Ancient India

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Ancient India

• Geography

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Where is India?

• located in Southern Asia (loc. S. Asia)
• because of physical barriers and cultural
  differences India is considered a Subcontinent
• a large landmass that is smaller than a continent
  OR that is part of a continent but is considered
  either geographically or politically as an
  independent entity.

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Geography of India

• South (southwest) of China.
• Separated from the rest of Asia by a series of
  mountain ranges.
• Major Mt. ranges are the Hindu Kush and the
  Himalayas

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Geography

• Mountains provide protection from invasions as
  they are difficult to pass over.
• The Khyber Pass
• in the Hindu Kush Mts
• only Mt. passes that allowed invaders into India.

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Geography

• 2 Major rivers
• The Indus River in the West
• The Ganges River in the East
• Indias first civilizations develop along these
  rivers

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Climate and Weather

• Temperature
• Mild along the coast
• The sea helps regulate temperature
• High Temperatures in the Interior
• On the Deccan Plateau temperatures can reach 120F

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Climate and Weather

• Monsoons
• Major wind storms that seasonally reverses
  direction
• six months from the northeast and six months from
  the southwest.
• Brings the wet and dry seasons to India
• Wet season is marked by powerful storms,
  sometimes mistakenly called monsoons.

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Climate and Weather

• Monsoons greatly effect the production of food in
  India
• If the wet season is too soon or too heavy the
  crops are flooded and destroyed
• If the dry season is too long the plants do not
  have enough water to start growing.