Tribes Nomads And Settled Communities - Class 7 History - Extra Questions

Name the tribe which was powerful in the north-west.

Tribe popular in the north-west was Balochis.


When did the Mughals attack the Ahom kingdom?

The Mughals attacked the Ahom kingdom in 1662.


The _____________ mentions that Garha Katanga had 70,000 villages.

The Akbar Nama, a history of Akbar’s reign, mentions the Gond kingdom of Garha Katanga that had 70,000 villages.


As tribal states became bigger and stronger they gave land grants to _______________.

Temples and Brahmanas; Originally, the Ahoms worshipped their own tribal gods. During the first half of the seventeenth century, however, the influence of Brahmanas increased. Temples and Brahmanas were granted land by the king. 


Match the following:
Garh Khel
TandaChaurasi
LabourerCaravan
ClanGarha Katanga
Sib SinghAhom State 
DurgawatiPaik

Garh             Chaurasi 
Tanda           Caravan 
Labourer      Paik  
Clan             Khel 
Sib Singh     Ahom state 
Durgawati   Garha Katanga 


The new castes emerging within varnas were called _________.

The new castes emerging within varnas were called Jatis.


Who were specialised artisans?

Smiths, carpenters and masons were specialised artisans.


What made the Brahmanas more influential in the Gond Society?

The Gond Raja began to grant land to the Brahmanas. This made them influential.


Which tribe was very influential in Punjab during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries?

The Khokhar tribe was most powerful and influential tribe in Punjab during the 13th and 14th century.



Were the Banjaras important for the economy?

The Banjaras were very important for the economy. They were trader-nomads and controlled trade and commerce. They played an important role in transporting grain to the city markets. They usually bought grain where it was cheaply available and carried it to places where it was dearer. From there, they again reloaded their oxen with anything that could be profitably sold in other places.


Plot the location of the tribes mentioned in this chapter on a map. For any two, discuss whether their mode of livelihood was suited to the geography and the environment of the area where they lived.

Several tribes live in different parts of India. See the map given below:
These tribes settled temporarily at the places which suited them as per their need and livelihood. Whenever they found the environment or their mode of living unfavourable, they migrated to other suitable places.



How was the administration of the Ahom state organized?

The Ahom state depended upon forced labour. Those forced to work for the state were known as paiks. A census of the population was taken. Each village had to send a number of paiks by rotation. People of densely populated areas were shifted to thinly populated areas. Ahom clans were thus broken up. By the first half of the 17th century, the administration became quite centralized.
Ahom society was divided into clans or khels. A khel often controlled several villages. The peasant was given land by his village community and not even the king could take the land away without the Community's consent.


What kinds of exchanges took place between nomadic pastoralists and settled agriculturists?

The nomadic pastoralists exchanged wool, ghee, etc. with settled agriculturists for grain, cloth, utensils and other products.


Who controlled Garh?

A Gond clan usually controlled the garh.


In what ways was the history of the Gonds different from that of the Ahoms? Were there any similarities?

The history of the Gonds was different from that of the Ahoms in the following ways:
  • The Gonds lived in a vast forested region called Gondwana. The Ahoms migrated to the Brahmaputra valley from present-day Myanmar in the 13th century.
  • The Gonds practiced shifting cultivation. The Ahoms did not practice this type of cultivation.
  • The Gond society was not as much developed as the Ahom's. The Ahoms built a large state by using firearms. They could even make high-quality gunpowder and cannons.
  • The Ahom society was very sophisticated. Poets and scholars were given land grants. Theatre was encouraged. We do not find these things in the Gond society.
  • There were many similarities between the Gonds and Ahoms:
Both were capable of building large states.
  • Both had to face the Mughal attack. Despite their brave defense, both were defeated by the Mughals.
  • Both of them granted land to the Brahmanas, who became very influential.
  • We find the administration centralized in the history of the Gonds as well as the Ahoms.


Name any two tribes which lived in the extreme South.

Vetars and Maravars


Who introduced new methods of rice cultivation?

The Ahoms introduced new methods of rice cultivation.


Who were the Ahoms? How did they build a large state?

