Abhira dynasty

The Abhira dynasty was a dynasty that ruled over the western Deccan, where they succeeded the Satavahanas. From 203 to roughly 260, they formed a vast kingdom. They were from the Abhira kshatriya clan.
Origin.
The Abhiras were from the Abhira clan. They were among the successors of the Satavahanas in the Western Deccan. Some of them entered the military service of the Western Satraps (Sakas), and helped them in conquest of new territories. The Gunda inscription dated 181 refers to Abhira Rudrabhuti as the "senapati" (commander-in-chief) of the Saka satrap (ruler) Rudrasimha.
The inscription refers Rudrasimha to as simply a "ksatrapa", ignoring the existence of any "mahaksatrapa". According to Sudhakar Chattopadhyaya, this indicates that the Abhira general was the "de facto" ruler of the state, though not assuming any higher title. The inscription states Abhira Rudrabhuti as the son of the general Bapaka. The Abhira dynasty was probably related Abhira Rudrabhuti.
History.
The history of the Abhiras is shrouded in much obscurity. The Abhira dynasty was founded by Ishwarsena. The branch came to power after the demise of the Satavahanas in the Nasik region of Maharashtra, with the help and consent of the Western Satraps (Sakas). They were known as "Gavali rajas" indicating that they were cowherds by profession before becoming kings. Ten Abhira kings ruled in the Maharashtra region of the Deccan, whose names have not been mentioned in the Puranas.
An Abhira king is known to have sent an embassy to the Sassanid "Shahanshah" of Persia, Narseh, to congratualte him on his victory against Bahram III.
The duration of the Abhira rule is uncertain, with most of the Puranas giving it as sixty-seven years, while the Vayu Purana gives it as one hundred and sixty-seven years. According to V.V Mirashi, the following were the feudatories of the Abhiras- 
The Abhiras spoke Apabhraṃśa, and seem to have patronized Sanskrit. The Nasik cave inscription of Isvarsena is written mostly in Sanskrit. Several guilds flourished in their kingdom, in which people invested large amounts for making endowments. This indicates peace, order and security in the kingdom of the Abhiras.
Abhira Sivadatta.
Abhira Sivadatta was the actual founder of the Abhira power. But other Historians like Sudhakar Chattopadhyaya and Bhakshish Singh Nijjar argue that Sivadatta is not given any royal title, and thus his son Ishwarsena was the founder of the Abhira dynasty. Some scholars have identified Sivadatta with Shudraka, a king and author of plays including the "Mrichchhakatika". Shudraka was probably the pen name of Sivadatta.
The Nasik cave inscription of Ishwarsena says that he was the son of Abhira Sivadatta. Abhira Sivadatta was probably a descendant of Abhira Rudrabhuti, and may have been in the service of the powerful Satavahana king Yajna Sri Satakarni. After Yajna Sri Satakarni's death he occupied Western Maharashtra and pushed Yajna Sri Satakarni's successsors into the Andhra region. He was succeeded by his son Sakasena.
Saka Satakarni.
Another king claiming to be a son of Mathari besides Abhira Ishwarsena is Sakasena. He is identified with Saka Satakarni, whose coins have been found over Andhra Pradesh and is taken to be a Satavahana king and successor of Yajna Sri Satakarni. However, K.Gopalchari thinks that Sakasena was a Abhira king. Reasons:
So this concludes that Ishwarsena's predecessor was his elder brother Sakasena, and Ishwarsena ascended the throne after his death.
Sakasena was probably the first great Abhira king. His inscriptions from the Konkan and coins from Andhra Pradesh suggest that he ruled over a large portion of the Satavahana Empire.
Abhira Ishwarsena.
Ishwarsena was the first independent Abhira king. He was the son of Abhira Sivadatta and his wife Mathari. He started an era which later became known as the Kalachuri-Chedi era. His descendants ruled for nine generations. Ishwarsena's coins are dated only in the first and second years of his reign and are found in Saurashtra and Southern Rajputana.
The Traikuta rule of Aparanta or Konkan begins in A.D. 248 (Traikuta era) exactly the time of Ishwarsena's rule, hence Traikutas are identified with the Abhira dynasty.
List of rulers.
The following is the list of the sovereign and strong Abhira rulers-
Territory.
The Abhiras ruled western Maharashtra which included Nasik and its adjoining areas, Aparanta, Lata, Ashmaka, and Khandesh Their core territory included Nasik and the adjoining areas. The Abhira territory also may have consisted of Malwa, which they gradually seized from the Kshahratas.
Decline.
After the death of Abhira Vashishthiputra Vasusena, the Abhiras probably lost their sovereign and paramount status. The Abhiras lost most of their domains to the rising Vakatakas (north) and the Kadambas (south-west). The Abhiras were finally supplanted by their feudatories, the Traikutakas. But still many petty Abhira chieftains and kings continued to rule until the fourth century, roughly till 370 AD, in the Vidarbha and Khandesh region. They continued to rule, but without sovereignty, until they came into conflict with the Kadamba king Mayurasarman and were defeated.
Descendants.
According to Ganga Ram Garg, the modern-day Ahir caste are descendants of Abhira people and the term "Ahir" is the Prakrit form of the Sanskrit term "Abhira". This view gets support in many writings. The descendants of the Abhiras can be recognized by their surnames, such as "Ahir, Ahire, Ahir-Rao" etc.