diff --git a/asv_bench/benchmarks/period.py b/asv_bench/benchmarks/period.py
index 1af1ba1fb7b0b..8f341c8b415fe 100644
--- a/asv_bench/benchmarks/period.py
+++ b/asv_bench/benchmarks/period.py
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
-from pandas import (DataFrame, Series, Period, PeriodIndex, date_range,
-                    period_range)
+from pandas import (
+    DataFrame, Period, PeriodIndex, Series, date_range, period_range)
 
 
 class PeriodProperties(object):
@@ -94,7 +94,7 @@ def time_value_counts(self, typ):
 class Indexing(object):
 
     def setup(self):
-        self.index = PeriodIndex(start='1985', periods=1000, freq='D')
+        self.index = period_range(start='1985', periods=1000, freq='D')
         self.series = Series(range(1000), index=self.index)
         self.period = self.index[500]
 
diff --git a/doc/source/whatsnew/v0.21.0.rst b/doc/source/whatsnew/v0.21.0.rst
index 47cd17efe3f75..c62a2ee6ac92d 100644
--- a/doc/source/whatsnew/v0.21.0.rst
+++ b/doc/source/whatsnew/v0.21.0.rst
@@ -654,7 +654,7 @@ Previous Behavior:
 
 .. code-block:: ipython
 
-   In [1]: pi = pd.PeriodIndex(start='2000-01-01', freq='D', periods=10)
+   In [1]: pi = pd.period_range(start='2000-01-01', freq='D', periods=10)
 
    In [2]: s = pd.Series(np.arange(10), index=pi)
 
@@ -674,7 +674,7 @@ New Behavior:
 
 .. ipython:: python
 
-   pi = pd.PeriodIndex(start='2000-01-01', freq='D', periods=10)
+   pi = pd.period_range(start='2000-01-01', freq='D', periods=10)
 
    s = pd.Series(np.arange(10), index=pi)
 
diff --git a/doc/source/whatsnew/v0.24.0.rst b/doc/source/whatsnew/v0.24.0.rst
index d6bda5fde44d9..9bb6e0c90ae06 100644
--- a/doc/source/whatsnew/v0.24.0.rst
+++ b/doc/source/whatsnew/v0.24.0.rst
@@ -1148,7 +1148,7 @@ Deprecations
 - Timezone converting a tz-aware ``datetime.datetime`` or :class:`Timestamp` with :class:`Timestamp` and the ``tz`` argument is now deprecated. Instead, use :meth:`Timestamp.tz_convert` (:issue:`23579`)
 - :func:`pandas.api.types.is_period` is deprecated in favor of `pandas.api.types.is_period_dtype` (:issue:`23917`)
 - :func:`pandas.api.types.is_datetimetz` is deprecated in favor of `pandas.api.types.is_datetime64tz` (:issue:`23917`)
-- Creating a :class:`TimedeltaIndex` or :class:`DatetimeIndex` by passing range arguments `start`, `end`, and `periods` is deprecated in favor of :func:`timedelta_range` and :func:`date_range` (:issue:`23919`)
+- Creating a :class:`TimedeltaIndex`, :class:`DatetimeIndex`, or :class:`PeriodIndex` by passing range arguments `start`, `end`, and `periods` is deprecated in favor of :func:`timedelta_range`, :func:`date_range`, or :func:`period_range` (:issue:`23919`)
 - Passing a string alias like ``'datetime64[ns, UTC]'`` as the ``unit`` parameter to :class:`DatetimeTZDtype` is deprecated. Use :class:`DatetimeTZDtype.construct_from_string` instead (:issue:`23990`).
 - In :meth:`Series.where` with Categorical data, providing an ``other`` that is not present in the categories is deprecated. Convert the categorical to a different dtype or add the ``other`` to the categories first (:issue:`24077`).
 - :meth:`Series.clip_lower`, :meth:`Series.clip_upper`, :meth:`DataFrame.clip_lower` and :meth:`DataFrame.clip_upper` are deprecated and will be removed in a future version. Use ``Series.clip(lower=threshold)``, ``Series.clip(upper=threshold)`` and the equivalent ``DataFrame`` methods (:issue:`24203`)
@@ -1310,6 +1310,7 @@ Datetimelike
 - Bug in :meth:`Series.combine_first` not properly aligning categoricals, so that missing values in ``self`` where not filled by valid values from ``other`` (:issue:`24147`)
 - Bug in :func:`DataFrame.combine` with datetimelike values raising a TypeError (:issue:`23079`)
 - Bug in :func:`date_range` with frequency of ``Day`` or higher where dates sufficiently far in the future could wrap around to the past instead of raising ``OutOfBoundsDatetime`` (:issue:`14187`)
+- Bug in :func:`period_range` ignoring the frequency of ``start`` and ``end`` when those are provided as :class:`Period` objects (:issue:`20535`).
 - Bug in :class:`PeriodIndex` with attribute ``freq.n`` greater than 1 where adding a :class:`DateOffset` object would return incorrect results (:issue:`23215`)
 - Bug in :class:`Series` that interpreted string indices as lists of characters when setting datetimelike values (:issue:`23451`)
 - Bug in :class:`Timestamp` constructor which would drop the frequency of an input :class:`Timestamp` (:issue:`22311`)
diff --git a/pandas/core/indexes/datetimes.py b/pandas/core/indexes/datetimes.py
index 380341f05252c..b882c50a4b922 100644
--- a/pandas/core/indexes/datetimes.py
+++ b/pandas/core/indexes/datetimes.py
@@ -81,15 +81,27 @@ class DatetimeIndex(DatetimeArray, DatetimeIndexOpsMixin, Int64Index):
     start : starting value, datetime-like, optional
         If data is None, start is used as the start point in generating regular
         timestamp data.
+
+        .. deprecated:: 0.24.0
+
     periods  : int, optional, > 0
         Number of periods to generate, if generating index. Takes precedence
         over end argument
-    end   : end time, datetime-like, optional
+
+        .. deprecated:: 0.24.0
+
+    end : end time, datetime-like, optional
         If periods is none, generated index will extend to first conforming
         time on or just past end argument
+
+        .. deprecated:: 0.24.0
+
     closed : string or None, default None
         Make the interval closed with respect to the given frequency to
         the 'left', 'right', or both sides (None)
+
+        .. deprecated:: 0.24. 0
+
     tz : pytz.timezone or dateutil.tz.tzfile
     ambiguous : 'infer', bool-ndarray, 'NaT', default 'raise'
         When clocks moved backward due to DST, ambiguous times may arise.
@@ -166,12 +178,16 @@ class DatetimeIndex(DatetimeArray, DatetimeIndexOpsMixin, Int64Index):
     To learn more about the frequency strings, please see `this link
     <http://pandas.pydata.org/pandas-docs/stable/timeseries.html#offset-aliases>`__.
 
