The Early Modern in South Asia

Did modernity arrive in South Asia with British colonialism? Or was South Asia already modern by then? What might have that modernity looked like? The Early Modern in South Asia engages with these questions. It brings together ten chapters, which collectively trace the contours of South Asia's early modernity between the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries. They do this by examining the nature of historical change in various domains, including philosophy, warfare, law, environment, politics, violence, religion, and society. The chapters argue that in all these fields, there were noticeable developments during this period, marking a shift from the medieval to the early modern. The introductory chapter contextualizes this by analysing the politics of periodization in history-writing across the world. It discusses the meanings of the relatively new concept of early modernity and the implications of its use for how we understand historical change and continuity in South Asia.

Meena Bhargava teaches history at Indraprastha College for Women, University of Delhi, India. She is a historian of medieval and early modern South Asia. The areas of her research include Mughal history, environmental history, history of narcotics and drugs, agrarian history, and land rights in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century India. Her most recent publication is Understanding Mughal India: Sixteenth to Eighteenth Centuries (2019). Pratyay Nath teaches history at Ashoka University, India. He is a historian of early modern South Asia. The areas of his research include military history, environmental history, imperial history, and history of the historical discipline. His most recent publication is Climate of Conquest: War, Environment, and Empire in Mughal North India (2019).

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