4.2 kiloyear event
Also called: 2200 BCE drought · Topic: Harappan (Sindhu-Sarasvati) Civilisation · NCERT: Class 6, Ch 6 "The Beginnings of Indian Civilisation"
Meaning
This was a change in climate that began around c. 2200 BCE, about 4,200 years ago, which is where the name comes from. It affected many parts of the world. Rainfall dropped and a drier phase set in. Farming became harder, so cities got less reliable food. NCERT counts this climate shift as one of two factors scholars currently agree on for the Harappan decline. The other factor is the drying of the Sarasvati in its central basin.
Example
After c. 2200 BCE, the Harappan region faced agrarian stress (pressure on farming). By c. 1900 BCE, the urban Mature Harappan phase had ended. By c. 1800 BCE, sites in Cholistan had been abandoned, and people moved towards Gujarat, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh.
Don't confuse with
- Drying of the Sarasvati: this was a local river change that emptied sites such as Kalibangan and Banawali. The 4.2 kiloyear event was a wide climate shift.
Related concepts
- Decline of the Harappan civilisation
- Late Harappan phase
- Cemetery H culture
- Jhukar culture
- Sinauli
- Thirsty crow pot
- Aryan invasion theory
- Mortimer Wheeler
- Mythical massacre at Mohenjo-daro