India

Table of Contents

Introduction & Quick Facts
Land
- Relief
  - The Himalayas
    - The Outer Himalayas (the Siwalik Range)
    - The Lesser Himalayas
    - The Great Himalayas
    - Associated ranges and hills
  - The Indo-Gangetic Plain
  - The Deccan
    - The Western Ghats
    - The Eastern Ghats
    - Inland regions
    - Coastal areas
    - Islands
- Drainage
  - Drainage into the Bay of Bengal
    - The Ganges-Brahmaputra river system
    - Peninsular rivers
  - Drainage into the Arabian Sea
  - Lakes and inland drainage
- Soils
  - In situ soils
    - Red-to-yellow soils
    - Black soils
  - Alluvial soils
- Climate
  - The monsoons
    - The southwest monsoon
    - Rainfall during the retreating monsoon
    - Tropical cyclones
    - Importance to agriculture
  - Temperatures
- Plant and animal life
  - Vegetation
  - Animal life
    - Mammals
    - Birds
    - Reptiles, fish, and insects
  - Conservation
People
- Ethnic groups
- Languages
  - Indo-European languages
  - Dravidian and other languages
  - Lingua francas
  - Minor languages and dialects
- Religions
- Caste
- Settlement patterns
  - Population density
  - Rural settlement
  - Urban settlement
  - Demographic trends
Economy
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing
  - Agriculture
    - Crops
    - Livestock
  - Forestry
  - Fishing
- Resources and power
- Manufacturing
- Finance
- Trade
- Services
- Labour and taxation
- Transportation and telecommunications
  - Railways and roads
  - Water and air transport
  - Telecommunications
Government and society
- Constitutional framework
  - Constitutional structure
  - Union government
    - Executive branch
    - Legislative branch
    - Bureaucracy
- Foreign policy
- State and local governments
- Justice
- Political process
- Security
- Health and welfare
- Housing
- Education
Cultural life
- Cultural milieu
- Daily life and social customs
  - Family and kinship
  - Festivals and holidays
  - Cuisine
  - Clothing
- The arts
  - Architecture
  - Dance and music
  - Theatre, film, and literature
- Cultural institutions
- Sports and recreation
- Media and publishing
History
- India from the Paleolithic Period to the decline of the Indus civilization
  - The early prehistoric period
    - The Indian Paleolithic
    - Mesolithic hunters
  - The earliest agriculturalists and pastoralists
    - Neolithic agriculture in the Indus valley and Baluchistan
    - Developments in the Ganges basin
    - Earliest settlements in peninsular India
    - Earliest settlements in eastern India
  - The rise of urbanism in the Indus valley
    - Extent and chronology of Early Harappan culture
    - Principal sites
    - Subsistence and technology
    - Culture and religion
  - The Indus civilization
    - Character and significance
    - Chronology
    - Extent
    - Planning and architecture
    - Important sites
      Mohenjo-daro
      Harappa
      Kalibangan
      Lothal
      Other important sites
    - Population
    - Agriculture and animal husbandry
    - Communications
    - Craft and technology
    - Trade and external contacts
    - Language and scripts, weights and measures
    - Social and political system
    - Art
    - Religion and burial customs
    - The end of the Indus civilization
  - Post-Harappan developments
    - The Post-Urban Period in northwestern India
    - The appearance of Indo-Aryan speakers
    - The late 2nd millennium and the reemergence of urbanism
    - Peninsular India in the aftermath of the Indus civilization (c. 2000–1000 bce)
- The development of Indian civilization from c. 1500 bce to c. 1200 ce
  - Traditional approaches to Indian historiography
  - Trends in early Indian society
  - From c. 1500 to c. 500 bce
    - Early Vedic period
    - Later Vedic period (c. 800–c. 500 bce)
  - The beginning of the historical period, c. 500–150 bce
    - Pre-Mauryan states
      Location
      Political systems
      Economy
      Religion
      Magadhan ascendancy
      Campaigns of Alexander the Great
    - The Mauryan empire
      Chandragupta Maurya
      Bindusara
      Ashoka and his successors
      Financial base for the empire
      Mauryan society
      Mauryan government
      Ashoka’s edicts
      Mauryan decline
    - The concept of the state
  - From 150 bce to 300 ce
    - Rise of small kingdoms in the north
      Indo-Greek rulers
      Central Asian rulers
      Oligarchies and kingdoms
      The Shunga kingdom
      Kalinga
      The Andhras and their successors
    - Southern Indian kingdoms
    - Contacts with the West
    - Society and culture
      Guilds
      Finance
      Impact of trade
      Religious patronage
      Literature
      Assimilation of foreigners
  - From 300 to 750 ce
    - Northern India
      The Guptas
      Successor states
    - The Deccan
    - Southern India
    - Society and culture
  - From 750 to c. 1200
    - Northern India
      The tripartite struggle
      The Rajputs
      The coming of the Turks
    - The Deccan and the south
      The Colas
      The Hoysalas and Pandyas
    - Society and culture
      The economy
      Social mobility
      Religion
      Literature and the arts
- The early Muslim period
  - North India under Muslim hegemony, c. 1200–1526
    - The Delhi sultanate
      The Turkish conquest
      The early Turkish sultans
      Consolidation of the sultanate
      The Khaljīs
      Centralization and expansion
      Taxation and distribution of revenue resources
      Expansion and conquests
      The urban economy
      The Tughluqs
      Reversal and rebellion
      Society and the state under the Tughluqs
      Decline of the sultanate
    - The rise of regional states
    - Struggle for supremacy in northern India
  - The Muslim states of southern India, c. 1350–1680
    - The Bahmani sultanate
