Early Sri Lankans compile the Dipavamsa
The Dipavamsa is the oldest historical record of Sri Lanka. Together with the Mahavamsa, it is the source of many accounts of ancient history of Sri Lanka and India.
5th Century B.C.E.
First human settlements thrive in modern-day Senegal
Hundreds of burial mounds have been found on the coast and in river estuaries of the Senegal, Saloum, Gambia, and Casamance rivers. 217 of these clusters have been identified in the Saloum Delta alone.
Laozi writes the Tao Te Ching
The mysterious Laozi’s ancient wisdom may be hard to translate, but the meaning is clear — learning to be self-aware could improve modern life.
Sophocles completes the Oedipus trilogy of tragic plays
Sophocles (c. 496 – c. 406 B.C.E.) was one of the most famous and celebrated writers of tragedy plays in ancient Greece and his surviving works, written throughout the 5th century B.C.E., include such classics as Oedipus the King, Antigone, and Women of Trachis.
The Hippocratic Oath is used for the first time
The Hippocratic Oath is one of the oldest and most widely known codes of ethics.
Zapotec culture flourishes in modern-day Mexico
The Zapotec civilization was an indigenous pre-Columbian civilization that flourished in the Valley of Oaxaca in Mesoamerica.
Humanity creates democracy in Ancient Greece
In the year 507 B.C.E., the Athenian leader Cleisthenes introduced a system of political reforms that he called demokratia, or “rule by the people.”
The Nanda Empire comes to power in modern-day India and Bangladesh
The Nanda dynasty ruled in northern part of the Indian subcontinent during the 4th century B.C.E., and possibly during the 5th century B.C.E. The Nandas overthrew the Shaishunaga dynasty in the Magadha region of eastern India, and expanded their empire to include a larger part of northern India.
Humans of the Zhou dynasty in modern-day China invent the gear
Gears almost always produce a change in torque, creating a mechanical advantage, through their gear ratio, and thus may be considered a simple machine.
The Bosporan Kingdom thrives in modern-day Russia and Ukraine
The Bosporan Kingdom was an ancient Greco-Scythian state located in eastern Crimea and the Taman Peninsula on the shores of the Cimmerian Bosporus.