Panchala

Panchala (IAST: Pañcāla, Sanskrit: पांचाल) was an ancient kingdom of northern India, located in the Ganges-Yamuna Doab of the upper gangetic plain, which is identified as Kanyakubja or region around Kannauj. During the late Vedic period (c. 1100–500 BCE), it was one of the most powerful states of ancient India, closely allied with the Kuru kingdom. By the c. 5th century BCE, it had become an oligarchic confederacy, considered one of the sixteen mahajanapadas (major states) of the Indian subcontinent. After being absorbed into the Mauryan Empire (322–185 BCE), Panchala regained its independence until it was annexed by the Gupta Empire in the 4th century CE.