Tracing History through a thousand years
Q 1 – A cartographer is a person who makes:
(a) Cartoons
(b) Caricatures
(c) Maps
(d) None of these
Ans – Maps
Q 2 – In which century Babur used Hindustan to describe geography of subcontinent?
(a) 17th century
(b) 18 th century
(c) 16 th century
(d) None of these
Ans – 16 th century
Q 3 – Why do historians today have to be careful about the terms in the past?
(a) Because they do not know the meaning of terms.
(b) Because the terms may have more than one meaning.
(c) Because the terms meant different in the past.
(d) None of the above.
Ans – Because the terms meant different in the past.
Q 4 – Which of the following is not the meaning of foreigner’ in the past?
(a) Stranger
(b) Pardesi
(c) Ajnabi
(d) Indigenous
Ans – Indigenous
Q 5 – In which period did the number and variety of textual records increase dramatically?
(a) 600 to 700
(b) 700 to 800
(c) 800 to 1000
(d) 700 to 1750
Ans – 700 to 1750
Tracing History through a thousand years
Q 6 – Which type of people collected Manuscripts?
(a) Poor people
(b) Wealthy people
(c) Local people
(d) None of these
Ans – Wealthy people
Q 7 – Where were the manuscripts placed?
(a) At home
(b) In libraries
(c) In archives
(d) Both (b) and (c)
Ans – Both (b) and (c)
Q 8 – Ziyauddin Barani wrote his Chronicle first in
(a) 13th century
(b) 12 th century
(c) 14 th century
(d) 15 th century
Ans – 14 th century (1357 C.E)
Q 9 – In which centuries were the term ‘Kshatriya’ applied more generally to a group of warriors?
(a) Between the eighth and fourteenth centuries
(b) Between the nineteenth and twentieth centuries
(c) Between the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries
(d) None of the above
Ans – Between the eighth and fourteenth centuries
Q 10 – Which language was spoken during 14th century in present Bengal region?
(a) Awadhi
(b) Gauri
(c) Telangani
(d) Lahori
Ans – Gauri
Q 11 – Which is the holy book of Muslims?
(a) Gita
(b) Adi-Puran
(c) Quran
(d) Ramayana
Ans – Quran
Q 12 – Who had accepted the authority of the early Muslim leaders (Khalifas)?
(a) Sunnis
(b) Shias
(c) Khalifas
(d) None of these
Ans – Sunnis
Q 13 – Prosperity in the subcontinent attract trading companies of which region?
(a) European
(b) Australian
(c) Russian
(d) None of these
Ans – European
Tracing History through a thousand years
Q 14 – Fill in the blanks with appropriate words:
1. ………………… provide a lot of information to the historians.2. Rules and regulations of jatis were enforced by ……………….
3. Knowledge of ………………. earned Brahmanas a lot of respect.
4. The Muslims had two divisions the ……………………… and the ………………………
5. ………………………………. had controlled an empire from Bengal in the east to Ghazni in the west.
Ans –
1. Manuscripts
2. Jati Panchayat
3 Sanskrit
4. Shias, Sunnis
4 Balban
Q 15 – State whether the given statements are true or false:
1. Science of cartography differed between 12 th and 13 th century.
2. We have many original manuscripts to get information.
3. Between 8 th and 14 th century the term Kshatriya was used for group of Brahmanas.
4. Status of a jati remained same from region to region.
5. Muslims had two schools of law hanafi and shaffie.
Ans –
1. True
2. False
3. False
4. False
5. True
Q 16 – Match the contents of Column A with that of Column B:
| Column A | Column B |
| 1. Chronicler | a. dense and difficult |
| 2. Poet | b. Al- Idrisi |
| 3. Nastaliq Style | c. Minhaj-i-Siraj |
| 4. Shikaste Style | d. cursive and easy |
| 5. Cartographer | e. Amir Khusrau |
Ans –
1. (c)
2. (e)
3. (d)
4. (a)
5. (b)
Tracing History through a thousand years
Q 17 – Who was Amir Khusrau?
Ans – AmirKhusrau (1253 – 1325 CE) was a Sufi musician, poet and scholar who lived in medieval India. He wrote poetry in Persian and Hindavi .
Q 18 – What do you understand about the cartographer?
Ans – The cartographer is a person who makes maps.