      Bahmanī consolidation of the Deccan
      External and internal rivalries
      Vizierate of Maḥmūd Gāwān
      Bahmanī decline
    - Successors to the Bahmanī
  - The Vijayanagar empire, 1336–1646
    - Development of the state
      Conquests
      Consolidation
      Wars and rivalries
      Decentralization and loss of territory
    - Later dynasties
      Reconsolidation
      Growth of power
      Renewed decentralization
      Relations with the Muslim states
    - Decline of Vijayanagar
      Military policies
      Loss of central control
      Breakup of the empire
    - Administration of the empire
- The Mughal Empire, 1526–1761
  - The significance of Mughal rule
  - The establishment of the Mughal Empire
    - Bābur
      Conquest of Hindustan
      Bābur’s achievements
    - Humāyūn
    - Sher Shah and his successors
    - Restoration of Humāyūn
  - The reign of Akbar the Great
    - Extension and consolidation of the empire
      The early years
      Struggle for firm personal control
      Subjugation of Rajasthan
      Conquest of Gujarat and Bengal
      The frontiers
    - The state and society under Akbar
      Central, provincial, and local government
      The composition of the Mughal nobility
      Organization of the nobility and the army
      Revenue system
      Fiscal administration
      Coinage
      Evolution of a nonsectarian state
    - Akbar in historical perspective
  - The empire in the 17th century
    - Jahāngīr
      Loss of Kandahār
      Submission of Mewar
      Developments in the Deccan
      Rebellion of Khurram (Shah Jahān)
      Mahābat Khan’s coup
    - Shah Jahān
      The Deccan problem
      Central Asian policy
      War of succession
    - Aurangzeb
      Local and peasant uprisings
      Assessment of Aurangzeb
  - Mughal decline in the 18th century
    - The Sikh uprisings
    - Cracks in the core
    - Struggle for a new power center
    - The emperor, the nobility, and the provinces
    - Nādir Shah’s invasion
    - The Afghan-Maratha struggle for northern India
    - Political and economic decentralization during the Mughal decline
- Regional states, c. 1700–1850
  - The Marathas
    - Early history
    - Rise of the peshwas
    - Subordinate Maratha rulers
    - Mughal mystique in the 18th century
      The case of Mysore
      Challenge from the northwest
  - The Afghan factor in northern India, 1747–72
  - The Sikhs in the Punjab
    - Early history
    - From Banda Singh Bahadur to Ranjit Singh
  - Rajasthan in the 18th century
  - The south: Travancore and Mysore
  - Politics and the economy
  - Cultural aspects of the late precolonial order
- India and European expansion, c. 1500–1858
  - European activity in India, 1498–c. 1760
    - The Portuguese
    - The Dutch
    - The British, 1600–1740
    - The French
    - The Anglo-French struggle, 1740–63
    - European military superiority
    - Revolution in Bengal
  - The extension of British power, 1760–1856
    - The period of disorder, 1760–72
    - The Company Bahadur
    - The company and the state
    - Relations with the Marathas and Mysore
    - The ascent to paramountcy
      The government of Lord Wellesley
      The government of Lord Minto
      The government of Lord Hastings
      The settlement of 1818
    - Organization and policy in British India
      Organization
      The determination of policy
    - The completion of dominion and expansion
    - The first century of British influence
      Political effects
      Economic effects
      Social effects
      Cultural effects
  - The mutiny and great revolt of 1857–59
    - Nature and causes of the rebellion
    - The revolt and its aftermath
- British imperial power, 1858–1947
  - Climax of the raj, 1858–85
    - Government of India Act of 1858
    - Social policy
    - Government organization
    - Economic policy and development
  - Foreign policy
    - The northwest frontier
    - The Second Anglo-Afghan War
    - The incorporation of Burma
  - Indian nationalism and the British response, 1885–1920
    - Origins of the nationalist movement
    - The early Congress movement
    - The first partition of Bengal
    - Nationalism in the Muslim community
    - Reforms of the British Liberals
    - Moderate and militant nationalism
  - World War I and its aftermath
    - India’s contributions to the war effort
    - Anti-British activity
    - The postwar years
    - Jallianwala Bagh massacre
    - Gandhi’s strategy
  - Prelude to independence, 1920–47
    - Constitutional reforms
    - The Congress’s ambivalent strategy
    - Muslim separatism
    - The impact of World War II
    - British wartime strategy
  - The transfer of power and the birth of two countries
- The Republic of India
  - The Nehru era, 1947–64
    - Government and politics
    - Foreign policy
    - Economic planning and development
  - Post-Nehru politics and foreign policy
    - The 1965 war with Pakistan
    - Indira Gandhi’s impact
    - The Bangladesh war
    - Emergency rule
    - The Janata interlude and the return of Indira Gandhi
    - Sikh separatism
  - From Rajiv to Rao: India from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s
    - The premiership of Rajiv Gandhi
    - Foreign policy
    - V.P. Singh’s coalition—its brief rise and fall
    - Congress government of P.V. Narasimha Rao
  - India since the mid-1990s
    - The first and second BJP governments
      The BJP becomes the largest party in the Lok Sabha
      BJP gains in elections
      Divisiveness of BJP government
    - Congress Party rule under Manmohan Singh
      Domestic policy
      Foreign policy
    - Return of the BJP under Narendra Modi
      Monetary and tax reforms
      BJP reelection bids and tensions in Kashmir
      Addressing COVID-19 and its economic impact
Pre-Mughal Indian dynasties
Prime ministers of India

