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1st millennium BC facts for kids

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Millennia: 2nd millennium BC · 1st millennium BC · 1st millennium AD
Centuries: 10th century BC · 9th century BC · 8th century BC · 7th century BC · 6th century BC · 5th century BC · 4th century BC · 3rd century BC · 2nd century BC · 1st century BC
World in 500 BCE
Overview map of the world around 500 BC. Different colors show how societies were developing:      People who hunted and gathered food      People who moved around with their animals      Simple farming groups      More complex farming groups or chiefdoms      Societies with governments and laws      Large empires      Areas where no one lived

The 1st millennium BC was a long period of time. It started in the year 1000 BC and ended in 1 BC. This means it covered the 10th through the 1st centuries BC. During this time, the Iron Age happened in many parts of the world. It was also a time when ancient civilizations in the Ancient Near East began to change into the classical world.

The number of people on Earth roughly doubled during this millennium. It grew from about 100 million to around 200–250 million people.

Major Civilizations and Changes

Further information: Ancient history and World history

In the early part of this millennium, the Neo-Assyrian Empire was very powerful in the Near East. But by the 6th century BC, the Achaemenid Empire took its place. Ancient Egypt was getting weaker and eventually fell to the Achaemenids in 525 BC.

In Greece, the Classical Age began. Greek people started to set up colonies in places like Magna Graecia (southern Italy). This period reached its peak with the conquests of Alexander the Great. After his victories, Hellenistic civilization spread, lasting from the 4th to the 2nd centuries BC.

The Roman Republic grew stronger in Italy. It took over from the Etruscans and later defeated the Carthaginians between the 5th and 3rd centuries BC. By the end of the millennium, the mighty Roman Empire was rising. In Central Europe, the early Celts were important. Northern Europe was in its Pre-Roman Iron Age.

In East Africa, new kingdoms appeared. These included the Nubian Empire and Aksum.

In South Asia, the Vedic civilization developed into the Maurya Empire. The Scythians were powerful in Central Asia. In China, the Spring and Autumn period saw the start of Confucianism. Later, the Han Dynasty expanded China's influence towards Central Asia. There, it met with Indo-Greek and Iranian states. Japan was in the Yayoi period. The Maya civilization also began to rise in Mesoamerica.

This millennium was a very important time for the world's major religions. Early Judaism and Zoroastrianism developed in the Near East. In India, Vedic religion and Vedanta, Jainism, and Buddhism all grew. Early writing became important in Greek, Latin, Hebrew, Sanskrit, Tamil, and Chinese. This period, especially from the 8th to 2nd centuries BC, is sometimes called the "Axial Age" because of these big changes.

The world's population more than doubled during this time. It went from about 50–100 million people to an estimated 170–300 million. By the end of the millennium, almost 90% of people lived in the large Iron Age civilizations. These included the Roman Empire, the Parthian Empire, the Indo-Greek and Indo-Scythian kingdoms, the Hindu kingdoms, and Han China. The Americas had less than 20 million people, mostly in Mesoamerica. Sub-Saharan Africa likely had less than 10 million. Oceania had less than one million people.

Ancient History Timeline

Main article: Ancient history
Further information: Iron Age, Classical Antiquity, and Axial Age

This timeline shows some important events that happened during the 1st millennium BC.

10th Century BC

9th Century BC

  • Egypt: The Nile River floods the Temple of Luxor in 872 BC.
  • Egypt: A civil war happens in Egypt in 836 BC.
  • North Africa: The city of Carthage is founded in 814 BC.
  • China: The Gonghe Regency rules from 841 BC to 828 BC.

8th Century BC

7th Century BC

  • 671 BC: Assyria conquers Egypt.
  • Near East: The Assyrian Empire begins to decline after the death of Ashurbanipal in 631 BC.

6th Century BC

5th Century BC

4th Century BC

3rd Century BC

2nd Century BC

1st Century BC

Important People

Many important people lived during this time. Some, like Solomon or Zoroaster, are known from ancient stories, but we don't have records from their exact time.