The Ahoms were the tribal people who migrated to the Brahmaputra valley from present-day Myanmar in the 13th century. They created a new state by suppressing the older political system of the bhuiyans i.e. landlords. During the 16th century, they annexed the kingdoms of the Chhutiyas in 1523 and of Koch- Hajo in 1581. They also subjugated many other tribes. In this way, the Ahoms built a large state and for this, they used firearms as early as the 1530s.


What do you know about the Ahom Society?

Ahom society was divided into clans or Khels. There were very few castes of artisans, so artisans in the Ahom areas came from the nearby kingdoms. Khel often controlled several villages. The peasant was given land by his village community. Even the king could not take it away without the community's consent. The Ahoms worshipped their own tribal gods. But during the first half of the 17 century Brahmanas achieved great influence which gave rise to Hinduism. In the reign of Sib Singh Hinduism became a predominant religion. However, the Ahom kings remained stick to their traditional beliefs to some extent even after adopting Hinduism. Ahom society was very sophisticated. Poets and scholars were given land grants. Theatre was encouraged.


Mention some special features of tribal societies.

Some special features of tribal societies are :
$$\rightarrow$$  They did not follow the social rules and rituals which the Brahmanas prescribed.
$$\rightarrow$$  They were not divided into many unequal classes.
$$\rightarrow$$  Members of the society were united by kinship bonds.


Give a brief account of the tribal people found in different parts of the subcontinent.

Tribal people were found in almost every region of the sub-continent. In Punjab, the Khokhar tribe was influential during the 13th and 14th centuries. Later, the Gakkhars became more important. In Multan and Sind, the Langahs and Arghuns dominated extensive regions. The Balochis were another large and powerful tribe in the north-west. In the western Himalayas, the Gaddi Shepherds lived. The Nagas, Ahoms and many others lived in the distant north-eastern part of the subcontinent. In many areas of present-day Bihar and Jharkhand, Chero Chiefdoms had emerged by the 12th century. However, they were subdued by the Mughals. The Mundas and Santals were other important tribes that lived in these states and also in Orissa and Bengal. The Kolis, Berads and numerous others lived in the Maharashtra highlands, Karnataka and Gujarat. Further, there were large tribal populations of Koragas, Vetars, Maravars and many others in the South. The Bhils were spread across western and central India. By the late 16th century many of them had become settled agriculturists and some even zamindars. Many Bhil clans, nevertheless, remained hunter-gatherers. The Gonds were found in large numbers across the present-day states of Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh,
Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh.


What made Garha Katanga a rich state? 

Garha Katanga earned huge wealth by trapping and exporting wild elephants to other kingdoms. This made it a rich state.


How did the nomadic pastoralists earn their living?

Nomadic pastoralists kept on moving from place to place with their animals. They lived on milk and other pastoral products. They also exchanged items like wool, ghee, etc. with settled agriculturists for grain, cloth, utensils, and other products. They bought and sold these goods as they moved from one place to another, transporting them on their animals. The Banjaras were trader-nomads who bought grain where it was cheaply available and carried it to places where it was dearer. From there, they again reloaded their oxen with anything that could be profitably sold in other places. Thus, they played an important role in connecting India to the outside world. Many pastoral tribes reared and sold animals, such as cattle and horses, to the wealthy people. Different castes of petty pedlars traveled from village to village. They made and sold wares like ropes, reeds, etc. Sometimes mendicants acted as wandering merchants. There were also castes of entertainers who earned their living by performing in different towns and villages.


Write a short note on 'Banjaras'.

The Banjaras were important trader nomads. They usually moved in caravan known as tanda. A tanda contained as many as 6 or 7 hundred persons. They carried their wives and children along with them. They owned their oxen. They bought grain where it was cheaply available and carried it to places where it was dearer. From there, they again reloaded their oxen with anything that could be profitably sold in other places. The Banjaras did not travel more than 6 or 7 miles a day. They preferred cool weather. After unloading their oxen, they freed them to graze.


Write a brief note on the administrative system of the Gond Kingdom.

The Gond Kingdom was divided into Garhs. Each Garh was controlled by a particular Gond clan. This was further divided into units of 84 villages called chaurasi. The chaurasi was subdivided into barhots which were made up of 12 villages each.


Class 7 History Extra Questions