11-17-2005, 01:37 AM
I have a few questions that I'd like clarified.
Why is it that Sanskrit is classified as an Indo-European language (along with Latin and Greek) and Tamil is classified as a Dravidian language? Why does the Sanskrit word for caste <i>varna</i> mean "color" of a person? And why is it that a large portion of the southern Indian population resemble features attributed to the Autroloid stock while the northern Indian populations are as a whole very similar in physical features to Mediterraneans, Iranians, and possibly Arabs? Could this mean that there were two large groups of different people (most people say two "races") who converged in the Indian peninsula?
I realize there is another thread on this forum that deals with migration and origin of Indian peoples. However, that particular thread is clogged with excessive crap about the definition of <i>arya</i> (which in truth only means nobility or one of virtue; compare to <i>veer</i>).
Why is it that Sanskrit is classified as an Indo-European language (along with Latin and Greek) and Tamil is classified as a Dravidian language? Why does the Sanskrit word for caste <i>varna</i> mean "color" of a person? And why is it that a large portion of the southern Indian population resemble features attributed to the Autroloid stock while the northern Indian populations are as a whole very similar in physical features to Mediterraneans, Iranians, and possibly Arabs? Could this mean that there were two large groups of different people (most people say two "races") who converged in the Indian peninsula?
I realize there is another thread on this forum that deals with migration and origin of Indian peoples. However, that particular thread is clogged with excessive crap about the definition of <i>arya</i> (which in truth only means nobility or one of virtue; compare to <i>veer</i>).