Tracing History through a thousand years
Q 19 – Who was Al-Idrisi?
Ans – Al-Idrisi was an Arab geographer and was an Arabian.
Q 20 – What was made by Al-Idrisi?
Ans – Al-Idrisi made a detail of the Indian subcontinent from his large map of the world in 1154 CE.
Q 21 – What did Babur meant by Hindustan?
Ans – Babur used Hindustan to describe the geography, the fauna and the culture of the inhabitants of the subcontinent.
Q 22 – Who used the word ‘Hind’ and when?
Ans – Amir Khusrau used the word “Hind” in the 14th century.
Q 23 – What are Periods?
Ans – The study of history with respect to time becomes systematic and easier when the past is divided into large segments of time called periods.
Q 24 – From which language is the word ‘Ajnabi’ related?
Ans – Persian.
Q 25 – How did the scribes copy manuscripts in absence of Printing Press?
Ans – By hand
Q 26 – From where word ‘Rajput’ was derived?
Ans – The word ‘Rajput’ was derived from “Rajaputra”, the son of a ruler.
Q 27 – Name the language in which prashasti of Ghiyasuddin Balban has been written.
Ans – In Sanskrit.
Q 28 – Which was the new religion that appeared in the subcontinent?
Ans – The new religion which appeared in the subcontinent was Islam.
Q 29 – Give the name of the holy book of Islam.
Ans – Quran.
Q 30 – Who brought Islam and when?
Ans – In the 7th-century merchants of Arabs brought teachings of Islam.
Q 31 – In how many periods was the history divided by the British historians?
Ans – In the middle of the 19th century, British historians divided the history of India into three periods- Hindu, Muslim and British.
Tracing History through a thousand years
Q 32 – List the uses of paper during the medieval period.
Ans – Paper was used to writing holy texts, chronicles of rulers, letters, and teachings of saints, petitions and judicial records, and for registers of accounts and taxes.
Q 33 – Which is the medieval period of Indian history?
Ans – The medieval period of Indian history started from the 8th century (700 A.D) and lasted up to 18th century (1750 A.D) . During this period, India witnessed considerable social, economic, religious and political changes.
Q 34 – Does the information given in historical records change over the years?
Ans – Historical records exists in a variety of languages. These languages changed over time. For example, Medieval Persian is different from modem Persian in grammar, vocabulary and even meaning of words.
Q 35 – Name the various groups that became important between 700-1750.
Ans – The various groups that became politically important between 700 and 1750 were Rajputs, Sikhs, Marathas, Jats, Ahoms, Kayasthas, etc.
Q 36 – What were the new technological advancement between 700 and 1750?
Ans – Some of the technological changes associated with this period are:
- Persian wheel in irrigation.
- Spinning wheel.
- Fire-arms in combat.
Q 37 – Name the sources used by historians for their study, during the period 700 to 1750.
Ans –
- Coins.
- Inscriptions
- Architecture
- Textual records- Chronicles of Rulers , Accounting and taxation registers of Administrators, Accounts of the travelers, Teachings of the saints, Judicial Records, Biographies, Autobiographies.
Q 38 – Why is the study of the thousand years between 700 and 1750 a big challenge to historians?
Ans – The study of the thousand years between 700 and 1750 a big challenge to historians because of rare availability of original manuscript by the author. This leads to dependence on the copies (which are quite different from the original version) of later scribes.
Q 39 – What did Minhaj-i-Siraj meant by the term ‘Hindustan’?
Ans – He meant the areas of Punjab, Haryana and the lands between the Ganga and Yamuna. The term was used in a political sense for lands that were a part of the dominions of the Delhi Sultan but it never included south India.
Tracing History through a thousand years
Q 40 – Describe the copying of manuscripts.
Ans –
- Since printing press was not available in the ancient times, scribes copied manuscripts by hand.
- This was a challenging task because there are instances where the handwriting is not very clear and legible. Hence, while copying they are forced to guess what is written.
- Consequently there are small but significant changes in the original record and the copied record.
- Over centuries of copying, these small differences get accumulated and become big enough to bring about a substantial difference in texts. This is a serious matter because we rarely find the original manuscript of the author today.
- We are therefore dependent on the copies made by later scribes. Hence historians have to read many copies of manuscripts i.e. different versions of manuscripts to before concluding what was originally written.
