Social Science Notes Class 6 English Medium 2026-27

Social Science Chapter 5. India, That Is Bharat

CBSE Notes New Syllabus: Class 6

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Chapter 5. India, That Is Bharat

This chapter explores the ancient names of India and how the Indian Subcontinent was described by its inhabitants and foreign visitors. It explains the meanings and origins of names such as Sapta Sindhava, Bhāratavarṣha, Jambudvīpa, Bhārata, Hind, Indoi, India and Hindustān.

Chapter Review

Introduction

• India is an ancient land with a long and rich history.
• The geographical region of India has had different names at different points of history.
• The boundaries of the region we call India have also changed over time.
• The region is often referred to as the Indian Subcontinent.
• India has been known by different names both to its inhabitants and to people from outside.
• Ancient Indian texts provide important information about the names of India.
• Accounts of travellers and pilgrims also provide information about India.
• Inscriptions are another important source for understanding ancient names.
• The Ṛig Veda is one of the most ancient Indian texts.
• The Ṛig Veda mentions the name Sapta Sindhava for the northwestern region of the Subcontinent.
• Sapta Sindhava means the ‘land of the seven rivers’.
• The word Sindhava is derived from Sindhu.
• Sindhu refers to the Indus River and sometimes to a river in general.
• The Mahābhārata mentions many regions of the Indian Subcontinent.
• The Mahābhārata uses the terms Bhāratavarṣha and Jambudvīpa.
• Bhāratavarṣha refers to the entire Indian Subcontinent.
• Bhāratavarṣha means ‘the country of the Bharatas’.
• The name Bharata appears in the Ṛig Veda.
• Jambudvīpa means the ‘island of the fruit of the jamun tree’.
• Jambudvīpa later came to mean the Indian Subcontinent.
• In the time of Emperor Aśhoka, Jambudvīpa included a very large geographical region.
• Bhārata gradually became a commonly used name for the Indian Subcontinent.
• The Viṣhṇu Purāṇa describes Bhārata as the land north of the ocean and south of the snowy mountains.
• Ancient Tamil literature also gives a geographical description extending from the southern tip to the northern mountains and between the eastern and western oceans.
• Foreign visitors also gave names to India.
• The earliest foreign references to India came from the Persians.
• The Persians used names such as Hind, Hidu and Hindu.
• These Persian names were derived from Sindhu.
• In ancient Persian, Hindu was a geographical term and did not refer to the Hindu religion.
• The ancient Greeks used names such as Indoi and Indike.
• The Greek names were derived from the Persian form of Sindhu.
• The ancient Chinese used names such as Yintu and Yindu.
• The Chinese names also ultimately came from Sindhu.
• The term Tianzhu was another Chinese name associated with India.
• The term Hindustān was first used in a Persian inscription about 1,800 years ago.
• Hindustān later became a term used by many invaders to describe the Indian Subcontinent.
• Foreign names for India developed through different languages over time.
• The English name India is ultimately connected with the name Sindhu.
• India and Bharat are both official names of the country today.
• The Constitution of India begins with the phrase “India, that is Bharat”.
• The Hindi version uses the expression “Bhārat arthāth India”.
• The name Bharat has continued from ancient times to the present.
• The history of India's names reflects the country's geographical and cultural continuity.

Important Definitions

Ancient Names of India

India in the Ṛig Veda

• The Ṛig Veda is one of India's most ancient texts.
• It is several thousand years old.
• It refers to the northwestern region of the Subcontinent as Sapta Sindhava.
• Sapta Sindhava means the ‘land of the seven rivers’.
• The term is connected with the word Sindhu.
• Bharata is also a name found in the Ṛig Veda.
• In the Ṛig Veda, Bharata refers to one of the important Vedic groups of people.

India in the Mahābhārata

• The Mahābhārata is one of India's most famous ancient texts.
• It mentions numerous regions of the Indian Subcontinent.
• Examples include Kāshmīra, Kurukṣhetra, Vanga, Prāgjyotiṣha, Kaccha and Kerala.
• These regions together show a broad knowledge of the geography of the Subcontinent.
• The Mahābhārata uses the terms Bhāratavarṣha and Jambudvīpa.
• Bhāratavarṣha refers to the entire Subcontinent.
• Bhāratavarṣha means ‘the country of the Bharatas’.
• Jambudvīpa came to mean the Indian Subcontinent.

Jambudvīpa

• Jambudvīpa is an ancient name associated with India.
• The word Jambudvīpa refers to the island of the fruit of the jamun tree.
• The jamun tree is native to India.
• The term later came to refer to the Indian Subcontinent.
• In the time of Aśhoka, Jambudvīpa covered a large region.
• It included areas that are today part of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and parts of Afghanistan.

Bhāratavarṣha and Bhārata

• Bhāratavarṣha means ‘the country of the Bharatas’.
• The term appears in the Mahābhārata.
• The name Bharata appears earlier in the Ṛig Veda.
• Several kings named Bharata are also mentioned in later literature.
• Bhārata gradually became a commonly used name for the Indian Subcontinent.
• The name Bhārata remains in use today.
• In northern India it is generally written as Bharat.
• In southern India it is often written as Bharatam.

