Korea and Japan are developing their own unique civilizations as Chinese influence declines. Europe The Americas have seen a further expansion of farming. In Central America, the first civilization of the Western Hemisphere has arisen, that of the Olmecs. In South America, intensive trade links between the high Andes and the coastal plains of Peru are creating a single cultural area. In North America, irrigation farming is already becoming established in the dry south-west of the present-day United States. Further east the Adena culture is emerging in the Mississippi valley, starting a tradition of mound-building which will last for two and a half millennia. The eastern branch of the latter migration has moved eastward into the Pacific. Here, crossing huge ocean distances in their small canoes, they have by now reached the islands of Fiji, Tonga and Samoa. They are the ancestral Polynesians. Africa

A History of the World in 500 Maps By Christian Grataloup

On the steppes of central Asia, these centuries have seen large-scale movements of peoples westward. A branch of the Turks migrated west and then, converting to Islam, conquered a huge empire in the Middle East. They are known to history as the Seljuqs. This new heavy cavalry was used, not just for mounted archery, but for charging the enemy and breaking up infantry formations with long spikes. Cavalry-on-cavalry engagements also became frequent. In due course, heavy cavalry would come to dominate the battlefield, and be the basis for the rise of the military aristocracies of the Middle Ages. That, however, is long in the future. For now, the military power of the states of the Mediterranean and Middle East rested on large, highly-organized formations of infantry. Alexander the Great’s phalanxes had proved their worth on the battlefield, but now the Roman army was the most effective exponent of this type of warfare. For sheer numerical superiority at this date, however, one has to look to China. South Asia In 2500 BCE much of the world is still populated by hunter-gatherers. But farming and pastoral populations are continuing to encroach on their lands, and in many parts of the world the rise of civilization is astonishing. The Middle East and EgyptWikipedia. Articles about the peoples listed in the map. (Bruttii, Etruscans, Ligures, Roman Republic, Umbrians, etc.) The Byzantine empire, that last remnant of the great Roman empire of old, has fared badly during the crusades; it is now temporarily divided amongst a group of Crusader rulers. Russia

Map of the World, 500 CE: History in the Late Ancient World Map of the World, 500 CE: History in the Late Ancient World

No such European empire can be found in East Asia, but westerners are a troubling presence in the region. In fact, many of them are little better than drug smugglers on a grand scale. The rulers of the China, Japan and Korea are determined to keep them out. In the Pacific, a variety of different societies are emerging on the numerous islands. The Americas In the Middle East, Islamic civilization is flourishing. Influences from China, India and the West are mingling with Arab and Persian elements to form a brilliant cultural synthesis. The commerce between east and west is further fostered by the fact that two large states lie between the Roman and Chinese empires, those of the Parthians, who rule much of the Middle East, and the Scythians, who rule a huge territory stretching from central Asia into northern India. These give a large measure of peace to large regions of the world, and with peace comes economic growth.The eastern parts of the continent, however, are now home to societies of European – mainly British – descent. Their way of life has been transplanted wholesale from their original homelands. Most of these societies are now part of the United States of America, a new, independent nation which in 1789 completes the task of equipping itself with a constitution whereby to govern itself. Within the past few years China has been united under the Han dynasty. This is a moment of great importance for the future of China, as it marks the arrival of the first of a series of great imperial dynasties which will, on and off, rule China right up to the 20th century. It is also important for the history of the wider world as this succession of Chinese dynasties will develop systems of organized government which, influencing Western practices many centuries from now, will be key to the rise of the modern state. Central Asia and developments in warfare In the steppes of central Asia, the nomadic horsemen have become a major threat to the settled civilizations of Eurasia. In the East, these “barbarians” have already had an impact on Chinese history by helping break up the unified Zhou kingdom into numerous different states; and in the West, deep raids by the Cimmerians have caused much destruction.

World Map - 500 BCE: Greece, Persia, India and China - TimeMaps World Map - 500 BCE: Greece, Persia, India and China - TimeMaps

Africa is being drawn into the international maritime trading networks of Europe and the Middle East. Coastal trading communities are expanding on both the east and west coasts. A key commercial element on both coasts is the trade in human beings. South Asia Ironically, Britain’s attempts to stamp out the slave trade is leading them to get more in involved in the affairs of the peoples of West Africa, and is thus laying the foundations for their future empire there.Agriculture is also practiced in a few places in the Western Hemisphere, in parts of Mexico and Peru. The rest of the populations of North and South America are hunter-gatherers. The Han dynasty has given almost two centuries of peace and stability to China – one of the more enduring periods of peace in global history for a significant portion of the world’s population. For the Chinese, it has been a time of prosperity and expansion. Commercial expansion The weakness of China has not prevented her from exporting her civilization wholesale to neighboring peoples. States modeled along Chinese lines are being built in Korea and Japan, and their inhabitants are importing Chinese culture and religion in large doses. This includes Buddhism, which is now spreading throughout East Asia and South East Asia. Here, Chinese cultural elements vie with Indian influences to produce a unique synthesis. The Asian steppes

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Since finding complete world history maps has always proven to be a daunting task, we decided to start drawing some world history maps and share this content for free. Our atlas of the World History Maps includes a series of historical maps, divided into five eras: prehistoric, primeval, ancient, medieval, and modern history maps. Prehistoric Maps​ The Kushanas have succeeded the Scythians in ruling a huge empire stretching from central Asia into India. Their state plays a major role in global history by acting as the base for the spread of Buddhism to China and East Asia. The Middle East In the central Pacific, the Easter Island statue-building activity reaches a climax in the construction of colossal monuments, but has by now come to a sudden, and probably catastrophic end. The Middle EastIn the Muslim world of the Middle East, Baghdad became the capital of the Islamic empire (the Caliphate) in the mid-8th century, but that great empire is now slowly fragmenting. This does not hinder the Muslim faith from putting down strong roots in all the regions ruled by the Caliphate. East Asia Bantus, Berber Tribes, Chadians, Cushites, Daamat, Garamantes, Gur, Khoisan Peoples, Kwa, Libyans, Mandes, In 3500 BCE, much of the world is inhabited by small groups of hunter-gatherers. Since about 9000 BCE, however, farming has been spreading in and around the Middle East, southern and eastern Asia, Europe and northern Africa. The spread of agriculture has enabled populations to expand, and villages of farmers now dot the landscapes of these regions. This is a trend which will last throughout global history, right up to the present day, as farmers push hunter-gatherers into ever smaller corners of the planet. The horse I used information in various Wikipedia articles to reconcile the sources and depict the locations to the best of my abilities. Most of North America remains home to hunter-gatherer societies, but the early farming cultures of the Mogollon and Hopewell flourish in very different environments.