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Mleccha
Mleccha () is a Sanskrit term referring to those of an incomprehensible speech, foreigners or invaders deemed distinct and separate from the Vedic tribes. In Vedic Brahmanical discourse, the term is used to refer to foreigners (anāryans) who are considered outside the realm of Vedic dharma. ''Mleccha'' was traditionally applied to denote foreigners or outsiders who did not belong to the Vedic cultural milieu, regardless of their race or skin colour. These individuals were considered outside the Varna system and the ritualistic framework of Vedic society. Historical sources identify various groups as mlecchas, including the Śākas, Huns, Chinese, Greeks, Kambojas, Pahlavas, Bahlikas, Rishikas, and Daradas. Other groups designated as mlecchas include the Barbaras, Kiratas, Paradas, Saka-Greeks, Indo-Greeks, Pulindas, and Scythians. Further identifications include the Kushans, Kinnaras, Tusharas, and Nishadas. The designation further extends to include groups ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Yavana
The word Yona in Pali and the Prakrits, and the analogue Yavana in Sanskrit, were used in Ancient India to designate Greek speakers. "Yona" and "Yavana" are transliterations of the Greek word for "Ionians" (), who were probably the first Greeks to be known in India. Both terms appear in ancient Sanskrit literature. ''Yavana'' appears, for instance, in the ''Mahabharata'', while ''Yona'' appears in texts such as the Sri Lankan chronicle '' Mahavamsa''. The Yona are mentioned in the Ashoka inscriptions, along with the Kambojas, as two societies where there are only nobles and slaves. Examples of direct association of these terms with the Greeks include: * The mention of the "Yauna" in the Persepolis Administrative Archives (550–333 BC). * The mention of the "Yona king Aṃtiyoka" in the Edicts of Ashoka (280 BCE) * The mention of the "Yona king Aṃtalikitasa" in the Heliodorus pillar in Vidisha (110 BCE) * King Milinda and his bodyguard of "500 Yonas" in the Milinda Pa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Pulinda
Pulinda (Sanskrit: ) were an ancient non-Aryan tribe of south-central Indian subcontinent, whose existence is attested during the Iron Age. Pulindas were mentioned in Aitareya Brahmana of the Rigveda (c. 500 BCE) as descendants of Sage Vishvamitra, along with Andhras, Pundras, Sabaras, and Mutibas. Location During the later Vedic period, the Pulindas were living to the south-east of the Daśārṇas. Though clearly associated with the Vindhyan region, the Pulindas are sometimes believed to have had multiple tribal branches that ranged up to the Himalayan region and Assam. In the Himalayan region, ancient Indian literature often mentions them in conjunction with the Kiratas. History In hindu scriptures Aitareya Brahmana of the Rigveda According to Aitareya Brahmana of the Rigveda, sage Vishvamitra had hundred sons, fifty of them were older than Madhuchhanda, and fifty were younger than him. The older ones were not pleased with (the installation of Sunahsepa to the primo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Tushara Kingdom
The kingdom of Tushara, according to Indian literature, ancient Indian literature, such as the epic ''Mahabharata'', was a land located beyond north-west India. In the ''Mahabharata'', its inhabitants, known as the Tusharas, are depicted as ''mlechchas'' ("barbarians") and fierce warriors. Modern scholars generally see Tushara as synonymous with the historical "Tokharistan, Tukhara", also known as Tokhara or Tokharistan – another name for Bactria. This area was the stronghold of the Kushan Empire, which ruled North India between the 1st and 3rd centuries CE. Tukhara The historical Tukhara appears to be synonymous with the land known by Ancient China, Ancient Chinese scholars as ''Daxia'', from the 3rd century BCE onwards. Its inhabitants were known later to Ancient Greek scholars as the ''Tokharoi'' and to the Ancient Romans as ''Tochari''. Modern scholars appear to have conflated the ''Tukhara'' with the so-called Tocharians – an Proto-Indo-Europeans, Indo-European peo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Chinas
The Chinas (Sanskrit ) are a people mentioned in the Indian religious texts, such as the ''Mahabharata'', ''Manusmriti'', and the Puran. Etymology The origin of the Sanskrit name is commonly believed to have been the Qin (''Tsin'' or ''Chin'' in older transliterations) dynasty which ruled in China from 221 BC, or the preceding state of Qin which is traditionally dated to the 9th century BC.Geographical Data in Early Puranas, 1972, p172, Dr M. R. Singh There are a number of other suggestions for the origin of the word. Some Chinese and Indian scholars argued for the state of Jing () as the likely origin of the name, while other theories suggest it is derived from ''Zina'', the endonym of the inhabitants of Yelang.Wade, Geoff,The Polity of Yelang and the Origin of the Name 'China', ''Sino-Platonic Papers'', No. 188, May 2009. Hindu religious texts Mahabharata The Sanskrit epic work ''Mahabharata'' contains certain references to China, referring to its people as the ''Ch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Indo-Greek Kingdom
The Indo-Greek Kingdom, also known as the Yavana Kingdom, was a Hellenistic period, Hellenistic-era Ancient Greece, Greek kingdom covering various parts of modern-day Afghanistan, Pakistan and northwestern India. The term "Indo-Greek Kingdom" loosely describes a number of various Hellenistic states, ruling from regional capitals like Taxila, Sagala, Pushkalavati, and Bagram. Other centers are only hinted at; e.g. Ptolemy's ''Geographia (Ptolemy), Geographia'' and the nomenclature of later kings suggest that a certain Theophilos (king), Theophilus in the south of the Indo-Greek sphere of influence may also have had a royal seat there at one time. The kingdom was founded when the Graeco-Bactrian king Demetrius I of Bactria invaded India from Bactria in about 200 BC. The Greeks to the east of the Seleucid Empire were eventually divided to the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom, Graeco-Bactrian Kingdom and the Indo-Greek Kingdoms in the North Western Indian Subcontinent. During the two cent ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Baloch People
