Sudan
This article is part of a series on the
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4 August 2019 Draft Constitutional Declaration (2019–2022)
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Abdalla Hamdok
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This article lists the heads of state of Sudan since the country's independence in 1956.
History of the office
Since independence was proclaimed on 1 January 1956, six individuals (and three multi-member sovereignty councils) have served as head of state of Sudan, currently under the title President of the Republic of the Sudan. Prior to independence, Sudan was governed as a condominium by Egypt and the United Kingdom, under the name Anglo-Egyptian Sudan. As such, executive power was vested in a dyarchy consisting of both countries' heads of state – at the time of independence, the Queen of the United Kingdom (Elizabeth II) and the Egyptian Revolutionary Command Council (headed by Gamal Abdel Nasser). Immediately following independence, the role of head of state was filled by a five-member Sovereignty Council, with rival nationalist factions unable to agree on a single candidate. In November 1958, General Ibrahim Abboud led a military coup d'état, assuming the role of head of state as Chairman of the Supreme Council. Assuming the title of president in 1964, he resigned later that year due to general discontent around the rule of the military regime. Abboud was succeeded by a senior civil servant, Sirr Al-Khatim Al-Khalifa, who served as acting president for 18 days before transferring executive authority to a Committee of Sovereignty.
Ismail al-Azhari, the leader of the National Unionist Party, was made president in July 1965, and ruled with limited power until he was deposed in 1969. The military officers responsible for the coup established the National Revolutionary Command Council, chaired by Gaafar Nimeiry. Nimeiry, the leader of the newly formed Sudanese Socialist Union, assumed the position of president in 1971, and subsequently established a one-party state, which existed until 1985, when a group of military officers overthrew his government and established the Transitional Military Council, led by Lieutenant-General Abdel Rahman Swar al-Dahab. Ahmed al-Mirghani succeeded to the relatively powerless position of Chairman of the Supreme Council in 1986, after multi-party elections held that year. He was deposed in a 1989 military coup led by Lieutenant-General Omar al-Bashir. Al-Bashir has served as head of state since the coup, under the title of Chairman of the Revolutionary Command Council for National Salvation to 1993 and as president from 1993 onwards (and from 1996 as the leader of the National Congress Party).
Heads of State of Sudan (1956–present)
(Dates in italics indicate de facto continuation of office)

Latest election

See also
Sudan
Politics of Sudan
List of governors of pre-independence Sudan
Vice President of Sudan
List of heads of government of Sudan
Lists of office-holders
List of current heads of state and government
Notes

Who is the current political leader of Sudan?


[[Category:Use dmy dates from December
2015]]

Maurya Empire
 (322–180 BCE)
 Chandragupta 322–297 BCE Bindusara 297–272/268 BCE Ashoka 272/268–232 BCE Dasharatha 232–224 BCE Samprati 224–215 BCE Shalishuka 215–202 BCE Devavarman 202–195 BCE Shatadhanvan 195–187 BCE Brihadratha 187–180 BCEvt
The Maurya Empire was a geographically-extensive Iron Age historical power based in Magadha and founded by Chandragupta Maurya which dominated ancient India between 322 and 187 BCE. Comprising the majority of South Asia, the Maurya Empire was centralized by conquering the Indo-Gangetic Plain in the eastern extent of the empire and had its capital city at Pataliputra (modern Patna).[5][6] The empire was the largest to have ever existed in the Indian subcontinent, spanning over 5million square kilometres (1.9million square miles) at its zenith under Ashoka.
Chandragupta Maurya raised an army, with the assistance of Chanakya (also known as Kauṭilya),[7] and overthrew the Nanda Empire in c.322 BCE. Chandragupta rapidly expanded his power westwards across central and western India by conquering the satraps left by Alexander the Great, and by 317BCE the empire had fully occupied Northwestern India.[8] The Mauryan Empire then defeated Seleucus I, a diadochus and founder of the Seleucid Empire, during the Seleucid–Mauryan war, thus gained additional territory west of the Indus River.[9]
The Maurya Empire was one of the largest empires in Indian history. At its greatest extent, stretched to the north along the natural boundaries of the Himalayas, to the east into Assam, to the west into Balochistan (southwest Pakistan and southeast Iran) and the Hindu Kush mountains of what is now Afghanistan.[10] The Empire was expanded into India's central with boundary into southern regions[11][12] by the emperors Chandragupta and Bindusara, but it excluded Kalinga (modern Odisha), until it was conquered by Ashoka.[13] It declined for about 50years after Ashoka's rule ended, and it dissolved in 185BCE with the foundation of the Shunga dynasty in Magadha.
Under Chandragupta Maurya and his successors, internal and external trade, agriculture, and economic activities all thrived and expanded across India thanks to the creation of a single and efficient system of finance, administration, and security. The Mauryans built the Grand Trunk Road, one of Asia's oldest and longest major roads connecting the Indian subcontinent with Central Asia.[14] After the Kalinga War, the Empire experienced nearly half a century of peace and security under Ashoka. Mauryan India also enjoyed an era of social harmony, religious transformation, and expansion of the sciences and of knowledge. Chandragupta Maurya's embrace of Jainism increased social and religious renewal and reform across his society, while Ashoka's embrace of Buddhism has been said to have been the foundation of the reign of social and political peace and non-violence across all of India. Ashoka sponsored the spreading of Buddhist missionaries into Sri Lanka, Southeast Asia, West Asia, North Africa, and Mediterranean Europe.[15]
The population of the empire has been estimated to be about 50–60 million, making the Mauryan Empire one of the most populous empires of Antiquity.[16][17] Archaeologically, the period of Mauryan rule in South Asia falls into the era of Northern Black Polished Ware (NBPW). The Arthashastra[18] and the Edicts of Ashoka are the primary sources of written records of Mauryan times. The Lion Capital of Ashoka at Sarnath has been made the national emblem of India.
History
Chandragupta Maurya and Chanakya

The Maurya Empire was founded by Chandragupta Maurya, with help from Chanakya, at Takshashila, a noted center of learning. According to several legends, Chanakya travelled to Magadha, a kingdom that was large and militarily powerful and feared by its neighbours, but was insulted by its king Dhana Nanda, of the Nanda dynasty. Chanakya swore revenge and vowed to destroy the Nanda Empire.[19] Meanwhile, the conquering armies of Alexander the Great refused to cross the Beas River and advance further eastward, deterred by the prospect of battling Magadha. Alexander returned to Babylon and re-deployed most of his troops west of the Indus River. Soon after Alexander died in Babylon in 323BCE, his empire fragmented into independent kingdoms led by his generals.[20]
The Greek generals Eudemus and Peithon ruled in the Indus Valley until around 317BCE, when Chandragupta Maurya (with the help of Chanakya, who was now his advisor) orchestrated a rebellion to drive out the Greek governors, and subsequently brought the Indus Valley under the control of his new seat of power in Magadha.[8]
Chandragupta Maurya's rise to power is shrouded in mystery and controversy. On one hand, a number of ancient Indian accounts, such as the drama Mudrarakshasa (Signet ring of Rakshasa – Rakshasa was the prime minister of Magadha) by Vishakhadatta, describe his royal ancestry and even link him with the Nanda family. A kshatriya clan known as the Maurya's are referred to in the earliest Buddhist texts, Mahaparinibbana Sutta. However, any conclusions are hard to make without further historical evidence. Chandragupta first emerges in Greek accounts as "Sandrokottos". As a young man he is said to have met Alexander.[21] He is also said to have met the Nanda king, angered him, and made a narrow escape.[22] Chanakya's original intentions were to train  army under Chandragupta's command.
Conquest of Magadha

