<P> The Indian subcontinent was home to the urban Indus Valley Civilisation of the 3rd millennium BCE . In the following millennium, the oldest scriptures associated with Hinduism began to be composed . Social stratification, based on caste, emerged in the first millennium BCE, and Buddhism and Jainism arose . Early political consolidations took place under the Maurya and Gupta empires; the later peninsular Middle Kingdoms influenced cultures as far as southeast Asia . In the medieval era, Judaism, Zoroastrianism, Christianity, and Islam arrived, and Sikhism emerged, all adding to the region's diverse culture . Much of the north fell to the Delhi sultanate; the south was united under the Vijayanagara Empire . The economy expanded in the 17th century in the Mughal Empire . In the mid-18th century, the subcontinent came under British East India Company rule, and in the mid-19th under British crown rule . A nationalist movement emerged in the late 19th century, which later, under Mahatma Gandhi, was noted for nonviolent resistance and led to India's independence in 1947 . </P> <P> In 2017, the Indian economy was the world's sixth largest by nominal GDP and third largest by purchasing power parity . Following market - based economic reforms in 1991, India became one of the fastest - growing major economies and is considered a newly industrialised country . However, it continues to face the challenges of poverty, corruption, malnutrition, and inadequate public healthcare . A nuclear weapons state and regional power, it has the third largest standing army in the world and ranks fifth in military expenditure among nations . India is a federal republic governed under a parliamentary system and consists of 29 states and 7 union territories . It is a pluralistic, multilingual and multi-ethnic society and is also home to a diversity of wildlife in a variety of protected habitats . </P> <P> The name India is derived from Indus, which originates from the Old Persian word Hindu . The latter term stems from the Sanskrit word Sindhu, which was the historical local appellation for the Indus River . The ancient Greeks referred to the Indians as Indoi (Ἰνδοί), which translates as "The people of the Indus". </P> <P> The geographical term Bharat (Bhārat, pronounced (ˈbɦaːrət̪) (listen)), which is recognised by the Constitution of India as an official name for the country, is used by many Indian languages in its variations . It is a modernisation of the historical name Bharatavarsha, which traditionally referred to the Indian subcontinent and gained increasing currency from the mid-19th century as a native name for India . Scholars believe it to be named after the Vedic tribe of Bhāratas in the second millennium BCE . It is also traditionally associated with the rule of the legendary emperor Bharata . Gaṇarājya (literally, people's State) is the Sanskrit / Hindi term for "republic" dating back to the ancient times . </P>

What is the origin of the name india