Jain Memory of the Tughluq Sultans: Alternative Sources for the Historiography of Sultanate India

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-25
Author(s):  
STEVEN M. VOSE
Keyword(s):  
Fifteenth Century ◽  
Historical Narratives ◽  
Alternative View ◽  
Sacred Places ◽  
Historical Sources ◽  
Indian Community ◽  
Historical Representations ◽  
Alternative Sources

Abstract Some of the earliest narratives of meetings between leaders of an Indian community and their Muslim ruler appear in the Vividhatīrthakalpa (Chapters on Many Sacred Places) of the Jain monk Jinaprabhasūri (c. 1261–1333 ce). The text depicts the monk's relationship with Sultan Muḥammad bin Tughluq (r. 1325–51) in the years 1328–33, which resulted in the sovereign issuing a number of edicts (farmāns) to protect Jains and Jain temples and which led to the return of a Jina icon (Pkt. paḍima, Skt. pratimā) and the establishment of a Jain quarter in Delhi. Over the next two-and-a-half centuries, Jinaprabhasūri's story would be retold several times, with fifteenth-century narrators shifting his interlocutor to Fīrūz Shāh Tughluq (r. 1351–88). In the process of making Jinaprabha an object of memory, Jain authors of both the monk's own and rival monastic orders (gacchas) depicted the sultans as benefactors of the Jain community. While these narratives were attempts to delineate the proper relationship between Jain monastic leaders and Muslim rulers, they also constituted a Jain memory of the Tughluq sultans that is often at odds with modern historical representations of them. Reading these narratives alongside other evidence of Jains’ relations with the Tughluqs offers historians an alternative view of these figures and their relations with their Indian subjects, helping to de-centre modern historical narratives based on selective readings of Persian and Arabic sources and a privileging of Brahmanical or colonial viewpoints of the period. However, these narratives require historians to theorise this ‘memory’ to understand them productively as historical sources.

The Rohingya ‘Origin’ Narrative

2018 ◽  
pp. 73-106
Author(s):  
Anthony Ware ◽  
Costas Laoutides
Keyword(s):  
Historical Record ◽  
Historical Narratives ◽  
Historical Sources ◽  
Muslim Population ◽  
Intractable Conflict ◽  
Sociopolitical Context ◽  
Historical Accounts ◽  
Ethic Identity

Chapters Three and Four articulate the competing historical narratives and representations of memory sustaining Myanmar’s ‘Rohingya’ conflict. This chapter examines what the authors designate the Rohingya ‘Origin’ narrative, and interrogates it against the available historical record; the next chapter considers the Rakhine and Burman perspectives. Drawing on the concept of intractable conflict, this chapter commences with an assessment of ‘Rohingya’ written historical sources and their sociopolitical context, then presents an overview and critique of these historical accounts. The chapter summarizes the key narrative of Rohingya origins, examining their representation of various waves of Muslim migration in the distant past, seeking to establish the Rohingya as a national race with deep historical roots in Arakan—and a people integral to Arakan’s political and socioeconomic life until its 1784 conquest by the Burmans. The chapter then offers an analysis of the pre-colonial Muslim population, and assesses their perspectives about the origins of the contemporary conflict. The chapter thus documents and analyses Rohingya claims that various waves of settlers have been assimilated, over centuries, into what is now a single ethic identity with a strong historical connection to the land, and a distinct language, culture and history which should now be considered indigenous to the region.

“Gendered Narratives,” History, and Identity: Two Centuries Along the Juba River among the Zigula and Shanbara

1995 ◽  
Vol 22 ◽  
pp. 93-122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesca Declich
Keyword(s):  
Historical Narratives ◽  
Women's Roles ◽  
Historical Sources ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Historical Discourse ◽  
Early Colonial ◽  
Female Voices ◽  
The Creation ◽  
Historical Discourses ◽  
Gender Specific

