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Ancient Palaeolithic Soanian culture, c. 500,000 – 250,000 BCE Neolithic Mehrgarh, c. 7000 – c. 3000 BCE Indus Valley Civilisation, c. 3300 – c. 1700 BCE Vedic Civilization, c. 1500 – c. 500 BCE Achaemenid Empire, c. 550 – c. 330 BCE Gedrosia, c. 542 – c. 330 BCE Gandhara, c. 518 – c. 330 BCE Arachosia, c. 518 – c. 330 BCE Hindush, c. 517 – c. 330 BCE Sattagydia, c. 516 – c. 330 BCE Macedonian Empire, c. 329 – c. 323 BCE Arachosia, c. 323 – c. 312 BCE Gedrosia, c. 323 – c. 312 BCE Paropamisadae, c. 323 – c. 312 BCE Porus, c. 323 – c. 312 BCE Taxiles, c. 323 – c. 312 BCE Mauryan Empire, c. 322 – c. 200 BCE Seleucid Empire, c. 312 – c. 63 BCE Greco-Bactrian Kingdom, c. 190 – c. 140 BCE Indo-Greek Kingdom, c. 170 – c. 50 BCE Indo-Scythian Kingdom, c. 110 BCE – c. 95 CE Apracharajas, c. 25 BCE – c. 50 CE Paratarajas, c. 120 – c. 300 CE
Classical Parthian Empire, c. 90 BCE – c. 25 CE Indo-Parthian Kingdom, c. 25 – c. 80 CE Kushan Empire, c. 60 – 345 CE Sasanian Empire, c. 250 – 655 CE Indo-Sasanians, c. 240 – 410 CE Kushano-Sasanian Kingdom, c. 240 – 410 CE Gupta Empire, c. 345 – c. 455 CE Rai dynasty, c. 415 – 644 CE Hephthalite Empire, c. 450 – 560 CE Brahman dynasty, c. 641 – 725 CE
Medieval Caliphate, c. 643 – 860 CE Rashidun Caliphate, c. 643 – 661 CE Umayyad Caliphate, c. 670 – 860 CE Pala Empire, c. 770 – 850 CE Habbari dynasty, c. 841 – 1024 CE Hindu Shahi, c. 870 – 1010 CE Samanid Empire, c. 905 – 999 CE Ghaznavids, c. 999 – 1186 CE Soomra dynasty, c. 1024 – 1351 CE Ghurid dynasty, c. 1170 – 1215 CE Delhi Sultanate, c. 1206 – c. 1526 CE Mamluk dynasty, c. 1206 – c. 1290 CE Khalji dynasty, c. 1290 – c. 1320 CE Tugluq dynasty, c. 1320 – c. 1413 CE Sayyid dynasty, c. 1414 – c. 1451 CE Lodhi dynasty, c. 1451 – c. 1526 CE Mongol Empire, c. 1221 – c. 1327 CE Chagatai Khanate, c. 1225 – c. 1485 CE Ilkhanate, c. 1256 – c. 1353 CE Raees dynasty, c. 1320 – 1620 CE Katoor dynasty, c. 1570 – c. 1947 CE Samma dynasty, c. 1351 – c. 1524 CE Arghun dynasty, c. 1520 – c. 1554 CE Mughal Empire, c. 1526 – c. 1707 CE Bombay Presidency, c. 1618 – c. 1947 CE Suri dynasty, c. 1540 – c. 1556 CE Tarkhan dynasty, c. 1554 – 1591 CE
Early modern Durrani Empire, c. 1747 – c. 1826 CE Las Bela, c. 1802 – c. 1947 CE Misl, c. 1716 – c. 1799 CE Maratha Empire, c. 1758 – c. 1760 CE Sikh Empire, c. 1799 – c. 1849 CE British Raj, c. 1858 – c. 1947 CE Independence Movement
Modern Pakistan, c. 1947 CE – present Dominion of Pakistan, c. 1947 – 1956 CE Republican Pakistan, c. 1956 CE – present
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Paropamisadae orParapamisadae (Ancient Greek:Παροπαμισάδαι or Παροπανισάδαι) was asatrapy of theAlexandrian Empire in modernPakistan, which largely coincided with theAchaemenid province ofParupraesanna. It consisted of the districts ofSattagydia (Bannu basin),Gandhara (Kabul,Peshawar, andTaxila), andOddiyana (Swat Valley).^[1] Paruparaesanna is mentioned in theAkkadian language andElamite language versions of theBehistun Inscription ofDarius the Great, whereas in theOld Persian version it is calledGandāra.^[2][3] The entire satrapy was subsequently ceded bySeleucus I Nicator toChandragupta Maurya after Mauryan Victory inSelucid-Mauryan war following a treaty.^[4]

