Caste Systems
Caste distinctions first became prominent in Northern India following Aryan migration into the subcontinent. During the postclassical era, the caste system became securely established in Southern India as well. The postclassical era brought a series of political, economic, and social challenges to India's caste system. The caste system plays a crucial role in India in determining the class and status of not only its people but also migrants. The caste system adapted to the arrival of migrants and helped to integrate them into Indian society. For instance, as Turkish peoples or Muslim merchants pursued opportunities in India, they gained recognition as distinct groups under the "umbrella" of the caste system. They established codes of conduct both for the regulation of behavior within their own groups and for guidance in dealing with members of other castes. The caste system also accommodated the social changes brought about by trade and economic development. As merchants and manufacturers became increasingly important in the larger economy, they organized powerful guilds to represent their interests. Merchant guilds in particular wielded political and economic influence, since their members enjoyed access to considerable wealt
Muslims in sub-Saharan Africa did not honor the same social codes as other Muslims. They allocated portions of the communal lands for their relatives to cultivate and were responsible for distributing harvests equitably among all members of their groups. Gender largely determined work roles. Extended families and clans served as the main foundation of social and economic organization in small-scale agricultural societies. As Bantu peoples migrated to new regions and established new communities they usually based their societies on kin groups rather than state structures that predominated elsewhere in the eastern hemisphere. Brahmins who supervised the temples provided the only formal education available in most regions and also served as centers of local social life. As the Aryans settled in agricultural communities throughout India, they maintained a thoroughly patriarchal society. Women influenced affairs within their own families but had no public authority. Small states often generated an aristocratic or ruling elite and they always recognized a class of religious authorities. Both men and women participated in the planting and harvesting of crops, and women also tended to domestic chores and took primary responsibility for child rearing. Guild members were then able to forge new group identities by working within the caste system. Merchants specializing in particular types of commerce, such as the silk, cotton or spice trade established themselves as distinct sub castes. As in India, men largely monopolized public authority. Unlike most societies in North Africa and Eurasia, the institution of privately owned property did not exist in sub-Saharan Africa.
Common topics in this essay:
Southern India,
Book Manu,
Saharan Africa,
Africa Muslim,
Africa Bantu,
Africa Extended,
caste system,
India Aryan,
Africa Instead,
Africa Eurasia,
sub-saharan africa,
,
sex gender,
women sub-saharan africa,
law book,
religious authorities,
societies sub-saharan,
political economic,
family male,
formal education,
women sub-saharan,
societies sub-saharan africa,
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Acceptance Essays
