Indus Valley Civilisation

The Indus Valley Civilisation (IVC), also known as the Indus Civilisation, was a Bronze Age civilisation in the northwestern regions of South Asia, lasting from 3300 BCE to 1300 BCE. Together with ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, it was one of the earliest great civilisations in the Near East and South Asia. It was the most widespread, stretching across much of modern-day Pakistan, northwestern India, and northeast Afghanistan.

This ancient society was known for its well-planned cities, such as Mohenjo-daro and Harappa. These cities had advanced features like baked brick houses, good drainage systems, and reliable water supplies. They were among the largest settlements in the world at that time.

The Indus Valley Civilisation thrived near the Indus River and other rivers that brought water to the region. Over time, changes in the climate and shrinking water sources helped end this great civilisation. Even though we have found many of its cities and artifacts, we still do not fully understand the language used by its people because their writing has not yet been decoded.

Etymology

The Indus Valley Civilisation is named after the Indus River system, where its early sites were first found.

It is also called the Harappan civilisation, after the site of Harappa, which was the first to be excavated in the 1920s. Some people call it the "Indus-Sarasvati Civilisation," linking it to an ancient river, but studies show this river was often dry.

Extent

The Indus Valley Civilisation was one of the world's earliest big societies. They lived along the Indus River and nearby areas. It existed when Ancient Egypt was along the Nile, Mesopotamia was between the Euphrates and Tigris rivers, and China was near the Yellow River and Yangtze rivers. At its peak, the Indus Valley Civilisation covered a large area. It stretched from Balochistan to Gujarat and from Afghanistan to parts of modern-day India.

Big cities like Mohenjo-daro and Harappa may have had many people. The civilisation included many regions such as the Punjab region, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Sindh. Settlements were near rivers, old coastlines, and even on islands.

Discovery and history of excavation

The first modern discovery of the Indus Valley Civilisation began with Charles Masson. In 1829, he explored the Punjab region and found the ancient city of Harappa. He made notes and drawings of the site’s artifacts. Later, Alexander Burnes noted the baked bricks used in Harappa’s buildings.

Archaeological work became more organized in 1861 with the founding of the Archaeological Survey of India. John Marshall led major excavations starting in the 1920s, first at Harappa and then at Mohenjo-daro. These digs uncovered many important artifacts. They showed that this was a large and advanced ancient civilisation. After the partition of India in 1947, most of these sites were in Pakistan. International teams continued the work there.

Chronology

Main article: Periodisation of the Indus Valley Civilisation

The Indus Valley Civilisation was an ancient society in parts of Pakistan, northwest India, and northeast Afghanistan. It began around 3300 BCE and ended around 1300 BCE. Its most active time was from 2600 to 1900 BCE. People lived in large, planned cities and traded with distant places.

Scholars describe this civilisation in different ways. One common way is to split it into three phases: Early, Mature, and Late Harappan. Another way looks at four eras, from when people first learned to farm until smaller, local groups formed.

Pre-Harappan era: Mehrgarh

Main article: Mehrgarh

See also: Neolithic Revolution

Mehrgarh is an ancient mountain site in Pakistan. It helps us learn about the early days of the Indus Valley Civilisation. It dates back to around 7000 BCE. It is one of the earliest places in South Asia where people began farming and raising animals.

The people of Mehrgarh grew crops and kept animals. They had strong links to farming communities far away. Researchers think Mehrgarh shared some traditions with these places. It also developed its own special ways of living. This makes it an important early centre of civilisation in the area.

Early Harappan

The Early Harappan Ravi Phase, named after the nearby Ravi River, lasted from around 3300 BCE until 2800 BCE. It began when farmers from the mountains moved between their homes and the river valleys. This phase is linked to the Hakra Phase in the Ghaggar-Hakra River Valley and came before the Kot Diji Phase (2800–2600 BCE), named after a site in northern Sindh, Pakistan, near Mohenjo-daro. The earliest examples of the Indus script date back to this time.

Villages such as Rehman Dheri and Amri in Pakistan show the mature phase of early cultures. Kot Diji marks the lead-up to the Mature Harappan phase, with a citadel showing central authority and an urban lifestyle. Another town from this stage was found at Kalibangan in India. Trade networks connected these people with others, bringing in materials like lapis lazuli for making beads. By this time, people had crops such as peas, sesame seeds, dates, and cotton, along with animals like the water buffalo. Early Harappan communities grew into large cities by 2600 BCE, starting the Mature Harappan phase. The later Early Harappan period saw big walled settlements, expanded trade, and more unified styles of pottery, ornaments, and stamp seals with the Indus script.

Mature Harappan

The Mature Harappan phase was the best time for the Indus Valley Civilisation. It showed great urban planning and culture. Cities like Harappa, Mohenjo-daro, and Dholavira were well-organized. They had good drainage systems, public baths, and grid layouts. These cities show that people cared about public health and were very organized.

The civilisation covered a large area. It included parts of modern-day Pakistan, northwest India, and northeast Afghanistan. It grew along the Indus River and its smaller rivers. The people used seasonal rains and river flooding to help their farms. Even without advanced irrigation, the Harappans could support big cities through farming and trade. The cities were home to traders and artisans. Evidence suggests that people lived fairly equally, with access to resources for everyone.

Late Harappan

Around 1900 BCE, the Indus Valley Civilisation began to weaken, and by 1700 BCE, most of its cities were left empty. During this time, smaller local cultures grew in different areas. These included the Cemetery H culture in Punjab, Haryana, and Western Uttar Pradesh, the Jhukar culture in Sindh, and the Rangpur culture in Gujarat.

Some larger Late Harappan towns, like Kudwala in Cholistan and Bet Dwarka in Gujarat, carried on but were smaller than the great cities before. There was less trade over long distances, but farming changed with new crops and ways of growing them. Pottery from this time still looked a bit like the older styles but had its own special looks. Many of the old city services, like drains, were not taken care of anymore, and some valuable things were hidden away, which might show there was some trouble.

Post-Harappan

Main article: Iron Age in India

The decline of the Indus Valley Civilisation did not mean an end to urban life in the region. Many parts of the Indus culture continued in later cultures. The Cemetery H culture appeared in areas such as Punjab, Haryana, and western Uttar Pradesh, while the Ochre Coloured Pottery culture spread from Rajasthan into the Gangetic Plain.

Archaeological evidence shows that some parts of the Late Harappan culture lasted until around 1000–900 BCE. The settlement of Pirak stayed active from 1800 BCE until the time of Alexander the Great in 325 BCE. After the Indus civilisation weakened, new regional cultures grew, still influenced by the earlier Indus traditions. People from the Indus Valley moved toward the Himalayan foothills in the Ganga-Yamuna basin.

Genetics

In 2019, scientists studied DNA from an ancient skeleton found in Rakhigarhi, Haryana, India. The skeleton dated back to around 2,800–2,300 BCE. They found that this person's DNA was mostly related to ancient Iranian hunter-gatherers, with some connection to the Andamanese Hunter Gatherers. The DNA did not match the ancestry of many modern South Asians from western regions. The findings show that this ancient person's genetic makeup is similar to many South Asians today.