UNIT 16 EARLY MEDIEVAL URBANISATION

FROM EPIGRAPHY AND TEXTS*

Structure
16.1 Introduction
16.2 The Proliferation of Land Grants and the Theory of Urban Decay
16.3 Urban Decay: A Critique
16.4 Social Change and Urban Growth
16.5 Representation of Urban Centres in Literary Texts
16.6 Representation of Cities in Normative/Prescriptive Texts
16.7 Early Medieval Port Cities
16.8 Temples and Urbanisation
16.9 Summary
16.10 Exercises
16.11 A Note on Early Medieval Texts
16.12 References

16.1 INTRODUCTION
Urbanisation in the early medieval period (c. 600-1300 CE) of Indian history was
connected with the growth of regional kingdoms and an expansion of Indian Ocean
trade. Macro level changes took place which produced new patterns of interaction.
Agrahara system of land grants by the royalty created a new class of land holders
which was a new socio-economic formation based on land grants. There was a
substantial change in the material milieu from the earlier period as a result of these land
grants. Expansion of agrarian economy could be perceived along with state formation
and expansion of state societies in the periphery. Villages were neither isolates nor
undifferentiated, and were connected with the apex or supra-local political centres
through administrative tiers at locality levels. Agrarian economy gave fillip to non-agrarian
sector thereby leading to a process of urbanisation. Thus early medieval urbanisation
could be characterised by changes in the agrarian economy, greater complexities in the
political sphere and an expanding Indian Ocean trade network. However to locate the
urban centres and then to explain their growth remain a vexed problem and sifting
through the vast epigraphic and other types of textual data and looking for a pura,
nagara or pattana, different terms denoting urban centres, would be a preliminary
way of approaching the problem.
Epigraphic and textual sources are generally used for understanding early medieval
urbanisation. Many epigraphs describe towns, exchange centres and commercial
networks. Texts like travel accounts, kavya literature, secular texts etc. are often replete
with descriptions of a city. Archaeology is not always very helpful in this regard as it is,
in the case of early historic urbanism, due to lack of excavations in early medieval sites.
Past studies that talked of urban centres, in general, relied heavily on textual sources.
Arab Geographers’ accounts, Alberuni’s evidence or normative, prescriptive treatises

*
Professor Suchandra Ghosh, Department of Ancient History and Culture, University of Calcutta,
26 Kolkata.
like Manasara, Mayamata or Samarangasutradhara were used to discuss the Early Medieval
presence or absence of urban centres in India in the early medieval period. Thus Pushpa Urbanisation from
Epigraphy and Texts
Niyogi writes, “Towns and Cities along the main or subsidiary trade routes easily
developed into commercial centres. Innumerable references to cities flourishing along
such routes are found in the writings of Muslim historians” (Niyogi, 1967: 117). In a
section on instances of planned towns, Niyogi states on the basis of Kumarapalacharita
that there were eighty four market at Anahilapura in the 12th century and therefore it
was a great emporium of trade. Stress is laid on texts like Mayamata,
Aparajitaprchchha or Sukranitisara to understand town planning. According to B.B.
Dutt, whose work is largely based on Manasara, Mayamata, etc., “the streets of India
were arranged and planned according to what is known as rectangular chess board
system of planning”. (Dutt, 1925: 116-117) The existence of urban centres is taken for
granted in such works and no reference is usually made to the historical context in
which they may have emerged. Therefore these works finally appear as compilations of
urban place names from literature and epigraphs. The problem with the use of text for
understanding urban planning is that in most cases the date of a text cannot be ascertained
with certainty. B.N.S.Yadav (Yadav, 1973: 240) argued that, though the description of
cities in the texts belonging to post-Gupta period became conventional in nature, yet it
was possible to deduce some broad features of city life from these texts. The texts
mainly discussed by him were the description of Ujjayini in Padataditakam (c. 6th -
7th century CE), the Kadambari (c.7th century CE) and the Navasahasankacharita
(c. 10th century CE); of Kundinapura in the Nalachampu (c. 10th century CE) and the
Naisadhiyacharita; of Pravarapura in the Vikramankadevacharita etc. The urban
features in these texts are in the first place, strong fortifications of cities consisting of
ramparts and moats, localisation of trading community or professional/occupational
groups within the precincts of a city, presence of magnificent mansions and bustling
trading activities. These works thus refer to urban centres without attempting to
understand the process of urbanisation.

