section_path: History
section_name: History
paragraph_text: History
  
  Hinduism's varied history overlaps or coincides with the development of religion in the Indian subcontinent since the Iron Age, with some of its traditions tracing back to prehistoric religions such as those of the Bronze Age Indus Valley Civilisation. While the traditional Itihasa-Purana and the Epic-Puranic chronology derived from it present Hinduism as a tradition existing for thousands of years, scholars regard Hinduism as a synthesis of various Indian cultures and traditions, with diverse roots and no single founder, which emerged after the Vedic period, between c. 500 –200 BCE and c. 300 CE.
  
  The history of Hinduism is often divided into periods of development. The first period is the pre-Vedic period, which includes the Indus Valley Civilization and local pre-historic religions, ending at about 1750 BCE. This period was followed in northern India by the Vedic period, which saw the introduction of the historical Vedic religion with the Indo-Aryan migrations, starting somewhere between 1900 BCE to 1400 BCE. The subsequent period, between 800 BCE and 200 BCE, is "a turning point between the Vedic religion and Hindu religions", and a formative period for Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism. The Epic and Early Puranic period, from c. 200 BCE to 500 CE, saw the classical "Golden Age" of Hinduism (c. 320–650 CE), which coincides with the Gupta Empire. In this period the six branches of Hindu philosophy evolved, namely Samkhya, Yoga, Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Mīmāṃsā, and Vedanta. Monotheistic sects like Shaivism and Vaishnavism developed during this same period through the Bhakti movement. The period from roughly 650 to 1100 CE forms the late Classical period or early Middle Ages, in which classical Puranic Hinduism is established, and Adi Shankara 's influential consolidation of Advaita Vedanta.
  
  Hinduism under both Hindu and Islamic rulers from c. 1250–1750 CE, saw the increasing prominence of the Bhakti movement, which remains influential today. Historic persecutions of Hindus happened under Muslim rulers and also by Christian Missionaries. In Goa, the 1560 inquisition by Portuguese colonists is also considered one of the most brutal persecutions of Hindus. The colonial period saw the emergence of various Hindu reform movements partly inspired by western movements, such as Unitarianism and Theosophy. In the Kingdom of Nepal, the Unification of Nepal by Shah dynasty was accompanied by the Hinduization of the state and continued till the c. 1950s. Indians were hired as plantation labourers in British colonies such as Fiji, Mauritius, Trinidad and Tobago. The Partition of India in 1947 was along religious lines, with the Republic of India emerging with a Hindu majority. Between 200,000 and one million people, including both Muslims and Hindus, were killed during the Partition of India. During the 20th century, due to the Indian diaspora, Hindu minorities have formed in all continents, with the largest communities in absolute numbers in the United States, and the United Kingdom.
  
  Although religious conversion from and to Hinduism has been a controversial and debated subject in India, Nepal, and in Indonesia, in the 20th–21st century, many missionary organisations such as ISKCON, Sathya Sai Organization, Vedanta Society have been influential in spreading the core culture of Hinduism outside India. Religious leaders of some Hindu reform movements such as the Arya Samaj launched Shuddhi movement to proselytise and reconvert Muslims and Christians back to Hinduism, while those such as the Brahmo Samaj suggested Hinduism to be a non-missionary religion. All these sects of Hinduism have welcomed new members to their group, while other leaders of Hinduism's diverse schools have stated that given the intensive proselytisation activities from missionary Islam and Christianity, this "there is no such thing as proselytism in Hinduism" view must be re-examined. There have also been an increase of Hindu identity in politics, mostly in India, Nepal and Bangladesh in the form of Hindutva. The revivalist movement was mainly started and encouraged by many organisations like RSS, BJP and other organisations of Sangh Parivar in India, while there are also many Hindu nationalist parties and organisations such as Shivsena Nepal and RPP in Nepal, HINDRAF in Malaysia, etc.