Skip to content

List of Chapters

Each chapter has the chapter itself, a 10-question quiz and a list of references. Start anywhere: each chapter lists what you should read first.

Part 1: Foundations

  1. What Is South Asia?: Meet the eight countries of South Asia and the mountains, rivers, plains, seas and monsoon that shape where about 2 billion people live. (Quiz · References)
  2. Ancient Roots: From the first farmers at Mehrgarh to the Indus cities, the Vedas, the Buddha, Ashoka and the Guptas: South Asia from about 7000 BCE to 550 CE. (Quiz · References)
  3. Empires and Encounters: Trace the kingdoms, empires, faiths and traders of South Asia from about 600 to 1800, and see how many powers lived side by side. (Quiz · References)
  4. Colonialism, Independence, and Partition: How British rule spread across South Asia, how people organized for freedom, and how one colony became India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. (Quiz · References)
  5. Faiths of South Asia: Meet the faiths of South Asia, from Hinduism, Islam and Buddhism to Sikhism, Jainism, Christianity, Parsis and Jewish communities, and compare them fairly. (Quiz · References)
  6. Languages and Scripts: Meet South Asia's language families and scripts, learn how an abugida works, and see why Hindi, Bangla and Tamil letters are cousins. (Quiz · References)

Part 2: Living Culture

  1. Festivals Through the Year: Why Diwali, Eid, Vaisakhi and other South Asian festivals land when they do: solar, lunar and lunisolar calendars, and how each festival is celebrated. (Quiz · References)
  2. Food and the Table: Explore how grain, climate, trade and faith shape what people eat across South Asia, from the thali and dal to biryani, chai, street food and hospitality. (Quiz · References)
  3. Music: Learn how raga and tala work, compare Hindustani and Carnatic music, and hear qawwali, ghazal, Baul, folk, bhangra and film songs across South Asia. (Quiz · References)
  4. Dance and Theater: Meet South Asia's classical dances, folk dances, theater and shadow puppets, and learn the hand gestures and emotions that let dancers tell stories. (Quiz · References)
  5. Art, Architecture, and Craft: Stupas, temples, Mughal tombs, miniature paintings, thangkas, kolam, mehndi, block prints, truck art and rickshaw art across South Asia. (Quiz · References)
  6. Clothing and Textiles: Cotton, silk and pashmina, the weaves and prints of eight countries, and the sarees, kurtas, ghos, turbans and bangles people wear today. (Quiz · References)
  7. Family, Names, and Life Events: Kinship words, joint families, names, caste and the law, and the rituals that mark birth, growing up, marriage and death across South Asia. (Quiz · References)
  8. Stories and Literature: Epics, fables, poets and novels from across South Asia, and how the same stories travel and change across languages, faiths and borders. (Quiz · References)
  9. Cinema, Cricket, and Pop Culture: Bollywood and the many other film industries of South Asia, playback singers, dramas, Coke Studio, global stars, and cricket, hockey, kabaddi and carrom. (Quiz · References)
  10. Science, Math, and Ideas: How zero and place value grew in South Asia and traveled the world, plus grammar, healing traditions, chess, steel and modern scientists. (Quiz · References)

Part 3: The Eight Countries

  1. India: Tour the Republic of India: its constitution, elections, 28 states and 8 union territories, languages, peoples, symbols, economy and space program. (Quiz · References)
  2. Pakistan and Afghanistan: Tour Pakistan's provinces and languages and Afghanistan's land, peoples and heritage, and follow the Khyber road that has linked them for centuries. (Quiz · References)
  3. Bangladesh and Sri Lanka: Tour Bangladesh's river delta, mangroves, language movement and garment economy, and Sri Lanka's island heritage, peoples, tea and recent history. (Quiz · References)
  4. Nepal, Bhutan, and the Maldives: Tour three small South Asian nations, from Everest and Himalayan dzongs to coral atolls barely above the sea, and see how altitude and water shape life. (Quiz · References)

Part 4: Here and Now

  1. The South Asian Diaspora: Follow South Asians to the Caribbean, East Africa, Britain, the Gulf and the US, including Minnesota, and learn why each wave of migration happened. (Quiz · References)
  2. Bring It Home: Identity, stereotypes, appreciation and allyship, then the oral history method and how a student club can turn stories into community action. (Quiz · References)