16.2 THE PROLIFERATION OF LAND GRANTS

AND THE URBAN DECAY
Proliferation of land grants in the early medieval period is taken to be suggestive of a
new socio-economic formation leading to the formulation of Indian feudalism, according
to many historians. The arguments presented in favour of feudal milieu highlight that the
large number of grants enjoyed by landed intermediaries resulted in the emergence of
the self sufficient enclosed village community. It was suggested that expansion of agrarian
economy through land grants impacted growth of urban centres in this period. Thus in
the opinion of R.S. Sharma, B.N.S Yadav and others the early medieval period
corresponded to a period of urban decline which was linked with languishing trade and
monetary anaemia. Urban contraction was said to have been the result of agrarian
expansion (Sharma, 1987: 177). On re-examination of the available evidence some
historians like D.C. Sircar, B.D. Chattopadhyaya, R. Champaklakshmi and others have
challenged the theory of urban decay. It was suggested that while some urban sites of
the early historical period show proof of their decay, there are others which provided
no signs of desertion1(Sircar, 1976: 97-119; Chattopadhyaya, 2012: 134-189;
Champaklakshmi, 1998).
The first archaeological documentation of decline of urban centres was provided by
R.S. Sharma. He meticulously examined evidence relating to four broad regions, the
north, the middle Gangetic plains and eastern regions, central and western regions and
1 27
For details see our Course History of Indian Economy, Block 3, Units 10 & 14.
Urbanisation in the south. According to him, material, artefactual remains signifying artisanal and
Medieval India - 1 commercial activity involving exchange in metal money in an archaeological horizon
lend urban character to it. Among other factors if a marked decrease particularly is
noticeable in trade, handicrafts and the use of metal money, such a scenario would
denote de-urbanisation. During his endeavour to understand the growth and decay of
an urban centre, these criteria’s were measured. He associated decline of trade and
urbanism with feudalism. In his preface to his book Urban Decay in India Sharma
(1987: xi) makes it clear that de-urbanisation is viewed by him as an integral part of a
new pattern of production marked by agrarian expansion. He then goes on to explain
the new phenomenon which was obviously the result of agrahara system of land grants
which resulted in the expansion of rural economy. Thus self sufficient rural economy is
portrayed as the principal agent behind the disappearance of cities in India. He culled
inscriptional references to migration of brahmanas from towns to rural areas. While
talking of the relation between an urban centre and its hinterland, he harped upon the
fact that archaeologists should dig the sites which lie at the periphery of an urban space
as the nature of connection between a town and its supportive agrarian base cannot be
established otherwise. The decay of urban centres is also seen as an impact of the
languishing long distance trade. Sharma viewed languishing trade as a major ingredient
of feudal formation in India. Thrust was put on the transactions in high-value, small
quantity, portable luxury items completely disregarding the more sustained and important
trade in daily necessities. Dwindling trade was linked with paucity of coins of precious
metals. Among the three regional powers of early medieval times namely the Palas and
Senas of Bengal and Bihar (750-1200 CE) and the Rashtrakutas of Deccan (754-974
CE) did not issue any coins and the Gurjara-Pratiharas of Kanauj issued debased
coins.
Within pre-feudal scholarship D.N Jha (Jha, 2008: 323-324) reiterated his critique of
Sharma’s emphasis on foreign trade though he is in general agreement with the theory
of de-urbanisation. According to him there is a theoretical inadequacy of the explanation
of the feudal developments only in terms of foreign trade whose decline to a large
extent depended on the factors external to the Indian situation. To attach greater
importance to foreign trade than it deserves within the Marxist frame of analysis would
imply that the ancient Indian society did not possess any built in potential for change –
a position implicit in the Marxist concept of Asiatic Mode of Production. Jha talks of
the internal social contradictions with which the decline of trade, paucity of coins and
the growth of closed economy would have to be linked in various degrees. Puranic
texts were used to show sharp changes in social, economic and political situations.
Attention has been drawn to Puranic descriptions of the impoverished conditions of
merchants in the Kaliyuga, the worst of all the yugas which witnessed a social crisis.
This social crisis, according to Sharma, not only accelerated the process of grant of
villages by the rulers for the support of priests and officials but also led to the widespread
conversion of towns into fiefs. Excavated and explored information about early medieval
cities is much poorer and many of the former urban centres have yielded evidence of
their decaying material milieu, haphazard layout and utilisation of re-used bricks. These
are interpreted as distinct signs of de-urbanisation in the Indian subcontinent. A Prakrit
text Vividharathakalpa by Jinaprabhasuri mentioned that urban centres turned into
villages (nayarani gamabhu-ani hohinti). This was used as an example of urban decay.
It has been inferred that urban centres as sites of exchange and crafts production gradually
faded away and were replaced by military and political headquarters. The case of
jayaskandhavaras was brought in as copper plates of this period are replete with
references to jayaskandhavaras or victorious army camps. Early medieval north India
witnessed the rise of many centres of pilgrimage (tirtha) which as sacred centres
28 sometimes assumed urban proportions. The historians who support the thesis of urban
decay argue that as urban centres lost their primary relevance as trading zones, they Early Medieval
became religious centres which did not play the role of centre of production or exchange. Urbanisation from
Epigraphy and Texts
Xuan Zang’s account has been used among other things, to show that towns and shops
were given away to temples and monasteries for meeting their needs. Text like
Manasara, a text on architecture, compiled around or after twelfth century CE was
used to point out the distinction between a village and a town. It is said that the text
discusses the planning of the village and the town in such a manner that one cannot be
differentiated from the other.

Map 1: Urban Centres in India c. 1300 [After Chakravarti, Ranabir, Exploring Early India up
to c.AD 1300, Third Edition (New Delhi: Primus Books), Map 8, p. 417.]