+    Creating a DatetimeIndex based on `start`, `periods`, and `end` has
+    been deprecated in favor of :func:`date_range`.
+
     See Also
     ---------
     Index : The base pandas Index type.
     TimedeltaIndex : Index of timedelta64 data.
     PeriodIndex : Index of Period data.
-    pandas.to_datetime : Convert argument to datetime.
+    to_datetime : Convert argument to datetime.
+    date_range : Create a fixed-frequency DatetimeIndex.
     """
     _typ = 'datetimeindex'
     _join_precedence = 10
@@ -223,14 +239,15 @@ def __new__(cls, data=None,
             verify_integrity = True
 
         if data is None:
-            warnings.warn("Creating a DatetimeIndex by passing range "
-                          "endpoints is deprecated.  Use "
-                          "`pandas.date_range` instead.",
-                          FutureWarning, stacklevel=2)
             dtarr = DatetimeArray._generate_range(
                 start, end, periods,
                 freq=freq, tz=tz, normalize=normalize,
                 closed=closed, ambiguous=ambiguous)
+            warnings.warn("Creating a DatetimeIndex by passing range "
+                          "endpoints is deprecated.  Use "
+                          "`pandas.date_range` instead.",
+                          FutureWarning, stacklevel=2)
+
             return cls(dtarr, name=name)
 
         if is_scalar(data):
diff --git a/pandas/core/indexes/period.py b/pandas/core/indexes/period.py
index 5f3102d15841f..cdbbb6bb9127c 100644
--- a/pandas/core/indexes/period.py
+++ b/pandas/core/indexes/period.py
@@ -92,12 +92,21 @@ class PeriodIndex(DatelikeOps, DatetimeIndexOpsMixin, Int64Index,
     start : starting value, period-like, optional
         If data is None, used as the start point in generating regular
         period data.
+
+        .. deprecated:: 0.24.0
+
     periods : int, optional, > 0
         Number of periods to generate, if generating index. Takes precedence
         over end argument
+
+        .. deprecated:: 0.24.0
+
     end : end value, period-like, optional
         If periods is none, generated index will extend to first conforming
         period on or just past end argument
+
+        .. deprecated:: 0.24.0
+
     year : int, array, or Series, default None
     month : int, array, or Series, default None
     quarter : int, array, or Series, default None
@@ -138,18 +147,22 @@ class PeriodIndex(DatelikeOps, DatetimeIndexOpsMixin, Int64Index,
     strftime
     to_timestamp
 
+    Notes
+    -----
+    Creating a PeriodIndex based on `start`, `periods`, and `end` has
+    been deprecated in favor of :func:`period_range`.
+
     Examples
     --------
     >>> idx = pd.PeriodIndex(year=year_arr, quarter=q_arr)
 
-    >>> idx2 = pd.PeriodIndex(start='2000', end='2010', freq='A')
-
     See Also
     ---------
     Index : The base pandas Index type.
     Period : Represents a period of time.
     DatetimeIndex : Index with datetime64 data.
     TimedeltaIndex : Index of timedelta64 data.
+    period_range : Create a fixed-frequency PeriodIndex.
     """
     _typ = 'periodindex'
     _attributes = ['name', 'freq']
@@ -181,8 +194,32 @@ def __new__(cls, data=None, ordinal=None, freq=None, start=None, end=None,
 
         if data is None and ordinal is None:
             # range-based.
-            data, freq = PeriodArray._generate_range(start, end, periods,
-                                                     freq, fields)
+            data, freq2 = PeriodArray._generate_range(start, end, periods,
+                                                      freq, fields)
+            # PeriodArray._generate range does validate that fields is
+            # empty when really using the range-based constructor.
+            if not fields:
+                msg = ("Creating a PeriodIndex by passing range "
+                       "endpoints is deprecated.  Use "
+                       "`pandas.period_range` instead.")
+                # period_range differs from PeriodIndex for cases like
+                # start="2000", periods=4
+                # PeriodIndex interprets that as A-DEC freq.
+                # period_range interprets it as 'D' freq.
+                cond = (
+                    freq is None and (
+                        (start and not isinstance(start, Period)) or
+                        (end and not isinstance(end, Period))
+                    )
+                )
+                if cond:
+                    msg += (
+                        " Note that the default `freq` may differ. Pass "
+                        "'freq=\"{}\"' to ensure the same output."
+                    ).format(freq2.freqstr)
+                warnings.warn(msg, FutureWarning, stacklevel=2)
+            freq = freq2
+
             data = PeriodArray(data, freq=freq)
         else:
             freq = validate_dtype_freq(dtype, freq)
@@ -939,7 +976,7 @@ def base(self):
 PeriodIndex._add_datetimelike_methods()
 
 
-def period_range(start=None, end=None, periods=None, freq='D', name=None):
+def period_range(start=None, end=None, periods=None, freq=None, name=None):
     """
     Return a fixed frequency PeriodIndex, with day (calendar) as the default
     frequency
@@ -952,8 +989,11 @@ def period_range(start=None, end=None, periods=None, freq='D', name=None):
         Right bound for generating periods
     periods : integer, default None
         Number of periods to generate
-    freq : string or DateOffset, default 'D'
-        Frequency alias
+    freq : string or DateOffset, optional
+        Frequency alias. By default the freq is taken from `start` or `end`
+        if those are Period objects. Otherwise, the default is ``"D"`` for
+        daily frequency.
+
     name : string, default None
         Name of the resulting PeriodIndex
 
