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Q3 (IAS/2022) History & Culture › Culture, Literature, Religion & Philosophy › Tamil Sangam literature Official Key

Which one of the following statements about Sangam literature in ancient South India is correct ?

Result
Your answer: —  ·  Correct: B
Explanation

The correct answer is Option 2.

Sangam literature, composed between 300 BCE and 300 CE, provides a detailed account of the socio-economic life in ancient South India. Option 2 is correct because while the Tamil society was primarily organized into five eco-zones (Tinais), the influence of Vedic culture led to the gradual introduction of the Varna system. Sangam poets like Tolka-ppiyar mention the presence of Brahmins (Anthanar) and the classification of society into distinct functional groups, indicating their awareness of Varna hierarchy.

  • Option 1 is incorrect as the poems vividly describe trade, luxury goods, and urban life (Material Culture).
  • Option 3 is incorrect because "Puram" poetry is centered entirely on warrior ethics, heroism, and the cult of the hero stone (Virakkal).
  • Option 4 is incorrect because Sangam society believed in Anangu (sacred/magical powers) and irrational spirits, rather than dismissing them as irrational.
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Don’t just practise – reverse-engineer the question. This panel shows where this PYQ came from (books / web), how the examiner broke it into hidden statements, and which nearby micro-concepts you were supposed to learn from it. Treat it like an autopsy of the question: what might have triggered it, which exact lines in the book matter, and what linked ideas you should carry forward to future questions.
Q. Which one of the following statements about Sangam literature in ancient South India is correct ? [A] Sangam poems are devoid of any ref…
At a glance
Origin: Mixed / unclear origin Fairness: Low / Borderline fairness Books / CA: 2.5/10 · 0/10
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This is a classic 'Nature of Source' question. It doesn't demand rote memorization of a specific line but tests your understanding of the *themes* of Sangam literature (Love/Akam and War/Puram). If you knew the basic genre division, options A and C are instantly eliminated, leaving a logical choice based on North-South cultural diffusion.

How this question is built

This question can be broken into the following sub-statements. Tap a statement sentence to jump into its detailed analysis.

Statement 1
Are Sangam poems in ancient South India devoid of any reference to material culture?
Origin: Weak / unclear Fairness: Borderline / guessy
Indirect textbook clues
Exploring Society:India and Beyond ,Social Science-Class VII . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 6: The Age of Reorganisation > THINK ABOUT IT > p. 130
Strength: 4/5
“That period saw the advent of many poets whose works, collectively known as 'Sangam literature', defined the entire era: it came to be known as the 'Sangam Age'. The word sangam is derived from the Sanskrit sangha, which translates to 'association' and 'coming together' — in this context, referring to an assembly of the poets. The Sangam literature, the oldest in south India, consists of several collections or anthologies of poems and is much consulted by historians who investigate the society and culture of the times. Primarily, Sangam poetry expresses with great skill and delicacy personal emotions such as love or societal values like heroism and generosity.”
Why relevant

Sangam literature is described as a key source consulted by historians to investigate the society and culture of the times.

How to extend

A student could check whether works used as social evidence commonly contain material-culture references (objects, crafts, places) to support their use as historical sources.

History , class XI (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 5: Evolution of Society in South India > Classical Tamil Literature > p. 64
Strength: 4/5
“The Classical Sangam corpus consists of Tholkappiyam, the eight anthologies (Ettuthogai), Ten Idylls (Paththuppattu). Tholkappiyam is the earliest extant Tamil grammatical text dealing not only with poetry but also the society and culture of the times. The Pathinen Kilkanakku (18 minor works) and the five epics belong to post-Sangam times (fourth to sixth century CE) and describe a different social and cultural set-up.”
Why relevant

Tholkappiyam is noted as dealing not only with poetry but also the society and culture of the times, implying literary texts include social-cultural detail.

How to extend

One could look in Tholkappiyam for explicit mentions of crafts, tools, dress, or economic activities as examples of material-culture references.

History , class XI (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 5: Evolution of Society in South India > Social Formation in 5.4Tamil Eco-zones > p. 68
Strength: 5/5
“Sangam poems help us understand the social formation of the time. According to the thinai concept, Tamilagam was divided into five landscapes or eco-regions, Ainthinai namely Kurinji, Mullai, Marutam, Neythal and Palai. Each region had distinct characteristics - a presiding deity, people and cultural life according to the environmental conditions, as follows: • Kurinji: Mullai; hilly region: hunting and gathering: region: forested pastoralism combined with shifting cultivation • Kurinji: Marutham; hilly region: hunting and gathering: riverine tract: agriculture using plough and irrigation. • Kurinji: Neythal; hilly region: hunting and gathering: salt coastal land: fishing and making. • Kurinji: Palai; hilly region: hunting and gathering: parched land: Unsuitable for cultivation and hence people took to cattle lifting and robbery.”
Why relevant

The thinai concept links ecological zones to specific people, deities and cultural life, a pattern in Sangam poems tying landscape descriptions to human activities.

How to extend

Using basic geographic knowledge, a student could infer that poems describing fishing, agriculture, or hill life likely mention related material items (boats, ploughs, weapons) and then seek such terms in the texts.

History , class XI (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 5: Evolution of Society in South India > 5.6 Society and Economy > p. 69
Strength: 5/5
“In the Sangam Age, the wars waged by the Vendar were involved in expanding their territorial base by annexing the enemy's territories. Endemic warfare presumably created conditions for social disparities. War captives serving in some cult centers are mentioned. Some references to slaves are also found there. Women were actively engaged in economic production and there were a significant number of women poets in the Sangam Age. There is evidence of craft production such as bronze vessels, beads and gold works, textiles, shell bangles and ornaments, glass, iron smithy, pottery making. Craft production was common in the major urban centres such as Arikamedu, Uraiyur, Kanchipuram, Kaviripattinam, Madurai, Korkai, and Pattanam in Kerala.”
Why relevant

This snippet lists concrete craft production (bronze vessels, beads, textiles, shell bangles, iron smithy, pottery) attested for the Sangam Age, linking the period to recognizable material culture.

How to extend

A student could test whether Sangam poems reference the same crafts/items named here, using the archaeological/archival inventory as a checklist.

History , class XI (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 2: Early India: The Chalcolithic, Megalithic, Iron Age and Vedic Cultures > Kodumanal > p. 22
Strength: 5/5
“In the Sangam work Pathitrupathu, a place called Kodumanam belonging to the Chera king, is praised for gemstones and therefore some archaeologists argue that Kodumanam is the ancient name of Kodumanal. Hoards of Roman coins have been discovered and it is believed that this is a result of the export of gemstones to the Roman world, resulting in a huge inflow of gold from the latter into the region. Conches and bangles, remnants of furnaces, a kiln floor filled with ash, soot, and potsherds with Tamil-Brahmi inscriptions are other finds in the site. Pit burials, urn burials, and chamber tombs of different types excavated at Kodumanal and the names inscribed on potsherds may indicate habitation by multiethnic groups.”
Why relevant

A Sangam work (Pathitrupathu) praises Kodumanam for gemstones, and excavations at Kodumanal yielded conches, bangles, furnaces and inscribed potsherds, showing literary place-names correspond to material finds.

How to extend

One could use the correspondence between poem-place-names and archaeological finds to hypothesize that poems include material-detail (gem trade, crafts) and then search those poems for such references.

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Statement analysis

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Statement analysis

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