sometimes called the Axial Period; a term proposed by German philosppher, Karl Jaspers, referring to the period from about 800-200 BC, which he believed various cultures began to think in similar new ways in Persia, India, China, and the Western World; during this period religions became instrumental in effecting great changes in both history and civilizationa highly developed and advanced human society, associated with population density, writing and record-keeping, education, art, science, and complex political and social institutions
