A Concise History of South India

Description

The course of south Indian history from pre-historic times to the contemporary era is a complex narrative with many interpretations. Reflecting recent advances in the study of the region, this volume provides an assessment of the events and socio-cultural development of south India through a comprehensive analysis of its historical trajectory.  Investigating the region’s states and configurations, this book covers a wide range of topics that include the origins of the early inhabitants, formation of the ancient kingdoms, advancement of agriculture, new religious movements based on bhakti, and consolidation of centralized states in the medieval period. It further explores the growth of industries in relation to the development of East–West maritime trade in the Indian Ocean as well as the wave of Islamicization and the course of commercial relations with various European countries. The book then goes on to discuss the advent of early-modern state rule, impact of the raiyatwari system introduced by the British, debates about whether the region’s economy developed or deteriorated during the eighteenth century, decline of matriliny in Kerala, emergence of the Dravidian Movement, and the intertwining of politics with contemporary popular culture.  Well illustrated with maps and images, and incorporating new archaeological evidence and historiography, this volume presents new perspectives on a gamut of issues relating to communities, languages, and cultures of a macro-region that continues to fascinate scholars and readers alike.

Table of contents

List of Illustrations 

Preface 

Note on Abbreviations, Diacritical Marks, and Bibliographies

Prologue: Dravidians—Immigrant or Indigenous 

by Noboru Karashima

1. Before the Common Era: Beginnings of South Indian History

 1.1 Prehistoric cultures by P. Shanmugam 

   1.1.1 Palaeolithic cultures 

   1.1.2 Neolithic culture 

 1.2 Megalithic burials and graffiti by Y. Subbarayalu 

   1.2.1 Megalithic burials 

   1.2.2 Graffiti 

 1.3 Beginnings of south Indian history by Noboru Karashima 

 1.4 The Brahmi script and south Indian languages by Y. Subbarayalu 

2. First Century BCE to Fifth Century CE: The Satavahanas, the Early Tamil Polities, and Their Successors 

 2.1 The Satavahanas in the Deccan by Y. Subbarayalu 

 2.2 Sangam and post-Sangam literature by Y. Subbarayalu 

   2.2.1 Sangam literature (c. 100 BCE to 300 CE) 

   2.2.2 Post-Sangam literature (c. 300-600 CE) 

 2.3 Early Tamil polity by Y. Subbarayalu 

   2.3.1 The rulers 

   2.3.2 Political organization 

 2.4 Post-Satavahana and post-Sangam polities by Y. Subbarayalu 

 2.5 Religion and religious monuments in early south India by Y. Subbarayalu 

   2.5.1 Religion as known from archaeological monuments 

   2.5.2 Religion in early Tamil country as known from literature 

 2.6 Roman trade and contacts with Southeast Asia by Noboru Karashima 

   2.6.1 Roman trade 

   2.6.2 Contact with Southeast Asia 

3. Sixth Century to Ninth Century: The New-Type States and the Bhakti Movement

 3.1 The emergence of a new type of state by Noboru Karashima 

 3.2 Kingship and statecraft by Noboru Karashima 

 3.3 Agrarian developments by Noboru Karashima

 3.4 Capitals and temples by P. Shanmugam 

   3.4.1 Capitals 

   3.4.2 Temples

 3.5 The bhakti movement by Noboru Karashima 

   3.5.1 Synthesis of southern and northern traditions 

   3.5.2 Nayanars and a?vars 

   3.5.3 The bhakti movement and the state 

 3.6 Women in premodern south Indian society by R. Mahalakshmi 

4. The Tenth to Twelfth Centuries: The Emergence of a Centralized State 

 4.1 The balance of two powers by Noboru Karashima 

 4.2 The Chola state: Centralized or segmentary? by Noboru Karashima 

 4.3 Changes in landholding system and society by Noboru Karashima 

 4.4 Maritime trade and merchant activities by Noboru Karashima 

 4.5 States in the Deccan and Kerala by Noboru Karashima 

 4.6 Religion and society by Noboru Karashima 

