Life in Towns and Villages Chapter Notes | Footprints Class 6: Book Solutions, Notes & Worksheets PDF Download

The Second Urbanisation

Around 300 BCE, many towns began to appear in India, marking a shift from village life to city life, a process known as urbanisation. The first urbanisation had occurred during the Indus Valley Civilisation, but the Second Urbanisation happened after the Mauryan period.

Features of Second Urbanisation

• Iron Tools and Implements: During this time, people started using iron tools extensively. This helped them clear forests, expand cultivation, and improve their living standards.

• Guilds and Trade: 

• Trade Networks: Trade flourished, both within India and with foreign countries. Indian kingdoms traded with places like Sri Lanka, Burma, Java, and more. Ports on the east and west coasts, like Bhrigukachchii, Surparaka, and Tamralipti, played a crucial role in trade.

• Coins: Over time, trade shifted from bartering to using coins as a medium of exchange. Various types of coins, including punch-marked coins, were used for transactions, and they have been found at archaeological sites.

• Urban Centers: As the population increased, more towns and cities developed. Many of these cities were the capitals of Janapadas and Mahajanapadas or grew around trading centers.

• Northern Black Polished Ware: People used a specific type of black pottery made of clay during this period, and it was found in regions like the Gangetic Plains, Bihar, and parts of central-eastern and southern India.

• Ring Wells: In places like Kumrahar near Patna, ceramic pots with rings on top of each other, known as ring wells, were discovered. These may have been used as drains or water storage.

Village Life

In North Indian villages, the largest landowner served as the village headman. He collected taxes, acted as a link between the king and the village, and occasionally administered justice. Others in the village included big landowners, farmers, laborers, herders, and skilled artisans who paid taxes in cash or kind to the king.

Sources of the Period

In addition to the Jatakas, other books provide information about this period. Two important texts were written by foreign travelers to India. One is an anonymous text, probably by a sailor, called "The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea," and the other is by the Roman writer Pliny. 

• Both provide information on trade, ports, and trade routes. Pliny also complained about the drain of wealth from Rome to India due to costly Indian imports.
• Our main source of information about the people in South India during this period is a body of texts called Sangam Literature. These texts, mainly poems on love and war, were compiled around 2,300 years ago. They mention various kinds of people living in the Tamil region villages. Some families owned large tracts of cultivable land and were known as vellalars.
• Farmers who owned small pieces of land were known as uzhavar. If this land was insufficient for their subsistence, they worked on the land of big landowners. Landless laborers and slaves were known as kadai siyar and adimai, respectively. They worked on land owned by others.

Case Study: A Closer Look at Tamilakam

• Between 200 and 300 CE, the Cholas, Pandyas, and Cheras ruled Tamil Nadu with capitals in Kaveripattinam, Madurai, and Cochin, respectively. Trade was crucial, with Kaveripattinam being a major port city. 
• Indian goods like spices, pearls, and ivory were in high demand, especially in Rome, which traded gold, silver, wine, and pottery in return. Numerous Roman coins and settlements found in the region indicate robust trade relations. 
• The city of Puhar, described in the Tamil epic Silappadikaram, had distinct living and harbor areas with houses, temples, and warehouses.
• Excavations at Arikamedu revealed Roman amphorae, underscoring the extent of trade between Tamilakam and Rome.