The argument that a process of “making tribes” has invested Africa from early colonial times has been used to explain the emergence of some ethnicities which appear not to have existed before colonialism. This emergence was often accompanied by the creation of written records of male historical discourse, thus not only giving them undue prominence but also suppressing female historical discourses which were not considered pertinent to “history.”Yet whenever history is recounted orally by either men or women, it contains messages directed to a “gendered” audience (i.e., an audience composed of people of both genders) whose participants perceive messages differently and reproduce separate but interacting discourses. Such diverse perceptions result from certain aspects in oral genres as well as small, coded markers which can evoke immensely potent but gender-specific experiences. Such instances may become public symbols and, along with more obviously historical narratives, greatly influence how people relate to their past. Thus men and women in the same audience, hearing the same story, can make connections between elements of a narrative which are obscure to outside researchers.Recently, it has become quite common for historians of Africa to deconstruct written historical sources on the basis of the agendas of both the original writer and his informants. These agendas are rarely explicit and thus hiddenly selective. Such deconstruction is a legitimate scholarly procedure; however, as female voices have rarely been recorded—the resulting analysis reinforces the omission of women's roles in the process of remaking history and creating identity.

Using historical accounts to assess the occurrence and distribution of small cetaceans in a poorly known area

2010 ◽  
Vol 90 (8) ◽  
pp. 1583-1588 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cristina Brito ◽  
Nina Vieira
Keyword(s):  
Historical Data ◽  
Historical Science ◽  
13Th Century ◽  
Historical Sources ◽  
Baleen Whales ◽  
Delphinus Delphis ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
Alternative Sources ◽  
Historical Accounts ◽  
Common Dolphins

Historical science may play an important role in helping understanding and shaping the future of the world's oceans and to comprehend present day effects and conditions. Regarding cetaceans, historical accounts may be extremely useful to add new data to their occurrence and distribution in poorly studied regions. In Portugal, historical sources indicate that toninhas (possibly common dolphins Delphinus delphis) were observed since the 13th Century and were captured in large numbers during the late 19th and 20th Centuries. Historical occurrences given by naturalists and scientific surveys conducted by biologists indicate their regular presence with particular preference for certain areas. Also, recent observations of opportunity resulted in the same kind of accounts. Between 1976 and 1978, a study on captured cetaceans along the Portuguese shore found at fish markets was conducted and resulted in a total count of 45 cetaceans. Most captures were of small cetaceans (87% common dolphins), even though four baleen whales were registered. These cetacean captures were part of a local non-industrial fishery, as they were not the main target, but rather opportunistic catches or even by-catches of other fisheries. Delphinids were not protected by law at the time and were caught with hand harpoons or accidentally drowned in fish nets, sometimes sold at major fish markets such as Sesimbra, Peniche and Póvoa de Varzim. In geographical areas where recent cetacean sightings are rare and information is sparse, such as Portugal, it becomes important to take advantage of alternative sources of data. Our contribution towards the compilation of relevant historical and ‘forgotten’ science such as old natural observations, whaling data and observations of opportunity stresses the relevance of using historical data to access past occurrence and distribution of cetaceans.

“Vivre Noblement”: Material Culture and Elite Identity in Late Medieval Flanders

2007 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wim De Clercq ◽  
Jan Dumolyn ◽  
Jelle Haemers
Keyword(s):  
Material Culture ◽  
Fifteenth Century ◽  
Physical Environment ◽  
Historical Sources ◽  
Late Medieval ◽  
High Ranking ◽  
Elite Identity ◽  
Radical Transformation

The example of two fifteenth-century, high-ranking officers of the Burgundian court shows how a radical transformation of the physical environment and an imitative interaction with material culture could create a powerful elite identity for those not born to nobility. A combination of evidence from archaeological, written, architectural, and art-historical sources reveals the ways in which Peter Bladelin and William Hugonet were able to parlay their newly gained social positions to achieve their ultimate goal of vivre noblement by adopting the trappings of Duke Philip the Good and other members of the Burgundian court.

scholarly journals THE SACRED PLACES OF THE KAZAKH HISTORY:MARTOBE AND KULTOBE

2021 ◽  
Vol 68 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
M.B. Kozha ◽  
◽  
K.M. Zhetibaev ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
General Meeting ◽  
Sacred Places ◽  
Historical Sources ◽  
Late Medieval ◽  
Documentary Data ◽  
Late Middle Ages ◽  
History Of ◽  
The City