Chanakya encouraged Chandragupta Maurya and his army to take over the throne of Magadha. Using his intelligence network, Chandragupta gathered many young men from across Magadha and other provinces, men upset over the corrupt and oppressive rule of king Dhana Nanda, plus the resources necessary for his army to fight a long series of battles. These men included the former general of Taxila, accomplished students of Chanakya, the representative of King Parvataka, his son Malayaketu, and the rulers of small states. The Macedonians (described as Yona or Yavana in Indian sources) may then have participated, together with other groups, in the armed uprising of Chandragupta Maurya against the Nanda dynasty.[24][25] The Mudrarakshasa of Visakhadutta as well as the Jaina work Parisishtaparvan talk of Chandragupta's alliance with the Himalayan king Parvataka, often identified with Porus,[26][27] although this identification is not accepted by all historians.[28] This Himalayan alliance gave Chandragupta a composite and powerful army made up of Yavanas (Greeks), Kambojas, Shakas (Scythians), Kiratas (Himalayans), Parasikas (Persians) and Bahlikas (Bactrians) who took Pataliputra (also called Kusumapura, "The City of Flowers"):[29][30]
"Kusumapura was besieged from every direction by the forces of Parvata and Chandragupta: Shakas, Yavanas, Kiratas, Kambojas, Parasikas, Bahlikas and others, assembled on the advice of Chanakya" in Mudrarakshasa 2 [31][29]
Preparing to invade Pataliputra, Maurya came up with a strategy. A battle was announced and the Magadhan army was drawn from the city to a distant battlefield to engage with Maurya's forces. Maurya's general and spies meanwhile bribed the corrupt general of Nanda. He also managed to create an atmosphere of civil war in the kingdom, which culminated in the death of the heir to the throne. Chanakya managed to win over popular sentiment. Ultimately Nanda resigned, handing power to Chandragupta, and went into exile and was never heard of again. Chanakya contacted the prime minister, Rakshasas, and made him understand that his loyalty was to Magadha, not to the Nanda dynasty, insisting that he continue in office. Chanakya also reiterated that choosing to resist would start a war that would severely affect Magadha and destroy the city. Rakshasa accepted Chanakya's reasoning, and Chandragupta Maurya was legitimately installed as the new King of Magadha. Rakshasa became Chandragupta's chief advisor, and Chanakya assumed the position of an elder statesman.
Chandragupta Maurya

In 305 BCE, Chandragupta led a series of campaigns to retake the satrapies left behind by Alexander the Great when he returned westwards, while Seleucus I Nicator fought to defend these territories. The two rulers concluded a peace treaty in 303 BCE, including a marital alliance. Chandragupta snatched the satrapies of Paropamisade (Kamboja and Gandhara), Arachosia (Kandhahar) and Gedrosia (Balochistan), and Seleucus I Nicator received 500 war elephants that were to have a decisive role in his victory against western Hellenistic kings at the Battle of Ipsus in 301BCE. Diplomatic relations were established and several Greeks, such as the historian Megasthenes, Deimakos and Dionysius resided at the Mauryan court. Megasthenes in particular was a notable Greek ambassador in the court of Chandragupta Maurya.[32] According to Arrian, ambassador Megasthenes (c.350–c.290 BCE) lived in Arachosia and travelled to Pataliputra.[33]
Chandragupta established a strong centralized state with an administration at Pataliputra, which, according to Megasthenes, was "surrounded by a wooden wall pierced by 64 gates and 570 towers". Aelian, although not expressly quoting Megasthenes nor mentionning Pataliputra, described Indian palaces as superior in splendor to Persia's Susa or Ectabana.[34] The architecture of the city seems to have had many similarities with Persian cities of the period.[35]
Chandragupta's son Bindusara extended the rule of the Mauryan empire towards southern India. The famous Tamil poet Mamulanar of the Sangam literature described how the Deccan Plateau was invaded by the Maurya army.[36] He also had a Greek ambassador at his court, named Megasthenes.[37]
Megasthenes describes a disciplined multitude under Chandragupta, who live simply, honestly, and do not know writing:
"The Indians all live frugally, especially when in camp. They dislike a great undisciplined multitude, and consequently they observe good order. Theft is of very rare occurrence. Megasthenes says that those who were in the camp of Sandrakottos, wherein lay 400,000 men, found that the thefts reported on any one day did not exceed the value of two hundred drachmae, and this among a people who have no written laws, but are ignorant of writing, and must therefore in all the business of life trust to memory. They live, nevertheless, happily enough, being simple in their manners and frugal. They never drink wine except at sacrifices. Their beverage is a liquor composed from rice instead of barley, and their food is principally a rice-pottage." Strabo XV. i. 53–56, quoting Megasthenes.
Chandragupta renounced his throne and followed Jain teacher Bhadrabahu.[38][39][40] He is said to have lived as an ascetic at Shravanabelagola for several years before fasting to death, as per the Jain practice of sallekhana.[41]
Bindusara

Bindusara was born to Chandragupta, the founder of the Mauryan Empire. This is attested by several sources, including the various Puranas and the Mahavamsa.[42] He is attested by the Buddhist texts such as Dipavamsa and Mahavamsa ("Bindusaro"); the Jain texts such as Parishishta-Parvan; as well as the Hindu texts such as Vishnu Purana ("Vindusara").[43][44] According to the 12th century Jain writer Hemachandra's Parishishta-Parvan, the name of Bindusara's mother was Durdhara.[45] Some Greek sources also mention him by the name "Amitrochates" or its variations.[46][47]
Historian Upinder Singh estimates that Bindusara ascended the throne around 297 BCE.[48] Bindusara, just 22yearsold, inherited a large empire that consisted of what is now, Northern, Central and Eastern parts of India along with parts of Afghanistan and Baluchistan. Bindusara extended this empire to the southern part of India, as far as what is now known as Karnataka. He brought sixteen states under the Mauryan Empire and thus conquered almost all of the Indian peninsula (he is said to have conquered the 'land between the two seas' – the peninsular region between the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea). Bindusara didn't conquer the friendly Tamil kingdoms of the Cholas, ruled by King Ilamcetcenni, the Pandyas, and Cheras. Apart from these southern states, Kalinga (modern Odisha) was the only kingdom in India that didn't form the part of Bindusara's empire.[49] It was later conquered by his son Ashoka, who served as the viceroy of Ujjaini during his father's reign, which highlights the importance of the town.[50][51]
Bindusara's life has not been documented as well as that of his father Chandragupta or of his son Ashoka. Chanakya continued to serve as prime minister during his reign. According to the medieval Tibetan scholar Taranatha who visited India, Chanakya helped Bindusara "to destroy the nobles and kings of the sixteen kingdoms and thus to become absolute master of the territory between the eastern and western oceans."[52] During his rule, the citizens of Taxila revolted twice. The reason for the first revolt was the maladministration of Susima, his eldest son. The reason for the second revolt is unknown, but Bindusara could not suppress it in his lifetime. It was crushed by Ashoka after Bindusara's death.[53]
Bindusara maintained friendly diplomatic relations with the Hellenic World. Deimachus was the ambassador of Seleucid emperor Antiochus I at Bindusara's court.[54] Diodorus states that the king of Palibothra (Pataliputra, the Mauryan capital) welcomed a Greek author, Iambulus. This king is usually identified as Bindusara.[54] Pliny states that the Egyptian king Philadelphus sent an envoy named Dionysius to India.[55][56] According to Sailendra Nath Sen, this appears to have happened during Bindusara's reign.[54]
Unlike his father Chandragupta (who at a later stage converted to Jainism), Bindusara believed in the Ajivika sect. Bindusara's guru Pingalavatsa (Janasana) was a Brahmin[57] of the Ajivika sect. Bindusara's wife, Queen Subhadrangi (Queen Aggamahesi) was a Brahmin[58] also of the Ajivika sect from Champa (present Bhagalpur district). Bindusara is credited with giving several grants to Brahmin monasteries (Brahmana-bhatto).[59]
Historical evidence suggests that Bindusara died in the 270s BCE. According to Upinder Singh, Bindusara died around 273 BCE.[48] Alain Daniélou believes that he died around 274 BCE.[60] Sailendra Nath Sen believes that he died around 273-272 BCE, and that his death was followed by a four-year struggle of succession, after which his son Ashoka became the emperor in 269-268 BCE.[54] According to the Mahavamsa, Bindusara reigned for 28 years.[61] The Vayu Purana, which names Chandragupta's successor as "Bhadrasara", states that he ruled for 25 years.[62]
Ashoka