16.3 URBAN DECAY: A CRITIQUE

As referred to earlier, the notion of ‘urban’ decline has been decisively questioned as
there is ample evidence of ‘cities’ both in north and south India. Urban centres are
present in epigraphs and also in literary texts as space or spatial units which can be
distinguished from ‘rural’ spaces and specific terminologies are used to distinguish an
urban centre. Thus we have pura, nagara, pattana and mahanagara. To this one
should also add pattinam which was a port town. Urban centres are present in
epigraphic records from about the 9th century CE. Hatta or mandapika emerge as
key terms for understanding the core of the urban space structure. They combine
manufacture and exchange – two dominant activities of any settlement. The term hatta
could mean a trade centre in an urban area, in addition to its more common connotation
of a rural exchange centre. Urban areas, belonging to the non-agrarian sector of the
economy, were linked up with trade centres, and many of urban centres were major
centres of trade and commerce. How an urban centre was created is a moot question. 29
Urbanisation in There are numerous references in early medieval records to the creation of townships
Medieval India - 1 by rulers and officials. The records however do not give us any clue to ascertain how
these were planned. Thus it has been argued that the creation of an urban centre was an
extension of an already emergent process; the creation of townships in such cases
consisted of laying the foundation of a core exchange centre or a ceremonial centre, the
foundation of which was necessary but which was not equivalent to the urban process
as a whole (Chattopadhyaya, 2012: 172). Here the example of Ghatiyala inscription of
861 CE from the Jodhpur area may be cited where the creation of a hatta is clearly
mentioned (atra hatto mahajanascha sthapitah) (Epigraphia Indica,Vol. IX: 280).
The disagreement with R.S. Sharma was initiated by D.C. Sircar (Sircar, 1981: 80-87)
who in his discussion on ‘Trade and Commerce’, drew on inscriptional evidence and a
vast array of textual sources including Al-biruni’s account to trace out routes of
communication that criss-crossed the country, as well as the variety of products that
were transported from one part of the subcontinent to the other and to lands beyond
the seas to refute the notion of a decline in long-distance exchange. B.D. Chattopadhyaya
(2012: 150-154) argued that foreign trade was never central to the growth of urban
centres and a decline in foreign trade might not necessarily imply a decline in internal
trade or petty commodity decline. In order to assess the viability of such a thesis B.D.
Chattopadhyaya attempted to structurally examine ‘urban centres’ which were projected
as a crucial variable in the idea of Indian feudalism. The source used by him was primarily
epigraphic as there is a paucity of field archaeological materials during this period. It is
interesting that Chattopadhyaya chose inscriptions from the regions like Rajasthan, the
upper and middle Ganga river valley and Malwa which formed a part of the erstwhile
Gurjara Pratihara kingdom which was incidentally one of the core regions of Sharma’s
study. His research describes the expansion of centres of exchange or nodal points like
hatta or mandapika and associated residential areas, often serving as seats of local
ruling lineages. The case of Nadol to be precise is an excellent example. Naddula was
one of the gramas or villages among twelve such areas. The central location of Naddula
vis-a-vis other rural centres turned it into a point of convergence for movements among
the twelve villages. This resulted in the subsequent transformation of the rural settlement
into a trade centre with a mandapika. Naddula eventually became an urban centre and
finally an administrative centre of a branch of the Chahamanas (Kielhorn, 1907-08:
62-66).
Ranabir Chakravarti’s (Chakravarti, 2002, 187-200) studies on Mandapika and Pentha
as middle category market centres based mostly on epigraphic data and literary sources
brought to light the linkages between the market places of cities and villages in the early
medieval period. Many mandapikas were known as sulka mandapika i.e., tolls and
customs were levied both in cash and kind at the mandapika. Inscriptions present
impressive range of commodities which were brought to the mandapika for sale. Like
mandapika, pentha was another type of market centre in the Deccan. The pentha
seems to have been a trade centre larger than an adda (hatta) and santhe (weekly
fair) but smaller than a pura or pattana. The pentha continued to exist in the Deccan
for a long time.
Nagarams located on important trade routes and at the points of intersection by itinerant
traders developed into large towns, both in terms of their size and volume of trade and
commerce. K. R. Hall (1980) suggested that nagarams served as markets for the
nadus or locality level centres. They were potential centres of urban growth and became
a part of a wider network of inter regional and overseas trade from the 11th century..
These researches thus negate the thesis of urban decline as a universal phenomenon
and moreover stress the linkage of an urban centre with an outside space and interaction,
30 a regular urban activity.
 Early Medieval
16.4 SOCIAL CHANGE AND URBAN GROWTH Urbanisation from
Epigraphy and Texts
Growth of urban centres should be viewed from the point of social change and the
nature of the economy of a given period. With the kind of social formation early medieval
India experienced, many rural centres were transformed into urban centres as a gradual
process. The crystallisation of this process manifested through the increase of urban
centres in the post-9th century period. Different regions must be having their own reasons
for urban growth. A work on the Andhra region within the time frame of 1000 and 1336
lists several factors which resulted in urban growth in the region. They are: a) the holding
of fairs, b) the emergence of religious centres, c) commercial activities created around
ports, d) the bestowal of urban status on rural settlements, e) initiatives taken by kings
and ministers in the creation of urban centres (Chattopadhyaya, 2012: 174). Two elements
are essential as markers for urban centres. First it has to have linkage wit h the space
outside and secondly there should be a nucleus within an urban area through which
interaction, as a regular urban activity, takes place. The greater the convergence of
economic, political and cultural (including religious) activities at an urban area, more
eminent would be its position than cities with a predominantly single functional role.
Thus urban character of a given place would depend on the multiple functions of a
settlement. A few examples may be cited. We can begin with Tattanandapura (Ahar in
western UP). Tattanandapura is referred to as a purapattana in epigraphic records of
867-907 CE. It is marked by a brihadrathya (high street), kurathya (small road),
hattamarga (road leading to the market place), purvahattapradesha (a market place
in the eastern part of the urban area), griha (residential house), avasanika (ordinary
dwelling) and aparasaraka (house with balcony). The impressive size of the urban
centre of Tattanandapura is unmistakable as it is reported to have covered an area of
3800 acres Sahni, 1927-28: 52-54).
Another urban centre of prominence was Siyadoni in the Bundelkhand area of Uttar
Pradesh. Labelled as a pattana, it had a mandapika and shops which were known as
vithis or apanas. Some shops were described as hereditarily owned by some merchants
(pitrpitamahoparjita), some were owned or built by merchants themselves
(svoparjita). The hereditary ownership of shops suggests commercial transactions at
Siyadoni over a long period.2
An interesting record which provides information on commercial activities is the Belgaum
(Venugrama, in north Karnataka) record of 1204 CE. It also provides a partial glimpse
in the layout of an urban space by mentioning land including arable land as an item of
grant within the territorial limits of Venugrama. It is also said in the record that Ratta
Karttavirya donated to the Jaina sanctuary four bazaars ‘on the east of the high road at
the western end of the northern course of the north street’. The record shows considerable
intermingling of residential cum institutional and non-residential space as well. Great
bulk of goods converged at Venugrama and several group of itinerant traders from
Gujarat as well as Kerela thronged here. The range of the products covering grain to
horse invariably point to the diverse merchant groups that travelled to Venugrama. The
transformation from a rural place to an active commercial centre is evident. The act of
exchange in a certain space, as pointed out by B.D. Chattopadhyaya, is intermingled
with other economic and non-economic activities. Venugrama is believed to be the
chief town of a small district of seventy villages even though the suffix grama continued
to be in use.