The article discusses the sacred places of the Kazakh history of the late Middle Ages: Martobe and Kultobe - historical places where the steppe elite once a year (usually in the fall) gathered for a general meeting and resolved issues - the conclusion of peace, the declaration of war, the redistribution of pastures, and the determination of nomadic routes. The article has collected and analyzed all known data from historical sources reporting on these places.Based on documentary data and a historiographic survey, the localization of the Martobe and Kultobe hills is presented. Archeology data and messages from representatives of the Kazakh intelligentsia of the 19th and early 19th centuries. XX century together with information from Russian scholars and the results of research by modern historians, they can more reasonably localize the location of Kultobe near the late medieval city of Turkestan and Martobe near the city of Sairam, and make an assumption about the chronological framework for holding general Kazakh meetings in these places.

scholarly journals «Tradiciones jacobeas en la Castilla del siglo XV: intertextualidades (de Vicente de Beauvais a Rodríguez de Almela)»

1970 ◽  
Vol 28 ◽  
pp. 177-202
Author(s):  
Luis Fernández Gallardo
Keyword(s):  
Fifteenth Century ◽  
Historical Sources

Resumen: Alonso de Cartagena, uno de los intelectuales castellanos más notables del siglo XV, jugó un papel decisivo en la difusión de las tradiciones relativas a la vida, martirio y «translatio» de Santiago. Utilizó a Vicente de Beauvais, en lugar de fuentes hispánicas. Su discípulo Rodríguez de Almela siguió a su maestro, añadiendo otras fuentes históricas. Ello es revelador de un empeño por afirmar la historicidad de las tradiciones de Santiago y, por tanto, de racionalizar la materia hagiográfica.Palabras clave: siglo XV, Santiago, Alonso de Cartagena, Diego Rodríguez de Almela, historiografía.«Jacobean Traditions in the Fifteenth Century Castile: Intertextualities (from Vincent de Beauvais to Rodríguez de Almela)»Abstract: Alonso of Cartagena, one of the most remarkable Castilian intellectuals of the fifteenth century, played a fundamental role in spreading the traditions concerning the life, martyrdom and «translatio» of Santiago. He used the information given by the historian Vincent de Beauvais, instead of Hispanic sources. His disciple Rodríguez de Almela followed him, but adding other historical sources. That is indicative of an effort to affirm the historicity of the traditions of Santiago and rationalize the hagiographic materials.Keywords: XVth Century, St James, Alonso de Cartagena, Diego Rodríguez de Almela, historiographic literature.

scholarly journals Evolution and transformation of early modern cosmological knowledge: a network study

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maryam Zamani ◽  
Alejandro Tejedor ◽  
Malte Vogl ◽  
Florian Kräutli ◽  
Matteo Valleriani ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Early Modern ◽  
Fifteenth Century ◽  
Empirical Test ◽  
Early Modern Period ◽  
Historical Sources ◽  
European Universities ◽  
Modern Period ◽  
Multiplex Network ◽  
Late Fifteenth ◽  
Almost All

AbstractWe investigated the evolution and transformation of scientific knowledge in the early modern period, analyzing more than 350 different editions of textbooks used for teaching astronomy in European universities from the late fifteenth century to mid-seventeenth century. These historical sources constitute the Sphaera Corpus. By examining different semantic relations among individual parts of each edition on record, we built a multiplex network consisting of six layers, as well as the aggregated network built from the superposition of all the layers. The network analysis reveals the emergence of five different communities. The contribution of each layer in shaping the communities and the properties of each community are studied. The most influential books in the corpus are found by calculating the average age of all the out-going and in-coming links for each book. A small group of editions is identified as a transmitter of knowledge as they bridge past knowledge to the future through a long temporal interval. Our analysis, moreover, identifies the most impactful editions. These books introduce new knowledge that is then adopted by almost all the books published afterwards until the end of the whole period of study. The historical research on the content of the identified books, as an empirical test, finally corroborates the results of all our analyses.

