Shakya

Shakya Republic
c. 7th century BCE–c. 5th century BCE
Shakya among the Gaṇasaṅghas
Shakya to the north of the Mahajanapadas in the post-Vedic period
StatusVassal state of Kosala
CapitalKapilavastu
Common languagesPrakrits
Munda languages[1]
Religion
Sramana religions, Sun worship, tree worship, serpent worship
GovernmentAristocratic Republic
Historical eraIron Age
• Established
c. 7th century BCE
• Conquered by Viḍūḍabha of Kosala
c. 5th century BCE
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Kosala
Kosala
Today part ofIndia
Nepal

Shakya (Pāḷi: Sakya; Sanskrit: Śākya) was an ancient Indo-Aryan clan of the northeastern region of South Asia, whose existence is attested during the Iron Age. The Shakyas were organised into a gaṇasaṅgha (an aristocratic oligarchic republic), also known as the Shakya Republic.[2] The Shakyas were on the periphery, both geographically and culturally, of the eastern Indo-Gangetic Plain in the Greater Magadha cultural region.[1][3]

  1. ^ a b Levman 2014.
  2. ^ Sharma 1968, pp. 182–206.
  3. ^ Bronkhorst 2007, p. 6.