Indus River: River in South Asia where an early civilization grew
Indus Valley Civilization: Early culture in today's Pakistan and India, about 2600-1900 BCE
Harappa: One of the main cities of the Indus Valley Civilization
Mohenjo-daro: Major Indus city with a planned layout and a Great Bath
Great Bath: Large water tank found at Mohenjo-daro
Grid plan: Streets laid out in straight lines, as in Indus cities
Indus script: Symbols on seals that have not yet been decoded
Seal: Small stone with an image used to mark goods
Drainage: Indus cities had covered drains for waste water
Monsoon: Seasonal wind that brings heavy rains to South Asia
Himalayas: Mountains north of the Indian subcontinent
Ganges River: Sacred river in northern India
Subcontinent: A large landmass that is part of a continent, like India
Vedic period: Era following the Indus cities when the Vedas were composed
Vedas: Oldest sacred texts of Hinduism
Sanskrit: Ancient language of India used in sacred and scholarly writing
Hinduism: Religion with many gods and ideas like karma and dharma
Brahman: Hindu idea of the universal spirit
Karma: Idea that actions have consequences
Dharma: Duty or right way of living
Reincarnation: Belief that souls are reborn in new lives
Moksha: Release from the cycle of rebirth
Upanishads: Texts about the nature of the self and the universe
Mahabharata: Long epic poem that includes the Bhagavad Gita
Bhagavad Gita: Section of the Mahabharata; a conversation about duty
Ramayana: Epic poem about Rama and Sita
Caste system: Division of society into groups by birth
Varna: Four traditional groupings: Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras
Dalits: People historically outside the caste system, once called untouchables
Siddhartha Gautama: Prince who became the Buddha, about 500s-400s BCE
Buddha: Means 'awakened one'
Four Noble Truths: Buddhist teaching about suffering and how to end it
Eightfold Path: Buddhist guide to right living
Nirvana: Peace beyond suffering in Buddhism
Bodh Gaya: Place where the Buddha is said to have gained enlightenment
Jainism: Religion that strongly stresses nonviolence
Mahavira: Teacher who formed Jainism's main teachings
Ahimsa: Principle of not harming living beings
Mahajanapadas: Sixteen early Indian kingdoms and republics
Alexander in India: Alexander the Great reached the Indus region in 326 BCE
Chandragupta Maurya: Founded the Maurya Empire, about 321 BCE
Maurya Empire: First empire to unite most of India
Ashoka: Maurya emperor who embraced Buddhism and nonviolence
Ashoka's edicts: Messages carved on pillars and rocks about fair rule
Chakravartin: Wheel-turning ruler, an ideal king
Arthashastra: Ancient book on government and strategy, linked to Kautilya
Pataliputra: Capital of the Maurya Empire
Gupta Empire: Dynasty from about 320 to 550 CE, called a golden age
Chandragupta I: Founder of the Gupta Empire
Kalidasa: Great Sanskrit poet and playwright of the Gupta era
Aryabhata: Mathematician and astronomer who wrote about zero and Earth's rotation
Zero: Number concept developed in India that made modern math easier
Decimal system: Counting in base ten, developed in India
Hindu-Arabic numerals: The digits 0 to 9 that came from India and spread through the Arab world
Chess: Game that began in India as chaturanga
Iron pillar of Delhi: Ancient pillar that has hardly rusted
Ajanta caves: Rock-cut Buddhist caves with paintings
Ellora caves: Rock-cut temples of Hindu, Buddhist and Jain faiths
Stupa: Dome-shaped Buddhist monument
Sushruta: Ancient Indian physician known for surgery
Ayurveda: Traditional Indian system of medicine
Yoga: Practice of body, breath and mind that began in India
Spice trade: Pepper and other spices from India were traded to many lands
Silk Road in India: Indian goods like cotton, spices and gems moved along trade routes
Delhi Sultanate: Muslim rulers in northern India, 1206-1526
Mughal Empire: Empire founded by Babur in 1526 that ruled much of India
Akbar: Mughal emperor known for religious tolerance and a strong government
Shah Jahan: Mughal emperor who built the Taj Mahal
Taj Mahal: White marble tomb in Agra built in the 1600s
British East India Company: Trading company that gained great power in India
Mahatma Gandhi: Led India's nonviolent independence movement
Indian independence (1947): India gained freedom from British rule and was partitioned into India and Pakistan
Partition (1947): Division of British India into India and Pakistan
Diwali: Festival of lights, celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs and Jains
Sikhism: Religion founded by Guru Nanak in the 1400s in Punjab

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