1. The whole of the Indian subcontinent came to be known by which name after an ancient tribe called the Bharatas?
2. The descendants of the Bharata tribe, from whom the ancients viewed the country as one unit, were called by which term?
3. Kings who tried to establish their authority from the Himalayas to Cape Comorin and from the Brahmaputra to the Indus were called:
Consider the following pairs:
4. (I) Asoka – third century B.C. (II) Samudragupta – fourth century A.D. (III) Pulakesin II – seventh century (Chalukya)
Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched with the century in which they extended their sway over most of the country?
5. Which language served as the lingua franca of the country in the third century B.C.?
6. In which period did Sanskrit become prominent as the state language even in the remotest parts of the country?
7. The word "Hind" is derived from which Sanskrit term?
8. The epics Ramayana and Mahabharata were originally composed in which language before being presented in different local languages?
9. Which social system, arising in north India, came to prevail almost all over the country and even affected foreign converts to Christianity and Islam?
10. Ancient India is considered a crucible of numerous races because several groups made it their home, including the pre-Aryans, Indo-Aryans, Greeks, Scythians, Hunas and:
11. The science which enables systematic digging of ancient mounds in successive layers to form an idea of material life is called:
12. Which method is used to fix the dates of material remains recovered through excavation?
13. Pollen-analysis suggests that agriculture was practised in Rajasthan and Kashmir as far back as:
14. Burial structures encircled by big pieces of stone, found in south India and associated with the life of people from the iron age onwards in the Deccan, are called:
15. The study of coins is known as:
16. Ancient Indian coins were made of metal, unlike modern paper currency, which came to be used in India only in which century?
17. Coin moulds made of burnt clay, found in large numbers, mostly belong to which period?
Consider the following statements:
18. (I) Coins helped reconstruct the history of the Indo-Greeks who ruled in the second and first centuries B.C. (II) The Guptas issued the largest number of gold coins. (III) Only a few coins belonging to the post-Gupta period have been found, indicating decline of trade.
Which of the above statements is/are correct?
19. The study of inscriptions is called:
20. The study of old writing used in inscriptions and other old records is called:
21. The earliest inscriptions in the country as a whole were recorded on which material?
22. Asokan inscriptions were mainly engraved in which script, written from left to right?
23. Which script used for some Asokan inscriptions was written from right to left?
24. Asokan inscriptions in Afghanistan were also inscribed in which two scripts, employed for the north-western part of the empire?
25. Asokan inscriptions were first deciphered in 1837 by:
26. Multiple-choice on compilation: The series of collections publishing most inscriptions bearing on Maurya, post-Maurya and Gupta history is called:
27. The Rig Veda may be assigned to approximately which period?
28. The Atharva Veda, Yajur Veda, the Brahmanas and the Upanishads roughly belong to which period?
29. The Srautasutras and Grihyasutras, which lay down royal coronation ceremonies and domestic rituals respectively, belong roughly to which period?
30. The two epics and the major Puranas seem to have been finally compiled by circa:
31. The Mahabharata was originally called Jaya Samhita, dealing with:
32. The Ramayana originally consisted of 12000 verses, which were later raised to:
33. The Dharmasutras and Smritis, together with their commentaries called Dharmasastras, were compiled in which period?
34. The Arthasastra, an important law-book on polity and economy, was authored by:
35. The earliest Buddhist texts were written in which language, spoken in Magadha and south Bihar?
36. The canonical portions of the Pali Buddhist texts were finally compiled in Sri Lanka in which century?
37. Folk tales narrating the previous births of Gautama Buddha, throwing light on social and economic conditions, are called:
38. The Jaina texts, originally written in Prakrit, were finally compiled in the sixth century A.D. at:
39. The body of early Tamil literature, produced over three to four centuries by poets assembled in colleges patronised by kings, is known as:
40. The Indika, an important account of Maurya administration preserved only in fragments quoted by later classical writers, was written by:
41. (I) Periplus of the Erythrean Sea — Greek (II) Ptolemy's Geography — Greek (III) Pliny's Naturalis Historia — Latin
Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched with their language?
42. Which Chinese Buddhist traveller visited India in the beginning of the fifth century A.D. and described conditions in the age of the Guptas?
43. Which Chinese traveller visited India in the second quarter of the seventh century A.D. and described the age of Harsha?
Consider the following pairs:
44. (I) Vikrama Samvat – 58 B.C. (II) Saka Samvat – A.D. 78 (III) Gupta era – A.D. 319
Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?
