India, That Is Bharat
Question 1. What are the ancient names for India according to Indian texts?
Answer: The ancient names for India include Sapta Sindhava (from the Ṛig Veda), Bhāratavarṣha, and Jambudvīpa (from the Mahābhārata and other texts).
Question 2. What does the term ‘Bhāratavarṣha’ mean?
Answer: Bhāratavarṣha means “the country of the Bharatas,” referring to an ancient group of people mentioned in the Ṛig Veda.
Question 3. Which ancient text gives the name ‘Sapta Sindhava’ to the northwestern region of India?
Answer: The Ṛig Veda refers to the northwestern region as Sapta Sindhava.
Question 4. What is ‘Jambudvīpa’?
Answer: Jambudvīpa means “the island of the fruit of the jamun tree” and was an ancient name used to describe the Indian Subcontinent.
Question 5. Which Indian emperor used the term ‘Jambudvīpa’ to describe his empire?
Answer: Emperor Ashoka used the term Jambudvīpa to describe his empire, which included modern-day India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and parts of Afghanistan.
Question 6. What name is mentioned for India in the Viṣhṇu Purāṇa?
Answer: The Viṣhṇu Purāṇa refers to India as Bhārata, describing it as the land between the ocean to the south and the snowy mountains to the north.
Question 7. How did foreign visitors like the Persians refer to India?
Answer: The Persians referred to India as Hind, Hidu, or Hindu, derived from the Sanskrit word Sindhu (Indus River).
Question 8. What name did the Greeks use for India?
Answer: The Greeks called India Indoi or Indike, which was an adaptation of the Persian word Hindu.
Question 9. What was the ancient Chinese name for India?
Answer: The Chinese referred to India as Yindu or Tianzhu, which were derived from the Sanskrit word Sindhu.
Question 10. When did the term ‘Hindustān’ first appear?
Answer: The term Hindustān first appeared in a Persian inscription around 1,800 years ago.
Question 11. What phrase from the Indian Constitution connects modern India with its ancient name?
Answer: The Indian Constitution uses the phrase “India, that is Bharat,” indicating the connection between modern and ancient names of India.
Question 12. Which ancient text lists regions like Kashmir, Kurukshetra, and Kerala?
Answer: The Mahābhārata lists regions such as Kāshmīra (Kashmir), Kurukṣhetra (parts of Haryana), and Kerala (modern-day Kerala).
Question 13. Why is the Indus River significant in naming India?
Answer: The Sindhu (Indus) River is significant because the names Hindu, Indoi, and India all derive from it, showing its importance in identifying the Indian Subcontinent.
Question 14. What was the ancient Tamil understanding of India’s geography?
Answer: Ancient Tamil literature described India as the land between Cape Kumari in the south and the great mountains in the north, with oceans to the east and west.
Question 15. Which foreign language did not have the letter ‘h,’ leading to the name ‘Indoi’ for India?
Answer: The Greek language did not have the letter ‘h,’ so the Persians’ Hindu became Indoi or Indike in Greek.
Question 16. What did the Chinese word ‘Tianzhu’ refer to?
Answer: Tianzhu could mean “heavenly master,” reflecting the respect ancient Chinese had for India as the land of the Buddha.
Question 17. Why did the name ‘Bhārata’ become widespread over time?
Answer: The name Bhārata became widespread because it was mentioned in both ancient texts like the Viṣhṇu Purāṇa and later adopted by different regions of India.
Question 18. Who were the first foreigners to refer to India by a specific name?
Answer: The Persians were the first foreigners to refer to India, calling it Hind or Hindu.
Question 19. What was Xuanzang’s contribution to India-China cultural exchange?
Answer: Xuanzang, a Chinese scholar, traveled to India in the 7th century, collected Buddhist texts, and translated them from Sanskrit into Chinese.
Question 20. What are some motivations that might have brought foreign travelers to India in ancient times?
Answer: Foreign travelers came to India for reasons like trade, pilgrimage, learning, exploration, and cultural exchanges, drawn by India’s spiritual and material wealth.
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