Kannauj-Varman Dynasty: Map & History
Kannauj is an ancient city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and a municipal board home to the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district.
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Kannauj is an ancient city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and a municipal board home to the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district. Known as Kanyakubja during the ancient Vedic period, it was successively the capital city of the Mahajanapada Panchala Kingdom and then of the Ayudha dynasty. Originally known as Mahodaya in ancient Sanskrit literature dating back to the Ramayana era, and later known as Mahodaya under the Gurjara-Pratihara dynasty, in the later medieval era, it formed the core of the Kingdom of Kannauj and was ruled by multiple successive royal families or as part of greater imperial polities.
Modern Countries Once Part of Kannauj-Varman Dynasty
At its mapped extent, Kannauj-Varman Dynasty covered territory in 2 present-day countries. The period shown is when the mapped borders include that country, and the note says how much of it.
States and Provinces
Largest Present-Day Cities in Its Territory
Each opens on the live map inside Kannauj-Varman Dynasty's borders of that time.
Derived by testing mapped cities against this polity's dated territorial polygons, so the list is indicative and follows the borders in the source dataset.
Kannauj-Varman Dynasty in Depth
History
Archaeological discoveries show that Kannauj was inhabited by the Painted Grey Ware and Northern Black Polished Ware cultures, c. 1200–600 BCE and c. 700–200 BCE, respectively. During the Vedic period, it was the capital city of the Panchala Kingdom during the reign of king Vajrayudha.
The epic also accounts for the origin of the name Kanyakubja (the ancient root of "Kannauj"): according to the legend in Sarga 33, Kushanabha's one hundred daughters refused the advances of the wind god Vayu, who in retaliation made them hunchbacks (kubja), leading the city to be called Kanyakubja ("the city of hunchbacked maidens").
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Kannauj (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Kannauj-Varman Dynasty Map Over Time
Dated world maps on which Kannauj-Varman Dynasty appears, with the other states of the time.
Kannauj-Varman Dynasty Timeline
Key historical inflections from foundation to peak territorial expansion
Expansion to peak recorded area of 573,391 km² in 746 CE.
Kannauj-Varman Dynasty: Frequently Asked Questions
When did the Kannauj-Varman Dynasty exist?
The Kannauj-Varman Dynasty is dated to 732 CE – 771 CE, in the Early Middle Ages era.
How large was the Kannauj-Varman Dynasty at its peak?
At its peak in 746 AD the Kannauj-Varman Dynasty covered about 573,391 km².
Other Sovereign Realms
Early Middle Ages • Capital: Constantinople
Classical Antiquity • Capital: Pataliputra, Ujjain
High & Late Middle Ages • Capital: Thanjavur, Gangaikonda Cholapuram
Early Middle Ages • Capital: Chang'an