Ancient Indian Costume c4.1

c4.1

Geographical, climatic and racial factors have had a great influence on the history of India, and consequently on the costume of its people. The very shape of India, a suspension from the continent of Asia, sealed by the Himalayas in the north and surrounded by the ocean on its other two sides, isolated it sufficiently for change to come by very slowly. The only entry into India by land was through the various passes of the north-west. Culturally, the divisions in India have been formed by the two great rivers, the Indus and the Ganges, with their tributaries in the fertile north and west. The Deccan plateau in the centre with the Western Ghats and similar ranges on its east coast, uniting at the bottom to form the Nilgiri Hills, sealed off the south of India, thereby allowing it to retain a distinct culture of its own.