A - Z For India

Some animals are sacred in India Many Hindu Gods take their forms from animals. Cows are allowed to wander around the streets. They are important to the Indian people because they are gentle, motherly and give milk. The tiger is the symbol of power.

Elephants are used in weddings and other ceremonies. Indian elephants have small ears they are gentle and able to carry people.

Bollywood is the Indian film industry. It got it’s name from the American film industry Hollywood. Bollywood films are made in Mumbai. They are a mixture of dance, song, romance and adventure.

They make more movies every year in India than any other country in the world. Brightly coloured posters advertise Bollywood movies

India has three main seasons. Summer is from March to May, the monsoon season from June to September and winter from October to February The Indian climate ranges from tropical to arctic. During the monsoon season the weather is very hot and humid. In the mountains the winter is cold. In the Thar Desert in the North-west it does not rain for years.

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Diwali is India’s most important festival and honours different Gods. Lakshmi – the Goddess of wealth and beauty is honoured in many parts of India. It is a new beginning, like a New year. Indian people place small oil lamps (diyas) around their home, clean and decorate their house, pay their bills, buy new clothes and enjoy letting off fireworks and crackers. Having a meal with family is important Diwali is held between October and November at the end of the Monsoon season.

Education in India is free for children aged 6 to 14 years. Students usually study Hindi, English, Maths, Science, Social Studies and Health Schools range from very poor in rural areas to very rich in the cities in the cities. Children from poor families often do not go to school. They have to help their families or may live a long way from the nearest school. In India there are many fine Universities that set very high standards.

in India varies according to the seasons, the peoples religion and the place they live. Many Indians are vegetarians but some eat chicken, fish, lamb and goat. in Indians like curries with yoghurt as a side dish to cool down the curry. Spices are added for flavour. A typical meal would be dhal, pickles, crisp pappadams, rice and chapattis. They eat with their right hand. The left hand is thought to be unclean.

Fresh fruit and vegetables are brought at the markets. Fruit juice can be brought from a roadside stall.

Mohandos Gandhi was called Mahatma Gandhi. Mahatma means ‘ Great father’. He was an important person because he helped India to gain independence and be a free country. He refused to obey unfair laws passed by the British. He called this ‘passive resistance’. The people loved him because he shared their simple life. He was born in 1869 and was assassinated in 1948.

IMALAYAS

The Himalayas are the tallest mountains on Earth. Mount Everest is the tallest mountain. It is 8848 meters high! It is so high the snow never melts on it’s peak. The Himalayas form a wall between India and the neighboring countries. Himalayas means ‘abode of snow’.

Information Official Name – Republic of India Capital – New Delhi Government – Federal Republic

The Indian flag has 3 stripes Orange – courage; White – peaceGreen fertility. Buddhist emblem dharma chakra in centre.

Head of Government – Prime Minister Currency – Indian Rupee Population – 1,129,866,154 (July 2007 est) Languages – Hindi (national language); English (political, commercial language) + 14 other official languages Religions – Hindu 80%; Muslim 13.4%; Christian 2.3% Sikh 1.9% Natural resources– India produces 50% of world’s iron ore and mica Exports – Textiles, gems, jewellery, engineering goods, chemicals Imports – Crude oil, petroleum products, machinery, fertilizer

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Jaipur is the capital city of the northern Indian state of Rajasthan. Jaipur is called the ‘pink city’ because of the many buildings that are painted pink.. The most famous is the ‘Palace of the winds’ where the Royal women could watch parades without being seen. It is famous for it’s textiles, gemstones and handmade paper. It is the home of ‘Anokhi’ which exports clothes around the world..

Kolan is also known as RANGOLI It is the art of decorating the floor using different colours to make patterns. Kolan are made during the festival of Pongal which is celebrated in South India.

Kolan is made with rice flour, flowers, coloured powder and leaves. The women make the Kolan and place it at the front door to welcome the Gods and protect the building from harm.

Location The country of India is the 7th largest geographical area in the world. It is bordered by Indian Ocean in the South , Pakistan in the West China, Nepal, Bhutan in the North East & Bangladesh, Burma in the East

India is one of the most important industrial nations in the world.

The Taj Mahal is the most famous monument in India It was built by the Mughal Emperor Shah Johan as a burial place for his wife Mumtaz Mahal It took 21 years to build and it demonstrates the beauty of Islamic architecture. It is built of white marble and semi precious stones. The Taj Mahal is in Agra the old capital of India.

It is the 8th Wonder of the World.