Geographical Description of Bhārata

• The Viṣhṇu Purāṇa gives a geographical description of Bhārata.
• It describes Bhārata as the country north of the ocean.
• It describes Bhārata as lying south of the snowy mountains.
• The snowy mountains refer to the Himalayas.
• Ancient Tamil literature also gives a broad geographical description of the land.
• The description extends from Cape Kumari in the south to the great mountain in the north.
• It also refers to the oceans on the east and west.

How Foreigners Named India

• Foreign visitors and invaders often derived the name of India from Sindhu.
• The Persians were among the earliest foreigners to mention India.
• In the 6th century BCE, the Persians gained control of the region around the Indus River.
• The Persians referred to the region as Hind, Hidu or Hindu.
• These names were adaptations of Sindhu in the Persian language.
• In ancient Persian, Hindu was a geographical term.
• It did not refer to the Hindu religion in this historical context.

Greek Names for India

• The ancient Greeks came to know of India through Persian sources and their own contacts.
• They used the names Indoi and Indike.
• These names developed from the Persian form of Sindhu.
• The initial ‘h’ sound of Hindu was dropped because the Greek language did not have that sound.

Chinese Names for India

• Ancient Chinese travellers and scholars interacted with India.
• Chinese texts used names such as Yintu and Yindu.
• These names also ultimately developed from Sindhu.
• Another Chinese term associated with India was Tianzhu.
• Tianzhu could also be understood as ‘heavenly master’.
• This reflected the respect that ancient Chinese had for India as the land of the Buddha.

Hindustān

• Hindustān is a more recent historical name for India.
• The term was first used in a Persian inscription about 1,800 years ago.
• Later, many invaders used Hindustān to describe the Indian Subcontinent.
• The word is connected to the earlier Persian usage of Hind.

Xuanzang and Chinese Travellers

• Xuanzang was a famous Chinese traveller who visited India.
• He travelled to India in the 7th century CE.
• He visited many parts of India.
• He met Indian scholars.
• He collected Buddhist texts.
• He returned to China after spending about 17 years in India.
• He translated manuscripts brought from India from Sanskrit into Chinese.
• Several other Chinese scholars also visited India over the centuries.

India and Bharat in the Constitution

• The Constitution of India recognises both India and Bharat.
• The original Constitution was written in English.
• It uses the phrase “India, that is Bharat” at the beginning.
• The Hindi version uses “Bhārat arthāth India”.
• The Constitution came into force in 1950.
• The continued use of Bharat connects the modern nation with its ancient historical tradition.

Important Name Chain

Sindhu → Hindu / Hind → Indoi / Indike → India

• Sindhu was associated with the Indus River.
• Persians adapted Sindhu into forms such as Hind and Hidu.
• Greeks developed forms such as Indoi and Indike.
• The name India ultimately developed through this chain of linguistic changes.

Important Differences

Quick Revision

• ✔ India is an ancient land with a long history.
• ✔ The region has been known by many names.
• ✔ The Indian Subcontinent has had changing boundaries over time.
• ✔ Sapta Sindhava means the ‘land of the seven rivers’.
• ✔ Sapta Sindhava is mentioned in the Ṛig Veda.
• ✔ Sindhu is associated with the Indus River.
• ✔ The Mahābhārata uses the terms Bhāratavarṣha and Jambudvīpa.
• ✔ Bhāratavarṣha means ‘the country of the Bharatas’.
• ✔ Jambudvīpa means the island of the fruit of the jamun tree.
• ✔ Jambudvīpa later came to mean the Indian Subcontinent.
• ✔ Bhārata became a widely used name for India.
• ✔ The Viṣhṇu Purāṇa describes Bhārata as lying north of the ocean and south of the snowy mountains.
• ✔ Persians used names such as Hind, Hidu and Hindu.
• ✔ Ancient Persian ‘Hindu’ was a geographical term in this context.
• ✔ Greeks used Indoi and Indike.
• ✔ Chinese sources used Yintu and Yindu.
• ✔ Tianzhu was another Chinese name associated with India.
• ✔ Hindustān was first used in a Persian inscription about 1,800 years ago.
• ✔ Xuanzang visited India in the 7th century CE.
• ✔ India and Bharat are both used as names of the country today.
• ✔ The Constitution begins with “India, that is Bharat”.

Exam Booster

• Remember the meaning and source of Sapta Sindhava.
• Learn the meanings of Bhāratavarṣha and Jambudvīpa.
• Remember that Bhāratavarṣha means ‘the country of the Bharatas’.
• Remember the connection between Bharata and the Ṛig Veda.
• Understand the geographical description of Bhārata in the Viṣhṇu Purāṇa.
• Learn how Sindhu developed into Hind, Indoi and eventually India.
• Remember that ‘Hindu’ in ancient Persian usage was a geographical term in this context.
• Remember the Greek names Indoi and Indike.
• Remember the Chinese names Yintu, Yindu and Tianzhu.
• Remember the historical origin and later use of the term Hindustān.
• Remember Xuanzang's visit to India and his contribution to the transmission of Buddhist texts.
• Remember the constitutional phrase “India, that is Bharat”.
• Understand that India's different names reflect its long geographical, cultural and historical continuity.