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15 - Socio-cultural Regions in Pre-historic and Historic India

from IV - Social Geography in the Indian Context

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 June 2012

Surya Kant
Affiliation:
Panjab University, India
Ashok K. Dutt
Affiliation:
Professor Emeritus in Geography, Planning and Urban Studies, University of Akron, USA
Vandana Wadhwa
Affiliation:
Lecturer in the Department of Geography and Environment at Boston University, Massachusetts
Baleshwar Thakur
Affiliation:
Former Head of the Department of Geography, Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi,
Frank J. Costa
Affiliation:
Professor Emeritus in Geography, Planning, Urban Studies and Public Administration at the University of Akron, USA.
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Summary

Geographical factors provide the stage for cultural groups to work out their destinies and establish distinctive occupancy patterns. The evolution of cultural regions, emergence of cultural cores, and the direction and speed of cultural diffusion are greatly controlled by the prevailing geographical conditions of a region. Thus, the historical experiences of the people living in different geographical regions have been strikingly different. Such a situation is more marked in countries like India where the large areal extent, vast physical diversity and unique geographical location have made it a known case of unity in diversity in terms of the cultural pattern.

The physical framework of the Indian subcontinent determined the initial migration routes as well as the choice of the settlement area (river valleys or interfluvial tracts) by the incoming cultural streams originating from different parts of Asia. The scarcity of food and the presence of natural barriers, such as rivers, hill ranges, or desert expanses curbed their freedom of movement. Over the wide open valleys and the undulating plains on the plateau, they could also perceive social barriers erected along the contact lines between different ethnic groups and enforced by social customs. It may be assumed that the primeval culture domains were ethnically homogeneous and socially defined as their violation invited conflict, followed by internecine wars. Initially, there was a remote possibility of cultural overlap. Subbarao (1958, pp. 8–35) used detailed archaeological data to demonstrate the preservation of mutual exclusiveness in the remote hill tracts.

Type
Chapter
Information
Facets of Social Geography
International and Indian Perspectives
, pp. 263 - 293
Publisher: Foundation Books
Print publication year: 2012

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  • Socio-cultural Regions in Pre-historic and Historic India
  • Edited by Ashok K. Dutt, Professor Emeritus in Geography, Planning and Urban Studies, University of Akron, USA, Vandana Wadhwa, Lecturer in the Department of Geography and Environment at Boston University, Massachusetts, Baleshwar Thakur, Former Head of the Department of Geography, Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi,, Frank J. Costa, Professor Emeritus in Geography, Planning, Urban Studies and Public Administration at the University of Akron, USA.
  • Book: Facets of Social Geography
  • Online publication: 05 June 2012
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/UPO9788175969360.017
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  • Socio-cultural Regions in Pre-historic and Historic India
  • Edited by Ashok K. Dutt, Professor Emeritus in Geography, Planning and Urban Studies, University of Akron, USA, Vandana Wadhwa, Lecturer in the Department of Geography and Environment at Boston University, Massachusetts, Baleshwar Thakur, Former Head of the Department of Geography, Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi,, Frank J. Costa, Professor Emeritus in Geography, Planning, Urban Studies and Public Administration at the University of Akron, USA.
  • Book: Facets of Social Geography
  • Online publication: 05 June 2012
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/UPO9788175969360.017
Available formats
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Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Socio-cultural Regions in Pre-historic and Historic India
  • Edited by Ashok K. Dutt, Professor Emeritus in Geography, Planning and Urban Studies, University of Akron, USA, Vandana Wadhwa, Lecturer in the Department of Geography and Environment at Boston University, Massachusetts, Baleshwar Thakur, Former Head of the Department of Geography, Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi,, Frank J. Costa, Professor Emeritus in Geography, Planning, Urban Studies and Public Administration at the University of Akron, USA.
  • Book: Facets of Social Geography
  • Online publication: 05 June 2012
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/UPO9788175969360.017
Available formats
×