Q 41 – Write in detail about castes.
Ans –
- Rajputs were a group of people who became popular during this time. The name Rajputs is derived from ‘Rajputra’ which means ‘son of the ruler’.
- The term was applied more generally to a group of warriors during the period between the eighth century and the fourteenth century.
- These groups of warriors claimed the Kshatriya status. The term ‘Kshatriya’ included, apart from rulers and chieftains, the soldiers and commanders who served in the armies of different monarchs all over the subcontinent.
- Qualities attributed to Rajputs by their poets were extreme valor and a great sense of loyalty.
- Other groups which used the opportunities of the period for becoming popular were Jats, Marathas, Sikhs, Ahoms and Kayasthas (a caste of scribes and secretaries).
Q 42 – Write a note on region and empire.
Ans –
- Large states like those governed by the Cholas, Tughluqs and Mughals encompassed many regions.
- For example- The Delhi Sultan Ghiyasuddin Balban was the ruler of a vast empire that stretched from Bengal in the east to Ghazni in Afghanistan in the west and included all of south India also.
- He was a great conqueror. By 700, many regions possessed their distinct geographical dimensions, languages and culture.
- They were associated with specific ruling dynasties which had considerable conflicts amongst them.
- Occasionally dynasties like the Tughlaqs, Mughals, Cholas and Khaljis were able to build an empire that was pan-regional, i.e. spanning different diverse regions.
- All these empires were not equally stable or successful. The decline of the Mughal Empire led to the re-emergence of regional states. But the character of the regions was altered by the years of pan-regional, imperial rule.
- Regions of most of the subcontinent were left with the legacies of big and small states that had ruled over them. This was apparent from the emergence of many distinct and shared traditions in the spheres of governance, management of the economy and elite cultures and language.
- The character of the different regions, through the thousand years felt the impact of pan-regional forces of integration without losing their distinctiveness.
Tracing History through a thousand years
Q 43 – Describe sub-castes.
Ans –
- The forest dwellers who did not migrate in spite of clearing of forests started tilling the land and became peasants.
- These new peasant groups slowly began to be influenced by the regional markets, chieftains, priests, monasteries and temples.
- They became a part of large, complex societies and hence had to pay taxes and also offer the goods and services to the local lords. As a result, huge differences emerged among the peasants, socially and economically.
- Some of them had big productive land holdings, cattle and also did some artisanal work during the lean season of agriculture.
- These differences in the society led to the grouping of the people into jatis or sub-castes which were ranked based on their backgrounds and occupations.
- The ranks kept changing at different areas and time periods based on the power, influence and resources controlled by the members of the jati.
Q 44 – What is the difference between the two maps of India made in 1154 and 1720?
Ans – Al-Idrisi an Arab cartographer made a map in 1154 CE. French cartographer Guillaume Delisle made the map of same area in 1720’s.
The two had certain differences:
- Al-Idrisi’s map had south India in place of north India. Sri Lanka was at the top.
- Place names are marked in Arabic. Kanauj is spelt as Qanauj and is shown in Uttar Pradesh.
- French cartographer’s map was made about 600 years later. There were many changes by the time.
- This map is more familiar. Coastal areas are more detailed.
- This map was used by the European sailors and merchants on their voyages.
Q 45 – What precautions historians should follow while reading the maps?
Ans –
- Historians reading the maps, documents or texts from the past should be sensitive about the contents.
- They should keep in mind the different historical background and equally important is the fact that the science of cartography differ from period to period.
Q 46 – How has the term ‘Hindustan’ changed over the centimes?
Ans – The meaning of the term ‘Hindustan’ has changed over the centuries in the following manner:
- In the thirteenth century Minhaj-i-Siraj used the term ‘Hindustan’. He meant areas of Punjab, Haryana and the lands between Ganga and Yamuna.
- He used this term in a political sense that were a part of the dominions of the Delhi Sultanate. The term never included South India.
- In the sixteenth century poet Babur used the term ‘Hindustan’ to describe the geography, the fauna and the culture of the inhabitants of the subcontinent.
- In fourteenth century poet Amir Khusrau used the term ‘Hind’ in the same sense as Babur did in the sixteenth century.
