General Objectives of the Programme:
The objective of the programme is to give the students a specialised idea in any of the following three streams of History i.e.:
Group A: South Asia in Ancient and Medieval Period with special emphasis on Bengal
Group B: South Asia in Modern Times, and
Group C: International History
Eligibility for Admission: Students obtaining a four-year Graduation degree from any Department will be eligible to take admission into the M.A. Programme of the Department of History, University of Dhaka.
24 courses · 96 credit hours across 2 terms
| Code | Course title | Credits | |
|---|---|---|---|
| HIS 501 | Historiography and Research Methodology | 4 | This course is designed to give the students an idea about historiography, philosophy of history and the methodology of research, especially historical research. Part A deals with the art of history writing from the early historical period passing through the various stages of civilization to the modern times. This part of the course also discusses the interesting topic of Philosophy of History and then of some prominent contributors to the philosophy of history and their philosophic views on the discipline of history as a whole. Part B introduces to the students the methodology of research especially historical research. This part discusses how a researcher will prepare himself/herself for research. While doing so it also dwells on the importance of library and archives from where the researcher can get resources for research and the various methods of note taking, source criticism and footnoting etc. |
| HIS 502 | Reconstructing the History of Early Bengal: Sources and Notable Historians | 4 | This course deals with the primary sources of ancient Bengal, their limitations, interpretive strategies and the approaches and trends in historiography. Categories of the source materials are one of the prime focuses of the course. Literary sources and the dearth of literary sources lead to the reliance on epigraphic sources, copperplates, archaeological sites, coins, beads, terracotta, pottery and how do all these source materials help in the reconstruction? The resultant characteristics of the history of early Bengal will also be discussed in detail and in- depth. The second significant part of the course is designed by the present approaches and trends of the historiography of Bengal/Bangladesh with special mention of some notable historians such as Ramesh Chandra Majumdar, Niharranjan Ray, B M Morrison and D C Sircar. |
| HIS 503 | Select Topics on Society, Culture and Economy of Early Bengal | 4 | The region known as ‘Bengal’ is a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic entity. Just as the combination of mountain and ocean, rivers and valleys, forests and plain open lands has created diverse flora and fauna in this region, the multi-diversity of the people has introduced an equally diverse religio-cultural and social tapestry of different languages, different culinary experiences, different rituals and habits. Yet, amongst all this diversity the region is united through a common historical experience throughout the ages. This course introduces students to the land, the people, the society, the culture, the commerce and the polities in the early times of the region we call Bengal. |
| HIS 504 | Geographical Factors in Making of the Regional Personality of Bengal | 4 | This course is designed under the broader outline of geographical factors in history in the context of Bengal/Bangladesh. Bengal is considered as a „region‟ with distinct geo-physical features and natural boundary. This naturally defined geographical territory started transforming into a cultural territory from the antiquity. The course is designed in the light of the intense knowledge about the geographical factors in the making of the regional personality/individuality/identity of Bengal and in the critical evaluation of the role of environmental issues in the whole process with special focus on ancient and medieval periods. |
| HIS 515 | Nationalism and National Movements in South Asia | 4 | Teaching of the history of nationalism and nationalist movements has become more relevant in this era of globalization when distinction of the concepts of nation and national interest is to be explained to the students in the context of socio-political, economic and strategic significance. More so, to the students of this millennium who need to understand their past – under what circumstances and process their countries attained freedom from colonial rule and the nature of exploitation and administration during British rule in the Indian subcontinent. Title of the course indicates that nationalist movement in the region of South Asia is to be covered but the course outline is prepared in the light of other courses being offered for the Masters degree in History. Topics offered in this course contain major events and movements related to the nationalist movement in India, carefully avoiding overlap with other course contents related to the history of South Asia during nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Students of countries that have been once ruled by colonial powers, need to understand their past and the legacy of colonialism, to understand patriotism and the need to attain freedom and therefore must know why nationalist movements took place and how much sacrifice was made to achieve independence. |
| HIS 516 | Economic History of India under Colonial Rule | 4 |