45. The Harshacharita, a semi-biographical work describing the early career of Harshavardhana, was composed by:
46. Sandhyakara Nandi's Ramacharita narrates the conflict between the Kaivarta peasants and which Pala prince, resulting in the latter's victory?
47. Bilhana's Vikramankadevacharita recounts the achievements of which Chalukya king of Kalyan?
48. The Rajatarangini, considered the earliest historical writing possessing several traits of history as understood in modern times, was written in the twelfth century by:
49. The Indian subcontinent's total area is as large as Europe without Russia, covering approximately:
50. The Indian subcontinent is divided into three countries: India, Pakistan and:
51. Which mountain range protects the country against cold arctic winds blowing from Siberia through Central Asia?
52. On the north-west, the Sulaiman mountain ranges could be crossed through which two passes?
53. Further southward in Baluchistan, the Kirthar ranges could be crossed through which pass?
54. Which valley, nestled in the Himalayas, became a transmitting centre of Buddhism for adjacent areas of Central Asia?
Consider the following statements:
55. (I) The Indus vegetation was based on 25 to 37 cm rainfall and could be cleared with stone and copper implements. (II) The middle Gangetic vegetation, based on 60 to 125 cm rainfall, required iron implements to clear. (III) The lower Gangetic and Brahmaputra vegetation was based on 125 to 250 cm rainfall.
Which of the above statements is/are correct?
56. The Harappan culture originated and flourished in which river valley?
57. The Vedic culture originated in the Panjab and flourished in which region?
58. The post-Vedic culture, mainly based on the use of iron, thrived in which region?
59. The lower Gangetic valley and north Bengal first came into limelight in the age of which dynasty?
60. Which river doab proved to be the most coveted and contested area among historical Indian powers?
61. In the eastern part of the Indian peninsula, the area known as Kalinga, covering the coastal belt of Orissa, was situated between the Mahanadi and which river?
62. Andhra Pradesh mostly lay between the Godavari on the north and which river on the south?
63. Tamil Nadu was situated between the Krishna on the north and which river on the south?
64. In the western part of the peninsula, Maharashtra could be located between the Tapti (Damanganga) on the north and which river on the south?
65. Karnataka was situated between the Bhima and the upper regions of the Krishna on the north and which river on the south?
66. The sea-coast along the western part of the peninsula, covered by the modern State of Kerala, is called:
67. The eastern part of the peninsula, flanked by the Eastern Ghats, is bounded by which coast?
Consider the following pairs of port cities and the coast on which they were situated:
68. (I) Arikamedu – Coromandel coast (II) Mahabalipuram – Coromandel coast (III) Kaveripattanam – Coromandel coast
Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?
69. Between the Indus and Gangetic systems in the north and the Vindhya mountains in the south, the land is divided into two units by which mountains?
70. Which desert, made human settlements impossible in ancient times, covers the area west of the Aravallis?
71. Human settlements arose in the south-eastern portion of Rajasthan in the chalcolithic period due to the existence of which mines?
72. Gujarat, at the end of the north-western portion of the Deccan plateau, is drained by the Narmada, Tapti, Mahi and which other river?
73. Madhya Pradesh, south of the Ganga-Yamuna doab, is bounded on the west by which river?
74. Western Madhya Pradesh, which includes Malwa, has been the scene of historical activities from which century onwards?
75. Which mountains cut right across the country from west to east and form the boundary between north and south India?
76. Speakers of the Dravidian languages lived south of the Vindhyas, while speakers of which language family lived north of it?
77. The richest copper mines in the country, about 130 km long and showing many signs of ancient workings, are found in the Chotanagpur plateau, particularly in the district of:
78. Copper celts found in the Khetri zone belong to a period anterior to circa:
79. The Harappans possibly procured some tin from Rajasthan, but their main supply of tin came from:
80. From the early centuries of the Christian era, India developed intimate connections with Burma and which peninsula, which possessed plenty of tin, enabling large-scale use of bronze in south India?
81. Rich iron ores, which enabled the formation of the first empire in Magadha in the sixth to fourth centuries B.C., are found particularly in south Bihar, eastern Madhya Pradesh and:
82. The large-scale use of iron made which kingdom, with its capital at Ujjain, important in the sixth and fifth centuries B.C.?
83. The earliest coins, called punch-marked coins, were made largely of which metal, even though it was rarely found in the country?
84. Gold is found in the Kolar goldfields of which region?
85. Kolar is considered the earliest capital of which dynasty of south Karnataka?
