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Yahweh is the name of the state god of the ancient Kingdom of Israel and, later, the Kingdom of Judah. His name is composed of four Hebrew consonants (YHWH, known as the Tetragrammaton) which the prophet Moses is said to have revealed to...

The Songhai Empire (aka Songhay, c. 1460 - c. 1591) covered what is today southern Mauritania and Mali. It replaced the Mali Empire (1240-1645) as the most important state in West Africa. Originating as a smaller kingdom along the eastern...

The Mali Empire (1240-1645) of West Africa was founded by Sundiata Keita (r. 1230-1255) following his victory over the kingdom of Sosso (c. 1180-1235). Sundiata's centralised government, diplomacy and well-trained army permitted a massive...

The Toltec civilization flourished in ancient central Mexico between the 10th and mid-12th centuries. Continuing the Mesoamerican heritage left to them by earlier cultures, the Toltecs built an impressive capital at Tollan. Ultimately, they...

The centre of Inca power was the capital Cuzco, considered the navel of the world. 40,000 Incas governed an empire of over 10 million subjects who spoke over 30 different languages. Consequently, the centralised government employed a vast...

Persepolis was the capital of the Persian Achaemenid Empire from the reign of Darius I (the Great, r. 522-486 BCE) until its destruction in 330 BCE. Its name comes from the Greek Perses-polis (Persian City), but the Persians knew it as Parsa...

The imperial Ming dynasty ruled China from 1368 to 1644. It replaced the Mongol Yuan dynasty which had been in power since the 13th century. Despite challenges from abroad and within, the Ming dynasty oversaw an unprecedented growth in China's...

Attila the Hun (r. 434-453 CE) was the leader of the ancient nomadic people known as the Huns and ruler of the Hunnic Empire, which he established. His name means "Little Father" and, according to some historians, may not have been his birth...

The Indian Princely states (aka Native States or Princely India) were those states in the Indian subcontinent the British did not conquer but which were typically bound by treaty first to the East India Company and then to the British Crown...

Queen Himiko, also known as Pimiko or Pimiku (183? - 248 CE), was a 3rd-century CE ruler of the territory in ancient Japan known as Hsieh-ma-t'ai or Yamatai, later to be known as Yamato. Considered by the Chinese as the ruler of all of Japan...