2
A detailed description of Siyadoni inscription and also brisk activities on horse fair from
Pehwa inscription are given in our Course History of Indian Economy, Block 3, Unit 14. 31
Urbanisation in VENUGRAMA
Medieval India - 1
(Lines 37-38) – Hail! When the Mahamandalesvara Kartavirya-deva [IV], possessor of the pancha-
mahasabda, in the company with (his) younger brother the Heir-Apparent Prince Vira Mallikar juna-
deva was enjoying the delights of empire in the camp of Venugrama,-
(Lines 38-40) – for the purposes of the regular worship, anointment, and other religious offices of the divine
Santinatha of the Ratta temple of the Jinas, which had been constructed by Bichiraja, the Chief Scribe
and head of all the ministers,-
(Lines 40-41) – he granted to Subhachandra-bhattaraka-deva, the teacher at that temple of the Jinas, at the
time of the samkramana on Saturday, the second day of the bright fortnight of Pushya of the cyclic year
Raktakshi, the 1127th (year of the Saka era, in company with the four thousand burgresses, with pouring
of water, (an estate on tenure of) sthala-vritti in Venugramo.
(Lines 41-42) – On the west from the ditch of the baje on the southern side thereof, in the twenty-fourth
hatti of the koda-gey, (he granted) five matter, together with an irisil [a pitfall to catch tigers, elephants,
etc.] structure;
(Lines 42-45) – In the aforesaid Venugramo, in the western course of the great eastern street, on the north
of the house of Duggiyara Tikana, one house; in the western course of the western street, one house, in the
westrn town-gate, one house; in front of the white plastered building of the god Kapilesvara, on the east of
the Sala-basadi (temple), three houses; on the north of the road going to the Aneya-Kere [the Elephant’s
Tank]. A flower-garden (comprising) two matter (and) two hundred and seventy-six kamma according to the
rood of the aforesaid Venugrama; on the west of the great tank on the west of Alur of Kanamburigo [very
likely a large tank on the north of the fort], twelve matter of arable land; in the street on the south of the
western market, one house, five cubits in width and twenty-one cubits in length.
(Lines 45-49) – Furthermore: Hail! All the Mummuri-dandas of the place of Venugrma and the Mummuri-
dandas of both (classes of) itinerant traders, comprising the merchants (pattanaga) of the Kundi three-
thousand and others, with Samaya-chakravartti Jayapati Setti at their head, who are adorned with a
series of many virtues, endowed with veracity, prity of conduct, policy, and courtesy, kindly to dependents,
maintaining the religion of strict Bananjus according to the course (enjoined) by the books of the lay-
disciples instructed by the saints of the Jina established in the town of Maghapatti, performing meritorious
works, receiving the grace of boons from the goddess Padmavati [a tutelary godess of the Jain church],
causing delight to all folk, highly reputed for just acquisition (of wealth) and practices of trde, carrying in their
hands bhallumki staffs;-
(Lines 49-51) – and all the tradersof Lata [Gujarat], headed by Parasurama Nayaka, Pommana Nayaka,
and Ammugi Nayaka; and all the Maleyala traders, headed by Padapa Nayaka, Konda Nambi Setti,
Poreyacha Setti, and others; and likewise the other traders of the aforesaid place of Venugrama, headed
by the gold –workers and clothiers; and the oil-merchants; and the dimka-saligas : all these in assembly
granted to the sanctuary of the aforesaid divine Santinatha a revenue in the following form:-
(Lines 51-52) – On each horse coming from the north, a nelamettu (?) of one quarter (of a pana); on one
that passes on the south, a toll of one quarter (of a pana); on each horse of the Maleyalas, one quarter (of a
pana); in the case of sixty-five oxen and buffaloes, however they be laden, (there is to be) immunity from all
imposts:-
(Lines 52-5 3) – On ea ch ch ira of gold-works, on each clothier ’s shop, cotton-shop, jeweller ’s shop,
perfumery-shop, perfumers’ bazaar, (and) goldsmith’s booth, one large quarter (of a pana) as annual tax
under each separate head.
(Lines 53-54) – On each kadage of cloth coming from without, one-sixteenth (of a pana); on each (parcel
of) perfumery coming from without, and on each bhanda of grass, one gadyana and five tuka on the bhanda;
on each bhandi of cotton, three tara; on each load thereof, one kani [The kani is 1/64 (equivalent to modern
rupee); tara is ½ of an anna, so 3 tara are double of 1 kani.]
(Lines 54-55) – On each bhandi of paddy, one balla of paddy; on each load thereof, one mana of paddy;
when paddy (to the extent) of an ankana is sold, one balla of that paddy; on each bazaar of paddy-shops, a
regular sollage of paddy; on each shop for husked rice, one adda of husked rice;-
(Lines 55-56) – On each load of black pepper, one mana of black pepper; on each hlf-load thereof, a half
a mana; on each pettige of asafoetida, one gadyana and sic tuka (on the value of ) the asafetida; on each half-
