I remember when I was a student teacher and I asked a class to tell me what they knew about the Persians. My cooperating teacher quickly informed me they had never studied that civilization.
I thought of this as I reviewed an email from the National Geographic Society listing some long-forgotten civilizations. There have been quite a few throughout history; this article lists nine —
Phrygia — The Phrygians (pronounced FRIJ-ans) controlled a large portion of modern Turkey from around 1200 to 700 B.C. Their most famous ruler was King Midas, who ruled from the kingdom’s capital of Gordion.
Gandhara — This was an ancient mountain kingdom in present-day northwest Pakistan and Afghanistan. Thanks to Alexander the Great, it’s best known today for Greek-influenced Buddhist art.
Khotan — Buddhist Khotan was strategically located on the Silk Road in modern-day western China. It lasted a thousand years before it was conquered in 1006.
Chimú — You’ve heard of the Inca in South America? Chimú lasted almost 500 years in northern Peru before being conquered by the Inca in about 1470.
Nri — Another example of Africa getting overlooked, Nri (also known as Igbo) was located in modern Nigeria from the 10th century A.D. until defeated by British colonial powers in 1911.
Kandy — The seat of Sri Lankan kings from the 15th century, they were overthrown by British colonial forces in the 19th century.
Saba — Home of the Queen of Sheba, its temples were worshipped at for more than a thousand years and still stand today in Yemen.
Iceni — The domain of Queen Boudicca, who led the Iceni against the Roman invasion of Britain around 60 A.D. Archaeologists are still excavating Iceni and Roman sites beneath modern-day Colchester.
Colchis — Home of the golden fleece in Greek mythology, Colchis was financed by gold from the Caucasus mountain in the present-day nation of Georgia. The Colchian city of Vani prospered for nearly 700 years before it was mysteriously destroyed in the 1st century B.C.
How many of these had you heard of before? Perhaps a better question is how will we be remembered in a thousand or so years?
For the complete descriptions with pictures, visit https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/2018/12/ancient-kingdoms-probably-never-heard-of/?.