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(c.= circa, signifying approximate dates)

c. 2600 BCE Indus Valley Civilization

c. 1812–c. 1637 BCE Abraham

c. 1500–1200 BCE Development of Brahmanism. Likely composition of Hindu

Ve d a s.

c. 1300 BCE Moses and the Ten Commandments

c. 1000 BCE Kingdom of Israel begins

c. 950 BCE Pentateuch is written

c. 800–400 BCE Likely composition of early Hindu Upanishads

c. 600–583 BCE Zoroaster (Zarathustra), founder of Zoroastrianism in Persia

c. 599–527 BCE Mahavira Jeni, founder of Jainism

586–587 BCE Babylonians conquer Jerusalem; Israelites taken into captivity

c. 570–510 BCE Lao Tzu, founder of Taoism

c. 570–495 BCE Pythagoras of Samos

c. 570–480 BCE Xenophanes of Colophon

566–486 BCE Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha), founder of Buddhism

c. 551–479 BCE Confucius, founder of Confucianism

531 BCE Siddhartha attains Enlightenment

c. 500–450 BCE Parmenides of Elea, Greek Eleatic philosopher

c. 500 BCE Founding of Shintoism in Japan

490–480 BCE Persian Wars

c. 469–399 BCE Socrates, his death has a profound effect on Plato

431–404 BCE Peloponnesian War; End of The Golden Age of Greece

427–347 BCE Plato

c. 400–c. 325 BCE Diogenes the Cynic

c. 387 BCE Plato founds the Academy

384–322 BCE Aristotle

Chronology

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