load of green ginger and turmeric, five pala of the bhanda thereof; on each load thereof, ten pala of green
ginger and turmeric; on each oil-mill, a regular adda of oil; on each load of areca-nuts, twenty-five areca-nuts;
on each half-load thereof, twelve areca-nuts;-
(Lines 56-59) – On each load of betel-leaves, one hundred betel-leaves; on each parcel, fifty betel-leaves; on
each load of coconut, one such fruit; on each load of palm-leaves, two bundles of palm-leaves; on each parcel
thereof, one bundle; on each bhandi of coarse sugar coming from without, fifteen blocks of coarse sugar; on
each parcel thereof, one block; on each load of plantains, six such fruits; on each hagara of sugarcane, one
cane; on each load of potstone, one pala of potstone.
(Lines 59) – Likewise, to the aforesaid sanctuary of the divine Santinatha were given by king Kartavirya
[IV] bazaars, four, on the east of the high-road at the western end of the northern course of the north street.
(Lines 60-61) – Sagara and many other kings have made grants of land…
(Lines 61-62) – While the whole earth joyously utters abundant praise, long may the sequence of the
extensive empire of the blessed Kartavirya…Bichiraja has been well told with great clearness by the Kavi-
Kandarpa whose verses possess goodly ornaments of style and lucid meaning.
(Lines 62-63) – Free from faults, remarkable for significance in this decree which the Kavi-Kandarpa,
whose verses are equal to nector, an emperor of the poets of the four tongues, has joyfully related. (This is)
the decree related by Balachandra-deva, a swan in the lotus-wood of everlasting literature that has risen
from tasting the nectar of the utterances of the blessed Madhavachandra, emperor of masters of the triple
lore.
Barne tt, Lione l D., (19 15-16) ‘Two Inscriptio ns fro m Belg aum, Now in the Br itish Museum’,
32 Epigraphia Indica, Vol. XIII (New Delhi: Archaeological Survey of India), pp. 25-26).
Certain areas in an overall rural context sometimes assumed features of a town. For Early Medieval
example, in early medieval Vanga under the Chandra kings (a regional power ruling in Urbanisation from
Epigraphy and Texts
present day Comilla, Dhaka and Sylhet area in Bangladesh) we have the presence of a
hattika attached to Dhritipura. In Bengal a number of archaeological sites such as
Bangarh and Mangalkot exhibit a continuity of settlement extending from the peak of
early historical urbanisation into the Pala-Sena period. In southeastern Bengal an urban
centre was Devaparvata. Though identified with the monastic complex of Mainamati in
Comilla, Devaparvata was a sub regional node which was an administrative centre and
also a riverine trade centre that had linkages with the outside world. It was located in
the Mainamati ridge near Comilla and archaeological excavations and explorations in
the area have revealed its extraordinary historical as well as archaeological importance.
We know about Devaparvata from five inscriptions (Husain, 1997:207-231) each of
them giving a vivid description of the landscape of the site. The earliest epigraphic
description of Devaparvata is found in the Kailan copper-plate of SAridharanòarata
(c.AD665-675) followed by the Udòisìvara copper-plate of the same ruler. In the
description of the landscape in the Kailan copper plate it is said that Devaparvata was
encircled by the river Ksòiroda (modern Khirnai), both banks of which were decorated
by boats and in which elephants bathed. It is described as sarvotabhadra which means
that it was perhaps approachable on all sides. The record also refers to three boat
parking stations (naudanòdòakas) which indicate that it was a riverine port. It was
also the principal political centre of the Ratas. Devaparvata can again be seen in a
copper plate of Rajaputra Balabhatòtòòa, sometimes in the latter half of the seventh
century CE. It speaks of the issuance of the charter from his palace at Katòakasila of
Devaparvata, a jayaskandhavara which is surrounded by the sacred river Ksòiroda.
The next reference to Devaparvata is found in the Asiatic Society copper plate of
Bhavadeva Abhinavamròganka (c. 765-780 CE), a ruler belonging to the Deva dynasty
of Samatatòa. Devaparvata is associated with the river Ksòiroda in this record too.
The city has now gained substantially in stature and glory and its river has become the
most sacred. In the eighth century CE, Devaparvata is explicitly stated to have been the
jayaskandhavara which was often coterminous with the royal capital or a major politico-
administrative centre. The last known epigraphic evidence of Devaparvata is furnished
by the Paschimbhag copper plate of Œrichandra (c.925-75CE), dated in his 5th regnal
year. Here too its location is on the Ksòiroda, on which plied many boats. It is said in
the record that Lalambivana (present day Lalmai, close to Mainamati) was searched
by hundreds of boat men for medicinal herbs (Lalambivanam=atra navika-
sìatair=anvisòtòa). This further speaks of Devaparvata as a riverine port.
(Chakravarti, 2002:167; Ghosh, 2009:352-359).

