India

The Republic of India is a country that occupies a greater part of South Asia. It has a coastline of over seven thousand kilometres, borders Pakistan to the west, the People's Republic of China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the northeast, and Bangladesh and Myanmar to the east. more...

In the Indian Ocean, it is adjacent to three island nations — the Maldives to the southwest, Sri Lanka to the south, and Indonesia to the southeast. India also claims a border with Afghanistan to the northwest.

The name India /'ɪndiə/ is derived from the Old Persian version of Sindhu, the historic local name for the Indus river (see Origin of India's name). The Constitution of India and common usage also recognise Bharat (Hindi: भारत /bʰɑːrət̪/ listen (help·info)) as an official name of equal status. This name is derived from the Sanskrit name of an ancient Hindu king, Bharata, whose story can be found in the Mahabharata epic poem. A third name, Hindustan (Hindi: हिन्दुस्तान /hin̪d̪ust̪ɑːn/) listen (help·info) (Persian: Land of the Hindus) has been used since the twelfth century, though its contemporary use is unevenly applied due to domestic disputes by some over its representation as a national signifier.

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