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TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

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TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the correct price of the book?

qa_2

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the book that was printed in the first edition?

qa_3

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the principle of NCF?

qa_4

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the goal of the National Policy on Education?

qa_5

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the main reason why other resources and sites of learning are ignored?

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TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the purpose of the textbook?

qa_7

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the goal of the textbook?

qa_8

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the book that was developed by the committee?

qa_9

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the National Monitoring Committee's contribution to the education system?

qa_10

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOK

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TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What has the NCERT done to rationalise the textbooks across all classes?

qa_12

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the rationale for the textbooks?

qa_13

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

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TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

New Delhi -COOrdInatOr Seema S.S.

qa_15

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the main reason for studying hIstOry?

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TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What does history tell you about the world in the present?

qa_17

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

History transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently.

qa_18

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

History can open doors into worlds that are not just about the past. It is about the

qa_19

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What can we observe in the long-term?

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TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the date of the book that you will study in India?

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TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the history of the people of the village?

qa_22

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

History is about everything that happens in society.

qa_23

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What can history help us understand more than the past?

qa_24

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

When we enter another world, we have to learn how to understand people whose lives were different

qa_25

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What do you want to know about yourself?

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TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the book that was written by the team that developed it?

qa_27

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the young readers who contributed to the development of the book?

qa_28

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What did the editors of the book do to help us with the draft?

qa_29

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

Who is the Director General of the Centre for Cultural Resources and Training?

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TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the manuscript Mehrgarh kindly provided to us?

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TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What was the time frame for the final draft of the book?

qa_32

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the two people who designed the book?

qa_33

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the author of the book?

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TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

The Council of NCERT is grateful to Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator, and B

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TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the department of history at the Hindu College, University of Delhi?

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TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the book that is rationalised in the Foreword?

qa_37

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What does the book tell us about kings, kings and early republics?

qa_38

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the book that you will find in the lessons?

qa_39

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the section that you can imagine in the lesson?

qa_40

TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the purpose of the book?

