IGNOU MA History Syllabus | IGNOU MA History Courses

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IGNOU MA History Syllabus (Old & Revised)

The Indira Gandhi National Open University has divided the IGNOU MA History Syllabus or courses into two years.

In the first year of study, the students has to study 4 courses and all are compulsory. In second year, the IGNOU MHI-3 course is compulsory. The rest of the 24 Credits has to be chosen from remaining 6 courses.

The students has to complete total of 64 Credits to complete the master degree.

IGNOU MA History Revised Syllabus (From July 2023 session)

In the updated IGNOU MA History program, starting from July 2023, the curriculum has undergone a restructuring. The IGNOU MA History program has been reorganized into four semesters, each comprising 20 credits. This revised M.A. History program will span two years, totaling 80 credits. The program is designed to be offered on a semester-by-semester basis, ensuring a comprehensive and structured learning experience.

Here is the revised syllabus:

1st Semester

MHI 101 Ancient and Medieval Societies
MHI 104 Political Structures in India thorugh the Ages
MHI 105 History of Indian Economy-1: From Earliest Times to C.1700

2nd Semester

MHI 102 Modern World
MHI 106 Social Structures in India through the Ages
MHI 107 History of Indian Economy-2: C.1700 to 2000

3rd Semester

MHI 103 Historiography and Research Methods
MHI 109 Indian National Movement
MPSE 004 Social and Political Thought in Modern India
MGP 004 Gandhi‘s Political Thought

4th Semester

MHI 108 Environmental Histories of the Indian
MHI 110 Urbanization in India-1
MHI 111 Urbanization in India-2

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IGNOU MA History Syllabus

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IGNOU MA History Study Material

IGNOU MA history Syllabus (Old Course)

Each IGNOU MA History course has some credit associated with it where one credit is equivalent to 30 study hours of students comprising all the learning activities.

Therefore, if any course has two credits associated with it then its means the students has to give 60 hours for its study.

The IGNOU School of Humanities (SOH) has developed very easy to understand IGNOU MA History syllabus for its students so that they do not face any difficulty.

IGNOU MA History First Year Syllabus

MHI-1: Ancient and Medieval Societies

Block 1: Early Human Societies

Unit 1 Hunting and Gathering
Unit 2 Pastoral Nomadism
Unit 3 Transition to Agriculture
Unit 4 The Neolithic Revolution
Unit 5 Implications for the World

Block 2: Bronze Age Civilizations

Unit 6 Cultural and Natural Settings of the Early Civilizations
Unit 7 Technological Foundations and Socio-Economic Parameters
Unit 8 Writing and Artistic Expression
Unit 9 The Social Structure Reconstructed

Block 3: Formation of States and Empires

Unit 10 Formation of States and Empires: A General Introduction
Unit 11 The Persian Empire
Unit 12 Ancient Greece
Unit 13 The Roman Empire

Block 4: Alternative Social Formations

Unit 14 Latin America
Unit 15 Africa
Unit 16 Nomadic Empires

Block 5: Religion, State and Society

Unit 17 The Late Roman World
Unit 18 The Arab World
Unit 19 China

Block 6: Feudalism

Unit 20 Debates on Feudalism
Unit 21 Feudalism : Forms and Structures
Unit 22 Phases of Feudalism
Unit 23 Trade and the Decline of Feudalism

Block 7: Trade and Commerce in the Medieval World

Unit 24 Oceanic Trade
Unit 25 Business Communities
Unit 26 Commercial Practices
Unit 27 Craft Production

Block 8: Medieval World in Transition

Unit 28 Science and Technologies and Expansion of Knowledge
Unit 29 Literature and Institutions of Learning
Unit 30 Religious Establishment
Unit 31 Transition to Modern World

Block 9: Pre-modern World : An Overview

Unit 32 Trends and Transition in Population
Unit 33 Urbanism
Unit 34 Technologies of Warfare and Communication
Unit 35 Kinship Pattern and Family structure

MHI-02: Modern World

Block 1: Theories of the Modern World

Unit 1 Renaissance and the Idea of the Individual
Unit 2 The Enlightenment
Unit 3 Critiques of Enlightenment

