried-up ancient channel of the Euphrates east of modern Samawah, Al-Muthannā, Iraq.Harm ...

Eridu Eridu (Sumerian language, Sumerian: , NUN.KI/eridugki; Akkadian language, Akkadian: ''irîtu''; modern Arabic language, Arabic: Tell Abu Shahrain) is an archaeological site in southern Mesopotamia (modern Dhi Qar Governorate, Iraq). Eridu was l ...

Kish Kish may refer to: Geography * Gishi, Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan, a village also called Kish * Kiş, Shaki, Azerbaijan, a village and municipality also spelled Kish * Kish Island, an Iranian island and a city in the Persian Gulf * Kish, Iran, ...

Girsu Girsu ( Sumerian ; cuneiform ) was a city of ancient Sumer, situated some northwest of Lagash, at the site of modern Tell Telloh, Dhi Qar Governorate, Iraq. History Girsu was possibly inhabited in the Ubaid period (5300-4800 BC), but sig ...

* Nippur *

Lagash Lagash (cuneiform: LAGAŠKI; Sumerian: ''Lagaš''), was an ancient city state located northwest of the junction of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers and east of Uruk, about east of the modern town of Ash Shatrah, Iraq. Lagash (modern Al-Hiba) w ...

* Elam *

Larsa Larsa ( Sumerian logogram: UD.UNUGKI, read ''Larsamki''), also referred to as Larancha/Laranchon (Gk. Λαραγχων) by Berossos and connected with the biblical Ellasar, was an important city-state of ancient Sumer, the center of the cult ...

History of ancient Israel and Judah The history of ancient Israel and Judah begins in the Southern Levant during the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age. "Israel" as a people or tribal confederation (see Israelites) appears for the first time in the Merneptah Stele, an inscri ...

Samaria Samaria (; he, שֹׁמְרוֹן, translit=Šōmrōn, ar, السامرة, translit=as-Sāmirah) is the historic and biblical name used for the central region of Palestine, bordered by Judea to the south and Galilee to the north. The first ...

Edom Edom (; Edomite: ; he, אֱדוֹם , lit.: "red"; Akkadian: , ; Ancient Egyptian: ) was an ancient kingdom in Transjordan, located between Moab to the northeast, the Arabah to the west, and the Arabian Desert to the south and east.N ...

Judea Judea or Judaea ( or ; from he, יהודה, Standard ''Yəhūda'', Tiberian ''Yehūḏā''; el, Ἰουδαία, ; la, Iūdaea) is an ancient, historic, Biblical Hebrew, contemporaneous Latin, and the modern-day name of the mountainous sou ...

Ancient government and politics

Political institutions of ancient Rome Various lists regarding the political institutions of ancient Rome are presented. Each entry in a list is a link to a separate article. Categories included are: constitutions (5), laws (5), and legislatures (7); state offices (28) and office holde ...

Ancient law

Ancient Greek law Ancient Greek law consists of the laws and legal institutions of Ancient Greece. The existence of certain general principles of law is implied by the custom of settling a difference between two Greek states, or between members of a single state, ...

Roman law Roman law is the legal system of ancient Rome, including the legal developments spanning over a thousand years of jurisprudence, from the Twelve Tables (c. 449 BC), to the '' Corpus Juris Civilis'' (AD 529) ordered by Eastern Roman emperor Ju ...

Ancient culture

Ancient culture ''Primitive Culture'' is an 1871 book by Edward Burnett Tylor. In his book, Tylor debates the relationship between "primitive" societies, and "civilized" societies, a key theme in 19th century anthropological literature. Evolutionism Tylor's w ...

Ancient architecture

Ancient architecture The history of architecture traces the changes in architecture through various traditions, regions, overarching stylistic trends, and dates. The beginnings of all these traditions is thought to be humans satisfying the very basic need of shelt ...

* Ancient Egyptian architecture ** Ancient pyramid *

Ancient Greek architecture Ancient Greek architecture came from the Greek-speaking people (''Hellenic'' people) whose culture flourished on the Greek mainland, the Peloponnese, the Aegean Islands, and in colonies in Anatolia and Italy for a period from about 900 BC unti ...

