Diversity in India

The essentials

India is one of the most diverse countries in the world in language, religion, food, dress, architecture and ritual. This diversity results from a long history of migration, regional ecology and cultural exchange. Anthropologists describe both this diversity and the threads of unity that link regions together.

Key points

• Language families of India: Indo-Aryan (Hindi, Bengali, Marathi, Gujarati, Punjabi and others; north and west); Dravidian (Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam; south, plus Gondi, Kurukh and Brahui elsewhere); Austro-Asiatic (Munda languages such as Santali, Mundari and Ho in central and eastern India; Khasi in Meghalaya); Tibeto-Burman (many languages of the Himalayas and north-east, such as Bodo, Garo and Manipuri/Meitei).
• The Eighth Schedule of the Constitution lists the officially recognised languages (the list has been expanded over time).
• Festivals: harvest festivals take regional forms, e.g. Pongal (Tamil Nadu), Bihu (Assam), Onam (Kerala), Lohri and Baisakhi (Punjab), Makar Sankranti (many states). Tribal festivals such as Sohrai and Karma are linked to cattle and agriculture.
• House types depend on climate and materials: houses on stilts in flood-prone or wet areas of the north-east; thick-walled mud houses and flat roofs in hot dry Rajasthan; sloping roofs in heavy-rain regions; stone and wood in the Himalayas.
• Food: rice dominates in the wet east and south; wheat in the drier north-west; millets in dry uplands; fish common in coastal regions and Bengal.
• Rituals: rites of passage (birth, initiation, marriage, death) are found everywhere but vary in form.

Exam tips

• Match languages to families; Santali and Khasi (Austro-Asiatic) and Gondi (Dravidian) are frequently confused.
• Link house types to climate and available materials.

Common mistakes

• Assuming all tribal languages belong to one family; they belong to all four.