Block 2: Modern World: Essential Components

Unit 4 Theories of the State
Unit 5 Capitalist Economy and Its Critique
Unit 6 The Social Structure

Block 3: The Modern State and Politics

Unit 7 Bureaucratization
Unit 8 Democratic Politics
Unit 9 Modern State and Welfare
Unit 10 Nationalism

Block 4: Capitalism and Industrialization

Unit 11 Commercial Capitalism
Unit 12 Capitalist Industrialization
Unit 13 Socialist Industrialization
Unit 14 Underdevelopment

Block 5: Expansion of Europe

Unit 15 Conquest and Appropriation
Unit 16 Migrations and Settlements
Unit 17 Imperialism
Unit 18 Colonialism
Unit 19 Decolonization

Block 6: International Relations

Unit 20 Nation-State System
Unit 21 International Rivalries of Twentieth Century
Unit 22 The Unipolar World and Counter-Currents

Block 7: Revolutions

Unit 23 Political Revolution: France
Unit 24 Political Revolution: Russia
Unit 25 Knowledge Revolution: Printing and Informatics
Unit 26 Technological Revolution: Communications and Medical

Block 8: Violence and Repression

Unit 27 Modern Warfare
Unit 28 Total War
Unit 29 Violence by Non-State Actors

Block 9: Dilemmas of Development

Unit 30 Demography
Unit 31 Ecology
Unit 32 Consumerism

MHI-04: Political Structures in India

Block 1: Early State Formation

Unit 1 Pre-State to State
Unit 2 Territorial States to Empire
Unit 3 Polities from 2nd B.C. to 3rd A.D.
Unit 4 Polities from 3rd A.D. to 6th A.D.

Block 2: State in Early Medieval India

Unit 5 Early Medieval Polities in North India 7th to 12th A.D.
Unit 6 Early Medieval Polities in Peninsular India 6th to 8th A.D.
Unit 7 Early Medieval Polities in Peninsular India between 8th to 12th A.D.

Block 3: State in Medieval Times

Unit 8 State under the Delhi Sultanate
Unit 9 Vijayanagar, Bahamani and other Kingdoms
Unit 10 The Mughal State
Unit 11 18th Century Successor States

Block 4: Colonization (Part-I)

Unit 12 The Eighteenth Century Polities
Unit 13 Colonial Powers – Portuguese, French, Dutch
Unit 14 The British Colonial State
Unit 15 Princely States

Block 5: Administrative and Institutional Structures

Unit 16 Administrative and Institutional Structures in Peninsular India
Unit 17 Administrative and Institutional Systems in North India
Unit 18 Law and Judicial Systems

Block 6: Administrative and Institutional Structures

Unit 19 The Delhi Sultanate
Unit 20 Vijayanagar, Bahamani and other Kingdoms
Unit 21 The Mughal Empire
Unit 22 18th Century Successor States

Block 7: Colonization (Part-II)

Unit 23 Ideologies of the Raj
Unit 24 Activities
Unit 25 Resources
Unit 26 Extent of Colonial Intervention: Education and Society
Unit 27 End of the Colonial State – Establishment of Democratic Polity

MHI-05: History of Indian Economy

Block 1: Historiography, Environment and Economy

Unit 1 Historiography of the Pre-Colonial Economy – Ancient
Unit 2 Historiography of the Pre-Colonial Economy – Medieval
Unit 3 Historiography of the Colonial Economy
Unit 4 Environmental Zones and Indian Economic History

Block 2: Emergence and Structure of Complex Economy

Unit 5 Origins of Agriculture, Animal Domestication, Craft Production to Urbanisation (case
of the Harappan Civilisation)
Unit 6 Archaeology and Geography of Agricultural and Pastoral Communities of the
Subcontinent to the Middle of the First Millennium B.C.
Unit 7 Comparative Structures of Economies in Some Early States (Maurya, Kushana,
Satavahana, Gupta)
Unit 8 Patterns of Trade, Urbanisation and Linkages: North India (C. 600 BC-300 AD)
Unit 9 Patterns of Trade, Urbanisation and Linkages: Peninsular India (C. 300 BC to AD
300)

