List of the states

Punjab

Punjab is an Indian state which was divided into two parts during independence and the partition decided by the British in 1947. The western part belongs to Pakistan while the eastern part has become a confederation state. Indian.

The origin of the name is found in the Sanskrit expression "panca-nada" which means "Five Rivers". These 5 rivers flow into the Indus and are called respectively Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Sutlej and Beas.

The region was known to the ancient Greeks who called it Pentapotamia.

Punjab which has the reputation of being one of the most fertile regions of the globe is the breadbasket of India and also the cradle of the Sikh religion founded by Guru Nanak. Sikkhism is a tolerant Monthéist religion rejecting the idea of ​​the superiority of any religion over all others.

Punjab history

Today's Punjab was part of the Indus Valley Civilization, a very refined civilization that lasted from 3000 BC to 1300 BC.

The Indus Valley civilization was followed by the Vedic civilization, giving the necessary impetus for the formation and synthesis of Hinduism.

Punjab has a very long history linked to Hinduism which has existed in the region since the earliest times in India. Punjab was known as Tirgarta around 800 BCE. The Punjab at the time was an important cultural and educational center, with many ashrams and renowned universities.

Old period

Punjab was invaded by Alexander the Great, King of Macedonia around 325 BC. Many cities were razed and many opponents were killed. However Alexander the Great, after a difficult conquest of the region made little effort to administer and conserve the conquered territories.

The Maurya Empire succeeded Alexander the Great. This empire, whose apogee was during the reign of the Buddhist emperor Ashoka, extended over a large part of present-day India. The Maurya were succeeded by the Guptas who themselves gave way to the Harsha empire.

Medieval period

It was at the beginning of the 8th century that the armies of the Umayyad Caliphate entered India. Punjab was conquered in 712 CE, and Muslims ruled the region for about 150 years. The region was then ruled by a succession of dynasties until the arrival of the Delhi Sultanate which invaded the region towards the end of the 12th century.

The decline of the Delhi Sultanate in the early 16th century coincided with the rise of the Mughal Empire which established control over the Punjab region in 1526 with a landslide victory over the last Delhi Sultan, Lodi.

The period of Mughal conquest in Punjab coincides with the life of Guru Nanak, the first guru of Sikkhism.

The Sikhs strongly opposed the Muslim rule of the Mughals and several gurus were executed.

Colonial period

The British East India Company annexed the Punjab in 1849 and in 1858 came under the direct domination of Great Britain.

If the English brought profound changes in the life of the Punjabi at the level of infrastructure and social organization (favoring the large landowners to the detriment of the poor peasants), they also plundered its wealth shamelessly. During this time, the differences between Muslims and Hindus have continued to grow and frequent clashes have punctuated relations between the communities.

These inter-community clashes added to the tensions with the British colonizer. A tragic event remains etched in all memories, the massacre of Amritsar in 1919 in which the British army fired on the crowd and killed more than a thousand people gathered peacefully in a city park.

Indian independence

The independence of India in 1947 led to the split of the Punjab which was divided according to religious criteria. The Muslims were gathered in the western part, which is now part of Pakistan, while the Sikhs and Hindus were given the eastern part, now the Indian Punjab.