Part 1: How does culture affect the daily lives of people? India

Social Structure India has a unique social structure When the Aryans came to India, they developed a social structure with sharp distinctions between individuals and groups according to the occupations and roles in society These distinctions became the basis of the caste system Brahmins (priests) were at the top of the caste system

Aryan Social Order The first Indian civilization was built on the Indus River valley (in present-day Pakistan) In the 1500s B.C., Aryan warriors came from South Asia and built kingdoms in Northern India Their beliefs spread through the country and later formed the religion of Hinduism.

Aryan Social Order Aryan social hierarchy served to maintain order and stability that other societies such as Mesopotamia, Egypt, and China maintained through state and political structures The term caste comes from the Portuguese word “casta” meaning a social class of hereditary and usually unchangeable status Members of the untouchable class dispose of corpses after the 2004 tsunami

The Caste System These are social classes based on a person’s ancestry. Hinduism organized India’s society into castes Castes determine what kinds of jobs a person can have and whom that person can marry.

Untouchables Members of the untouchable class dispose of corpses after the 2004 tsunami Some centuries later, the Aryans added the category of untouchables The untouchables performed dirty or unpleasant tasks such as butchering animals or handling dead bodies Such work made them become so polluted that their very touch could defile individuals of higher status

Social Order Individuals came to identify themselves more closely with their castes than with their cities or states The caste system served as the principal foundation of social stability in India, doing what states and empires did to maintain public order elsewhere

Mobility in the Hierarchy There were some provisions for movement between classes, but individual upward mobility was not easy The caste system enabled foreign people to find a place in Indian society As more people migrated to India, especially Turks and Muslim merchants, the caste system continued to provide order Immigrant groups gained recognition as distinct groups under the umbrella of the caste system Established codes of conduct both within their group and in their interactions with others

Geographic Expansion At first the caste system was confined to northern India where the Aryans had first entered As commercial relationships pushed south, the caste system took hold there as well By the 11th Century, the caste system was the principal basis of social organization in southern India

Caste in India Today The preamble of India’s constitution forbids negative public discrimination on the basis of caste. In reality, caste ranking and caste-based interaction continue More prominent in the countryside than in urban settings and more in the realms of kinship and marriage than in less personal interactions

How were populations controlled in India? Caste system Maintained order by assigning an individual to a place in the social hierarchy and established a rigid code of behavior based on that assignment Allowed immigrant groups to find a place in society by recognizing them as distinct groups within the overall system

How does culture affect the daily lives of people?

Part 2: How have the physical settings of India influenced life?

How has the physical setting influenced life? Today we are looking at… Landforms Karakoram Range Himalayas Eastern/Western Ghats Satpura Range Ganges Plain and Ganges River Deccan Plateau Climate Monsoons Natural Resources Products Green Revolution