Uttarapatha
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Ancient
Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
and
Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
texts use Uttarapatha as the name of the Northern part of Jambudvipa (equivalent of present-day
North India North India is a loosely defined region consisting of the northern part of India. The dominant geographical features of North India are the Indo-Gangetic Plain and the Himalayas, which demarcate the region from the Tibetan Plateau and Central ...
), one of the "
continents A continent is any of several large landmasses. Generally identified by convention rather than any strict criteria, up to seven geographical regions are commonly regarded as continents. Ordered from largest in area to smallest, these seven ...
" in
Hindu history The history of Hinduism covers a wide variety of related religious traditions native to the Indian subcontinent. It overlaps or coincides with the development of religion in the Indian subcontinent since the Iron Age, with some of its traditions ...
. In modern times, the
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
word ''uttarapatha'' is sometimes used to denote the geographical regions of
North India North India is a loosely defined region consisting of the northern part of India. The dominant geographical features of North India are the Indo-Gangetic Plain and the Himalayas, which demarcate the region from the Tibetan Plateau and Central ...
,
Western India Western India is a loosely defined region of India consisting of its western part. The Ministry of Home Affairs in its Western Zonal Council Administrative division includes the states of Goa, Gujarat, and Maharashtra along with the Union te ...
,
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,
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,
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,
Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
,
Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...
, and
Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
in just one term. The pronunciation of the word varies depending on the regional language of the speaker.


History

The name is derived from the
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
terms ''uttara'', for north, and ''patha'', for road. Initially, the term Uttarapatha referred to the ''northern high road'', the main trade route that followed along the river
Ganges The Ganges ( ) (in India: Ganga ( ); in Bangladesh: Padma ( )). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international river to which India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China are the riparian states." is ...
, crossed the Indo-Gangetic watershed, ran through the
Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...
to
Taxila Taxila or Takshashila (; sa, तक्षशिला; pi, ; , ; , ) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan. Located in the Taxila Tehsil of Rawalpindi District, it lies approximately northwest of the Islamabad–Rawalpindi metropolitan area and ...
(Gandhara) and further to ''Zariaspa'' or
Balkh ), named for its green-tiled ''Gonbad'' ( prs, گُنبَد, dome), in July 2001 , pushpin_map=Afghanistan#Bactria#West Asia , pushpin_relief=yes , pushpin_label_position=bottom , pushpin_mapsize=300 , pushpin_map_caption=Location in Afghanistan ...
(
Bactria Bactria (; Bactrian: , ), or Bactriana, was an ancient region in Central Asia in Amu Darya's middle stream, stretching north of the Hindu Kush, west of the Pamirs and south of the Gissar range, covering the northern part of Afghanistan, southwe ...
) in
Central Asia Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...
. The eastern terminus of the Uttarapatha was Tamraliptika or
Tamluk Tamluk () is a town and a municipality in the Indian States and territories of India, state of West Bengal. It is the headquarters of the Purba Medinipur district. Though there is some controversy, scholars have generally agreed that present ...
located at the mouth of
Ganges The Ganges ( ) (in India: Ganga ( ); in Bangladesh: Padma ( )). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international river to which India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China are the riparian states." is ...
in
West West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...
Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...
. This route became increasingly important due to increasing maritime contacts with the seaports on the eastern coast of
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
during the
Maurya The Maurya Empire, or the Mauryan Empire, was a geographically extensive Iron Age historical power in the Indian subcontinent based in Magadha, having been founded by Chandragupta Maurya in 322 BCE, and existing in loose-knit fashion until 1 ...
rule. Later, Uttarapatha was the name lent to the vast expanse of region which the ''northern high road'' traversed.