@@ -990,6 +1030,11 @@ def period_range(start=None, end=None, periods=None, freq='D', name=None):
     if com.count_not_none(start, end, periods) != 2:
         raise ValueError('Of the three parameters: start, end, and periods, '
                          'exactly two must be specified')
-
-    return PeriodIndex(start=start, end=end, periods=periods,
-                       freq=freq, name=name)
+    if freq is None and (not isinstance(start, Period)
+                         and not isinstance(end, Period)):
+        freq = 'D'
+
+    data, freq = PeriodArray._generate_range(start, end, periods, freq,
+                                             fields={})
+    data = PeriodArray(data, freq=freq)
+    return PeriodIndex(data, name=name)
diff --git a/pandas/core/indexes/timedeltas.py b/pandas/core/indexes/timedeltas.py
index 885902967d398..ba5bd6bf07539 100644
--- a/pandas/core/indexes/timedeltas.py
+++ b/pandas/core/indexes/timedeltas.py
@@ -64,15 +64,27 @@ class TimedeltaIndex(TimedeltaArray, DatetimeIndexOpsMixin,
     start : starting value, timedelta-like, optional
         If data is None, start is used as the start point in generating regular
         timedelta data.
+
+        .. deprecated:: 0.24.0
+
     periods  : int, optional, > 0
         Number of periods to generate, if generating index. Takes precedence
         over end argument
-    end   : end time, timedelta-like, optional
+
+        .. deprecated:: 0.24.0
+
+    end : end time, timedelta-like, optional
         If periods is none, generated index will extend to first conforming
         time on or just past end argument
+
+        .. deprecated:: 0.24. 0
+
     closed : string or None, default None
         Make the interval closed with respect to the given frequency to
         the 'left', 'right', or both sides (None)
+
+        .. deprecated:: 0.24. 0
+
     name : object
         Name to be stored in the index
 
@@ -100,12 +112,15 @@ class TimedeltaIndex(TimedeltaArray, DatetimeIndexOpsMixin,
     Timedelta : Represents a duration between two dates or times.
     DatetimeIndex : Index of datetime64 data.
     PeriodIndex : Index of Period data.
+    timedelta_range : Create a fixed-frequency TimedeltaIndex.
 
     Notes
     -----
-
     To learn more about the frequency strings, please see `this link
     <http://pandas.pydata.org/pandas-docs/stable/timeseries.html#offset-aliases>`__.
+
+    Creating a TimedeltaIndex based on `start`, `periods`, and `end` has
+    been deprecated in favor of :func:`timedelta_range`.
     """
 
     _typ = 'timedeltaindex'
diff --git a/pandas/core/resample.py b/pandas/core/resample.py
index 3a5409ff15d1f..d36a3fd6f61bb 100644
--- a/pandas/core/resample.py
+++ b/pandas/core/resample.py
@@ -1491,10 +1491,10 @@ def _get_time_period_bins(self, ax):
             binner = labels = PeriodIndex(data=[], freq=freq, name=ax.name)
             return binner, [], labels
 
-        labels = binner = PeriodIndex(start=ax[0],
-                                      end=ax[-1],
-                                      freq=freq,
-                                      name=ax.name)
+        labels = binner = pd.period_range(start=ax[0],
+                                          end=ax[-1],
+                                          freq=freq,
+                                          name=ax.name)
 
         end_stamps = (labels + freq).asfreq(freq, 's').to_timestamp()
         if ax.tzinfo:
@@ -1543,8 +1543,8 @@ def _get_period_bins(self, ax):
             bin_shift = start_offset.n % freq_mult
             start = p_start
 
-        labels = binner = PeriodIndex(start=start, end=end,
-                                      freq=self.freq, name=ax.name)
+        labels = binner = pd.period_range(start=start, end=end,
+                                          freq=self.freq, name=ax.name)
 
         i8 = memb.asi8
 
diff --git a/pandas/plotting/_converter.py b/pandas/plotting/_converter.py
index 3a3ebe7c56f67..8cab00fba3aa8 100644
--- a/pandas/plotting/_converter.py
+++ b/pandas/plotting/_converter.py
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@
 import pandas.core.common as com
 from pandas.core.index import Index
 from pandas.core.indexes.datetimes import date_range
-from pandas.core.indexes.period import Period, PeriodIndex
+from pandas.core.indexes.period import Period, PeriodIndex, period_range
 import pandas.core.tools.datetimes as tools
 
 import pandas.tseries.frequencies as frequencies
@@ -630,7 +630,7 @@ def _daily_finder(vmin, vmax, freq):
     (vmin, vmax) = (Period(ordinal=int(vmin), freq=freq),
                     Period(ordinal=int(vmax), freq=freq))
     span = vmax.ordinal - vmin.ordinal + 1
-    dates_ = PeriodIndex(start=vmin, end=vmax, freq=freq)
+    dates_ = period_range(start=vmin, end=vmax, freq=freq)
     # Initialize the output
     info = np.zeros(span,
                     dtype=[('val', np.int64), ('maj', bool),
diff --git a/pandas/tests/frame/test_join.py b/pandas/tests/frame/test_join.py
index 1c7f3ed834289..f33e05fd910fc 100644
--- a/pandas/tests/frame/test_join.py
+++ b/pandas/tests/frame/test_join.py
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
 import pytest
 import numpy as np
 
-from pandas import DataFrame, Index, PeriodIndex
+from pandas import DataFrame, Index, period_range
 from pandas.tests.frame.common import TestData
 import pandas.util.testing as tm
 
@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ def frame_with_period_index():
     return DataFrame(
         data=np.arange(20).reshape(4, 5),
         columns=list('abcde'),
-        index=PeriodIndex(start='2000', freq='A', periods=4))
+        index=period_range(start='2000', freq='A', periods=4))
 
 
 @pytest.fixture
diff --git a/pandas/tests/frame/test_period.py b/pandas/tests/frame/test_period.py
index 2a8add1a5de92..231b643a867ad 100644
--- a/pandas/tests/frame/test_period.py
+++ b/pandas/tests/frame/test_period.py
@@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ def test_frame_setitem(self):
 
     def test_frame_to_time_stamp(self):
         K = 5
-        index = PeriodIndex(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
+        index = period_range(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
         df = DataFrame(randn(len(index), K), index=index)
         df['mix'] = 'a'
 
diff --git a/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_arithmetic.py b/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_arithmetic.py
index 2c04f22f8b450..67b642e013880 100644
--- a/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_arithmetic.py
+++ b/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_arithmetic.py
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@
 import pytest
 
 import pandas as pd
-from pandas import PeriodIndex
+from pandas import PeriodIndex, period_range
 import pandas.util.testing as tm
 
 
@@ -26,36 +26,36 @@ def test_pi_shift_ndarray(self):
         tm.assert_index_equal(result, expected)
 
     def test_shift(self):
-        pi1 = PeriodIndex(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
-        pi2 = PeriodIndex(freq='A', start='1/1/2002', end='12/1/2010')
+        pi1 = period_range(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
+        pi2 = period_range(freq='A', start='1/1/2002', end='12/1/2010')
 
         tm.assert_index_equal(pi1.shift(0), pi1)
 
         assert len(pi1) == len(pi2)
         tm.assert_index_equal(pi1.shift(1), pi2)
 