Rulers
Thinkers and Scholars
  • Elijah: A prophet from the 9th century BC.
  • Isaiah: A prophet from the 8th century BC.
  • Parshvanatha: An important figure in Jainism, possibly from the 8th or 7th century BC.
  • Jeremiah: A prophet around 628 BC.
  • Thales of Miletus (c. 624–545 BC): An early Greek philosopher.
  • Solon (c. 638–558 BC): A wise Athenian lawmaker.
  • Zoroaster: A prophet who founded Zoroastrianism.
  • Mahavira: The last important teacher of Jainism, around the 6th century BC.
  • Pythagoras: A Greek mathematician and philosopher from the 6th century BC.
  • Heraclitus (c. 535–475 BC): A Greek philosopher.
  • Confucius: A famous Chinese teacher and philosopher from the 6th to 5th century BC.
  • Laozi: A Chinese philosopher, founder of Taoism.
  • Parmenides: A Greek philosopher from the late 6th or early 5th century BC.
  • Gautama Buddha: The founder of Buddhism, from the 5th century BC.
  • Socrates (469–399 BC): A very famous Greek philosopher.
  • Thucydides (c. 460–400 BC): A Greek historian.
  • Aristophanes (446–386 BC): A Greek playwright.
  • Plato (428–348 BC): A famous Greek philosopher, student of Socrates.
  • Aristotle (384–322 BC): A famous Greek philosopher, student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great.
  • Zhuang Zhou: A Chinese philosopher from the 4th century BC.
  • Panini: An Indian grammarian from the 4th century BC.
  • Mencius (372–289 BC): A Chinese philosopher, follower of Confucius.
  • Pingala: An Indian mathematician from the 3rd century BC.
  • Qin Shi Huang (259–210 BC): The first emperor of unified China.
  • Euclid: A Greek mathematician, around 300 BC, known for geometry.
  • Archimedes (287–212 BC): A Greek mathematician and inventor.
  • Sima Qian: A Chinese historian from the 2nd century BC.
  • Varro (116–27 BC): A Roman scholar.
  • Cicero (106–43 BC): A Roman statesman and writer.

Inventions and Discoveries

Further information: Ancient technology
Placca pantera, da regione di krasnodar, kurgan chertomlyk, oro a sbalzo e cesellato, fine VII sec ac.
Scythian gold panther plaque (late 7th century BC)
The Parthenon in Athens
The Parthenon in Athens (5th century BC)
The Wrestler (Olmec) by DeLange
"The Wrestler", an Olmec statue (around 1400–400 BC)
Human headed winged bull facing
A Lamassu (human-headed winged bull) from Sargon II's palace in Assyria (around 713–716 BC)

Literature

Many important books and writings were created during this millennium.

Greco-Roman Literature
  • Homer (late 8th or early 7th century BC): Wrote the epic poems Iliad and Odyssey.
  • Hesiod (8th to 7th century BC): Wrote Theogony and Works and Days.
  • Sappho (late 7th to early 6th century BC): A famous Greek poet.
  • Aesop's Fables: A collection of short stories with morals.
  • Aeschylus (c. 525–455 BC): A Greek playwright.
  • Herodotus (484–425 BC): Wrote Histories, often called the "Father of History."
  • Euripides (c. 480–406 BC): A Greek playwright.
  • Aristotle (384–322 BC): Wrote many books on philosophy, science, and logic.
  • Euclid: Wrote Elements, a famous book on geometry.
  • Cicero: A Roman statesman and writer.
  • Virgil: A Roman poet.
Chinese Literature
Main article: Chinese literature
  • I Ching (date unknown): A classic Chinese text about change.
  • Classic of Poetry (Shījīng): A collection of ancient Chinese poems.
  • Spring and Autumn Annals (Chūnqiū): Records of the state of Lu from 722–481 BC.
  • Confucius: His teachings are found in the Analects (Lúnyǔ).
  • Classic of Rites (Lǐjì): A book about ancient Chinese rituals and customs.
  • Laozi (or Lao Tzu): Wrote the Tao Te Ching.
  • Zhuangzi: Wrote the Zhuangzi (book).
  • Mencius: His teachings are in the Mencius book.
Sanskrit Literature (India)
  • Vedas and Brahmanas: Ancient Hindu sacred texts.
  • Mukhya Upanishads: Important philosophical texts.
  • Early parts of the Sanskrit epics (like the Mahabharata and Ramayana).
Hebrew Literature
Main article: Hebrew Bible
Other Literature