- ‘Hindustan’ did not carry the political and national meanings as the term ‘India’ does today.
Q 47 – How should historians be careful about the term they use as they go on changing with time?
Ans – Historians should be careful about the terms they use because their meanings go on changing with the change in time.
For Example-: We take the simple term ‘Foreigner’.
- It is used today to mean a person who is not an Indian.
- In the medieval period a ‘foreigner’ was any stranger who was not a part of that society or culture.
- In Hindi the term ‘pardesi’ is used to describe such a person and in persian, ‘ajnabi’.
- A city-dweller regarded a forest-dweller as a ‘foreigner’ but two peasants living in the same village were not foreigners to each other, though they belonged to different religions or caste backgrounds.
Q 48 – What are the sources used by the historians to study the past?
Ans –
- Historians use variety of sources to study the past. It depends upon the period of their study and nature of study. They use those resources that provide some continuity.
- Historians still rely on coins, inscriptions, architecture and textual records.
- There appeared some discontinuity as well. The variety of textual records increased from 700 to 1750. They slowly replaced other types of available sources.
- During this period paper gradually became cheaper and easily available.
Q 49 – What was the result of easy availability of paper in the 14th century?
Ans –
- People used paper to write holy texts, chronicles of rulers, letters and teachings of saints, petitions and judicial records and in preparing accounts and taxes.
- Manuscripts were collected by wealthy people, rulers, monasteries and temples.
- They were placed in libraries and archives.
- They provided a lot of detailed information to historians.
- Manuscripts were difficult to use.
Tracing History through a thousand years
Q 50 – Describe the problem of dearth of original manuscripts of the authors.
Ans – There is a serious problem because we rarely find the original manuscripts of the authors today.
- We are totally dependent upon the copies made by later scribes.
- The result is that historians have to read different manuscript versions of the same text to guess what the author had originally written.
- On several occasions authors revised their chronicles at different times.
- The fourteenth century chronicler Ziyauddin Barani wrote his chronicle first in 1356 and another version came two years later.
- The two versions differ from each other.
- Historians did not know about the existence of the first version until 1960s.
- It remained lost in large library collections.
Tracing History through a thousand years
Q 51 – Which are the; other new things happening during this period?
Ans – During this period many things were happening like:
- New foods and beverages like potatoes, com, chillies, tea and coffee arrived in the subcontinent.
- Groups of people travelled long distances in search of new opportunities.
- The subcontinent held immense wealth and many possibilities for people to get a fortune.
Q 52 – What major changes occurred between 700 and 1750 A.D.?
Ans –
- Throughout the period between 700 and 1750 there was a gradual clearing of forests and the extension of agriculture. This was a change faster and more complete in some areas than in others.
- Changes in their habitat forced many forest-dwellers to migrate.
- Others started tilling the land and became peasants.
Regional markets, chieftains, priests, monasteries and temples began to influence them.
- They became part of large complex societies.
- They were required to’ pay taxes and offer goods and services to local lords.
As a result, significant economic and social differences emerged among the peasants.
- Some possessed more productive land.
- Others kept cattle,
- Yet others combined artisanal work with agricultural activity during the lean season.
Q 53 – How were the people grouped into jatis?
Ans – As society became more uneven, people were grouped into jatis or sub-castes and ranked on the basis of their backgrounds and their occupations.
Ranks were not fixed permanently.
- They varied according to the power, influence and resources controlled by members of the jati.
- The status of the same jati could vary from area to area.
Q 54 – How were the jatis regulated?
Ans – The affairs of jatis were regulated in the following way:
- Jatis formed their own rules and regulations.
- There was an assembly of elders called jati panchayat.
- It enforced the rules and regulations.
- Jatis were also directed to follow the rules of the village.
- Several villages were governed by a chieftain.
Q 55 – What is the contribution of the medieval period to the Indian history?
Ans – Medieval period (due to its contribution) is considered very important in the Indian history. We can mention its contribution in following points:
1. Many modem languages, which we speak nowadays in India, developed at this time.
2. Some of the food items we eat and the clothes we wear became popular during this age.
3. The history of many of our current religious faiths (such as Islam, Sikhism, etc.) can be traced back to this period.
Q 56 – Explain the features of regions by 700 A.D.
Ans –
- By 700 A.D. regions already possessed distinct geographical dimensions.
