Chinese historical writers and travellers referred to India by which of the following names?

Introduction / Context:
Historical names used by foreign writers for India are a regular feature of history and culture based general knowledge questions. Chinese pilgrims, travellers, and historians visiting or writing about India used specific terms to refer to the subcontinent. Knowing these names helps in understanding cross cultural contacts and the way India was perceived abroad in ancient and medieval times. This question asks which name Chinese writers used for India.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The context is Chinese writers describing India.
• The options present several transliterated terms: Yin-tu, Si-Yu-Ki, Sikia-Pono, and Fo-Kwo-Ki.
• We assume that one of these represents the Chinese term for India as a country.
• The others likely refer to works or different contexts related to Buddhism or travel records.

Concept / Approach:
The concept tested is historical nomenclature. Yin-tu is the Chinese rendering of the name India, appearing in Chinese sources describing the region. Si-Yu-Ki is the title given to the travelogue of the Chinese monk Hiuen Tsang (Xuanzang), meaning “Records of the Western Regions,” and is not the name of the country itself. Therefore, the approach is to distinguish between names of texts and the actual term used for the country and select Yin-tu as the correct option.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Read the question carefully and note that it asks for the name by which Chinese writers referred to India.Step 2: Recall that Yin-tu is widely recognised as the Chinese term for India in historical sources.Step 3: Recognise that Si-Yu-Ki is the title of a book (records of western lands) rather than the name of India.Step 4: Understand that Sikia-Pono and Fo-Kwo-Ki also relate to Buddhist literature and other contexts, not the generic country name.Step 5: Select Yin-tu as the correct answer.

Verification / Alternative check:
Verification can be done by recalling that many exam preparation sources explicitly state that Chinese writers referred to India as Yin-tu. Meanwhile, Si-Yu-Ki is usually mentioned in questions about the journey and records of Xuanzang. This clear categorisation between country name and book titles confirms that Yin-tu is the correct choice here.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option B (Si-Yu-Ki) is incorrect because it refers to the travel account of Hiuen Tsang and translates to “Records of the Western Regions,” not to the name of India itself. Option C (Sikia-Pono) and option D (Fo-Kwo-Ki) relate to different texts or Buddhist references and not to the standard Chinese name for India used by writers. They therefore do not answer the specific question about how Chinese writers named India.

Common Pitfalls:
A common pitfall is to confuse Si-Yu-Ki with the name of India because it is strongly associated with Chinese accounts of the subcontinent. Another mistake is to treat all unfamiliar looking terms as synonyms without distinguishing between book titles and country names. The best way to avoid such confusion is to remember a simple mapping: Yin-tu equals India, while Si-Yu-Ki is the record of travels to Indian and nearby regions.

Final Answer:
The correct answer is Yin-tu, the name used by Chinese writers to refer to India.