Aparanta

South Asia
500 BCE

ACHAEMENID
EMPIRE

AŚMAKA

AVANTĪ

CEDI

PUṆḌRA

VAṄGA

RĀḌHA

SUHMA

KALIṄGA

SAVARA

ANDHRA

KUNTALA

APARĀNTA

DAṆḌAKA

MŪLAKA

VIDARBHA

DAŚARṆA

PULINDA

KACCHA

SAURAṢṬRA

SAUVĪRA

SINDHU

ŚIVI

KEKEYA

MADRA

AUDUMBARA

YAUDHEYA

TRIGARTA

ŚĀKYA

KURU

PAÑCĀLA

KOSALA

VATSA

MALLA

VṚJI

ŚŪRASENA

KĀŚĪ

BĀHLIKA

KAMBOJA

GANDHĀRA

MATSYA

AṄGA

MAGADHA

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South Asia circa 500 BCE, with location of Aparanta.^[1][2]

Aparanta, or Aparantaka (meaning "Western border") was a geographical region of ancient India. It corresponded to the northern part of the Konkan region on the western coast of India. English civil servant-turned-historian J. F. Fleet believed that the Aparanta region included Kathiawad, Kutch, and Sindh, beside Konkan. However, historical records make it clear that the extent of Aparanta was much smaller.^[3]

The Junagadh inscription of Rudradaman mentions that during Ashoka's reign, a Yonaraja (literally; Ionian, or Greek, King), Tushaspha was the governor of Aparanta.^[4] A Buddhist text, the Mahavamsa states (xii.5) that at the conclusion of the Third Buddhist Council (c.250 BCE), a Yona (Greek) Thera (monk) Dhammarakkhita was sent here by the emperor Ashoka to preach Dhamma^[5] and 37,000 people embraced Buddhism due to his effort (Mahavamsa, xii.34-6). According to Buddhist scholar A.K. Warder, the Dharmaguptaka sect originated here.^[6]

Aparanta is regarded as an umbrella term for Shurparakadesha for Konkan, to include in the North and Gomantaka in the south with the river Kundalika to serving as a dividing line in between the two.^[7]

Notes