present name Maldives originates from the term Mala-dvipa, wherein mala denotes both money and lo... more present name Maldives originates from the term Mala-dvipa, wherein mala denotes both money and load. In Bengali language mala-kori or mala-kauri and taka-kori (wherein kori stands for cowrie shells) are terms that still imply money even after the cowries have long lost their status as money in Bengal. Dvipa is the term for island in Sanskrit and diva is the Prakrit term for the same (dvipa dipa>diva). Therefore, Mala-diva which indicates (island of cowries' probably has a Prakrit origin.
Sday lives. Since the earliest times, humans have been conscious of the necessity of salt in thei... more Sday lives. Since the earliest times, humans have been conscious of the necessity of salt in their daily lives. Wild animals instinctively search for salt pools or rock salt, i.e. 'saltlicks', often travelling great distances. Man, too, has gone great distances and undergone much hardship to secure a bountiful supply of salt. Thus, demand and supply of salt played and continues to play a vital role in any community, culture and civilization. Salt also acquired the status of money, like other commodity moneys, viz., spices, cowrie shells and so on. The present article focuses on the monetary value of salt and attempts to look at the demand and supply chain of salt in the Indian subcontinent. In the Indian subcontinent, evidence of salt production can be traced back to the Harappan civilization (Sindhu-Saraswati). Salt would have played, if not a major role, at least a substantial role in the rise and growth of the oldest civilization in India. The Khewra and Khohat mines in the salt range are some of the largest mines located in this region. One is not sure if the salt mines of the Salt Range were being worked during this period or if the Harappans were dependent mostly on the supply of salt from the Gujarat coast. But Harappans were definitely not dependent on long-distance supplies of any basic raw material. Furthermore, the riverine network of this civilization was presumably the lifeline of the trade which took care of the movement of goods like grains, timber, textiles, salt, etc. Excavations at sites such as Lothal also reveal the presence of salt pans and tools used for salt extraction, indicating the significance of salt even in those times. Padri was another important salt production centre of this period. According to the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, the Rann of Kutch (Gulf of Eirinon) of the Gujarat coast, now a salt marsh, was a broad open arm of the sea, with the eastern branch of the Indus emptying into it (Schoff 1912, 166, 173-74). Silt brought down by the river and formed into great bars washed southward by the violent tides, has now closed the mouth of the Rann almost entirely. Reclus (Asia III, 142-45) says that the Rann was probably an open sea until about the fourth century, when a series of violent earthquakes elevated this whole region considerably. He reported ruins at Nagar Patkar, at the northeast corner, indicating a large seaport trade where old harbor works are observed. The name Eirinon, Rinn or Rann, in fact, is from the Sanskrit aranya or irina, meaning a waste or swamp (Schoff 1912, 174). The conversion of a navigable bay into a salt desert, and the diversion of the rivers that water edit, must have spelled ruin and starvation to multitudes of its agricultural and seafaring inhabitants, who would have been forced to migrate on a scale in the later centuries. The Periplus also mentions the Malvan/Aurannoboas (16° 3' N.,73°28'E) which according to McCrindle is a contraction of Maha-lavana, meaning 'saltmarsh', the Greek Aurannoboas is perhaps intended for the Sanskrit Aranya-vaha, would have a similar meaning (Schoff 1912, 202). It is also a place of considerable importance as good iron ore was found in the neighbourhood. However, salt being a perishable item made it difficult to cite evidences in favour of this so-called salt trade.
InterViews: an interdisciplinary journal in social sciences, Dec 31, 2022
The present study is an attempt to document the heritages, tangible as well as intangible aspects... more The present study is an attempt to document the heritages, tangible as well as intangible aspects of the Apatanis, one of the major tribes of Arunachal Pradesh. Hopefully, this study of the Apatani ethnic community will provide a deal of scope for further ethnographic and scientific research by integrating the anthropological data in one ethnographic frame and understanding the history of the same. Information was taken mostly from the elder members of the family. Stratified random sampling and Convenience sampling methods were applied to selecting the interviewees. The intensive observation was a prerequisite method though the interview method was the key tool for the collection of data. The present study indicates that few scientific types of research are carried out among the Apatanis. The reason could be the lack of written history and the late arrival of civilization in the region. It is crucial that the vast complex cultural aspects of the ethnic community need proper documentation before they totally disappear.
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