Indus Valley Civilization
Introduction:
Indus civilization, also called Indus valley civilization or Harappan civilization,
the earliest known urban culture of the Indian subcontinent. The nuclear dates
of the civilization appear to be about 2500–1700 BCE, though the southern sites
may have lasted later into the 2nd millennium BCE. Among the world’s three
earliest civilizations—the other two are those of Mesopotamia and Egypt—the
Indus civilization was the most extensive.
The civilization was first identified in 1921 at Harappa in the Punjab region and
then in 1922 at Mohenjo-daro (Mohenjodaro), near the Indus River in the Sindh
(Sind) region. Both sites are in present-day Pakistan, in Punjab and Sindh
provinces, respectively. The ruins of Mohenjo-daro were designated a
UNESCO World Heritage site in 1980.
Subsequently, vestiges of the civilization were found as far apart as Sutkagen
Dor in southwestern Balochistan province, Pakistan, near the shore of the
Arabian Sea, about 300 miles (480 km) west of Karachi; and at Ropar (or
Rupar), in eastern Punjab state, northwestern India, at the foot of the Shimla
Hills some 1,000 miles (1,600 km) northeast of Sutkagen Dor. Later exploration
established its existence southward down the west coast of India as far as the
Gulf of Khambhat (Cambay), 500 miles (800 km) southeast of Karachi, and as
far east as the Yamuna (Jumna) River basin, 30 miles (50 km) north of Delhi. It
is thus decidedly the most extensive of the world’s three earliest civilizations,
even though Mesopotamian and Egyptian civilizations both began somewhat
before it.
he Indus civilization is known to have consisted of two large cities, Harappa and
Mohenjo-daro, and more than 100 towns and villages, often of relatively small
size. The two cities were each perhaps originally about 1 mile (1.6 km) square
in overall dimensions, and their outstanding magnitude suggests political
centralization, either in two large states or in a single great empire with
alternative capitals, a practice having analogies in Indian history. It is also
possible that Harappa succeeded Mohenjo-daro, which is known to have been
devastated more than once by exceptional floods. The population was estimated
to be 23,500–35,000 in Harappa and 35,000–41,250 in Mohenjo-daro. The
southern region of the civilization, on the Kathiawar Peninsula and beyond,
appears to be of later origin than the major Indus sites
Origin of Indus Valley Civilization
Earliest civilizations in Indus Valley Discovered in 1856 by a railroad crew.
, Nearly 160 km (100 mi) of railway track between Multan and Lahore, laid in
the mid-1850s.
The Indus Valley
and the
Harappa Civilization
Currently the
Sapta Sindhu
Valley
or
Indus Valley straddles two countries:
modern-day Pakistan and North-West India.
Introduction:
Indus civilization, also called Indus valley civilization or Harappan civilization,
the earliest known urban culture of the Indian subcontinent. The nuclear dates
of the civilization appear to be about 2500–1700 BCE, though the southern sites
may have lasted later into the 2nd millennium BCE. Among the world’s three
earliest civilizations—the other two are those of Mesopotamia and Egypt—the
Indus civilization was the most extensive.
The civilization was first identified in 1921 at Harappa in the Punjab region and
then in 1922 at Mohenjo-daro (Mohenjodaro), near the Indus River in the Sindh
(Sind) region. Both sites are in present-day Pakistan, in Punjab and Sindh
provinces, respectively. The ruins of Mohenjo-daro were designated a
UNESCO World Heritage site in 1980.
Subsequently, vestiges of the civilization were found as far apart as Sutkagen
Dor in southwestern Balochistan province, Pakistan, near the shore of the
Arabian Sea, about 300 miles (480 km) west of Karachi; and at Ropar (or
Rupar), in eastern Punjab state, northwestern India, at the foot of the Shimla
Hills some 1,000 miles (1,600 km) northeast of Sutkagen Dor. Later exploration
established its existence southward down the west coast of India as far as the
Gulf of Khambhat (Cambay), 500 miles (800 km) southeast of Karachi, and as
far east as the Yamuna (Jumna) River basin, 30 miles (50 km) north of Delhi. It
is thus decidedly the most extensive of the world’s three earliest civilizations,
even though Mesopotamian and Egyptian civilizations both began somewhat
before it.
he Indus civilization is known to have consisted of two large cities, Harappa and
Mohenjo-daro, and more than 100 towns and villages, often of relatively small
size. The two cities were each perhaps originally about 1 mile (1.6 km) square
in overall dimensions, and their outstanding magnitude suggests political
centralization, either in two large states or in a single great empire with
alternative capitals, a practice having analogies in Indian history. It is also
possible that Harappa succeeded Mohenjo-daro, which is known to have been
devastated more than once by exceptional floods. The population was estimated
to be 23,500–35,000 in Harappa and 35,000–41,250 in Mohenjo-daro. The
southern region of the civilization, on the Kathiawar Peninsula and beyond,
appears to be of later origin than the major Indus sites
Origin of Indus Valley Civilization
Earliest civilizations in Indus Valley Discovered in 1856 by a railroad crew.
, Nearly 160 km (100 mi) of railway track between Multan and Lahore, laid in
the mid-1850s.
The Indus Valley
and the
Harappa Civilization
Currently the
Sapta Sindhu
Valley
or
Indus Valley straddles two countries:
modern-day Pakistan and North-West India.
