Indo-Greeks: Map & History
The Indo-Greek Kingdom, also known as the Yavana Kingdom, were Hellenistic-era Greek kingdoms in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent covering most of modern-day Pakistan, parts of northwestern India and some eastern parts of Afghanistan.
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The Indo-Greek Kingdom, also known as the Yavana Kingdom, were Hellenistic-era Greek kingdoms in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent covering most of modern-day Pakistan, parts of northwestern India and some eastern parts of Afghanistan.
Modern Countries Once Part of Indo-Greeks
At its mapped extent, Indo-Greeks covered territory in 3 present-day countries. The period shown is when the mapped borders include that country, and the note says how much of it.
- Pakistan126 BCE – 13 CE · most
- Afghanistan126–111 BCE · a large part
- India126 BCE – 13 CE · a small part
States and Provinces
Largest Present-Day Cities in Its Territory
Each opens on the live map inside Indo-Greeks's borders of that time.
Derived by testing mapped cities against this polity's dated territorial polygons, so the list is indicative and follows the borders in the source dataset.
Indo-Greeks in Depth
History
Some narrative history has survived for most of the Hellenistic world, at least of the kings and the wars; this is lacking for India. The main Greco-Roman source on the Indo-Greeks is Justin, who wrote an anthology drawn from the Roman historian Pompeius Trogus, who in turn wrote, from Greek sources, at the time of Augustus Caesar. In addition to these dozen sentences, the geographer Strabo mentions India a few times in the course of his long dispute with Eratosthenes about the shape of Eurasia.
Economy
Very little is known about the economy of the Indo-Greeks, although it seems to have been rather vibrant.
The abundance of their coins would tend to suggest large mining operations, particularly in the mountainous area of the Hindu-Kush, and an important monetary economy. The Indo-Greek did strike bilingual coins both in the Greek "round" standard and in the Indian "square" standard, suggesting that monetary circulation extended to all parts of society. The adoption of Indo-Greek monetary conventions by neighbouring kingdoms, such as the Kunindas to the east and the Satavahanas to the south, would also suggest that Indo-Greek coins were used extensively for cross-border trade.
Legacy
From the 1st century AD, the Greek communities of central Asia and the northwestern Indian subcontinent lived under the control of the Kushan branch of the Yuezhi, apart from a short-lived invasion of the Indo-Parthian Kingdom. The Kushans founded the Kushan Empire, which was to prosper for several centuries. In the south, the Greeks were under the rule of the Western Kshatrapas. The Kalash tribe of the Chitral Valley claim to be descendants of the Indo-Greeks; although this is disputed.
It is unclear how much longer the Greeks managed to maintain a distinct presence in the Indian sub-continent.
Background
Greeks first began to establish authority in the Northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent during the time of the Persian Achaemenid Empire. Darius the Great conquered the area, but along with his successors also conquered much of the Greek world, which at the time included all of the western Anatolian peninsula. When Greek villages rebelled under the Persian yoke, they were sometimes ethnically cleansed, their inhabitants relocated to the far side of the empire around today's Afghanistan. Over time they grew influential politically and rose to power establishing their own independent kingdoms and expanding their realm in all directions.
In the fourth century BC, Alexander the Great defeated and conquered the Persian empire.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Indo-Greek Kingdom (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Indo-Greeks: Key Facts
| Capital | Alexandria on the Caucasus |
|---|---|
| Official language | Koine Greek |
| Founded | 180 BCE |
| Dissolved | 10 CE |
Preceded by
- Empire of Magadha
- Greco-Bactrian Kingdom
Succeeded by
Facts from Wikidata Q215643 (CC0).
Indo-Greeks Map Over Time
Dated world maps on which Indo-Greeks appears, with the other states of the time.
Indo-Greeks Timeline
Key historical inflections from foundation to peak territorial expansion
Expansion to peak recorded area of 784,828 km² in 118 BCE.
Indo-Greeks: Frequently Asked Questions
When did Indo-Greeks exist?
Indo-Greeks is dated to 126 BCE – 13 CE, in the Classical Antiquity era.
What was the capital of Indo-Greeks?
The capital of Indo-Greeks was Taxila, Sagala.
How large was Indo-Greeks at its peak?
At its peak in 118 BC Indo-Greeks covered about 784,828 km².
How did the map of Indo-Greeks change over time?
Indo-Greeks appears on 2 dated world maps in the atlas, from 100 BCE to 1 CE. Each shows its borders in that year next to the other states of the time.