Which one among the following about Kodumanal is correct?
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Answer A (official UPSC key)Kodumanal → archaeological site in Tamil Nadu
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Sangam Age & Early Tamil Kingdoms: 20 previous year questions
UPSC has asked 20 questions on Sangam Age & Early Tamil Kingdoms between 1988 and 2026: CDS 9 · CSE 5 · CAPF 3 · Geo-Scientist 2 · CISF (LDCE) 1. 16 of them came after 2015, so this is a live topic examiners keep returning to. 5 were set in Civil Services Prelims; the rest come from UPSC's other papers, which draw on the same question bank.
Tap an option to check yourself. Answers follow the official UPSC key; where the key was dropped or disputed the question is not shown.
Consider the following statements about Madurai, the capital city of the Pandya kingdom : 1. It has been described in Maduraikkanchi as a large grand city, enclosed by walls on three sides and the Vaigai river on the fourth side. 2. The Arthashastra mentions it as a centre of fine cotton textiles. 3. Other literary sources describe it as a major craft centre. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
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Answer D (official UPSC key)Madurai (Maduraikkanchi) → walls on three sides, Vaigai river on the fourth | Arthashastra → centre of fine cotton textiles | Other sources → major craft centre
Which one of the following Tamil texts deals with grammar ?
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Answer C (official UPSC key)Tamil text on grammar → Tolkappiyam
With reference to ancient South India, Korkai, Poompu and Muchiri were well known as
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Answer B (official UPSC key)Korkai, Poompuhar, Muchiri → ports
Which one of the following explains the practice of „Vattakirutal‟ as mentioned in Sangam poems?
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Answer D (official UPSC key)Vattakirutal (Sangam) → defeated king's ritual suicide by starving to death (facing North)
Which one of the following statements about Sangam literature in ancient South India is correct?
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Answer B (official UPSC key)Sangam poets → knew the Varna social classification
Which one of the following was an important Pandya port, celebrated for its pearls in Sangam poems and Greek accounts ?
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Answer B (official UPSC key)Pandya port celebrated for pearls → Korkai
Tamilakam, the name of the ancient Tamil country, included besides Tamil Nadu parts of present day:
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Answer A (official UPSC key)Tamilakam, besides Tamil Nadu → parts of Andhra Pradesh and Kerala
Which one of the following pairs of term and meaning is correctly matched?
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Answer D (official UPSC key)Uzhavar → ploughmen
Tamilakam was the name of the ancient Tamil country that included
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Answer B (official UPSC key)Tamilakam → land between Tirupati hills and the southernmost tip of the peninsula
Match List I with List II and select the correct answer using the code given below the lists: List I (Ethnic Territorial Segment): A. Maruta Makkal; B. Kuravan Makkal; C. Mullai Makkal; D. Neytal Makkal List II (Related Occupational Pattern): 1. Pastoralista; 2. Fishing people; 3. Ploughmen; 4. Hill people
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Answer C (official UPSC key)Maruta Makkal → Ploughmen | Kuravan Makkal → Hill people | Mullai Makkal → Pastoralists | Neytal Makkal → Fishing people
Who is the author of Manimekalai?
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Answer B (official UPSC key)Manimekalai → Sathanar
According to the Tamil Sangam texts, who among the following were the large landowners?
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Answer D (official UPSC key)Large landowners (Tamil Sangam texts) → Vellalars
Which river is praised in the fifth century Tamil epic, Silappadikaram?
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Answer A (official UPSC key)River praised in Silappadikaram → Cauvery
The epic, Silappadikaram refers to the:
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Answer B (official UPSC key)Silappadikaram → Jaina elements in the storyline
The Tolkappiyam is the name of:
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Answer B (official UPSC key)Tolkappiyam → book on Tamil grammar
Sangam literature formed a very important source for the reconstruction of the history of South India. It was written in
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Answer A (official UPSC key)Sangam literature → written in Tamil
Consider the following passage and identify the three tribal principalities referred to there, using the codes given below In the early history of the far South in India, three tribal principalities are mentioned in Ashokan inscriptions of the 3rd century BC and in Kharavela inscription of the 1st century BC.
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Answer B (official UPSC key)Three far-South principalities (Ashokan, Kharavela inscriptions) → Cholas, Pandyas and Cheras
Assertion (A): The Aham and Puram poems of the Padinen Kilukanakku group formed a continuation of the Sangam composition. Reason (R): They were included under the Post Sangam works as against the Sangam works proper.
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Answer A (official UPSC key)Aham and Puram poems of Padinen Kilukanakku → continuation of Sangam composition | Included under Post Sangam works | R explains A
The earliest evidence of a Jewish community settling in India is provided by a charter of a
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Answer C (official UPSC key)Earliest evidence of a Jewish community in India → charter of a Chera king (Cochin plates of Bhaskara Ravi-Varman)
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