What, Where, How and When?

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Where Did People Live?

In India, the earliest people lived along the banks of the river Narmada for several hundred thousand years.
They were skilled Gatherers and used to gather food.
They had vast knowledge of the plants growing around them. They also used to hunt animals for food.
Sulaiman and Kirthar hills to the northwest of India are areas where women and men first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago.
People also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, and cattle, and lived in villages.
Garo hills to the north-east and the Vindhyas in central India were other areas where agriculture developed.

→ The places where rice was first grown are to the north of the Vindhyas.

The river Indus and its tributaries were the site where some of the earliest cities flourished about 4700 years ago.
Later, about 2500 years ago, cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, and along the sea coasts.
The Ganga and its tributary called the Son flowed through an area known as Magadha, in present-day Bihar.

→ Its rulers were very powerful, and set up a large kingdom.

→ Travelling enriched cultural traditions and sharing of ideas between people such as carving stones, composing music, and cooking.

Names of the Land

The name India came from the river Indus (Sindhu in Sanskrit).
2500 years ago, Iranians and Greeks called the river Indus as 'Hindos' or 'Indos' and the land to the east of this river was called India.
The name Bharata refers to a group of people who lived in the northwest part of India and are mentioned in the Rig Veda about 3500 years ago.

→ Later, this name was used for the country.

Finding Out About the Past

One way of learning about the past is by reading old books called manuscripts, written by hand.
They were written on palm leaves or the bark of the birch tree found in the Himalayas.
Many manuscripts were written in Sanskrit, Prakrit (languages used by ordinary people), and Tamil.

Inscriptions

Inscriptions are writings on hard surfaces like stone or metal.
Kings got their orders inscribed so people could read and follow them.
Men and women, including kings and queens, also recorded their deeds like victories in battles.

Archaeology

An archaeologist studies people of the past through the things they left behind.
They look for artifacts, objects made or used by people in the past.
They conduct excavations, digging the earth’s surface for evidence.
They also study bones of animals, birds, and fish to understand past food habits.

→ They even study plant remains, though such remains barely survive long periods.

→ The evidence found by archaeologists is called features.

What Do Dates Mean?

CE (Common Era) or AD (Anno Domini) means "in the year of the Lord."
BCE (Before Common Era) or BC (Before Christ).

→ All the dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards.

MCQs – What, Where, How and When?

1. BP stands for

(a) Backward Present

(b) Before Present

(d) Before Past

► (b) Before Present

2. Years after the birth of Jesus Christ are counted

(a) Forward

(b) Backward

(d) Downward

► (a) Forward

3. The place where rice was first grown is located in

(a) Yangtze River valley

(b) Sulaiman hills

(d) the Gaxo hills

► (a) Yangtze River valley

4. Jesus was founder of

(a) Hinduism

(b) Christianity

(d) Muslims

► (b) Christianity

5. The word India comes from the Indus, called ____ in Sanskrit

(a) Bharat

(b) Indica

(d) Indira

► (c) Sindhu

6. Which of the following does NOT form the natural frontier of the subcontinent

(a) Mountains

(b) Seas

(d) Hills

► (c) Buildings

7. All dates before the birth of Christ are counted backwards and usually have the letters

(a) AC

(b) AD

(d) BD

► (c) BC

8. Name the crops which were first grown by men and women

(a) Sugar and Barley

(b) Wheat and sugar

(d) Rice and Barley

► (c) Wheat and Barley

9. The places where rice was first grown

(a) Kirthar

(b) Garo Hills

(d) Vindhyas Hills

► (d) Vindhyas Hills

10. Prakrit language was used by

(a) Poor people

(b) Common people

(d) Rich people

► (b) Common people

11. Who are called the India Hindos or Indos?

(a) The Iranians and the Chinese

(b) The Iranians and the Turkish

(d) The Iranians and the Greeks

► (d) The Iranians and the Greeks

12. Which of the following hills are located in North-east

(a) Vindhya Hill

(b) Garo hills

(d) Satpura Hills

► (b) Garo hills

13. Which of the following is NOT a tributary of the Ganga ?

(a) Gomati

(b) Sutlej

(d) Gandak

► (b) Sutlej

14. They study about the remains of buildings made of stone and brick, paintings and sculpture. They explore to find tools, weapons, ornaments, and coins

(a) Archaeologist

(b) Historians

(d) Geologist

► (a) Archaeologist

15. Where are Garo hills located?

(a) North-west

(b) South-east

(d) North-east

► (d) North-east

16. Pages of the manuscript books were made of

(a) Palm leave

(b) Peeple Leave

(d) Neem Leave

► (a) Palm leave

17. This inscription dates to about 2250 years ago, and was found in Kandahar, present-day Afghanistan. It was written on the orders of a ruler named

(a) Akbar

(b) Ashoka

(d) Bimbisara

► (b) Ashoka