India (Herodotus) - Revision history

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	{{disputed\|Ancient Greek geography?\|date=November 2020}}		{{disputed\|Ancient Greek geography?\|date=November 2020}}
	[[File:Herodotus world map-en.svg\|thumb\|300px\|The [[ecumene\|inhabited world]] according to Herodotus]]		[[File:Herodotus world map-en.svg\|thumb\|300px\|The [[ecumene\|inhabited world]] according to Herodotus]]
	In [[ancient Greek geography]], the basin of the [[Indus River]] (~~essentially corresponding to the territory of what is now northwestern '''India'''~~ and eastern [[Pakistan]]) was on the extreme eastern fringe of the [[ecumene\|known world]].		In [[ancient Greek geography]], the basin of the [[Indus River]] (central and eastern Pakistan) was on the extreme eastern fringe of the [[ecumene\|known world]].
	The Greek geographer [[Herodotus]] (5th century BC) describes India, calling it {{lang\|grc\|ἡ Ἰνδική χώρη}} (Roman transliteration: ''hē Hindikē chōrē'', meaning "the ~~Indian~~ land"), after ''[[Hinduš]]'', the [[Old Persian]] name of the Indus river and the associated satrapy of [[Sindh]] in the [[Achaemenid Empire]]. [[Darius the Great]] had [[Achaemenid invasion of Indus Valley\|conquered this territory]] in 516 BC. The Greek colonies in [[Asia Minor]] (western [[Turkey]]) were already part of the Achaemenid Empire since 546 BC and, thus, the Greeks and Indians came into contact with each other as subjects of the Empire.{{sfn\|de Jong, The Discovery of India by the Greeks\|1973\|p=116–117}}		The Greek geographer [[Herodotus]] (5th century BC) describes India, calling it {{lang\|grc\|ἡ Ἰνδική χώρη}} (Roman transliteration: ''hē Hindikē chōrē'', meaning "the Indus land"), after ''[[Hinduš]]'', the [[Old Persian]] name of the Indus river and its inhabitants, the associated satrapy of [[Sindh]] in the [[Achaemenid Empire]]. [[Darius the Great]] had [[Achaemenid invasion of Indus Valley\|conquered this territory]] in 516 BC. The Greek colonies in [[Asia Minor]] (western [[Turkey]]) were already part of the Achaemenid Empire since 546 BC and, thus, the Greeks and Indians came into contact with each other as subjects of the Empire.{{sfn\|de Jong, The Discovery of India by the Greeks\|1973\|p=116–117}}

	== Background ==		== Background ==
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	==Bibliography==		==Bibliography==
	* {{citation \|last=de Jong \|title=The Discovery of India by the Greeks \|journal=Asiatische Studien \|volume=27 \|year=1973 \|pages=115–142 \|url=https://www.e-periodica.ch/cntmng?pid=ast-002:1973:27::217 \|ref={{sfnref\|de Jong, The Discovery of India by the Greeks\|1973}}}}		* {{citation \|last=de Jong \|title=The Discovery of India by the Greeks \|journal=Asiatische Studien \|volume=27 \|year=1973 \|pages=115–142 \|url=https://www.e-periodica.ch/cntmng?pid=ast-002:1973:27::217 \|ref={{sfnref\|de Jong, The Discovery of India by the Greeks\|1973}}}}
	* {{citation \|last=Mukherjee \|first=Bratindra Nath \|~~authorlink~~=B. N. Mukherjee \|title=Nationhood and Statehood in India: A historical survey \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MTGKAAAAMAAJ \|date=2001 \|publisher=Regency Publications \|isbn=978-81-87498-26-1 \|ref={{sfnref\|Mukherjee, Nationhood and Statehood in India\|2001}}}}		* {{citation \|last=Mukherjee \|first=Bratindra Nath \|author-link=B. N. Mukherjee \|title=Nationhood and Statehood in India: A historical survey \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MTGKAAAAMAAJ \|date=2001 \|publisher=Regency Publications \|isbn=978-81-87498-26-1 \|ref={{sfnref\|Mukherjee, Nationhood and Statehood in India\|2001}}}}

