<P> The term Hindu was later used occasionally in some Sanskrit texts such as the later Rajataranginis of Kashmir ( Hinduka , c. 1450 ) and some 16th - to 18th - century Bengali Gaudiya Vaishnava texts including Chaitanya Charitamrita and Chaitanya Bhagavata . These texts used it to distinguish Hindus from Muslims who are called Yavanas ( foreigners ) or Mlecchas ( barbarians ) , with the 16th - century Chaitanya Charitamrita text and the 17th century Bhakta Mala text using the phrase `` Hindu dharma '' . It was only towards the end of the 18th century that European merchants and colonists began to refer to the followers of Indian religions collectively as Hindus . The term Hinduism , then spelled Hindooism , was introduced into the English language in the 18th - century to denote the religious , philosophical , and cultural traditions native to India . </P>
<P> The term Hindu was later used occasionally in some Sanskrit texts such as the later Rajataranginis of Kashmir ( Hinduka , c. 1450 ) and some 16th - to 18th - century Bengali Gaudiya Vaishnava texts including Chaitanya Charitamrita and Chaitanya Bhagavata . These texts used it to distinguish Hindus from Muslims who are called Yavanas ( foreigners ) or Mlecchas ( barbarians ) , with the 16th - century Chaitanya Charitamrita text and the 17th century Bhakta Mala text using the phrase `` Hindu dharma '' . It was only towards the end of the 18th century that European merchants and colonists began to refer to the followers of Indian religions collectively as Hindus . The term Hinduism , then spelled Hindooism , was introduced into the English language in the 18th - century to denote the religious , philosophical , and cultural traditions native to India . </P>
when did the name hinduism first emerged in india
when did the name hinduism first emerged in india
in the 18th - century
in the 18th - century