As in other parts of the world, the earliest civilizations in East and South Asia developed along with the great river systems. First to evolve was the Indus Valley Civilization, also known as the Harappan civilization after the great city it gave rise to. Flourishing around the Indus riverbed around 2500-1700 BC, it encompassed areas that now comprise the eastern provinces of Pakistan and adjoining Indian states. Almost a thousand years later, along the Yellow River sprang another civilization in the plains of North China; one that would go on to become the largest and most prosperous in the region.
Apart from having a river as the center, both these civilizations flourished in areas that were relatively cut off from the rest of the world. This, perhaps, was an important factor that allowed the people to develop their culture, identity, crafts, and technology uninterrupted from outside influences. However, although separated by a thousand years and by land, there is evidence that these two civilizations interacted with and influenced each other in certain areas. Records maintained by ancient Chinese historians refer to ‘Shendu’ which is probably a term for the Indus Valley as it comprised a region known later as ‘Sindh’. In turn, old records discovered from Taxila, (which was a major city at the crossroads of trading routes between the Chinese, Indus, and Central Asian Civilization, now in Pakistan) reveal evidence of Chinese products and influence. Chinese civilization depended on irrigated farming and trading with others, and trade routes existed between it and other civilizations, such as the Mesopotamian, Indus, and Swahili.
The city of Harappa was also a major trading center. Despite being a conservative society resistant to trade, its crafts and seals have been found in distant lands and objects from other countries, such as semiprecious stones like lapis lazuli have been unearthed at the Indus sites.
Writing and political thought were two areas where the Chinese civilization had a big impact on other people. Linguistic scholars have also researched similarities between the Indus and Chinese language and script and have found a close association. Although the origins and progress of the Chinese language were well known, that of the Indus was obscure, and it was considered undecipherable. Professor Sheldon Gosline, director of the Hieratic Font Project, at a Chinese university compared Harappan and ancient Chinese manuscripts and declared them to be ‘sister or daughter languages’1 This was because the script of both was strikingly similar, and the pattern of pictograms and writing underneath showed a prominent link between the two cultures. Even though the materials used were different—writing on seals was popular in the Indus and the Chinese started writing on bones, the graphical outcome suggests a strong influence of one on the other.
The Bronze Age is a time in the history of civilization when it masters the use of metals for various purposes. Various metals, such as copper, iron, and alloys were used to make utensils, armor, and weapons. This age occurred at different times in different civilizations, but around the same period (3000-1000 BC) in China and South Asia. Archeological findings suggest similarities in the metal work produced, and it is quite possible that trade routes might have facilitated this exchange of information on how to make the best use of metal.
The Silk Route is an ancient system of roads through which trade was conducted. It connected the Chinese civilization to India, Persia, and the Mediterranean countries. Numerous products apart from silk were traded through the Silk Route, and so were scientific information and culture. This played a key role in the further development of the civilizations that participated in trade along this route.2This is how lapis lazuli found its way to Harappa and Mohenjodaro in the Indus Valley Civilization. The spread of Buddhism, now a dominant religion in China also occurred through the Silk Route. Missionaries and monks from China used this route to travel to Taxila, which became a major center of Buddhism.
Therefore, it is evident from historical manuscripts, archeological findings, and recent research conducted on these two civilizations that certain aspects of their society and culture bore resemblance that would be hard to explain if they did not have any interaction or links during their existence. Mutual exchange of knowledge, customs, products, and technology benefited both the Indus and Chinese people, and although one perished and the other survived and prospered, this exchange helped both develop their full potential and emerge as great civilizations.
References
“Indus civilization”. Encyclopædia Britannica. 2007. Web.
Sheldon Lee Gosline, Calligraphy, Writings and Instructions in the World throughout the Ages, 2005.
“ANCIENT SILK ROAD TRAVELERS”. 2002. Web.
Dani, Ahmad Hassan. Short History of Pakistan (Book 1) 1984.