Ancient Greek temple Greek temples ( grc, ναός, naós, dwelling, semantically distinct from Latin , "temple") were structures built to house deity statues within Greek sanctuaries in ancient Greek religion. The temple interiors did not serve as meeting places, ...

Ancient Roman architecture Ancient Roman architecture adopted the external language of classical Ancient Greek Architecture, Greek architecture for the purposes of the ancient Romans, but was different from Greek buildings, becoming a new architecture, architectural style ...

Ancient monument In British law, an ancient monument is an early historical structure or monument (e.g. an archaeological site) worthy of preservation and study due to archaeological or heritage interest. The ''Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 ...

Ancient monuments in Ujjain Ujjain is an ancient city of central India, in the Malwa region of the Indian States and territories of India, state of Madhya Pradesh, on the eastern bank of the Kshipra River. Following is a list of ancient monuments in Ujjain. The Temples ...

* Architecture of the ancient Near East **

Ancient synagogues in Israel Ancient synagogues in Israel refers to synagogues in the modern State of Israel, built by the Jewish and Samaritan communities from antiquity to the Early Islamic period. The designation ancient synagogues in Israel requires careful definitio ...

Ancient synagogues in Palestine Ancient history is a time period from the beginning of writing and recorded human history to as far as late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the Sumerian cuneiform script. Ancient history cov ...

* Ancient constructions of Sri Lanka **

Ancient stupas of Sri Lanka Stupas, also called and cetiyas, are considered an outstanding type of architectural creation of ancient Sri Lanka. Under the influence of Buddhism, there were several changes in the field of architecture in Sri Lanka. The stupa commands a promine ...

Ancient art

Ancient art Ancient art refers to the many types of art produced by the advanced cultures of ancient societies with some form of writing, such as those of ancient China, India, Mesopotamia, Persia, Palestine, Egypt, Greece, and Rome. The art of pre-liter ...

* Art by culture ** Ancient Greek art * Art by type ** Ancient dance ***

Dance in ancient Egypt Dancing played a vital role in the lives of the ancient Egyptians. However, men and women are never depicted dancing together. The ''trf'' was a dance performed by a pair of men during the Old Kingdom. Dance groups were accessible to perform at d ...

*** Dance in ancient Greece ** Ancient music ***

Music of ancient Rome Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...

** Ancient poetry *** Ancient epic poetry ***

Greek lyric Greek lyric is the body of lyric poetry written in dialects of Ancient Greek. It is primarily associated with the early 7th to the early 5th centuries BC, sometimes called the "Lyric Age of Greece", but continued to be written into the Hellenisti ...

** Ancient sculpture ***

Ancient Greek sculpture The sculpture of ancient Greece is the main surviving type of fine ancient Greek art as, with the exception of painted ancient Greek pottery, almost no ancient Greek painting survives. Modern scholarship identifies three major stages in monument ...

** Ancient theatre ***

Theatre of ancient Greece Ancient Greek theatre was a theatrical culture that flourished in ancient Greece from 700 BC. The city-state of Athens, which became a significant cultural, political, and religious place during this period, was its centre, where the theatre was ...

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Theatre of ancient Rome The architectural form of theatre in Rome has been linked to later, more well-known examples from the 1st century BC to the 3rd Century AD. The theatre of ancient Rome referred to as a period of time in which theatrical practice and performance t ...

Ancient cuisine

* Ancient Egyptian cuisine *

Ancient Greek cuisine Ancient Greek cuisine was characterized by its frugality for most, reflecting agricultural hardship, but a great diversity of ingredients was known, and wealthy Greeks were known to celebrate with elaborate meals and feasts. The cuisine was found ...

Ancient Roman cuisine The cuisine of ancient Rome changed greatly over the duration of the civilization's existence. Dietary habits were affected by the political changes from kingdom to republic to empire, and the empire's enormous expansion, which exposed Romans to ...

