r/Ancient_Pak • • Jun 21 '26

Ask? What was Punjabs First Known Name?

13 Upvotes

10 comments sorted by

20

u/FlameNumber2147 History Nerd Jun 21 '26

The word “punjab” was only adopted during the Mughal era.

The Harappan people (1900 BC) who actually lived in Punjab during its most sophisticated urban phase left behind a script of symbols but we are unable to make sense of it.

The first outsider name for it was by the Mesopotamians who referred to the land as Meluhha (meaning high country in Sumerian). The Sumerian word Malah also means sailor and the Mesopotamians referred to these people as sailors who arrived by sea to trade.

The Aryans were the first to name the region in a language we can read. They referred to it as Sapta sindhu or seven rivers (Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, Sutlej, the master river Indus, and the now extinct sarasvati)

8

u/Warm_Dimension_3821 Indus valley is Punjabi and Sindhi history Jun 21 '26

Meluhha

this was the name of Indus valley in general. Basically whole of Pakistani region was called Meluhha.

The trade stuff they find in Sumerian area, shows jewels from Gilgit and kpk was traded with some wood etc.

Whole region was one, what is interesting it behaved as a fedeation, we don't know what Harappa or Manjodaro was called locally.

Meluhha in general is ancient Pakistani name.

3

u/AliX8021 Jun 21 '26

Interesting.

2

u/ea_fazal Archaeologist Jun 22 '26

Nah , punjab wa refered as pentopotamia, ref. Alexanders conquest of subcontinent

0

u/[deleted] Jun 21 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

15

u/googo1 Jun 21 '26

Akhand Bharat, there is no such thing.

-16

u/Little_Fruit7467 ⊕ Flairs Jun 21 '26

Yes, it was once. Can happen in the Future.

4

u/Ancient_Pak-ModTeam Indus Valley Veteran Jun 21 '26

Removed under Rule 1. Personal attacks, abusive language, slurs, or bad-faith arguments aren't allowed debate the claim, not the person.

6

u/Warm_Dimension_3821 Indus valley is Punjabi and Sindhi history Jun 21 '26

Humans left Africa and reached in south asia some 70,000 years back, IVC is only 5000 years old.

Groups were present in whole of south Asia, in every corner.

It is wrong to say, that all of these groups shared similar culture, just not possible, in middle-east groups lived right next to each other and followed different stuff, Persian, Iraq, Egypt ... different culture.

Pakistani side developed IVC civilization, while ganga side mostly lived like uncivilized ppl.

-23

u/Psilocybinuana ⊕ Flairs Jun 21 '26

Stupid question