Gujarat: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 07:17, 4 August 2005

Revision as of 07:17, 4 August 2005

Line 59:

== History ==

Situated on the western coast of India, the name of the state is derived from Gujjaratta, which means the land of the Gujjars. It is believed that a tribe of [[Gujjars]] migrated to India around the 5th century. The history of Gujarat, however, began much earlier. Settlements of the [[Indus valleyValley Civilization]], also known as the Harappan civilization, have been found in the area now known as Gujarat. Gujarat's coastal cities, chiefly [[Bharuch]], served as ports and trading centres in the [[Maurya]] and [[Gupta]] empires.

After the fall of the Gupta empire in the [[6th century]], Gujarat flourished as an independent Hindu kingdom. The [[Maitraka]] dynasty, descended from a Gupta general, ruled from the 6th to the 8th centuries from their capital at [[Vallabhi]], although they were ruled briefly by [[Harsha]] during the 7th century. The [[Arab]] rulers of [[Sind]] sacked Vallabhi in [[770]], bringing the Maitraka dynasty to an end. A branch of the [[Pratihara]] clan ruled Gujarat after the eighth century. In [[775]] the first [[Parsi]] (Zoroastrian) refugees arrived in Gujarat from [[Iran]].