-        pi1 = PeriodIndex(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
-        pi2 = PeriodIndex(freq='A', start='1/1/2000', end='12/1/2008')
+        pi1 = period_range(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
+        pi2 = period_range(freq='A', start='1/1/2000', end='12/1/2008')
         assert len(pi1) == len(pi2)
         tm.assert_index_equal(pi1.shift(-1), pi2)
 
-        pi1 = PeriodIndex(freq='M', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
-        pi2 = PeriodIndex(freq='M', start='2/1/2001', end='1/1/2010')
+        pi1 = period_range(freq='M', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
+        pi2 = period_range(freq='M', start='2/1/2001', end='1/1/2010')
         assert len(pi1) == len(pi2)
         tm.assert_index_equal(pi1.shift(1), pi2)
 
-        pi1 = PeriodIndex(freq='M', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
-        pi2 = PeriodIndex(freq='M', start='12/1/2000', end='11/1/2009')
+        pi1 = period_range(freq='M', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
+        pi2 = period_range(freq='M', start='12/1/2000', end='11/1/2009')
         assert len(pi1) == len(pi2)
         tm.assert_index_equal(pi1.shift(-1), pi2)
 
-        pi1 = PeriodIndex(freq='D', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
-        pi2 = PeriodIndex(freq='D', start='1/2/2001', end='12/2/2009')
+        pi1 = period_range(freq='D', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
+        pi2 = period_range(freq='D', start='1/2/2001', end='12/2/2009')
         assert len(pi1) == len(pi2)
         tm.assert_index_equal(pi1.shift(1), pi2)
 
-        pi1 = PeriodIndex(freq='D', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
-        pi2 = PeriodIndex(freq='D', start='12/31/2000', end='11/30/2009')
+        pi1 = period_range(freq='D', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
+        pi2 = period_range(freq='D', start='12/31/2000', end='11/30/2009')
         assert len(pi1) == len(pi2)
         tm.assert_index_equal(pi1.shift(-1), pi2)
 
@@ -100,7 +100,7 @@ def test_shift_gh8083(self):
 
     def test_shift_periods(self):
         # GH #22458 : argument 'n' was deprecated in favor of 'periods'
-        idx = PeriodIndex(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
+        idx = period_range(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
         tm.assert_index_equal(idx.shift(periods=0), idx)
         tm.assert_index_equal(idx.shift(0), idx)
         with tm.assert_produces_warning(FutureWarning,
diff --git a/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_asfreq.py b/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_asfreq.py
index fed6bbce6259f..2dd49e7e0845e 100644
--- a/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_asfreq.py
+++ b/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_asfreq.py
@@ -2,20 +2,20 @@
 import pytest
 
 import pandas as pd
-from pandas import DataFrame, PeriodIndex, Series
+from pandas import DataFrame, PeriodIndex, Series, period_range
 from pandas.util import testing as tm
 
 
 class TestPeriodIndex(object):
 
     def test_asfreq(self):
-        pi1 = PeriodIndex(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2001')
-        pi2 = PeriodIndex(freq='Q', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2001')
-        pi3 = PeriodIndex(freq='M', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2001')
-        pi4 = PeriodIndex(freq='D', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2001')
-        pi5 = PeriodIndex(freq='H', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2001 00:00')
-        pi6 = PeriodIndex(freq='Min', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2001 00:00')
-        pi7 = PeriodIndex(freq='S', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2001 00:00:00')
+        pi1 = period_range(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2001')
+        pi2 = period_range(freq='Q', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2001')
+        pi3 = period_range(freq='M', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2001')
+        pi4 = period_range(freq='D', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2001')
+        pi5 = period_range(freq='H', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2001 00:00')
+        pi6 = period_range(freq='Min', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2001 00:00')
+        pi7 = period_range(freq='S', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2001 00:00:00')
 
         assert pi1.asfreq('Q', 'S') == pi2
         assert pi1.asfreq('Q', 's') == pi2
@@ -70,7 +70,7 @@ def test_asfreq(self):
         pytest.raises(ValueError, pi7.asfreq, 'T', 'foo')
         result1 = pi1.asfreq('3M')
         result2 = pi1.asfreq('M')
-        expected = PeriodIndex(freq='M', start='2001-12', end='2001-12')
+        expected = period_range(freq='M', start='2001-12', end='2001-12')
         tm.assert_numpy_array_equal(result1.asi8, expected.asi8)
         assert result1.freqstr == '3M'
         tm.assert_numpy_array_equal(result2.asi8, expected.asi8)
@@ -126,7 +126,7 @@ def test_asfreq_combined_pi(self):
             assert result.freq == exp.freq
 
     def test_asfreq_ts(self):
-        index = PeriodIndex(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/31/2010')
+        index = period_range(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/31/2010')
         ts = Series(np.random.randn(len(index)), index=index)
         df = DataFrame(np.random.randn(len(index), 3), index=index)
 
diff --git a/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_construction.py b/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_construction.py
index 1ebc0ecb2fc02..916260c4cee7e 100644
--- a/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_construction.py
+++ b/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_construction.py
@@ -40,8 +40,12 @@ def test_construction_base_constructor(self):
     def test_constructor_use_start_freq(self):
         # GH #1118
         p = Period('4/2/2012', freq='B')
-        index = PeriodIndex(start=p, periods=10)
-        expected = PeriodIndex(start='4/2/2012', periods=10, freq='B')
+        with tm.assert_produces_warning(FutureWarning):
+            index = PeriodIndex(start=p, periods=10)
+        expected = period_range(start='4/2/2012', periods=10, freq='B')
+        tm.assert_index_equal(index, expected)
+
+        index = period_range(start=p, periods=10)
         tm.assert_index_equal(index, expected)
 
     def test_constructor_field_arrays(self):
@@ -317,25 +321,31 @@ def test_constructor_year_and_quarter(self):
         p = PeriodIndex(lops)
         tm.assert_index_equal(p, idx)
 
-    def test_constructor_freq_mult(self):
+    @pytest.mark.parametrize('func, warning', [
+        (PeriodIndex, FutureWarning),
+        (period_range, None)
+    ])
+    def test_constructor_freq_mult(self, func, warning):
         # GH #7811
-        for func in [PeriodIndex, period_range]:
+        with tm.assert_produces_warning(warning):
             # must be the same, but for sure...
             pidx = func(start='2014-01', freq='2M', periods=4)
-            expected = PeriodIndex(['2014-01', '2014-03',
-                                    '2014-05', '2014-07'], freq='2M')
-            tm.assert_index_equal(pidx, expected)
+        expected = PeriodIndex(['2014-01', '2014-03',
+                                '2014-05', '2014-07'], freq='2M')
+        tm.assert_index_equal(pidx, expected)
 