	==External links==		==External links==

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	{{disputed\|Ancient Greek geography?\|date=November 2020}}		{{disputed\|Ancient Greek geography?\|date=November 2020}}
	[[File:Herodotus world map-en.svg\|thumb\|300px\|The [[ecumene\|inhabited world]] according to Herodotus]]		[[File:Herodotus world map-en.svg\|thumb\|300px\|The [[ecumene\|inhabited world]] according to Herodotus]]
	In [[ancient Greek geography]], the basin of the [[Indus River]] (essentially corresponding to the territory of what is now northwestern India and eastern [[Pakistan]]) was on the extreme eastern fringe of the [[ecumene\|known world]].		In [[ancient Greek geography]], the basin of the [[Indus River]] (essentially corresponding to the territory of what is now northwestern '''India''' and eastern [[Pakistan]]) was on the extreme eastern fringe of the [[ecumene\|known world]].
	The Greek geographer [[Herodotus]] (5th century BC) describes India, calling it {{lang\|grc\|ἡ Ἰνδική χώρη}} (Roman transliteration: ''hē Hindikē chōrē'', meaning "the Indian land"), after ''[[Hinduš]]'', the [[Old Persian]] name of the Indus river and the associated satrapy of [[Sindh]] in the [[Achaemenid Empire]]. [[Darius the Great]] had [[Achaemenid invasion of Indus Valley\|conquered this territory]] in 516 BC. The Greek colonies in [[Asia Minor]] (western [[Turkey]]) were already part of the Achaemenid Empire since 546 BC and, thus, the Greeks and Indians came into contact with each other as subjects of the Empire.{{sfn\|de Jong, The Discovery of India by the Greeks\|1973\|p=116–117}}		The Greek geographer [[Herodotus]] (5th century BC) describes India, calling it {{lang\|grc\|ἡ Ἰνδική χώρη}} (Roman transliteration: ''hē Hindikē chōrē'', meaning "the Indian land"), after ''[[Hinduš]]'', the [[Old Persian]] name of the Indus river and the associated satrapy of [[Sindh]] in the [[Achaemenid Empire]]. [[Darius the Great]] had [[Achaemenid invasion of Indus Valley\|conquered this territory]] in 516 BC. The Greek colonies in [[Asia Minor]] (western [[Turkey]]) were already part of the Achaemenid Empire since 546 BC and, thus, the Greeks and Indians came into contact with each other as subjects of the Empire.{{sfn\|de Jong, The Discovery of India by the Greeks\|1973\|p=116–117}}

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	==Bibliography==		==Bibliography==
	* {{citation \|last=de Jong \|title=The Discovery of India by the Greeks \|journal=Asiatische Studien \|volume=27 \|year=1973 \|pp=115–142 \|url=https://www.e-periodica.ch/cntmng?pid=ast-002:1973:27::217 \|ref={{sfnref\|de Jong, The Discovery of India by the Greeks\|1973}}}}		* {{citation \|last=de Jong \|title=The Discovery of India by the Greeks \|journal=Asiatische Studien \|volume=27 \|year=1973 \|pages=115–142 \|url=https://www.e-periodica.ch/cntmng?pid=ast-002:1973:27::217 \|ref={{sfnref\|de Jong, The Discovery of India by the Greeks\|1973}}}}
	* {{citation \|last=Mukherjee \|first=Bratindra Nath \|authorlink=B. N. Mukherjee \|title=Nationhood and Statehood in India: A historical survey \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MTGKAAAAMAAJ \|date=2001 \|publisher=Regency Publications \|~~ISBN~~=978-81-87498-26-1 \|ref={{sfnref\|Mukherjee, Nationhood and Statehood in India\|2001}}}}		* {{citation \|last=Mukherjee \|first=Bratindra Nath \|authorlink=B. N. Mukherjee \|title=Nationhood and Statehood in India: A historical survey \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MTGKAAAAMAAJ \|date=2001 \|publisher=Regency Publications \|isbn=978-81-87498-26-1 \|ref={{sfnref\|Mukherjee, Nationhood and Statehood in India\|2001}}}}

	==External links==		==External links==

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{{disputed|Ancient Greek geography?|date=November 2020}}
[[File:Herodotus world map-en.svg|thumb|300px|The [[ecumene|inhabited world]] according to Herodotus]]
In [[ancient Greek geography]], the basin of the [[Indus River]] (essentially corresponding to the territory of what is now northwestern India and eastern [[Pakistan]]) was on the extreme eastern fringe of the [[ecumene|known world]].
The Greek geographer [[Herodotus]] (5th century BC) describes India, calling it {{lang|grc|ἡ Ἰνδική χώρη}} (Roman transliteration: ''hē Hindikē chōrē'', meaning "the Indian land"), after ''[[Hinduš]]'', the [[Old Persian]] name of the Indus river and the associated satrapy of [[Sindh]] in the [[Achaemenid Empire]]. [[Darius the Great]] had [[Achaemenid invasion of Indus Valley|conquered this territory]] in 516 BC. The Greek colonies in [[Asia Minor]] (western [[Turkey]]) were already part of the Achaemenid Empire since 546 BC and, thus, the Greeks and Indians came into contact with each other as subjects of the Empire.{{sfn|de Jong, The Discovery of India by the Greeks|1973|p=116–117}}

== Background ==
According to Herodotus 4.44, [[Scylax of Caryanda]], a Greek explorer sailed down the length of the Indus in the service of Darius. [[Hecataeus of Miletus]], around 500 BC, wrote about the geography and peoples of India. The Greek physician [[Ctesias]] also wrote about India. Most of these works have not survived in their original form but fragments are known through transmission by later writers. Not only individual Greeks, but also large groups of Greeks were forced to settle in [[Bactria]] (northern Afghanistan), who must have had prolonged contact with Indians. Herodotus's account is believed to be based on these accounts.{{sfn|de Jong, The Discovery of India by the Greeks|1973|p=116–117}}

