Of late, there has been an increased focus on history and culture of the Telugu-speaking people.
The bifurcation of the State for creation of Telangana last year and subsequent attempts to highlight various facets of the history of the two States have been driving many scholars to take up fresh research.
The recently-released book, Late Medieval Andhra Pradesh AD 1324 – 1724, the fifth book in the eight volume series of Comprehensive History and Culture of Andhra Pradesh being brought out by Andhra Pradesh History Congress, is a scholarly work that comes in handy for those who wish to understand the history and culture of these regions.
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It has been brought out in English and Telugu with eminent historian Vakulabharanam Ramakrisha and R. Soma Reddy and General Editor and Editor respectively.
The voluminous work, with 51 research papers and 60 maps/photos, provides a panoramic perspective of political, economic, social and cultural history of the late medieval period. The period under study was marked by diverse developments with the emergence of regional dynasties including Vijayanagara and the successor states of the Bahamani kingdom such as Golconda and Bijapur. There was also a resurgence of local potentates who negotiated for power with the bigger rulers/kings from time to time.
There is a freshness of perspective in the book under review. Andre Wink, C.A. Bayly, J. F. Richards, Sanjay Subrahmanyam, among others, have recently come up with many empirical works capturing the importance of local chieftains and identifying strong pointers in the form of effloresce of regional cultures and languages. There were equally important developments in the religion of culture including art, architecture and literature.
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As editor of the volume, R. Soma Reddy, rightly puts it in the introductory chapter, the period was a transition phase from medievalism to modern era with many institutions either standing the test of time or simply fading away giving birth to new social and economic processes. Thus, the selection of chapters in the book is in perfect harmony with the latest trends in historical research, thanks to the insights of general editor of the series, Vakulabharanam Ramakrishna.
The good connectivity between the Andhra region with good coast line and Telangana as a hinterland led to great development of trade and commerce, both inland and foreign.
This was also aided by increase in percolation of coins supported by flourishing agriculture. There was tangible growth in industrialisation and urbanisation too. These aspects have been discussed in detail in different chapters along with social and gender underpinnings in the section under economic, social and cultural conditions.
The popular culture forms the crux of social and economic development of any age and has always been a powerful tool for a researcher in history to fathom the relationship of people to the social and economic milieu to which they belong. And, the work scores in the regard as it effectively highlights popular culture of the Seemandhra and Telangana regions.
Then there is much to delight lovers of literature as the closing chapters chronicle development of the Telugu, Urdu and Persian languages and scripts such as Nandi Nagari, Telugu, Kannada and Oriya.
To sum up, the book makes an interesting reading for both academic and general purposes and will surely stimulate further research.
Mali Madhyayuga Andhradesam: AD 1324 – 1724
Late Medieval Andhra Pradesh AD 1324 – 1724 , A Comprehensive History and Culture of Andhra Pradesh, Vol V
Editors V Ramakrishna & R Soma Reddy, Pages: 690; Price: 580
Publishers: Potti Sriramulu Telugu University & Andhra Pradesh History Congress, 2015
For Copies: Visalandhra Publishing House, Hyderabad.