The Interactive Atlas of World History

Featured Narratives

Hand-picked events, worlds, regions, and topics. Curated entry points into the atlas.

• Late Medieval Atlantic West Europe Track commerce, institutions, and conflict in Atlantic West Europe during the late medieval centuries.
• The Rise of Maritime Southeast Asia Follow ports, empires, and exchange networks that shaped maritime Southeast Asia through time.
• Public Health Through the Ages Compare how disease, sanitation, medicine, and governance evolved across eras and regions.
• The Indian Ocean World Explore long-distance trade, migration, and political change across the Indian Ocean basin.

The Twelve Worlds

World history grouped into twelve macro-regions, each a distinct civilizational space with its own rhythm of contact and change.

• The Far West 4 regions
• The Ends of the Earth 3 regions
• South America and The Eastern Isles 3 regions
• The Atlantic Lands 7 regions
• The Middle of The Earth 12 regions
• The African South 4 regions
• The Indian Ocean Lands 4 regions
• The Great Crossroads 8 regions

See all twelve worlds →

Periods

World history segmented into broad chronological eras, each spanning multiple worlds and allowing cross-regional comparison.

• Pre History 3346317 BCE – 2637 BCE
• Early Antiquity 2637 BCE – 909 BCE
• Classical Antiquity 909 BCE – 244 CE
• Late Antiquity 244 CE – 676 CE
• Early Medieval 676 CE – 964 CE
• High Medieval 964 CE – 1252 CE
• Late Medieval 1252 CE – 1540 CE
• Early Modern 1540 CE – 1684 CE

See all periods →