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North India

North India is a geographic and linguistic-cultural region of India India

India , officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia [i]. ... 

. In traditional Indian geography, India is divided into five major zones: North India, North-East India North-East India

North-East India is the easternmost region of India [i] consisting of the contiguous Seven Sister States [i] ... 

, East India East India

East India is a region of India [i] consisting of the states of West Bengal [i], Orissa [i], and often Jharkhand [i] ... 

 , West India West India

West India is a region of India [i] consisting of the states [i] of Maharashtra [i] ... 

 and South India South India

South India is a linguistic-cultural region of India [i] that comprises the four Indian states [i] ... 

. The Vindhya Vindhya Range

The Vindhya Range [i] is a range of hills in central India [i], which geographically [i] separates t ... 

 mountains, in particular the line marked by the Narmada River Narmada River

The Narmada or Nerbudda is a river [i] in central India [i] in Indian subcontinent [i]. ... 

 and the Mahanadi River marks the southern boundary of north India. The line made by the Son river and the Kosi river marks its eastern border. The dominant geographic feature of northern India is the Indo-Gangetic Plain Indo-Gangetic plain

The Indo-Gangetic Plain is a rich, fertile and ancient land encompassing most of northern and eastern India [i] ... 

. However, the socio-cultural boundaries of north India have actually surpassed these traditional boundaries.

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North India is a geographic and linguistic-cultural region of India India

India , officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia [i]. ... 

. In traditional Indian geography, India is divided into five major zones: North India, North-East India North-East India

North-East India is the easternmost region of India [i] consisting of the contiguous Seven Sister States [i] ... 

, East India East India

East India is a region of India [i] consisting of the states of West Bengal [i], Orissa [i], and often Jharkhand [i] ... 

 , West India West India

West India is a region of India [i] consisting of the states [i] of Maharashtra [i] ... 

 and South India South India

South India is a linguistic-cultural region of India [i] that comprises the four Indian states [i] ... 

. The Vindhya Vindhya Range

The Vindhya Range [i] is a range of hills in central India [i], which geographically [i] separates t ... 

 mountains, in particular the line marked by the Narmada River Narmada River

The Narmada or Nerbudda is a river [i] in central India [i] in Indian subcontinent [i]. ... 

 and the Mahanadi River marks the southern boundary of north India. The line made by the Son river and the Kosi river marks its eastern border. The dominant geographic feature of northern India is the Indo-Gangetic Plain Indo-Gangetic plain

The Indo-Gangetic Plain is a rich, fertile and ancient land encompassing most of northern and eastern India [i]... 

.

However, the socio-cultural boundaries of north India have actually surpassed these traditional boundaries. As a linguistic-cultural and political region, North India consists of twelve Indian India

India , officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia [i]. ... 

 states: Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir

Jammu and Kashmir , is the northern-most state [i] of Republic of India [i] ... 

, Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh

Himachal Pradesh , formerly the Punjab Hill States [i], is a mostly mountainous state [i]... 

, Uttaranchal Uttaranchal

Uttaranchal became the 27th state [i] of the Republic of India [i] on November 9 [i] ... 

, Haryana Haryana

Haryana is a state [i] in north India [i]. ... 

, Punjab Punjab

Punjab may refer to:
  • Punjab region [i], an area of South Asia shared by India and Pakistan

... 

, Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh

Uttar Pradesh , also popularly known by its abbreviation U.P., means the 'northern province'.... 

, Bihar Bihar

Bihar is a state [i] of the India [i]n union situated in the eastern par ... 

, Jharkhand Jharkhand

Jharkhand is a state [i] in eastern India [i]. ... 

, Chhatisgarh Chhattisgarh

Chhattisgarh , a state [i] in central India [i], formed when the sixtee ... 

, Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh is a state [i] in central India [i]. ... 

 and Rajasthan Rajasthan

Rajasthan is the largest state [i] of the Republic of India [i] in ter ... 

  . The National Capital Territory of Delhi National Capital Territory of Delhi

The National Capital Territory of Delhi is a special Union Territory [i] of India [i]. ... 

 is also a part of northern India. It shares most of its cultural, historical, musical, and linguistic heritage with neighboring Pakistan Pakistan

[i] located in [[South Asia]... 

, which was part of the region prior to Partition.

North India remains primarily rural, but its vast population has ensured that it has always supported very large cities: apart from the great metropolis of Delhi Delhi

Delhi is a metropolis [i] in northern [i] India [i]. ... 

, the cities of Lucknow Lucknow

Lucknow is the capital city of the state of Uttar Pradesh [i], India [i]. ... 

, Patna Patna

Pa?na is the capital [i] of the India [i]n state [i] of Bihar [i] ... 

, Kanpur, Allahabad Allahabad

Allahabad is a city in the north India [i]n state of Uttar Pradesh [i].
... 

, Varanasi Varanasi

Vara?asi , also known as Benares, Banaras, or Benaras, or Kashi or Kasi, is a famous... 

, Meerut, Jaipur Jaipur

Jaipur , also popularly known as the Pink City [i], historically sometimes rendered ... 

, Chandigarh Chandigarh

Chandigarh also called The City Beautiful, is a city in India [i] that serves as the capital [i] of two ... 

, Ludhiana, Amritsar Amritsar

Amritsar, meaning "Pool of the Nectar of Immortality", is the administrative headquarter of the Amritsar District [i] ... 

, Jalandhar Jalandhar

Jalandhar is an ancient city in Jalandhar District [i] in the state of Punjab, India [i].... 

