1. Chapter 7 Section 3 Study Guide
Early Civilizations of India

2. Indus Valley civilization
BCE
Planned cities
Farming
Trade with Mideast

3. Mysterious decline Decline of urban civilization, 2000 BCE
Natural Causes?
Climate became drier?
Low crop yields
Less taxes
Can’t maintain cities
Change in Indus River course
Exhausted soil?
Dravidians?
New arrivals: the Aryans
Originally from north central Europe
Swept eastward over centuries
Crossed Khyber Pass over Hindu Kush

4. The Aryans Iron weapons technology Village life
Oral religious traditions: the Vedas
Hymns, prayers, rituals
BCE
Written language: Sanskrit
Village life
Farmers & herders
The rajah
Cattle
Social classes
“varna” = color

5. Sanskrit: "the mother of all languages"
Sanskrit meaning 'perfected' or 'refined'
One of the oldest of attested human languages. (≈2000 BC)
The oldest form of Sanskrit is Vedic Sanskrit believed to date back to the 2nd millennium BC.
Belongs to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European family of languages.
One of the 22 official languages of India.
It is also the liturgical language of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism.

6. The varna Brahmans (priests) Kshatriyas = warriors
Vaisyas = landowners & merchants
Sudras = servants & peasants