As a young prince, Ashoka (r.272–232BCE) was a brilliant commander who crushed revolts in Ujjain and Takshashila. As monarch he was ambitious and aggressive, re-asserting the Empire's superiority in southern and western India. But it was his conquest of Kalinga (262–261BCE) which proved to be the pivotal event of his life. Ashoka used Kalinga to project power over a large region by building a fortification there and securing it as a possession.[63] Although Ashoka's army succeeded in overwhelming Kalinga forces of royal soldiers and civilian units, an estimated 100,000 soldiers and civilians were killed in the furious warfare, including over 10,000 of Ashoka's own men. Hundreds of thousands of people were adversely affected by the destruction and fallout of war. When he personally witnessed the devastation, Ashoka began feeling remorse. Although the annexation of Kalinga was completed, Ashoka embraced the teachings of Buddhism, and renounced war and violence. He sent out missionaries to travel around Asia and spread Buddhism to other countries.
Ashoka implemented principles of ahimsa by banning hunting and violent sports activity and ending indentured and forced labor (many thousands of people in war-ravaged Kalinga had been forced into hard labour and servitude). While he maintained a large and powerful army, to keep the peace and maintain authority, Ashoka expanded friendly relations with states across Asia and Europe, and he sponsored Buddhist missions. He undertook a massive public works building campaign across the country. Over 40years of peace, harmony and prosperity made Ashoka one of the most successful and famous monarchs in Indian history. He remains an idealized figure of inspiration in modern India.
The Edicts of Ashoka, set in stone, are found throughout the Subcontinent. Ranging from as far west as Afghanistan and as far south as Andhra (Nellore District), Ashoka's edicts state his policies and accomplishments. Although predominantly written in Prakrit, two of them were written in Greek, and one in both Greek and Aramaic. Ashoka's edicts refer to the Greeks, Kambojas, and Gandharas as peoples forming a frontier region of his empire. They also attest to Ashoka's having sent envoys to the Greek rulers in the West as far as the Mediterranean. The edicts precisely name each of the rulers of the Hellenic world at the time such as Amtiyoko (Antiochus), Tulamaya (Ptolemy), Amtikini (Antigonos), Maka (Magas) and Alikasudaro (Alexander) as recipients of Ashoka's proselytism. The Edicts also accurately locate their territory "600 yojanas away" (a yojanas being about 7miles), corresponding to the distance between the center of India and Greece (roughly 4,000miles).[64]
Decline
Ashoka was followed for 50years by a succession of weaker kings. Brihadratha, the last ruler of the Mauryan dynasty, held territories that had shrunk considerably from the time of emperor Ashoka. Brihadratha was assassinated in 185BCE during a military parade by the Brahmin general Pushyamitra Shunga, commander-in-chief of his guard, who then took over the throne and established the Shunga dynasty.[65]
Shunga coup (185BCE)
Buddhist records such as the Ashokavadana write that the assassination of Brihadratha and the rise of the Shunga empire led to a wave of religious persecution for Buddhists,[66] and a resurgence of Hinduism. According to Sir John Marshall,[67] Pushyamitra may have been the main author of the persecutions, although later Shunga kings seem to have been more supportive of Buddhism. Other historians, such as Etienne Lamotte[68] and Romila Thapar,[69] among others, have argued that archaeological evidence in favour of the allegations of persecution of Buddhists are lacking, and that the extent and magnitude of the atrocities have been exaggerated.
Establishment of the Indo-Greek Kingdom (180BCE)

The fall of the Mauryas left the Khyber Pass unguarded, and a wave of foreign invasion followed. The Greco-Bactrian king, Demetrius, capitalized on the break-up, and he conquered southern Afghanistan and parts of northwestern India around 180BCE, forming the Indo-Greek Kingdom. The Indo-Greeks would maintain holdings on the trans-Indus region, and make forays into central India, for about a century. Under them, Buddhism flourished, and one of their kings, Menander, became a famous figure of Buddhism; he was to establish a new capital of Sagala, the modern city of Sialkot. However, the extent of their domains and the lengths of their rule are subject to much debate. Numismatic evidence indicates that they retained holdings in the subcontinent right up to the birth of Christ. Although the extent of their successes against indigenous powers such as the Shungas, Satavahanas, and Kalingas are unclear, what is clear is that Scythian tribes, renamed Indo-Scythians, brought about the demise of the Indo-Greeks from around 70BCE and retained lands in the trans-Indus, the region of Mathura, and Gujarat.
Administration

The Empire was divided into four provinces, with the imperial capital at Pataliputra. From Ashokan edicts, the names of the four provincial capitals are Tosali (in the east), Ujjain (in the west), Suvarnagiri (in the south), and Taxila (in the north). The head of the provincial administration was the Kumara (royal prince), who governed the provinces as king's representative. The kumara was assisted by Mahamatyas and council of ministers. This organizational structure was reflected at the imperial level with the Emperor and his Mantriparishad (Council of Ministers).
Historians theorise that the organisation of the Empire was in line with the extensive bureaucracy described by Kautilya in the Arthashastra: a sophisticated civil service governed everything from municipal hygiene to international trade. The expansion and defense of the empire was made possible by what appears to have been one of the largest armies in the world during the Iron Age.[70] According to Megasthenes, the empire wielded a military of 600,000 infantry, 30,000 cavalry, 8,000 chariots and 9,000 war elephants besides followers and attendants.[71] A vast espionage system collected intelligence for both internal and external security purposes. Having renounced offensive warfare and expansionism, Ashoka nevertheless continued to maintain this large army, to protect the Empire and instil stability and peace across West and South Asia.
Economy

For the first time in South Asia, political unity and military security allowed for a common economic system and enhanced trade and commerce, with increased agricultural productivity. The previous situation involving hundreds of kingdoms, many small armies, powerful regional chieftains, and internecine warfare, gave way to a disciplined central authority. Farmers were freed of tax and crop collection burdens from regional kings, paying instead to a nationally administered and strict-but-fair system of taxation as advised by the principles in the Arthashastra. Chandragupta Maurya established a single currency across India, and a network of regional governors and administrators and a civil service provided justice and security for merchants, farmers and traders. The Mauryan army wiped out many gangs of bandits, regional private armies, and powerful chieftains who sought to impose their own supremacy in small areas. Although regimental in revenue collection, Maurya also sponsored many public works and waterways to enhance productivity, while internal trade in India expanded greatly due to new-found political unity and internal peace.
Under the Indo-Greek friendship treaty, and during Ashoka's reign, an international network of trade expanded. The Khyber Pass, on the modern boundary of Pakistan and Afghanistan, became a strategically important port of trade and intercourse with the outside world. Greek states and Hellenic kingdoms in West Asia became important trade partners of India. Trade also extended through the Malay peninsula into Southeast Asia. India's exports included silk goods and textiles, spices and exotic foods. The external world came across new scientific knowledge and technology with expanding trade with the Mauryan Empire. Ashoka also sponsored the construction of thousands of roads, waterways, canals, hospitals, rest-houses and other public works. The easing of many over-rigorous administrative practices, including those regarding taxation and crop collection, helped increase productivity and economic activity across the Empire.
In many ways, the economic situation in the Mauryan Empire is analogous to the Roman Empire of several centuries later. Both had extensive trade connections and both had organizations similar to corporations. While Rome had organizational entities which were largely used for public state-driven projects, Mauryan India had numerous private commercial entities. These existed purely for private commerce and developed before the Mauryan Empire itself.[72]

Religion
Jainism

Chandragupta Maurya embraced Jainism after retiring, when he renounced his throne and material possessions to join a wandering group of Jain monks. Chandragupta was a disciple of the Jain monk Bhadrabahu. It is said that in his last days, he observed the rigorous but self-purifying Jain ritual of santhara (fast unto death), at Shravana Belgola in Karnataka.[41][40][74][39] However, his successor, Bindusara, was a follower of another ascetic movement, Ājīvika,[75] and distanced himself from Jain and Buddhist movements. Samprati, the grandson of Ashoka, also patronized Jainism. Samprati was influenced by the teachings of Jain monks and he is said to have built 125,000 derasars across India. Some of them are still found in the towns of Ahmedabad, Viramgam, Ujjain, and Palitana. It is also said that just like Ashoka, Samprati sent messengers and preachers to Greece, Persia and the Middle East for the spread of Jainism, but, to date, no research has been done in this area.[76][77]
Thus, Jainism became a vital force under the Mauryan Rule. Chandragupta and Samprati are credited for the spread of Jainism in South India. Hundreds of thousands of temples and stupas are said to have been erected during their reigns.
Buddhism

