India
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The Indian subcontinent, of which
India the country, takes up by far the greatest part, lies between
Africa and Arabia to the west and South East Asia (Myanmar, Thailand,
Vietnam and Malaysia) to the east. India has a long coastline, washed by
the Indian Ocean, the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal. In the north
the Himalaya mountain range separates it from China and Nepal. The
island of Sri Lanka, once called Ceylon, lies a short distance to the
south and east of the southernmost tip of India.
Countries sharing borders with India are Pakistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan,
Bangladesh and Myanmar (Burma).
The capital is New Delhi; other major cities are Bombay, Calcutta,
Chandigarh, and Madras.
The country’s longest river is the Brahmaputra; the second longest is
the Ganges.
India has a variety of geographical features: mountain ranges, valleys,
desert regions, tropical rain forests, fertile plains and a dry plateau.
There are wide climatic variations from snow-covered mountains in the
north through cool hill country to dry plains and jungles with extreme
tropical heat. India has a monsoon season which begins in the south in
June, moving north to cover the whole country by the end of the month.
Sport: Throughout India many different types of sports are popular:
hockey, football, tennis, golf, fishing and mountaineering and skiing in
the north. In Rajastan camel racing is popular.
Cricket is a very popular sport and was introduced to India by the
British. India’s national teams have been particularly successful in
both cricket and hockey. Polo is a traditional Eastern game originating
in Persia and developed in India which is now played around the world.
Snooker was invented in 1875 by a British officer stationed in India.
Population
India is the world’s second most populous country (after China). The
population was estimated at 1,095,351,995 in 2006. Eighty percent of the
people are Hindus. Hindus are separated into different castes: there are
priests (Brahmins), soldiers and governors; traders; servants and
untouchables. Untouchability was abolished in 1950.
A large percentage of the people live in villages: cities such as
Bombay, Calcutta and New Delhi have a high population density. More than
forty million Indians belong to tribal society rather than the main
Hindu community. They mostly live in the hilly and wooded areas of
India.
Many Indians who have emigrated to UK and USA are from Gujarat.
Languages: India has more languages than any other country - fifteen
main languages and hundreds of other languages and dialects. The most
important language is Hindi, spoken by around one in five of the
population. The other main languages are Bengali, Urdu, Punjabi,
Gujarati, Tamil and Telegu. Hindi is mostly a language of the north and
regional political differences have produced opposition to its adoption
as a national language.
Religion: India’s diversity of languages is matched by its diversity of
religions. It was also the birthplace of two of the world’s great
religions: Buddhism and Hinduism.
Around eighty percent of the people are Hindus; Muslims are the largest
religious minority, at around eleven percent of the population. The
other religious groups include Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists, Jains,
Zoroastrians (or Parsees), Jews and Christians.
Zoroastrians follow a very ancient religion and worship one god
symbolized by fire.
Hinduism was brought to India by the Aryans about 1500 BC. Hinduism
brings with it a social order: the caste system. Hindus believe in a
Supreme Spirit who works through Brahma, the creator; Vishnu, the
preserver and Shiva the destroyer and generator of new life.
Buddhists are followers of the Buddha (the Enlightened One) - Siddhartha
Gautama - who was born about 500 BC near the foothills of the Himalaya
Mountains (Nepal). Today there are Buddhists in many parts of the world.
Jainism was founded the same time as Buddhism. Jains are strict
vegetarians and try to avoid injuring any living thing.
Islam arrived in India during the eighth century. Moslems believe in one
god, Allah, and follow the teachings of the Prophet Mohammed, contained
in the Koran.
The Sikh religion was founded by Guru Nanak (1469-1533) the first of ten
gurus or teachers. The word Sikha means disciples. The Sikhs sacred book
is kept in the Golden Temple of Amritsar.
