State

Kushan Empire

Also known as Kushan

The Kushan Empire was a state founded by the Yuezhi in Bactria that expanded into northern India in the first centuries CE. Its control of trade routes between China, India, Persia and the Roman world made it wealthy, and it patronised Buddhism and Gandharan art. Its decline left a political space in northern India in which the Gupta Empire later rose.

Kushan Empire
Image: Map created from DEMIS Mapserver, which are public domain. Koba-chan. Reference: Schwartzberg Atlas, v. , p. 145. Map g · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Mentioned in 4 profiles

Gupta EmpireFoundationXiongnu EmpireImpactYuezhiDecline, SummarySatavahana dynastyMilitary

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Kushan Empire. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/kushan-empire
MLA
“Kushan Empire.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/kushan-empire. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Kushan Empire.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/kushan-empire.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Kushan Empire’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/kushan-empire (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