Delhi is the gateway of India. It is the third largest city. When the British ruled India in the 19th and 20th century they made Delhi their capital. It is two cities in one – Old Delhi and New Delhi New Delhi has tree lined streets, palaces, large government buildings, many mosques, a fort and other monuments. Old Delhi has narrow twisting streets that are crowded with people, bicycles and animals.

– y r o t a v Obser

Jantar

Mantar

One of the world’s great astronomical marvels. It is an open air observatory, and looks like a lot of stone puzzles, but is actually a system of sundials and star-gazing instruments which measure the position of the sun and stars. It was built in the 18th century and is in Jaipur.

There are different groups of people in India. Each has it’s own religion, customs and language. One in 7 of the world’s population lives in India. Some of the people are very wealthy, there is a growing middle class but 77% are very poor and live on less than 20 rupees (44 cents AUD) a day. Two thirds are farmers . Families are the most important group in India and quite often 3 generations live in the one house.

The men wear Kurta – a shirt with no collar and sometimes Dhoti a loincloth. Men seen wearing turbans in public are usually Sikhs.

The Sari is the traditional dress for women

QUTAB MINAR Qutab Minar is the tallest minaret in the world, and is 72.5 metres high and has 399 steps to the top.. It is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Construction was started in 1193- was then stopped and 3 more stories were added in 1368. Historians are not sure why it was built – it could have been a victory tower or a watch tower for defence, or a regular minaret in a mosque.

The major rivers in India are :Gange; Saraswati; Sindhu; Godavari; Narmada and Yamuna. One of India’s most sacred rivers is the Ganga or Ganges river. The Ganges is called the ‘Mother river’. Two rivers join to make the start of the sacred river the Ganges. The Ganges flows 2,500 kilometers from the Gangotri glacier to the Bay of Bengal.

The Hindus make pilgrimages to the Ganges and believe that bathing in it helps to wash away their sins.

Many Indian people love sport. Cricket is a passion in India. Cricket is played everywhere. Many people cannot afford a TV set so families get together to watch the Indian team play in international cricket games. Soccer, chess and polo are other popular sports. In their leisure time Indians like going to the cinema to watch a Bollywood movie.

In India only the wealthy can afford cars, so ride mopeds and scooters. The whole family often travels on one scooter. Others travel on the back of a truck, go on local busses, ride bicycles or on trains. The trains are cheap and very crowded. Passengers stand and sit everywhere, even on the roof of the carriages. The railway system is large with over 60,000 of track In the rural areas people use bullock carts or walk. There are 3 airlines for international and local travel

Umbrella’s are used in India to protect from the heavy rains and the hot sun.

Colourful umbrella’s are made in small villages and sold to tourists.

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Three out of four people in India live in a village. India is known as the country of villages or small farms.

Village houses are small and made of brick, concrete, or cow dung mixed with chopped straw. Some people sleep outside when it is hot. They wash in the nearby river or go to the ghat or washing spot. Farmers grow cereals and vegetables , they keep animals for milk and dung. The women and men do different tasks and children help with the work.

In India the monsoons bring heavy rain but sometimes cause floods and people and animals die. In the dry season there is too little water. Village people do not have tap water in their house. Most villages have a well and the people fetch water every day in big containers. that are carried on their head. Sometimes fresh water is pumped into a village for a few hours every day.

Xmas is celebrated by many people in India. In Northern India it is celebrated on 25th December and in southern India in January. The Indian name for Christmas is ‘Bada Din' (Big Day).

Churches are decorated with red poinsettia flowers and small oil burning lamps are lit. People decorate banana or mango trees because there are no pine trees. Some people give things to the poor this is called ‘Baksheesh’.

Yoga is a group of spiritual practices and meditation that started in India. Yoga is a Hindu philosophy. Yoga is practised all over the world.

In other cultures it is a ‘system of postures and breathing exercises to achieve control of the mind and body’*. * Dictionary definition

Zero

0

In the 4th century the number zero was discovered in India. It comes from an Indian text Lakavibhaaga ( the parts of the universe). It dates back to 458 BC. 00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000 0

Zero is the blank on a counting board and without it we wouldn’t have computers and it would be difficult to count.

This Power Point was made in 2007 by the Children in Year six at St Monica’s Primary School, Footscray

To get the information for this A- Z of India, we searched the internet and looked in books. We interviewed our teacher Mrs Catterall and used her photos and the photos of other teachers who went to India on the Linking Latitudes Conference in 2007