Ancient History-1

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Narmada- gatherers in the west

Sulaiman and Kirthar hills in northwest- wheat and barley, rear animals

Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India- agriculture developed first 8000 years ago

North of Vindhyas- Rice was first grown

Indus and tributaries- cities flourished 4700 years ago

Ganga and tributary Son- cities flourish 2500 years ago

South of Ganga- Magadha

India from Indus, Sindhu in Sanskrit: Greek and Iranians called Indos or Hindos

East of Indus river is India; Bharata were people in north west

Manuscripts in Sanskrit, Prakrit and Tamil on palm leaves and birch

information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology: Source by Historians

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Hunter-gatherers: 2 million years ago

Bhimnetka- present MP: habitation site

Stone tool making: stone on stone and pressure flaking ( core on flat surface; hammer stone used on bone or another stone shaping core)

Kurnool caves: ashes

Grasslands due to climate change 12000 years ago

Paleolithic- 2 million to 12000 years ago; Kurnool,Ostriches found; eggshells in Patne Maharashtra; tools made from limestone in Hunsgi

Mesolithic- 12000 years ago to 10000 years ago; tiny tools called microliths

Neolithic- Since 10,000 years ago

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Agriculture

Dog: first animal to be tamed

Domestication: Grow plants and rear animals; began 12000 years ago;

Earliest plant to be domesticated: wheat and barley

Earliest domesticated animal: sheep and goat

Clay pots, baskets, pits: for storing grains

Farmers and herder in Kashmir, east and south India

Pit houses in Burzahom Kashmir

Mehrgarh; earliest village

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Harappa: 4700 years ago

City in 2 parts- West: Citadel, East: Lower town

Mohanjodero: Great bath; Kalibangan and Lothal: Fire altars

Harappan seal: rectangular, animal on it

Mehrgarh: cotton 7000 years ago

Harappans got Copper from Rajasthan and Oman; tin from Afghanistan and Iran; Gold from Karnataka and precious stones form Gujarat, Iran and Afghanistan

Harappan Town in Gujarat- Dholavira in Rann of Kutch in 3 parts; Lothal beside a tributary of Sabarmati in Gulf of Khambat

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4 Vedas: Rigveda (first composed 3500 years ago in north west of subcontinent), Samveda, Yajurveda , Atharvaveda

Rigveda: Hymns called Sulta for Agni (Fire) , Indra (warrior) and Soma (plant for a special drink); dialogue between Vishwamitra and Beas and Sulej

Family of Language: Indo-European (Assamese, Gujarati, Hindi, Kashmiri, Sindhi, English, French, German, Greek, Italian, Spanish), Tibeto-Burman (North east), Dravidian (Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malyalam), Austro-Asiatic (Jharkhand and Central India)

Inamgaon on river ghod, tributary of Bhima: burial ground

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Varnas: Brahmins, kshatriyas, Vaishyas, Shudras

Rajas of Janpadas, and jana to choose raja

Mahajanpadas: important janpadas (2500 years ago)

Magadha: powerful rulers- Bimbisara, Ajatsattu, Mahapadma Nanda control to north-west part of subcontinent, Rajgriha in Bihar was capital; raja and jana

Vajji: Vaishali as capital, gana or shangha form of government with group of people

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Buddha or Siddhartha: born 2500 years ago, belonged to Sakya gana, kshatriya varna, attained enlightenment under peepal tree in Bodhi Gaya in Bihar, taught in Sarnath near Varanasi for the first time, passed away in Kusinara; karma, tanha

Upanishads, later Vedic: teacher-student conversation, atman and brahman are one

Panini: grammar of Sanskrit

Jainism by Vardhamana Mahavira, around 2500 years ago in Licchavi of Vajji Sangha, Ahimsa

Sangha for those who have left their homes as metioned in Vinaya Pitaka

Brahmins: 4 Ashramas- Brahmacharya (study Vedas), grihastha (household), vanaprastha (meditate in forest) and Samyasa (give up everything)

Zoroastrianism: Iranian prophet Zoroaster, book Avesta

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Mauryan Empire founded by Chandragupta Maurya around 2300 years ago, Bindusara followed by Ashoka

Empire of Ashoka had Patliputra, Taxila and Ujjain

Chanakya assisted Chandragupta Maurya wrote Arthashastra

Kalinga, modern coastal area of Orissa

Ashoka's message on Dharma orDhamma

Mauryan collapsed around 2200 years ago, north west and parts of north by Indo-greek rulers, Shakas, Kushanas, Gupta

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