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TexTbook in HisTory for Class Vi OUR PASTS-ISocial Science Prelims.indd 1 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise disposed of without the publisher’s consent, in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published.  The correct price of this publication is the price printed on this page, Any revised price indicated by a rubber stamp or by a sticker or by any other means is incorrect and should be unacceptable. OFFICES OF THE PUBLICATION DIVISION, NCERT NCERT CampusSri Aurobindo MargNew Delhi 110 016 Phone : 011-26562708 108, 100 Feet Road Hosdakere Halli ExtensionBanashankari III StageBengaluru 560 085 Phone : 080-26725740 Navjivan Trust BuildingP.O.Navjivan Ahmedabad 380 014 Phone : 079-27541446 CWC CampusOpp. Dhankal Bus StopPanihatiKolkata 700 114 Phone : 033-25530454 CWC ComplexMaligaon Guwahati 781 021 Phone : 0361-2674869 Publication Team Head, Publication : Anup Kumar Rajput Division Chief Production : Arun Chitkara OfficerChief Business : Vipin Dewan ManagerChief Editor (In ch arge) : Bijnan Sutar Editor : Benoy Banerjee Production Assistant : Om Prakash Cover, Layout and Illustrations Arrt Creations, New DelhiFirst Edition February 2006 Phalguna 1927Reprinted October 2006, November 2007 January 2009, January 2010January 2011, January 2012January 2013, October 2013December 2014, February 2016December 2016, November 2017January 2019, August 2019March 2021, August 2021 and November 2021 Revised Edition July 2022 Ashadha 1944November 2022 Kartika 1944 PD 360T BS © National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2006, 2022 ` 65.00 Printed on 80 GSM paper with NCERT watermark Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 016 and printed at Amit Printing Press, D-12 and 13, Industrial Area, Site-A, Mathura (UP)0654 – O ur Pasts-I Textbook for Class VIISBN 81-7450-493-1 Prelims.indd 2 11/18/2022 3:28:56 PM Rationalised 2023-24 FOrewOrd The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends that children’s life at school must be linked to their life outside the school. This principle marks a departure from the legacy of bookish learning which continues to shape our system and causes a gap between the school, home and community. The syllabi and textbooks developed on the basis of NCF signify an attempt to implement this basic idea. They also attempt to discourage rote learning and the maintenance of sharp boundaries between different subject areas. We hope these measures will take us significantly further in the direction of a child-centred system of education outlined in the National Policy on Education (1986). The success of this effort depends on the steps that school principals and teachers will take to encourage children to reflect on their own learning and to pursue imaginative activities and questions. We must recognise that, given space, time and freedom, children generate new knowledge by engaging with the information passed on to them by adults. Treating the prescribed textbook as the sole basis of examination is one of the key reasons why other resources and sites of learning are ignored. Inculcating creativity and initiative is possible if we perceive and treat children as participants in learning, not as receivers of a fixed body of knowledge. These aims imply considerable change in school routines and mode of functioning. Flexibility in the daily time-table is as necessary as rigour in implementing the annual calendar so that the required number of teaching days are actually devoted to teaching. The methods used for teaching and evaluation will also determine how effective this textbook proves to be for making children’s life at school a happy experience, rather than a source of stress or boredom. Syllabus designers have tried to address the problem of curricular burden by restructuring and reorienting knowledge at different stages with greater consideration for child psychology and the time available for teaching. The textbook attempts to enhance this Prelims.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 (iv) endeavour by giving higher priority and space to opportunities for contemplation and wondering, discussion in small groups, and activities requiring hands-on experience. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) appreciates the hard work done by the textbook development committee responsible for this book. We wish to thank the Chairperson of the advisory group in Social Science, Professor Hari Vasudevan and the Chief Advisor for this book, Professor Neeladri Bhattacharya for guiding the work of this committee. Several teachers contributed to the development of this textbook; we are grateful to their principals for making this possible. We are indebted to the institutions and organisations, which have generously permitted us to draw upon their resources, material and personnel. We are especially grateful to the members of the National Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Department of Secondary and Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development under the Chairpersonship of Professor Mrinal Miri and Professor G. P. Deshpande, for their valuable time and contribution. As an organisation committed to systemic reform and continuous improvement in the quality of its products, NCERT welcomes comments and suggestions which will enable us to undertake further revision and refinement. Director National Council of Educational Research and TrainingNew Delhi 20 December 2005 Prelims.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 RATIONALISATION OF CONTENT IN THE TEXTBOOKS In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to reduce content load on students. The National Education Policy 2020, also emphasises reducing the content load and providing opportunities for experiential learning with creative mindset. In this background, the NCERT has undertaken the exercise to rationalise the textbooks across all classes. Learning Outcomes already developed by the NCERT across classes have been taken into consideration in this exercise.Contents of the textbooks have been rationalised in view of the following • Overlapping with similar content included in other subject areas in the same class • Similar content included in the lower or higher class in the same subject • Dif fi culty level • Content, which is easily accessible to students without much interventions from teachers and can be learned by children through self-learning or peer-learning. • Content, which is not relevant in the present context. This present edition, is a reformatted version after carrying out the changes given above. Prelims.indd vPrelims.indd v 8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM8/10/2022 12:00:15 PM Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 textbOOk develOPment COmmIttee ChaIrPersOn, advIsOry COmmIttee FOr textb OOks In sOCIal sCIenCe at the mIddle level Hari Vasudevan, Professor, Department of History, University of Calcutta, Kolkata ChIeF advIsOr Neeladri Bhattacharya, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. advIsOr Kumkum Roy, Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. members Anil Sethi, Former Professor, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT Gauri Srivastava, Reader, Department of Women’s Studies, NCERTJaya Menon, Reader, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh N.P. Singh, Principal, Rashtriya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, New DelhiP.K. Basant, Reader, Department of History and Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi Ranabir Chakravarti, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Shuchi Bajaj, Post-Graduate Teacher (History), Springdales School, New DelhiVishwa Mohan Jha, Reader in History , Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Delhi University, New Delhi member -COOrdInatOr Seema S. Ojha, Lecturer, Department of Education in Social Sciences, NCERT. Prelims.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:02:37 Rationalised 2023-24 Prelims.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 why study hIstOry ? This year, in Class VI, you will read history. It is part of a bigger group of subjects known as Social Science. Social Science helps us understand the working of our social world. It tells us about geography, the way the economy works, and the manner in which social and political life is organised. Most parts of Social Science other than history tell you about the world in the present. History will help you understand how this present evolved. It will tell you about the past of the present. When we live in a society, we become used to the world around us. We begin to take that world for granted. We forget that life was not always the way we see it. Can you, for instance, imagine a life without fire? Can you think of what it is to live in a society where the cultivation of crops was unknown? Or, what it was to live at a time when roads and railways did not exist, and yet people travelled long distances? History can take us into these pasts. History in this sense is an adventure. It is a journey across time and space. It transports us into another world, another age, in which people lived differently. Their economy and society, their beliefs and faiths, their clothes and food, their settlements and buildings, their arts and crafts – everything was different. History can open doors into such worlds. You may shrug your shoulders and say “Why should we bother about pasts that are no longer with us, pasts that have gone by?” But history is not just about the past. It is about the present. The society we live in has been fashioned by those who came before us. The joys and sorrows of their daily lives, their attempt to grapple with the problems of their time, their discoveries and inventions, slowly transformed human societies. These changes were often so gradual, so seemingly small, that their impact was not noticed by people at that time. Only later, when we return to the past, when we study history, can we begin to see how these changes happened, and we can observe their long-term effect. By reading history we can understand how the modern world has emerged over long centuries of development. Prelims.