Magadha, the centre of the empire, was also the birthplace of Buddhism. Ashoka initially practised Hinduism but later embraced Buddhism; following the Kalinga War, he renounced expansionism and aggression, and the harsher injunctions of the Arthashastra on the use of force, intensive policing, and ruthless measures for tax collection and against rebels. Ashoka sent a mission led by his son Mahinda and daughter Sanghamitta to Sri Lanka, whose king Tissa was so charmed with Buddhist ideals that he adopted them himself and made Buddhism the state religion. Ashoka sent many Buddhist missions to West Asia, Greece and South East Asia, and commissioned the construction of monasteries and schools, as well as the publication of Buddhist literature across the empire. He is believed to have built as many as 84,000 stupas across India, such as Sanchi and Mahabodhi Temple, and he increased the popularity of Buddhism in Afghanistan, Thailand and North Asia including Siberia. Ashoka helped convene the Third Buddhist Council of India's and South Asia's Buddhist orders near his capital, a council that undertook much work of reform and expansion of the Buddhist religion. Indian merchants embraced Buddhism and played a large role in spreading the religion across the Mauryan Empire.[78]
Architectural remains

The greatest monument of this period, executed in the reign of Chandragupta Maurya, was the old palace at the site of Kumhrar. Excavations at the site of Kumhrar nearby have unearthed the remains of the palace. The palace is thought to have been an aggregate of buildings, the most important of which was an immense pillared hall supported on a high substratum of timbers. The pillars were set in regular rows, thus dividing the hall into a number of smaller square bays. The number of columns is 80, each about 7 meters high. According to the eyewitness account of Megasthenes, the palace was chiefly constructed of timber, and was considered to exceed in splendour and magnificence the palaces of Susa and Ecbatana, its gilded pillars being adorned with golden vines and silver birds. The buildings stood in an extensive park studded with fish ponds and furnished with a great variety of ornamental trees and shrubs.[79] Kauṭilya's Arthashastra also gives the method of palace construction from this period. Later fragments of stone pillars, including one nearly complete, with their round tapering shafts and smooth polish, indicate that Ashoka was responsible for the construction of the stone columns which replaced the earlier wooden ones.

During the Ashokan period, stonework was of a highly diversified order and comprised lofty free-standing pillars, railings of stupas, lion thrones and other colossal figures. The use of stone had reached such great perfection during this time that even small fragments of stone art were given a high lustrous polish resembling fine enamel. This period marked the beginning of the Buddhist school of architecture.  Ashoka was responsible for the construction of several stupas, which were large domes and bearing symbols of Buddha. The most important ones are located at Sanchi, Bharhut, Amaravati, Bodhgaya and Nagarjunakonda. The most widespread examples of Mauryan architecture are the Ashoka pillars and carved edicts of Ashoka, often exquisitely decorated, with more than 40 spread throughout the Indian subcontinent.[80]
The peacock was a dynastic symbol of Mauryans, as depicted by Ashoka's pillars at Nandangarh and Sanchi Stupa.[81]

Natural history

The protection of animals in India became serious business by the time of the Maurya dynasty; being the first empire to provide a unified political entity in India, the attitude of the Mauryas towards forests, their denizens, and fauna in general is of interest.[83]
The Mauryas firstly looked at forests as resources. For them, the most important forest product was the elephant. Military might in those times depended not only upon horses and men but also battle-elephants; these played a role in the defeat of Seleucus, one of Alexander's former generals. The Mauryas sought to preserve supplies of elephants since it was cheaper and took less time to catch, tame and train wild elephants than to raise them. Kautilya's Arthashastra contains not only maxims on ancient statecraft, but also unambiguously specifies the responsibilities of officials such as the Protector of the Elephant Forests.[84]
On the border of the forest, he should establish a forest for elephants guarded by foresters. The Office of the Chief Elephant Forester should with the help of guards protect the elephants in any terrain. The slaying of an elephant is punishable by death.—Arthashastra

The Mauryas also designated separate forests to protect supplies of timber, as well as lions and tigers for skins. Elsewhere the Protector of Animals also worked to eliminate thieves, tigers and other predators to render the woods safe for grazing cattle.
The Mauryas valued certain forest tracts in strategic or economic terms and instituted curbs and control measures over them. They regarded all forest tribes with distrust and controlled them with bribery and political subjugation. They employed some of them, the food-gatherers or aranyaca to guard borders and trap animals. The sometimes tense and conflict-ridden relationship nevertheless enabled the Mauryas to guard their vast empire.[85]
When Ashoka embraced Buddhism in the latter part of his reign, he brought about significant changes in his style of governance, which included providing protection to fauna, and even relinquished the royal hunt. He was the first ruler in history to advocate conservation measures for wildlife and even had rules inscribed in stone edicts. The edicts proclaim that many followed the king's example in giving up the slaughter of animals; one of them proudly states:[85]
Our king killed very few animals.—Edict on Fifth Pillar

However, the edicts of Ashoka reflect more the desire of rulers than actual events; the mention of a 100 'panas' (coins) fine for poaching deer in royal hunting preserves shows that rule-breakers did exist. The legal restrictions conflicted with the practices freely exercised by the common people in hunting, felling, fishing and setting fires in forests.[85]
Contacts with the Hellenistic world

Foundation of the Empire
Relations with the Hellenistic world may have started from the very beginning of the Maurya Empire. Plutarch reports that Chandragupta Maurya met with Alexander the Great, probably around Taxila in the northwest:[86]
"Sandrocottus, when he was a stripling, saw Alexander himself, and we are told that he often said in later times that Alexander narrowly missed making himself master of the country, since its king was hated and despised on account of his baseness and low birth". Plutarch 62-4[87][86]
Reconquest of the Northwest (c. 317–316BCE)
Chandragupta ultimately occupied Northwestern India, in the territories formerly ruled by the Greeks, where he fought the satraps (described as "Prefects" in Western sources) left in place after Alexander (Justin), among whom may have been Eudemus, ruler in the western Punjab until his departure in 317BCE or Peithon, son of Agenor, ruler of the Greek colonies along the Indus until his departure for Babylon in 316BCE.
"India, after the death of Alexander, had assassinated his prefects, as if shaking the burden of servitude. The author of this liberation was Sandracottos, but he had transformed liberation in servitude after victory, since, after taking the throne, he himself oppressed the very people he has liberated from foreign domination" Justin XV.4.12–13[88]
"Later, as he was preparing war against the prefects of Alexander, a huge wild elephant went to him and took him on his back as if tame, and he became a remarkable fighter and war leader. Having thus acquired royal power, Sandracottos possessed India at the time Seleucos was preparing future glory." Justin XV.4.19[89]
Conflict and alliance with Seleucus (305BCE)

