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Ancient India Geography & Early India Mohenjo - Daro & Harappa. The Indus Valley Civilizations thrived between 2300-1700 B.C. Geography of India. The geography of India includes high mountains, rivers, and heavy seasonal rain.
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The Indus Valley Civilizationsthrived between 2300-1700 B.C.
Geography of India • The geography of India includes high mountains, rivers, and heavy seasonal rain. • India is so large that it is referred to as a subcontinent. (A large landmass that is smaller than a continent. They are usually separated from the rest of their continent by physical features.) India is separated from Asia by the Himalayan Mountains in the north and the Hindu Kush Mountains in the west. • West of the Himalayas is a vast desert. • The rest of India is covered by fertile plains and rugged plateaus.
Indus River Valley Today • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQ_poCVDBnQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7YXme9ml2c OVERVIEW from GEOgraphy – Aryan Invasion – Caste – Hinduism – Reincarnation-Karma Sidhartha Gautama Mohenjo-Daro Harappa Vedas – Sanscrit - Herders
Geography of India- Cont. • The Indus Valley was the location of India’s first civilization. • The Indus Valley is located west of India in present-day Pakistan. • When heavy snows in the Himalayas melted, the Indus River flooded. Like Mesopotamia and Egypt, the flooding left a layer of fertile silt. The silt created ideal farmland for early settlers.
Climate • In summer some parts of India receive as much as 100-200 inches of rain. • The climate of India is mostly hot and humid. India’s monsoons (seasonal wind patterns that cause wet and dry seasons) influence the climate in India. • In winter, the winds that blow down the mountains force moisture out of India to create warm, dry winters.
India – Physical Map • Monsoon June 2016: http://edition.cnn.com/videos/weather/2016/06/09/india-monsoon-season-javaheri-cnni-nr-lklv.cnn
Harappan Civilization • Historians called the civilization that grew up in the Indus Valley the Harappa Civilization. • Like other civilizations, towns and cities grew once food surpluses resulted from progress in irrigation and agriculture.
India’s First Cities • The Harappan civilization is believed to have thrived between 2300 -1700 B.C. • The Harappancivilization consists of two large and several other smaller cities. Harappa and MohenjoDaro both lay on the Indus River about 300 miles apart. • Characteristics of Harappa & MohenjoDaro: 1. Well planned 2. protected by fortresses 3. brick streets that crossed at right angles 4. storehouses 5. workshops, market stalls, and houses 6. public wells.
Harappa Latrinehttps://www.harappa.com/search/site/latrine Many houses had latrines that were distinct from the bathing areas. The early excavators at Harappa and Mohenjo-daro did not pay much attention to this feature of the Indus cities, but current excavations at Harappa are finding what appear to be latrines in almost every house. The commodes were made of large jars or pot sunk into the floor, and many of them contained a small jar similar to the modern jar used throughout Pakistan and India for washing after using the toilet. Sometimes these pots were connected to a drain to let sewage flow out, and most had a tiny hole at the bottom to let water seep into the ground.
Harappan Achievements • 1. Houses with bathrooms • 2. Pottery, jewelry, ivory objects, cotton clothing • 3. high quality tools • 4. system of weights and measures • 5. India’s first writing system • 6. Believed to have a strong central government • This civilization ended around 1700 B.C.
Aryan InvasionGovernments & Society • A new group of people called the Aryans took power in the Indus Valley • The Aryans were invaders from Central Asia. It is possible they caused the end of the Harappan civilization. • HOW were the Aryans different from the Harappans? 1. The Aryans were nomadic and more war-like 2. Didn’t farm at first, didn’t build cities. (they were animal herders) 3. No single ruling authority; society was based on family ties. Each group had its own leader. 4. No written language 5. Village leaders were called “rajas”.
Aryan Religion • Aryan priests wrote the Vedas • The Vedas were collections of poems, hymns, myths, and rituals.
Aryan Language • Because the Aryans did not have a written language at first, they had to memorize poems and hymns. • The first Aryan language was sanskrit; this is the most important language in ancient India. • Sanskrit started as a spoken language. Eventually people figured out how to write it down so they could keep records.
SUMMARY The earliest civilizations in India grew in the Indus Valley. At first, the Harappans lived in the fertile valley. Then the Aryans moved into the region. VOCABULARY Harappans caste monsoon Ganges River Aryans sub-continent Indus River MohenjoDaro Vedas Himalayas Harappa Sanskrit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7YXme9ml2c Good for Section #2/3 OVERVIEW from GEOgraphy – Aryan Invasion – Caste – Hinduism – Reincarnation-Karma – Buddhism, Ashoka