+        with tm.assert_produces_warning(warning):
             pidx = func(start='2014-01-02', end='2014-01-15', freq='3D')
-            expected = PeriodIndex(['2014-01-02', '2014-01-05',
-                                    '2014-01-08', '2014-01-11',
-                                    '2014-01-14'], freq='3D')
-            tm.assert_index_equal(pidx, expected)
+        expected = PeriodIndex(['2014-01-02', '2014-01-05',
+                                '2014-01-08', '2014-01-11',
+                                '2014-01-14'], freq='3D')
+        tm.assert_index_equal(pidx, expected)
 
+        with tm.assert_produces_warning(warning):
             pidx = func(end='2014-01-01 17:00', freq='4H', periods=3)
-            expected = PeriodIndex(['2014-01-01 09:00', '2014-01-01 13:00',
-                                    '2014-01-01 17:00'], freq='4H')
-            tm.assert_index_equal(pidx, expected)
+        expected = PeriodIndex(['2014-01-01 09:00', '2014-01-01 13:00',
+                                '2014-01-01 17:00'], freq='4H')
+        tm.assert_index_equal(pidx, expected)
 
         msg = ('Frequency must be positive, because it'
                ' represents span: -1M')
@@ -354,7 +364,7 @@ def test_constructor_freq_mult(self):
     @pytest.mark.parametrize('mult', [1, 2, 3, 4, 5])
     def test_constructor_freq_mult_dti_compat(self, mult, freq):
         freqstr = str(mult) + freq
-        pidx = PeriodIndex(start='2014-04-01', freq=freqstr, periods=10)
+        pidx = period_range(start='2014-04-01', freq=freqstr, periods=10)
         expected = date_range(start='2014-04-01', freq=freqstr,
                               periods=10).to_period(freqstr)
         tm.assert_index_equal(pidx, expected)
@@ -364,63 +374,75 @@ def test_constructor_freq_combined(self):
             pidx = PeriodIndex(['2016-01-01', '2016-01-02'], freq=freq)
             expected = PeriodIndex(['2016-01-01 00:00', '2016-01-02 00:00'],
                                    freq='25H')
-        for freq, func in zip(['1D1H', '1H1D'], [PeriodIndex, period_range]):
-            pidx = func(start='2016-01-01', periods=2, freq=freq)
+        for freq in ['1D1H', '1H1D']:
+            pidx = period_range(start='2016-01-01', periods=2, freq=freq)
             expected = PeriodIndex(['2016-01-01 00:00', '2016-01-02 01:00'],
                                    freq='25H')
             tm.assert_index_equal(pidx, expected)
 
+    def test_constructor_range_based_deprecated(self):
+        with tm.assert_produces_warning(FutureWarning):
+            pi = PeriodIndex(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
+        assert len(pi) == 9
+
+    def test_constructor_range_based_deprecated_different_freq(self):
+        with tm.assert_produces_warning(FutureWarning) as m:
+            PeriodIndex(start='2000', periods=2)
+
+        warning, = m
+        assert 'freq="A-DEC"' in str(warning.message)
+
     def test_constructor(self):
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
+        pi = period_range(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
         assert len(pi) == 9
 
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='Q', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
+        pi = period_range(freq='Q', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
         assert len(pi) == 4 * 9
 
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='M', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
+        pi = period_range(freq='M', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
         assert len(pi) == 12 * 9
 
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='D', start='1/1/2001', end='12/31/2009')
+        pi = period_range(freq='D', start='1/1/2001', end='12/31/2009')
         assert len(pi) == 365 * 9 + 2
 
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='B', start='1/1/2001', end='12/31/2009')
+        pi = period_range(freq='B', start='1/1/2001', end='12/31/2009')
         assert len(pi) == 261 * 9
 
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='H', start='1/1/2001', end='12/31/2001 23:00')
+        pi = period_range(freq='H', start='1/1/2001', end='12/31/2001 23:00')
         assert len(pi) == 365 * 24
 
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='Min', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2001 23:59')
+        pi = period_range(freq='Min', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2001 23:59')
         assert len(pi) == 24 * 60
 
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='S', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2001 23:59:59')
+        pi = period_range(freq='S', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2001 23:59:59')
         assert len(pi) == 24 * 60 * 60
 
         start = Period('02-Apr-2005', 'B')
-        i1 = PeriodIndex(start=start, periods=20)
+        i1 = period_range(start=start, periods=20)
         assert len(i1) == 20
         assert i1.freq == start.freq
         assert i1[0] == start
 
         end_intv = Period('2006-12-31', 'W')
-        i1 = PeriodIndex(end=end_intv, periods=10)
+        i1 = period_range(end=end_intv, periods=10)
         assert len(i1) == 10
         assert i1.freq == end_intv.freq
         assert i1[-1] == end_intv
 
         end_intv = Period('2006-12-31', '1w')
-        i2 = PeriodIndex(end=end_intv, periods=10)
+        i2 = period_range(end=end_intv, periods=10)
         assert len(i1) == len(i2)
         assert (i1 == i2).all()
         assert i1.freq == i2.freq
 
         end_intv = Period('2006-12-31', ('w', 1))
-        i2 = PeriodIndex(end=end_intv, periods=10)
+        i2 = period_range(end=end_intv, periods=10)
         assert len(i1) == len(i2)
         assert (i1 == i2).all()
         assert i1.freq == i2.freq
 
         end_intv = Period('2005-05-01', 'B')
-        i1 = PeriodIndex(start=start, end=end_intv)
+        i1 = period_range(start=start, end=end_intv)
 
