What Did the Harappans Eat?
Class 6 Social Science · Chapter 6: The Beginnings of Indian Civilisation · NCERT Exploring Society: India and Beyond section 6.5
Learn
The Harappans built many settlements along the banks of rivers, large and small. That was a smart choice: rivers gave water and enriched the soil for farming.
Archaeologists have found that they grew cereals like barley and wheat, some millets, and sometimes rice, along with pulses (beans, peas and lentils) and vegetables. They were the first people in Eurasia to grow cotton, which they wove into cloth. A small clay model of a plough from Banawali (Haryana) shows how they farmed.
Hundreds of villages supplied the cities with food every day. The Harappans also kept cattle, sheep and goats, and fished in rivers and the sea: many animal and fish bones have been found in excavations.
What was cooking in their pots? Scientists who studied old clay pots found traces of dairy products, and some surprises: turmeric, ginger and banana! Their diet was quite varied, and some of it would feel familiar in an Indian kitchen today.
Explore: where did the food come from?
- Sort each food.
Remember
- Harappans grew barley, wheat, millets, sometimes rice, pulses, vegetables and cotton, and used ploughs.
- They kept animals and fished; their pots show dairy, turmeric, ginger and banana.
Quick check
Which crop did the Harappans grow first in Eurasia?
- Cotton
- Coffee
- Potato
- Tea
Answer
Cotton. They wove cotton into cloth.
Think about it
Imagine you are cooking a meal in a Harappan house. What would you make?
One answer
Perhaps barley or wheat bread, a dal of lentils with turmeric and ginger, vegetables, curd, and fish or a banana. Many of these are still eaten today!
Practice
Practise with fresh questions at three levels (easy, medium, hard), some answered hands-on, with hints and worked answers. Get 4 of your last 5 right to finish the topic.