Block 3: Early Medieval Economy and Its Continuities

Unit 10 The Feudalism Debate in Indian History
Unit 11 Organisation of Agricultural and Crafts Production: North India, c. AD 550 – c. AD
1300
Unit 12 Nature of Stratification and Regional Profiles of Agrarian Society in Early Medieval
North India, c. AD 550 – c. AD 1300
Unit 13 Organisation of Agricultural and Crafts Production, Regional Profiles of Agrarian
Society and Nature of Stratification: South India
Unit 14 Trade, Trading Networks and Urbanisation: North India, c.AD 300 – c.AD 1300
Unit 15 Exchange Networks, Merchant Organisation and Urbanisation: South India

Block 4: Expansion and Growth of Medieval Economy-1

Unit 16 Agricultural Production
Unit 17 Agrarian Structure: Relations
Unit 18 Non-Agricultural Production
Unit 19 Taxation
Unit 20 Urban Centres in Medieval India

Block 5: Expansion and Growth of Medieval Economy-2

Unit 21 Inland and Maritime Trade
Unit 22 Business Practices and Monetary History
Unit 23 Technology and Economy
Unit 24 Transport and Communication
Unit 25 18th Century in Indian History

Block 6: Trade and Markets

Unit 26 Merchants and Markets: 1757-1857
Unit 27 Colonialism and Trade: 1857-1947

Block 7: The Rural Economy

Unit 28 Agrarian Policy and Land Rights
Unit 29 Patterns of Commercialisation
Unit 30 Forest Economies in Colonial India
Unit 31 Demographic Change and Agrarian Society in Colonial India
Unit 32 Tribal Society and Colonial Economy
Unit 33 The Question of Agrarian Growth and Stagnation

Block 8: Craft Production, Technological Change and Industrialization

Unit 34 The De-Industrialization Debate
Unit 35 Crafts Industries and Small Scale Production
Unit 36 Patterns of Industrialization
Unit 37 Technology, Science and Empire
Unit 38 From Planned Economy to Globalisation
Unit 39 The Political Economy of Liberalisation

IGNOU MA History Second Year Syllabus

MHI-03: Historiography

Block 1: Understanding History

Unit 1 Generalization
Unit 2 Causation
Unit 3 Objectivity and Interpretation
Unit 4 History, Ideology and Society

Block 2: Pre-Modern Traditions -1

Unit 5 Greco-Roman Tradition
Unit 6 Traditional Chinese Historiography
Unit 7 Historiographical Traditions in Early India

Block 3: Pre-Modern Traditions -2

Unit 8 Medieval Historiography – Western
Unit 9 Medieval Historiography – Arabic and Persian
Unit 10 Medieval Historiography – Indo-Persian
Unit 11 Local History

Block 4: Approaches to History in Modern Times-1

Unit 12 Positivist Tradition
Unit 13 Classical Marxist Tradition
Unit 14 The Annales School

Block 5: Approaches to History in Modern Times-2

Unit 15 Recent Marxist Approaches
Unit 16 Post-Modernist Intervention
Unit 17 Gender in History
Unit 18 Race in History

Block 6: Approaches and Themes in Indian Historiography – 1

Unit 19 Colonialist Historiography
Unit 20 Nationalist Approach
Unit 21 Communalist Trends
Unit 22 Marxist Approach
Unit 23 The Cambridge School

Block 7: Approaches and Themes in Indian Historiography – 2

Unit 24 History from Below
Unit 25 ‘Subaltern Studies’
Unit 26 Economic History
Unit 27 Peasantry and Working Classes
Unit 28 Castes, Tribe and Gender
Unit 29 Religion and Culture
Unit 30 Environment, Science and Technology

MHI-06: Evolution of Social Structures in India through the Ages

Block 1: Introductory

Unit 1 Reconstructing Ancient Society with Special Reference to Sources
Unit 2 Hunting-Gathering, Early Farming Society, Pastoralism
Unit 3 Harappan Civilization and Other Chalcolithic Cultures

Block 2: Cultures in Transition

Unit 4 Societies Represented in Vedic Literature
Unit 5 Iron Age Cultures
Unit 6 Socio-Religious Ferment in North-India : Buddhism and Jainism
Unit 7 Emergence of Buddhist Central and Peninsular India

Block 3: Early Historic Societies : 6th Century B.C. To 4th Century A.D.