         # infer freq from first element
         i2 = PeriodIndex([end_intv, Period('2005-05-05', 'B')])
@@ -453,7 +475,7 @@ def test_constructor_error(self):
     @pytest.mark.parametrize('freq', ['M', 'Q', 'A', 'D', 'B',
                                       'T', 'S', 'L', 'U', 'N', 'H'])
     def test_recreate_from_data(self, freq):
-        org = PeriodIndex(start='2001/04/01', freq=freq, periods=1)
+        org = period_range(start='2001/04/01', freq=freq, periods=1)
         idx = PeriodIndex(org.values, freq=freq)
         tm.assert_index_equal(idx, org)
 
diff --git a/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_indexing.py b/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_indexing.py
index 8e7d719dd4c84..47c2edfd13395 100644
--- a/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_indexing.py
+++ b/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_indexing.py
@@ -147,7 +147,8 @@ def test_getitem_seconds(self):
         # GH#6716
         didx = pd.date_range(start='2013/01/01 09:00:00', freq='S',
                              periods=4000)
-        pidx = PeriodIndex(start='2013/01/01 09:00:00', freq='S', periods=4000)
+        pidx = period_range(start='2013/01/01 09:00:00', freq='S',
+                            periods=4000)
 
         for idx in [didx, pidx]:
             # getitem against index should raise ValueError
@@ -171,7 +172,7 @@ def test_getitem_day(self):
         # GH#6716
         # Confirm DatetimeIndex and PeriodIndex works identically
         didx = pd.date_range(start='2013/01/01', freq='D', periods=400)
-        pidx = PeriodIndex(start='2013/01/01', freq='D', periods=400)
+        pidx = period_range(start='2013/01/01', freq='D', periods=400)
 
         for idx in [didx, pidx]:
             # getitem against index should raise ValueError
@@ -281,8 +282,8 @@ def test_take(self):
             assert result.freq == 'D'
 
     def test_take_misc(self):
-        index = PeriodIndex(start='1/1/10', end='12/31/12', freq='D',
-                            name='idx')
+        index = period_range(start='1/1/10', end='12/31/12', freq='D',
+                             name='idx')
         expected = PeriodIndex([datetime(2010, 1, 6), datetime(2010, 1, 7),
                                 datetime(2010, 1, 9), datetime(2010, 1, 13)],
                                freq='D', name='idx')
diff --git a/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_partial_slicing.py b/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_partial_slicing.py
index 014a92a7aa39d..0a1e7225463be 100644
--- a/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_partial_slicing.py
+++ b/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_partial_slicing.py
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 import pytest
 
 import pandas as pd
-from pandas import DataFrame, Period, PeriodIndex, Series, period_range
+from pandas import DataFrame, Period, Series, period_range
 from pandas.util import testing as tm
 
 
@@ -52,7 +52,7 @@ def test_slice_keep_name(self):
         assert idx.name == idx[1:].name
 
     def test_pindex_slice_index(self):
-        pi = PeriodIndex(start='1/1/10', end='12/31/12', freq='M')
+        pi = period_range(start='1/1/10', end='12/31/12', freq='M')
         s = Series(np.random.rand(len(pi)), index=pi)
         res = s['2010']
         exp = s[0:12]
@@ -64,7 +64,7 @@ def test_pindex_slice_index(self):
     def test_range_slice_day(self):
         # GH#6716
         didx = pd.date_range(start='2013/01/01', freq='D', periods=400)
-        pidx = PeriodIndex(start='2013/01/01', freq='D', periods=400)
+        pidx = period_range(start='2013/01/01', freq='D', periods=400)
 
         for idx in [didx, pidx]:
             # slices against index should raise IndexError
@@ -90,7 +90,8 @@ def test_range_slice_seconds(self):
         # GH#6716
         didx = pd.date_range(start='2013/01/01 09:00:00', freq='S',
                              periods=4000)
-        pidx = PeriodIndex(start='2013/01/01 09:00:00', freq='S', periods=4000)
+        pidx = period_range(start='2013/01/01 09:00:00', freq='S',
+                            periods=4000)
 
         for idx in [didx, pidx]:
             # slices against index should raise IndexError
@@ -114,7 +115,7 @@ def test_range_slice_seconds(self):
     def test_range_slice_outofbounds(self):
         # GH#5407
         didx = pd.date_range(start='2013/10/01', freq='D', periods=10)
-        pidx = PeriodIndex(start='2013/10/01', freq='D', periods=10)
+        pidx = period_range(start='2013/10/01', freq='D', periods=10)
 
         for idx in [didx, pidx]:
             df = DataFrame(dict(units=[100 + i for i in range(10)]), index=idx)
diff --git a/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_period.py b/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_period.py
index 37bfb9c0606a3..53f28612305c2 100644
--- a/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_period.py
+++ b/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_period.py
@@ -104,7 +104,7 @@ def test_hash_error(self):
             hash(index)
 
     def test_make_time_series(self):
-        index = PeriodIndex(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
+        index = period_range(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
         series = Series(1, index=index)
         assert isinstance(series, Series)
 
@@ -171,50 +171,50 @@ def test_values(self):
         tm.assert_numpy_array_equal(idx._ndarray_values, exp)
 
     def test_period_index_length(self):
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
+        pi = period_range(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
         assert len(pi) == 9
 
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='Q', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
+        pi = period_range(freq='Q', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
         assert len(pi) == 4 * 9
 
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='M', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
+        pi = period_range(freq='M', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
         assert len(pi) == 12 * 9
 
         start = Period('02-Apr-2005', 'B')
-        i1 = PeriodIndex(start=start, periods=20)
+        i1 = period_range(start=start, periods=20)
         assert len(i1) == 20
         assert i1.freq == start.freq
         assert i1[0] == start
 
         end_intv = Period('2006-12-31', 'W')
-        i1 = PeriodIndex(end=end_intv, periods=10)
+        i1 = period_range(end=end_intv, periods=10)
         assert len(i1) == 10
         assert i1.freq == end_intv.freq
         assert i1[-1] == end_intv
 
         end_intv = Period('2006-12-31', '1w')
-        i2 = PeriodIndex(end=end_intv, periods=10)
+        i2 = period_range(end=end_intv, periods=10)
         assert len(i1) == len(i2)
         assert (i1 == i2).all()
         assert i1.freq == i2.freq
 
         end_intv = Period('2006-12-31', ('w', 1))
-        i2 = PeriodIndex(end=end_intv, periods=10)
+        i2 = period_range(end=end_intv, periods=10)
         assert len(i1) == len(i2)
         assert (i1 == i2).all()
         assert i1.freq == i2.freq
 
         try:
-            PeriodIndex(start=start, end=end_intv)
+            period_range(start=start, end=end_intv)
             raise AssertionError('Cannot allow mixed freq for start and end')
         except ValueError:
             pass
 
         end_intv = Period('2005-05-01', 'B')
-        i1 = PeriodIndex(start=start, end=end_intv)
+        i1 = period_range(start=start, end=end_intv)
 
         try:
-            PeriodIndex(start=start)
+            period_range(start=start)
             raise AssertionError(
                 'Must specify periods if missing start or end')
         except ValueError:
@@ -239,33 +239,33 @@ def test_fields(self):
         # year, month, day, hour, minute
         # second, weekofyear, week, dayofweek, weekday, dayofyear, quarter
         # qyear
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2005')
+        pi = period_range(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2005')
         self._check_all_fields(pi)
 
