Most Hindus think that Hinduism / India has had a Caste system for thousands of years, because that is what our textbooks say. Some Hindus recognize that the word Caste did not really exist within the Hindu world, or the Indian lexicon until the colonial era. Further, the word Caste came from Castas,  a word used in Portuguese and Spanish languages, which later morphed into English as Caste. 

But what were the origins of the word Casta? What is the systeme de castas? What circumstances  led to the creation of the Caste System as the Portuguese and the Spanish understood it? And how did that word get transposed onto the Varna and Jati based social order of India. How do we separate the two? 

In this Webinar, Kalyan Viswanathan, the President of Hindu University of will explore the following topics.