(60+) 1 Mark Questions for History Class 12 Chapter 2 Kings, Farmers and Towns: Early States and Economies

 Here we have provided (60+) 1 Mark Questions for History Class 12 Chapter 2 Kings, Farmers and Towns: Early States and Economies from Indian history part 1 are the best study material for students of class 12 to score high marks in board exams. Kings, Farmers and Towns 1 Mark question. These short answer type question will help students to score high marks. 

(60+) 1 Mark Questions for History Class 12 Chapter 2 Kings, Farmers and Towns: Early States and Economies 

One Mark Questions: Class 12 Chapter 2

Question 1. Who composed Rigveda?

Answer; Rigveda was composed by people living along the Indus and its tributaries.

Question 2. What are megaliths?

Answer; Elaborate stone structures are known as megaliths.

Question 3. What is epigraphy?

Answer; Epigraphy is the study of inscriptions.

Question 4. Who was James Princep?

Answer; James Princep was an officer in the mint of the East India company.

Question 5. Who deciphered Brahmi and Kharosthi? 

Answer; James Princep deciphered Brahmi and Kharosthi.

Questions 6. When did most momentous developments in Indian epigraphy take place? 

Answer; In the 1930s.

Question 7. What do you mean by Piyadassi?

Answer; Priyadarshi means pleasant to behold.

Question 8. Who was Ashoka?

Answer; Ashoka was the ruler of magadha.

Question 9. What are inscriptions?

Answer; Inscriptions are writings engraved on hard surfaces such as stone metal or pottery. 

Question 10. What is the advantage of the inscriptions?

Answer; Inscriptions are virtually permanent records.

Question 11. What was written on the inscriptions?

Answer; They usually record the achievements, activities or ideas of those who commission them and include the exploits of kings or donations made by women and men to religious institutions.

Question 12. What is palaeography? 

Answer; Palaeography is a style of writing.

Question 13. In which languages earliest inscriptions were found? 

Answer; The earliest inscriptions were in Prakrit, Pali, Tamil and Sanskrit. 

Question 14. Which language is known as Prakrit? 

Answer; Language used by ordinary people is known as Prakrit.

Question 15. What do you understand about Janapada?

Answer; Janapada means the land where a Jana (a people, clan, or tribe) sets its food or settles. 

Question 16. Why is the 6th century BC often regarded as a major turning point in early Indian history?

Answer; It is an Era associated with early States, cities, the growing use of iron, the development of coinage etc.

Question 17. What do Buddhist and Jaina texts mention about mahajanapadas?

Answer; Buddhist and Jaina texts mention 16 States known as mahajanapadas.

Question 18. Name some names of mahajanapadas?

Answer; Vajji, Magadha, Koshala, Kuru, Panchala, Gandhara, And Avanti. 

Question 19. What is oligarchy?

Answer; Oligarchy refers to a form of Government where power is exercised by a group of men.

Question 20. What was the feature of the capital city of mahajanapadas?

Answer; Each mahajanapada had a capital city which was often fortified.

Question 21. Who composed Dharmasutra?

Answer; Brahamans.

Question 22. Why was Dharmsutra composed?

Dharmsutra laid down norms for rulers ( as well as for other social categories ) who were ideally expected to be Kshatriyas.

Question 23. Name some rulers of Magadha?

Answer; Bimbisara, Ajatasattu, and Mahapadma Nanda.

Question 24. Which was the capital of Magadh initially?

Answer; Rajagaha ( present day Rajgir, Bihar).

Question 25. What does Rajagaha mean?

Answer; House of the King.

Question 26. In which language Ashokan inscriptions are found?

Answer; Most Ashokan inscriptions were in the Prakrit language while those in the north west of the subcontinent were in Aramaic and Greek. 

Question 27. Who was Chandragupta Maurya?

Answer. Chandragupta Maurya was the Founder of Mauryan Empire.

Question 28. Who was Megathenes?

Answer; Megathenes was a Greek ambassador to the court of Chandragupta Maurya.

Question 29. Who composed Arthashastra?

Answer; Kautilya ( Chanakya)

Question 30. Which were the five major political centres in the Mauryan Empire?