Region

The boundaries of Uttarapatha, as a region, are nowhere precisely defined in the Buddhist or any other ancient source. According to some writers, the Uttarapatha included the whole of Northern India, from
Anga Anga (Sanskrit: ) was an ancient Indo-Aryan tribe of eastern South Asia whose existence is attested during the Iron Age. The members of the Aṅga tribe were called the Āṅgeyas. Counted among the "sixteen great nations" in Buddhist texts ...
in the east to
Gandhara Gandhāra is the name of an ancient region located in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent, more precisely in present-day north-west Pakistan and parts of south-east Afghanistan. The region centered around the Peshawar Vall ...
in the north-west, and from the
Himalaya The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 100 ...
in the north to the
Vindhya The Vindhya Range (also known as Vindhyachal) () is a complex, discontinuous chain of mountain ridges, hill ranges, highlands and plateau escarpments in west-central India. Technically, the Vindhyas do not form a single mountain range in the ...
in the south. The Jambudvipa region to the south of Uttarapatha was known as ''Majjhimadesa'' (or the Middle Country) in Buddhist texts and ''Madhyadesa'' in Puranic texts. According to Buddhist texts, Kamboja and
Gandhara Gandhāra is the name of an ancient region located in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent, more precisely in present-day north-west Pakistan and parts of south-east Afghanistan. The region centered around the Peshawar Vall ...
, two of the sixteen
Mahajanapadas The Mahājanapadas ( sa, great realm, from ''maha'', "great", and '' janapada'' "foothold of a people") were sixteen kingdoms or oligarchic republics that existed in ancient India from the sixth to fourth centuries BCE during the second urban ...
or great nations referred to in the Anguttara Nikaya and Chulla-Niddesa belonged to the ''Uttarapatha''.


Literature

The Buddhist texts include the remaining fourteen of the Mahajanapadas, namely
Kasi KASI (1430 AM, "News Talk 1430") is a radio station licensed to serve Ames, Iowa. The station is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. and licensed to iHM Licenses, LLC. It airs a News/Talk radio format. The station was assigned the KASI call letters b ...
,
Kosala The Kingdom of Kosala (Sanskrit: ) was an ancient Indian kingdom with a rich culture, corresponding to the area within the region of Awadh in present-day Uttar Pradesh to Western Odisha. It emerged as a janapada, small state during the late Ve ...
,
Anga Anga (Sanskrit: ) was an ancient Indo-Aryan tribe of eastern South Asia whose existence is attested during the Iron Age. The members of the Aṅga tribe were called the Āṅgeyas. Counted among the "sixteen great nations" in Buddhist texts ...
,
Magadha Magadha was a region and one of the sixteen sa, script=Latn, Mahajanapadas, label=none, lit=Great Kingdoms of the Second Urbanization (600–200 BCE) in what is now south Bihar (before expansion) at the eastern Ganges Plain. Magadha was ruled ...
,
Vajji The Vajjika (Pāli: ) or Vrijika (Sanskrit: ) League, Confederacy, or Sangha, also called simply Vajji (Pāli: ) or Vriji (Sanskrit: ), was an ancient Indo-Aryan tribal league which existed during the later Iron Age period in north-east South ...
,
Malla Malla may refer to: Places ;Bolivia *Malla, Bolivia, a locality * Malla Jawira, a river * Malla Jaqhi, a mountain * Malla Municipality * Malla Qullu, a mountain ;India * Mallapuram, Tamil Nadu *Malla (tribe), an ancient republic, one of the s ...
, Chedi, Vamsa (or Vatsa),
Kuru Kuru may refer to: Anthropology and history * Kuru (disease), a type of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy associated with the cannibalistic funeral practices of the Fore people * Kuru (mythology), part of Meithei mythology * Kuru Kingdom, ...
, Panchala,
Matsya Matsya ( sa, मत्स्य, lit. ''fish'') is the fish avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu. Often described as the first of Vishnu's ten primary avatars, Matsya is described to have rescued the first man, Manu, from a great deluge. Matsya m ...
(or Maccha),
Surasena Kingdom of Surasena (or Sourasena) (Sanskrit: ) was an ancient Indian region corresponding to the present-day Braj region in Uttar Pradesh, with Mathura as its capital city. According to the Buddhist text ''Anguttara Nikaya'', Surasena was one ...
, Avanti and
Assaka Ashmaka (Sanskrit: ) or Assaka (Pali: ) was a Mahajanapada in ancient India which existed between 700 BCE and 425 or 345 BCE according to the Buddhist texts '' Anguttara Nikaya'' and ''Puranas''. It was located around and between the Godavar ...
in the ''Majjhimadesa'' division. Numerous Puranic literature terms refer to the Bahlikas, Pahlavas, Sakas, Paradas, Ramathas, Kambojas, Daradas, Tushars, Chinas, Barbaras, Keikayas, Abhiras, Sindhus, Soviras and others as the tribes of Uttarapatha ('' Kirfel list of the Uttarapatha countries of the Bhuvanakosa'').