This course is designed to epitomize hope, expectations, and aspirations about economic history in such a way that students can form a clear understanding of economic changes in India under British colonial rule. The course contains a series of major points dealing with different aspects of economic changes in India during the colonial period, and it presents an overview of the economic history by highlighting the growth of modern industries, foreign trade, agricultural indebtedness, depression, and commercialization of agriculture. Definition, land revenue system, legislative protection for peasantry, peasant movements, famines, etc., and economic condition, trade and industries, drain of wealth, etc. are divided into parts A and B of the course, respectively. Besides, emphasis is given to the ideas and significant contributions of some selected economists in the economic history of India. |
| HIS 517 | Administrative Changes in Colonial India | 4 | The East India Company came to India as a trading corporation but soon it acquired the control over Bengal. After the Battle of Palashi in 1757 this Company eventually emerged as a political power. Gradually British colonial power expanded its territorial domain and afterwards established the empire in Indian subcontinent where it initiated a new system of government to serve its purposes. After the end of the Company rule in 1858 the British Crown changed the administrative policy in different ways. This new system laid down the foundation of administration of later-day British India. Even present Bangladesh as well as India carries a colonial hereditament in their administrative system. |
| HIS 530 | International Law | 4 | International Law as an academic discipline deals with the international community. Primarily, it governs the relations between the states but other non-state actors i.e., international organizations, non-government organizations, individuals and corporations have been increasingly coming under the jurisdiction of international law over the last few decades. Commencing with the definition of international law, this course addresses the origin and development of international law, its basis, source and relationship with municipal law. The course then deals with state, recognition of state, modes of acquiring and losing state territory, rivers, law of the sea, nationality, extradition and diplomatic agents. |
| HIS 531 | West and Central Asia in Modern Times (Select Topics) | 4 | This course provides an introduction to the modern history of West and Central Asia. It covers the period from World War II until the present. Geographically, in West Asia it looks into Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel/Palestine, the Arabian Peninsula, Turkey and Iran. Major themes include the growth of state power, political, social, economic, intellectual and cultural developments in the region including the emergence of nationalism and pan- Arabism, authoritarianism, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, role of outside powers, the politics of oil, rise of Islamic political movements, the recent protest movements and the developments connected to the „Arab Spring‟. In Central Asia the course looks into the region as an emerging and increasingly important area of Asia. Being part of the former Soviet Union for a long time the countries of Central Asia particulary the so-called five “Sthans” as independent republics, now have been showing signs of huge possibilities in economy and development but enormous problems like fragile democracy and rise of militant Islam. The big powers rivalry in the region bordering two of them viz. Russia and China also forms a part of the course to discuss. |
| HIS 532 | Asia and Pacific Region in Modern Times (Select Topics) | 4 | This course focuses on the modern and contemporary history of countries and nations of Asia and the Pacific region. They include Peoples Republic of China, Republic of Korea, Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Vietnam, etc. Regional organizations such as APEC and ASEAN are also parts of the course. |
| HIS 533 | History of Ideas and Ideologies | 4 | History of ideas is a dynamic and expanding field that explores ideas comparatively in their geographical, social and historical contexts. This course begins with some basic concepts about the ideologies, isms and issues. It then deals with the relationship between ideas and actions across a wide variety of geographical locations and historical periods. |
| Code | Course title | Credits | |
|---|---|---|---|
| HIS 507 | Reconstructing the History of Medieval Bengal: Sources and Notable Historians | 4 | This course gives the idea of the diverse types of sources used in the reconstruction of medieval Bengal history. It includes the written sources as well as the archaeological sources. It introduces the history graduates to the techniques of using Arabic and Persian chronicles, travelogues and medieval Bengali literature as sources of writing history. |
| HIS 508 | Select Topics on Society, Culture and Economy of Medieval Bengal | 4 | The society, culture and economy of medieval Bengal played a very important role in the formation of the socio-cultural structure of the region in the present day. It is important to understand that the present society and culture is a continuation of the foundational base laid in the medieval age. Language, music, social and cultural rituals, religious practices all can be traced back to the developments that took place in medieval Bengal. The commercial and economic vitality of Bengal achieved during the Sultanate and Mughal periods attracted European traders to this area which eventually led to European colonization. The Europeans when they came, found here a strong banking system in place, an infrastructure for foreign overseas trade, a society receptive to foreign ideas and a cultural base strong enough to resist too much foreign influence. This course introduces to the students the administrative system of the Sultanate and the Mughals, the education system, art and architecture of the period and an overview of the social and cultural fabric of Bengal in pre-colonial times. |
