The world in the 6th century

In the 6th century (501 to 600 CE), the timeline shows 112 states, empires and colonies and 121 peoples across 12 regions. The most significant include Byzantine Empire, Byzantine Empire, Ghana Empire (Wagadu), Kingdom of Aksum and Moche (Mochica).

Events

541 Plague of Justinian, Europe. Bubonic plague reaches Constantinople, killing perhaps a quarter of its people, and returns in waves across Europe for two centuries.
600 Wari and Tiwanaku expand, South America. Two highland states spread their power across the Andes, Wari through roads and administrative centers and Tiwanaku through colonies and trade.

Central and Southern Africa

Western Bantu-speaking farmers c. 1000 BCE to 1400 CE
Eastern Bantu-speaking farmers c. 1000 BCE to 1300 CE
Central African forest foragers c. 3200 BCE to the present
San hunter-gatherers c. 3200 BCE to the present
Khoisan hunter-gatherers c. 3200 BCE to 1100 CE
Pastoral Neolithic herders c. 3000 BCE to 700 CE
Khoekhoe herders c. 100 BCE to 1904 CE
Bantu farmers of the Congo basin c. 500 BCE to 1500 CE
Urewe culture c. 500 BCE to 600 CE
Iron Age farmers of South Africa c. 300 to 1300 CE
Iron Age farmers of the Zambezi c. 200 to 1000 CE
Austronesian settlers of Madagascar c. 400 to 1100 CE
East African hunter-gatherers c. 3200 BCE to the present
Coastal Bantu farmers (Kwale ware) c. 100 to 800 CE

North and West Africa

Ghana Empire (Wagadu) c. 300 to 1200 CE
Kingdom of Aksum c. 100 to 940 CE
Makuria c. 450 to 1312 CE
Vandal Kingdom 435 to 534 CE
Amazigh (Berber) tribes c. 3200 BCE to the present
Cushitic-speaking pastoralists c. 3200 BCE to the present
Medjay, Blemmyes and Beja nomads c. 2300 BCE to the present
Sahelian cereal farmers c. 1500 BCE to the present
West African yam and oil palm farmers c. 1500 BCE to the present
Chadic-speaking farmers c. 1000 BCE to the present
Sao culture c. 500 BCE to 1600 CE
Coptic Christians c. 300 CE to the present
Saharan camel nomads (Sanhaja and Tuareg) c. 300 CE to the present
Jenne-Jeno (Middle Niger towns) c. 250 BCE to 1400 CE
Garamantes c. 500 BCE to 700 CE
Alodia c. 500 to 1504 CE
Nobatia c. 400 to 700 CE
Byzantine Egypt 395 to 641 CE
Noba and the Ballana culture c. 350 to 550 CE
Byzantine Africa (Exarchate) 534 to 698 CE
Mauro-Roman Kingdom c. 429 to 578 CE

Europe

Byzantine Empire 395 to 1453 CE
Gaelic Ireland c. 500 BCE to 1607 CE
Kingdom of Wessex c. 519 to 927 CE
Kingdom of Mercia c. 527 to 918 CE
Merovingian Kingdom 481 to 751 CE
Avar Khaganate c. 567 to 822 CE
Lombard Kingdom 568 to 774 CE
Visigothic Kingdom of Toledo 507 to 711 CE
Visigothic Kingdom of Toulouse 418 to 507 CE
Ostrogothic Kingdom 493 to 553 CE
Sami people c. 1000 BCE to the present
Volga Finnic peoples c. 1800 BCE to 1100 CE
Baltic Finnic tribes c. 1500 BCE to 1250 CE
Basques (Vascones) c. 500 BCE to the present
Baltic tribes c. 1000 BCE to 1290 CE
San Marino c. 301 CE to the present
Kingdom of Gwynedd c. 450 to 1216 CE
Kingdom of Powys c. 450 to 1160 CE
Old Saxons c. 100 to 804 CE
West Slavic tribes c. 500 to 1160 CE
Kingdom of Strathclyde c. 450 to 1030 CE
Picts c. 297 to 843 CE
Alemanni c. 213 to 746 CE
Duchy and Principality of Benevento c. 571 to 1077 CE
Migration and Vendel periods c. 400 to 793 CE
East Slavic tribes c. 500 to 882 CE
Kingdom of Kent c. 455 to 825 CE
Kingdom of East Anglia c. 550 to 918 CE
Dal Riata c. 500 to 850 CE
South Slavic tribes c. 550 to 850 CE
Byzantine Italy (Exarchate of Ravenna) 554 to 751 CE
Sub-Roman Britain c. 410 to 600 CE
Kingdom of the Suebi 409 to 585 CE
Kutrigurs and Utigurs c. 460 to 632 CE
Frisian Kingdom c. 600 to 734 CE
Kingdom of the Burgundians 411 to 534 CE
Kingdom of the Gepids 454 to 567 CE
Byzantine Spania 552 to 624 CE