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='Q', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2002')
+        pi = period_range(freq='Q', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2002')
         self._check_all_fields(pi)
 
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='M', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2002')
+        pi = period_range(freq='M', start='1/1/2001', end='1/1/2002')
         self._check_all_fields(pi)
 
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='D', start='12/1/2001', end='6/1/2001')
+        pi = period_range(freq='D', start='12/1/2001', end='6/1/2001')
         self._check_all_fields(pi)
 
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='B', start='12/1/2001', end='6/1/2001')
+        pi = period_range(freq='B', start='12/1/2001', end='6/1/2001')
         self._check_all_fields(pi)
 
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='H', start='12/31/2001', end='1/1/2002 23:00')
+        pi = period_range(freq='H', start='12/31/2001', end='1/1/2002 23:00')
         self._check_all_fields(pi)
 
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='Min', start='12/31/2001', end='1/1/2002 00:20')
+        pi = period_range(freq='Min', start='12/31/2001', end='1/1/2002 00:20')
         self._check_all_fields(pi)
 
-        pi = PeriodIndex(freq='S', start='12/31/2001 00:00:00',
-                         end='12/31/2001 00:05:00')
+        pi = period_range(freq='S', start='12/31/2001 00:00:00',
+                          end='12/31/2001 00:05:00')
         self._check_all_fields(pi)
 
         end_intv = Period('2006-12-31', 'W')
-        i1 = PeriodIndex(end=end_intv, periods=10)
+        i1 = period_range(end=end_intv, periods=10)
         self._check_all_fields(i1)
 
     def _check_all_fields(self, periodindex):
@@ -331,8 +331,8 @@ def test_factorize(self):
         tm.assert_index_equal(idx, exp_idx)
 
     def test_is_(self):
-        create_index = lambda: PeriodIndex(freq='A', start='1/1/2001',
-                                           end='12/1/2009')
+        create_index = lambda: period_range(freq='A', start='1/1/2001',
+                                            end='12/1/2009')
         index = create_index()
         assert index.is_(index)
         assert not index.is_(create_index())
@@ -376,13 +376,13 @@ def test_periods_number_check(self):
 
     def test_start_time(self):
         # GH 17157
-        index = PeriodIndex(freq='M', start='2016-01-01', end='2016-05-31')
+        index = period_range(freq='M', start='2016-01-01', end='2016-05-31')
         expected_index = date_range('2016-01-01', end='2016-05-31', freq='MS')
         tm.assert_index_equal(index.start_time, expected_index)
 
     def test_end_time(self):
         # GH 17157
-        index = PeriodIndex(freq='M', start='2016-01-01', end='2016-05-31')
+        index = period_range(freq='M', start='2016-01-01', end='2016-05-31')
         expected_index = date_range('2016-01-01', end='2016-05-31', freq='M')
         expected_index = expected_index.shift(1, freq='D').shift(-1, freq='ns')
         tm.assert_index_equal(index.end_time, expected_index)
@@ -451,7 +451,8 @@ def test_pindex_qaccess(self):
         assert s['05Q4'] == s[2]
 
     def test_pindex_multiples(self):
-        pi = PeriodIndex(start='1/1/11', end='12/31/11', freq='2M')
+        with tm.assert_produces_warning(FutureWarning):
+            pi = PeriodIndex(start='1/1/11', end='12/31/11', freq='2M')
         expected = PeriodIndex(['2011-01', '2011-03', '2011-05', '2011-07',
                                 '2011-09', '2011-11'], freq='2M')
         tm.assert_index_equal(pi, expected)
@@ -469,7 +470,7 @@ def test_pindex_multiples(self):
         assert pi.freqstr == '2M'
 
     def test_iteration(self):
-        index = PeriodIndex(start='1/1/10', periods=4, freq='B')
+        index = period_range(start='1/1/10', periods=4, freq='B')
 
         result = list(index)
         assert isinstance(result[0], Period)
diff --git a/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_scalar_compat.py b/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_scalar_compat.py
index 01fb1e3dc7e02..b140a1f3c5b8b 100644
--- a/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_scalar_compat.py
+++ b/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_scalar_compat.py
@@ -1,18 +1,18 @@
 # -*- coding: utf-8 -*-
 """Tests for PeriodIndex behaving like a vectorized Period scalar"""
 
-from pandas import PeriodIndex, Timedelta, date_range
+from pandas import Timedelta, date_range, period_range
 import pandas.util.testing as tm
 
 
 class TestPeriodIndexOps(object):
     def test_start_time(self):
-        index = PeriodIndex(freq='M', start='2016-01-01', end='2016-05-31')
+        index = period_range(freq='M', start='2016-01-01', end='2016-05-31')
         expected_index = date_range('2016-01-01', end='2016-05-31', freq='MS')
         tm.assert_index_equal(index.start_time, expected_index)
 
     def test_end_time(self):
-        index = PeriodIndex(freq='M', start='2016-01-01', end='2016-05-31')
+        index = period_range(freq='M', start='2016-01-01', end='2016-05-31')
         expected_index = date_range('2016-01-01', end='2016-05-31', freq='M')
         expected_index += Timedelta(1, 'D') - Timedelta(1, 'ns')
         tm.assert_index_equal(index.end_time, expected_index)
diff --git a/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_tools.py b/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_tools.py
index 15dd4cd520cf8..641400ebec925 100644
--- a/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_tools.py
+++ b/pandas/tests/indexes/period/test_tools.py
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@ class TestPeriodRepresentation(object):
     """
 
     def _check_freq(self, freq, base_date):
-        rng = PeriodIndex(start=base_date, periods=10, freq=freq)
+        rng = period_range(start=base_date, periods=10, freq=freq)
         exp = np.arange(10, dtype=np.int64)
 
         tm.assert_numpy_array_equal(rng.asi8, exp)
@@ -56,7 +56,7 @@ def test_negone_ordinals(self):
 
 class TestPeriodIndex(object):
     def test_to_timestamp(self):
-        index = PeriodIndex(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
+        index = period_range(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
         series = Series(1, index=index, name='foo')
 
         exp_index = date_range('1/1/2001', end='12/31/2009', freq='A-DEC')
@@ -91,7 +91,7 @@ def _get_with_delta(delta, freq='A-DEC'):
         exp_index = exp_index + Timedelta(1, 's') - Timedelta(1, 'ns')
         tm.assert_index_equal(result.index, exp_index)
 
