The Hindu temple of DeviJagadambi in Khajuraho, India

c. 1500 B.C.The Aryansinvade India

563 B.C.The Buddha is born

EEarly arly IIndiandia

2500 B.C. 1500 B.C. 500 B.C. A.D. 5002500 B.C. 1500 B.C. 500 B.C. A.D. 500

c. 3000 B.C.India’s firstcivilizationbegins

A.D. 320The Guptaempire begins

Dav

id C

umm

ing/

CO

RB

IS

190-193 CH6 CO-824133 3/22/04 10:48 AM Page 190

Chapter PreviewLike ancient Greece, early India was a land of warriors,

thinkers, and scientists. Read this chapter to find out howideas from India affect how you do math today.

View the Chapter 6 video in the World History: JourneyAcross Time Video Program.

Chapter Overview Visitjat.glencoe.com for a previewof Chapter 6.

Identifying Make this foldable to help you identify and learn key terms.

Reading and WritingAs you read the chapter,write the terms fromBuilding Your Vocabularyin your foldable. Write adefinition for each term.Then turn your foldableover (upside down) towrite a short sentenceusing each term.

Step 1 Stack four sheetsof paper, one on top ofthe other. On the topsheet of paper, draw alarge circle.

Step 2 Withthe papers stillstacked, cutout all fourcircles at thesame time.

Step 3 Staple the paper circles togetherat one point around the edge.

Step 4 Label thefront circle as shownand take notes on the pages that open to the right.

Chapter 6Key

Terms

This makesa circularbooklet.

Staplehere.

191

India’s First CivilizationsThe earliest Indian civilization developed on theIndus River. Later, the Aryans invaded northernIndia. They changed the government and created a new social system.

Hinduism and BuddhismIndia’s two main religions were Hinduism andBuddhism. These two religions affected every aspectof people’s lives.

India’s First EmpiresIndia had two great empires: the Maurya and theGupta. The Mauryans helped spread Buddhismthroughout Asia. Art and learning flourished duringthe Gupta empire.

190-193 CH6 CO-824133 3/22/04 10:50 AM Page 191

VocabularyVocabulary

Building Your VocabularyWhat do you do when you are reading and come to a word you do not know? Here are some hints:1. Use clues in the sentence (called context clues) to help you define it.2. Look for prefixes, suffixes, or root words that you already know.3. Look it up in the glossary or a dictionary.4. Write it down and ask for help with the meaning.5. Guess at its meaning.

Look at the word Untouchables in the following paragraph.

192

There was one group so low that it wasnot even part of the caste system. Itsmembers were called Pariahs, or theUntouchables. They performed workother Indians thought was too dirty, suchas collecting trash, skinning animals, orhandling dead bodies.

—from page 200

Context If you knowwhat the caste systemis, it will help you fig-ure out the meaningof Untouchables.Context The

“Untouchables”were a “group.”They had a “low”rank in society.

Context The factthat they performedthe “dirty” work indi-cates how they wereviewed by others inIndian society.

Prefixes and SuffixesYou might know that theprefix un- means “not”and the suffix -ablemeans “to be able to.”You might guess that themeaning of Untouchableis an Indian who was notto be touched by others.

Read the paragraphs

that appear before and

after the word to help

you understand its

meaning.

190-193 CH6 CO-824133 3/22/04 10:52 AM Page 192

Defining WordsWhat are three things you could do to help you understand

the meaning of the word subcontinent in this paragraph?

Take one word from thevocabulary bookmarkthat you make in theApply It! activity. Findits definition. Thencreate a cartoon strip.Have one of thecharacters in yourcartoon strip use theword correctly.

Read to Write

193

Look at the map below. Indialooks like a diamond hanging fromthe bottom of Asia. India is a sub-continent (SUHB • KAHN • tuhn • uhnt)

because even though it is part ofAsia, huge mountains make a barrier between India and the rest of Asia. These mountains are theHimalaya (HIH • muh • LAY • uh), thehighest mountains in the world.

—from page 195

Make a vocabulary bookmark using a2-inch-wide strip of paper. As youread the chapter, write down wordsyou do not know or want to find outmore about.

190-193 CH6 CO-824133 3/22/04 10:53 AM Page 193