The Social System of Aryans
Explain the origins of the caste system.
- The caste system is a system of social stratification and social restriction in which communities are defined by thousands of endogamous hereditary groups
- The term "caste" was first used by the Portuguese to describe their inherited class status
- The Aryans constructed a well-defined social order. In some way their social hierarchy served to maintain the order and stability that states and political structures guaranteed in other societies.
What does the Aryan term “varna” mean?
The Aryans used the term “varna”, a Sanskrit word meaning “color”, to refer to the major social classes. This terminology suggests that social distinctions arose partly from differences in complexion between the Aryans, who referred to themselves as "wheat-colored".
Briefly explain or identify who was in the each of the four main varnas.
Four main varnas: brahmins (priests); kshatriyas (warriors and aristocrats); vaishyas (cultivators, artisans and merchants) and shudras (landless peasants and serfs).
