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SS: Topic 4
Topic 4: Ancient India Vocabulary List
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| Subcontinent | a large landmass that is set apart from the rest of the continent |
| Monsoons | seasonal winds in South and Southeast Asia |
| Citadel | fortified area |
| Granary | special building used to hold to grain |
| Veda | collection of hundreds of sacred hymns composed by the Aryans of ancient India |
| Sanskrit | language of the sacred literature of the Indo-Aryans, ancestral to many modern languages in India |
| Caste | fixed social class into which a person is born |
| Varna | grouping based on one’s skill |
| Jati | occupation-based caste |
| Brahmins | a varna that represents priests and teachers |
| “Untouchables” | existing outside of the jatis, members of this group traditional did work considered impure and were of low social status |
| Hindu | name given to people of India by Persian traders |
| Brahmanism | religion of Vedic India, based on priests and rituals, particularly sacrifices to the gods |
| Guru | Guru |
| Brahman | supreme cosmic consciousness, spiritual force, or God |