Historical Rajasthan: Society, Religion and Culture in Ancient Rajasthan: The State of Rajasthan came to be known by this name in 1949. It is generally believed that in 1800 AD George Thomas was the first person to call this region ‘Rajputana’, which is now called Rajasthan.
Later on in 1829, the author of the Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan, Colonel James Tod named this region ‘Raithan’ or ‘Rajasthan’. After India became independent and the unification of the various princely States of the region took place on 30 March, 1949 AD, it was unanimously named Rajasthan.
In the ancient literature and inscriptions, we come across different names for different territories of the present Rajasthan. Some areas were named after their geographical characteristics and others were named after the name of the communities living there. Among the oldest names we come across in the Rigveda are: ‘Maru’, ‘Dhanva’, ‘Jangala’, ‘Matsya’, ‘Shursena’ etc.
The terms ‘Maru’ and ‘Dhanva’ have the same meaning and both the terms were used for the area under the present Jodhpur Division. Jodhpur was first called ‘Maru’, then ‘Maruvara’ and later on came to be called ‘Marwar’.
The name ‘Jangal’ was given to the land where Shami (Prosopis cineraria), Kair (Capparis decidua), Pilu (Salvadora indica) etc. grew. Bikaner, Nagaur and the adjoining area were called the Jangal desh.
Matsya, which has been mentioned in the Mahabharata as a kingdom, extended over the parts of Jaipur, Alwar and Bharatpur. Its capital was Viratanagar.
Parts of Bharatpur, adjoining Mathura and the major parts of Dholpur and Karauli formed the Shursena kingdom was an ancient kingdom and it finds mention in the Mahabharata also.
Historical Rajasthan: Society, Religion and Culture in Ancient Rajasthan
| History of Rajasthan: An Introduction | Pdf download |
| Prominent Saints and Folk Deities of Rajasthan | Pdf download |
| Celebrations, Festivals and Fairs of Rajasthan | Pdf download |
| Costumes and Ornaments of Rajasthan | Pdf download |
| Rajasthani Painting and Folk Art | Pdf download |
| Various Dimensions of Architecture and Crafts | Pdf download |
| Folk Music of Rajasthan | Pdf download |
| Folk Dances and Folk Theatre of Rajasthan | Pdf download |
| Rajasthani Language and Literature | Pdf download |
| Important Tourist Places of Rajasthan | Pdf download |
| Important Personalities of Rajasthan | Pdf download |