1. The Indian Subcontinent

2. Physical Geography

3. Physical Features
 Subcontinent
 A large landmass that is smaller than a continent
 Indian Subcontinent
 Also called South Asia
 Consists of 7 countries
 Make up most unique geographic regions in the world

4. Mountains
 Mt. ranges separate Indian
Subcontinent from Asia
 Hindu Kush mts.
 In the NW; separate from
Central Asia
 Eastern & Western Ghats
 Lower mts.; separate India’s
east & west coasts from
interior
 Himalayas
 Stretch 1,500 miles along
northern border
 Formed by collision of 2
massive tectonic plates
 Mt. Everest
 Measures 29,035 feet

5. Rivers & Plains
 Two major rivers systems
 The Ganges & the Indus (originate in Himalayas)
 Carry water from mts. & cause flooding which leaves rich soil deposits &
fertile plains
 Ganges River
 Most important
 Northern India to Bangladesh and forms a delta w/ other rivers
 Delta: a landform at the mouth of a river created by sediment deposits
 Ganges Plains: farming heartland of India
 Indus River
 Created fertile plain (Indus River Valley)
 Once home to earliest civilizations

6. Other Features
 Deccan
 South of Ganges Plains
 Large, hilly plateau
 Thar (or Great Indian Desert)
 East of Indus Valley
 Rolling sand dunes
 Tarai
 Southern Nepal
 Fertile farmland & tropical jungles

7. Climate
 Climate Regions
 Vary depending on location
 Himalayas’: highland climate; cool temps
 The plains: humid subtropical climate; hot humid summers w/
plenty of rain
 Tropical climates over most of subcontinent
 Tropical savanna: warm temps year round; wet/dry seasons
 Humid tropical: warms temps & heavy rain
 Dry climates: desert & steppe climates
 Monsoons: seasonal winds that bring either moist or dry air to an
area
 June-October: summer monsoons; moist air from Indian Ocean;
heavy rains & flooding
 Winter: winds change directions; dry air from north; little rain

8. Natural Resources
 Fertile soil
 Most important resource
 Produce many crops: tea, rice, nuts, & jute (used to make
rope)
 Timber & livestock also key
 Mineral resources
 Iron ore, coal, natural gas, & gemstones

9. History and Culture of India

10. Early Civilizations and Empires
 1 of world’s oldest civilizations
 Early civilizations greatly influenced history

11. Ancient Civilizations
 Indus River Valley
 Harappan civilization
 2300-1700 B.C.
 Declined in 1700 B.C. invaders, natural disaster, ?
 Aryans
 From Central Asia
 Powerful warriors
 Conquered & settled fertile plains along Indus & Ganges Rivers
 Greatly influenced Indian culture
 Language (Sanskrit) serves as basis of languages in South Asia
 Aryans mixed w/ Indian already living in fertile plains
 Religious beliefs & customs mixed (forming beginnings of
India’s social system & Hindu)

12. Early Empires
 Powerful kingdoms emerged
 Mauryan Empire
 Dominated region in 320 B.C.
 Rulers raised huge armies & conquered almost entire
subcontinent
 Asoka (1 of greatest rulers) helped expand empire &
improve trade
 Also encouraged acceptance of other religions
 After his death power struggles & invasions destroyed Mauryan
Empire

13.  Gupta Empire(AD 300s)
 United much of north India
 Under Gupta rulers trade & culture thrived
 Scholars made advances in math, medicine, &
astronomy
 Attacks & invaders from Asia weakened empire over
time
 AD 550 India was once again divided

14. The Mughal Empire
 600s
 Muslims began raids in India
 Some tried to take over Indian kingdoms
 Turkish Muslims est. a powerful kingdom at Delhi
 1500s
 New Muslim invaders swept across subcontinent
 Lead by Babur they conquered much of India an est. Mughal Empire
 Babur grandson Akbar was 1 on India’s greatest rulers
 Trade flourished (demand for spices & tea grew)
 Empire grew rich
 Culture also promoted
 Promoted religious tolerance & encouraged peace in empire
 Architecture also thrived

15. The British Empire
 Early 1500s
 England rose to power as Mughal Empire declined
 1600s
 English presence in India began
 High demand for Indian goods (cotton & sugar)
 East Indian Company (British trading Co.) granted trading rights by
Mughal rulers
 East Indian Co.
 At 1st small trading posts
 Power & territory expanded w/ more British presence in India
 Mid 1800s controlled more than half of the Indian
Subcontinent
 India became a British colony

16.  British rule
 Angered & frightened many Indians
 East India Co. controlled w/ army mostly made up of
Indian troops commanded by British officers
 1857
 Indian troops revolted
 Violence across India followed
 British gov’t crushed rebellion & took control of India
away from East India Co.