16.5 REPRESENTATION OF URBAN CENTRES IN

LITERARY TEXTS
Literary portrayals of early medieval urbanisation are also important to understand the
varied nature of urbanisation. Banabhatta’s Kadambari (7TH century CE) gives us a
vivid description of Ujjayini. It is said to be surrounded by moats, has suburbs, possesses
turrets reaching the sky, is crisscrossed by avenues lined with bazaars, is adorned with
many temples, including groves, parks and ponds and displays a wide range of
architecture, like assembly halls, way stations, bridges. Its citizens are urbane and
sophisticated and good looking too. They have mustered the language of all countries.
This statement speaks for the fact that people from different countries visited Ujjayini.
Another kind of representation of a town e.g. Kanauj or Kanyakubja is found in the
travel account of Xuan Zang. Kanyakubja replaced Pataliputra as the premier city in
33
Urbanisation in northern India during the late first millennium. Xuan Zang visited Kanauj during Harsha’s
Medieval India - 1 reign (606-647) when the city shot into prominence. The description is as follows:
The capital which had the Ganges on its west side, was above 20 li in length by 4 or 5 li in
breadth; it was very strongly defended and had lofty structures everywhere; there were
beautiful gardens and tanks of clear water, and in it rarities of strange lands were collected.
The inhabitants were well off and there were families of great wealth; ……..the people had
a refined appearance and dressed in glossy silk attire; they were given to learning and the
arts (Watters, 1904, 341)

An image of the prosperity and beauty of the city of Kanyakubja comes through from
his description. If one reads into the description minutely, the commercial character of
Kanyakubja is also revealed.

16.6 REPRESENTATION OF CITIES IN

NORMATIVE/PRESCRIPTIVE TREATISES
A text on architecture like the Manasara has a section called nagaravidhana. It specifies
eight types of town but if we take the forts into consideration then the number would be
sixteen. In the Manasara, the nagara has a political character as it is to be founded by
the king. Its size varies according to the rank of the king/prince. On this basis we have
a gradation of nine kings arranged in hierarchical order. The Manasara also describes
a skandhavara as a place which is located close to a river and is furnished with gardens,
royal edifices and many riverside residential houses. Sukranitisara (Sarkar, 1913) is
another text which gives an account of town planning. According to him the Sabha or
the Council House should be in the centre of the capital and the royal palace in the
midst of the council buildings. To the north of the palace, the king should locate the
court and the Silpa shala. The houses of ministers, clerks, councilors and high officers
should be located towards the north of the palace, after leaving a space of 100 cubits.
Sukra also tries to maintain an order in the allocations of buildings of the military
personages. Sites for the common people were determined according to wealth and
birth.

16.7 EARLY MEDIEVAL PORT CITIES

Growth of port cities was also part of the process of urbanisation in the early medieval
period. Epigraphic and textual sources provide information on them. There were a
number of ports of significant importance on the west coast, like Daibul, Bharukachchha
(Broach), Somnath, Stambhaka (Cambay), Sthanaka (Thane), Samyana (Sanjan),
Surparaka (Sopara), Chemuliya (Chaul), Mangalapura (Mangalore), Kulam mali (Quilon)
etc. The ports on the eastern littorals are Mamallapuram (Mahabalipuram),
Nagapattinam, Vishakhapattinam, Tamralipta (till 8th century), Samandar etc. These
ports witnessed their share of ups and downs and some re-emerged after a period of
slumber. Bharukachchha or Bharuch/Broach, formerly one of the premier ports on the
west coast, seems to have suffered an eclipse but never disappeared, re-emerging as
one of the chief commercial centers in the 11th/12th centuries. The port of Thane/
Thana, located on the navigable creek bounding Salsette Island on the north, rose in
seventh century as a premier port of the Chalukyas and later the Silahara dynasty that
controlled much of the western coast of Maharashtra between c. 800 and 1265 CE.
The Moroccan traveller al Idrisi, in ‘The delight of those who seek to wander through
the regions of the world’ (Nuzhatu-l Mushtak) of the mid-12th century CE, described
the port of Samadar in Southeastern Bangladesh (near Chittagong) in the following
manner:
34
 Samandar is a large town, commercial and rich, and where there are good profits to be Early Medieval
made…it stands upon a river which comes from the country of Kashmir. Rice and various Urbanisation from
grains, especially excellent wheat are to be obtained here…Aloe wood is brought here Epigraphy and Texts
from the country of Karmut (Kamarupa) 15 days distance by a river of which the waters are
sweet……..one days sail from this city, there is a large island well peopled and frequented
by merchants of all countries….