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 (x) The book that you will study this year will take you back to our ancient pasts. Over the next two years you will continue your journey through the history of subsequent periods. In this book you will read not just about the kings and queens who lived in ancient India, and about their conquests and policies. You will learn about hunters and peasants, crafts people and traders. You will see how fire came to be used, and iron tools were discovered; how wheat and rice began to be cultivated, and villages and towns developed. You will read about pilgrims and saints, buildings and paintings, religions and beliefs. You will find out that history is not only about great men. It is also about the lives and activities of ordinary women, men and children. History is not only about political events, it is about everything that happens in society. The book will also help you understand how historians come to know about the past. Somewhat like detectives, historians follow clues and traces left by people who lived in the past. Everything that survives from earlier times – stone tools, traces of plants, bones, written material and pictures, ornaments and implements, inscriptions and coins, buildings and sculpture, pots and pans — can tell us something about the past. Historians and archaeologists study these sources and try and understand them. In this book, you will see many of these sources and find out how historians study these. But studying history can help us understand more than the past. It enables us to develop important skills and qualities. When we try and enter another world, we have to learn how to do this — to understand people whose lives were different. As we do this, we open up our minds and break out of our small present-day worlds. We begin to see how other people may think and act. This can become a learning experience that enriches us in many different ways. So, before you shrug your shoulders, ask yourself one question: Do I want to know who I am? Do I want to understand how this society works? Do I want to understand the world in which I live? If you do, then you will need to know how our societies have evolved. And how our pasts have shaped the present. neeladri bHaTTaCHarya Chief Advisor History Prelims.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:02:40 Rationalised 2023-24 Acknowledgements This book has been in the making for several months. The team that developed this book included school teachers, subject experts from colleges and universities, and NCERT faculty. All the members of the team have worked to write the text, select visuals and design exercises. We have had long and intense discussions on all these aspects. We have greatly benefited from the insightful and incisive comments and suggestions offered by young readers — Apoorv Avram, Mallika Visvanathan and Meera Visvanathan. We have tried to incorporate the comments and suggestions offered by all those who read drafts of the book as it took shape. We would like to thank in particular the members of the National Monitoring Committee who offered detailed suggestions. We are also grateful to Professor Romila Thapar, Uma Chakravarti, Jairus Banaji, Upinder Singh, C. N. Subrahmaniam of Eklavya, and Mary John for reading and offering critical comments on drafts. Professor B.D. Chattopadhyaya, Professor Kunal Chakrabarti, Vijaya Ramaswamy, Professor S.R. Walimbe and Naina Dayal advised us on specific sections. Professor Narayani Gupta provided constant support. We are also grateful to the Director General, Archaeological Survey of India, Surendra Kaul, Director General, Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, Purnima Mehta and the staff of the Photo Archives, American Institute of Indian Studies, Gurgaon, Haryana, K.P. Rao, University of Hyderabad, and Bharati Jagannathan for providing photographs of inscriptions, coins, monuments, sculpture, painting, including illustrations of archaeological and historical sites and artefacts, such as pottery, tools and associated finds. We would like to thank Geetanjali Surendran and the members of the National Manuscript Mission, New Delhi for photographs of manuscripts. Catherine Jarrige kindly granted us permission to reproduce the sketches of Mehrgarh. We would also like to thank those who provided us with pictures of children — Umesh Matta of UNICEF, New Delhi, R.C. Das of CIET, NCERT, and Springdales School, New Delhi. Prelims.indd 11 28 April 2022 02:16:49 Rationalised 2023-24 (xii) The maps in the book have been drawn by K. Varghese of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and Shyam Narain Lal, Department of History, Jammu University. Subhadra Sengupta copyedited and proofread the manuscript. Animesh Roy and Ritu Topa of Arrt Creations, New Delhi, designed and typeset the book. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of their efforts. While every effort has been made to acknowledge the source of illustrations, we apologise for any omissions that may have inadvertently taken place. We look forward to more feedback on the book, and hope to improve on it in future editions. Special thanks are due to Savita Sinha, Professor and Head, DESSH, NCERT for her support during the development of this book. Thanks are due to Shveta Uppal, Chief Editor, NCERT and Vandana R. Singh, Consultant Editor for going through the manuscript and suggesting relevant changes. The Council also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of Arvind Sharma, DTP Operator; during the preparation of the book and Incharge DTP Cell, Bijnan Sutar in shaping this book. The efforts of the Publication Department, NCERT are also highly appreciated. The Council acknowledges the valuable inputs for analysing syllabi, textbooks and the content, proposed to be rationalised for this edition by Umesh Ashok Kadam, Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Sunil Kumar Singh, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, AFS, Tughlakabad, New Delhi; Krishna Ranjan, PGT History , Kendriya Vidyalaya, Vikaspuri; Archana Verma, Department of History, Hindu College, University of Delhi, Delhi; Shruti Mishra, PGT History and HoD, History, Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, New Delhi; Gouri Srivastava, Professor and Head, Pratyusa K. Mandal, Professor; Seema S. Ojha, Professor, DESS; Mily Roy Anand, Professor, DGS and Sharad Kumar Pandey, Associate Professor, DCS&D, NCERT. Prelims.indd 12 09 June 2022 05:28:03 Rationalised 2023-24 C O n t e n t s Foreword iii Rationalisation of Content in the Textbooks v Why Study History? ix 1. INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? 1 2. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOOD 10 3. IN THE EARLIEST CITIES 22 4. WHAT BOOKS AND BURIALS TELL US 33 5. KINGDOMS, KINGS AND AN EARLY REPUBLIC 43 6. NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS 52 7. FROM A KINGDOM TO AN EMPIRE 62 8. VILLAGES, TOWNS AND TRADE 73 9. NEW EMPIRES AND KINGDOMS 85 10. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS 96 Prelims.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:02:42 Rationalised 2023-24 In thIs bOOk • You will find that each chapter is introduced by a young girl or a boy. • Each chapter is divided into sections. Read, discuss and understand each section before proceeding to the next. • Some chapters contain definitions. • Many chapters contain a portion from a source , clues from which historians write history. Read these carefully, and discuss the questions they contain. • Many of our sources are visual. Each illustration has a story to tell. • You will also find maps. Look at these and try to locate the places mentioned in the lessons. • Many chapters contain boxes with interesting, additional information . • At the end of each chapter, you will find a list of keywords . These are to remind you of important ideas/ themes introduced in the lesson. • You will also find some dates listed at the end of each chapter. • In each chapter there are intext questions and activities that are highlighted. Spend some time discussing these as you go along. • And there is a small section titled Imagine. This is your chance to go back into the past and figure out what life would have been like. • You will also find three kinds of activities listed at the end of each chapter — Let’s recall, Let’s discuss and Let’s do. So, you will find that there is a lot to read, see, think about and do. We do hope you enjoy it.Definitions Additional information KEYWORDS SOME IMPORTANT DATES Imagine Let’s recall Let’s discuss Let’s do SourceLOOK OUT FOR THESE Prelims.indd 14 22 April 2022 12:02:43 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the date of the Prelims?

