CUET History Syllabus 2022, Download the PDF!

Unit

Topic

Unit I: The Story of the First Cities Harappan Archaeology

Broad overview: Early urban centers. Story of discovery: Harappan civilization. Excerpt: Archaeological report on a major site. Discussion: how it has been utilized by archaeologists/ historians.

Unit II: Political and Economic History: How Inscriptions tell a story

Broad overview: Political and economic history from the Mauryan to the Gupta period. Story of discovery: Inscriptions and the decipherment of the script. Shifts in the understanding of political and economic history. Excerpt: Asokan inscription and Gupta period land grant. Discussion: Interpretation of inscriptions by historians.

Unit III: Social Histories using the Mahabharata

Broad overview: Issues in social history, including caste, class, kinship, and gender. Story of discovery: Transmission and publications of the Mahabharata. Excerpt: From the Mahabharata, illustrating how it has been used by historians.

Unit IV: A History of Buddhism: Sanchi Stupa

Broad overview: (a) A brief review of religious histories of Vedic religion, Jainism, Vaisnavism, and Saivism. (b) Focus on Buddhism. Story of discovery: Sanchi stupa. Excerpt: Reproduction of sculptures from Sanchi. Discussion: Ways in which sculpture has been interpreted by historians, and other sources for reconstructing the history of Buddhism.

Unit V: Medieval society through Travellers’ Accounts

Broad Overview: Outline of social and cultural life as they appear in travelers’ accounts. Story of their writings: A discussion of where they traveled, why they traveled, what they wrote, and For whom they wrote. Excerpts: from Alberuni, Ibn Batuta, Bernier. Discussion: What these travel accounts can tell us and how they have been interpreted by historians.

Unit VI: Religious Histories: The Bhakti-Sufi Tradition

Broad Overview: (a) Outline of religious developments during this period. (b) Ideas and practices of the Bhakti-Sufi saints. Story of Transmission: How Bhakti-Sufi compositions have been preserved. Excerpt: Extracts from selected Bhakti Sufi works. Discussion: Ways in which these have been interpreted by historians

Unit VII: New Architecture: Hampi

Broad Overview: (a)Outline of new buildings during the Vijayanagar period — temples, forts, irrigation facilities. (b)Relationship between architecture and the political system. Story of Discovery: Account of how Hampi was found. Excerpt: Visuals of buildings at Hampi. Discussion: Ways in which historians have analyzed and interpreted these structures.

Unit VIII: Agrarian Relations: The Ain-i- Akbari

Broad overview: (a) Structure of agrarian relations in the 16th and 17th centuries. (b) Patterns of change over the period. Story of Discovery: Account of the compilation and translation of Ain-i-Akbari. Excerpt: From the Ain-i-Akbari Discussion: Ways in which historians have used the text to reconstruct the history

Unit IX: The Mughal Court: Reconstructing Histories through Chronicles

Broad Overview: (a) Outline of political history c. 15th-17th centuries. (b) Discussion of the Mughal court and politics. Story of Discovery: Account of the production of court chronicles, and their subsequent translation and transmission. Excerpts: from the Akbarnama and Padshahnama. Discussion: Ways in which historians have used the texts to reconstruct political histories.

Unit X: Colonialism and Rural Society: Evidence from Official Reports

Broad overview: (a) Life of zamindars, peasants, and artisans in the late18th century. (b) East India Company, revenue settlements, and surveys. (c) Changes over the nineteenth century. Story of official records: An account of why official investigations into rural societies were undertaken and the types of records and reports produced. Excerpts: From Firminger’s Fifth Report, Accounts of Francis Buchanan-Hamilton, and Deccan Riots Report. Discussion: What do the official records tell and do not tell, and how they have been used by historians.

Unit XI: Representations of 1857

Broad Overview: (a) The events of 1857-58. (b) How these events were recorded and narrated. Focus: Lucknow. Excerpts: Pictures of 1857. Extracts from contemporary accounts. Discussion: How the pictures of 1857 shaped British opinion of what had happened

Unit XII: Colonialism and Indian Towns: Town Plans and Municipal Reports

Broad Overview: The growth of Mumbai, Chennai, hill stations, and cantonments in the 18th and 19th centuries. Excerpts: Photographs and paintings. Plans of cities. Extract from town plan reports. Focus on Kolkata town planning. Discussion: How the above sources can be used to reconstruct the history of towns. What these sources do not reveal.

Unit XIII: Mahatma Gandhi through Contemporary Eyes

Broad Overview: (a) The nationalist movement 1918-48, (b) The nature of Gandhian politics and leadership. Focus: Mahatma Gandhi in 1931. Excerpts: Reports from English and Indian language newspapers and other contemporary writings. Discussion: How newspapers can be a source of history.

Unit XIV: Partition through Oral Sources

Broad Overview: (a) The history of the 1940s; (b) Nationalism, Communalism, and Partition. Focus: Punjab and Bengal. Excerpts: Oral testimonies of those who experienced partition. Discussion: Ways in which these have been analyzed to reconstruct the history of the event.

Unit XV: The Making of the Constitution

Broad Overview: (a) Independence and the new nation-state. (b) The making of the Constitution. Focus: The Constitutional Assembly debates. Excerpts: From the debates. Discussion: What do such debates reveal and how they can be analyzed.