Ancient Rome and wine Ancient Rome played a pivotal role in the history of wine. The earliest influences on the viticulture of the Italian peninsula can be traced to ancient Greeks and the Etruscans. The rise of the Roman Empire saw both technological advances in ...

List of ancient dishes This is a list of ancient dishes, prepared foods and beverages that have been recorded as originating during ancient history. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with Sumerian cuneiform script, the oldest discovered for ...

* Ancient Israelite cuisine

Ancient language

Ancient language An ancient language is any language originating in times that may be referred to as ancient. There are no formal criteria for deeming a language ancient, but a traditional convention is to demarcate as "ancient" those languages that existed prior t ...

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...

** Ancient Greek dialects **

Ancient Greek grammar Ancient Greek grammar is morphologically complex and preserves several features of Proto-Indo-European morphology. Nouns, adjectives, pronouns, articles, numerals and especially verbs are all highly inflected. A complication of Greek grammar is th ...

*** Ancient Greek grammar (tables) *** Ancient Greek nouns ***

Ancient Greek verbs Ancient Greek verbs have four moods ( indicative, imperative, subjunctive and optative), three voices ( active, middle and passive), as well as three persons (first, second and third) and three numbers (singular, dual and plural). * In the ...

** Ancient Greek personal names **

Ancient Greek phonology Ancient Greek phonology is the reconstructed phonology or pronunciation of Ancient Greek. This article mostly deals with the pronunciation of the standard Attic dialect of the fifth century BC, used by Plato and other Classical Greek writers, ...

* Ancient Hebrew language *

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

* Ancient Macedonian language

Ancient literature

Ancient literature Ancient literature comprises religious and scientific documents, tales, poetry and plays, royal edicts and declarations, and other forms of writing that were recorded on a variety of media, including stone, stone tablets, papyri, palm leaves, and ...

* Ancient Egyptian literature *

Ancient Greek literature Ancient Greek literature is literature written in the Ancient Greek language from the earliest texts until the time of the Byzantine Empire. The earliest surviving works of ancient Greek literature, dating back to the early Archaic period, are ...

Ancient Greek novel Five ancient Greek novels survive complete from antiquity: Chariton's '' Callirhoe'' (mid 1st century), Achilles Tatius' '' Leucippe and Clitophon'' (early 2nd century), Longus' '' Daphnis and Chloe'' (2nd century), Xenophon of Ephesus' '' Ephes ...

Ancient Hebrew writings The earliest known precursor to Hebrew, an inscription in the Paleo-Hebrew alphabet, is the Khirbet Qeiyafa Inscription (11th–10th century BCE), if it can be considered Hebrew at that early a stage. By far the most varied, extensive, and his ...

Ancient people

* List of ancient Greek tribes *

List of ancient peoples of Italy This list of ancient peoples living in Italy summarises groupings existing before and during the Roman expansion and conquest of Italy. Many of the names are either scholarly inventions or exonyms assigned by the ancient writers of works in anc ...

* Notable people from ancient history *

Hittites The Hittites () were an Anatolian people who played an important role in establishing first a kingdom in Kussara (before 1750 BC), then the Kanesh or Nesha kingdom (c. 1750–1650 BC), and next an empire centered on Hattusa in north-centra ...

** Biblical Hittites * Hasmoneans * Habiru *

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 ...

Ancient philosophy

Ancient philosophy This page lists some links to ancient philosophy, namely philosophical thought extending as far as early post-classical history (). Overview Genuine philosophical thought, depending upon original individual insights, arose in many culture ...

* Ancient Egyptian philosophy * Ancient Greek philosophy

Ancient religion

Ancient religion * Ancient Egyptian religion **

Ancient Egyptian concept of the soul The ancient Egyptians believed that a soul (wikt:kꜣ, kꜣ and wikt:bꜣ, bꜣ; Egyptian language#Egyptological pronunciation, Egypt. pron. ka/ba) was made up of many parts. In addition to these components of the soul, there was the human body ...

