Indian History

 

Chapter 01

Indian History

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Introduction

What is History?

• The study of the past is called ‘History’.

• The English word ‘History’ is derived from the Greek word historia, meaning research, inquiry or investigation.

• The Greek historian Herodotus (484 BC–425 BC) was the first real historian of the world. He wrote only one book, The Histories (430 BC). The Histories describes the background and events of the Greco-Persian/Greek-Iranian Wars. It was the Roman philosopher Cicero (106 BC–43 BC) who first of all called Herodotus “The Father of History”.

• The German historian Leopold von Ranke (1795–1886 AD) is known as “The Father of Modern History”. According to Ranke, the task of a historian is to describe the past as it actually was (wie es eigentlich gewesen).

• The German philosopher Hegel (1770–1831 AD) said “History repeats itself”. Later, Karl Marx (1818–1883 AD) extended the line: “History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce.”

• According to British historian E. H. Carr (1892–1982 AD): “History is a continuous process of interaction between the historian and his facts, an unending dialogue between the present and the past.”

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A System of Dating

BC and AD

• BC stands for Before Christ. It refers to the years before the birth of Jesus Christ.
  Example: Gautama Buddha was born in 563 BC and died in 483 BC. Alexander the Great was born in 356 BC and died in 323 BC.

• AD stands for Anno Domini (Latin), meaning “In the year of the Lord”. It refers to the years beginning from the birth of Jesus Christ.
  Example: Jesus Christ was crucified in 30 AD. Kushana ruler Kanishka ascended the throne in 78 AD. Hazrat Muhammad was born in 570 AD and died in 632 AD.

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Time Line

The line displaying the events of past time is called a Time Line.

Counting of Years

• In BC, years are counted backward.
  Example: 500 BC → 5 BC → 4 BC → 3 BC → 2 BC → 1 BC.

  The meaning of one year before 1 BC is 2 BC; one year before 2 BC is 3 BC, and so on.

• In AD, years are counted forward.
  Example: 1 AD → 2 AD → 3 AD → 4 AD → 5 AD.

  Thus, if asked which is the first year between 500 AD and 2000 AD, the answer is 500 AD; and the last year is 2000 AD.

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Time Glossary

Some important terms associated with time:

• Decade – Period of 10 years

• Quarter (of a century) – One-fourth of a century (25 years)

• First Half (of a century) – First 50 years (1st year to 50th year)

• Second Half (of a century) – Last 50 years (51st year to 100th year)

• Century – Period of 100 years

• Millennium – Period of 1,000 years

• Circa (Ca./C.) – Used when the exact date is not known (e.g., c. 1500 BC)

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Examples of Century & Millennium

• First decade of 20th century AD → 1901–1910

• Fifth decade of 20th century AD → 1941–1950

• Eighth decade of 20th century AD → 1971–1980

• Last decade of 20th century AD → 1991–2000

• First quarter of 20th century AD → 1901–1925

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Period

Bipartite Division

History is divided into two periods:

1. Pre-Historic Period – Period for which no written evidence is available.

2. Historic Period – Period for which written evidence is available.

The Pre-Historic Period is generally accepted from 30,00,000 BC to 600 BC.
The Historic Period is from 600 BC till date.

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Tripartite Division

History is divided into:

1. Pre-Historic

2. Proto-Historic

3. Historic

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Pre-Historic Period

30,00,000 BC – 2,500 BC
(No written evidence available; e.g., Lithic/Stone Period)

Proto-Historic Period

2,500 BC – 600 BC
(Written evidence exists but script not deciphered or not fully confirmed; e.g., Indus Civilization)

Historic Period

600 BC – Till Date
(Written evidence available; e.g., Mahajanapada Period onward)

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Chronology

German historian Christoph Cellarius (1638–1707 AD) gave the tripartite division of history into:

• Ancient

• Medieval

• Modern

For convenience, Indian History is divided into:

• Ancient India – Beginning to 647 AD

• Medieval India – 647–1757

• Modern India – 1757–1991

• Post-Modern India – 1991–Till Date

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Ancient India: The Beginning – 647 AD

• Pre-Historic Period – 30,00,000 BC–600 BC

• Indus Civilization – 2,500 BC–1750 BC

• Vedic Culture – 1,500 BC–600 BC

• Mahajanapada Period – 600 BC–322 BC

• Maurya Period – 322 BC–185 BC

• Post-Maurya/Pre-Gupta – 185 BC–319 AD

• Gupta Period – 319 AD–550 AD

• Post-Gupta/Vardhana – 550 AD–647 AD

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1. Historical Sources

The sources that provide information about past events are called Historical Sources.

There are two types:

1. Literary Sources

2. Archaeological Sources

Archaeological sources are considered more reliable because they are difficult to alter.

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I. Literary Sources

Literary sources are divided into:

1. Indigenous Sources

2. Foreign Sources

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A. Indigenous Sources

Indigenous sources are divided into:

• Religious

• Secular

Religious texts include:

• Brahmanic (Hindu) texts

• Buddhist texts

• Jain texts

Secular texts include:

• Historical texts

• Semi-historical texts

• Biographical texts

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Brahmanic (Hindu) Texts

Under Brahmanic texts:

1. Shruti Texts

• Samhitas or Vedas

• Brahmanas

• Aranyakas

• Upanishads

There are four Samhitas/Vedas:

• Rigveda

• Yajurveda

• Samaveda

• Atharvaveda