 4.7 Language and literature by Hiroshi Yamashita 

   4.7.1 Development of local languages and the dawn of Kannada and Telugu literature 

   4.7.2 Development of Tamil literature and the emergence of new trends 

 4.8 Temples and sculpture by R. Mahalakshmi 

   4.8.1 The Tamil region 

   4.8.2 The other regions 

5. Thirteenth and Fourteenth Centuries: Period of Social Change and Transition 

 5.1 The fall of the old states by Noboru Karashima 

 5.2 Emergence of new jatis and supra-local-community organizations by Noboru Karashima 

 5.3 Ma?has, Saivasiddhantism, and Virasaivism by Noboru Karashima 

6. Fifteenth Century to Seventeenth Century: Vijayanagar State and the Wider World 

 6.1 Vijayanagar and the sultanates in the Deccan by Noboru Karashima 

 6.2 Vijayanagar state and the nayakas by Noboru Karashima 

   6.2.1 The nayaka system 

   6.2.2 Early polity 

 6.3 Development of trade and industry by Noboru Karashima

 6.4 'Hindu Sultan' and religions by Noboru Karashima 

   6.4.1 'Hindu Sultan' 

   6.4.2 Religions 

 6.5 Architecture and sculpture by P. Shanmugam 

   6.5.1 Vijayanagar and nayaka architecture 

   6.5.2 Islamic (Bahmani) and European architecture 

 6.6 The nayaka states and the emergence of new ethos by Noboru Karashima 

 6.7 The coming of the Europeans by Nobuhiro Ota 

   6.7.1 The advent of the Portuguese in the Indian Ocean 

   6.7.2 Trade competition between the Dutch and the English in the seventeenth century 

   6.7.3 The decline of the Dutch and the advent of the French in the eighteenth century 

7. Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries: British Rule and Indian Society 

 7.1 Regional states 

   7.1.1 The Deccan sultanates and the hegemony of the Mughals by Nobuhiro Ota 

   7.1.2 Successor state: Hyderabad by Keiko Yamada 

   7.1.3 Successor state: Mysore by Nobuhiro Ota 

   7.1.4 Successor state: Tanjore by Takako Inoue 

   7.1.5 Successor state: Travancore by Toshie Awaya 

   7.1.6 Economy and society by Nobuhiro Ota 

 7.2 The colonization of south India: The East India Companies and the wars 

   7.2.1 The fortunes of the native powers and the Carnatic Wars by Nobuhiro Ota 

   7.2.2 The rise of the Mysore kingdom and the Mysore Wars by Nobuhiro Ota 

 7.3 Incorporation into the global economy by Tsukasa Mizushima 

   7.3.1 The development of the market economy 

   7.3.2 Asian and European market relations 

   7.3.3 Political and economic subordination 

 7.4 Colonial formation 

   7.4.1 Mirasidars and colonial land systems by Tsukasa Mizushima 

   7.4.2 Colonial administration and education policy by Miwako Shiga 

 7.5 Responses to colonial formation 

   7.5.1 Landholders in the nineteenth century by Tsukasa Mizushima 

   7.5.2 The south Indian cotton industry by Haruka Yanagisawa

   7.5.3 Changes in agrarian society by Haruka Yanagisawa 

   7.5.4 Social movements: The Tamil Renaissance and new identities by Miwako Shiga 

   7.5.5 The decline of the matrilineal system in modern Kerala by Toshie Awaya 

8. Twentieth Century: Independence and After 

 8.1 Towards Independence: Politics, society, and economy 

   8.1.1 The non-Brahmin movement by Miwako Shiga 

   8.1.2 The women's movement in pre-Independence south

India by Parvathi Menon 

   8.1.3 The south Indian economy before Independence by Haruka Yanagisawa 

   8.1.4 The devadasi issue by Takako Inoue 

   8.1.5 New trends in music by Takako Inoue 

 8.2 Independence and after: Politics, society, and economy 

   8.2.1 The language issue and the reorganization of states by Keiko Yamada 

   8.2.2 State politics in Tamil Nadu by Miwako Shiga 

   8.2.3 State politics in Andhra Pradesh by Keiko Yamada 

   8.2.4 The women's movement in post-Independence south

India by Parvathi Menon 

   8.2.5 Industrial growth and agrarian change by Haruka Yanagisawa 

   8.2.6 Cinema and television by Takako Inoue

Epilogue: Southern Spice—Seasoning the National Cuisine

by Noboru Karashima

Chronological Tables of Dynastic Rulers

About the Editor and Contributors

Index