Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Chapter-7
Q1. True/False
Tribal societies had rich oral traditions. True
There were no tribal communities in the northwestern part of the subcontinent. False
Barhots were made up of 12 villages each. True
The chaurasi in Gond states contained several cities. False
In the western Himalaya lived the shepherd tribe of Gaddis. True
The Bhils lived in the north-eastern part of the subcontinent. False
Ahoms also introduced new methods of rice cultivation. True
According to Akbar Nama, the Gond kingdom of Garha Katanga had 70,000
villages.True
Q17. What made the brahmanas more influential in the Gond society?
Ans. Brahmanas received land grants from the Gond rajas and became more influential.
Q23. What did Mughal capture when they defeat the Gonds?
Ans. When the Mughals defeated the Gonds, they captured a huge booty of precious coins and
elephants.
Q24. How did Garha Katanga earn much of its wealth?
Ans. Garha Katanga was a rich state. It earned much wealth by trapping and exporting wild
elephants to other kingdoms.
Q27. Which was the most influential tribe in Punjab during 13 th and 14th century?
Ans. In Punjab, the Khokhar tribe was very influential during the thirteenth and fourteenth
centuries.
Q29. What kinds of exchanges took place between nomadic pastoralists and settled
agriculturists?
Ans. Nomadic pastoralists exchanged wool, ghee, etc., with settled agriculturists for grain,
cloth, utensils and other products.
Q36. How do the present day historians use to write tribal histories?
Ans. Contemporary historians and travellers give very scanty information about tribes. A few
exceptions apart, tribal people did not keep written records. But they preserved rich customs
and oral traditions. These were passed down to each new generation. Present day historians
have started using such oral traditions to write tribal histories.
Q37. Who were Ahoms? How did they build a large state?
Ans. The Ahoms migrated to the Brahmaputra valley from present-day Myanmar in the
thirteenth century. They created a new state by suppressing the older political system of the
bhuiyans (landlords). During the sixteenth century, they annexed the kingdoms of the Chhutiyas
(1523) and of Koch-Hajo (1581) and subjugated many other tribes.
Q43. How did the emergence of large states change the nature of Gond society?
Ans. The emergence of large states changed the nature of Gond society.
Their basically equal society gradually got divided into unequal social classes.
Brahmanas received land grants from the Gond rajas and became more influential.
The Gond chiefs now wished to be recognised as Rajputs. They began forming marital
relation with Rajputs.
Q48. How did tribal societies change after being organized into a state?
Ans. Changes in tribal societies
Considerable social change took place in the subcontinent. Varna-based society and tribal
people constantly interacted with each other. This interaction caused both kinds of societies to
adapt and change.
There were many different tribes and they took up diverse livelihoods.
Over a period of time, many of them merged with caste based society. Others,
however, rejected both the caste system and orthodox Hinduism.
Some tribes established extensive states with well-organised systems of administration.
They thus became politically powerful. This brought them into conflict with larger and more
complex kingdoms and empires.
Q51. In what ways was the history of the Gonds different from that of the Ahoms? Were there
any similarities?
Ans. History of the Gonds was different from that of the Ahoms in the following ways:
The Gonds lived in a vast forested region called Gondwana – or “country inhabited by
Gonds”. The Ahoms migrated to the Brahmaputra valley from present-day Myanmar in the
thirteenth century.
Gonds practised shifting cultivation. The Ahoms also introduced new methods of rice
cultivation.
Gonds society was not as developed as Ahoms. The Ahoms built a large state, and for
this they used firearms. They could even make high quality gunpowder and cannons.
Gonds were influenced by Rajputs. In order to gain power and recognition, they had
marriage alliances with Rajputs. Ahoms annexed the kingdoms of the Chhutiyas and of Koch-
Hajo and subjugated many other tribes.
There were many similarities between Gonds and Ahoms.
Both the tribal states were attacked by Mughals at different times. Despite their brave
defence, both were defeated by the Mughals.
Both granted land to the Brahmanas.
Both developed centralised administrative systems.