16 mahajanpad history can be traced from Buddhist and Jain book like anguttara nikaya and mahavastu of Buddhism and Bhagwati Sutra of Jainism. There were sixteen of such Mahajanapadas: Kasi, Kosala, Anga, Magadha, Vajji, Malla, Chedi, Vatsa, Kuru, Panchala, Machcha, Surasena, Assaka, Avanti, Gandhara and Kamboja.
Initially coffee and Kaushal are where the most powerful and rich mahajanapada but over the period Magadh emerged as the most powerful mahajanapada.
| Mahajanapadas | Capital |
|---|---|
| Magadh | Rajgriha |
| Vajji | Vaishali [Mahavira Born] |
| Anga | Champa |
| Malla | Kusi Nagar |
| Kosala | Shravasti, Saket |
| Shurasena | Mathura |
| Chedi | Suktimati |
| Vatsa | Koshambi |
| Kasi | Banaras |
| Assamaka | Potana |
| Avanti | Ujjain, mahishmati |
| Gandhara | taxila |
| Kuru | Kasthinapur |
| kamboja | Rajpura |
| Panchala | Kampilya or Arichatra |
| Malla | Kushinagar [Buddha Died] |