Timeline–India

  • c. prehistoric

Human habitation ofIndia.

  • 5500 BCE

Cotton cultivation begins inIndia.

  • c. 5000 BCE

Evidence of religious practices in theIndus Valley.

  • c. 5000 BCE - c. 1500 BCE

TheIndus Valley(or Harappan)Civilization.

  • c. 4000 BCE

Indian village of Balathal inhabited.

  • c. 4000 BCE

Farmingsettlements are established in theIndus Valley.

  • c. 3300 BCE

Early HarappanCivilizationofIndiapracticesburialof the dead.

  • c. 3000 BCE

First signs ofurbanizationin theIndus Valley.

  • c. 3000 BCE - c. 2600 BCE

The rise of the great Indiancitiesof MohenjoDaro and Harappa.

  • c. 2800 BCE

Later HarappanCivilizationturns to cremation overburial.

  • c. 2600 BCE

Dozens of towns andcitiesare established in theIndus Valley.

  • 2000 BCE

Pepperis widely used in Indian cooking.

  • c. 1700 BCE - c. 1500 BCE

Decline of the Harappan Culture inIndia.

  • c. 1700 BCE - 1100 BCE

The RigVedawritten, mentioning the god Rudra (Shiva) for the first time.

  • c. 1700 BCE - 150 BCE

The Vedic Period inIndia.

  • 1500 BCE

TheIndus Valleyis invaded byAryans- nomadic northerners from central Asia.

  • c. 1000 BCE

TheAryansexpand into the Ganges valley inIndia.

  • c. 700 BCE

Indian scholars codify and reinterpretAryanbeliefs to create theUpanishadstexts forming the basis ofHinduism.

  • c. 700 BCE

Indiais divided into 16Aryanstates or kingdoms.

  • c. 600 BCE

Charaka and Sushruta found two schools of Ayurveda.

  • 599 BCE - 527 BCE

Life of Indian philosopherVardhamana, founder ofJainism.

  • 530 BCE

PersiaconquerstheIndus Valley.

  • c. 500 BCE

The kingdom of Magadha, ruled by Bimbisara, is the most powerful state inIndia.

  • c. 490 BCE - c. 410 BCE

The life ofSiddhartha Gautamaaccording to modern scholar consensus.

  • 340 BCE - 298 BCE

Life of Indian EmperorChandragupta, first ruler of the MauryanEmpire.

  • 327 BCE - 325 BCE

Alexander'scampaign in northernIndia.

  • 322 BCE - 298 BCE

Reign ofChandragupta, first ruler of the MauryanEmpire.

  • 320 BCE

ChandraguptaMaurya seizes the throne of Magadhan and expands the kingdom over northern and centralIndia.

  • 305 BCE

Emperor Changragupta signs a treaty with Seleucus, establishing borders and giving the Punjab to Changragupta in return for 500warelephants.

  • 298 BCE

Indian rulerChandraguptaMaurya dies.

  • 298 BCE

Chandraguptavoluntarily abdicates the throne in favour of his son Bindusara. Jain sources say that Chandragupta turned into an ascetic and follower ofJainism, migrated south and starved himself to death.

  • 298 BCE - 272 BCE

Chandragupta'sson, Bindusara, rules and expands the MauryaEmpire.

  • c. 268 BCE

Ashokabecomes emperor of the Maurya dynasty inIndia.

  • c. 260 BCE

Indian rulerAshokaconquersthe kingdom of Kalinga.

  • 232 BCE

Indian rulerAshokadies and the Mauryaempiredeclines.

  • c. 200 BCE

Beginning of the Greco-BactrianconquestsinIndia.

  • 186 BCE

Demetrios wins a decisivebattlein Gandhara, beginning the Yona (orGreekera) inIndia.

  • c. 165 BCE

The Greco-Bactrian kingEucratidesinvadesIndia.

  • 160 BCE - 135 BCE

Indo-GreekKing Menander rules the Punjab.

  • c. 130 BCE

Eucratidsflee fromBactriatoIndia. Rivalry between Eucratids andEuthydemidstakes place in the Indo-Greekkingdoms.

  • 30 BCE

Pepperis directly imported byRomanships fromIndiaand its price decreases.

  • c. 1 CE

First non-stop voyages fromEgypttoIndia.

  • c. 1 CE - c. 100 CE

The Mahayana movement begins inIndiawith its belief in bodhisattva - saintly souls who helped the living.

  • c. 100 CE

The large series of Mahayana Buddhist texts named in Sanskrit Prajnaparamita “Perfection of wisdom” begins to be written in SouthernIndia.

  • 320 CE

Gupta I founds the Gupta dynasty which would ruleIndiafor 600 years.

  • 380 CE - 415 CE

Reign of Chandra Gupta II inIndia.

  • 450 CE

Indiais invaded by the White Huns across theHinduKush.

  • c. 500 CE - c. 600 CE

InIndiathe Tantric expands the number of deities to include helpful demons, contactable through ritual.

  • c. 550 CE

The end of the reign of VisnuguptaChandraditya, last of the Gupta rulers inIndia.

  • 712 CE

Muslim general Muhammed bin QuasimconquersnorthernIndia.