Commerce

Uttarapatha was famous from very early times for its fine breed of
horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million y ...
s and the horse-dealers. There are ancient references to an ongoing trade between the nations of Uttarapatha and the states of
East India East India is a region of India consisting of the Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal and also the union territory of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The region roughly corresponds to the historical region of Magadh ...
. Buddhist and Puranic sources attest that the merchants and horse-dealers from Uttarapatha would bring horses and other goods for sale down to eastern Indian places like Savatthi (
Kosala The Kingdom of Kosala (Sanskrit: ) was an ancient Indian kingdom with a rich culture, corresponding to the area within the region of Awadh in present-day Uttar Pradesh to Western Odisha. It emerged as a janapada, small state during the late Ve ...
),
Benares Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world. * * * * The city has a syncretic tr ...
(
Kasi KASI (1430 AM, "News Talk 1430") is a radio station licensed to serve Ames, Iowa. The station is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. and licensed to iHM Licenses, LLC. It airs a News/Talk radio format. The station was assigned the KASI call letters b ...
),
Pataliputra Pataliputra (IAST: ), adjacent to modern-day Patna, was a city in ancient India, originally built by Magadha ruler Ajatashatru in 490 BCE as a small fort () near the Ganges river.. Udayin laid the foundation of the city of Pataliputra at the ...
(
Magadha Magadha was a region and one of the sixteen sa, script=Latn, Mahajanapadas, label=none, lit=Great Kingdoms of the Second Urbanization (600–200 BCE) in what is now south Bihar (before expansion) at the eastern Ganges Plain. Magadha was ruled ...
) and Pragjyotisha (
Assam Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...
). The great Indian epic,
Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruk ...
gives an account of the ancient roadways. It refers to Uttarapatha (northern highway) which linked the territories of
Kirata The Kirāta ( sa, किरात) is a generic term in Sanskrit literature for people who had territory in the mountains, particularly in the Himalayas and Northeast India and who are believed to have been Sino-Tibetan in origin. The meaning o ...
(perhaps of
Magadha Magadha was a region and one of the sixteen sa, script=Latn, Mahajanapadas, label=none, lit=Great Kingdoms of the Second Urbanization (600–200 BCE) in what is now south Bihar (before expansion) at the eastern Ganges Plain. Magadha was ruled ...
), Kamboja,
Gandhara Gandhāra is the name of an ancient region located in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent, more precisely in present-day north-west Pakistan and parts of south-east Afghanistan. The region centered around the Peshawar Vall ...
and
Yavana The word Yona in Pali and the Prakrits, and the analogue Yavana in Sanskrit and Yavanar in Tamil, were words used in Ancient India to designate Greek speakers. "Yona" and "Yavana" are transliterations of the Greek word for "Ionians" ( grc, ...
countries (
Shanti Parva The Shanti Parva ( sa, शान्ति पर्व; IAST: ''Śānti parva''; "Book of Peace") is the twelfth of eighteen books of the Indian Epic Mahabharata. It traditionally has 3 parts and 365 chapters.Ganguli, K.M. (1883-1896)Shanti Parva ...
, 207.43; Foreign Trade and Commerce in Ancient India, 2003, p 107, Prakash Chandra Prasad) Documentation exists that the nations from the Uttarapatha like Kamboja, Gandhara and Kashmira were actively engaged in commercial intercourse not only with the states of Gangetic valley but also with Brahmadesh,
Suvarnabhumi ( sa, सुवर्णभूमि; Pali: '); my, သုဝဏ္ဏဘူမိ, ; km, សុវណ្ណភូមិ, ''Sovannaphoum''; and th, สุวรรณภูมิ, . is a toponym, that appears in many ancient Indian literary s ...
, south-west
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
and other nations in the
Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...
. When the Chinese envoy Chiang Kien was in
Gandhara Gandhāra is the name of an ancient region located in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent, more precisely in present-day north-west Pakistan and parts of south-east Afghanistan. The region centered around the Peshawar Vall ...
(circa c 127 BCE), he found to his great surprise that bamboos and textiles from ''south-western China'' were sold in the local markets. ''On personal enquiry, he learnt that these goods were brought to eastern India (
Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...
) through
Yunnan Yunnan , () is a landlocked Provinces of China, province in Southwest China, the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48.3 million (as of 2018). The capital of the province is ...
,
Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
and then carried all the way from eastern India to Bactria across
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
and
Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
along the Uttarapatha or the northern high road''. The ancient Pali literature says that merchants from the nations of Uttarapatha were engaged in international trade following the well-known Kamboja-Dvaravati Caravan Route. Merchants from Kamboja, Gandhara, Sovira,