Middle East

Byzantine Empire 395 to 1453 CE
Sasanian Empire 224 to 651 CE
Kingdom of Iberia (Kartli) c. 302 BCE to 580 CE
Himyarite Kingdom c. 110 BCE to 525 CE
Byzantine Syria and Palestine 395 to 640 CE
Arab Bedouin tribes c. 900 BCE to the present
Aramaic-speaking Mesopotamians c. 1100 BCE to 700 CE
Caucasian Albania c. 150 BCE to 705 CE
Lazica (Egrisi) c. 100 to 697 CE
Ghassanids c. 220 to 638 CE
Lakhmids c. 300 to 602 CE
Principality of Iberia 588 to 888 CE
Persian Armenia (Marzpanate) 428 to 646 CE
Kingdom of Kinda c. 450 to 550 CE
Sasanian Yemen c. 570 to 628 CE
Aksumite Yemen (Abraha) c. 525 to 570 CE

South Asia

Gupta Empire c. 320 to 550 CE
Anuradhapura Kingdom 377 BCE to 1017 CE
Pallava dynasty c. 275 to 897 CE
Chalukyas of Badami 543 to 753 CE
Hephthalite Empire c. 450 to 560 CE
Munda-speaking peoples c. 1500 BCE to the present
Tibeto-Burman hill peoples c. 1000 BCE to the present
Vedda people c. 900 BCE to the present
Eastern Iranian peoples c. 1500 BCE to 1000 CE
Kamarupa c. 350 to 1140 CE
Western Ganga dynasty c. 350 to 1000 CE
Licchavi dynasty of Nepal c. 400 to 750 CE
Pandya dynasty (first empire) c. 590 to 920 CE
Kalabhra dynasty c. 250 to 575 CE
Maitraka dynasty c. 475 to 776 CE
Kadamba dynasty c. 345 to 540 CE
Alchon Huns c. 370 to 560 CE
Nezak Huns c. 484 to 665 CE
Maukhari dynasty c. 550 to 606 CE
Gauda Kingdom c. 590 to 625 CE

Central and North Asia

First Turkic Khaganate 552 to 603 CE
Sogdiana c. 545 BCE to 722 CE
Kingdom of Khotan c. 200 BCE to 1006 CE
Rouran Khaganate 330 to 555 CE
Hephthalite Empire c. 450 to 560 CE
Uralic hunter-fishers of western Siberia c. 3200 BCE to 1000 CE
Yukaghir peoples c. 1000 BCE to the present
Chukchi, Koryak and Itelmen peoples c. 1000 BCE to the present
Evenki and Even reindeer herders c. 500 CE to the present
Kingdom of Kucha c. 100 BCE to 840 CE
Old Bering Sea culture c. 200 BCE to 600 CE
Okhotsk culture c. 500 to 1200 CE
Afrighid dynasty c. 305 to 995 CE
Yenisei Kyrgyz c. 550 to 1207 CE
Kurykans c. 550 to 1000 CE
Oghur and Hunnic tribes c. 350 to 600 CE
Gaochang kingdom 498 to 640 CE

East Asia

Silla 57 BCE to 668 CE
Goguryeo 37 BCE to 668 CE
Baekje 18 BCE to 660 CE
Kofun period c. 250 to 538 CE
Asuka period 538 to 710 CE
Northern Wei 386 to 535 CE
Sui dynasty 581 to 618 CE
Formosan Austronesian peoples c. 3200 BCE to the present
Qiang peoples c. 1300 BCE to the present
Zhangzhung c. 500 BCE to 644 CE
Epi-Jomon culture c. 300 BCE to 700 CE
Mohe c. 400 to 926 CE
Gaya confederacy c. 42 to 562 CE
Emishi c. 600 to 1100 CE
Tuyuhun c. 285 to 670 CE
Liang dynasty 502 to 557 CE
Chen dynasty 557 to 589 CE
Northern Qi 550 to 577 CE
Northern Zhou 557 to 581 CE
Southern Qi 479 to 502 CE
Western Wei 535 to 557 CE
Eastern Wei 534 to 550 CE