| HIS 509 | Religious Process in Medieval Bengal: Theories and Realities | 4 | This course is designed under the broader outline of religious processes in medieval Bengal with special emphasis on conceptual discussions and the reality. Bengal is considered as a region with distinct geo-physical and cultural features. This naturally defined geographical territory gradually transformed into a cultural territory from the antiquity. Religion is one of the significant components in culture and the religious process became an integral part of the syncretistic tradition of Bengal in the medieval period. The course is designed in the light of the intense knowledge about the religious processes in medieval Bengal in constructing the identity/ alterity of peoples of the land. At the same time, some theoretical outlines and realities regarding the issue will also be an integral part of the course. |
| HIS 510 | Medieval Art and Architecture (Select Topics) | 4 | The coming of the Muslims changed the architectural landscape of India. Mosque architecture made a significant introduction which gained permanence with the progress and continuation of Muslim rule. The greatest architectural feat of medieval India was the Qutub Minar which still to date is an architectural wonder. The social, economic and changing political conditions were reflected in architecture. With patronization from the rulers, architectural styles could be experimented with and lasting contributions were made that sustained the ravages of time. Tomb architecture reached new heights under the Mughals of which Shah Jahan‟s Taj Mahal is the most famous. The Mughals were enthusiastic builders and fort architecture saw huge development under them. This course throws light on the styles, techniques, trends, influences and developments of the architecture of pre-Mughal and Mughal era in India. |
| HIS 521 | Constitutional Changes in Colonial India | 4 | This course sheds light on the major acts passed for constitutional development during British rule in India. The constitutional development started with the Regulating Act passed in 1773. This development can be divided into two parts: constitutional development during the East India Company rule (1773–1857) and constitutional development during the rule of the British Crown (1857–1947). This course is divided into two parts. Part A analyzes the beginning of the East India Company rule when the Treaty of Allahabad (1765), the Anglo-Mughal joint administration (1765–1772), and various other acts were passed by the British parliament from 1773 to 1853. Part B covers the period from 1858 to 1947. The great Indian Revolt occurred in 1857, and after that, the company rule came to an end. The company's Indian empire, along with the princely states, came under the direct rule of the British crown. The rule of the British Crown continued till 1947. Part B analyzes the various acts passed by the British parliament during this period from 1858 to 1947. |
| HIS 522 | Armed Resistance Movements During Colonial Times | 4 | This course introduces theories relating to political violence and explores different types of armed resistance movements in India during British colonial rule. Theory and case studies are divided into parts A and B, respectively. Theories include critical and conceptual understandings of various types of political violence according to their nature and character. They include revolutions, mutinies, coups, and resistance movements. Social and psychological theories are presented to explain why people rebel. Resistance movements against the colonial ruler were generally highly diversified in terms of forms and contents. When there was the Gandhian non-violence movement, concurrently, there existed a strong current of armed resistances all across the subcontinent. The oppressive and exploitative colonial ruling was instrumental in generating such violent resistance. Such armed resistances can roughly be categorized as peasant resistance, adibasi resistance, and nationalist resistance, comprising numerous big and small individual cases of resistance initiatives. Part B, consisting of case studies, has included some representative case studies from each of the above categories to provide an in-depth understanding of the varied forms of movement, their context, forms, and nature, drawing on cases from different parts of India. |
| HIS 523 | Post-Colonial South Asia (Select Topics) | 4 | The region of South Asia today presents an immensely interesting and remarkably significant but often hugely controversial and critical scenario. Decolonization in the forties of the last century and the rise and impact of the Cold War spreading over the next four decades, led the region to assume a significance not known in the past. End of the Cold war and the crisis created by 9/11 with all its resultant implications worldwide, have forced the region to be involved directly with events near and far beyond it. With the inception of SAARC and following the inclusion of Afghanistan into it, this eight-country region has assumed further distinct political salience. Moreover, the region generally and each of the countries in it individually, have still been struggling to witness the building of a cohesive and inclusive nation and society within each of its perimeter. This survey course introduces students to these aspirations of the countries of the South Asia region. While doing that it has identified some select areas of politics, economy, culture, religion and ethnicity of the region and tends to observe and analyze the promises of and prospects for achieving those aspirations in these areas. |
