When, Where and How? – Introduction to Medieval India

These 25 fill-in-the-blank flashcards cover key dates, dynasties, cultural developments, sources and terminology essential for understanding the introductory chapter on Medieval India.

The Medieval Period in India is generally dated from __ CE to 1800 CE.

700

Turkish invasions that introduced Islam to India began around __ CE.

1000

Along with the Palas and Pratiharas, the __ vied for control of north India.

Rashtrakutas

The south-Indian dynasty that sent overseas trade missions was the __ dynasty.

Chola

The __ established the Delhi Sultanate in northern India.

Turks

Cultural fusion during the Medieval Period led to the emergence of the __ language.

Urdu

The Indo-Islamic architectural wonder in Agra built in white marble is the __.

Taj Mahal

Hampi was a major trade centre, as was the port-town of __ on the east coast.

Masulipatnam

Key religious movements of the era included Bhakti, Sufism and __.

Sikhism

Regional languages such as Gujarati, Marathi, Kannada, Bengali, Rajasthani, Odia and __ flourished.

Assamese

Early Sanskrit texts called the land between the Vindhyas and Himalayas __.

Aryavarta

Persian writers referred to the Indian subcontinent as __.

Hindustan

The Indian Constitution names the country as both ‘India’ and __.

Bharat

Ziauddin Barani’s chronicle of Firoz Shah Tughlaq’s reign is titled __.

Tarikh-i-Firoz Shahi

Abul Fazl’s companion work to the Akbarnama is the __.

Ain-i-Akbari

The Mughal emperor Jahangir wrote his autobiography, the __.

Jahangirnama

Al Beruni’s important study of Indian society and culture is called __.

Tahqiq-i-Hind

The systematic study of coins as historical evidence is known as __.

Numismatics

Elegant, decorative handwriting used in manuscripts and monuments is called __.

Calligraphy

The academic discipline concerned with studying inscriptions is __.

Epigraphy

Chola bronzes famously depict the dancing form of the god __.

Shiva

Official documents preserved for historical research are known as __ records.

archival

Traditional genealogist-storytellers from Rajasthan and Gujarat were called __.

Charans

Court chronicles are valued for the details they offer about __ measures, laws and campaigns.

administrative

Because literary sources may be biased, historians also examine __ sources such as monuments, coins and artefacts.

archaeological