India is the second largest country in the world after China by population. Indian population has already crossed the 1 billion mark and still increasing at an alarming rate. Ethnically, the people of India may be divided into two major strains – the Aryans in the North, & the Dravidians in the South. However, religion seems to be most influential defining factor in India. The Hindu scriptures call India Aryavarta meaning the region of the Arya people. India is also called Bharat by its inhabitants referring to the ancient Kingdom of King Bharata. Muslim rulers gave the name Hindustan meaning the land of Hindu people. Moreover, Indian society is also immensely influenced by the Muslim & Christian cultures.

Another factor that the people of India define themselves is language. There are more than 15 regional languages that have been recognized by the Indian constitution. Hindi is the national language of India. Most of the states in India have been demarcated along the linguistic lines. India recognizes English as an official government language.