Chapter 2 Section 3 Notes

I. Geography of India

India

A. Subcontinent is a large distinguishable

landmass on a continent

B. Rivers, Mountains, Decan

and Monsoons

1. Two major rivers of India

a. Indus River located on the

western border

b. Ganges River located in the northern plain

running west to east

2. Two major mountain ranges in

India

a. Hindu Kush mountains on the western border

1. Khyber pass

b. Himalaya Mountains in the

north (largest mountains in the

world)

3. The Decan is a large triangular

shaped plateau in the center of India

C. Monsoons are seasonal winds

1. Winter monsoons are dry and blow from the north

2. Summer monsoons are wet and blow from the Arabian Sea in the southwest to the

northeast

II. Environmental Challenges

A. The Indus had unpredictable floods

B. The Indus sometimes changed

its course

C. Floods sometimes swept

away whole villages

D. The Himalayas provided protection from the north but

hindered trade

III. Civilization Emerges on the

Indus

A. The writing system of the Indus valley was called

Sanskrit

1. It is at current time undeciphered

B. Around 3200 B.C. people began to farm around the

Indus

C. Planned cities ( Kalibangan,

Mohenjo Daro, Harrappa )

Three D Harrappa

Mohenjo Daro

Great Bath at Mohenjo Daro

1. Around 2500 B.C.

2. Sophisticated city planning

a. Precise grid system

b. Citadel or fort in the center of city

c. Constructed of oven baked bricks

d. Sophisticated plumbing and

sewage

IV. Culture and Trade

A. Social divisions in the society were

not great

B. People were relatively

prosperous

C. Few weapons of war found

D. Religious artifacts revealed

links to Hindu culture

1. Many gods (polytheists) Shiva major Indian god

2. Mother goddesses

3. Fertility images

Fertility images

4. Worship of cattle

E. Trade developed with others

1. Stamps and seals identified different

goods

2. Traded goods found in Sumer

identified by stamps

V. Mysterious end to the Indus Valley

Culture

A. Possibly river changed course

B. Wore out land nutrients

C. Sudden catastrophe

D. Possibly human attack