Archaeology

Further information: Iron Age

This table shows different cultures and archaeological periods from around the world during this millennium.

Culture Region Period Notes
Urnfield culture Central Europe 1300–750 BC Part of the Bronze Age
Atlantic Bronze Age Western Europe 1300–700 BC Part of the Bronze Age
Painted Grey Ware culture South Asia 1200–600 BC Linked to the Indo-Aryan migration
Late Nordic Bronze Age Northern Europe 1100–550 BC Part of the Bronze Age
Villanovan culture Italy, Europe 1100–700 BC Early Iron Age in Italy
Greek Dark Ages Greece 1100–800 BC A time of decline after the Bronze Age
Iron Age II Near East 1000–586 BC Part of the Ancient Near East
Sa Huỳnh culture Vietnam, Southeast Asia 1000 BC–AD 200
Woodland period North America 1000 BC – AD 1000
Bantu expansion Sub-Saharan Africa 1000 BC–AD 500 Spread of Bantu-speaking peoples
Middle Nok Period West Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa 900–300 BC Known for iron smelting
Novocherkassk culture Eastern Europe 900–650 BC
Chavín de Huántar Peru, South America 1200–500 BC An important early culture in Peru
Poverty Point earthworks Louisiana, North America 1650–700 BC Large earth mounds
Olmecs Mesoamerica 1500–400 BC An early major civilization in Mesoamerica
Adena culture Ohio, North America 1000–200 BC Known for mound building
Liaoning bronze dagger culture East Asia 800–600 BC Known for bronze daggers
Middle Mumun Korea, East Asia 800–300 BC
Etruscan civilization Italy, Europe 800–264 BC An ancient Italian civilization
Paracas culture Peru, South America 800–100 BC Known for textiles
Hallstatt culture Central Europe 800 BC–500 BC Early Iron Age culture, linked to the Celts
British Iron Age Britain, Europe 700–50 BC The Iron Age in Britain
Zapotec civilization Mesoamerica 700 BC – AD 700 An important civilization in Mesoamerica
Pazyryk culture Central Asia 600–300 BC Linked to the Scythians
Aldy-Bel culture Central Asia 600–300 BC Also linked to the Scythians
La Tène culture Central/Western Europe 500–50 BC A major Iron Age culture, linked to the Gauls
Pre-Roman Iron Age Northern Europe 500–50 BC The Iron Age before Roman influence
Northern Black Polished Ware South Asia 500–300 BC Pottery from the Vedic period
Late Mumun Korea, East Asia 550–300 BC
Urewe Sub-Saharan Africa 400 BC–AD 500 Known for iron working
Late Nok Period West Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa 300–1 BC
Nasca culture Peru, South America 100 BC–800 AD Known for Nazca Lines
Calima culture Colombia, South America 200 BC–400 AD
Hopewell tradition North America 100 BC–AD 400 Known for large earthworks
Teotihuacan Mesoamerica 100 BC –AD 550 A large ancient city
Ipiutak Site Alaska, North America 100 BC –AD 800 An archaeological site


Images for kids

  • East-Hem 1000bc

    Map of the Eastern Hemisphere in 1000 BC.

  • World in 1 CE

    Map of the world in 1 AD, just after the end of the 1st millennium BC.

See also

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