Axial Age

E402746

The Axial Age is a term for the pivotal period roughly between the 8th and 3rd centuries BCE when major philosophical and religious traditions independently emerged across different civilizations, fundamentally shaping later human thought.

All labels observed (2)

Label Occurrences
Axial Age canonical 3
Axial Age (approximately 800–200 BCE) 1

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (54)

Predicate Object
instanceOf historical period ⓘ
historiographical concept ⓘ
philosophical concept ⓘ
alsoKnownAs Achsenzeit ⓘ
associatedWithRegion Ancient China ⓘ
Ancient Greece ⓘ
linked to: Greek Antiquity

Ancient India ⓘ
linked to: ancient India

Ancient Israel ⓘ
Iranian cultural sphere ⓘ
associatedWithThinker Aristotle ⓘ
Confucius ⓘ
Jeremiah ⓘ
Laozi ⓘ
Mahavira ⓘ
Plato ⓘ
Second Isaiah ⓘ
Siddhartha Gautama ⓘ
linked to: Shakyamuni Buddha

Socrates ⓘ
Zarathustra ⓘ
linked to: Zoroaster
associatedWithTradition Buddhism ⓘ
Confucianism ⓘ
Daoism ⓘ
linked to: Taoism

Greek philosophy ⓘ
Hebrew prophecy ⓘ
Hindu Upanishadic thought ⓘ
Jainism ⓘ
Zoroastrianism ⓘ
early Judaism ⓘ
characterizedBy critique of traditional mythic worldviews ⓘ
development of abstract philosophical reasoning ⓘ
emergence of major philosophical traditions ⓘ
emergence of major world religions ⓘ
independent developments in multiple civilizations ⓘ
new forms of ethical reflection ⓘ
rise of universalizing moral ideas ⓘ
coinedBy Karl Jaspers ⓘ
describedInWork The Origin and Goal of History ⓘ
hasCentralTheme ethical responsibility ⓘ
justice and social order ⓘ
nature of ultimate reality ⓘ
question of the good life ⓘ
relationship between humans and the divine ⓘ
influenced global ethical thought ⓘ
later philosophical systems ⓘ
later world religions ⓘ
subjectOfDebate chronological boundaries ⓘ
degree of cross-cultural connection ⓘ
validity as a unified historical period ⓘ
timeSpanApproximateEnd 3rd century BCE ⓘ
timeSpanApproximateStart 8th century BCE ⓘ
usedInDiscipline comparative philosophy ⓘ
philosophy of history ⓘ
religious studies ⓘ
sociology of religion ⓘ

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (4)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Karl Jaspers → notableConcept → Axial Age ⓘ
The Origin and Goal of History → timePeriodDiscussed → Axial Age (approximately 800–200 BCE) ⓘ
linked to: Axial Age