557

This article is about the year 557. For the number, see 557 (number).

Millennium:	1st millennium
Centuries:	5th century – 6th century – 7th century
Decades:	520s  530s  540s  – 550s –  560s  570s  580s
Years:	554 555 556 – 557 – 558 559 560

557 by topic

Politics

State leaders – Sovereign states

Birth and death categories

Births – Deaths

Establishment and disestablishment categories

Establishments – Disestablishments

557 in other calendars

Gregorian calendar	557 DLVII
Ab urbe condita	1310
Armenian calendar	6 ԹՎ Զ
Assyrian calendar	5307
Bengali calendar	−36
Berber calendar	1507
Buddhist calendar	1101
Burmese calendar	−81
Byzantine calendar	6065–6066
Chinese calendar	丙子年 (Fire Rat) 3253 or 3193     — to — 丁丑年 (Fire Ox) 3254 or 3194
Coptic calendar	273–274
Discordian calendar	1723
Ethiopian calendar	549–550
Hebrew calendar	4317–4318
Hindu calendars
- Vikram Samvat	613–614
- Shaka Samvat	479–480
- Kali Yuga	3658–3659
Holocene calendar	10557
Iranian calendar	65 BP – 64 BP
Islamic calendar	67 BH – 66 BH
Julian calendar	557 DLVII
Korean calendar	2890
Minguo calendar	1355 before ROC 民前1355年
Seleucid era	868/869 AG
Thai solar calendar	1099–1100

Emperor Chen Wu Di (503–559)

Year 557 (DLVII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 557 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Events

By place

Europe

• The Avars arrive in the northern region of the Caucasus between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea. They send envoys to the Byzantines in Lazica (modern Georgia). Like the Huns, the Avars are the former elite of a central Asian federation who has been forced to flee westwards.

Asia

• December 14 – 557 Constantinople earthquake.
• The Western Wei dynasty ends: Yuwen Hu deposes emperor Gong Di and places Yuwen Tai's son Xiaomin on the throne. Yuwen Hu becomes regent and establishes the Northern Zhou dynasty in China.
• Ming Di is made emperor after his younger brother Xiao Min Di is arrested while trying to assume power. Xiao Min Di is deposed and executed by Yuwen Hu.
• The Liang dynasty ends: Chen Wu Di, a distinguished general, becomes the first emperor of the Chen dynasty in Southern China.
• The Göktürks under Muqan Qaghan ally with the Persian Empire and destroy the Hephthalites (White Huns) in Central Asia.

By topic

Religion

• King Chlothar I of the Franks founds the Abbey of St. Medard at Soissons (Northern France).
• The Jiming Temple in Nanjing is built. The Buddhist pagoda is located near Xuanwu Lake.

Births

• Dushun, Chinese (Buddhist) patriarch (d. 640)
• Gao Wei, emperor of Northern Qi (d. 577)
• Ouyang Xun, Confucian scholar (d. 641)

Deaths

• Cyriacus of Athens, anchorite and saint (b. 448)
• Gong Di, emperor of Western Wei (b. 537)
• Xiao Min Di, emperor of Northern Zhou (b. 542)