Ancient Egyptian creation myths Ancient Egyptian creation myths are the ancient Egyptian accounts of the creation of the world. The Pyramid Texts, tomb wall decorations, and writings, dating back to the Old Kingdom (c. 2700–2200 BCE) have provided the majority of information ...

Ancient Egyptian deities Ancient Egyptian deities are the gods and goddesses worshipped in ancient Egypt. The beliefs and rituals surrounding these gods formed the core of ancient Egyptian religion, which emerged sometime in prehistory. Deities represented natural f ...

** Ancient Egyptian funerary practices *** Ancient Egyptian funerary texts **

Egyptian mythology Egyptian mythology is the collection of myths from ancient Egypt, which describe the actions of the Egyptian gods as a means of understanding the world around them. The beliefs that these myths express are an important part of ancient Egyp ...

* Ancient Greek religion ** Ancient Greek funeral and burial practices **

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 ...

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Ancient Greek flood myths Greek mythology describes various great floods throughout ancient history. Differing sources refer to the flood of Ogyges, the flood of Deucalion, and the flood of Dardanus, though often with similar or even contradictory details. Like most flood ...

Ancient Mesopotamian religion Mesopotamian religion refers to the religious beliefs and practices of the civilizations of ancient Mesopotamia, particularly Sumer, Akkad, Assyria and Babylonia between circa 6000 BC and 400 AD, after which they largely gave way to Syria ...

Religion in ancient Rome Religion in ancient Rome consisted of varying imperial and provincial religious practices, which were followed both by the people of Rome as well as those who were brought under its rule. The Romans thought of themselves as highly religious, ...

Religious persecution in the Roman Empire As the Roman Republic, and later the Roman Empire, expanded, it came to include people from a variety of cultures, and religions. The worship of an ever increasing number of deities was tolerated and accepted. The government, and the Romans i ...

Ancient history by subject

* Ancient empires * Ancient glass trade ** Ancient Chinese glass * Ancient maritime history * Ancient money

Ancient economics and infrastructure

Roman commerce Roman commerce was a major sector of the Roman economy during the later generations of the Republic and throughout most of the imperial period. Fashions and trends in historiography and in popular culture have tended to neglect the economic basis ...

Ancient agriculture

* Agriculture in Mesoamerica * Agriculture in ancient Africa ** Ancient Egyptian agriculture *** Ancient Egyptian cattle * Agriculture in ancient Greece *

Roman agriculture Roman agriculture describes the farming practices of ancient Rome, during a period of over 1000 years. From humble beginnings, the Roman Republic (509 BC to 27 BC) and the Roman Empire (27 BC to 476 AD) expanded to rule much of Europe, northern Af ...

* Agriculture in ancient Tamil country *

Ancient grains Ancient grains is a marketing term used to describe a category of grains and pseudocereals that are purported to have been minimally changed by selective breeding over recent millennia, as opposed to more widespread cereals such as corn, rice and ...

Ancient woodland In the United Kingdom, an ancient woodland is a woodland that has existed continuously since 1600 or before in England, Wales and Northern Ireland (or 1750 in Scotland). Planting of woodland was uncommon before those dates, so a wood present in 16 ...

Ancient education

Ancient university The ancient universities are British and Irish medieval universities and early modern universities founded before the year 1600. Four of these are located in Scotland, two in England, and one in Ireland. The ancient universities in Britain and ...

Ancient science and technology

* Ancient science ** Ancient Egyptian mathematics ***

Ancient Egyptian multiplication In mathematics, ancient Egyptian multiplication (also known as Egyptian multiplication, Ethiopian multiplication, Russian multiplication, or peasant multiplication), one of two multiplication methods used by scribes, is a systematic method for mul ...

History of science in classical antiquity Science in classical antiquity encompasses inquiries into the workings of the world or universe aimed at both practical goals (e.g., establishing a reliable calendar or determining how to cure a variety of illnesses) as well as more abstract inves ...