qa_42

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What can we learn about the past?

qa_1

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

Where did people live?

qa_2

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What was Rasheeda's question?

qa_3

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What did she think of the headline that said, "One Hundred Years Ago?"

qa_4

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

Where was rice first grown?

qa_5

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the tributary of the Ganga?

qa_6

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What was the name of the kingdom that was set up in the subcontinent?

qa_7

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What did people do when they were traveling?

qa_8

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the map of South Asia?

qa_9

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the history of South Asia?

qa_10

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What land was to the east of the Indus called India?

qa_11

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the group of people who lived in the north-west?

qa_12

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

How many pages were in a palm leaf manuscript?

qa_13

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the chapter that is based on the first chapter of the book?

qa_14

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is one way to study inscriptions?

qa_15

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the archaeologist who studies the remains of buildings and objects?

qa_16

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the inscription that was found in Kandahar?

qa_17

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the pot from an old city?

qa_18

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the coin different from today?

qa_19

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the most common source of information for historians and archaeologists?

qa_20

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the title of the book, Our Pasts?

qa_21

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the main difference between the Andaman Islands and the cities?

qa_22

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What do dates mean?

qa_23

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the date of the birth of Jesus Christ?

qa_24

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the book that is used to describe the year of the Lord?

qa_25

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the first letter used to describe the Christian Era?

qa_26

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the first city in India?

qa_27

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the definition of craftspersons?

