The charkha and the lattu

Learn about the charkha and the lattu, two famous spinning things of India.

India has some very old and famous spinning things. Your book, Our Wondrous World (Chapter 7), tells you about two of them.

The first is the charkha, or spinning wheel. It has a large wheel that spins when it is turned by hand. The charkha twists cotton fibre into thread, and the thread can be woven into cloth. Mahatma Gandhi used the charkha to make handmade clothes.

The second is the spinning top. People in India have played with spinning tops for thousands of years. In earlier times, tops were made of clay. One of the most popular Indian tops is the lattu, which is commonly made of wood.

The charkha's hand-turned wheel twists cotton fibre into thread (Mahatma Gandhi used it for handmade clothes), and spinning tops like the wooden lattu have been used in India for thousands of years.

Practise this lesson

Questions that get harder as you improve, a Tutor that helps without giving the answer away, and progress you can see. Free for every learner.

Try it now Sign up free I have an account

No account, no email address. Opens the real product.