| HIS 525 | Social & Cultural History of Bengal (19 & 20 C.) | 4 | Social and cultural history is a modern trend of history which is important to understand a particular society. The history presented in the media and text books remains predominantly political and to a lesser extent social. The purpose of this course is precisely to explain not only the rediscovery of social history but also to explore what cultural history is. A competent survey of history-writing in nineteenth and early twentieth-century Bengal could assume that social and cultural history-writing had to start from scratch. We now know that social and cultural history deal with various aspects of social structure, social composition, urbanization, mobility, reaction of people to different forces of change in society. |
| HIS 536 | Imperialism, Nationalism and Globalization | 4 | By the late nineteenth century European civilization spread to and influenced the whole world. The large and industrialized states gained empires in Asia, Africa and the islands of the Sea. In opposition to these empires non-European and subject-peoples began to assert ideas learned from Europe-ideas of liberty, democracy, nationalism, independence and sovereignty. Such assertions by the colonial peoples of the later-coined Third World, along with some other international factors, created the background of decolonization. Thus began another historical process whereby the colonial powers withdrew politically from their colonial possessions. Beginning immediately after the end of the Second World War and the rise of the Cold War the decolonization process continued through to the 1970s. The closing decades of the twentieth century witnessed yet another historical process known as Globalization. Used for some time to mean „Westernization‟, this process began and still has been impacting the whole world threatening at times the boundaries of the modern nation-states. This course while surveying all these momentous developments in world history helps students understand these major forces shaping the world in modern times. |
| HIS 537 | Gender and History | 4 | This course introduces to students the meaning and significance of Women’s History (also termed Gender History). This includes its inception in modern times in academia, key concepts as found in basic texts, the new methodology developed by practitioners of the discipline and a brief overview tracing its development. The course has been divided into two parts. Part A discusses theory, methodology and how the discipline developed into a major subject in academia. Part B focuses on biographical sketches of female figures mentioned in history who contributed as co-creators in society. Through examples of female historical figures both in the East and the West, in ancient, medieval and modern times, the course illustrates the basic tenets of Women’s History and depicts the linkages between thinkers, movements and persons or in other words, theory, practice and personalities. Thus, parts A and B are vitally connected. |
| HIS 538 | War and Peace in Modern Times | 4 | This is a survey as well as interpretive course concerning specifically with the two recurring themes in world history - war and peace. This course picks up selected but decisive examples of war and peace from the earliest times down to the present. The objective of the course is to enlighten students on how the present-day world has evolved through war and peace. Both war and peace are explained in theoretical contexts. |
| HIS 539 | Socialist Movement in Modern Times | 4 | This course provides a global study of socialism and communism in the modern era. It traces the rise of socialism in the late 18th and 19th centuries to the recent fall of communism in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. In doing so, the course adopts a global approach. The roots of socialism and communism are European. However, its early 20th-century flowering was Eurasian in the context of Russia. In its 20th-century incarnation, communism took on a distinctly global character in Eastern Europe, China, Africa, and other Southeast Asian countries, as well as Cuba and other communist movements in Latin America. The course deals with the roots and foundations of Marxist theory and the historical development of the movements for socialism and communism in the world in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. It also focuses on the struggles to establish socialism and communism around the world scene, its impact, the backlash to it, the Chinese Revolution, and the expansion of the ideology towards Asia and Africa. Finally, while it is often spoken of the “fall of communism," it should not be forgotten that at the present time, over one-fifth of the people on the planet live under communist regimes. In the context of all these, the focus is on developing an understanding of the crucial ideas, historical changes, and dynamics that led to the rise as well as the fall of communism. Furthermore, the course seeks to explore the lasting legacy of socialist thought and communism in both the political and economic arenas. |
| HIS 541 | Post-Colonial Africa | 4 | The rapidly increasing importance of Africa in world affairs is now only too apparent, but the picture it presents today is one of great complexity, confusion and even impending disaster. This course is designed to provide an introduction to the understanding of events in Africa and to stimulate an informed interest in the very difficult and complex problems with which the African people now have to grapple. Particularly from this course, students will get an idea of the different aspects of the continent of Africa after the end of the colonial rule. |