6th century BC
(7th century BC - 6th century BC - 5th century BC - other centuries)
(600s BC - 590s BC - 580s BC - 570s BC - 560s BC - 550s BC - 540s BC - 530s BC - 520s BC - 510s BC - 500s BC - other decades)
(2nd millennium BC - 1st millennium BC - 1st millennium AD)
Events
- Cyrus the Great conquered many countries and created the Persian Empire.
- Persians conquer Ancient Egypt, dominate eastern Mediterranean.
- Carthage's merchant empire slowly dominates the western Mediterranean
- Roman Republic founded
- Ruin of the Kingdom of Judah and the destruction of the First Temple (586 BC), return of the Jews several decades later (538 BC).
- Fall of the Babylonian Empire (539 BC), destroyed by Persian King of Kings Cyrus the Great.
- Gautama Buddha founds Buddhism in India. It becomes a major world religion.
- Tao Te Ching written (traditional date)
- Confucius formulates his ethical system of Confucianism, which proves highly influential in China
- The Sinhalese emigrate to Sri Lanka
- Apparent writing of the Book of Psalms
- The prophet Lehi, according to the Book of Mormon, leaves Jerusalem and settles in America.
Significant persons
- Stesichorus of Sicily, lyric poet (c. 640-555 BC).
- Solon of Athens, one of the Seven Sages of Greece (638 - 558 BC).
- Thales, Greek mathematician ( 635 - 543 BC). Predicts solar eclipse in 585 BC.
- Pythagoras of Samos, Greek mathematician. See Pythagorean Theorem (582 - 496 BC).
- Cyrus the Great, king of Persia ( 576 - 529 BC, reigned 559 - 529 BC).
- Gautama Buddha, founding figure of Buddhism (c. 563 - 483 BC).
- Confucius, founding figure of Confucianism (551 - 479 BC).
- Aeschylus of Athens, playwright (525 - 456 BC).
- Darius I, King of Persia (reigned 521 - 485 BC).
- Lehi, first prophet recorded in the Book of Mormon
Inventions, discoveries, introductions
- First archeological surveys of the Arabian peninsula by Babylonian king Nabonidus.
ca:Segle VI AC
da:6. århundrede f.Kr.
de:6. Jahrhundert v. Chr.
es:Siglo VI adC
eo:6-a jarcento a.K.
fr:VIe siècle av. J.-C.
lb:6. Joerhonnert v. Chr.
nl:6e eeuw v. Chr.
ja:紀元前6世紀
pl:VI wiek p.n.e.
zh:前6世纪