qa_28

1  introduction : what, where , how and when?Finding out what happened Yesterday : you could listen to the radio, watch television, read a newspaper. Last year: ask somebody who remembers.But what about long, long ago ? Let us see how it can be done. What can we know about the past? There are several things we can find out — what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived. We can find out about the lives of hunters, herders, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, craftspersons, artists, musicians, and scientists. We can also find out about the games children played, the stories they heard, the plays they saw, the songs they sang. Where did people live? Find the river Narmada on Map 1 (page 2). People have lived along the banks of this river for several hundred thousand years. Some of the earliest people who lived here were skilled gatherers, — that is, people who gathered their food. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produce for their food. They also hunted animals. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION: WHAT, WHERE, HOW AND WHEN? Rasheeda’s question Rasheeda sat reading the newspaper. Suddenly, her eyes fell on a small headline: “One Hundred Years Ago.” How, she wondered, could anyone know what had happened so many years ago? Chapter 1-2.indd 1 26 May 2022 09:55:55 Rationalised 2023-24  2 our pasts–i Map : 1 Physical Map of the Subcontinent Now find the Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest. Some of the areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located here. People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages. Locate the Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India. These were some of the other areas where Chapter 1-2.indd 2 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24 3  introduction : what, where , how and when?agriculture developed. The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas. Trace the river Indus and its tributaries (tributaries are smaller rivers that flow into a larger river). About 4700 years ago, some of the earliest cities flourished on the banks of these rivers. Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts. Locate the Ganga and its tributary called the Son. In ancient times, the area along these rivers to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha now lying in the state of Bihar. Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom. Kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well. Throughout, people travelled from one part of the subcontinent to another. The hills and high mountains including the Himalayas, deserts, rivers and seas made journeys dangerous at times, but never impossible. So, men and women moved in search of livelihood, as also to escape from natural disasters like floods or droughts. Sometimes men marched in armies, conquering others’ lands. Besides, merchants travelled with caravans or ships, carrying valuable goods from place to place. And religious teachers walked from village to village, town to town, stopping to offer instruction and advice on the way. Finally, some people perhaps travelled driven by a spirit of adventure, wanting to discover new and exciting places. All these led to the sharing of ideas between people. Why do people travel nowadays? Look at Map 1 once more. Hills, mountains and seas form the natural frontiers of the subcontinent. While it was difficult to cross these frontiers, those who wanted could and did scale the mountains Facing Page: This is a map of South Asia (including the present countries of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka) and the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Iran, China and Myanmar. South Asia is often called a subcontinent because although it is smaller than a continent, it is very large, and is separated from the rest of Asia by seas, hills and mountains. Chapter 1-2.indd 3 22 April 2022 12:12:41 Rationalised 2023-24  4 our pasts–i and cross the seas. People from across the frontiers also came into the subcontinent and settled here. These movements of people enriched our cultural traditions. People have shared new ways of carving stone, composing music, and even cooking food over several hundreds of years. Names of the land Two of the words we often use for our country are India and Bharat. The word India comes from the Indus, called Sindhu in Sanskrit. Find Iran and Greece in your atlas. The Iranians and the Greeks who came through the northwest about 2500 years ago and were familiar with the Indus, called it the Hindos or the Indos, and the land to the east of the river was called India. The name Bharata was used for a group of people who lived in the north-west, and who are mentioned in the Rigveda, the earliest composition in Sanskrit (dated to about 3500 years ago). Later it was used for the country. Finding out about the past There are several ways of finding out about the past. One is to search for and read books that were written long ago. These are called manuscripts, because they were written by hand (this comes from the Latin word ‘ manu’ , meaning hand). These were usually written on palm leaf, or on the specially prepared bark of a tree known as the birch, which grows in the Himalayas. A page from a palm leaf manuscript.This manuscript was written about a thousand years ago. The palm leaves were cut into pages and tied together to make books. T o see a birch bark manuscript, turn to page 35. Chapter 1-2.indd 4 22 April 2022 12:12:42 Rationalised 2023-24 5  introduction : what, where , how and when? Over the years, many manuscripts were eaten away by insects, some were destroyed, but many have survived, often preserved in temples and monasteries. These books dealt with all kinds of subjects: religious beliefs and practices, the lives of kings, medicine and science. Besides, there were epics, poems, plays. Many of these were written in Sanskrit, others were in Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people) and Tamil. We can also study inscriptions . These are writings on relatively hard surfaces such as stone or metal. Sometimes, kings got their orders inscribed so that people could see, read and obey them. There are other kinds of inscriptions as well, where men and women (including kings and queens) recorded what they did. For example, kings often kept records of victories in battle. Can you think of the advantages of writing on a hard surface? And what could have been the difficulties? There were many other things that were made and used in the past. Those who study these objects are called archaeologists. They study the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They also explore and excavate (dig under the surface of the earth) to find tools, weapons, pots, pans, ornaments and coins. Some of these objects may be made of stone, others of bone, baked clay or metal. Objects that are made of hard, imperishable substances usually survive for a long time. An old inscription. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was inscribed on the orders of a ruler named Ashoka. Y ou will read about him in Chapter 7 . When we write anything, we use a script. Scripts consist of letters or signs. When we read what is written, or speak, we use a language. This inscription was inscribed in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area. Chapter 1-2.indd 5 26 May 2022 10:44:17 Rationalised 2023-24  6 our pasts–i Left : A pot from an old city.Pots like these were used about 4700 years ago.Right : An old silver coin.Coins such as this one were in use from about 2500 years ago. In what ways is the coin different from the ones we use today? Archaeologists also look for bones — of animals, birds, and fish — to find out what people ate in the past. Plant remains survive far more rarely — if seeds of grain or pieces of wood have been burnt, they survive in a charred form. Do you think cloth is found frequently by archaeologists? Historians, that is, scholars who study the past, often use the word source to refer to the information found from manuscripts, inscriptions and archaeology. Once sources are found, learning about the past becomes an adventure, as we reconstruct it bit by bit. So historians and archaeologists are like detectives, who use all these sources like clues to find out about our pasts. One past or many? Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Chapter 1-2.indd 6 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 7  introduction : what, where , how and when?Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well. Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown. What do dates mean? If somebody asks you the date, you will probably mention the day, month and year, 2000 and something. These years are counted from the date generally assigned to the birth of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity. So, 2000 means 2000 years after the birth of Christ. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters BC (Before Christ) added on. In this book, we will refer to dates going back from the present, using 2000 as our starting point. Chapter 1-2.indd 7 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24  8 our pasts–iKEYWORDS travelling manuscript inscription archaeology historian source deciphermentLetters with dates BC stands for ‘Before Christ.’ You will sometimes find AD before dates. This stands for two Latin words, ‘ Anno Domini’, meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ). So 2012 can also be written as AD 2012. Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’. We use these terms because the Christian Era is now used in most countries of the world. In India we began using this form of dating from about two hundred years ago. And sometimes, the letters BP meaning ‘Before Present’ are used. Find two dates mentioned on page 3. Which set of letters would you use for them? Imagine You have to interview an archaeologist. Prepare a list of five questions that you would like to ask her/him. Let’s recall 1. Match the following: Narmada Valley The first big kingdom Magadha Hunting and gathering Garo hills Cities about 2500 years ago Indus and its tributaries Early agriculture Ganga Valley The first cities 2. List one major difference between manuscripts and inscriptions. Chapter 1-2.indd 8 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24 9  introduction : what, where , how and when?Let’s discuss 3. Return to Rasheeda’s question. Can you think of some answers to it? 4. Make a list of all the objects that archaeologists may find. Which of these could be made of stone? 5. Why do you think ordinary men and women did not generally keep records of what they did? 6. Describe at least two ways in which you think the lives of kings would have been different from those of farmers. Let’s do 7. Find the word craftspersons on page 1. List at least five different crafts that you know about today. Are the craftspersons — (a) men (b) women (c) both men and women? 8. What were the subjects on which books were written in the past? Which of these would you like to read?  the beginning of agriculture (8000 years ago)  the first cities on the Indus (4700 years ago)  cities in the Ganga valley, a big kingdom in Magadha (2500 years ago)  the present (about 2000 AD/CE)SOME IMPORTANT DATES Chapter 1-2.indd 9 22 April 2022 12:12:45 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the book that is based on the first settlers of India?

