many mentioned during Vedic literature as far back as 1000 BC. By 500 BC, sixteen monarchies and ‘republics’ known as the Mahajanapadas viz: Kasi , Kosala , Anga , Magadha , Vajji (or Vriji), Malla , Chedi , Vatsa (or Vamsa), Kuru , Panchala , Machcha (or Matsya), Surasena , Assaka