Scribd Logo
Upload

Welcome to Scribd!

  • 69 views

    The Indo-Aryans: The Shaping of Indian Culture C. 1500-500 B.C

    Uploaded by

    nitinsharma.gkv
    The Indo-Aryans originated in Central Asia and invaded India starting around 1500 BC, introducing Sanskrit and a caste system. They followed oral traditions in the Vedas hymns and nature gods. Their kingdoms expanded with iron tools.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    The Indo-Aryans: The Shaping of Indian Culture C. 1500-500 B.C

    Uploaded by

    nitinsharma.gkv
    69 views7 pages
    The Indo-Aryans originated in Central Asia and invaded India starting around 1500 BC, introducing Sanskrit and a caste system. They followed oral traditions in the Vedas hymns and nature gods. Their kingdoms expanded with iron tools.

    Original Description:

    History

    Original Title

    indoaryans.ppt

    Copyright

    © © All Rights Reserved

    Available Formats

    PPT, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Did you find this document useful?

    Is this content inappropriate?

    The Indo-Aryans originated in Central Asia and invaded India starting around 1500 BC, introducing Sanskrit and a caste system. They followed oral traditions in the Vedas hymns and nature gods. Their kingdoms expanded with iron tools.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as ppt, pdf, or txt
    69 views7 pages

    The Indo-Aryans: The Shaping of Indian Culture C. 1500-500 B.C

    Uploaded by

    nitinsharma.gkv
    The Indo-Aryans originated in Central Asia and invaded India starting around 1500 BC, introducing Sanskrit and a caste system. They followed oral traditions in the Vedas hymns and nature gods. Their kingdoms expanded with iron tools.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as ppt, pdf, or txt
    of 7

    The Indo-Aryans

    The Shaping of Indian Culture


    c. 1500-500 B.C.
    The Origins of
    the Indo-Aryans
    The Indo-Aryans originated in Central
    Asia and invaded the subcontinent of
    India starting around 1500 B.C.
    They are related to the Indo-European
    language group of nations and share
    similarities with modern Europeans and
    Iranians among other groups
    The Sanskrit language that they
    introduced to India is closely related to
    modern English, Spanish, and German
    They were a nomadic people who
    valued their oral traditions and
    maintained a warrior culture
    Aryan Invasion Routes
    While isolated from
    the rest of Asia, the
    Indian subcontinent
    is accessible through
    major passes in the
    Hindu Kush range in
    what is now present-
    day Afghanistan

    The Aryans would
    have likely made
    their way into the
    region through the
    Khyber Pass and,
    from there, across
    the rest of India
    Deccan
    Plateau
    The Vedas
    Indo-Aryan culture survived through oral
    traditions for hundreds of years until they
    were ultimately written down
    The most important work is the Vedas,
    four collections of hymns, prayers,
    stories, and instructions for rituals
    The Rig Veda is the most important of
    these works and provides some of the
    earliest evidence of the Aryan
    polytheistic belief system
    Aryan gods tended to be heroic figures
    associated with sometimes destructive
    forces of nature, such as the fire god,
    Agni
    Early manuscript of the Rig Veda
    (above); image of the fire god,
    Agni (below)
    The Caste System
    The Indo-Aryans introduced a caste
    system to India, based on a rigid social
    structure of four varnas, which were
    further subdivided into hundreds of jati
    Aryans (people of noble birth)
    populated the top three castes of
    Brahmins (priests), Kshatriyas (warrior-
    princes), and Vaishyas (merchants),
    while conquered Dasas (darker-skinned
    peoples) made up the Shudras (laboring
    caste); race clearly played a role
    Untouchables (harijans) did not even
    rate a caste and were associated with
    impure work (e.g., gravediggers,
    butchers, tanners, garbage collectors)
    Racial diversity is still widely
    present in the subcontinent today
    The Hymn of the Primeval Man
    from the Rig Veda
    When they divided the Man into how many
    parts did they divide him?
    What was his mouth, what were his arms, what
    were his thighs and his feet called?
    The brahmin was his mouth, of his arms was
    made the warrior, His thighs became the
    vaisya, of his feet the sudra was born.
    The Rise of Aryan Kingdoms
    Thanks to the introduction of iron tools
    c. 1000 B.C., Aryans began to expand
    their settlements further east and south
    Large Aryan kingdoms emerged, with
    Magadhada being the largest and most
    significant kingdom (later became the
    foundation of the Mauryan Empire by
    320 B.C.)
    The great epic of the Mahabharata,
    which recounts the conflict between
    two sets of cousins, is likely based on
    the Aryan wars of conquest as they
    moved south to dominate darker-
    skinned Dravidians
    Images of
    modern
    Indians,
    northern
    (above) and
    southern
    (right)

    You might also like