Kikata Kingdom

Kikata Kingdom
Kīkaṭa
Common languagesVedic Sanskrit
Religion
Historical Vedic religion
GovernmentMonarchy
Historical erac. 1700–1300 BCE
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Copper Hoard culture
Brihadratha dynasty
Today part ofIndia

Kīkaṭa was an ancient Indian kingdom in what is now India, mentioned in the Vedas.

A section in the Rigveda (RV 3.53.14) refers to the Kīkaṭas, with its ruler Pramaganda. Some scholars have placed them in Bihar (Magadha) because Kikata is used as synonym for Magadha in the later texts;[1] while other scholars dispute this and point to evidence for a more western location, in the area approximately south of Kurukshetra (see below). Like the Magadhas in the Atharvaveda, the Rigveda speaks of the Kikatas as a hostile tribe, living on the borders of Vedic India, who did not perform Vedic rituals.[2]

Zimmer has argued, in referring to Yaksha, that they were a non-Aryan people. According to Weber, they were a Vedic people, but were sometimes in conflict with other Vedic people.[3]

  1. ^ e.g. McDonell and Keith 1912, Vedic Index; Rahurkar, V.G. 1964. The Seers of the Rgveda. University of Poona. Poona; Talageri, Shrikant. (2000) The Rigveda: A Historical Analysis
  2. ^ M. Witzel. "Rigvedic history: poets, chieftains, and polities," in The Indo-Aryans of Ancient South Asia: Language, Material Culture and Ethnicity. ed. G. Erdosy (Walter de Gruyer, 1995), p. 333
  3. ^ R. C. Majumdar and A. D. Pusalker (editors): The History and Culture of the Indian People. Volume I, The Vedic age. Bombay : Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan 1951, p. 252

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