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India
Things to Know
Bharat (in Hindi) and Republic of India (in English)
The India subcontinent is a peninsula that juts
southward from Asia into the Indian Ocean.
India is the second
most populated
country in the world with over a billion people.
Animals
In India, monkeys are treated as very special animals, sometimes they
are even considered holy. The
Life of Hanuman the monkey deity.
The commonest species of monkeys found in India are the rhesus
monkey and the Hanuman
monkey, a type of langur. Another type of monkey, the lion-tailed
macaque or wanderoo, is found in a small area of southern India.
Hoolock
Gibbon (India's only ape)
Sloth Bear
Indian
Gazelle / Chinkara-The smallest asiatic antelope.
Red pandas look more like raccoons than their closest relative - the giant
panda. (Eastern India's Himalayan Mt.)
Asiatic Lion (
now found only in the Gir Forest of Saurashtra, Gujarat)
Indian
One-Horned Rhinoceros
Climate
India has a lot of huge earthquakes, floods, and droughts.
Land
*North India (Indo-Gangetic Plain and Himalayas)
The
Himalaya Mountains
India is separated from the rest of Asia by the immense Himalayan
ranges in the north.
The Himalayas are the highest mountains on earth, towering more than
8000 meters. The tallest peaks of the Himalayas are always covered
with snow. The word Himalaya means "the home or abode of
snow." No plant life grows near the mountain's peak due to
powerful winds, extremely cold temperatures, and a lack of oxygen.
The Himalayas include Mount Everest, the tallest mountain in the
world which is on the border between Nepal and China.
Taj
Mahal is the most well preserved and architecturally beautiful
tomb in the world located in Agra in Northern India.
Plants
National Fruit of India-Mango
In northern India, grow a wide variety of
broadleaf trees, such as alder, birch, laurel, and maple, and
conifers. The area is also known for its rhododendrons, bamboo, and
dwarf willow. Juniper, silver birch, and silver fir are abundant in
the uppermost, alpine environment of the western Himalaya. Further
down the mountain slopes grow forests of spruce, silver fir, and
deodar (East Indian cedar). Sal forests dominate the lowest regions
and the Ganges region, providing a wood much used in the furniture
industry. Tall grasses and forests of bamboo grow in the Brahmaputra
and Surma valleys of Assam. Assam is also one of the original homes
of the mango, a commercially important fruit of south and east Asia.
In the valleys of the Himalaya, farmers grow apple, apricot, peach,
pear, and walnut trees.
Languages
One of the main political
issues in Indian politics is connected to language problems. India has a total of 1652 different languages and dialects.
Hindi and English are the co-official national languages of India. In
addition, the Indian government recognizes 18 languages as official;
Hindi is the most widely spoken.
Official Languages
of India Map
Read
The
Birth Of The Ganges
Legend on the beginning of the Ganges River.
Gandhi's life was dedicated to the ideals of Truth, Non-violence and Love. He
was the architect of India's freedom and one of the greatest men of
the 20th century.
Games
Himalayan
Hike Game
Answer multiple-choice questions about India's animals correctly to
scale the Himalayan peaks (PBS).
Hippy Monkey
Grab the bananas before the Hippo gets them. Watch out for the
hippo's breath.
Festivals
Holi
A Hindu festival observed all over the North. It
heralds the end of winter.
Dussehra
and Durga Puja
Every region observes this 10-day festival. It
symbolizes the triumph of good over evil.
Diwali,
the Festival of Lights
Indian
Holidays and Religious Festivals (An Explanatory Listing)
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