Kushan Empire
The Kushan Empire (Sanskrit: कुषाण राजवंश (Kuṣāṇ Rājavaṃśa), BHS: Guṣāṇa-vaṃśa, Parthian: Kušanxšaθr[2]) was first formed in the early 1st century AD. It was in eastern and northern Afghanistan and the north-west of India[3] established by people of Turkic origin who had earlier migrated from Central Asia.[4]
Kushan Empire कुषाण राजवंश <span title="Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Language/data/ISO 639 override' not found. transliteration" class="Unicode" style="white-space:normal; text-decoration: none">Kuṣāṇ Rājavaṃśa | |||||||||||||
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30–375 | |||||||||||||
Capital | Peshawar Begram Taxila Mathura | ||||||||||||
Common languages | Pali Prakrit Bactrian Sanskrit Greek | ||||||||||||
Religion | Hinduism Buddhism Zoroastrianism Greco-Buddhism Ancient Greek religion | ||||||||||||
Government | Monarchy | ||||||||||||
Emperor | |||||||||||||
• c. 60-c. 80 | Kujula Kadphises | ||||||||||||
• 350–375 | Kipunada | ||||||||||||
Historical era | Classical Antiquity | ||||||||||||
• | 30 | ||||||||||||
• | 375 | ||||||||||||
Currency | Kushan Drachm | ||||||||||||
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Today part of | Afghanistan India Iran Pakistan Tajikistan Uzbekistan |
The Kushan were a branch of the Yuezhi confederation.[5][6] Previously a nomadic people living in eastern Central Asia, the Yuezhi moved southwest and settled in ancient Bactria.[6]
Kushan Empire Media
Greek alphabet (narrow columns) with Kushan script (wide columns)
Eastern reach as far as Bengal: Samatata coinage of king Vira Jadamarah, in imitation of the Kushan coinage of Kanishka I. The text of the legend is a meaningless imitation. Bengal, circa 2nd-3rd century AD.
Kushan prince, said to be Huvishka, making a donation to a Boddhisattva.
Notes
- ↑ "The Rabatak inscription claims that in the year 1 Kanishka I's authority was proclaimed in India, in all the satrapies and in different cities like Koonadeano (Kundina), Ozeno (Ujjain), Kozambo (Kausambi), Zagedo (Saketa), Palabotro (Pataliputra) and Ziri-Tambo (Janjgir-Champa). These cities lay to the east and south of Mathura, up to which locality Wima had already carried his victorious arm. Therefore they must have been captured or subdued by Kanishka I himself." "Ancient Indian Inscriptions", S. R. Goyal, p. 93. See also the analysis of Sims-Williams and J.Cribb, who had a central role in the decipherment: "A new Bactrian inscription of Kanishka the Great", in "Silk Road Art and Archaeology" No4, 1995–1996. Also Mukherjee B.N. "The Great Kushanan Testament", Indian Museum Bulletin.
- ↑ The Dynasty Arts of the Kushans, University of California Press, 1967, p. 5
- ↑ Hill (2009), pp. 29, 318–350
- ↑ Keown, D. (2004): A Dictionary of Buddhism - Kuṣāṇa. Oxford University Press, ISBN 9780198605607 10.1093
- ↑ Runion, Meredith L. (2007). The history of Afghanistan. Westport: Greenwood Press. p. 46. ISBN 9780313337987.
The Yuezhi people conquered Bactria in the second century B.C.E. and divided the country into five chiefdoms, one of which would become the Kushan Empire. Recognizing the importance of unification, these five tribes combined under the one dominate Kushan tribe, and the primary rulers descended from the Yuezhi.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Liu, Xinrui (2001). Adas, Michael (ed.). Agricultural and pastoral societies in ancient and classical history. Philadelphia: Temple University Press. p. 156. ISBN 9781566398329.