Vedic civilization in the context of "History of Sindh"

Play Trivia Questions online!

 or

Skip to study material about Vedic civilization in the context of "History of Sindh"

⭐ Core Definition: Vedic civilization

The Vedic period, or the Vedic age (c. 1500 – c. 500 BCE), is the period in the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age of the history of India when the Vedic literature, including the Vedas (c. 1500–900 BCE), was composed in the northern Indian subcontinent, between the end of the urban Indus Valley Civilisation and a second urbanisation, which began in the central Indo-Gangetic Plain c. 600 BCE. The Vedas are liturgical texts which formed the basis of the influential Brahmanical ideology, which developed in the Kuru kingdom, a tribal union of several Indo-Aryan tribes. The Vedas contain details of life during this period that have been interpreted to be historical and constitute the primary sources for understanding the period. These documents, alongside the corresponding archaeological record, allow for the evolution of the Indo-Aryan and Vedic culture to be traced and inferred.

The Vedas were composed and orally transmitted with precision by speakers of an Old Indo-Aryan language who had migrated into the northwestern regions of the Indian subcontinent early in this period. The Vedic society was patriarchal and patrilineal. Early Indo-Aryans were a Late Bronze Age society centred in the Punjab, organised into tribes rather than kingdoms, and primarily sustained by a pastoral way of life.

↓ Menu

👉 Vedic civilization in the context of History of Sindh

The history of Sindh refers to the history of the modern-day Pakistani province of Sindh, as well as neighboring regions that periodically came under its sway.

Sindh was a Cradle of civilization, the Bronze Age Indus Valley Civilisation that flourished from about 3000 BC and declined rapidly 1,000 years later, following the Indo-Aryan migrations that overran the region in waves between 1500 and 500 BC. The migrating Indo-Aryan tribes gave rise to the Iron Age vedic civilization, which lasted until 500 BC. During this era, the Vedas were composed. In 518 BC, the Achaemenid empire conquered Indus valley and established Hindush satrapy in Sindh. Following Alexander the Great's invasion, Sindh became part of the Mauryan Empire. After its decline, Indo-Greeks, Indo-Scythians and Indo-Parthians ruled in Sindh.

↓ Explore More Topics
In this Dossier

Vedic civilization in the context of History of Punjab

The History of Punjab is the history of the Punjab region which is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in the northwest of South Asia, comprising the Punjab province in Pakistan and the Punjab state in India. It is believed that the earliest evidence of human habitation in Punjab traces to the Soan valley of the Pothohar, between the Indus and the Jhelum rivers, where Soanian culture developed between 774,000 BC and 11,700 BC. This period goes back to the first interglacial period in the second Ice Age, from which remnants of stone and flint tools have been found.

The Punjab region was the site of one of the earliest cradle of civilizations, the Bronze Age Harrapan civilization that flourished from about 3000 B.C. and declined rapidly 1,000 years later, following the Indo-Aryan migrations that overran the region in waves between 1500 and 500 B.C. The migrating Indo-Aryan tribes gave rise to the Iron Age Vedic civilization, which lasted till 500 BC. During this era, the Rigveda was composed in Punjab, laying the foundation of Hinduism. In the 6th century BC, Pushkarasarin, the monarch of Gandhara, assumed a role in halting the expansionary ambitions of the Achaemenid Empire until during the reign of Darius wherein tribute rendered by Gandhara to him is first documented. A century later, the Janapadas of Punjab encountered the expansive undertakings of Alexander. The Janapadas exhibited resistance to his advances, notably the Aśvaka of Gandhara, the Mallians of South Punjab, and Porus of Central Punjab. Following the demise of Alexander, Chandragupta Maurya, who had received his education in the city of Taxila, garnered support from republics such as Trigarta and Gandhara. He subsequently conquered the Nanda Empire, with Taxila being designated as the provincial capital of the Northwestern territories. After its decline, the Indo-Greeks, Indo-Sakas and Indo-Parthians successively established reigns in Punjab however other states maintained autonomy and other janapadas such as that of the Yaudheya and the Audumbaras in Eastern Punjab resisted their expansions. In the late 1st century AD the Kushan Empire annexed Punjab, Gandharas cultural zenith occurred during this period in which artwork from the region flourished.

↑ Return to Menu
LINKED FROM (PARENTS)
← History of Punjab ← History of Sindh
LINKS TO (CHILDREN)
Bronze Age in India → Iron Age in India → History of India → Vedas → Indian subcontinent → Indus Valley Civilisation → History of India → Indo-Gangetic Plain → Liturgy → Kuru kingdom → List of Rigvedic tribes → Vedas → Old Indo-Aryan → Indo-Aryan migration theory → Patrilineal → Indo Aryans → Late Bronze Age → Punjab → Pastoralism →