South Asia Unit

The subcontinent

A closer look at the breakdown of India…

India is a Federal Union of States

• 28 States• Elected

governments

• 7 Union Territories• Administered

directly by the government

Disputed Regions, States, and Union Territories

European Imperialism in South Asia

1. Northern Mountains

Himalayas Hindu Kush

Northern Mountains

Separate South Asia from the rest of the continent• Himalayas– Contains some of the

world’s tallest mountains• Mt. Everest – tallest

in the world

• Hindu Kush– Smaller than Himalayas– But almost as high– “kush” = death– Khyber Pass – access to

subcontinent

Kashmir Valley

• High valleys among the mountains• Kashmir Valley – produces wool known in the

west as Cashmere

2. The Northern Plains

The Northern PlainsA.K.A. Indo-Gangetic Plain

• 3 major rivers – Indus–Ganges–Brahmaputra

Indus River• Principal river of

Pakistan – Many live in the

river basin

• Indus Valley civilization– Earliest in the

region

• “Indus” = river– Source of the

name India

Ganges River

• Begins in the Himalayas

• Joins the Brahmaputra in Bangladesh

• Holiest River - Ritual purification in the Ganges

“Mata Ganga” (Mother Ganges)

Brahmaputra River

• Joins the Ganges in Bangladesh• Ends in the Bay of Bengal• Vulnerable to flooding

3. Thar Desert

• 100,000 sq. mi. (size of Colorado)• Barren landscape

Jaisalmer Located in the state of Rajasthan

“The Golden City”

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/08/Jaisalmer2008.jpg

People of the Thar Desert

4. Deccan Plateau

Bordered by two mountain ranges•Vindhyas•Ghats

Vindhya Mountains & The Ghats

Vindhyas• Separate the Deccan

Plateau from Northern Plain• Boundary between

Northern and Southern India

• Rugged but relatively low

Ghats• Named for the many ghats

(passes) that run through them

Deccan Plateau

MONSOONS

• Seasonal wind that dominates the climate of South Asia

• “monsoon” = season in Arabic• Summer = wet monsoon• Winter = dry monsoon

–Wet, summer monsoons• June

– Land heats the air air rises cool moist air from the sea flows across land to bring rain

• Central India receives more than 90% of its total annual precipitation

• Southern and northwestern India receiving 50%-75% of their total annual rainfall

–Dry, winter monsoons

• October– Cool air from

mountains sinks winds blow back to the sea dry air crosses subcontinent mild season follows

• Himalayas act as a huge wall blocking this cold weather and causing high temperatures

Impact on the People?

Impact on the People?

• Famine– It is important that the monsoon comes on

time– If the monsoon is late, the seeds planted

may die and cause FAMINE

• Floods– If the monsoon brings too much rain, rivers

can overflow–Most common in the low lands of

Bangladesh where the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers meet

Flooding in Bangladesh

• http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-22537615

• http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2013/jan/23/bangladesh-floods-harbingers-disaster