India - Location Continent: Asia India borders: – The Indian Ocean to the south – The Arabian Sea to the west – The Bay of Bengal to the east

India - Geography India is on the Indian subcontinent, also called the South Asian subcontinent Subcontinent – an area having geographical or political independence from the rest of its continent The Indian subcontinent

India - Overview Population: 1,236,344,631 (July 2014 est.) World rank: 2 nd

India - Overview Largest city: Mumbai Until 1995, Mumbai was known as Bombay It was renamed after a Hindu goddess

India - Geography India is involved in several territorial disputes with China and Pakistan Most notable is Jammu and Kashmir, which India and Pakistan have fought wars over Areas claimed but not controlled by India are shown in light green

India - Flag

India – Area Comparison Approximately one- third the size of the United States

India - Geography Border countries: – Bangladesh – Bhutan – Burma – China – Nepal – Pakistan

India - History Siddhartha Gautama lived in eastern India sometime between the sixth and fourth centuries BCE Also known as Buddha, Buddhism was founded on his teachings

India - History In the fourth and third centuries BCE, the Maurya Empire united much of South Asia The rule of the Gupta Empire, from the fourth to sixth centuries CE is considered to be the Golden Age of India

India - History The Mughal Dynasty was established in the 16 th century and ruled India for more than three centuries A Mughal War elephant guarding the gateway to the Grand Mosque in Mathura

India - History European countries would begin to arrive in India in the 16 th century By the mid-1800s, Britain controlled almost all of India Pictured: The British Indian Empire in 1936

India - History Nonviolent resistance led to India gaining their independence from the United Kingdom in 1947 India would be broken into two countries, India and Pakistan

India - History Since gaining independence, India and Pakistan have fought three wars, most recently in 1971 In 1998 both countries tested nuclear weapons A flag lowering ceremony on the India-Pakistan border

India – Notable People Mohandas Gandhi: – Led the Indian independence movement when India was ruled by Great Britain – Used nonviolent protest and civil disobedience – Inspired civil rights movements around the world – Sometimes called Mahatma Gandhi – “Mahatma” is a title meaning “high-souled”

India - Government Form of government: federal republic Head of government: Prime Minister chosen by the majority party in Parliament Chief of state: President elected by a electoral college Legislative body: Parliament Indian President Pranab Mukherjee

India - Government India is divided into twenty-nine states and seven union territories

India - Economy GDP per capita: $4,000 (2013 est.) World rank: 169 Currency: Indian rupee

India - Economy Just under half of Indians work in agriculture Many Indians speak English and work in information technology or software related fields

India - Culture Languages: – There are more than 20 major languages in India – English is used for national and commercial communication – Hindi is the most widely spoken language with about 41% of Indians speaking it Map showing areas of India where different language families are used

India – Culture India has a very diverse culture Clothing and cuisine vary across the nation Popular styles of dress include draped garments such as saris for women and dhotis for men Styles of Sari and clothing worn by women in India

India - Culture Religion: – Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism all originated in India – Hinduism and Buddhism are the 3 rd and 4 th largest religions in the world – Approximately 80% of Indians practice Hinduism A 94 ft. tall statue of Buddha in Gaya, India

India - Culture The majority of Indians have their marriages arranged by parents or other family members In most marriages the bride’s family provides a dowry to the groom Dowry - property or money brought by a bride to her husband on their marriage Wedding rituals being performed in India

India - Culture Traditionally Indians have lived together in extended families, but recently more Indians have been living with nuclear families Wedding rituals being performed in India

There are three national holidays in India: – Republic Day, January th – Independence Day, August 15 th – Gandhi Jayanti, October 2 nd A Republic Day celebration India - Culture

Today, cricket is the most popular sport in India Chess is believed to have originated in India

India - Culture More movies are produced in India than any other country in the world “Bollywood” is the nickname given to the film industry in Mumbai A movie theater in India