-        index = PeriodIndex(freq='H', start='1/1/2001', end='1/2/2001')
+        index = period_range(freq='H', start='1/1/2001', end='1/2/2001')
         series = Series(1, index=index, name='foo')
 
         exp_index = date_range('1/1/2001 00:59:59', end='1/2/2001 00:59:59',
@@ -195,8 +195,8 @@ def test_period_dt64_round_trip(self):
     def test_combine_first(self):
         # GH#3367
         didx = pd.date_range(start='1950-01-31', end='1950-07-31', freq='M')
-        pidx = pd.PeriodIndex(start=pd.Period('1950-1'),
-                              end=pd.Period('1950-7'), freq='M')
+        pidx = pd.period_range(start=pd.Period('1950-1'),
+                               end=pd.Period('1950-7'), freq='M')
         # check to be consistent with DatetimeIndex
         for idx in [didx, pidx]:
             a = pd.Series([1, np.nan, np.nan, 4, 5, np.nan, 7], index=idx)
@@ -229,7 +229,7 @@ def test_searchsorted(self, freq):
 
 class TestPeriodIndexConversion(object):
     def test_tolist(self):
-        index = PeriodIndex(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
+        index = period_range(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009')
         rs = index.tolist()
         for x in rs:
             assert isinstance(x, Period)
@@ -264,8 +264,8 @@ def test_to_timestamp_pi_nat(self):
             result.to_period(freq='-2A')
 
     def test_to_timestamp_preserve_name(self):
-        index = PeriodIndex(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009',
-                            name='foo')
+        index = period_range(freq='A', start='1/1/2001', end='12/1/2009',
+                             name='foo')
         assert index.name == 'foo'
 
         conv = index.to_timestamp('D')
@@ -297,7 +297,7 @@ def test_to_timestamp_pi_mult(self):
         tm.assert_index_equal(result, expected)
 
     def test_to_timestamp_pi_combined(self):
-        idx = PeriodIndex(start='2011', periods=2, freq='1D1H', name='idx')
+        idx = period_range(start='2011', periods=2, freq='1D1H', name='idx')
 
         result = idx.to_timestamp()
         expected = DatetimeIndex(['2011-01-01 00:00', '2011-01-02 01:00'],
diff --git a/pandas/tests/indexes/test_base.py b/pandas/tests/indexes/test_base.py
index 28e4ad9c9f88c..b1093d693ab5e 100644
--- a/pandas/tests/indexes/test_base.py
+++ b/pandas/tests/indexes/test_base.py
@@ -1776,7 +1776,7 @@ def test_str_attribute(self, method):
     @pytest.mark.parametrize("index", [
         Index(range(5)), tm.makeDateIndex(10),
         MultiIndex.from_tuples([('foo', '1'), ('bar', '3')]),
-        PeriodIndex(start='2000', end='2010', freq='A')])
+        period_range(start='2000', end='2010', freq='A')])
     def test_str_attribute_raises(self, index):
         with pytest.raises(AttributeError, match='only use .str accessor'):
             index.str.repeat(2)
diff --git a/pandas/tests/resample/test_period_index.py b/pandas/tests/resample/test_period_index.py
index 0b393437a3072..60cf613a5f2c6 100644
--- a/pandas/tests/resample/test_period_index.py
+++ b/pandas/tests/resample/test_period_index.py
@@ -660,14 +660,14 @@ def test_loffset_returns_datetimeindex(self, frame, kind, agg_arg):
     @pytest.mark.parametrize('kind', [None, 'period'])
     def test_upsampling_ohlc(self, freq, period_mult, kind):
         # GH 13083
-        pi = PeriodIndex(start='2000', freq='D', periods=10)
+        pi = period_range(start='2000', freq='D', periods=10)
         s = Series(range(len(pi)), index=pi)
         expected = s.to_timestamp().resample(freq).ohlc().to_period(freq)
 
         # timestamp-based resampling doesn't include all sub-periods
         # of the last original period, so extend accordingly:
-        new_index = PeriodIndex(start='2000', freq=freq,
-                                periods=period_mult * len(pi))
+        new_index = period_range(start='2000', freq=freq,
+                                 periods=period_mult * len(pi))
         expected = expected.reindex(new_index)
         result = s.resample(freq, kind=kind).ohlc()
         assert_frame_equal(result, expected)
diff --git a/pandas/tests/tseries/test_frequencies.py b/pandas/tests/tseries/test_frequencies.py
index d2ca70795be80..c0a3e998dc2e0 100644
--- a/pandas/tests/tseries/test_frequencies.py
+++ b/pandas/tests/tseries/test_frequencies.py
@@ -13,7 +13,6 @@
 from pandas import (
     DatetimeIndex, Index, Series, Timedelta, Timestamp, date_range,
     period_range)
-from pandas.core.indexes.period import PeriodIndex
 from pandas.core.tools.datetimes import to_datetime
 import pandas.util.testing as tm
 
@@ -468,7 +467,7 @@ def test_frequency_misc(self):
 class TestFrequencyInference(object):
 
     def test_raise_if_period_index(self):
-        index = PeriodIndex(start="1/1/1990", periods=20, freq="M")
+        index = period_range(start="1/1/1990", periods=20, freq="M")
         pytest.raises(TypeError, frequencies.infer_freq, index)
 
     def test_raise_if_too_few(self):
diff --git a/pandas/util/testing.py b/pandas/util/testing.py
index c9c4b99b1701a..171d4d1ffcb39 100644
--- a/pandas/util/testing.py
+++ b/pandas/util/testing.py
@@ -33,8 +33,7 @@
 import pandas as pd
 from pandas import (
     Categorical, CategoricalIndex, DataFrame, DatetimeIndex, Index,
-    IntervalIndex, MultiIndex, Panel, PeriodIndex, RangeIndex, Series,
-    bdate_range)
+    IntervalIndex, MultiIndex, Panel, RangeIndex, Series, bdate_range)
 from pandas.core.algorithms import take_1d
 from pandas.core.arrays import (
     DatetimeArrayMixin as DatetimeArray, ExtensionArray, IntervalArray,
@@ -2011,7 +2010,7 @@ def makeTimedeltaIndex(k=10, freq='D', name=None, **kwargs):
 
 def makePeriodIndex(k=10, name=None, **kwargs):
     dt = datetime(2000, 1, 1)
-    dr = PeriodIndex(start=dt, periods=k, freq='B', name=name, **kwargs)
+    dr = pd.period_range(start=dt, periods=k, freq='B', name=name, **kwargs)
     return dr