The Aryan Recasting Constructs

About the Book
This collection of essays, written over some years, is not intended as a definitive statement on what is often refers to as “the Aryan question”. It is rather, an attempt to explore aspects of the theme that might further our understanding of an early period of Indian history.  The constituents that went into the concept have changed from race, ethnicity and elements of nationality to language, status and culture. This has evolved recasting the constructs and has inevitably been controversial. The   essays attempt to explain how the construct came to be formulated, why they changed and what might be more meaningful interrogations of this history.

About the Author
Romila Thapar is Emeritus professor of history, Jawaharlal Nehru University. A selection of her publications include :  Asoka and the Decline of the Mauryas; From Lineage to State; History and Beyond; Cultural Pasts: Essays in Early  Indian History; Early India; Somanatha: the Many Voices of a History; and Sakuntala: Texts, Readings Histories.