South Asia

The Indus Valley civilisation, with planned cities such as Harappa and Mohenjo-daro in today's Pakistan, flourished around 2600–1900 BC. Later, Sanskrit-speaking peoples composed the Vedas, the oldest Hindu texts, in the north. Around 250 BC the emperor Ashoka ruled most of the subcontinent and spread Buddhism; his inscribed pillars and the lion capital that is now India's emblem survive.

Over the next two thousand years, dynasties rose and fell across the region: the Guptas in the north, the Cholas in the south whose navies reached Southeast Asia, Sinhalese kings at Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa in Sri Lanka, and the Newar city-states of the Kathmandu Valley. Delhi Sultanates brought Islamic rule from the 13th century.

The Mughal emperors, from Babur in 1526, built the empire that left the best-known monuments: Humayun's Tomb, the Red Forts of Delhi and Agra, Fatehpur Sikri and the Taj Mahal, completed around 1653. In the same era, Rajput kingdoms built the forts and palaces of Rajasthan.

Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism all began in the subcontinent. The Buddha was born at Lumbini in today's Nepal and taught in the Ganges plain; Bodh Gaya and Sarnath near Varanasi are key pilgrim sites. Buddhism later faded in India but became the heart of Sri Lanka (Theravada) and Bhutan (Vajrayana), and survives in Nepal's Himalaya.

Islam is the faith of Pakistan, Bangladesh and the Maldives, and of about 200 million Indians. Sufi shrines (dargahs) such as Nizamuddin in Delhi draw people of every faith for devotional music. Sikhism, founded in Punjab in the 15th century, centres on the Golden Temple in Amritsar, where the community kitchen feeds tens of thousands a day for free.

Rules at religious sites are consistent: shoes off, shoulders and knees covered, a head covering in gurdwaras and many mosques, and no leather in some Jain temples. Walk clockwise around stupas and temples. Ask before photographing rituals, and never point feet at an altar or a person.

European traders arrived from 1498, when Vasco da Gama reached Kerala. The British East India Company became a ruling power after 1757 and, after the 1857 uprising, the British Crown ruled directly. Railways, the English language, hill stations such as Shimla and Darjeeling, and cricket are part of that legacy — as are famines and the draining of wealth.

Independence in 1947 came with Partition into India and Pakistan (East and West). Up to 15 million people crossed the new borders and hundreds of thousands, possibly more, were killed. Kashmir has been disputed ever since, and India and Pakistan fought wars in 1947, 1965, 1971 and 1999, with a sharp crisis again in 2025. In 1971 East Pakistan became Bangladesh after a war of independence.

Sri Lanka became independent in 1948 and endured a civil war from 1983 to 2009. Nepal was never colonised; it ended its monarchy in 2008. Bhutan kept its independence and opened to tourists only in 1974. The Maldives became independent in 1965. Borders shaped by these events still decide which crossings you can use: India–Pakistan land crossings are closed, while India–Nepal is an open border for their own citizens.

Almost everything in South Asia runs on the monsoon. The south-west monsoon reaches Kerala around early June and sweeps north to cover most of India, Nepal and Bangladesh by July, bringing most of the year's rain by September. Before it, April to June is the hottest time of year on the plains, often above 45 °C.

Sri Lanka and south-east India also get a north-east monsoon from October to January. That is why Sri Lanka has two seasons: the south and west coasts are best from December to April, the east coast from May to September. The Maldives are warm all year, wetter from May to October.

The Himalaya adds altitude: Nepal and Bhutan are clearest in October–November and March–April, while Ladakh, in the rain shadow, is best in the monsoon months. Air pollution on the north Indian plains is worst from November to January, when crop burning and cold air trap smoke.

Food changes every few hundred kilometres. North Indian cooking uses wheat breads, dairy and slow-cooked curries; the south eats rice, dosa and coconut-based dishes; Bengal and Bangladesh favour fish and mustard; Sri Lanka has rice and curry with many small dishes and hoppers; Nepal eats dal bhat twice a day; Bhutan cooks chilli as a vegetable in ema datshi. Vegetarian food is the norm in much of India; beef is avoided by most Hindus and pork by Muslims.

Eat and pass things with the right hand. In homes and many local restaurants, people eat with their fingers — wash before and after. The head wobble can mean yes, maybe or I understand; the greeting namaste or namaskar with palms together works across the region, and 'salaam' in Muslim areas.

Modest dress helps everywhere outside beach resorts: loose trousers or long skirts, covered shoulders. On local islands in the Maldives, bikinis are only for designated beaches. Bargaining is expected in markets but not in fixed-price shops; start friendly and walk away politely if the price is wrong.