IndiaBy: Presley Davis, Alyssa

Stewart, Jaylin Gibson, and Nicholas Arnold!

The Indus Valley Civilization, which spread and flourished in the northwestern part of

the Indian subcontinent from c. 3300 to 1300 BCE,

was the first major civilization in India. The

Indus Valley is one of the world's earliest urban civilizations along with

Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt. The Indus Civilization may have had a population

of over five million. The inhabitants developed new

techniques in producing tools with copper, bronze,

lead, and tin.

THE BEGINNING

ARTS

The ancient Indian civilization had very talented craftsmen. They were skilled in pottery, weaving, and metal working.

Several small figures of animals, such as monkeys, have been

found. These small figures could be objects of art or toys. There are also small statues of what they think are female gods. Bowls made of bronze and silver, and many beads and

ornaments have been found as well. The metals used to make these things are not found in

the Indus Valley. So, either the people who lived in this ancient civilization had to import all of these items from some other

place, such as Thailand.

FOOD IN INDIA!

Dinner would have included warm tasty wheat bread served with barley or rice. The ancient Indians were very good farmers. They grew crops

such as: barley, peas, melons, wheat, cotton, and dates. They kept herds of sheep, pigs, zebus, and water buffalo. The Indians fished and some hunted. The land was rich for growing sugar canes so they ate many sweets. They made many stews, soups, rice dishes, and flat breads.

CUSTOMS

Family was the center of life.

They held family with the utmost importance. The Ancient Indians

took place in many sacrifices, burial, wedding,

and religious rituals. These customs have

passed down are still active today.

Nobody knows exactly what the government of

the Harappan period was like; they probably had a king over each

city and possibly some queens. By about 1500 BC, all of the people in

India are divided up into castes. Only men from the highest caste could be rulers in the government. Women were not allowed to rule. Most of India

continued to be divided into small kingdoms, each with their own

king.

GOVERNMENT

The two main cities of this civilization were Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro. They flourished from about 3,000 B.C. to 1,500 B.C. These cities were considered advanced because most of their structures are like that of today. The cities had broad main streets and smaller streets off to the sides They used walls to separate neighborhoods and all of the houses were different but had the same general layout. The buildings were usually square shaped and made of oven-baked bricks.

CITIES

RELIGION

India has been an important part of three major world

religions -Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam. Buddhism began in India and

spread to other places in Asia. Islam came into India from West Asia. The origins of

Hinduism are unclear, but are related to the

arrival of the Indo-European 

Aryans from West Asia. Not much is known about the earliest Indian

religion, but that it was polytheistic.

DRESS

People in Ancient India wore mostly cotton or silk clothing. India was the first place where cotton was grown, even as early as 2500 B.C. By the Aryan period, the Indian women wore one very long piece of cloth called a sari, that they

wrapped around themselves in different ways. Men also wore one long piece of

cloth called the dhoti, which was generally white. They accessorized the dhoti with a head wrap called a turban. The Indians are known for their elaborate jewels.

GAMES

India was the first civilization to get the idea of carving the

knucklebones of cattle and sheep and turning them into marked dice. They would throw these dice to predict the future

and upcoming events. The Indians invented a game named “Snakes

and Ladders” which we now know as “Chutes and Ladders.” They

invented many board games like chess, and card games as well.

Ancient India is claimed to be the origin of Judo and Karate. It was very

popular, even among the women and children.

--LITERATURE--

The writing of this civilization has

puzzled scholars for nearly seventy years because of

its briefness and it being unknown to

all people. The writing style is

very unique and scribes were

highly regarded.

INTERESTING FACTSIn India's 100,000 years of history, it has never

invaded any other country.India is the largest democratic country in the world.The value of pi was first calculated by an Indian

mathematician- Budhayana.Algebra, Trigonometry and Calculus originated in

India. Varanasi, also known as Benaras, also called "the

Ancient City" (when Lord Buddha visited it in 500 B.C.), is the oldest, continuously inhabited city in the world today.

Islam is India's and the world's second largest religion. There are 300,000 active mosques in India, more than in any other country, including the Muslim world. 

SPORTS

Excavations of Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa reveal that the people participated in many

physical activities and also played a variety of games using marbles, balls, and dice. Hunting, swimming, dancing, boating, craft making, and martial arts were some very popular activities

in India in ancient times.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

India is the birthplace of several sciences. Several Mathematical concepts including zero, decimal system,

square root, and algebra, Stared here in India. Discoveries about the body, the womb, and childbirth were made. Some of the first surgeries took place during this time.

www.crystalinks.com/indiascience.html

www.historyforkids.org/learn/india/

www.ancientindia.co.uk/ 

www.ancienthistory.mrdonn.org/Indialife.html

WORKS CITED