Sindhu The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayan river of South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in Western Tibet, flows northwest through the disputed region of Kashmir, ...
and other places used to sail from ports of
Bharukaccha Bharuch (), formerly known as Broach, is a city at the mouth of the river Narmada in Gujarat in western India. Bharuch is the administrative headquarters of Bharuch District. The city of Bharuch and surroundings have been settled since time ...
(modern
Bharuch Bharuch (), formerly known as Broach, is a city at the mouth of the river Narmada in Gujarat in western India. Bharuch is the administrative headquarters of Bharuch District. The city of Bharuch and surroundings have been settled since tim ...
) and Supparaka Pattana (modern Nalla-
Sopara Nala Sopara or Nallasopara (Pronunciation: aːla sopaɾa formerly known as Sopara or Supara, is a town within the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. The town lies in the Palghar district of Maharashtra, India and is governed by Vasai-Virar Municipal ...
, near
Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
) for trade with Southern India,
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
and nations of Southeast Asia. Huge trade ships sailed from there directly to south Myanmar. This trade had been going on for hundreds of years before the
Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was ...
. Some merchants from northern India had settled in Myanmar, in the ports and towns located at the mouths of Irrawaddy, Citranga (
Sittang The Sittaung River ( my, စစ်တောင်းမြစ် ; formerly, the Sittang or Sittounghttps://unstats.un.org/unsd/geoinfo/UNGEGN/docs/8th-uncsgn-docs/inf/8th_UNCSGN_econf.94_INF.75.pdf ) is a river in south central Myanmar in Bag ...
) and Salavana (
Salween , ''Mae Nam Salawin'' ( , name_etymology = , image = Sweet_View_of_Salween_River_in_Tang_Yan_Township,_Shan_State,_Myanmar.jpg , image_size = , image_caption = Salween River in Shan State, Myanmar , map ...
) rivers. The case in point is of two merchant brothers ''Tapassu'' and ''Bhalluka or Bhalluka'' from ''Pokkharavati'' (=
Pushkalavati Pushkalavati ( ps, پشکلاوتي; Urdu: ; Sanskrit: ; Prākrit: ; grc, Πευκελαῶτις ) or Pushkaravati (Sanskrit: ; Pāli: ), and later Shaikhan Dheri ( ps, شېخان ډېرۍ; ur, ), was the capital of the Gandhara kingdom, ...
, present Carasadda) in the Gandhara-Kamboja region who also had their trade settlement in Myanmar. The name Irrawaddy for the chief river of Burma (Myanmar) was copied from river Irrawati (
Ravi Ravi may refer to: People * Ravi (name), including a list of people and characters with the name * Ravi (composer) (1926–2012), Indian music director * Ravi (Ivar Johansen) (born 1976), Norwegian musical artist * Ravi (music director) (1926–201 ...
) of the north
Panjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...
. There is also a tradition in Ceylon (''recorded in the Pūjāvaliya'') that Tapassu and Bhalluka visited the east coast of
Ceylon Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
and built a Cetiya, there. An inscription also makes a similar record. Evidence exists that horse-dealers from Kamboja in the Uttarapatha were trading horses as far as Sri Lanka. Dr Don Martino notes that the merchants from northwest Kamboja had been conducting horse trade with Sri Lanka following the west coast of India since remote antiquity (''Epigraphia Zeylanka, Vol II, No 13, p 76''). Several ancient cave inscriptions found in
Anuradhapura Anuradhapura ( si, අනුරාධපුරය, translit=Anurādhapuraya; ta, அனுராதபுரம், translit=Aṉurātapuram) is a major city located in north central plain of Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of North Central ...
in
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
attest the existence of a Kamboja Goshatha or Samgha (''Gote Kabojhiana'') and a Grand Kamboja Trade Guild (''Kabojiya Mahapughyanam'') in ancient Sinhala. The terms Kaboja and Kabojiya are the ancient Sinhalese forms of the Uttarapatha Kamboja. A Pali text ''Sihalavatthu'' of the fourth century specifically attests to a group of people known as ''Kambojas'' living in Rohana in Sri Lanka. A regular horse trade between the nations of Uttarapatha and those of eastern, western and southern India is attested to have been going on as late as the medieval ages. King Devapala (810-850 CE) of Bengal, King Vishnuvardhana Hoysala (1106–1152 CE) of
Mysore Mysore (), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern part of the state of Karnataka, India. Mysore city is geographically located between 12° 18′ 26″ north latitude and 76° 38′ 59″ east longitude. It is located at an altitude of ...
and King Valabhi Deva of Valbhi/ Saurashtra (1185 CE) had powerful fleets of Kamboja horses in their cavalries. There is also good archaeological evidence of
Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
trade (1 CE to 200 CE) coming into Gandhara/Kamboja and Bactria region in Uttarapatha through the
Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...
i peninsula. The Roman gold coins imported from Rome into Gandhara were usually melted into bullion in these regions.