Unit 8 Urban Classes : Traders and Artisans, Extension of Agricultural Settlements
Unit 9 Chaityas, Viharas and Their Interaction with Tribal Groups
Unit 10 Early Tamil Society – Regions and their Cultures and Cult of Hero Worship
Unit 11 Marriage and Family Life, Notions of Untouchability, Changing patterns in Varna
and Jati

Block 4: Early Medieval Societies

Unit 12 Transition to Early Medieval Societies
Unit 13 The Problem of Urban Decline: Agrarian Expansion, Land Grants And Growth of
Intermediaries
Unit 14 Proliferation and Consolidation of Castes & Jatis
Unit 15 Religion in Society

Block 5: Medieval Society – 1

Unit 16 Village Community
Unit 17 Rural Society: North India
Unit 18 Rural Society: Peninsular India

Block 6: Medieval Society – 2

Unit 19 Clans and Confederacies in Western India
Unit 20 Urban Social Groups in North India
Unit 21 Changing Social Structure in Peninsular India
Unit 22 Socio-Religious Movements
Unit 23 The Eighteenth Century Society in Transition

Block 7: Modern Society

Unit 24 Perception of the Indian Social Structure by the Nationalist and Social Reformers
Unit 25 Studying Castes in the New Historical Context
Unit 26 Pattern of Rural-Urban Mobility: Overseas Migration
Unit 27 Social Structure in the Urban and Rural Areas

Block 8: Social Questions Under Colonialism

Unit 28 Colonial Forest Policies and Criminal Tribes
Unit 29 Gender/Women under Colonialism
Unit 30 Social Discrimination
Unit 31 Popular Protests and Social Structures
Unit 32 Studying Tribes under Colonialism

MHI-08: History of Ecology and Environment: India

Block 1: Studying Ecology & Environment: An Introduction

Unit 1 Nature-Human Interface
Unit 2 Indian Landscape
Unit 3 Sources of Study

Block 2: Environment and Early Societies

Unit 4: Resource Use and Human Societies
Unit 5 Hunting – Gathering
Unit 6 Nomadic Pastoralism

Block 3: Environment and Agricultural Societies

Unit 7 Origins of Agriculture
Unit 8 River Valley Civilisation
Unit 9 Agricultural Diffusion and Regional Specificities – I
Unit 10 Agricultural Diffusion and Regional Specificities – II

Block 4: Appropriation of Environment – Other Forms

Unit 11 Energy Resources
Unit 12 Water Resources
Unit 13 Forest Resources
Unit 14 Metal & Mineral Resources

Block 5: Indian Philosophy and Environment

Unit 15 Man-Nature Relationship
Unit 16 Conservation Through Ages
Unit 17 Transitions

Block 6: Colonialism and Environment

Unit 18 Understanding of Environment
Unit 19 Environmental Agenda
Unit 20 Resource Management: Forests
Unit 21 Resource Management: Water

Block 7: Modern Concerns

Unit 22 Development and Environmental Concerns
Unit 23 Biodiversity
Unit 24 Environmental Resources and Patents
Unit 25 Alternatives

MHI-09: Indian National Movement

Block 1: Introduction

Unit 1 Nation and Nationalism
Unit 2 Anti-colonial National Liberation Movement – Asia and Africa
Unit 3 Perspectives on Indian Nationalism-I
Unit 4 Perspectives on Indian Nationalism-II

Block 2: The Formative Phase

Unit 5 Foundations of Indian Nationalism
Unit 6 Economic Nationalism
Unit 7 Resistance to Colonialism in Intellectual and Social Spheres
Unit 8 Towards Radical and Mass Politics

Block 3: National Movement – The Mass Phase-I

Unit 9 Nationalist Politics during the War-period
Unit 10 Emergence of Gandhi
Unit 11 The Turning Point
Unit 12 Khilafat and Non-Cooperation
Unit 13 Revolutionary Trends
Unit 14 Resistance within the Councils and Outside

