Aryan Migration and the beginning of the Vedic Civilization

In this article, we will describe to you the historiographical study of how the different Indian scholars over the period have discarded the idea of an outer origin of Indo-Aryan by asking about much of the methods, logic, assumptions on which they are grounded, the Vedic Civilization & Culture, the Indo-Aryan Migration (1800-1500 BCE), Indo-Aryan Migration to Vedic Civilization, the Kurgan Hypothesis, etc.. The Indo-Aryan people’s migrations in Central Asia are seen to be started later on in 2000 BCE, as a slow diffusion during the time of the Late civilization of Harappan resulted in the language switch in Northern India.

The Indo-Aryan Migration (1800-1500 BCE)

The outlanders from the north part of India were considered to have moved to India and settled themselves in the Ganges Plain and the Indus Valley from the period 1800-1500 BCE. 

The most spectacular of these groups spoke the languages of the Indo-Europeans and were known as the “noble people” or Aryans in the language of Sanskrit. The Indo-Aryan peoples were also known as a subdivision of Indo-Iranian, who arose in the present day of the northern part of Afghanistan. During 1500 BCE, the Indo-Aryan had made small groupings and many agricultural communities in the Northern part of India.

This moment of people took position over many centuries. It likely did not pertain to the intrusion or invasion, as theorized by the British anthropologist named Mortimer Wheeler, who was also the Director-General of the Archaeological Scrutiny of India from the period 1944 to 1948, hinted Indo-European drive known as the Aryans conquered and overwhelmed in the Indus River valley. The conclusions of Mortimer Wheeler were based on the corpses of unburied bodies found on the topmost level of the archaeological line of work of one of the greatest cities of all time of the Indus Valley Civilization, Mohenjo-Daro.

The Vedic Civilization & Culture

The Vedic civilization & culture or age period was between 1500 BC to 600 BC. The Vedic Civilization is one of the major civilizations that happened in ancient India after the

diminution of the great civilization, the Indus Valley Civilization, by the period of 1400 BC.

The Vedic Civilization began with the arrival of the Indo-Aryans or Aryans, and Vedas were the primary source of data or information about this era. 

The civilization of the Vedic period is considered centralized in the Indian landmass in the northwest part of it, which is propagated around 1200 to the Plains of the Ganges, 630 million acres of fertile and flat land which is named after the river Ganga. It covers most of the region of eastern and northern parts of India, the major part of Bangladesh, and the eastern region of Pakistan. Many students or scholars consider that the Vedic Civilization & culture was a blend of the Harappan, Indus Valley, and Indo-Aryan cultures.

Indo-Aryan Migration to Vedic Civilization

The people of Aryans were nomadic and herder groups. 

The original place of the Aryans is sometimes a matter of argument, as many scholars depict or suggest various places or areas from where they emerged. 

Some people say that the region around the Capsian sea is located in Central Asia. Others think that they emerged from the Steppes of Russia. There were several opinions. One of them was Bal Gangadhar Tilak, which depicted that the Indo-Aryans came from the Arctic region.

The period of the Vedic age started alongside the line of work of Indo-Aryans of the Indo Gangetic Plains.

Arya also means noble.

The Indo-Aryans spoke the language of Indo-European language and Sanskrit

The Aryans lived semi-nomadic, rural life compared to the people of Indus Valley, who were very urbanized.

It is considered that the Aryans entered India through the passage of Khyber.

The Kurgan Hypothesis

The Kurgan Hypothesis is generally accepted as an assumption or scenario of the Indo-European Origins. The Kurgan hypothesis claims that the people of the kurgan society, herding of the civilization of the Yamnaya or Pit Grave, and its forerunners of the society of the Pontic Steppe were the speakers of the language Proto-Indo-European. Employing this theory, these nomadic people enlarged end-to-end by the Pontic-Capsian steppe and into the East of Europe by the 3000 BCE.

Conclusion

Primarily, the Aryans lived in a region or land known as “Sapta Sindhu” or “the land of the seven rivers.” The land of seven rivers includes seven rivers which were,

Vipash (Beas), Sindhu (Indus), Vitasta (Jhelum), Shutudri (Satluj), Asikni (Chenab), Parushni (Ravi), and Saraswati. In the social structure of the Indo-Aryan civilization, the women relished a reputable position,  as they were allowed to attend Samitis and Sabhas. Many of the women present there were poets, too(Lopamudra, Ghosa, Apala, and Viswavara). There was no religion of child marriage. The period of the Vedic civilization or age was between 1500 BC to 600 BC.