This description gives an idea of Samandar’s network of commercial linkages. The

Arab chronicles furnish maritime voyages from Samandar to Uranshin (Orissa), Kanja
(Kanchipuram) and Serendib or Silandib (Sri Lanka).
A look at the history of Nagapattinam would show that it was transformed from a
transit port to a major harbour. A Chinese pagoda was built at Nagapattinam by Pallava
ruler Rajasimha. Our only source which provides references to the activities of the port
is the verses of Saint Sundarar who belonged to the first half of the ninth century CE.
We learn that kanakam (gold) and karpuram (camphor) were traded by the
merchants of the city (verse 7.101.5). He also mentions the fact that the city was
surrounded by ships with large masts or sea-sails (verse 7.101.7; Idhai soozh
thennagai) The songs also provide direct evidence to the levies and taxation that were
carried on along the shores of Nagapattinam and on how various kings were attracted
to the riches of the port town. Thus one can visualise the vibrancy of the port which was
called Southern Nagai in the writings of Saint Sundarar and not a pattinam even
after it had emerged as a full-fledged harbour. Later, during the time of the Cholas,
it was called Nagapattinam and during the control of the Chola-Chalukyas, it was
mentioned as Cholakulavallipattinam. During the heyday of Nagapattinam under the
Cholas, it became the focal point of Srivijaya’s attempt to establish friendly diplomatic
relations with the Cholas through temple donations. (Seshadri, 2010, 118-121)

16.8 TEMPLES AND URBANISATION3

A particular characteristic manifestation of early medieval Indian urbanisation is of the
form of vast temple complexes, some of them developing into veritable temple cities.
This particularly happened in South of India. A new type of urban development began
under the Pallava dynasty (sixth-ninth centuries), centred especially in the capital city of
Kanchipuram. The developments originating in the Pallava period came to fruition during
the subsequent reigns of the Chola kings, when many areas of Tamilnadu experienced
the growth of small urban sites around temples (Heitzman, 2008: 46). The centrality of
the temple sites for interactions with a wider hinterland occurred on several levels:
economic interaction took place through trade in metals, salt, and specialised ritual
items (camphor) for temples but was probably overshadowed by transactions in agrarian
produce from temple landholding networks. The central place in the Kaveri River delta
was the town of Kudamukku (present Kumbakonam). During the Chola period
Kudamukku was a major site in the urban complex attached to Palaiyaru, a Chola
capital, which spread over a large area to its south and west. Kudamukku functioned
as the sacred centre having a number of temples. The twin cities were located on an
important trade route and noted for its transactions in two bulk items, areca nuts and
betel nuts. There was also a concentration of metal workers in the area. The rise of
Kudamukku Paliyarai, the twin cities of the Cholas, to prominence has been attributed
to:

3
For further details on the emergence and proliferation of temple towns see Unit 19 of this
Block. 35
Urbanisation in 1) Geographical location as a point of convergence. Its access to and linkages with the
Medieval India - 1 hinterland for the supply of local agrarian products.
2) Trade which was incidental to urbanism. The importance of luxury items for the consumption
of the elite groups.
3) Importance as a centre of political and administrative activities.
4) Its role as a religious centre leading to temple establishments.

These temples usually dominated the urban landscape. Though Thanjavur had already
existed prior to the rise of the Cholas, its heydays began with the accession of Rajaraja
I in late tenth century. At the very centre of Thanjavur stood the monumental temple,
Brihadishvara. Around the temple was located the quarter for the political and priestly
classes, forming the uppermost crust of the elites and thus occupying the urban space
closest to the shrine. After this came the residential area housing various urbane groups,
including the residence of the merchants. The brisk commerce of Tanjavur was conducted
by the four markets (angadis) and nagarattar, while itinerant traders like Kongavalar
interacted with them (Champaklakshmi, 1996: 437). Around the city lived farmers,
herdsmen and artisans. The requirement of the temple rituals and services generated
demands and therefore transactional functions in milk, flowers, betelnuts and areca
nuts. By the time temple construction reached its final stage, a veritable colonisation
had taken place, indicating the implanting of a royal city, including a series of army
contingents. According to Champaklakshmi, Tanjavur was a planted city by the royalty.

16.9 SUMMARY
It may be argued from the foregoing discussion that there was to a certain extent continuity
of inland trade and of urbanisation associated with it in the early medieval period. One
should not forget also the buoyant Indian Ocean trade network in the period concerned.
There was a pronounced continuity of expansion of towns which rested on a continuous
history of urban development going back in some cases to the beginning of the first
millennium. Urban centres of early medieval times, however, are seen not merely as a
counterpoint to the feudal social formations, but also as possessing distinctiveness from
cities belonging to the early historical phase. The survival of old urban centres or the
emergence of new ones in these areas is attested by archaeology as well, though
archaeological excavations are comparatively insignificant in comparison to early historical
period. Epigraphy helps us the most in the case of early medieval period. Descriptions
of the middle category market centres in inscriptions give us an idea of the mechanisms
of production and mobilisation of commodities from the coast to inland or one centre to
another. B.D. Chattopadhyaya has argued that early medieval cities were far more
rooted to their regional contexts than their early historic predecessors that had an
epicenter and then subsequent diffusion. Such regional formations were largely helped
by agrarian expansion, generating resources for local or supra-local ruling groups. Thus
heterogeneity, multiple functions, utilisation of spaces, both religious and secular etc.
made the early medieval urban centres distinctive and thus was identified as a phase of
third urbanisation in the history of the subcontinent by Chattopadhyaya.