Block 4: National Movement – The Mass Phase-II

Unit 15 Civil Disobedience Movement
Unit 16 Constitutional Developments
Unit 17 Congress Ministries
Unit 18 The Ideological Spectrum in the 1930s
Unit 19 Political Democratisation in Princely States

Block 5: Quit India and Its Aftermath

Unit 20 Prelude to Quit India
Unit 21 Quit India Movement
Unit 22 Post-War National Upsurge, 1945-47
Unit 23 Towards Freedom-I
Unit 24 Towards Freedom-II

Block 6: National Movement and Social Groups-I

Unit 25 The Peasantry
Unit 26 The Working Class
Unit 27 The Capitalist Class
Unit 28 The Landlords

Block 7: National Movement and Social Groups-II

Unit 29 National Movement and Women
Unit 30 National Movement and the Dalits
Unit 31 National Movement and the Minorities

Block 8: National Movement: Legacies

Unit 32 National Movement and its Strategies
Unit 33 National Movement and the Communal Problem
Unit 34 Making of the Indian Constitution
Unit 35 Legacies of the National Movement

MHI-10: Urbanisation in India

Block 1: Introduction to Urban History

Unit 1 What is Urban History?
Unit 2 Approaches to the Study of Urbanisation: Ancient Phase
Unit 3 Approaches to the Study of Urbanisation: Medieval Phase
Unit 4 Themes in Understanding the Modern Cities

Block 2: The Earliest Cities in the Subcontinent

Unit 5 An Introduction to Early Urbanism
Unit 6 Distribution and Morphology of Harappan Settlements
Unit 7 Harappan Economy and Occupations
Unit 8 Early Urban Societies
Unit 9 Case Study: Mohenjodaro

Block 3: Early Historic Cities

Unit 10 Archaeology of the Early Historic Urban Centres in North India: Emergence and
Characteristics
Unit 11 Archaeology of the Emergence of Early Cities and the Characteristics of the Early
Historical Urban Centres: South India
Unit 12 Urban Centres and Other Types of Spaces
Unit 13 Cities in Texts
Unit 14 Early Historical Cities in the Taxila Valley: Archaeological Perspective

Block 4: Patterns of Medieval Urbanisation-1

Unit 15 State of Urbanisation in Post-Gupta Period: Archaeological Evidence
Unit 16 Emergence of New Urban Centres in Early Medieval Context and Passage to Medieval
Urbanism: Textual Reference
Unit 17 Sultanate and Its Cities
Unit 18 Regional Cities of the 15th Century
Unit 19 Temple Towns in Peninsular India
Unit 20 Southern Dimension: The Glory of Vijayanagara
Unit 21 Case Study: Sultanate Delhi

Block 5: Patterns of Medivial Urbanisation-2

Unit 22 Spatial Characteristics of Mughal Cities
Unit 23 Urban Patterns in Medieval Deccan
Unit 24 Urban Culture and Society
Unit 25 Case Study: Agra-Fatehpur Sikri-Shahjahanabad
Unit 26 Case Study: Ajmer-Pushkar-Banaras
Unit 27 Case Study: Masulipatnam

Block 6: Early Modern Cities

Unit 28 Capitalism, Colonialism and Cities in Early Modern Period
Unit 29 Port Cities – 16th to 18th Centuries
Unit 30 Cities in the 18th Century: Manufacturing Towns
Unit 31 Cities in the 18th Century: Provincial Capitals
Unit 32 Case Study: Lucknow

Block 7: Colonial Cities-1

Unit 33 Dependent Urbanisation and New Urban Forms in Colonial India
Unit 34 Race, Class and Ethnicity in the Colonial City
Unit 35 The City as the Site of Spectacle
Unit 36 The City as the Site of Movements

Block 8: Colonial Cities-2

Unit 37 Modernity and the City in Colonial India
Unit 38 City Planning in India at the Advent of British
Unit 39 Predicaments of Post-Colonial Cities
Unit 40 Case Study: Bombay

MPSE-003: Western Political Thought (From Plato to Marx)

