Asia

Units 9, 10, 11
South Asia: Unit 9
The Indian
Subcontinent
Formation of the Subcontinent
● According to continental drift theory, India was a
land mass on its own that merged with the Eurasian
plate 10 million years ago
○ Formed the Himalayas
● Himalayas are rising by more than 1cm/year
○ Minor earthquakes around the region
○ Erosion and weathering are lowering them at
about the same rate
● Mount Everest is part of the Himalayas
○ Highest point on Earth
Climate and Monsoons
● Monsoon: the distinct seasonal change of wind direction; in
South Asia
○ From an Arabic word meaning seasonal reversal of winds
○ Summer monsoon brings rain
○ Winter monsoon is dry
● “To know India and her people, one has to know the monsoon.”
○ To the people of India the monsoons are a source of life
● Monsoons are essential but also deadly
○ Makes rice production possible
○ Creates deadly flooding to Bangladesh
Four Subregions of South Asia
● Mountains of the North
○ Collision of Indian Subcontinent with Asian landmass
■ Himalayas, Karakoram Range, Arakan Yoma Mountains
● Indus-Ganges-Brahmaputra Lowlands
○ Lowlands created by three major river systems
■ Indus, Ganges, and Brahmaputra rivers
● Peninsular India
○ Deccan Plateau covers most of India, is bordered by Eastern and Western
Ghats (mountains)
● The Southern Islands
○ Sri Lanka (1 island) and Maldives (1,200 small islands)
Mountains of the North