The Baloch ( ) or Baluch ( ; , plural ) are a nomadic, Pastoralism, pastoral, ethnic group which speaks the Western Iranian, Western Iranic Balochi language and is native to the Balochistan region of South Asia, South and Western Asia, encompassing the countries of Pakistan, Iran, and Afghanistan. There are also Baloch diaspora communities in neighbouring regions, including in Central Asia, and the Arabian Peninsula. The majority of the Baloch reside within Pakistan. About 50% of the total Baloch population live in the Pakistani province of Balochistan, Pakistan, Balochistan, while 40% are Baloch people in Sindh, settled in Sindh and a significant albeit smaller number reside in the Baloch people in Punjab, Pakistani Punjab. They make up 3.6% of Pakistan's total population, and around 2% of the populations of both Iran and Afghanistan and the largest non-Arab community in Omani Baloch, Oman. Etymology The exact origin of the word "Baloch" is unclear. According to the Baloch his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Daradas
Daradas were an ancient people who lived north and north-west to the Kashmir Valley. This kingdom is identified to be the Gilgit region, in the Gilgit-Baltistan region (part of ancient Baloristan) along the river Sindhu or Indus. They are often spoken along with the Kambojas. The Pandava hero Arjuna had visited this country of Daradas during his northern military campaign to collect tribute for Yudhishthira's Rajasuya sacrifice. The country of Darada has also been mentioned in the Rasa Ratna Samucchaya, a book dealing about Rasasastra Location of Daradas *The Vayu Purana, Brahmanda Purana and Vamana Purana mention the Daradas with the Kambojas, Chinas, Tusharas and the Bahlikas etc. The Bhuvankosha of the Puranas locates the Daradas, Kambojas, Barbaras, Bahlikas, Lampakas etc. in the Uttarapatha division of ancient India. e.g.: :''ete desha udichyastu'' :''Kambojah Daradashchaiva Barbarashcha Angalaukikah , , '' :''Chinashchaiva Tusharashcha Pahlavadhayata narah , ' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Pahlavas
The Pahlavas are a people mentioned in ancient Indian texts. According to Patrick Carnegy, a Raj-era ethnographer, the 4th-century BCE ''Vartika'' of Katyayana mentions the ''Sakah-Parthavah'', demonstrating an awareness of these Saka-Parthians, probably by way of commerce.V. S. Agarwala (1954). ''India as Known to Panini''. p.444 Knowledge of the Pahlavas is distilled from the literary references in texts like the '' Manu Smriti'', various Puranas, the ''Ramayana'', the , and the . In Puranic texts Pahlavas are referenced in various Puranic texts such as , the , the ''Markandeya Purana'', the , and the . Kirfel's list of Uttarapatha countries of the ''Bhuvanakosha'' locates the Pahlavas along with the Tocharians (or Tusharas), Chinas, Angalaukikas, Barbaras, Kambojas, Daradas, Bahlikas and other countries of the "Udichya" (Sanskrit: "northern") division of ancient India: The ''Vayu Purana'', and several other Puranas mention the Pahlavas with the tribes of Uttarapath ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Scythians
The Scythians ( or ) or Scyths (, but note Scytho- () in composition) and sometimes also referred to as the Pontic Scythians, were an Ancient Iranian peoples, ancient Eastern Iranian languages, Eastern Iranian peoples, Iranian Eurasian nomads, equestrian nomadic people who had migrated during the 9th to 8th centuries BC from Central Asia to the Pontic Steppe in modern-day Ukraine and Southern Russia, where they remained established from the 7th century BC until the 3rd century BC. Skilled in Horses in warfare, mounted warfare, the Scythians replaced the Agathyrsi and the Cimmerians as the dominant power on the western Eurasian Steppe in the 8th century BC. In the 7th century BC, the Scythians crossed the Caucasus Mountains and frequently raided West Asia along with the Cimmerians. After being expelled from West Asia by the Medes, the Scythians retreated back into the Pontic Steppe in the 6th century BC, and were later conquered by the Sarmatians in the 3rd to 2nd centuries ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Yuezhi
The Yuezhi were an ancient people first described in China, Chinese histories as nomadic pastoralists living in an arid grassland area in the western part of the modern Chinese province of Gansu, during the 1st millennium BC. After a major defeat at the hands of the Xiongnu in 176 BC, the Yuezhi split into two groups migrating in different directions: the Greater Yuezhi and Lesser Yuezhi. This started a complex domino effect that radiated in all directions and, in the process, set the course of history for much of Asia for centuries to come. The Greater Yuezhi initially migrated northwest into the Ili River, Ili Valley (on the modern borders of China and Kazakhstan), where they reportedly displaced elements of the Sakas. They were driven from the Ili Valley by the Wusun and migrated southward to Sogdia and later settled in Bactria. The Greater Yuezhi have consequently often been identified with peoples mentioned in classical European sources as having overrun the Greco-Bactrian K ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion, diffused there from the northwest in the late Bronze Age#South Asia, Bronze Age. Sanskrit is the sacred language of Hinduism, the language of classical Hindu philosophy, and of historical texts of Buddhism and Jainism. It was a lingua franca, link language in ancient and medieval South Asia, and upon transmission of Hindu and Buddhist culture to Southeast Asia, East Asia and Central Asia in the early medieval era, it became a language of religion and high culture, and of the political elites in some of these regions. As a result, Sanskrit had a lasting effect on the languages of South Asia, Southeast Asia and East Asia, especially in their formal and learned vocabularies. Sanskrit generally connotes several Indo-Aryan languages# ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
