Rethinking Early Medieval India: a reader

By:

Singh Upinder (Ed.)

Material type: Text

TextPublication details: New Delhi Oxford University Press 2012Description: xiv, 354pISBN:

9780198086062

Subject(s):

DDC classification:

954 SIN/R

Contents:

List of Illustrations Preface Acknowledgements List of Abbreviations Introduction by Upinder Singh PART I: THEORETICAL MODELS AND POLITICAL PROCESSES: 1:How Feudal was Indian Feudalism? by R.S. Sharma 2:The Segmentary State: Interim Reflections by Burton Stein 3:The Early and the Imperial Kingdom: A Processual Model of Integrative State Formation in Early Medieval India by Hermann Kulke PART II: VILLAGE, TOWN, AND SOCIETY: 4:Land Rights and Social Stratification by Kesavan Veluthat 5:Nagaram: Commerce and Towns AD 850-1350 by Noboru Karashima, Y. Subbarayalu, and P. Shanmugam 6:The Society of Kakatiya Andhra by Cynthia Talbot 7:Women and Power in Medieval Kashmir by Devika Rangachari PART III: RELIGION AND CULTURE, WITHIN AND ACROSS REGIONS: 8:Domesticity and Difference/Women and Men: Religious Life in Medieval Tamil Nadu by Leslie C. Orr 9:Cult Region: The Pur?n?as and the Making of the Cultural Territory of Bengal by Kunal Chakrabarti 10:The Flying Messenger by Kapila Vatsyayan PART IV: MAPPING LANGUAGE, IDEAS, AND ATTITUDES: 11:The Sanskrit Cosmopolis and the Vernacular Revolution by Sheldon Pollock 12:Politics, Violence and War in K?mandaka's N?tis?ra by Upinder Singh 13:Images of Raiders and Rulers by B.D. Chattopadhyaya Notes on Contributors

Summary: This reader presents a new understanding of the early medieval period of Indian history (c. 600-1300 CE), highlighting the complex and multilinear nature of its historical processes. The book examines the major historiographical debates and also moves beyond them, throwing light on many important aspects of the social, economic, political, and cultural history of the pre-Sultanate and non-Sultanate early medieval. The volume brings together a careful selection of readings, including seminal essays as well as recent writing. Comprehensive and thought-provoking, it discusses: theoretical frameworks, namely the feudalism, segmentary state, and integrative/processual models; political processes, including the interaction between states and forest tribes; village and city life, with a focus on agrarian structure, urban patterns, trade, varn?a, j?ti, and gender; religion, art, and culture, within and beyond regional frameworks; histories of language, literature, ideas, attitudes, and emotions. The introduction provides presents a critical and incisive overview and analysis of debates and writings related to a wide range of historical issues. In doing so, it raises new questions, suggests new approaches, and opens up possibilities for future research. This book will interest students and teachers of ancient and medieval Indian history.

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Holdings
Item type	Current library	Home library	Call number	Status	Date due	Barcode
Book	Study Centre Pandalam ,University of Kerala Processing Center	Study Centre Pandalam ,University of Kerala	954 SIN/R (Browse shelf(Opens below))	Available		USCP1707

List of Illustrations
Preface
Acknowledgements
List of Abbreviations
Introduction by Upinder Singh
PART I: THEORETICAL MODELS AND POLITICAL PROCESSES:
1:How Feudal was Indian Feudalism? by R.S. Sharma
2:The Segmentary State: Interim Reflections by Burton Stein
3:The Early and the Imperial Kingdom: A Processual Model of Integrative State Formation in Early Medieval India by Hermann Kulke
PART II: VILLAGE, TOWN, AND SOCIETY:
4:Land Rights and Social Stratification by Kesavan Veluthat
5:Nagaram: Commerce and Towns AD 850-1350 by Noboru Karashima, Y. Subbarayalu, and P. Shanmugam
6:The Society of Kakatiya Andhra by Cynthia Talbot
7:Women and Power in Medieval Kashmir by Devika Rangachari
PART III: RELIGION AND CULTURE, WITHIN AND ACROSS REGIONS:
8:Domesticity and Difference/Women and Men: Religious Life in Medieval Tamil Nadu by Leslie C. Orr
9:Cult Region: The Pur?n?as and the Making of the Cultural Territory of Bengal by Kunal Chakrabarti
10:The Flying Messenger by Kapila Vatsyayan
PART IV: MAPPING LANGUAGE, IDEAS, AND ATTITUDES:
11:The Sanskrit Cosmopolis and the Vernacular Revolution by Sheldon Pollock
12:Politics, Violence and War in K?mandaka's N?tis?ra by Upinder Singh
13:Images of Raiders and Rulers by B.D. Chattopadhyaya
Notes on Contributors

This reader presents a new understanding of the early medieval period of Indian history (c. 600-1300 CE), highlighting the complex and multilinear nature of its historical processes. The book examines the major historiographical debates and also moves beyond them, throwing light on many important aspects of the social, economic, political, and cultural history of the pre-Sultanate and non-Sultanate early medieval. The volume brings together a careful selection of readings, including seminal essays as well as recent writing. Comprehensive and thought-provoking, it discusses: theoretical frameworks, namely the feudalism, segmentary state, and integrative/processual models; political processes, including the interaction between states and forest tribes; village and city life, with a focus on agrarian structure, urban patterns, trade, varn?a, j?ti, and gender; religion, art, and culture, within and beyond regional frameworks; histories of language, literature, ideas, attitudes, and emotions. The introduction provides presents a critical and incisive overview and analysis of debates and writings related to a wide range of historical issues. In doing so, it raises new questions, suggests new approaches, and opens up possibilities for future research.

This book will interest students and teachers of ancient and medieval Indian history.

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