Seleucus I Nicator, the Macedonian satrap of the Asian portion of Alexander's former empire, conquered and put under his own authority eastern territories as far as Bactria and the Indus (Appian, History of Rome, The Syrian Wars 55), until in 305BCE he entered into a confrontation with Emperor Chandragupta:
"Always lying in wait for the neighbouring nations, strong in arms and persuasive in council, he [Seleucus] acquired Mesopotamia, Armenia, 'Seleucid' Cappadocia, Persis, Parthia, Bactria, Arabia, Tapouria, Sogdia, Arachosia, Hyrcania, and other adjacent peoples that had been subdued by Alexander, as far as the river Indus, so that the boundaries of his empire were the most extensive in Asia after that of Alexander. The whole region from Phrygia to the Indus was subject to Seleucus". Appian, History of Rome, The Syrian Wars 55[90]
Though no accounts of the conflict remain, it is clear that Seleucus fared poorly against the Indian Emperor as he failed to conquer any territory, and in fact was forced to surrender much that was already his. Regardless, Seleucus and Chandragupta ultimately reached a settlement and through a treaty sealed in 305BCE, Seleucus, according to Strabo, ceded a number of territories to Chandragupta, including large parts of what is now Afghanistan and parts of Balochistan.
Marital alliance
Chandragupta and Seleucus concluded a peace treaty and a marital alliance in 303 BCE. Chandragupta received vast territories, and in a return gesture, gave Seleucus 500 war elephants,[91][92][93][94][95] a military asset which would play a decisive role at the Battle of Ipsus in 301BCE.[96] In addition to this treaty, Seleucus dispatched an ambassador, Megasthenes, to Chandragupta, and later Deimakos to his son Bindusara, at the Mauryan court at Pataliputra (modern Patna in Bihar state). Later, Ptolemy II Philadelphus, the ruler of Ptolemaic Egypt and contemporary of Ashoka, is also recorded by Pliny the Elder as having sent an ambassador named Dionysius to the Mauryan court.[97]
Mainstream scholarship asserts that Chandragupta received vast territory west of the Indus, including the Hindu Kush, modern-day Afghanistan, and the Balochistan province of Pakistan.[98][99] Archaeologically, concrete indications of Mauryan rule, such as the inscriptions of the Edicts of Ashoka, are known as far as Kandahar in southern Afghanistan.

“He (Seleucus) crossed the Indus and waged war with Sandrocottus [Maurya], king of the Indians, who dwelt on the banks of that stream, until they came to an understanding with each other and contracted a marriage relationship.”

“After having made a treaty with him (Sandrakotos) and put in order the Orient situation, Seleucos went to war against Antigonus.”—Junianus Justinus, Historiarum Philippicarum, libri XLIV,
The treaty on "Epigamia" implies lawful marriage between Greeks and Indians was recognized at the State level, although it is unclear whether it occurred among dynastic rulers or common people, or both..
Exchange of presents
Classical sources have also recorded that following their treaty, Chandragupta and Seleucus exchanged presents, such as when Chandragupta sent various aphrodisiacs to Seleucus:[46]
"And Theophrastus says that some contrivances are of wondrous efficacy in such matters [as to make people more amorous]. And Phylarchus confirms him, by reference to some of the presents which Sandrakottus, the king of the Indians, sent to Seleucus; which were to act like charms in producing a wonderful degree of affection, while some, on the contrary, were to banish love." Athenaeus of Naucratis, "The deipnosophists" Book I, chapter 32[100]
His son Bindusara 'Amitraghata' (Slayer of Enemies) also is recorded in Classical sources as having exchanged presents with Antiochus I:[46]
"But dried figs were so very much sought after by all men (for really, as Aristophanes says, "There's really nothing nicer than dried figs"), that even Amitrochates, the king of the Indians, wrote to Antiochus, entreating him (it is Hegesander who tells this story) to buy and send him some sweet wine, and some dried figs, and a sophist; and that Antiochus wrote to him in answer, "The dry figs and the sweet wine we will send you; but it is not lawful for a sophist to be sold in Greece." Athenaeus, "Deipnosophistae" XIV.67[101]
Greek population in India
The Greek population apparently remained in the northwest of the Indian subcontinent under Ashoka's rule. In his Edicts of Ashoka, set in stone, some of them written in Greek, Ashoka relates that the Greek population within his realm was absorbed, integrated, and converted to Buddhism:
"Here in the king's domain among the Greeks, the Kambojas, the Nabhakas, the Nabhapamkits, the Bhojas, the Pitinikas, the Andhras and the Palidas, everywhere people are following Beloved-of-the-Gods' instructions in Dharma". Rock Edict Nb13 (S. Dhammika).

Fragments of Edict 13 have been found in Greek, and a full Edict, written in both Greek and Aramaic, has been discovered in Kandahar. It is said to be written in excellent Classical Greek, using sophisticated philosophical terms. In this Edict, Ashoka uses the word Eusebeia ("Piety") as the Greek translation for the ubiquitous "Dharma" of his other Edicts written in Prakrit:
"Ten years (of reign) having been completed, King Piodasses (Ashoka) made known (the doctrine of) Piety (εὐσέβεια, Eusebeia) to men; and from this moment he has made men more pious, and everything thrives throughout the whole world. And the king abstains from (killing) living beings, and other men and those who (are) huntsmen and fishermen of the king have desisted from hunting. And if some (were) intemperate, they have ceased from their intemperance as was in their power; and obedient to their father and mother and to the elders, in opposition to the past also in the future, by so acting on every occasion, they will live better and more happily". (Trans. by G.P. Carratelli )
Buddhist missions to the West (c. 250BCE)

The distribution of the Edicts of Ashoka.[102]
Map of the Buddhist missions during the reign of Ashoka.
Territories "conquered by the Dharma" according to Major Rock Edict No.13 of Ashoka (260–218 BCE).[103][104]

Also, in the Edicts of Ashoka, Ashoka mentions the Hellenistic kings of the period as recipients of his Buddhist proselytism, although no Western historical record of this event remains:
"The conquest by Dharma has been won here, on the borders, and even six hundred yojanas (5,400–9,600km) away, where the Greek king Antiochos rules, beyond there where the four kings named Ptolemy, Antigonos, Magas and Alexander rule, likewise in the south among the Cholas, the Pandyas, and as far as Tamraparni (Sri Lanka)." (Edicts of Ashoka, 13th Rock Edict, S. Dhammika).
Ashoka also encouraged the development of herbal medicine, for men and animals, in their territories:
"Everywhere within Beloved-of-the-Gods, King Piyadasi's [Ashoka's] domain, and among the people beyond the borders, the Cholas, the Pandyas, the Satiyaputras, the Keralaputras, as far as Tamraparni and where the Greek king Antiochos rules, and among the kings who are neighbors of Antiochos, everywhere has Beloved-of-the-Gods, King Piyadasi, made provision for two types of medical treatment: medical treatment for humans and medical treatment for animals. Wherever medical herbs suitable for humans or animals are not available, I have had them imported and grown. Wherever medical roots or fruits are not available I have had them imported and grown. Along roads I have had wells dug and trees planted for the benefit of humans and animals". 2nd Rock Edict
The Greeks in India even seem to have played an active role in the propagation of Buddhism, as some of the emissaries of Ashoka, such as Dharmaraksita, are described in Pali sources as leading Greek ("Yona") Buddhist monks, active in Buddhist proselytism (the Mahavamsa, XII[105]).
Subhagasena and Antiochos III (206BCE)
Sophagasenus was an Indian Mauryan ruler of the 3rd century BCE, described in ancient Greek sources, and named Subhagasena or Subhashasena in Prakrit. His name is mentioned in the list of Mauryan princes, and also in the list of the Yadava dynasty, as a descendant of Pradyumna. He may have been a grandson of Ashoka, or Kunala, the son of Ashoka. He ruled an area south of the Hindu Kush, possibly in Gandhara. Antiochos III, the Seleucid king, after having made peace with Euthydemus in Bactria, went to India in 206BCE and is said to have renewed his friendship with the Indian king there:
"He (Antiochus) crossed the Caucasus and descended into India; renewed his friendship with Sophagasenus the king of the Indians; received more elephants, until he had a hundred and fifty altogether; and having once more provisioned his troops, set out again personally with his army: leaving Androsthenes of Cyzicus the duty of taking home the treasure which this king had agreed to hand over to him".
Timeline
322BCE: Chandragupta Maurya founded the Mauryan Empire by overthrowing the Nanda Dynasty.
317–316BCE: Chandragupta Maurya conquers the Northwest of the Indian subcontinent.
305–303BCE: Chandragupta Maurya gains territory from the Seleucid Empire.
298–269BCE: Reign of Bindusara, Chandragupta's son. He conquers parts of Deccan, southern India.
269–232BCE: The Mauryan Empire reaches its height under Ashoka, Chandragupta's grandson.
261BCE: Ashoka conquers the kingdom of Kalinga.
250BCE: Ashoka builds Buddhist stupas and erects pillars bearing inscriptions.
184BCE: The empire collapses when Brihadnatha, the last emperor, is killed by Pushyamitra Shunga, a Mauryan general and the founder of the Shunga Empire.
In literature
According to Vicarasreni of Merutunga, Mauryans rose to power in 312BC.[106]
See also