17. Independence & Division
 Late 1800s
 British rule ?
 Indian National Congress created
 Tried of being 2nd class citizens
 Goal: gain more rights & opportunities
 Demand for independence grew
 Mohandas Gandhi
 Important leader of independence movement
 1920s-1930s strategy of nonviolent protest convinced
millions to support independence

18.  Britain agrees to independence
 Hindu & Muslim communities create tensions
 Muslims feared having little say in new gov’t & wanted to become
separate nation
 Avoiding Civil War
 British gov’t agreed to partition of India
 1947 2 independent countries formed
 India: mostly Hindu
 Pakistan & present day Bangladesh: mostly Muslim (10 million left
India)
 Other countries followed
 Sri Lanka & Maldives
 1971 after bloody civil war that killed 1 million people East Pakistan
broke away and became Bangladesh

19. Religion
 India is birthplace of several major religions
 Hinduism
 Dominant religion of India
 Everything in the universe is part of a single spirit Brahman
 Ultimate goal is to reunite soul with Brahman
 Souls are reincarnated many times before this happens
 Buddhism
 A religious belief based on the teachings of Buddha
 People can rise above their desire for material goods & reach nirvana
(a ste of perfect peace in which suffering and reincarnation end

20. Caste System
 Divided Indian society into groups based on a person’s
birth or occupation
 4 classes (originally based on occupation)
 Dalits
 Members of India’s lowest class

21. India

22. Daily Life
 1 billion people
 Many different ethnic groups, religions, & lifestyles
 All help unite people of India

23. Cities
 Very populated
 Most work in factories & offices
 Universities, research centers, & high-tech businesses
 City-dwellers struggle to make living
 Most live in shacks made of scrap wood or metal
 No plumbing & little clean water

24. Villages
 Most live in rural areas
 70% of population
 Most work as farmers & live w/ extended family
 Recent addition of paved roads & electricity

25. Religion
 Plays key role in daily life
 Most practice Hinduism
 Islam & Buddhism also practiced
 Native religions of Sikhism & Jainism also practiced
 Popular festival: Diwali

26. India’s Challenges
 Population
 Huge population places strain on environment & resources
(including food, housing, & schools)
 Cities are particularly affected
 Urbanization: the increase in the percentage of people who live in cities
 Many moved to cities in search of jobs
 Gov’t & Economy
 Leaders have strengthened gov’t & economy
 World’s largest democracy
 Challenge is providing for growing population & resolving conflicts
w/ Pakistan (both have nuclear weapons)
 Millions of Indians live in poverty
 Green revolution: program that encouraged farmers to adopt
modern agricultural methods
 Helped produce more food

27. India’s Neighbors

28. Culture
 Have different cultures than India
 People
 Many ethnic groups
 Sherpas: ethnic group from the mts. of Nepal; guide through Himalayas
 Bhutan’s largest ethnic group originally from Tibet
 Sri Lanka’s Tamil people came from India to work on plantations
 Religion
 Pakistan & Bangladesh
 Practice Islam & small group of Hinduism, Christianity, & tribal religions
 Nepal
 Hinduism & some Buddhism
 Bhutan & Sri Lanka
 Buddhism

29. Pakistan
 Lacks govt’ stability
 Suffered from rebellions & assassinations of gov’t leaders
since 1947
 2001 General Pervez Musharraf came to power as military
coup
 Rapid population growth
 Struggles to manage resources & reduce poverty
 Relations w/ India
 Clashed over territory of Kashmir
 Both control region; armed troops guard line of control that divides
east & west Kashmir
 2001
 Has aided U.S. in war on terrorism

30. Bangladesh
 Small country (size of Wisconsin)
 Population ½ the size of U.S.
 1 of world’s most densely populated countries
 2,850 people per square mile
 Flooding is one of biggest challenges
 Streams & rivers flood annually
 Damage homes & farms
 Destroys schools & roads as well

31. Nepal
 Population growing rapidly
 Has doubled in last 30 years
 Poverty and unemployment are also high
 One of world’s least developed nations
 Faces environmental threats
 More land needed to grow food to feed growing
population
 Deforestation causes soil erosion & harms wildlife
 Tourism also hurts environment (use resources & leave behind
trash)

32. Bhutan
 Small mt. kingdom
 Has been isolated
 Outside influences limited
 1900s king est. ties w/ Great Britain & India
 Efforts to modernize resulted in new roads, schools, &
hospitals
 Today continues to develop economically
 Most are farmers (grow rice, potatoes, & corn)
 Some raise livestock (yaks, pigs, & horses)
 Industry is also important
 Gov’t limits # of visitors to protect environment & way of
life

33. Sri Lanka
 India has great influence
 Tamil & Sinhalese 2 largest ethnic groups descended
from India settlers
 Conflicts between ethnic groups divide country
 Tamil want a separate state
 2004 tsunami
 Killed thousands and more than 500,000 people were
left homeless
 Damaged fishing & agriculture industries