AP World History- Beginnings- Ancient India

Late Harappan Civilization

Period of decline for the Harappan civilization (during 1500-1250 BCE).

Granaries

Storehouses for threshed grain used by the Indus Valley Civilization.

Mohenjo-Daro

The largest city of the Indus Valley civilization centrally located in the extensive floodplain of the Indus River. Little is known about the political institutions of Indus Valley communities but the large-scale implies central planning. It is thought that as many as 40,000 people lived there. *Almost two times the amount of people living in Niskayuna*

Sewage

The site at Mohenjo-Daro shows proof of there being __________ systems in the Harappan civilization.

Chalcolithic period

4300-3300 BC (Copper Age); when ceramics from the Indus Valley Civilization area showed similarities with southern Turkmenistan and northern Iran, proving some way of influence/trade between the civilizations.

Indus River

A river that flows from Tibet, through the Himalayas and the Hindu Kush into the Arabian Sea.

Swatstika

The _____________ was used by the Harappan civilization as a symbol of good luck in Hinduism.

Vedic Period

1500-600 BCE; around the time when the Aryans started to migrate into Northern India/Pakistan/Bangladesh.

Early Harappan Civilization

A civilization living near the Indus River Valley during 2300-1700 BCE, or around the time when the Ancient Sumerians started their civilization.

Stratified Social Structure

A structure of roles/classes in a civilization, first referenced in Vedas. (Social Pyramid) Ex: from top rank to bottom, Brahmins- Priests, Scholars, and teachers Kshatriyas- Kings, Warriors Vaishyas- Merchants, Artisans Shudras- Labourers

Seal Carving

A technique known to be used by the Harappans for the identification of property and to stamp clay on trade goods by cutting patterns into the bottom face of a seal; a small, carved object used for stamping.

Monsoons

A theory states that the Harappan Civilization may have collapsed due to eastward-moving ____________, or winds that bring heavy rains.

Indus River Valley Civilization

Also called the Harappan Civilization, it existed from about 2600-1300 BCE and extended from modern-day northeast Afghanistan to Pakistan and northwest India

East India Company

An English company formed in 1600 to develop trade with the new British colonies in India and southeastern Asia.

Siddhartha Gautama Buddha

An Indian philosopher who lived in one of the NorthEast Vedic Kingdoms during the 5th century BC who taught his philosophy throughout India. Known as the creator of Buddhism.

Trading

As __________ increased, philologists started to find similarities between Sanskrit, Greek, Latin, Persian, and English.

5

At its peak, the Indus Valley Civilization may have had a population of over ______ million people.

Weights, Measures

Important innovations of this civilization include standardized __________ and ___________, seal carving, and metallurgy with copper, bronze, lead, and tin.

18

In the ___th century, there was a start of significant interaction between the English and Indians. (East India Company)

Indo-Aryans

Indo-European pastoralist/nomadic tribes who migrated in slow waves into Northeast India around the time when the Indus Valley Civilization was declining.

Vedas

Meaning knowledge in Sanskrit, they are collections of orally passed-down hymns, songs, prayers, and rituals honoring the various gods of the Aryans, which also described the Vedic Period. They are the foundation of modern Indian culture and religion.

Hygiene, Religious

Most city residents of the Harappan Civilization were artisans and merchants grouped together in distinct neighborhoods. The quality of urban planning suggests efficient municipal governments that placed a high priority on _________ or ________ ritual.

Rigveda

One of the oldest religious texts in history (composed 3000-3500 years ago). It is a book composed by Vedic Brahman priests that contains hymns and Sanskrit poetry.

Dancing Girl

Shows a female figure in a pose that suggests the presence of some choreographed dance form enjoyed by members of the civilization.

Religious

Similarities in _________ figures in Latin, Greek, and Sanskrit can also be seen. For example, in the sky gods: Dyaus - Pitr Zeus - Pater Ju - Piter

Harappa

Site of one of the great cities of the Indus Valley civilization of the third millennium BCE, located on the Punjab region of Pakistan.

Mehrgarh

Some historians argue that the Indus Valley Civilization started in ___________ as early as 7000 BCE due to evidence uncovered in 1974; meaning that the civilization lasted for thousands of years!

Mesopotamia

The Harappan civilization was known for their ability to be precise, for example, in art and jewellery, which was made of items from several other civilizations such as shells from the Arabian peninsula and materials from China. In turn, their art was exported as far away as _____________, proving the existence of an active maritime trade network.

Metallurgy

The Indus River Valley Civilization is considered a Bronze Age society; inhabitants developed new techniques in ____________, or the science of working with copper, bronze, lead, and tin.

Sindhu

The Indus River was first referred to in Vedas using the word ___________. The pronunciation was later changed into many words associated with India such as Hindu, Indus, and India.

1800

The Indus Valley Civilization began to decline around _________ BCE. Evidence indicates that trade with Mesopotamia seemed to have ended and that the drainage systems and baths of the great cities were built over or blocked. Writing began to disappear, and the standardized weights and measures used for trade and taxation fell out of use.

Urban Planning

The Indus cities are noted for their ______ ________, a technical and political process concerned with the use of land and design of the urban environment. They are also noted for their baked brick houses, elaborate drainage systems, water supply systems, and clusters of large, nonresidential buildings.

Citadels

The cities found of the civilization had similar organization and featured __________, central areas in a city that were heavily fortified—protected with defensive military structures.

Mature Harappan Civilization

The period from 2600-1900 BCE in which the largest structures and pieces of technology were created in the Indus Valley Civilization, or about the time span from when the Empire of Sargon the Great existed to when Hammurabi ruled.

Standardization

The reason why historians and archaeologists think that the sites throughout Pakistan to India are connected is because of the ________ in weights and measures (some as tiny as 1.6 mm!)

Mortuary Analysis

The study of graves and their contents to learn about past societies and individuals. Helped archeologists conclude that most Harappan residents seem to have enjoyed relatively equal health and that there were not many elite burials.

Language(s), Writing

Unfortunately, the Harappan ____________ did not survive, and there is no way to decipher their _________, hence making their institutions and systems of governance unknown.

Structures

Unlike Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt, the Indus Valley Civilization did not build large, monumental _________. There is no conclusive evidence of palaces or temples, kings, armies, or priests— the largest structures found were the granaries.

Late Harappan Cultures

Various elements of the Indus Civilization are found in later cultures, suggesting the civilization did not disappear suddenly due to an invasion. Many scholars argue that changes in river patterns caused the large civilization to break up into smaller communities called __________ _____________ ______________.

Cultural Interchange

Whether the Harappan civilization was ruled under only one person is unknown, however, there was so much __________ ___________ that they used the same bricks despite the civilization(s) covering such a vast area.