Trade routes

Corresponding to Uttarapatha, the
Dakshinapatha __NOTOC__ Dakshinapatha is an important historical region which is an ancient equivalent of present day South India or Deccan plateau and which may mean; *the "Ancient South of the Indian subcontinent" below Uttarapatha. The term can encompass ...
was the name of ''southern high road'' which originated from
Varanasi Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world. * * * * The city has a syncretic t ...
, followed through
Ujjain Ujjain (, Hindustani language, Hindustani pronunciation: Help:IPA/Hindi and Urdu, d͡ːʒɛːn is a city in Ujjain district of the States and territories of India, Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It is the fifth-largest city in Madhya Prad ...
i and Narmada valley to Pratisthana (
Paithan Paithan pəɪ.ʈʰaɳ(), historically Pratiṣṭhāna ɾə'tɪʂʈʰana is a town with municipal council in Aurangabad district, Maharashtra, India. Paithan is located south of present-day Aurangabad on the Godavari River. It was the cap ...
) in the Mahajanapada of Ashmaka (in modern
Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...
), onwards to the western coast of India and running in the southern direction. According to ''Land of the Seven Rivers: A Brief History of India's Geography'' by
Sanjeev Sanyal Sanjeev Sanyal is an Indian economist and popular historian. He is a member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister of India, and has helped prepare six editions of the Economic Survey of India starting in 2017. Sanyal ha ...
, the crossing of the two highways made Sarnath (just outside Varanasi) a major place of exchange of goods and ideas in ancient India. Sanyal argues that this is why the Buddha gave his first sermon at Sarnath. Later, Dakshinapatha was also the name lent to the region of India lying to the south of Vindya through which the Dakshinapatha passed. The name
Deccan The large Deccan Plateau in South India, southern India is located between the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats, and is loosely defined as the peninsular region between these ranges that is south of the Narmada river. To the north, it is bou ...
for the southern part of India has originated from this ancient Dakshinapatha. The philosophies of the easterners were disseminated precisely by the intercourse that went on along the ''Uttarapatha'' and the ''Dakishinapatha'' trade routes.


See also

*
Dakshinapatha __NOTOC__ Dakshinapatha is an important historical region which is an ancient equivalent of present day South India or Deccan plateau and which may mean; *the "Ancient South of the Indian subcontinent" below Uttarapatha. The term can encompass ...
*
Grand Trunk Road The Grand Trunk Road (formerly known as Uttarapath, Sarak-e-Azam, Shah Rah-e-Azam, Badshahi Sarak, and Long Walk) is one of Asia's oldest and longest major roads. For at least 2,500 years it has linked Central Asia to the Indian subcontinent. ...

Pali definition of Uttarapatha
(metta.lk) *
Uttarakuru Uttarakuru ( sa, उत्तर कुरु; ) is the name of a dvipa ("continent") in ancient Hindu and Buddhist mythology as well as Jain cosmology. The Uttarakuru country or Uttara Kuru Kingdom and its people are sometimes described as belong ...


References


Further reading

* {{citation , last=Neelis , first=Jason , title=Early Buddhist Transmission and Trade Networks: Mobility and Exchange Within and Beyond the Northwestern Borderlands of South Asia , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GB-JV2eOr2UC , year=2010 , publisher=BRILL , isbn=978-90-04-18159-5 , pages=197–201 , ref={{sfnref, Neelis, Early Buddhist Transmission and Trade Networks, 2010 Ancient Indian geography Historic sites in India Locations in Hindu mythology History of international trade History of Pakistan