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50000 BCE: Farmers and herdsmen confirmed to be present in Afghanistan.
3200 BCE - 2300 BCE: The Helmand culture erects settlements such as the Mundigak site.
2200 BCE - 1700 BCE: The Oxus civilization flourishes.
2000 BCE: Estimated founding of Shortugai in North-East Afghanistan as a trading outpost associated with the Harrapans.
2000 BCE - 1200 BCE: The Indo-Aryan people migrate to India from Central Asia.
1500 BCE - 500 CE: The Gandhara Civilization flourishes in what is today the northern portion of Pakistan and Afghanistan.
700 BCE - 550 BCE: The Medes seamlessly incorporate most of Afghanistan into their territory.
550 BCE: The Achaemenid Persians topple the Medes and establish the Achaemenid Empire.
550 BCE: Zoroastrianism, one of the oldest recorded monotheistic religions, is most likely extensively practiced in Afghanistan.
520 BCE - 325 CE: Achaemenid rule in the Gandhara region.
486 BCE: Death of Darius the Great, the third Achaemenid ruler. Extensive civil and infrastructural achievements shaped his reign.
327 BCE: Alexander the Great takes Bactria, the last remaining satrapy of Persia.
327 BCE: Alexander the Great marries the Bactrian girl Roxanne.
320 BCE - 180 BCE: Mauryan rule in the Gandhara region, beginning with Chandragupta Maurya.
312 BCE: Seleucus I Nicator establishes the Seleucid Empire in large parts of Alexander's former empire in the east, including Bactria in northern Afghanistan.
305 BCE - 303 BCE: Seleucid conflict with the Mauryans. Seleucus afterward cedes large land areas, including parts of southern Afghanistan.
268 BCE - 232 BCE: Reign of Ashoka the Great, who becomes a great patron of Buddhism.
250 BCE: The Greco-Bactrian kingdom emerges around 250 BCE via a revolt against the ruling Seleucids.
247 BCE: Beginning of the advance of nomadic people that were later known as Parthians.
212 BCE - 205 BCE: Seleucid ruler Antiochus III achieves brief successes through multiple victories against the Parthians and Greco-Bactrians.
188 BCE - 140 BCE: After various defeats against the Roman Republic and inner conflicts, the Seleucid Empire crumbles and loses control over the Iranian plateau.
180 BCE - 80 BCE: Period of Indo-Greek rule in the Gandhara region.
180 BCE: Greco-Bactrians start expanding as far as modern India.
171 BCE: Clashes between ruling dynasties in Greek kingdoms erupt.
164 BCE - 155 BCE: Mithridates I of Parthia expands the reach of his realm, critically weakening the Greco-Bactrians.
140 BCE: Waves of nomadic people, mainly the Yuezhi and Scythians, push into areas of contemporary Afghanistan.
80 BCE - 75 CE: The combined Scytho-Parthians rule Gandhara.
10 CE: Hellenistic influence in the Afghanistan region succumbs to the advances of the Parthians, Yuezhi, and Scythians.
19 CE: The Indo-Parthian Kingdom begins when Gondophares I secedes from the Parthian rule.
30 CE - 375 CE: The Yuezhi form the Kushan Empire, which becomes a significant political power and trading hub in the ancient world.
127 CE - 150 CE: Under Kanishka the Great's leadership, the Kushans extend their reach the farthest and become dedicated patrons of Buddhism.
224 CE: The Sasanian Empire takes control over the regions of the Parthian Empire, using the weakened state of the Parthian rule due to prolonged internal conflicts and warfare with the Romans.
230 CE: Shortly after or during the reign of Vasudeva I, the Kushan Empire splits into Western and Eastern parts. The Sasanians soon subjugate the Western Kushans.
350 CE: The Kidarites begin their invasions into Sasanian territory.
442 CE: Hephthalites (White Huns) advance into Central Asia. Soon conflict with the Sasanians erupts.
484 CE: Sasanian King of King Peroz I dies in the Battle of Herat against the Hephthalites. With his army shattered, the Hephthalites roam the Sasanian realm for years.
560 CE: Together with the First Turkic Khaganate, the restrengthened Sasanians fragment the regional Hephthalite influence.