References & Edit History Facts & Stats

Images, Videos & Interactives

Agra, India: Taj Mahal

Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India: fort

Timeline of the Indian Independence Movement

Mumbai, India: Gateway of India monument

Himachal Pradesh, India: Kullu Valley

Physical features of India

For Students

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India: Facts & Stats

Written and fact-checked by The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

India, officially known as the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It became the world's most populous country in 2023, overtaking China. India gained independence from British colonial rule in 1947, and since then has become a constitutional republic. The country is known for its highly diverse culture, numerous languages, and religions. Additionally, India is recognized for its contributions to science, technology, and arts.

Facts

Also Known As	Bhāratavarsha • Republic of India • Bhārat
Head Of Government	Prime Minister: Narendra Modi
Capital	New Delhi
Population	(2024 est.) 1,384,380,000
Currency Exchange Rate	1 USD equals 83.492 Indian rupee
Head Of State	President: Droupadi Murmu
Form Of Government	multiparty federal republic with two legislative houses (Council of States [245¹]; House of the People [545²])
Official Languages	Hindi; English
Official Religion	none
Official Name	Bharat (Hindi); Republic of India (English)
Total Area (Sq Km)	3,287,469
Total Area (Sq Mi)	1,269,292
Monetary Unit	Indian rupee ₨³
Urban-Rural Population	Urban: (2018) 34% • Rural: (2018) 66%
Life Expectancy At Birth	Male: (2021–2025) 69.4 years • Female: (2021–2025) 72.7 years
Literacy: Percentage Of Population Age 15 And Over Literate	Male: (2018) 82% • Female: (2018) 66%
Gni Per Capita (U.S.$)	(2023) 2,540
¹Includes 12 members appointed by the president.²Includes 2 Anglo-Indians appointed by the president.³The first symbol for the rupee was officially approved in July 2010, and coins and banknotes with the new symbol began being issued in late 2011.

Top Questions

Which state is known as the "fruit bowl" of India?

Himachal Pradesh is known as the "fruit bowl" of India due to its large production of fruits like apples, peaches, and plums.

Who was the first European to reach India by sea?

Vasco da Gama, a Portuguese explorer, was the first European to reach India by sea, arriving in Calicut in 1498.

Who is known as the "Father of the Nation" in India?

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi is known as the "Father of the Nation" in India.

What is the national bird of India?

The national bird of India is the Indian peafowl, also known as the peacock.

How old is Hinduism, the primary religion practiced in India?

The roots and customs of Hinduism date back more than 4,000 years, making it one of the oldest religious traditions in the world.

Did You Know?

The ancient game of chess originated in India.
India was the world's sole diamond source until the 18th century.
The Indian state of Madhya Pradesh once rewarded police for growing moustaches.

Photos and Videos

Agra, India: Taj Mahal

Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India: fort

Mumbai, India: Gateway of India monument

Himachal Pradesh, India: Kullu Valley

Physical features of India

Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India: Nagin Lake

Learn about the history and architecture of India's disappearing stepwells

Language, architecture, and culture in the Indus River basin

Educating India's large population: Challenges and solutions

What does India's Independence Day celebrate?

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National anthem of India

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