Indus-Ganges-Brahmaputra Lowlands

Peninsular India

The Southern Islands

Population and Settlement
● India has more than 1 billion people
○ Concern about producing enough food
● Pakistan has 145 million people
○ Pakistan lacks an effective, coordinated family planning program
○ Linked to conservative Muslim culture
○ Early childhood mortality, and low rate of female contraception
● Bangladesh has 133.5 million people
○ Has one of the highest settlement densities in the world
○ Strong government support for family planning
○ Conservative Muslim culture, but more flexible
Population and Settlement
● Migration and the Settlement Landscape
○ South Asia is one of the least urbanized regions of the world
■ Majority live in compact rural villages
■ Rural-to-urban migration caused by agricultural changes
○ Most settlement near fertile soils and dependable water sources
● Agricultural Regions and Activities
○ Agriculture has historically been unproductive
○ Green Revolution
The Green Revolution
● The Green Revolution
○ Use of hybrid, high-yield seeds to bolster
production
■ 1970 to 1990s: India more than doubled
annual grain production
○ Only more prosperous farmers could afford to
adopt seeds and use mechanization
○ Environmental problems from dependency on
chemical fertilizers and pesticides
○ Poorer farmers forced from their lands
○ Salinization in irrigated areas
Major Cities
● Mumbai (Bombay)
○ Largest city in South Asia
○ Financial, commercial, and
industrial center
○ Less-fortunate migrants live in
“hutments” – crude shelters built
on formerly busy sidewalks
● Delhi/New Delhi
○ More than 11 million people
○ India’s capital, has British colonial
imprint
○ Air pollution a problem
Major Cities
● Calcutta
○ More than 12 million people
○ Problems: poverty, pollution,
congestion, homelessness
● Karachi
○ More than 7 million people
○ Pakistan’s largest city
○ Political and ethnic tensions
between Sindis (native inhabitants)
and Muhajirs (Muslim refugees from
India)
Origins of South Asian Civilizations
● Indus Valley civilization established 5,000 years ago
○ Harappans build cities, Mohenjo-Daro
Had a writing system, strong govt., and overseas
–trade
■ 1700-1500 BC, they left
● Environmental changes?
○ By 800 B.C., a new urban focus in Ganges Valley
● Aryans entered the area
○ Left the sacred books of the Vedas
○ Society was divided into classes
■ Noble, Priests, and regular people
■ A rigid caste system developed
Origins of South Asia Civilizations
● Hindu Civilization
○ Hinduism: a complicated faith without a
single, uniformly accepted system of belief
○ Sanskrit: sacred languages of Hinduism
○ Caste system: strict division of Hindu society
into ranked hereditary groups
 Origins of South Asian Cilizations
● The Caste System
○ Regional variations, religious
differences in acceptance of caste
system
○ Caste: complex social order
■ Varna: ancient fourfold social
hierarchy of the Hindu world
■ Jati: refers to local hundreds of
local family groups
● Castes include Brahmins,
Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, Sudras,
“untouchables” or dalits
Hinduism
● Not just a religion – an intricate web of religious, philosophical, social, economic, &
artistic elements
● No common creed
● No single doctrine
● No direct divine revelation
● No rigid or narrow moral code
● No leadership hierarchy
● Can be practiced on different levels of spirituality – mainly an individual enterprise
● Has had the ability to absorb competing religious ideologies – except for Islam
Invasions and Empires
● The Mauryans est. an empire from 320-180 BC
○ Last great ruler was Asoka
■ A Hindu who spread Buddhism
● Buddhism
○ Siddhartha Gautama (563 B.C.), the Buddha
○ From elite caste, but rejected wealth and
power
○ Sought to attain mystical union with the
universe (enlightenment)
○ Faith spread throughout South Asia, and
East, Southeast, and Central Asia, but
retreated from South Asia
Invasions and Empires
● The Gupta Empire ruled from 320-550 AD
○ One of the most advanced cultures
■ Developed numbers the Arabs adopted
● Arrival of Islam
○ Around 700 A.D. Arab armies conquered
lower Indus Valley
○ Mughal Empire, a powerful Muslim state,
dominated
○ Conversion in northwest (Pakistan) and
Northeast (Bangladesh)
● The Muslims conquered N. India in the 1100s
● The Mongols invaded in the 1500s
The Colonial Age
● Final invaders were the Europeans
○ Started arriving in the 1500s for
trade
○ The English took over trade from
the Portuguese in the 1600s
■ East India Co. grew and
occupied most of the region
by 1800
○ The English reorganized
education, taught English, and
developed civil service
Modern History
● Independence
○ Many wanted freedom from the UK
○ Mohandas Gandhi led them with nonviolent
resistance
■ Known as Mahatma (Great Soul)
■ Hunger strikes
○ Granted independence in 1947
■ Hindus became India
■ Muslims became West and East
Pakistan
○ Ceylon was freed in 1972
■ Became Sri Lanka
○ Bhutan and Nepal were always independent
Modern Governments
● Tensions are still there between Hindus
and Muslims
○ Disagree over the region of Kashmir
○ Both have nukes now
● 1971, East Pakistan revolted and
became Bangladesh
● All the govts. Are democracies and
monarchies
○ Nepal and Bhutan are monarchies
Contemporary Geography of Religion
● Hinduism
○ Major faith of India and Nepal
○ Forms of worship differ by region
● Islam
○ 400 million Muslims in the region, among the largest Muslim communities in the
world
○ Pakistan, Bangladesh, Maldives are mostly Muslim
○ In India, Muslims concentrated in the cities, in the north, the upper and central
Ganges plain, and in Kerala
● Sikhism
○ Sikhism: faith incorporating elements of Hinduism and Islam
○ Originated in Punjab in 1400s, still concentrated in Punjab
○ Sikh men noted for work as soldiers and bodyguards
Contemporary Geography of Religion
● Buddhism and Jainism
○ Buddhism virtually disappeared in India but persisted in Sri Lanka, mainland
Southeast Asia, and the high valleys of the Himalayas
■ During the 8th century--the arrival of Islam--there was destruction of
Buddhist monastaries, burning of libraries, and slaughtering of monks
■ Today there are roughly 1 million Buddhists in India
● Jainism – religion that emerged around 500 B.C. as protest to orthodox Hinduism
○ Stressed extreme non-violence
● Other Religious Groups
○ Parsis (Zoroastrians): an ancient religion focusing on the cosmic struggle between
good and evil
○ Concentrated in the Mumbai area
○ More Indian Christians than either Parsis or Jains
○ British missionaries converted animists to Protestantism
Language
● India has 14 major languages
○ English is common, but Hindi is the official one
● Indo-Aryan Languages
○ Hindi: India
○ Urdu: Pakistan
○ Bengali: Bangladesh
○ Hindustani is a mixture of Urdu and Hindi
○ Nepali: Nepal
○ Sinhalese: Sri Lanka
● Other Languages
○ 1/5 speak ones from the Dravidian Family
■ Tamil, Telegu, Kannada, and Malayalam
Art and Architecture
● Taj Mahal blends Muslim and
Hindu styles
○ Built as a tomb for a
Muslim emperor’s wife
● Mosques in Pakistan and
Bangladesh
● Golden Temple of the Sikhs
● Dzongs: monasteries in
Bhutan
Music and Dance
● Dance
○ Many traditional dances are based on
mythology
● Literature
○ Mahabharata
■ Includes the Bhagavad-Gita
○ Ramayana
■ Epic poems from 1500-500 BC
● Movies, most popular art form
○ Produce more films per year than any
other country
Lifestyle
● Urban and Rural Contrasts
○ Most people are peasant farmers, low standard of living
■ Subsistence farming
○ Prosperous people live in the cities, live modern lifestyles
■ Cities are still crowded
● Millions live on the streets
● Health
○ The govts. have made progress fighting tropical diseases
○ Difficult to get clean water
■ Cholera and dysentery
■ High infant mortality
● 1/3 of babies in Nepal
Lifestyle
● Food Needs
○ 1/3 of the people do not get enough to eat
○ Govts. are doing what they can with
resources available
● Education
○ Key to improving the standard of living
○ In most areas, 1/3 of the people can read and
write
○ Sri Lanka is up to 90%
○ Weakening the caste system has opened
schools to lower classes
■ The untouchables
Celebrations
● Diwali is the most famous and largest for Hindus
● Ramadan for Muslims
● Buddhists celebrate the birth of Buddha