8 Lost Ancient Civilizations You've Never Heard of

From empires that vanished to mysterious groups of people that are a big part of ancient history, here are lost civilizations you've never heard of!

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Number 8 Xiongnu
The Xiongnu was a union of nomadic peoples that inhabited large parts of present-day Mongolia and Siberia, from the 3rd century BC to the 1st century AD. The ethnic identity at the core of the Xiongnu remains a mystery as there aren’t sufficient historical sources confirming their origins. The Xiongnu Empire was founded by Modu Chanyu. The decline of China’s Qin dynasty enabled Modu to expand the borders of his empire into one of the largest in the world.
Number 7 Dacians
The Dacians were the inhabitants of the ancient region of Dacia, located west of the Black Sea and near the Carpathian Mountains. They were a sub-group of the Thracian people, which settled in the region during the 7th and 6th centuries BC. During the first century BC, King Burebista unified the Dacian tribes into a strong kingdom. After a series of campaigns Burebista became a “king of kings” in the region.

Number 6 Nabateans
The Nabateans were a nomadic Bedouin tribe that travelled with their herds throughout the Arabian Desert, looking for pasture and water. Not much is known about them prior to the 4th century BC. They eventually rose as an opulent kingdom, south of the Sea. The source of their wealth was control over the caravan trade from the Arabian interior to the coast. The capital of the Nabatean kingdom was Petra, a mountainous fortress found in southern Jordan. The Nabateans were accustomed to living in the barren desert. There’s evidence in present-day Petra that the Nabateans were skilled at agriculture, harvesting rainwater and stone carving. During the reign of King Aretas III, the Nabateans controlled Damascus as well as Coele-Syria.
Number 5 Iceni
The Iceni were a Brittonic tribe that inhabited the east of Britain, during the Iron Age and early Roman era. The Iceni wore heavy rings of gold, silver or electrum around their necks and shoulders. They were also among the first minters to use their tribal name, “Eceni”, on coins. It was customary, at the time, for a client king to leave his kingdom to Rome. Yet, Prasutagus tried to preserve his line by leaving his kingdom jointly to his daughters and the Emperor.
Number 4 Natufian Culture
The Natufian culture is rather unique, because it supported a sedentary population even before the introduction of agriculture on a mass-scale. It existed from 13,050 to 7,550 BC in the Eastern Mediterranean region known as the Levant. Unlike the barren landscape of today, the Levant at the time of the Natufian culture was mostly woodlands. The Natufians settled the location of present-day Jericho, which would make the city the world’s longest continuously-inhabited urban area. The Natufians might have been the ancestors of the Neolithic communities in the region. Evidence suggests they purposefully cultivated rye, which is believed to be the earliest example of agriculture in history.
Number 3 Dilmun Civilization
One of the earliest sources mentioning Dilmun comes from an inscription on a door socket, dating back to 2300 BC. Historians believe that Dilmun encompassed areas of eastern Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar. The Dilmun civilization spoke Semitic and wrote in Sumerian cuneiform. Described as the “Land of the Living” it was depicted in writings as a paradise where fresh and salt water met.
Number 2 Vinča Culture
This culture draws its name from a tell settlement found in the early 20th century at the Vinča-Belo Brdo site, in Serbia. Based on the archaeological findings the Vinča culture dates back to 5700 to 4500 BC. The prehistoric society covered, aside from present-day Serbia, parts of Bulgaria and Romania, during a population boom in southeastern Europe. Vinča is believed to be among the earliest cultures to work with copper, as reflected by the discovery of tools and decorative pieces. Some of the artifacts created by the prehistoric society bear the Vinča symbols. Most historians regard these symbols as a form of decoration. There are some, however, who describe them as being among the earliest forms of writing.
Number 1 Nubian Pyramids
The pyramids at Meroë, which are a UNESCO World Heritage Site, represent the fascinating remnants of the ancient Kushite kingdoms. From as early as 2500 BC to 300 AD, three kingdoms ruled consecutively, in an area of the Nile valley known as Nubia. It’s the region within the north of present-day Sudan and it’s believed to be one of the earliest cradles of civilization.

[Snake_pup]

I have heard about most of these civilizations....I play Rome total war 😊👌🏽

[Sabatuar]

So I knew about the Dacians, Nabateans, Iceni, Natufians, and Vinca civilizations, as well as Nubian/Kushite civilization and their pyramids, but overall a very interesting video. Will definitely be checking out more of them.

[josephswaney]

Do you really need the stupid creepy music that doesn't fit the video for an otherwise interesting history vid?

[browarrior]

Two of these civilizations are arabian (dilmun, nabateans) this is a aprove to who claim that Arabian were nomadic with no history pre islam.
Proud to be arabian 💪💪💪

[grizzc]

The most bizarre things people did hoping it will prolong their life

[grizzc]

The most bizarre medical practices and that and the 1800s or 1900s

[BenGurskyMusic]

sometimes the shreeky type background music gets annoying. your voice is so good but that music is WHACK

[grey_vetiver]

You’ve ran out of creepy things to talk about yet you still put skulls and creepy ambient music all over the video 😂

[summerslamcool]

Love this man content, , ..very informative 😁

[Funckle]

BOO-Di-CAH IS THS CORRECT PRONUNCIATION

[jeremywilliams]

These stories on lost civilizations would make great plots for Indiana Jones movies.

[thekingcreeperissexy]

Why do you have to make a video about ancient empires over dramatic and scary wth

[Li.Siyuan]

Am I the only one that hate channels that say "you've never heard of" and then proceed to tell you about things most people have heard of (at least some of them?) Come on, They will kill you, at least have the good grace to say "you may not have heard of". Everybody over the age of 9 in the UK has heard of the Iceni and I, for one, have heard of all but two or three of the rest of this lot.

[asgautbakke]

How about adding the Urartu civilization in southern Caucasus and surrounding areas?
The Chibcha civilization of 16th century Colombia? Funan of Southeast Asia?

[Bearcat-ki]

Some of these are pretty well known. You shouldve added some of the Pre-Columbian American Civilizations like Caral-Supe in Peru, The Olmecs in Mexico, Zapotecs in Mexico, The Mississippians along Missouri River, and the Puebloans in the Southwest USA.

[RaggaBaby]

2:38 is that a face cut in stone like Mount Rushmore? or am i just seeing things? If not where was it made? Oh and Trajan was the Roman that conquered the Dacians... They had a capital with a really weird name. (Rome Total War people)

[daragildea]

I've already heard of most of these, and the Iceni were NOT a civilization, they were a tribe, part of the Briton civilization.

[CaptainCock-Strong]

I’m a decedent of the ancient civilization...The Hard-ons tribe. Ladies keep my people

[seanbethea]

I liked to see the most haunted places in world that has ghost photos.

[walkingdeadjr]

1:11 "Considering it was a STEEP empire"