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 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the people who moved from place to place?

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 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What was the reason that hunters had to follow the movements of deer and wild cattle?

qa_2

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What was Tushar’s train journey?

qa_3

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What did Tushar think of the buses and trains?

qa_4

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the main reason people move from season to season?

qa_5

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What tools were used to cut meat and bones?

qa_6

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What was the name of the tool that was used to make spears and arrows?

qa_7

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the archaeological site in which hunter-gatherers

qa_8

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

People lived in caves and rock shelters in Narmada Valley.

qa_9

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What is a site where people left tools, pots, and buildings?

qa_10

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the caves found on Map 2?

qa_11

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What does fire do today?

qa_12

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the Mesolithic period?

qa_13

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What does the term Neolithic mean?

qa_14

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What did the changing environment of the world lead to?

qa_15

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What did the increase in deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle do for

qa_16

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What was the beginning of farming and herding?

qa_17

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

People encouraged animals that were gentle to come near their shelters.

qa_18

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the process by which people tend to plants and animals?

qa_19

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the main difference between domesticated animals and wild animals?

qa_20

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the horns and teeth of a wild pig?

qa_21

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the first animal that was domesticated?

qa_22

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the book that describes the way in which grain was used as food?

qa_23

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What are the blue squares on Map 2?

qa_24

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What is one of the most exciting finds of the subcontinent?

qa_25

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What is the name of the huts found in Burzahom?

qa_26

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

Archaeologists have found cooking hearths inside and outside of the huts.

qa_27

 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What type of tools were used for grinding grain?

