mlechchha
ancient Indian class
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Also known as: mleccha
Written and fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
- Also spelled:
- mleccha
- Related Topics:
- jati
mlechchha, people of foreign extraction in ancientIndia. A Sanskrit term,mlechchha was used by the Vedic peoples much as the ancient Greeks usedbarbaros, originally to indicate the uncouth and incomprehensible speech of foreigners and then extended to their unfamiliar behaviour.Mlechchhas were found in northwestern India, and there is reason to believe that the people known in Akkadian as Mlakkha were the originalmlechchhas. As amlechchha, any foreigner stood completely outside thecaste system and the ritualambience. Thus, historically, contact with them was viewed by the caste Hindu as polluting.