Short Questions: What, Where, How & When? | NCERT Summary: UPSC PDF Download

Q1: What can we know about the past?
Ans: We can know about the past by knowing several things. For example,

• We can find out—what people ate, the kinds of clothes they wore, the houses in which they lived.
• We can find out about hunters, herdsmen, farmers, rulers, merchants, priests, crafts persons, artists, musicians and scientists.
• We can also find out the games children played, the stories they heard, the dramas (or plays) they saw or enjoyed, the songs they sang.

Q2: When did the early cities develop in India?
Ans: About 4700 years ago some of the earliest cities (Harappa, Mohenjodaro, Lothal, Chun-hu-daro, Rupar, Banwali, Kalibangam, Surkotada etc.) flourished on the banks of the Indus and its tributaries. And other early cities developed on the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries and along the coasts, about 2500 years ago.

Q3: What are the things that archaeologists find at excavations sites?
Ans: At ancient excavation sites, tools, weapons, pans, pots, decorations, coins, and metals, among other things, have been discovered.

Q4: Where did people in the past use to live?
Ans: People used to live along riverbanks. They were expert hunters and gatherers.

Q5: What do you mean by contemporary civilization?
Ans: Contemporary civilization is defined as two civilizations flourishing at the same time in two separate locations.

Q6: How do historians and archaeologists know about history?
Ans: Scripts, tools, weapons, pans, pots, ornaments, coins, metals, and the remains of stone and brick buildings discovered from the site also aid historians and archaeologists in defining and deciphering history and its various elements.

Q7: Which were the earliest archaeological sites excavated in India?
Ans: Indus Valley Civilization and Harappa Civilization were the first sites in India to be excavated. These locations have beautiful structures and a well-organized lifestyle.They traded across borders and had abundant mineral and agricultural resources.

Q8: How did the people live in Stone Age?
Ans: The Way of Life of the People in Stone Age:

• Some of the earliest people lived along the banks of rivers. They were skilled gatherers. They knew about the vast wealth of plants in the surrounding forests, and collected roots, fruits and other forest produces for their food.
• The people in Stone Age also hunted animals and birds. They used to catch fish also.
• Some of the areas where the people first began to grow crops such as wheat and barley about 8000 years ago are located in river-valley areas. They also began rearing animals like sheep, goat, dog, cow and other cattle.

Q9: What do you know about Magadha?
Or
Name the first largest Indian empire. Write two-three sentences about it.
Ans: Magadha was the first largest empire of India. The area along some of the important rivers of the Northern India and to the south of the Ganga was known as Magadha. Its rulers were very powerful (Bimbisara, Ajatashatru and Udaibhadra). They set up a large kingdom. (Some smaller kingdoms were set up in other parts of the country as well).

Q10: What were the ways that people used to travel in the past?
Ans: People used to go by foot or in animal carriages in the past.

Q11: What are the ways that can help to know about the past?
Ans: We can learn about the people of the past by analysing their lives via the results.

Q12: How do archaeologists give dates to the past?
Ans: Historians use a variety of methods to indicate the date and time. The terms ‘BC' and ‘AD' are the most commonly used. The letter 'BC' stands for 'Before Christ,' which means before Christ's birth. The letter AD stands for ‘Anno Domini,' which means ‘in the year of the Lord.'

Q13: How did the kings give orders to their people?
Ans: The stones were written whenever a king made a new rule or issued a new command. This was done because the commands stayed for a long period using this approach, and anyone might easily harm or remove them.