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Kamarupa
Kamarupa (/ˈkɑːməˌruːpə/; also called Pragjyotisha or Pragjyotisha-Kamarupa), an early state during the Classical period on the Indian subcontinent, was (along with Davaka) the first historical kingdom of Assam. The Kamrupa word first appeared in the Samudragupta Allahabad Edict before that there is no mention of existence of this word.
Though Kamarupa prevailed from 350 to 1140 CE, Davaka was absorbed by Kamarupa in the 5th century CE. Ruled by three dynasties from their capitals in present-day Guwahati, North Guwahati and Tezpur, Kamarupa at its height covered the entire Brahmaputra Valley, parts of North Bengal, Bhutan and northern part of Bangladesh, and at times portions of what is now West Bengal, Bihar and Sylhet.
Though the historical kingdom disappeared by the 12th century to be replaced by smaller political entities, the notion of Kamarupa persisted and ancient and medieval chroniclers continued to call a part of this kingdom Kamrup. In the 16th century the Ahom kingdom came into prominence and assumed for themselves the legacy of the ancient Kamarupa kingdom and aspired to extend their kingdom to the Karatoya River.
The earliest use of the name Kamarupa to denote the kingdom is from the 4th century, when Samudragupta's pillar inscription mentions it as a frontier kingdom. Kamarupa finds no mention in the epics Mahabharata or Ramayana and in the early and late Vedic, Buddhist, and Jain literatures the references to Kamarupa are not about a kingdom. An explanation of the name Kamarupa emerged first in the 10th-century Kalika Purana, six centuries after the first use of the name, as the kingdom where Kamadeva (Kama) regained his form (rupa).
The name Pragjyotisha, on the other hand, is mentioned in the epics, but it did not become associated with the Kamarupa kingdom till the 7th century when Bhaskaravarman associated his kingdom with the Pragjyotisha of the epics and traced his dynastic lineage to Bhagadatta and Naraka. In the 9th century, Pragjyotishpura is named as the legendary city from which Naraka reigned after his conquest of Kamarupa.
"Kamarupa" is not included in the list of sixteen Mahajanapadas from the sixth to fourth centuries BCE; nor does it find any mention in the Ashokan records (3rd century BCE). The term "Kamarupa" first appears in the Allahabad pillar inscription of Samudragupta. During the 5th to 2nd century BCE, historical records mention the existence of a region called Lauhitya instead of Kamarupa, suggesting a potential absence of Brahmanical influence in the area during that period.
The 3rd–2nd century BCE Baudhayana Dharmasutra mentions Anga (eastern Bihar), Magadha (southern Bihar), Pundra (northern Bengal) and Vanga (eastern and southern Bengal), and prescribes that a Brahmin must undergo purification after visiting these regions. The absence of any mention of Kamarupa in such texts indicates that the region was beyond the ambit and recognition of Brahmanical culture during the second half of the first millennium BCE.
Early dated mentions come from the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea (1st century) and Ptolemy's Geographia (2nd century) which call the region Kirrhadia after the Kirata population. Arthashastra (early centuries of the Christian era) mentions "Lauhitya", which is identified with Brahmaputra valley by a later commentator. These early references speak about the economic activity of a tribal belt, and they do not mention any state.
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Kamarupa
Kamarupa (/ˈkɑːməˌruːpə/; also called Pragjyotisha or Pragjyotisha-Kamarupa), an early state during the Classical period on the Indian subcontinent, was (along with Davaka) the first historical kingdom of Assam. The Kamrupa word first appeared in the Samudragupta Allahabad Edict before that there is no mention of existence of this word.
Though Kamarupa prevailed from 350 to 1140 CE, Davaka was absorbed by Kamarupa in the 5th century CE. Ruled by three dynasties from their capitals in present-day Guwahati, North Guwahati and Tezpur, Kamarupa at its height covered the entire Brahmaputra Valley, parts of North Bengal, Bhutan and northern part of Bangladesh, and at times portions of what is now West Bengal, Bihar and Sylhet.
Though the historical kingdom disappeared by the 12th century to be replaced by smaller political entities, the notion of Kamarupa persisted and ancient and medieval chroniclers continued to call a part of this kingdom Kamrup. In the 16th century the Ahom kingdom came into prominence and assumed for themselves the legacy of the ancient Kamarupa kingdom and aspired to extend their kingdom to the Karatoya River.
The earliest use of the name Kamarupa to denote the kingdom is from the 4th century, when Samudragupta's pillar inscription mentions it as a frontier kingdom. Kamarupa finds no mention in the epics Mahabharata or Ramayana and in the early and late Vedic, Buddhist, and Jain literatures the references to Kamarupa are not about a kingdom. An explanation of the name Kamarupa emerged first in the 10th-century Kalika Purana, six centuries after the first use of the name, as the kingdom where Kamadeva (Kama) regained his form (rupa).
The name Pragjyotisha, on the other hand, is mentioned in the epics, but it did not become associated with the Kamarupa kingdom till the 7th century when Bhaskaravarman associated his kingdom with the Pragjyotisha of the epics and traced his dynastic lineage to Bhagadatta and Naraka. In the 9th century, Pragjyotishpura is named as the legendary city from which Naraka reigned after his conquest of Kamarupa.
"Kamarupa" is not included in the list of sixteen Mahajanapadas from the sixth to fourth centuries BCE; nor does it find any mention in the Ashokan records (3rd century BCE). The term "Kamarupa" first appears in the Allahabad pillar inscription of Samudragupta. During the 5th to 2nd century BCE, historical records mention the existence of a region called Lauhitya instead of Kamarupa, suggesting a potential absence of Brahmanical influence in the area during that period.
The 3rd–2nd century BCE Baudhayana Dharmasutra mentions Anga (eastern Bihar), Magadha (southern Bihar), Pundra (northern Bengal) and Vanga (eastern and southern Bengal), and prescribes that a Brahmin must undergo purification after visiting these regions. The absence of any mention of Kamarupa in such texts indicates that the region was beyond the ambit and recognition of Brahmanical culture during the second half of the first millennium BCE.
Early dated mentions come from the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea (1st century) and Ptolemy's Geographia (2nd century) which call the region Kirrhadia after the Kirata population. Arthashastra (early centuries of the Christian era) mentions "Lauhitya", which is identified with Brahmaputra valley by a later commentator. These early references speak about the economic activity of a tribal belt, and they do not mention any state.