Page 6 - SST Class 06

these events occurred the way we tell them. There However, there are many valleys and passes in the
may be a difference between reality and our
understanding.
History on the other hand is based on different
types of evidence, like written records,
inscriptions on buildings and rocks, dated coins
etc. Therefore, we can say with greater amount of
surety that the events in the course of history
occurred the way we understand them.
Just Think!
What is a part of history for which there is no
written record called?
BC AND AD
Another way of describing history is by
mentioning the years by BC and AD. BC stands for
‘Before Christ’ and AD stands for ’Anno Domini’.
So, the Year of Our Lord (Birth of Jesus
Christ—Year 0) divides the timeframe events that
occurred before or after this year. The events that
occurred before this year are termed as BC and
those that occurred after this year are termed as
AD. Thus, 1980 BC refers to the year that took
place 1980 years before the Year of Our Lord,
while 1980 AD refers to the year that occurred
1980 years after the Year of Our Lord.
Info Bits
Info Bits
At present, the term CE (Common Era) and BCE
(Before Common Era) are used in place of AD and
BC. If we add Circa with any date, it means that
such a date is an approximate date and is not
exact.
GEOGRAPHY AND HISTORY
You have read that landforms play an important
role in various manifestations of life, like food,
dress, customs, lifestyle, climate, vegetation,
wildlife and so on. When we read history in
conjunction with geographical situation, it helps
us to understand the perspective better. For
instance, there are high mountains in the north, so
there have not been any invasions from this side.
Contemporary Social Science-6
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north-western side, so there have been a number
of invasions from this side since ancient times,
and thus, landforms have played a role in shaping
our history. Similarly, the fertile delta formed by
the Indus, Ganga, Yamuna and Brahmaputra has
been a source of attraction for all rulers and
invaders, so this region has faced many attacks;
while the Deccan Plateau is a rocky area, so the
invaders found it difficult to control this area.
Info Bits
Info Bits
‘Anthropology’ is a subject which studies the
physical evolution of human beings.
Quiz Time
Fill in the blanks :
1. History tells us about the ___________ and
progress of ___________ in different fields.
2. BC stands for ___________ .
3. Prehistory is quite a matter of ___________ .
4. History is not a simple ___________ of past
events in a ___________ order.
5. Brahmaputra has been a source of ___________
for all rulers and invaders.
GEOGRAPHICAL EXTENT
The subcontinent of India extends right from the
Himalayas in the north and from the Pamir
plateau in the north-west to the Indian Ocean in
the south, the Bay of Bengal in the east and the
Arabian Sea in the west. This vast land mass was
one entity and was known as Bharatvarsha , Bharat
or Hindustan in the ancient times. However, at
present, this land mass comprises six countries,
which are India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nepal,
Bangladesh and Bhutan. In this book, we shall
restrict ourselves to the study of the territory that
presently lies in India, though references may be
made to other territories with specific information.
SOURCES OF HISTORY
There are numerous sources of history, such as