Answer; The capital Pataliputra and the provincial centres of Taxila, Ujjaini, Tosali and Swarnagiri.

Question 31. Who was appointed to spread the message of Dhamma?

Answer; Special officers, known as dhamma Mahamatta, were appointed to spread the message of the Dhamma.

Question 32. What was Arthashastra?

Answer; Arthshastra lays down minute details of administrative and military organisations of Mauryan Empire.

Question 33. How much Army did the Mauryan ruler had?

Answer; According to Greek sources, the Mouryan ruler had a standing army of 6 lakh foot soldiers, 30000 Calvary and 9000 elephants.

Question 34. Name some new kingdoms that emerged in the Deccan and further south?

Answer; The new kingdoms that emerged in the Deccan and further South, including the chiefdoms of cholas, Cheras and Pandyas in Tamilakam. 

Question 35. What does Devaputra mean?

Answer; Son of God.

Question 36. What is another name for Pragya Prashasti?

Answer; The Allahabad Pillar Inscription.

Question 37. Who composed Pragya Prashasti?

Answer; Harishena, the court poet of Gupta Rulers.

Question 38. Who repaired Sudarshan Lake?

Answer; Rudradaman.

Question 39. When were Jatakas written, and in which language?

Answer; The Jatakas were written in Pali around the middle of the first millennium CE.

Question 40. Which story describes the plight of the subjects of the wicked King?

Answer; Gandatindu Jataka.

Question 41. What is transplantation?

Answer; Transplantation is used for paddy cultivation in areas where water is plentiful. Here seeds are first broadcast; when the saplings have grown they are transplanted in waterlogged fields, this ensures a higher ratio of Survival of saplings and higher yields.

Question 42. Who was Gahapati?

Answer; Gahapati was the owner, master or head of household, who exercised control over the women, children, slaves and workers who shared a common residence. 

Question 43. For whom vallavar, uzhavar and adimai terms were used?

Answer; Vallavar used for large landowners, uzhavar used for ploughman and adimai for slaves.

Question 44. What is Harshacharita?

Answer; The Harshacharita is a biography of Harshavardhana, the ruler of Kannauj, composed in Sanskrit by his court poet Banabhatta.

Question 45. Who was Prabhavati Gupta?

Answer; Prabhavati Gupta was the daughter of one of the most important rulers in Indian history Chandragupta II.

Question 46. What is an agrahara?

Answer; An angrahara was land granted to Brahmana, who was usually exempted from paying land revenues and other dues to the king and was often given the right to collect these dues from the local people.

Question 47. When did Chinese pilgrims Xuang Zang visit Patliputra?

Answer; Zuan Zang visited the Patliputra in the seventh century CE.

Question 48. What is Northern Black Polished Ware?

Answer; Fine pottery bowls and dishes with a glossy finish known as Northern Black Polished Ware.

Question 49. What are Votive inscriptions?

Answer; Votive inscriptions record gifts made to religious institutions.

Question 50. What do you understand by Guilds or Shrenis?

Answer; Guilds or Shrenis are organisations of craft producers and merchants. 

Question 51. What is "Periplus" and "erythraean" ? 

Answer; "Periplus" is a Greek word meaning sailing around and "Erythraean" was the Greek name for the Red sea.

Question 52. Who issued the first gold coins?

Answer; Kushanas 

Question 53. What is numismatics?

Answer; Numismatics is the study of coins including visual elements such as script and images, metallurgical analysis and the contexts in which they have been found.

Question 54. When did James Princep deciphered Ashokan Brahmi script?

Answer; James Princep deciphered Ashokan Brahmi in 1838.

Question 55. In the view of an epigraphist, what does Pativedaka mean?

Answer; Epigraphists have translated the term Pativedaka as reporter.

Question 56. What does Devanampiya mean? 

Answer; Devanampiya means beloved of the gods.

Question 57. When did the Mauryan Empire end?

Answer; In 185 BCE.

Question 58. When did Gupta rule begin?

Answer; In 320 CE.

Question 59. What statement was made by D.C. Sircar?

Answer; He said "there is no aspect of life, culture and activities of the Indians that is not reflected in inscriptions"

Question 60. Name one problem that an epigraphist has while deciphering scripts?

Answer; Letters were faintly engraved.