Kashan Revisited: A Luster-Painted Ceramic Tombstone Inscribed with a Chronogram Poem by Muhtasham Kashani

2017 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 273-286
Author(s):  
Yui Kanda
Keyword(s):  
Social Context ◽  
Fifteenth Century ◽  
Ceramic Production ◽  
Historical Sources ◽  
Entire Life ◽  
Textual Evidence ◽  
Production Site ◽  
The Social ◽  
Editing Process

The production site(s) of luster-painted ceramics from the fifteenth century onward have yet to be precisely identified due to a paucity of material and textual evidence regarding ceramic production during this period. This study focuses on a hitherto undeciphered Persian poem, which was inconspicuously inscribed in the unskilled nastaʿlīq script on a luster-painted ceramic tombstone dated 25 Jumada II 967 (March 23, 1560). This poem can be identified as a qiṭʿa by Muhtasham Kashani (d. 1588), a renowned court poet who spent his entire life in Kashan. The identification of this poem is particularly important for two reasons. First, it may imply that luster-painted ceramics were produced in Kashan during the early Safavid period. Second, it suggests that there is indeed potential for using epitaphs as historical sources, as the poem in question sheds valuable light on the editing process of Haft dīvān, as well as on the social context of the growing popularity of chronogram poems in Iran during this period.


Organizational archives and historical narratives

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 280-294 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amon Barros ◽  
Adéle de Toledo Carneiro ◽  
Sergio Wanderley
Keyword(s):  
Research Process ◽  
Historical Narrative ◽  
Historical Narratives ◽  
Historical Sources ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Socially Constructed ◽  
Contextual Understanding ◽  
Theoretical Assumptions ◽  
Multiple Characteristics

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present the role of reflexivity in relation to archives and narratives. Design/methodology/approach The authors problematize the concept of “archive,” by engaging with debates in philosophy and the archival theory. The authors also revisit historical theories and debates on the role of the narrative within historiography. Finally, the authors consider reflexivity as a methodological attitude taken by the researcher at all stages of the investigation from challenging theoretical assumptions of empirical materials to questioning the very narrative that is created when looking for alternative ones. Findings This paper poses questions about documents and archives that emerge from reflexivity. The authors claim that reflexivity is an ethos that allows researchers to keep the multiple narratives in which they are entangled in check. The paper brings a framework that allows researchers to use reflexivity to become more conscious of the complexities and ambiguities within the research process that leads to the writing of historical narratives. Research limitations/implications This paper points to the need to enhance the reflexivity at every stage of the research, including “interrogating” the archives and documents, which are compiled under a narrative. Practical implications The authors highlighted the multiple characteristics of archives, their meanings and the possibilities of writing narratives about them through reflexivity. The authors have the historical narrative as one possible reconstruction of a historical object, which is connected to the production conditions of the text. Through reflexivity, the authors discussed the socially constructed nature of the documents and the archives. Finally, the authors believe that debates around the production of this knowledge should continue, focusing especially on building bridges with the field of history. Social implications Historical narratives do not depend on the scientific character of historical sources, but it considers reflexivity by the researcher regarding the search, collection, reading and analysis of historical documents. In addition, it is necessary to think about the use of documents and archives and histories in a reflective way for a writing of history and, indirectly, for a contextual understanding of the time observed and as forged sources – or discarded – and made available. Originality/value Challenging the use of documents and archives in a reflexive way for the writing of historical narratives and for contextual understanding of the past is key to a richer relationship between management and history. This paper points to the role of reflexivity in relation to archives and narratives in the practice of (re)constructing the organizational past from memories and silences. It also highlights how reflexivity can be incorporated in the research process to enrich the writing of the historical narrative.

The Production of the Past: Early Tamil Film History as a Living Archive

2013 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-80 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Putnam Hughes
Keyword(s):  
Expert Knowledge ◽  
Film History ◽  
Historical Research ◽  
Historical Narratives ◽  
Historical Sources ◽  
Archival Material ◽  
Archival Practice ◽  
The Past ◽  
Tamil Cinema ◽  
Living Present

This article considers a series of questions about the relationships between historical sources, archival practice, and the production of film history about Tamil cinema of the 1930s. I review the range of archival material relevant for producing histories of early Tamil film in order to consider how the issue of access to historical sources has produced various kinds of expert knowledge. What kind of limits do these various film archives impose on our historical research? How do these archives constitute their own historical narratives? And, how might we begin to think critically beyond these limitations to write alternative histories of early Tamil film? I argue that these questions are vital in order to remake film history as an ongoing, unfinished, and open-ended project that is part of the living present.

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