Social and cultural history Books

Book SynopsisPunjab, Punjabis & Punjabiyat brings together Khushwant Singh''s best writings on Punjab, Punjabis and the Sikhs. Divided into three parts, the book deals with various aspects of the region-its geography, climate, history, culture, religion, politics, language and literature. Part I of the book delves into Punjab''s history, culture, language and Sikhism. Part II covers the burning issues that affected the state during Khushwant Singh''s lifetime, including the pains of Partition, the Khalistan movement, Operation Blue Star, the anti-Sikh riots, and more. Part III is a collection of profiles of well-known Punjabis-poets, politicians, activists, friends and family. The pieces in the book celebrate the culture, determination and spirit of the people of Khushwant Singh''s native land, a place he identified deeply with. Taken together, they give us a peerless portrait of Punjab and its people.

Read more less

Book SynopsisProfessor Krom's Nagara-Kert:a.gam.a edilllion of 1919 contained several lists and indexes to show the way through the maze of unfamiliar names of persons and places mentioned in the text. In con­ cordance with the broadened scope of the present book the old lists have been brought up to date and some new ones have been added. It i•s hoped that they will prove to be of some use to readers who, though not being expert in rebus Jooanicis, still would take cognizance of history and development of culture in one of the most interesting islands of ·the Indian Archipelago. The alphalbetical index of subjects treated in volumes II and IV of the present book is specially recom­ mended to their attention. The Javanese glossary is to and general index which aJn addition the present book not found in previous edition:s, covers in the first place aU Nagara-Kertagama words and names wha:tsoever, and further many words and n:ames of other texts. In combination with the English a!lphalbetical index of subjects the Javanese glossary is to be used as a general index of contents of volwnes I-V and, up to a certain point, as a substitute for the encyclopaedia of things Javanese that is lacking.Table of ContentsMinor Lists and Notes.- Alphabetical Index of subjects treated in volumes II–V.- Javanese Glossary.- Addenda et Corrigenda.- Plans and Maps.- Illustrations.- A woman’s head, sandstone sculpture.- The R?n?k charter copperplates.- The N?gara-K?rt?gama manuscript.

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis book is a study in the depth of a colonial 'plantation' during fifty critical years of slavery in the Caribbean. As the title suggests however, it is not concerned with slavery exclusively, but with a social entity of which slavery was a significant part. Brathwaite argues that the people - from Britain and West Africa, mainly - who settled, lived and worked in Jamaica, contributed to the formation of a society which developed its own distinctive character - creole society. This society developed institutions, customs and attitudes which were basically the result of the interaction between its two main elements, the African and European. But this creole society was also part of a wider American or New World culture complex, and as such, it was also shaped by the pressures upon it of British and European mercantilism, and the American, French, and Humanitarian Revolutions.

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe process of terminating the European Transatlantic Trade in Africans (TTA) was long and drawn-out. Although Africans, including the enslaved had long resisted its operation, abolition has traditionally been presented as a benevolent act by the British state acting under pressure from the intellectual classes and humanitarian activists. But the campaign to end the TTA cannot be separated from the resistance struggle of the Africans themselves.In Saving Souls: The Struggle to end the Transatlantic Trade in Africans, the companion volume to Trading Souls, noted Caribbean historians Hilary Beckles and Verene Shepherd trace the African experience from capture, the horrors of the Middle Passage to liberation. Their story emphasises the contributions of the victims of the enslaved even while acknowledging the critical role of the British abolitionists. Readers will learn about: The structure and conduct of the trade in African people, Details of the resistance of Africans to capture, sale and transportation, The abolition movement – involving black and white, enslaved and free, male and female, Christian and non-Christian activists, Legacies of the 1807 Act, The final Abolition Acts, namely the 1805–1806 Order-in-Council and the 1807 Act are included as appendices for easy reference.

Read more less

Book SynopsisWho is a Caymanian?’ `What should be the nature of the relationship between “established Caymanian” and “expatriate Caymanians” in arriving at a definition?’ J.A. (Roy) Bodden argues that Caymanian society is based on a synergistic and symbiotic relationship between expatriates and Caymanians. At the heart of this dilemma of twenty-first Caymanian society to define its identity and future direction, is its peculiar status as a modern-day `frontier society’ made up of a totally imported population. The author provides an engaging account of the peculiarities of that frontier status, its historical antecedents and the implications for the Islands’ future development. He introduces a number of new analytical concepts such as `pigmentocracy’ to analyse the role of colour and class distinctions in the Islands’ development and `voluntary colonialism’ to describe an existing political structure in which there appears to be no desire to evolve beyond the current status as a colony of Great Britain. Bodden is the first Caymanian to offer such a thorough examination of Cayman Islands society. He adopts a multidisciplinary approach to describe and analyse the specific ways that Caymanians and expatriates have grappled and continue to grapple with issues of settlement, colonialism, domination, prejudice, rapid economic growth, modernity and globalization. The Cayman Islands in Transition is a contribution to the emerging academic discipline of Island Studies and is bound to generate considerable debate, discussion and dialogue both within Caymanian society and beyond.

Read more less