== Description ==
The Greeks (or Persians) were not aware of the geography of India (or Asia in general) east of the [[Indus basin]]. Herodotus in 4.40 is explicit about India being on the eastern fringe of the inhabitable world,
: "As far as India, Asia is an inhabited land; but thereafter, all to the east is desolation, nor can anyone say what kind of land is there." (trans. A. D. Godley 1920)
But he knew of Indians (''Hindwan'') living beyond the Persian province of ''Hinduš'' (3.101):{{sfn|Mukherjee, Nationhood and Statehood in India|2001|pp=3–4}}
: "These Indians dwell far away from the Persians southwards, and were no subjects of King Darius." (trans. A. D. Godley 1920)

In book 3 (3.89-97), Herodotus gives some account of the peoples of India; he describes them as being very diverse, and makes reference to their dietary habits, some eating raw fish, others eating raw meat, and yet others practicing [[vegetarianism]]. He also mentions their dark [[skin colour]].
:"The tribes of Indians are numerous, and they do not all speak the same language—some are wandering tribes, others not. They who dwell in the marshes along the river live on raw fish, which they take in boats made of reeds, each formed out of a single joint. These Indians wear a dress of sedge, which they cut in the river and bruise; afterwards they weave it into mats, and wear it as we wear a breast-plate. Eastward of these Indians are another tribe, called [[Padaei|Padaeans]], who are wanderers, and live on raw flesh. [...] There is another set of Indians whose customs are very different. They refuse to put any live animal to death, they sow no corn, and have no dwelling-houses. Vegetables are their only food. [...] All the tribes which I have mentioned live together like the brute beasts: they have also all the same tint of skin, which approaches that of the [[Aethiopia|Ethiopians]]. [...] Besides these, there are Indians of another tribe, who border on the city of [[Caspatyrus]], and the country of [[Pactyica]]; these people dwell northward of all the rest of the Indians, and follow nearly the same mode of life as the [[Bactria]]ns. They are more warlike than any of the other tribes, and from them the men are sent forth who go to procure the gold. For it is in this part of India that the sandy desert lies. Here, in this desert, there live amid the sand great ants, in size somewhat less than dogs, but bigger than foxes. [...]" (trans. Rawlinson)

In 3.38, Herodotus mentions the Indian tribe of the ''Callatiae'' for their practice of [[funerary cannibalism]]; in a striking illustration of [[cultural relativism]], he points out that this people is just as dismayed at the notion of the Greeks practicing cremation as the Greeks are at that of eating their dead parents. In book 7 (7.65,70,86,187) and in 8.113 Herodotus describes the Indian infantry and cavalry employed in [[Xerxes I of Persia|Xerxes]]' army.

Only after the conquests of [[Alexander the Great]] and the emergence of the [[Indo-Greek kingdoms]] did the Mediterranean world acquire some first-hand knowledge about the region (conversely, Indians also became aware of the existence of the Greeks during this period, naming them ''[[Yavana]]'' in Sanskrit).
By the 3rd century BC, [[Eratosthenes]] recognized "India" as terminating in a peninsula (reflecting a first grasp of the geography of the [[Indian Subcontinent]]) instead of just placing it generically at the far eastern end of "[[Asia]]". Eratosthenes was also the first Greek author to postulate an island [[Taprobana|Taprobane]] at the far south of India, later becoming a name of [[Sri Lanka]]. European knowledge of the geography of India did not become much better resolved until the end of Antiquity, and remained at this stage throughout the [[Middle Ages]], only becoming more detailed with the beginning of the [[Age of Sail]] in the 15th century.

==See also==
*[[Greco-Roman geography]]
*[[Early world maps]]
*[[Cartography of India]]
*[[Name of India]]
*[[Padaei|The Padaei]]
*[[Gymnosophists]]
*[[Buddhism and the Roman world]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Bibliography==
* {{citation |last=de Jong |title=The Discovery of India by the Greeks |journal=Asiatische Studien |volume=27 |year=1973 |pp=115–142 |url=https://www.e-periodica.ch/cntmng?pid=ast-002:1973:27::217 |ref={{sfnref|de Jong, The Discovery of India by the Greeks|1973}}}}
* {{citation |last=Mukherjee |first=Bratindra Nath |authorlink=B. N. Mukherjee |title=Nationhood and Statehood in India: A historical survey |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MTGKAAAAMAAJ |date=2001 |publisher=Regency Publications |ISBN=978-81-87498-26-1 |ref={{sfnref|Mukherjee, Nationhood and Statehood in India|2001}}}}

==External links==
*[http://www.thenagain.info/Classes/Sources/Herodotus.India.html Herodotus – The History of the Persian Wars: A Description of India], extracted from Herodotus, ''The History'', George Rawlinson, trans., (New York: Dutton & Co., 1862), ''Then Again'' World History web site, retrieved 20 May 2018.

[[Category:Herodotus]]
[[Category:Geographic history of India]]
[[Category:Ancient history of Pakistan]]
[[Category:Classical geography]]