Indian History
Indus Valley Civilization’s Independent Origin
- 07 Sep 2019
- 2 min read
According to a study of DNA (DeoxyriboNucleic Acid) from skeletal remains excavated from the Harappan cemetery at Rakhigarhi (the biggest IVC site located in Haryana) , the researchers found that the people in the Indus Valley Civilization (IVC) have an independent origin.
- The study negates the theory of the Harappans having Steppe pastoral or ancient Iranian farmer ancestry. As per the study, the DNA does not contain any genome from either the Steppe region or the ancient Iranian farmers.
- The finding also refuses the hypothesis about mass migration that happened during Harappan times from outside South Asia.
- According to the study, the genetic continuity from hunter-gatherer to modern times is clearly visible in the DNA results. The same hunter-gatherer communities developed into agricultural communities and formed the Harappan civilization.
- The researchers, therefore, concluded that farming in South Asia was not due to the movement of people from the farming cultures of the west to the Indian subcontinent, & people during IVS developed their own farming culture.
Indus Valley Civilization
- It is popularly known as Harappan Civilization.
- It flourished around 2,500 BC, in the western part of South Asia, in contemporary Pakistan and Western India.
- The Indus Valley was home to the largest of the four ancient urban civilizations of Egypt, Mesopotamia, India, and China.
- In the 1920s, the Archaeological Department of India carried out excavations in the Indus valley wherein the ruins of the two old cities, viz. Mohenjodaro and Harappa were unearthed.
