Axial Age (also Axis Age, from German: Achsenzeit) is a term coined by German philosopher Karl Jaspers in the sense of a "pivotal age", characterizing the period of ancient history from about the eighth to the third century BCE.
During this period, according to Jaspers' concept, new ways of thinking appear in Persia, India, China and the Greco-Roman world in religion and philosophy, in a striking parallel development, without any obvious direct cultural contact between all of the participating Eurasian cultures.
Jaspers will identify key thinkers from this age who have a profound influence on future philosophies and religions, and will identify characteristics common to each area from which these thinkers emerge.
Jaspers' approach to the culture of the middle of the first millennium BCE will be adopted by other scholars and academics, and has become a point of discussion in the history of religion.