Part of a series on theHistory of India
Ancient
Madrasian Culture
Soanian, c. 500,000 BCE
Neolithic, c. 7600 – c. 3300 BCE
Bhirrana 7570 - 6200 BCE
Jhusi 7106 BCE
Lahuradewa 7000 BCE
Mehrgarh 7000 - 2600 BCE
Indus Valley Civilization, c. 3300 – c. 1700 BCE
Post Indus Valley Period, c. 1700 – c. 1500 BCE
Vedic Civilization, c. 1500 – c. 500 BCE
Early Vedic Period
Rise of Śramaṇa movement
Later Vedic Period
Spread of Jainism - Parshvanatha
Spread of Jainism - Mahavira
Rise of Buddhism
Mahajanapadas, c. 500 – c. 345 BCE
Nanda Dynasty, c. 345 – c. 322 BCE

Classical
Maurya Dynasty, c. 322 – c. 185 BCE
Shunga Dynasty, c. 185 – c. 75 BCE
Kanva Dynasty, c. 75 – c. 30 BCE
Kushan Dynasty, c. 30 – c. 230 CE
Satavahana Dynasty, c. 30 BCE – c. 220 CE
Gupta Dynasty, c. 200 – c. 550 CE

Early medieval
Chalukya Dynasty, c. 543 – c. 753 CE
Harsha's Dynasty, c. 606 CE – c. 647 CE
Karakota Dynasty, c. 724 – c. 760 CE
Arab Invasion, c. 738 CE
Tripartite Struggle, c. 760 – c. 973 CE
Gurjara-Pratihara Dynasty
Rastrakuta Dynasty
Pala Dynasty
Chola Dynasty, c. 848 – c. 1251 CE
2nd Chalukya Dynasty, c. 973 – c. 1187 CE

Late medieval
Delhi Sultanate, c. 1206 – c. 1526 CE
Slave Dynasty
Khalji Dynasty
Tugluq Dynasty
Sayyid Dynasty
Lodhi Dynasty
Pandyan Dynasty, c. 1251 – c. 1323 CE
Vijayanagara, c. 1336 – c. 1646 CE
Bengal Sultanate, c. 1342 – c. 1576 CE

Early modern
Mughal Dynasty, c. 1526 – c. 1540 CE
Suri Dynasty, c. 1540 – c. 1556 CE
Mughal Dynasty, c. 1556 – c. 1857 CE
Bengal Subah, c. 1576 – c. 1757 CE
Maratha Empire, c. 1674 – c. 1818 CE
Company Raj, c. 1757 – c. 1858 CE
Kingdom of Mysore, c. 1760 – c. 1799 CE
Sikh Empire, c. 1799 – c. 1849 CE

Modern
The Great Rebellion, c. 1857 – c. 1858 CE
British Raj, c. 1858 – c. 1947 CE
 Independence Movement
Independent India, c. 1947 CE – present

Related articles
Timeline of Indian History
Dynasties in Indian History
Economic History
Demographic History
Linguistic History
Architectural History
Art History
Literary History
Philosophical History
History of Religion
Musical History
Education History
Coinage History
Science and Technology History
List of Inventions and Discoveries
Military History
Naval History
Wars involving Indiavt

Outline of South Asian history
Palaeolithic (2,500,000–250,000 BC) Madrasian Culture Soanian Culture
Neolithic (10,800–3300 BC) Bhirrana Culture (7570–6200 BC) Mehrgarh Culture (7000–3300 BC) Edakkal Culture (5000–3000 BC)
Chalcolithic (3500–1500 BC) Anarta tradition (c. 3950–1900 BC) Ahar-Banas Culture (3000–1500 BC) Pandu Culture (1600–1500 BC) Malwa Culture (1600–1300 BC) Jorwe Culture (1400–700 BC)
Bronze Age (3300–1300 BC) Indus Valley Civilisation(3300–1300 BC) – Early Harappan Culture(3300–2600 BC) – Mature Harappan Culture(2600–1900 BC) – Late Harappan Culture(1900–1300 BC) Vedic Civilisation(2000–500 BC) – Ochre Coloured Pottery culture(2000–1600 BC) – Swat culture(1600–500 BC)
Iron Age (1500–200 BC) Vedic Civilisation(1500–500 BC) – Janapadas (1500–600 BC) – Black and Red ware culture(1300–1000 BC) – Painted Grey Ware culture (1200–600 BC) – Northern Black Polished Ware (700–200 BC) Pradyota Dynasty (799–684 BC) Haryanka Dynasty (684–424 BC) Three Crowned Kingdoms (c. 600 BC – AD 1600) Maha Janapadas (c. 600–300 BC) Achaemenid Empire (550–330 BC) Ror Dynasty (450 BC – AD 489) Shaishunaga Dynasty (424–345 BC) Nanda Empire (380–321 BC) Macedonian Empire (330–323 BC) Maurya Empire (321–184 BC) Seleucid India (312–303 BC) Pandya Empire (c. 300 BC – AD 1345) Chera Kingdom (c. 300 BC – AD 1102) Chola Empire (c. 300 BC – AD 1279) Pallava Empire (c. 250 BC – AD 800) Maha-Megha-Vahana Empire (c. 250 BC – c. AD 500) Parthian Empire (247 BC – AD 224)
Middle Kingdoms (230 BC – AD 1206) Satavahana Empire (230 BC – AD 220) Kuninda Kingdom (200 BC – AD 300) Mitra Dynasty (c. 150 – c. 50 BC) Shunga Empire (185–73 BC) Indo-Greek Kingdom (180 BC – AD 10) Kanva Empire (75–26 BC) Indo-Scythian Kingdom (50 BC – AD 400) Indo-Parthian Kingdom (AD 21 – c. 130) Western Satrap Empire (AD 35–405 ) Kushan Empire (AD 60–240) Bharshiva Dynasty (170–350) Nagas of Padmavati (210–340) Sasanian Empire (224–651) Indo-Sassanid Kingdom (230–360) Vakataka Empire (c. 250 – c. 500) Kalabhras Empire (c. 250 – c. 600) Gupta Empire (280–550) Kadamba Empire (345–525) Western Ganga Kingdom (350–1000) Kamarupa Kingdom (350–1100) Vishnukundina Empire (420–624) Maitraka Empire (475–767) Huna Kingdom (475–576) Rai Kingdom (489–632) Kabul Shahi Empire (c. 500 – 1026) Chalukya Empire (543–753) Maukhari Empire (c. 550 – c. 700) Harsha Empire (606–647) Tibetan Empire (618–841) Eastern Chalukya Kingdom (624–1075) Rashidun Caliphate (632–661) Gurjara-Pratihara Empire (650–1036) Umayyad Caliphate (661–750) Pala Empire (750–1174) Rashtrakuta Empire (753–982) Paramara Kingdom (800–1327) Yadava Empire (850–1334) Chaulukya Kingdom (942–1244) Western Chalukya Empire (973–1189) Lohara Kingdom (1003–1320) Hoysala Empire (1040–1347) Sena Empire (1070–1230) Eastern Ganga Empire (1078–1434) Kakatiya Kingdom (1083–1323) Zamorin Kingdom (1102–1766) Kalachuris of Tripuri (675-1210) Kalachuris of Kalyani (1156–1184) Chutiya Kingdom (1187–1673) Deva Kingdom (c. 1200 – c. 1300)
Late medieval period (1206–1526) Delhi Sultanate (1206–1526) – Mamluk Sultanate (1206–1290) – Khalji Sultanate (1290–1320) – Tughlaq Sultanate (1320–1414) – Sayyid Sultanate (1414–1451) – Lodi Sultanate (1451–1526) Ahom Kingdom (1228–1826) Chitradurga Kingdom (1300–1779) Reddy Kingdom (1325–1448) Vijayanagara Empire (1336–1646) Bengal Sultanate (1352–1576) Garhwal Kingdom (1358–1803) Mysore Kingdom (1399–1947) Gajapati Kingdom (1434–1541) Deccan Sultanates (1490–1596) – Ahmadnagar Sultanate (1490–1636) – Berar Sultanate (1490–1574) – Bidar Sultanate (1492–1619) – Bijapur Sultanate (1492–1686) – Golkonda Sultanate (1518–1687) Keladi Kingdom (1499–1763) Koch Kingdom (1515–1947)
Early modern period (1526–1858) Mughal Empire (1526–1858) Sur Empire (1540–1556) Madurai Kingdom (1559–1736) Thanjavur Kingdom (1572–1918) Bengal Subah (1576–1757) Marava Kingdom (1600–1750) Thondaiman Kingdom (1650–1948) Maratha Empire (1674–1818) Sikh Confederacy (1707–1799) Travancore Kingdom (1729–1947) Sikh Empire (1799–1849)
Colonial states (1510–1961) Portuguese India (1510–1961) Dutch India (1605–1825) Danish India (1620–1869) French India (1759–1954) Company Raj (1757–1858) British Raj (1858–1947)
Periods of Sri Lanka
 Prehistory (Until 543 BC) Early kingdoms period (543 BC – 377 BC) Anuradhapura period (377 BC – AD 1017) Polonnaruwa period (1056–1232) Transitional period (1232–1505) Crisis of the Sixteenth Century (1505–1594) Kandyan period (1594–1815) British Ceylon (1815–1948) Contemporary Sri Lanka (1948–present)
National historiesAfghanistanBangladeshBhutanIndiaMaldivesNepalPakistanSri Lanka
Regional historiesAssamBalochistanBengalBiharGujaratHimachal PradeshKabulKashmirKhyber PakhtunkhwaRajasthanMaharashtraUttar PradeshPunjabOdishaSindhSouth IndiaTamil NaduTibet
Specialised historiesAgricultureArchitectureCoinageDemographicsDynastiesEconomyEducationIndologyInfluence on Southeast AsiaLanguageLiteratureMaritimeMetallurgyMilitaryPartition of IndiaPakistan studiesPhilosophyReligionScience & TechnologyTimelinevt
Pradyota dynasty
Gupta Empire
History of India
List of largest empires that existed in India
Notes

