Talk:Romila Thapar

By Anirudha patel

Romila Thapar is an Indian historian. Her principal area of study is ancient India, She is a Professor of Ancient History, Emerita, at the Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi. . According to her CV, her research into early Indian history has been part of the shift from treating ancient history as Indology to establishing it as a Social Science.

As per her bio, she has published no books, papers or research pertaining to Hindus, rights of Hindus, the impact or relationship between Islam and Hinduism / Hindutva, India or the Indian Government in the context of BJP Government.

In 2021, She endorsed the "Dismantling Global Hindutva" conference and made the allegation

"the current government of India [in 2021] has instituted discriminatory policies including beef bans, restrictions on religious conversion and interfaith weddings, and the introduction of religious discrimination into India’s citizenship laws. The result has been a horrifying rise in religious and caste-based violence, including hate crimes, lynchings, and rapes directed against Muslims, non-conforming Dalits, Sikhs, Christians, adivasis and other dissident Hindus. Women in these communities are especially targeted. Meanwhile, the government has used every tool of harassment and intimidation to muzzle dissent. Dozens of student activists and human rights defenders are currently languishing in jail indefinitely without due process under repressive anti-terrorism laws."

Publications related to India

Books

1. Thapar, Romila. The Past before Us: Historical Traditions of Early North India. Permanent Black / Harvard University Press, 2013.
2. Thapar, Romila. The Aryan: Recasting Constructs. Three Essays, 2008.
3. Thapar, Romila. Somanatha: The Many Voices of a History. Penguin / Verso, 2004.
4. Thapar, Romila. Early India. Penguin Books / California University Press, 2002.
5. Thapar, Romila. Cultural Pasts: Essays in Early Indian History. Oxford University Press, 2000.
6. Thapar, Romila. History and Beyond. Oxford University Press, 2000.
7. Thapar, Romila. Śakuntalā: Texts, Readings, Histories. Kali for Women / Anthem, 1999.
8. Thapar, Romila. From Lineage to State. Oxford University Press, 1984.
9. Thapar, Romila. Ancient Indian Social History: Some Interpretations. Oxford University Press, 1978.
10. Thapar, Romila. The Past and Prejudice. National Book Trust, 1975.
11. Thapar, Romila. Ancient India, Medieval India. NCERT, 1966.
12. Thapar, Romila. A History of India, Vol.1. Penguin Books, 1966.
13. Thapar, Romila. Aśoka and the Decline of the Mauryas. Oxford University Press, 1961.

Journal Articles

1. Thapar, Romila. “Was There Historical Writing in Early India?” In Knowing India, edited by C. Talbot, Yoda Press, 2011.
2. Thapar, Romila. “The Puranas: Heresy and the Vamsanucarita.” In Ancient to Modern: Religion, Power and Community in India, edited by I. Banerjee-Dube and S. Dube, Social Science Press, 2009.
3. Thapar, Romila. “Raya Asoko from Kanaganahalli: Some Thoughts.” In Airavati, 2008.
4. Thapar, Romila. “Role of the Army in the Exercise of Power.” In Army and Power in the Ancient World, edited by A. Chaniotis and P. Ducrey, Franz Steiner Verlag, 2002.
5. Thapar, Romila. “Perceiving the Forest: Early India.” Studies in History, vol. 17, no. 1, 2001, pp. 1-16.
6. Thapar, Romila. “The Theory of Aryan Race and India: History and Politics.” Social Scientist, vol. 24, no. 1/3, 1996, pp. 3–29. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/3520116.
7. Thapar, Romila. “Interpretations of Ancient Indian History.” History and Theory, vol. 7, no. 3, 1968, pp. 318–35. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/2504471.
8. THAPAR, ROMILA. “To Question or Not to Question? That Is the Question.” Economic and Political Weekly, vol. 49, no. 50, 2014, pp. 33–39. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/24481176. Accessed 3 Dec. 2023.
9. Thapar, Romila. “WHY EDUCATE?” India International Centre Quarterly, vol. 42, no. 3/4, 2015, pp. 8–15. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/26316571. Accessed 3 Dec. 2023.
10. Thapar, Romila. “Fallacies of Hindutva Historiography.” Economic and Political Weekly, vol. 50, no. 1, 2015, pp. 68–69. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/24481243.
11. Thapar, Romila. “Itihasa.” Key Concepts in Modern Indian Studies, edited by Gita Dharampal-Frick et al., NYU Press, 2015, pp. 126–28. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt15zc7zj.52.
12. Romila Thapar. “Revisiting Max Weber’s Religion of India.” Max Weber Studies, vol. 18, no. 1, 2018, pp. 122–39. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.15543/maxweberstudies.18.1.122.
13. Thapar, Romila. “Targeting Institutions of Higher Education: Fear of the Intellectual.” Economic and Political Weekly, vol. 51, no. 10, 2016, pp. 19–21. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/44003290.