Southeast Asia

Austronesian peoples c. 2200 BCE to 900 CE
Champa c. 192 to 1832 CE
Pyu city-states c. 200 BCE to 1050 CE
Second Chinese domination 43 to 544 CE
Dvaravati c. 550 to 1050 CE
Funan c. 68 to 550 CE
Chenla c. 550 to 802 CE
Philippine Negrito foragers c. 3200 BCE to the present
Orang Asli (Semang and Senoi) c. 2000 BCE to the present
Dayak peoples of Borneo c. 1000 BCE to the present
Langkasuka c. 100 to 1400 CE
Kutai Martadipura c. 350 to 1605 CE
Tarumanagara c. 358 to 669 CE
Early Ly dynasty (Van Xuan) 544 to 602 CE

North America

Dorset culture c. 500 BCE to 1300 CE
Pacific Northwest peoples c. 500 CE to the present
Mogollon culture c. 200 to 1450 CE
Hohokam c. 300 to 1450 CE
Unangan (Aleut) peoples c. 2500 BCE to the present
Dene (Northern Athabaskan) peoples c. 500 BCE to the present
Basketmaker culture c. 1500 BCE to 750 CE
Woodland period cultures c. 1000 BCE to 1000 CE
Norton tradition c. 1000 BCE to 800 CE
Chumash c. 500 CE to the present
California peoples (Ohlone, Miwok, Pomo, Tongva) c. 500 CE to the present
Laurel complex c. 500 BCE to 1000 CE
Plains Woodland cultures c. 500 BCE to 900 CE
Fremont culture c. 1 to 1300 CE
Birnirk culture c. 600 to 1000 CE

Mesoamerica and Caribbean

Teotihuacan c. 100 BCE to 550 CE
Classic Maya civilization c. 250 to 900 CE
Chibchan chiefdoms (Costa Rica and Panama) c. 500 BCE to 1570 CE
Zapotec state (Monte Albán) c. 500 BCE to 850 CE
Saladoid culture c. 500 BCE to 600 CE
Tikal (Mutal) c. 90 to 900 CE
Kaan kingdom (Calakmul) c. 400 to 900 CE
Guayabo de Turrialba c. 1000 BCE to 1400 CE
Early farmers of the northern deserts c. 1500 BCE to 700 CE
Greater Nicoya cultures c. 500 BCE to 1522 CE
Cholula c. 300 BCE to 1519 CE
Kaminaljuyu c. 800 BCE to 800 CE
Gran Coclé chiefdoms c. 1 to 1520 CE
Teuchitlán tradition c. 300 BCE to 900 CE
Diquís culture c. 500 to 1530 CE
Chalchihuites culture c. 200 to 1100 CE
El Tajín (Classic Veracruz) c. 600 to 1200 CE
Ostionoid culture c. 600 to 1200 CE
Caracol 331 to 859 CE
La Quemada c. 500 to 900 CE
Copan 426 to 822 CE
Palenque (Baakal) 431 to 799 CE

South America

Moche (Mochica) c. 100 to 800 CE
Tiwanaku c. 400 to 1000 CE
Tupi-Guarani peoples c. 500 CE to the present
Marajoara culture c. 400 to 1400 CE
Nazca culture c. 100 BCE to 800 CE
Wari Empire c. 600 to 1000 CE
Fuegian canoe peoples (Yaghan, Kawésqar) c. 3200 BCE to the present
Sambaqui shell-mound builders c. 3200 BCE to 1000 CE
Jê peoples c. 1 CE to the present
Patagonian peoples (Tehuelche, Selk'nam) c. 1 CE to the present
Barrancoid culture c. 1000 BCE to 1000 CE
Quimbaya culture c. 1 to 1550 CE
Tairona c. 200 to 1600 CE
Zenú culture c. 200 BCE to 1000 CE
Upano valley settlements c. 500 BCE to 600 CE
Formative cultures of northwest Argentina c. 500 BCE to 600 CE
Cañari c. 500 to 1532 CE
San Agustín culture c. 1 to 900 CE
Recuay culture c. 1 to 700 CE
El Molle culture c. 1 to 700 CE
Lima culture c. 100 to 650 CE
Tierradentro culture c. 600 to 900 CE
Aguada culture c. 600 to 900 CE

Oceania

Aboriginal Australian peoples c. 3200 BCE to the present
Papuan farmers and foragers c. 3200 BCE to the present
Ancestral Polynesian society c. 850 BCE to 1000 CE
Tasmanian Aboriginal peoples c. 3200 BCE to the present
Uninhabited c. 3200 BCE to 1280 CE
Uninhabited c. 3200 BCE to 1000 CE
Torres Strait Islanders c. 500 BCE to the present
Island Melanesian societies c. 500 BCE to the present
Pre-Latte Chamorro c. 1500 BCE to 900 CE
Fijian chiefdoms c. 500 BCE to 1874 CE
Eastern Micronesian islanders c. 100 BCE to the present