Textbook
Our Pasts I, II & III (Classes 6–8)
The simplest possible start: short, illustrated and the base of countless exam questions.
Early Cholas (Sangam era)
Kingdom
Level 2
c. 300 BCE – c. 300 CE
Sangam-age Chola kingdom of Karikala.
- Capital
- Uraiyur / Puhar
- Region
- South
- Duration
- 599 years
- Main period
- Post-Mauryan Powers
Approximate extent.
At a glance
Move along the chart to read any year; click a ruler or event to open the map there.
Rulers
- Karikala Kingc. 90 CE – c. 120 CEBuilt the Kallanai (Grand Anicut) according to tradition.
Selected rulers; gaps in the list are not gaps in the dynasty.
Key events
| Year | Event | Place |
|---|---|---|
| c. 50 CE | Roman trade at Arikamedu and Muziris | Arikamedu |
📚 Recommended reading on the Early Cholas (Sangam era)
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Themes in Indian History, Parts I–III (Class 12)
Source-based chapters on Harappa, Vijayanagara, the Mughal court and 1857 — essential for UPSC.
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An Introduction to Indian Art, Part I (Class 11)
The standard base for art and architecture questions — stupas, temples and sculpture.
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India's Ancient Past
The expanded version of the classic old-NCERT ancient India text; clear and exam-friendly.
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📄 Research papers
Paper🏛 Library access
🇮🇳 Indian scholarship
The Image of the Barbarian in Early India
How early Indian texts described outsiders — the mleccha — and what that reveals about society.
Paper🏛 Library access
🇮🇳 Indian scholarship
Cults and shrines in early historical Mathura (c. 200 BC–AD 200)
Buddhist, Jaina, Brahmanical and local cults side by side at Mathura, from sculpture and inscriptions.
Paper🏛 Library access
🇮🇳 Indian scholarship
The Yavana Presence in Ancient India
Greeks and other westerners ('Yavanas') in ancient India: traders, donors and settlers.
Paper🏛 Library access
🇮🇳 Indian scholarship
Forms of Production and Forces of Change in Ancient Tamil Society
Pastoral, farming and coastal economies of the Sangam age and how they changed.
Contemporaries
Powers that coexisted with the Early Cholas (Sangam era) for a significant part of its history. The bar shows when, within its own span.
Anuradhapura Kingdom ★
Sri Lanka · c. 437 BCE – c. 1017
Overlap: 600 years
Mauryan Empire ★
Pan-Indian · c. 321–185 BCE
Overlap: 115 years
Satavahana Empire ★
Deccan · c. 200 BCE – c. 225 CE
Overlap: 425 years
Kushan Empire ★
Northwest · c. 30 CE – c. 375 CE
Overlap: 270 years
Gupta Empire ★
Gangetic Plain · c. 240 CE – c. 550 CE
Overlap: 60 years
Pallava Dynasty ★
South · c. 275 CE – c. 897 CE
Overlap: 25 years
Kalinga
East · c. 700–261 BCE
Overlap: 39 years
Early Pandyas (Sangam era)
South · c. 400 BCE – c. 300 CE
Overlap: 600 years
Early Cheras (Sangam era)
South · c. 300 BCE – c. 300 CE
Overlap: 600 years
Greco-Bactrian Kingdom
Northwest · c. 256–125 BCE
Overlap: 131 years
Mahameghavahana (Chedi) of Kalinga
East · c. 200 BCE – c. 50 CE
Overlap: 250 years
Indo-Greek Kingdoms
Northwest · c. 200 BCE – c. 10 CE
Overlap: 210 years
Shunga Dynasty
Gangetic Plain · c. 185–73 BCE
Overlap: 112 years
Indo-Scythian (Saka) Kingdoms
Northwest · c. 110 BCE – c. 80 CE
Overlap: 190 years
Kanva Dynasty
East · c. 73–28 BCE
Overlap: 45 years
Indo-Parthian Kingdom
Northwest · c. 19 CE – c. 100 CE
Overlap: 81 years
Western Kshatrapas
West · c. 35 CE – c. 415 CE
Overlap: 265 years
Ikshvakus of Vijayapuri
Deccan · c. 225 CE – c. 340 CE
Overlap: 75 years
Kalabhra Interregnum
South · c. 250 CE – c. 600 CE
Overlap: 50 years
Vakataka Dynasty
Deccan · c. 250 CE – c. 500 CE
Overlap: 50 years