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Ancient Greek astronomy Greek astronomy is astronomy written in the Greek language in classical antiquity. Greek astronomy is understood to include the Ancient Greek, Hellenistic, Greco-Roman, and Late Antiquity eras. It is not limited geographically to Greece or to e ...

History of science and technology in the Indian subcontinent 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 ...

* Ancient technology ** By civilization ***

Ancient Egyptian technology Ancient Egyptian technology describes devices and technologies invented or used in Ancient Egypt. The Egyptians invented and used many simple machines, such as the ramp and the lever, to aid construction processes. They used rope trusses to stiff ...

**** History of timekeeping devices in Egypt ***

Ancient Greek technology Ancient Greek technology developed during the 5th century BC, continuing up to and including the Roman period, and beyond. Inventions that are credited to the ancient Greeks include the gear, screw, rotary mills, bronze casting techniques, water ...

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Roman technology Roman technology is the collection of antiques, skills, methods, processes, and engineering practices which supported Roman civilization and made possible the expansion of the economy and military of ancient Rome (753 BC – 476 AD). The Roma ...

**** Roman engineering ** By technology type ***

Ancient medicine The treatise ''On Ancient Medicine'' ( el, Περὶ Ἀρχαίας Ἰατρικῆς; Latin: De vetere medicina) is perhaps the most intriguing and compelling work of the Hippocratic Corpus. The Corpus itself is a collection of about sixty wri ...

**** Ancient Egyptian medicine ***** Ancient Egyptian anatomical studies **** Ancient Greek medicine ****

Ancient Iranian medicine The practice and study of medicine in Persia has a long and prolific history. The Iranian academic centers like Gundeshapur University (3rd century AD) were a breeding ground for the union among great scientists from different civilizations. Thes ...

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Ancient shipbuilding techniques Ancient boat building methods can be categorized as one of hide, log, sewn, lashed-plank, clinker (and reverse-clinker), shell-first, and frame-first. While the frame-first technique dominates the modern ship construction industry, the ancients rel ...

Slavery in ancient times

Slavery in ancient Egypt Slavery in ancient Egypt existed at least since the Old Kingdom period. Discussions of slavery in Pharaonic Egypt are complicated by terminology used by the Egyptians to refer to different classes of servitude over the course of dynastic ...

Slavery in ancient Greece Slavery was an accepted practice in ancient Greece, as in other societies of the time. Some Ancient Greek writers (including, most notably, Aristotle) described slavery as natural and even necessary.Slavery in ancient Rome Slavery in ancient Rome played an important role in society and the economy. Besides manual labour, slaves performed many domestic services and might be employed at highly skilled jobs and professions. Accountants and physicians were often slaves ...

Ancient sport

* Ancient Greek boxing * Ancient Greek Olympic festivals

Ancient warfare

Ancient warfare Ancient warfare is war that was conducted from the beginning of recorded history to the end of the ancient period. The difference between prehistoric and ancient warfare is more organization oriented than technology oriented. The development of ...

* Ancient armies **

Ancient Macedonian army The army of the Kingdom of Macedon was among the greatest military forces of the ancient world. It was created and made formidable by King Philip II of Macedon; previously the army of Macedon had been of little account in the politics of the Gr ...

Ancient navies and vessels Ancient navies had a large impact on the navies of today. The outcomes of battles between ancient navies have been studied by the military to learn tactics that would help in their conquests. The ships that these civilizations created were what ma ...

Ancient Egyptian navy The ancient Egyptian navy has a very extensive history almost as old as the nation itself. The best sources over the type of ships they used and their purposes come from the reliefs from the various religious temples that spread throughout the la ...

Ancient Greek warfare Warfare occurred throughout the history of Ancient Greece, from the Greek Dark Ages onward. The Greek 'Dark Ages' drew to an end as a significant increase in population allowed urbanized culture to be restored, which led to the rise of the city ...

* Ancient Macedonian battle tactics **

Ancient Roman defensive walls Defensive walls are a feature of ancient Roman architecture. The Romans generally fortified cities, rather than building stand-alone fortresses, but there are some fortified camps, such as the Saxon Shore forts like Porchester Castle in England ...