, Patiala Patiala

Patiala is a city in the Punjab [i] state of India [i].... 

, Jammu Jammu

Jammu is one of the three regions comprising the India [i]n state of Jammu and Kashmir [i]. ... 

, Bhopal Bhopal

Bhopal is a city in central India [i]. ... 

 and Indore would rank with the most populous cities of Europe.

People


Anthropologists often associate regional affinities with racial differences. South Indian or "Dravidian" states usually have people with darker skin. People in the states of Eastern Kashmir, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, and other Northeastern Indians states tend to look more East Asian East Asia

East Asia is a subregion [i] of Asia [i] that can be defined in either geographical [i] or cul ... 

. North India shows a stronger Aryan Aryan

Aryan is an English language [i] word derived from the Iranian [i] and Sanskrit [i] t... 

 influence. Indeed, the languages of northern India are preponderantly Indo-Aryan, and it is in this region that Sanskrit Sanskrit

The Sanskrit language is a classical language [i] of India [i], a liturgical language [i] ... 

 and the various Prakrits are thought to have first found a home in India. Also, although skin colour in all parts of India India

India , officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia [i]. ... 

 varies by caste rather than region, it is generally speaking the case that inhabitants of the north Indian states have lighter skin than those of their caste counterparts in southern or eastern India. These phenotypic variations are indubitably due to the ingress, across many millennia and in every era, of Central Asia Central Asia

Central Asia is a vast landlocked [i] region of Asia [i]. ... 

n invaders into the Indo-Gangetic

North India shows a fuller range of Caste  variation than does South India – there are proportionately more kshatriya Kshatriya

Kshatriya is the title of the princely military order in the Vedic [i] society. ... 

and vaishya castes than is generally the case in most areas of South India South India

South India is a linguistic-cultural region of India [i] that comprises the four Indian states [i] ... 

.

In terms of religion, North India is generally speaking a stronghold of Vaishnava Vaishnavism

Vaishnavism is one of the principal divisions of Hinduism [i]. ... 

 sects of Hinduism Hinduism

[i]
... 

; Shaktism and Shaivism Shaivism

Shaivism is a branch of Hinduism [i] in South India [i] that worships Shiva [i] as the supreme god [i]. ... 

 have a strong minority following in North India. Having been ruled for nearly eight centuries by Muslim Muslim

A Muslim is an adherent of Islam [i]. ... 

 invaders from Central Asia Central Asia

Central Asia is a vast landlocked [i] region of Asia [i]. ... 

, North India is the main centre of Islam in India Islam in India

Islam [i] is the second-largest religion in India [i], where Muslims [i] number around 138 million*; Govt. ... 

.

North India also forms the heartland of the so-called "Cow Belt" of India, which stretches from Indo-Gangetic Plain towards other conservative states like Gujarat Gujarat

Gujarat is the most industrialized state [i] in the Republic of India [i] ... 

, where BJP Bharatiya Janata Party

The Bharatiya Janata Party , literally meaning Indian People's Party, created in 1980 [i], is one of ... 

 is particularly efficient in politics and has its traditional support base.

Traditional economy



The economy of this region is predominantly agrarian; culturally, socially and historically the country has always been defined by its village societies. It is therefore proper to devote space to a detailing of the north Indian socio-agrarian structure.

North India largely retains a feudal agricultural setup, with a preponderence of tenant farmers as against South India or East India, where extensive land reforms and land redistribution policies over the second half of the 20th century put in place an equally bad system of small, fragmented land holdings being farmed by their owners, who are actually almost as impoverished as the tenant farmers of north India. Some of these differences stem from the later Mughal emperors' practice of relying on zamindars, or 'hereditary tax farmers', who collected taxes from rural communities in return for a percentage of the proceeds, and were granted certain administrative powers. The Zamindari system was never as prevalent in the south, as Mughal rule did not extend to much of the South.

The British administrators of the Bengal Presidency Bengal Presidency

The Bengal Presidency, known officially as the Presidency of Fort William, was a region of British India [i] ... 

  inherited and expanded upon the Zamindari system, while the Madras Presidency Madras Presidency

Madras Presidency, also known as Madras Province and known officially as Presidency of Fort St.... 

 which governed much of south India, relied on panchayats, or village councils, for rural administration and tax collection. Although the zamindari system was formally abolished after India's independence, a rural economy dominated by landlords is still prevalent across much of northern India. Tensions between landlords and their tenant farmers are widespread in northern India, notably in Bihar Bihar

Bihar is a state [i] of the India [i]n union situated in the eastern par ... 

 and Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh

Uttar Pradesh , also popularly known by its abbreviation U.P., means the 'northern province'.... 

; these tensions have given rise to landlord-tenant strife in several northern states, and has fueled Naxalite Naxalite

Naxalite or Naxalism is an informal name given to revolutionary communist [i] groups that were bor ... 

 movements.

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See also

  • South India South India

    South India is a linguistic-cultural region of India [i] that comprises the four Indian states [i] ... 

  • North-East India North-East India

    North-East India is the easternmost region of India [i] consisting of the contiguous Seven Sister States [i] ... 

  • West India West India

    West India is a region of India [i] consisting of the states [i] of Maharashtra [i] ... 

  • East India East India

    East India is a region of India [i] consisting of the states of West Bengal [i], Orissa [i], and often Jharkhand [i] ... 

  • Hindi belt Hindi belt

    The Hindi belt is a common reference to the northern [i] India [i]n region were Hindi [i] is ... 






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