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 10 our pasts–iThe earliest people: why were they on the move? We know about people who lived in the subcontinent as early as two million years ago. Today, we describe them as hunter-gatherers. The name comes from the way in which they got their food. Generally, they hunted wild animals, caught fish and birds, gathered fruits, roots, nuts, seeds, leaves, stalks and eggs. Hunter-gatherers moved from place to place. There are many reasons for this. First, if they had stayed at one place for a long time, they would have eaten up all the available plant and animal resources. Therefore, they would have had to go elsewhere in search of food. Second, animals move from place to place — either in search of smaller prey, or, in the case of deer and wild cattle, in search of grass and leaves. That is why those who hunted them had to follow their movements. FROM HUNTING–GATHERING TO GROWING FOODCHAPTER 2 T ushar’s train journey Tushar was going from Delhi to Chennai for his cousin’s wedding. They were travelling by train and he had managed to squeeze into the window seat, his nose glued to the glass pane. As he watched trees and houses fly past, his uncle tapped his shoulder and said: “Do you know that trains were first used about 150 years ago, and that people began using buses a few decades later?” Tushar wondered, when people couldn’t travel quickly from one place to another, did they spend their entire lives wherever they were born? Not quite. Chapter 1-2.indd 10 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24 11  from hunting –gathering to growing foodThird, plants and trees bear fruit in different seasons. So, people may have moved from season to season in search of different kinds of plants. Fourth, people, plants and animals need water to survive. Water is found in lakes, streams and rivers. While many rivers and lakes are perennial (with water throughout the year), others are seasonal. People living on their banks would have had to go in search of water during the dry seasons (winter and summer). How do we know about these people? Archaeologists have found some of the things hunter-gatherers made and used. It is likely that people made and used tools of stone, wood and bone, of which stone tools have survived best. Some of these stone tools were used to cut meat and bone, scrape bark (from trees) and hides (animal skins), chop fruit and roots. Some may have been attached to handles of bone or wood, to make spears and arrows for hunting. Other tools were used to chop wood, which was used as firewood. Wood was also used to make huts and tools. Stone tools may also have been used for :Left : Digging the ground to collect edible roots.Right : Stitching clothes made out of animal skin. Chapter 1-2.indd 11 22 April 2022 12:12:46 Rationalised 2023-24  12 our pasts–iChoosing a place to live in Look at Map 2 below. All the places marked with red triangles are sites from which archaeologists have found evidence of hunter-gatherers. (Hunter-gatherers lived in many more places. Only some are shown on the map). Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. Map : 2 Some Important Archaeological Sites Chapter 1-2.indd 12 22 April 2022 12:12:48 Rationalised 2023-24 13  from hunting –gathering to growing foodBhimbetka (in present- day Madhya Pradesh). This is an old site with caves and rock shelters. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley. Can you think of why people chose to live here? As stone tools were important, people tried to find places where good quality stone was easily available. Many of the caves in which these early people lived have paintings on the walls. Some of the best examples are from Madhya Pradesh and southern Uttar Pradesh. These paintings show wild animals, drawn with great accuracy and skill.A painting from a rock shelter. Describe the painting. Rock paintings and what they tell us Chapter 1-2.indd 13 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24  14 our pasts–iSites are places where the remains of things (tools, pots, buildings, etc.) were found. These were made, used and left behind by people. These may be found on the surface of the earth, buried under the earth, or sometimes even under water. You will learn more about different sites in later chapters. Finding out about fire Find the Kurnool caves on Map 2 (page12). Traces of ash have been found here. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire. Fire could have been used for many things: as a source of light, to roast meat, and to scare away animals. What do we use fire for today? Names and dates Archaeologists have given lengthy names for the time that we are studying. They call the earliest period the Palaeolithic. This comes from two Greek words, ‘palaeo’, meaning old, and ‘lithos’ , meaning stone. The name points to the importance of finds of stone tools. The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99 per cent of human history. The period when we find environmental changes, beginning about 12,000 years ago till about 10,000 years ago is called the Mesolithic (middle stone). Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths . Microliths were probably stuck on to handles of bone or wood to make tools such as saws and sickles. At the same time, older varieties of tools continued to be in use. The next stage, from about 10,000 years ago, is known as the Neolithic. What do you think the term Neolithic means? We have also mentioned the names of some places. You will find the names of many more places in later chapters. Very often, we use present-day names of the places where people lived in the past, because we do not know what they called them. Chapter 1-2.indd 14 7/1/2022 2:48:31 PM Rationalised 2023-24 15  from hunting –gathering to growing foodA changing environment Around 12,000 years ago, there were major changes in the climate of the world, with a shift to relatively warm conditions. In many areas, this led to the development of grasslands. This in turn led to an increase in the number of deer, antelope, goat, sheep and cattle, i.e. animals that survived on grass. Those who hunted these animals now followed them, learning about their food habits and their breeding seasons. It is likely that this helped people to start thinking about herding and rearing these animals themselves. Fishing also became important. The beginning of farming and herding This was also a time when several grain bearing grasses, including wheat, barley and rice grew naturally in different parts of the subcontinent. Men, women and children probably collected these grains as food, and learnt where they grew, and when they ripened. This may have led them to think about growing plants on their own. In this way people became farmers. People could also attract and then tame animals by leaving food for them near their shelters. The first animal to be tamed was the wild ancestor of the dog. Later, people encouraged animals that were relatively gentle to come near the camps where they lived. These animals such as sheep, goat, cattle and also the pig lived in herds, and most of them ate grass. Often, people protected these animals from attacks by other wild animals. This is how they became herders. Can you think of any reasons why the dog was perhaps the first animal to be tamed? Chapter 1-2.indd 15 22 April 2022 12:12:49 Rationalised 2023-24 Domestication is the name given to the process in which people grow plants and look after animals. Very often, plants and animals that are tended by people become different from wild plants and animals. This is because people select plants and animals for domestication. For example, they select those plants and animals that are not prone to disease. They also select plants that yield large-size grain, and have strong stalks, capable of bearing the weight of the ripe grain. Seeds from selected plants are preserved and sown to ensure that new plants (and seeds) will have the same qualities. Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants. For example, the teeth and horns of wild animals are usually much larger than those of domesticated animals. Look at these two sets of teeth. Which do you think belongs to a wild pig and which to a domesticated one? Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plants and animals produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat. A new way of life If you plant a seed, you will notice that it takes some time to grow. This may be for several days, weeks, months and in some cases years. When people began growing plants, it meant that they had to stay in the same place for a long time looking after the plants, watering, weeding, driving away animals and birds — till the grain ripened. And then, the grain had to be used carefully. WAYS IN WHICH GRAIN WAS USED AS SEED AS FOOD AS GIFTS STORED FOR FOOD Chapter 1-2.indd 16 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 17  from hunting –gathering to growing foodAs grain had to be stored for both food and seed, people had to think of ways of storing it. In many areas, they began making large clay pots, or wove baskets, or dug pits into the ground. Do you think hunter-gatherers would have made and used pots? Give reasons for your answer. Rearing animals Animals multiply naturally. Besides, if they are looked after carefully, they provide milk, which is an important source of food, and meat, whenever required. In other words, animals that are reared can be used as a ‘store’ of food. Apart from food, what are the other things that could have been obtained from animals? What are animals used for today? Finding out about the first farmers and herders Turn to Map 2 (page12). You will notice a number of blue squares. Each marks a site from where archaeologists have found evidence of early farmers and herders. These are found all over the subcontinent. Some of the most important ones are in the north-west, in present-day Kashmir, and in east and south India. To find out whether these sites were settlements of farmers and herders, scientists study evidence of plants and animal bones. One of the most exciting finds includes remains of burnt grain. (These may have been burnt accidentally or on purpose). Scientists can identify these grains, and so we know that a number of crops were grown in different parts of the subcontinent. They can also identify the bones of different animals. Chapter 1-2.indd 17 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24  18 our pasts–iT owards a settled life Archaeologists have found traces of huts or houses at some sites. For instance, in Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir) people built pit-houses, which were dug into the ground, with steps leading into them. These may have provided shelter in cold weather. Archaeologists have also found cooking hearths both inside and outside the huts, which suggests that, depending on the weather, people could cook food either indoors or outdoors. Stone tools have been found from many sites as well. Many of these are different from the earlier Palaeolithic tools and that is why they are called Neolithic . These include tools that were polished to give a fine cutting edge, and mortars and pestles used for grinding grain and other plant produce. Mortars and pestles are used for grinding grain even today, several thousand years later. At the same time, tools of the Palaeolithic types continued to be made and used, and remember, some tools were also made of bone. Many kinds of earthen pots have also been found. These were sometimes decorated, and were used for storing things. People began using pots for cooking food, especially grains like rice, wheat and lentils that now became an important part New stone tools. Chapter 1-2.indd 18 22 April 2022 12:12:51 Rationalised 2023-24 19  from hunting –gathering to growing food What do you think could have been stored in this jar?of the diet. Besides, they began weaving cloth, using different kinds of materials, for example cotton, that could now be grown. Did things change everywhere and all at once? Not quite. In many areas, men and women still continued to hunt and gather food, and elsewhere people adopted farming and herding slowly, over several thousand years. Besides, in some cases people tried to combine these activities, doing different things during different seasons. A closer look — Living and dying in Mehrgarh Find Mehrgarh on Map 2 (page12). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where people learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about. At this site many animal bones were found. Bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig, and also bones of sheep and goat were found. Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. A burial from Mehrgarh. Can you identify the skeletons of the goats? A house in Mehrgarh. This is what a house in Mehrgarh may have looked like. In what ways is this house similar to the one in which you live? Chapter 1-2.indd 19 22 April 2022 12:12:52 Rationalised 2023-24  20 our pasts–iWhen people die, their relatives and friends generally pay respect to them. People look after them, perhaps in the belief that there is some form of life after death. Burial is one such arrangement. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world. Imagine You live in a rock shelter like the one shown on page 13 about 12,000 years ago. Your uncle is painting one of the inner walls of the cave and you want to help him. Will you mix the colours, draw the lines, fill in the colours? What are the stories he might tell you? KEYWORDS hunter-gatherer site habitation factory Palaeolithic Mesolithic microliths domestication farmers herders Neolithic burials Let’s recall 1. Complete the sentences: (a) Hunter-gatherers chose to live in caves and rock shelters because ————————. (b) Grasslands developed around ———————— years ago. 2. Why do people who grow crops have to stay in the same place for a long time? 3. Why do archaeologists think that many people who lived in Mehrgarh were hunters to start with and that herding became more important later? Let’s discuss 4. Why did the hunter-gatherers travel from place to place? In what ways are these similar to/different from the reasons for which we travel today? Chapter 1-2.indd 20 25 April 2022 02:08:00 Rationalised 2023-24 21  from hunting –gathering to growing food the Mesolithic period (12,000-10,000 years ago)  Beginnings of domestication (about 12,000 years ago)  Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago)  the beginning of the Neolithic (10,000 years ago)SOME IMPORTANT DATES5. List three ways in which hunter-gatherers used fire (see page 14). Would you use fire for any of these purposes today? 6. List three ways in which the lives of farmers and herders would have been different from that of hunter- gatherers. Let’s do 7. List the cereals that you eat. Do you grow the cereals you eat. If yes, draw a chart to show the stages in growing them. If not, draw a chart to show how these cereals reach you from the farmers who grow them. Chapter 1-2.indd 21 25 April 2022 02:08:32 Rationalised 2023-24

What did people do with the jars?

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