Cities in Medieval India, a voluminous anthology, is an outcome of academic discussions on the theme of urbanization in premodern India at two separate colloquia held at the Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi between March 2008 and March 2009. The volume brings together essays that focus on different aspects of medieval cities, in particular urban centres, with some essays analysing the rural-urban continuum and divide, culture, small towns and qasbas. Rajat Datta, for instance, talks about the interface between India’s early modern rural and urban economies not as separate enclaves in a dualistic manner but as active components of an integrated early modern economy in India during the 17th and the 18th centuries.
October 2015, volume 39, No 10