Tracing Changes Through a Thousand Years

This chapter covers the subcontinent from about 700 to 1750 CE. Maps show how ideas changed: the map made by the Arab geographer al-Idrisi in 1154 shows south India where we expect north, while a map of 1720 by a French cartographer looks much more familiar. Words also changed meaning. In the thirteenth century, Minhaj-i Siraj used "Hindustan" for Punjab, Haryana and the lands between the Ganga and Yamuna, while Babur used it in the sixteenth century for the geography, fauna and culture of the whole subcontinent. A "foreigner" then meant any stranger outside one's own society. Historians use coins, inscriptions, architecture and textual records. Paper became cheaper and more widely available, so many manuscripts survive, though scribes copying by hand made small changes. This period saw new technologies like the Persian wheel, the spinning wheel and firearms, new foods like potatoes, maize, chillies, tea and coffee, and new groups such as Rajputs and jatis. Islam and bhakti spread. The British historian James Mill divided Indian history into Hindu, Muslim and British periods, a division now rejected.

Detailed Worksheet: Tracing Changes Through a Thousand Years Section A - Definitions (10 marks) 1. What is a manuscript? Why were manuscripts difficult to preserve? (2 marks) 2. What is an archive? (2 marks) 3. Who was a cartographer? Name the one who made a map in 1154. (2 marks) 4. What does "periodisation" mean in history? (2 marks) 5. What were jatis? (2 marks) Section B - Calculations and Applications (15 marks) 6. The period studied is from 700 to 1750 CE. (i) How many years is that? (ii) How many centuries? (iii) In which century is the year 1154? (3 marks) 7. Al-Idrisi's map was made in 1154 and the French map in 1720. (i) How many years apart were they? (ii) How many years ago from 2026 was al-Idrisi's map made? (iii) Why do the two maps look so different? (3 marks) 8. Compare the meaning of "Hindustan" for Minhaj-i Siraj (13th century) and Babur (16th century). (3 marks) 9. Classify these sources as inscriptions, coins, architecture or textual records: Qutb Minar, a copper plate grant, a silver tanka, the Akbar Nama, Brihadeshvara temple, Babur's memoirs. (3 marks) 10. Arrange in chronological order: Babur describes Hindustan, al-Idrisi's map, Minhaj-i Siraj writes his chronicle, the French map, Amir Khusrau notes the languages of the land (1318). (3 marks) Section C - Diagrams (10 marks) 11. Draw a timeline from 700 CE to 1750 CE in 100-year intervals and mark five events or developments mentioned in this chapter. (4 marks) 12. Draw a flowchart showing how a historian uses different sources to reconstruct the past. (3 marks) 13. Draw a concept map showing new developments of this period: technology, food, groups of people and religions, with two examples each. (3 marks) Section D - Analysis and Higher-order Thinking (15 marks) 14. James Mill divided Indian history into Hindu, Muslim and British periods. (i) Why do historians disagree with this division? (ii) What did Mill think of Asian societies? (iii) What other ways of periodisation do historians use? (iv) Why is "medieval" used for this period? (v) What problems arise with such labels? (5 marks) 15. Scribes copied manuscripts by hand. (i) Why did small changes creep in? (ii) How does this make the historian's work harder? (iii) How do historians find the original text? (iv) Why did the availability of paper matter? (5 marks) 16. The thousand years from 700 to 1750 saw great changes. (i) Name two new technologies. (ii) Name two new crops. (iii) How did new groups like the Rajputs emerge? (iv) How did religions change during this time? (5 marks) Instructions: Time allowed 2 hours. Attempt all sections. Use CE for dates and support answers with examples from sources.