MEPX
Chapter 9 of 10All chapters
  1. 1How we know
  2. 2Mesopotamia
  3. 3Ancient Egypt
  4. 4The Indus and early China
  5. 5Ancient Greece
  6. 6Rome
  7. 7Persia and the Near East
  8. 8The ancient Americas
  9. 9Africa and wider Asia
  10. 10Why civilizations fall

Chapter 9 of 10

Africa and wider Asia

Beyond the usual list.

African states

Nubia and Kush ruled Egypt for a period, Aksum minted coins and adopted Christianity early, and Great Zimbabwe built in stone without mortar.

  • Trans-Saharan trade linked West Africa to the Mediterranean.
  • Timbuktu became a centre of manuscripts and scholarship.

South and Southeast Asia

The Maurya and Gupta empires shaped Indian political and mathematical traditions, while Khmer and Srivijaya states built on trade and monumental architecture.