16.10 EXERCISES
1) How do epigraphs and literary texts help in the construction of patterns of
urbanisation in the early medieval period?
2) Do you agree that proliferation of land grants led to decline of urban centres in
early medieval period?
3) Explain R.S. Sharma’s theory of urban decay? What has been the nature of
36 response to this theory?
4) What do early medieval literary texts indicate about the presence of urban spaces Early Medieval
and spatial units which could be distinguished from ‘rural’ spaces? Urbanisation from
Epigraphy and Texts
5) What are the markers of an urban centre in the early medieval period? Elaborate
your argument on the basis of Tattanandapura, Siyadoni and Venugrama.

16.11 A NOTE ON EARLY MEDIEVAL SOURCES

Alberuni (973-1048 CE) : A famous historian, mathematician, philosopher,
poet and scholar of the court of Mahmud
Ghaznavi. His book ‘Tahquiq-e-Hind’ is a very
valuable source of information of economic,
political, religious and social conditions prevailing
in contemporary India.
Al-Idrisi : An Arab Muslim cartographer, geographer,
traveller and Egyptologist of the early 12th century.
Aparajitaprachchha : A thirteenth centuryApabhransha text written by
Bhuvanadeva.
Kadambari : A novel composed by Banabhatta in the first half
of the 7th century.
Kumarapalacharita : A twelfth century Sanskrit text written by
Hemchandra.
Manasara : A twelfth century text.
Mayamata : A Sanskrit text on vaastushastra.
Nalachampu : Written by Trivikramabhatta.
Navasahasankacharita : Written by Padmagupta, court poet of the
Paramara rulers in the beginning of the eleventh
century.
Padataditakam : A 6-7th century Sanskrit text.
Samarangasutradhara : An eleventh century Sanskrit text attributed to
Paramara King Bhoja.
Sukranitisara : A Sanskrit text written by Sukra.
Vikramankadevacharita : Composed by Bilhana in the eleventh century.

16.12 REFERENCES
Acharya, Prasanna Kumar, (1994) Architecture of Manasara, Delhi.
Barnett, Lionel D., (1915-16) ‘Two Inscriptions from Belgaum, Now in the British
Museum’, Epigraphia Indica, Vol.XIII (New Delhi: Archaeological Survey of India).
Chakravarti, Ranabir, (2002) Trade and Traders in Early Indian Society (Delhi,
Manohar), pp.187-200.
Champakalakshmi, R., (1996) Trade, Ideology and Urbanisation: South India 300
BC to AD 1300 (Delhi: Oxford University Press).

37
Urbanisation in Chattopadhyaya, B.D., (2012) The Making of Early Medieval India, 2nd edn. (New
Medieval India - 1 Delhi, Oxford University Press).
Dutt, B.B., (1972, reprint) Town Planning in Ancient India (New Delhi, New Asian
Publishers).
Ghosh, Suchandra., (2008) “Economy of Samatata in the Early Medieval period : A
brief Overview” in Prajnadhara: Essays on Asian Art History Epigraphy and Culture
in Honour of Gouriswar Bhattacharyya, edited by Gerd Mevissen & Arundhati
Banerjee (New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal) .
Hall, K.R., (1980) Trade and Statecraft in the Age of the Colas (New Delhi: Abhinav
Publications).
Heitzman, James, (2008) The City in South Asia (London & New York: Routledge).
Husain, A.B.M., (ed.) (1997) Mainamati-Devaparvata, (Dhaka: The Asiatic Society
of Bangladesh).
Jha, D.N., (2008) ‘Dimensions of Feudalism in Early Medieval India,’ in R.S. Sharma
and K.M. Shrimali eds. A Comprehensive History of India, Vol. IV, Part II (New
Delhi: Manohar).
Kielhorn, F., (1907-08) ‘The Chahamanas of Naddula’, Epigraphia Indica, Vol.IX
(New Delhi: Archaeological Survey of India).
Niyogi, Pushpa, (1962) Contributions to the Economic History of Northern India,
from the Tenth to the Twelfth Century A.D. (Calcutta: Progressive Publishers).
Sahni, Daya Ram, (1927-28) ‘Ahar Stone Inscription’, Epigraphia Indica, Vol.XIX
(New Delhi: Archaeological Survey of India).
Sarkar, Binoy Kumar, (1913) The Sukra Niti Sara (Allahabad: The Panini Office).
Seshadri,Gokul, (2010), ‘New Perspectives on Nagapattinam, The Medieval Port City
in the Context of Political, Religious and Commercial Exchanges between South India,
Southeast Asia and China’ in Hermann Kulke et al., eds. Nagapattanam to
Suvarnadwipa, Reflections on the Chola Naval Expeditions to Southeast Asia
(Delhi : Manohar), pp.102-134.
Sharma, R.S., (1987) Urban Decay in India, c.300-c.1000 (Delhi: Munshiram
Manoharlal).
Sircar, D.C., (1981) ‘The Emperor and The Subordinate Rulers’, Sudhakar
Chattopadhyay Memorial Lectures (Santiniketan: Visva-Bharati Research
Publications).
Yadava, B.N.S., (1973) Society And Culture In Northern India, In the Twelfth
Century (Allahabad: Central Book Depot).
Watters, T., (1961) On Yuan Chwang’s Travels (New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal).

38