Unit 1 Significance of Western Political Thought
Unit 2 Plato
Unit 3 Aristotle
Unit 4 St Augustine and St Thomas Acquinas
Unit 5 Niccolo Machiavelli
Unit 6 Thomas Hobbes
Unit 7 John Locke
Unit 8 Jean Jacques Rousseau
Unit 9 Immanuel Kant
Unit 10 Jeremy Bentham
Unit 11 J.S. Mill
Unit 12 Edmund Burke
Unit 13 Alexis de Tocqueville
Unit 14 Georg Withelm Friedrich Hegel
Unit 15 Karl Marx

MPSE-004: Social and Political Thought in Modern India

Unit 1 Pre-Modern Socio-religious and Political Thought in India: Diverse Strands
Unit 2 Orientalist Discourse and Colonial Modernity
Unit 3 Salient Features of Political Thought in Modern India
Unit 4 Early Nationalist Responses: Ram Mohan Roy, Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, Jyotiba
Phule and Dayanand Saraswati
Unit 5 Moderates and Extremists: Dadhabai Naoroji, M.G. Ranade, B.G. Tilak
Unit 6 Hinduism: Swami Vivekananda and Sri Aurobindo Ghosh
Unit 7 Hindutva: V.D Savarkar and M.S. Golwalkar
Unit 8 Muslim Thought: Sir Syed Ahmed Khan Mohammed Iqbal, Maulana Maudoodi and
Mohammed Ali Jinnah
Unit 9 Nation and Identity Concerns: E.V. Ramaswamy Naicker, Nurul Islam, Pandita
Ramabai, Jaipal Singh, Kahn Singh
Unit 10 M.K. Gandhi
Unit 11 Jawaharlal Nehru
Unit 12 B.R.Ambedkar
Unit 13 Rabindranath Tagore
Unit 14 Communist Thought: MN Roy and E.M.S. Namboodiripad
Unit 15 Socialist Thought: R.M. Lohia and Jayaprakash Narayan

IGNOU MA History Syllabus PDF

On the demand of many students, we have created IGNOU MA history syllabus 2020 pdf and upload it on our website.

Students can download the complete syllabus of IGNOU MA History first and second year courses on a single click.

Download PDF here

IGNOU MA History Courses

In short, We have provided below the list of IGNOU MA History Courses that students need to pass out or complete by students to obtain the Master degree in History in first and second year.

Here below find the list of Course Code and Course names for IGNOU MA History programme. These courses are offered by university in 4 semesters to be completed in 2years.

IGNOU MA History Revised Courses (From July 2023 session)

Course Code	Title of the Course	Nature of Course	Credits
1st Year (First Semester)
MHI 101	Ancient and Medieval Societies	Theory	6
MHI 104	Political Structures in India through the Ages	Theory	8
MHI 105	History of Indian Economy-1: From Earliest Times	Theory	6
	to C.1700
1st Year (Second Semester)
MHI 102	Modern World	Theory	6
MHI 106	Social Structures in India through the Ages	Theory	8
MHI 107	History of Indian Economy-2: C.1700 to 2000	Theory	6
2nd Year (Third Semester)
MHI 103	Historiography and Research Methods	Theory	8
MHI 109	Indian National Movement	Theory	8
MPSE 004	Social and Political Thought in Modern India	Theory	Any one of These
MGP 004	Gandhi‘s Political Thought	Theory	4
2nd Year (Fourth Semester)
MHI 108	Environmental Histories of the Indian Subcontinent	Theory	8
MHI 110	Urbanization in India-1	Theory	6
MHI 111	Urbanization in India-2	Theory	6
Total Credits			80

IGNOU MA History Courses for Old Syllabus (before July 2023)

IGNOU MA History First Year Courses
Course Code	Course Name	Credits
MHI 1	Ancient and Medieval Societies	8
MHI 2	Modern World	8
MHI 4	Political Structures in India	8
MHI 5	History of Indian Economy	8
IGNOU MA History Second Year Courses
Compulsory Course
MHI 3	Historiography	8
Optional Courses (Choose24 credits only)
MPSE 3	Western Political Thought	4
MPSE 4	Social and Political Thought in Modern India	4
MHI 6	Evolution of Social Structures in India through the Ages	8
MHI 8	History of Ecology and Environment : India	8
MHI 9	Indian National Movement	8
MHI 10	Urbanization in India	8
Total Credits		64

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