- They had their own language and cultural characteristics.
- They were also associated with specific ruling dynasties.
- There was considerable con§ict between these states.
- Occasionally dynasties like the Cholas, Khiljis, Tughluqs and Mughals were able to build an empire that was pan-regional, covering various regions. These empires were not equally stable or successful.
Q 57 – What did the decline of the Mughal Empire lead to in the 18th century?
Ans –
- When the Mughal Empire declined in the eighteenth century, it led to the re-emergence of regional states.
- Years of imperial, pan-regional rule had altered the character of the regions.
- Across most of the subcontinent the regions were left with the legacies of the big and small states that ruled over them.
- This was clear in the emergence of many distinct and shared traditions: in the way of governance, the management of the economy, elite cultures, and language.
- Through the thousand years between 700 and 1750 A.D. the character of the different regions did not grow in isolation.
- They felt the impact of larger pan-regional forces of integration without losing their own character.
Tracing History through a thousand years
Q 58 – What developments have taken place in religious traditions during this period?
Ans – During the thousand years there were many developments in religious traditions. People’s belief in divine was personal and collective. Collective belief was in supernatural agency-religion. It was connected to social and economic aspects of local communities. With the changes in social aspects the religious beliefs also changed.
Q 59 – Describe the major development in Hindu religious traditions during the period 700 to 1750 A.D.
Ans – The thousand years of history between 700 and 1750 A.D. witnessed major developments in religious traditions.
- It was during this period that important changes occurred in Hinduism.
- The worship of new deities.
- The construction of temples by royalty.
- Their knowledge of Sanskrit texts earned the Brahmanas a lot of respect in society and support of new rulers or patrons searching for prestige.
- One of the major developments was the emergence of the idea of Bhakti.
- It was of a loving, personal deity that devotees could reach without the aid of priests or elaborate rituals.
Q 60 – Which new religion came to India during the period between 700 and 1750 A.D.?
Ans – The period between 700 and 1750 A.D. was the period when new religions appeared in the subcontinent.
- Merchants and migrants first brought the teachings of the Holy Quran to India in the seventh century.
- Many rulers were patrons of Islam, Jurists, and theologians.
- Muslims regard the Quran as their holy book.
- They accept the sovereignty of the one God or Allah.
Islam was interpreted in a variety of ways by its followers:
- Shia Muslims believed that the prophet’s son-in-law, “Ali” was the legitimate leader of the Muslim community.
- Sunni Muslims accepted the authority of the early leaders (Khalifas) of the community, and the succeeding Khalifas.
- There were other important differences between the various schools of law and in theology and mystic traditions.
- The schools of law are Hanafi and Shaffie, mainly in India.
Q 61 – How do historians divide the history of India into three periods? What are the drawbacks of this division?
Ans –
According to historians time reflects changes in social and economic organization, in the transformation of ideas and beliefs. They do not see it as a clock or calendar.
The study of time is made somewhat easier by dividing the past into large segments. They are called periods. The periods possess shared characteristics.
In the middle of the nineteenth century, British historians divided the history of India into three periods.
- They are ‘Hindu’, ‘Muslim’ and ‘British’.
- This division was based on the idea that the religion of rulers was the only important historical change, and that there were no other significant developments as the result of the economy, society, or culture.
- Such a division also ignored the rich diversity of the subcontinent. Few historians follow this periodization today. Most look to economic and social factors to characterize the major elements of
different moments of the past.
Q 62 – What is included in the study of history?
Ans –
- Early history included study of different societies—hunter gatherers, early farmers, people in towns and villages, early empires and kingdoms.
- The medieval history is more about peasant societies, rise of regional or imperial states, the growth of Hinduism and Islam as religions.
- It also includes the arrival of European trading companies.
Q 63 – Why there is a problem in studying a long period of history as one unit?
Ans –
- Thousand years of history is full of change. 16th and 17th centuries were different from 8th or 11th centuries. Therefore entire period cannot be described as one unit.
- Modern period is associated with material and intellectual progress.
but, this does not mean the medieval period had no development at all.
- All this creates confusion, hence periodisation was required.
- During these thousand years the societies of subcontinent were developed and economies too prospered.
This attracted interest of European trading companies.
Tracing History through a thousand years Class 7 History Extra Questions