India Names: India has been known by so many names in history, know how the country got so many names?

India Names: India is one of the few countries in the world whose identity is centuries old. This long history is reflected in the many names by which it has been known. Every name whether it is Bharat, Jambudweep, Hindustan or India did not come suddenly. Let us know how India got so many names.

oldest identity

One of the oldest names associated with India is Jambudweep. It is found in ancient and cosmic texts. According to the ancient Indian world view, the earth was divided into seven islands. Jambudweep was central in this. This word comes from Jambu and Dweep. Jambu means blackberry tree.

india and indiavarsha

The name Bharat has the deepest cultural significance. It is found in the Rigveda which initially referred to the Bharata tribe. With time it transformed into a geographical and cultural identity. According to Mahabharata, India got its name from King Bharat, son of Dushyant and Shakuntala. According to Jain traditions, this name was first received from Bharat Chakravarti, son of Jain Tirthankar Rishabhdev.

Aryavarta

In ancient Vedic literature, Northern India, especially the Indus Ganga plain, was called Aryavarta. It means the abode of the Aryans. This name reflected the early settlement pattern of Indo Aryan communities.

Hindustan

The name Hindustan came from outside India. The ancient Persians used to pronounce the Sanskrit word Sindhu as Hindu. Because in their language the sound ‘S’ was replaced with ‘H’. The land beyond the Indus river came to be known as Hind and later Hindustan.

India

The roots of the modern name India are also linked to the Indus River. The Greeks called this river Indos and the land east of it came to be known as India. The Greek historian Herodotus used this word in the fifth century BC. Much later, the British adopted India as the official name of the country in global diplomacy and administration. India was also known by many other names in different civilizations. There is also mention of Himavarsha or Ajnabhavarsha in ancient Puranas. It refers to the land south of the Himalayas which was named after King Nabhi. The ancient Chinese traveler Hiuen Tsang called India Tianzhu, which means heaven.

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