History of Technology in India, Vol. I: From Antiquity to c. 1200 A.D. v1.c24.s3.t1.3

v1.c24.s3.t1.3

In ancient India there were special terms to refer to different types of land. Of these, many were based on their properties and characteristics. The consolidated list of such terms occurring in the Amarakośa (II.1.1-5, 9-11) includes bhūmi (soil in general), mṛtsnā (an excellent soil), urvara (a fertile soil for all sorts of crops), ūṣa (salt ground), usara (a spot with lime soil), maru (a region devoid of water), khila or aprahata (untilled or waste land), naḍvān, kumudvān, vetasvān and śadvala (a country abounding in reeds, waterlilies, ratans or green grass), paṅkila (clayey or muddy soil), anūpa (land contiguous to water), śarkarila (soil full of stony or similar modules), and siktila (sandy soil). Some of these appear as early as the Vedic literature. These terms imply an awareness of the properties of the soil and classifying them on that basis.