Sources

Keay, John (2000). India, a History. New York: Harper Collins Publishers.
Stein, Burton (1998). A History of India (1st ed.), Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell.

Schwartzberg, J. E. (1992). A Historical Atlas of South Asia. University of Oxford Press.
Grainger, John D. (1990, 2014). Seleukos Nikator: Constructing a Hellenistic Kingdom. Routledge.

Chanakya, Arthashastra, ISBN0-14-044603-6
J.F.C. Fuller, The Generalship of Alexander the Great, ISBN0-306-81330-0
Robert Morkot, The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Greece, ISBN0-14-051335-3


This article ranks human languages by their number of native speakers.
However, all such rankings should be used with caution, because it is not possible to devise a coherent set of linguistic criteria for distinguishing languages in a dialect continuum.[1]
For example, a language is often defined as a set of varieties that are mutually intelligible, but independent national standard languages may be considered to be separate languages even though they are largely mutually intelligible, as in the case of Danish and Norwegian.[2]
Conversely, many commonly accepted languages, including German, Italian and even English, encompass varieties that are not mutually intelligible.[1]
While Arabic is sometimes considered a single language centred on Modern Standard Arabic, other authors describe its mutually unintelligible varieties as separate languages.[3]
Similarly, Chinese is sometimes viewed as a single language due to shared culture and a single written form.
It is also common to describe various Chinese dialect groups, such as Mandarin, Wu and Yue, as languages, even though each of these groups contains many mutually unintelligible varieties.[4]
There are also difficulties in obtaining reliable counts of speakers, which vary over time due to population change and language shift.
In some areas, there is no reliable census data, the data is not current, or the census may not record languages spoken, or record them ambiguously.
Sometimes speaker populations are exaggerated for political reasons, or speakers of minority languages may be under-reported in favour of a national language.[5]
Top languages by population

The following table contains the top 100 languages by estimated number of native speakers in the 2007 edition of the Swedish encyclopedia Nationalencyklopedin. As census methods in different countries vary to a considerable extent, and given that some countries do not record language in their censuses, any list of languages by native speakers, or total speakers, is effectively based on estimates. Updated estimates from 2010 are also provided.[6]
The top eleven languages have additional figures from the 2010 edition of the Nationalencyklopedin. Numbers above 95 million are rounded off to the nearest 5 million.

Charts and graphs

Bubble chart of languages by proportion of native speakers worldwide[6]
Languages with at least 50 million first-language speakers, millions (according to: Ethnologue[8])

See also

Global language system
Linguistic demography
Linguistic Diversity Index
List of ISO 639-3 codes
List of languages by total number of speakers
List of languages by number of native speakers in Africa
List of languages by number of native speakers in India (uses a different definition of Hindi)
List of sign languages by number of native signers
Lists of languages
World language
Languages used on the Internet

Notes

The Ethnologue's
 ( 2009-10-31) – Encarta list, based on data from Ethnologue, but some figures (e.g. for Arabic) widely vary from it

How many languages are spoken in the world?


A crater lake is a lake that forms in a volcanic crater or caldera, such as a maar; less commonly and with lower association to the term a lake may form in an impact crater caused by a meteorite, or in the crater left by an artificial explosion caused by humans. Sometimes lakes which form inside calderas are called caldera lakes, but often this distinction is not made. Crater lakes covering active (fumarolic) volcanic vents are sometimes known as volcanic lakes, and the water within them is often acidic, saturated with volcanic gases, and cloudy with a strong greenish color. For example, the crater lake of Kawah Ijen in Indonesia has a pH of under 0.5.[1] Lakes located in dormant or extinct volcanoes tend to have fresh water, and the water clarity in such lakes can be exceptional due to the lack of inflowing streams and sediment.
Formation
Volcanic crater lakes
Crater lakes form as the created depression, within the crater rim, is filled by water. The water may come from precipitation, groundwater circulation (often hydrothermal fluids in the case of volcanic craters) or melted ice. Its level rises until an equilibrium is reached between the rates of incoming and outgoing water. Sources of water loss singly or together may include evaporation, subsurface seepage, and, in places, surface leakage or overflow when the lake level reaches the lowest point on its rim. At such a saddle location, the upper portion of the lake is contained only by its adjacent natural volcanic dam; continued leakage through or surface outflow across the dam can erode its included material, thus lowering lake level until a new equilibrium of water flow, erosion, and rock resistance is established. If the volcanic dam portion erodes rapidly or fails catastrophically, the occurrence produces a breakout or outburst flood. With changes in environmental conditions over time, the occurrence of such floods is common to all natural dam types.
A well-known crater lake, which bears the same name as the geological feature, is Crater Lake in Oregon. It is located in the caldera of Mount Mazama.  It is the deepest lake in the United States with a depth of 594m (1,949ft). Crater Lake is fed solely by falling rain and snow, with no inflow or outflow at the surface, and hence is one of the clearest lakes in the world.[2]
The highest volcano in the world, 6,893-m (22,615-ft) Ojos del Salado in Chile, has a permanent crater lake about 100m (330ft) in diameter at an elevation of 6,390m (20,965ft) on its eastern side.[3] This is most likely the highest lake of any kind in the world.
Due to their unstable environments, some crater lakes exist only intermittently. Caldera lakes in contrast can be quite large and long-lasting. For instance, Lake Toba (Indonesia) formed after its eruption around 75,000 years ago. At a size of around 100km (60 miles) by 30km (18 miles) in extent and 505 m (1,656ft) deep at its deepest point, Lake Toba is the largest crater lake in the world.[4] While many crater lakes are picturesque, they can also be deadly. Gas discharges from Lake Nyos (Cameroon) suffocated 1,800 people in 1986, and crater lakes such as Mount Ruapehu's (New Zealand) often contribute to destructive lahars.
Certain bodies of water, although their formation is directly related to volcanic activity, are not usually referred to as crater lakes, including:
Lakes created by volcanic dams due to lava flowing outside of the volcanic edifice/caldera (such as Garibaldi Lake in Canada, Fuji Five Lakes in Japan)
Closed atoll lagoons (such as Clipperton lagoon), whose formation process also implies subsequent biogeomorphologic processes
Ponds encountered at the bottom of waterfalls occurring in volcanic canyons in a volcanic context, but not within a volcanic edifice/caldera (such as Trou de Fer on Réunion Island)
Other kinds of crater lakes
Lakes can also fill impact craters, but these are not usually referred to as crater lakes. Examples include Manicouagan in Canada, Lake Bosumtwi in Ghana and Siljan in Sweden.
More rarely they can also fill craters caused by artificial explosions, such as the radioactive Lake Chagan in Kazakhstan.
Other geological features that can be mistaken for a crater lake
Some geomorphological features, when filled with water, can sometimes be confused with crater lakes:
Pingos (soil-covered ice mounts) whose summital part has collapsed[5]
Sinkholes (karstic holes, also called cenotes), such as Otjikoto Lake in Namibia
Some circular open-pit mines can also present a similar appearance, such as Big Hole in Kimberley, South Africa, a diamond mine (in a kimberlite pipe) where water has accumulated in the artificially created depression.
List of volcanic crater lakes