Paropamisadae is theLatinized form of theGreek nameParopamisádai (Παροπαμισάδαι),^[5] which is in turn derived fromOld PersianPara-uparisaina, meaning "Beyond the Hindu Kush", where theHindu Kush is referred to asUparisaina ("higher than the eagle").^[6]

In theGreek language andLatin, "Paropamisus"^[7][8] (Παροπαμισός,Paropamisós)^[9] came to mean theHindu Kush.^[5]In many Greek and Latin sources, particularly editions ofPtolemy'sGeography^[10] where their realm is included on the 9th Map of Asia,^[11] the names of the people and region are given asParopanisadae andParopanisus. They also appeared less frequently asParapamisadae andParapamīsus (Παραπάμισος,Parapámisos),^[12]Paropamīsii, etc.^[5]

The name was also applied to a nearby river, probably the Obi river.^[5] The mountain rangeSelseleh-ye Safīd Kūh is also calledParopamisus orParopamisus Mountains.

Strabo describes the region as follows:

The geographical position of the tribes is as follows: along the Indus are the Paropamisadae, above whom lies the Paropamisus mountain; then, towards the south, theArachoti; then next, towards the south, theGedroseni, with the other tribes that occupy the seaboard; and the Indus lies, latitudinally, alongside these places; and of these places, in part, some that lie along the Indus are held by Indians, although they formerly belonged to the Persians. Alexander took these away from the Arians and established settlements of his own, butSeleucus I Nicator gave them toSandrocottus, upon terms of intermarriage and of receiving in exchange 500 elephants.

Alongside the Paropamisadae, on the west, are situated theArii, and alongside the Arachoti and Gedrosii theDrangae; but the Arii are situated alongside the Drangae on the north as well as on the west, almost surrounding a small part of their country.^[4]

Thus the region was north ofArachosia, stretching up to theHindu Kush andPamir mountains, and bounded in the east by theIndus River. It mainly included theKabul region,Gandhara and the northern regions such asSwat andChitral.^[13]

The nations who composed the Paropamisadae are recorded as theCabolitae (Καβολῖται) in the north near modernKabul; the Parsii (Πάρσιοι) in the northwest, the Ambautae (Ἀμβαῦται) in the east and the Par(g)yetae (Παρ(γ)υῆται) in the south, who were also found in Arachosia. The major cities of the land were the city of Ortospana (Ὀρτοσπάνα) or Carura (Κάρουρα), probably identifiable with Kabul,^[14] Gauzaca (Γαύζακα), probably modernGhazni, Capissa (Καπίσσα), modern-dayKapisa, and Parsia (Παρσία), the capital of the Parsii.^{[citation needed]}

In the ancientBuddhist texts, theMahajanapada kingdom ofKamboja compassed the territories of Paropamisus and extended to the southwest ofKashmir as far asRajauri. The region came underAchaemenid Persian control in the late 6th century BC, either during the reign ofCyrus the Great orDarius I.^[15]

In the 320s BC,Alexander the Great conquered the entireAchaemenid Empire, beginning theHellenistic period. TheGreek name Παροπαμισάδαι or Παροπαμισσός was used extensively inGreek literature to describe the conquests of Alexander and those of the kings of theGreco-Bactrian Kingdom and theIndo-Greek Kingdom, from the 3rd to the 1st centuries BC.

After Alexander's death in 323 BC, the area came under control of theSeleucid Empire, which gave the region to theMauryan Dynasty of India in 305 BC.^[16] After the fall of the Mauryans in 185 BC, theGreco-Bactrians under KingDemetrius I annexed the northwestern regions of the former Mauryan Empire, including Paropamisus, and it became part of his EuthydemidIndo-Greek Kingdom. The Eucratidians seized the area soon after the death ofMenander I, but lost it to theYuezhi around 125 BC.

Gandharan Achaemenid soldier

Xerxes I tomb, Gandharan soldier of theAchaemenid army, circa 480 BCE.

Xerxes I tomb, Gandharan soldier circa 480 BCE (enhanced detail).

Sattagydian Achaemenid soldier

Xerxes I tomb, Sattagydian soldier of theAchaemenid army, circa 480 BCE.

Xerxes I tomb, Sattagydian soldier circa 480 BCE (enhanced detail).

• Indo-Greek kingdom
• Greco-Bactrian kingdom

• Eggermont, Pierre Herman Leonard (1975),Alexander's Campaigns in Sind and Baluchistan and the Siege of the Brahmin Town of Harmatelia, Peeters Publishers,ISBN 978-90-6186-037-2
• The Greeks in Bactria and India by W.W. Tarn, Cambridge University Press

• Ptolemy's section on the Paropanisadae in English translation
• John Watson McCrindle'sAncient India as Described in Ptolemy

• States and territories established in the 6th century BC
• States and territories disestablished in the 2nd century BC
• Achaemenid satrapies
• Geography of ancient Greece
• Historical geography of Afghanistan
• Hazarajat
• History of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
• Macedonian Empire

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