** Ancient Roman military clothing

Wonders of the ancient world

Seven wonders of the ancient world The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, also known as the Seven Wonders of the World or simply the Seven Wonders, is a list of seven notable structures present during classical antiquity. The first known list of seven wonders dates back to the 2 ...

Great Pyramid of Giza The Great Pyramid of Giza is the biggest Egyptian pyramid and the tomb of Fourth Dynasty pharaoh Khufu. Built in the early 26th century BC during a period of around 27 years, the pyramid is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient Worl ...

*# Hanging Gardens of Babylon *# Statue of Zeus at Olympia *#

Temple of Artemis The Temple of Artemis or Artemision ( gr, Ἀρτεμίσιον; tr, Artemis Tapınağı), also known as the Temple of Diana, was a Greek temple dedicated to an ancient, local form of the goddess Artemis (identified with Diana, a Roman go ...

at Ephesus *#

Mausoleum at Halicarnassus The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus or Tomb of Mausolus ( grc, Μαυσωλεῖον τῆς Ἁλικαρνασσοῦ; tr, Halikarnas Mozolesi) was a tomb built between 353 and 350 BC in Halicarnassus (present Bodrum, Turkey) for Mausolus, an ...

*# Colossus of Rhodes *#

Lighthouse of Alexandria The Lighthouse of Alexandria, sometimes called the Pharos of Alexandria (; Ancient Greek: ὁ Φάρος τῆς Ἀλεξανδρείας, contemporary Koine ), was a lighthouse built by the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Ancient Egypt, during the rei ...

History of ancient history

* Archaeology ** Classical archaeology (Greece and Rome) *** Etruscology (Etruria) ** Near Eastern archeology *** Assyriology (Mesopotamia) ***

Egyptology Egyptology (from ''Egypt'' and Greek , ''-logia''; ar, علم المصريات) is the study of ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, architecture and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native religious p ...

(Egypt) * Historiography ** Greek historiography ***

Historiography of Alexander the Great There are numerous surviving ancient Greek and Latin sources on Alexander the Great, king of Macedon, as well as some Asian texts. The five main surviving accounts are by Arrian, Plutarch, Diodorus Siculus, Quintus Curtius Rufus, and Justin.Green, ...

Roman historiography Roman historiography stretches back to at least the 3rd century BC and was indebted to earlier Greek historiography. The Romans relied on previous models in the Greek tradition such as the works of Herodotus (c. 484 – 425 BC) and Thucydides (c. ...

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Historiography of the fall of the Western Roman Empire The causes and mechanisms of the fall of the Western Roman Empire are a historical theme that was introduced by historian Edward Gibbon in his 1776 book ''The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire''. Though Gibbon was not the first ...

Ancient history scholars

Ancient historical societies

Ancient themed festivals and recreational events

Notable people from ancient history

List of ancient Egyptians __NOTOC__ This is a list of ancient Egyptian people who have articles on Wikipedia. The list covers key ancient Egyptian individuals from the start of the first dynasty until the end of the ancient Egyptian nation in 343 BC. Note that the dates g ...

* List of ancient Greeks *

List of ancient Macedonians This is a list of ancient Macedonians, an ancient Greek tribe inhabiting the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula. Mythology *Makednos Kings Military personnel High generals *Parmenion – Strategos of Philip and Alexander and commander ...

* List of ancient Romans

Leaders from ancient times

Pericles Pericles (; grc-gre, Περικλῆς; c. 495 – 429 BC) was a Greek politician and general during the Golden Age of Athens. He was prominent and influential in Athenian politics, particularly between the Greco-Persian Wars and the Pelo ...

Ancient philosophers

Ancient mathematicians

Ancient scholars

References

External links

; Websites
World History Encyclopedia

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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 docum ...

's website on various topics of ancient civilization
Ancient history sourcebook

The Perseus digital library

Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman world
; Directories *

- Academic Info: directory of online resources for the study of ancient history.

: Ancient history research links for high school and college students {{Outline footer