List of meteor crater lakes

List of artificial crater lakes

List of crater lakes of unclear origin

See also
Lava lake– Molten lava contained in a volcanic crater
Volcanic crater– Roughly circular depression in the ground caused by volcanic activity
Caldera– Cauldron-like volcanic feature formed by the collapse of a magma chamber
Types of volcanic eruptions– Basic mechanisms of eruption and variations
Maar– Low-relief volcanic crater
Atoll– Ring-shaped coral reef, generally formed over a subsiding oceanic volcano, with a central lagoon and perhaps islands around the rim
Impact crater– Circular depression on a solid astronomical body formed by a hypervelocity impact of a smaller object

Further reading

  (entire volume about crater lakes)

  (entire issue about chemistry of crater lakes)

, Greg Pasternack, U. California Davis
 documentation in  archive


The Enterobacteriaceae are a large family of Gram-negative bacteria.
This family is the only representative in the order Enterobacteriales of the class Gammaproteobacteria in the phylum Proteobacteria.[2][3][4][5]
Enterobacteriaceae includes, along with many harmless symbionts, many of the more familiar pathogens, such as Salmonella, Escherichia coli, Yersinia pestis, Klebsiella, and Shigella. Other disease-causing bacteria in this family include Proteus, Enterobacter, Serratia, and Citrobacter. Phylogenetically, in the Enterobacteriales, several peptidoglycan-less insect endosymbionts form a sister clade to the Enterobacteriaceae, but as they are not validly described, this group is not officially a taxon; examples of these species are Sodalis, Buchnera, Wigglesworthia, Baumannia cicadellinicola, and Blochmannia, but not former Rickettsias.[6] Members of the Enterobacteriaceae can be trivially referred to as enterobacteria or "enteric bacteria",[7] as several members live in the intestines of animals. In fact, the etymology of the family is enterobacterium with the suffix to designate a family (aceae)—not after the genus Enterobacter (which would be "Enterobacteraceae")—and the type genus is Escherichia.
Morphology
Members of the Enterobacteriaceae are bacilli (rod-shaped), and are typically 1–5 μm in length. They typically appear as medium to large-sized grey colonies on blood agar, although some can express pigments (such as Serratia marcescens).
Most have many flagella used to move about, but a few genera are nonmotile. Most members of Enterobacteriaceae have peritrichous, type I fimbriae involved in the adhesion of the bacterial cells to their hosts.
They are not spore-forming.
Metabolism
Like other proteobacteria, enterobactericeae have Gram-negative stains,[8] and they are facultative anaerobes, fermenting sugars to produce lactic acid and various other end products.  Most also reduce nitrate to nitrite, although exceptions exist (e.g. Photorhabdus).  Unlike most similar bacteria, enterobacteriaceae generally lack cytochrome C oxidase, although there are exceptions (e.g. Plesiomonas shigelloides).
Catalase reactions vary among Enterobacteriaceae.
Ecology
Many members of this family are normal members of the gut microbiota in humans and other animals, while others are found in water or soil, or are parasites on a variety of different animals and plants.
Model organisms and medical relevance
Escherichia coli is one of the most important model organisms, and its genetics and biochemistry have been closely studied.
Some enterobacteria are important pathogens, e.g. Salmonella, Shigella, or Yersinia, e.g. because they produce endotoxins. Endotoxins reside in the cell wall and are released when the cell dies and the cell wall disintegrates. Some members of the Enterobacteriaceae produce endotoxins that, when released into the bloodstream following cell lysis, cause a systemic inflammatory and vasodilatory response. The most severe form of this is known as endotoxic shock, which can be rapidly fatal.
Genera
Accepted

Arsenophonus
Brenneria
Buchnera
Budvicia
Buttiauxella

Cedecea
Citrobacter
Cosenzaea
Cronobacter
Dickeya
Edwardsiella
Enterobacillus
Enterobacter
Erwinia
Escherichia
Ewingella
Franconibacter
Gibbsiella
Hafnia
Izhakiella
Kosakonia
Klebsiella
Kluyvera
Leclercia
Lelliottia
Leminorella
Levinea
Lonsdalea
Mangrovibacter
Moellerella
Morganella
Obesumbacterium
Pantoea
Pectobacterium
Phaseolibacter
Photorhabdus
Phytobacter
Plesiomonas
Pluralibacter
Pragia
Proteus
Providencia
Pseudocitrobacter
Rahnella
Raoultella
Rosenbergiella
Rouxiella
Saccharobacter
Salmonella
Samsonia
Serratia
Shigella
Shimwellia
Siccibacter
Sodalis
Tatumella
Thorsellia
Trabulsiella
Wigglesworthia
Xenorhabdus
Yersinia
Yokenella

Candidatus

"Candidatus Annandia"
"Candidatus Aschnera"
"Candidatus Benitsuchiphilus"
"Candidatus Curculioniphilus"
"Candidatus Cuticobacterium"
"Candidatus Gillettellia"
"Candidatus Hamiltonella"
"Candidatus Hartigia"
"Candidatus Ishikawaella"
"Candidatus Kleidoceria"
"Candidatus Macropleicola"
"Candidatus Moranella"
"Candidatus Phlomobacter"
"Candidatus Profftia"
"Candidatus Purcelliella"
"Candidatus Regiella"
"Candidatus Riesia"
"Candidatus Rohrkolberia"
"Candidatus Rosenkranzia"
"Candidatus Schneideria"
"Candidatus Stammerula"
"Candidatus Tachikawaea"

Provisional

Aquamonas
Aranicola
Atlantibacter
Chania
Grimontella
Guhaiyinggella
Margalefia
Tiedjeia

Identification
To identify different genera of Enterobacteriaceae, a microbiologist may run a series of tests in the lab. These include:[9]
Phenol red
Tryptone broth
Phenylalanine agar for detection of production of deaminase, which converts phenylalanine to phenylpyruvic acid
Methyl red or Voges-Proskauer tests depend on the digestion of glucose. The methyl red tests for acid endproducts. The Voges Proskauer tests for the production of acetylmethylcarbinol.
Catalase test on nutrient agar tests for the production of enzyme catalase, which splits hydrogen peroxide and releases oxygen gas.
Oxidase test on nutrient agar tests for the production of the enzyme oxidase, which reacts with an aromatic amine to produce a purple color.
Nutrient gelatin tests to detect activity of the enzyme gelatinase.
In a clinical setting, three species make up 80 to 95% of all isolates identified. These are Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Proteus mirabilis.
Antibiotic resistance

Several Enterobacteriaceae strains have been isolated which are resistant to antibiotics including carbapenems, which are often claimed as "the last line of antibiotic defense" against resistant organisms. For instance, some Klebsiella pneumoniae strains are carbapenem resistant.[10]

 genomes and related information at , a Bioinformatics Resource Center funded by
Evaluation of new computer-enhanced identification program for microorganisms: adaptation of BioBASE for identification of members of the family Enterobacteriaceae
Brown, A.E. (2009). Benson's microbiological applications: laboratory manual in general microbiology. New York: McGraw- Hill.