NCERT Book Class 11 History Theme in World History PDF

Students should refer to NCERT books for clarifying all their doubts regarding the topics and to develop a clear idea of the contents of the subject. History is all about understanding the events sequentially and retaining that information till the end of the examination. With the NCERT Book of Class 11 History, students can easily note the important dates and the corresponding dates available in a compiled way. With the right strategy, one can easily achieve the desired scores.

The syllabus of the book is compiled while keeping in mind the benefits of the candidates and also helping them understand the basics of these contents before delving deep into the subject. Class 11 History is made interesting by the inclusion of all the major topics around the world. Some of the important topics discussed in the book are discussed below:

• Theme 1: From the Beginning of Time

In this chapter from Class 11 History book PDF, students can trace the beginning of human existence. In the first section, they will learn about the various evolution processes that human beings went through. There are also different phases of stone age – Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic, Neolithic revolution. Students will even know of various aspects of the lives of early humans such as food, shelter, farming, domestication. Cultural elements like paintings, development of language and making the stone tool are also described in detail.

This chapter will also discuss the sources from which these facts regarding the early human societies have been gathered, like fossils, stone tools and bones.

• Theme 2: Writing and City Life

This theme covers the ancient Mesopotamian Civilisation which flourished during the 5000 BCE. This civilisation is known by different names like Sumerian, Babylonian, Assyrian, and Akkadian. This chapter discusses two main features of Mesopotamian civilisation - it was known for its prosperity, city life along with rich and voluminous literature, especially in the field of Mathematics and Astronomy.

The literature and writing system in Mesopotamia spread to other parts of the world  like the Mediterranean, Northern Syria and Turkey. The chapter explores the development of writing in Mesopotamia and the system of the writing in cuneiform.

• Theme 3: An Empire Across Three Continents

In this chapter, the students will learn about the Roman Empire which was spread across three countries – Europe, West Asia, and North Africa. The official languages of this empire were Roman and Greek. This empire can be divided into two periods – early empire and late antiquity.

The Roman empire was founded by Augustus who ruled from 27 BCE to 14 CE. He not only brought an end to decades of internal strife and military regime but also took measures that helped Rome prosper in the field of art and finance. The chapter further discusses in detail the subsequent successors of Augustus.

• Theme 4: The Central Islamic Islands

This theme dives deeper into the roots of the Islamic community that unfolds approximately around 1400 years ago in the Arabian Peninsula. This chapter also covers the rise of Islam and its expansion from Egypt to Afghanistan, which formed the core area of Islamic civilisation from 600 – 1200.

The History of Islam has been gathered from a variety of sources like chronicles (tawarikh), biographies (sira), records of sayings and doings of the prophet(hadith) and the commentaries on Quaran (Tafsir).  Students will read more about this in the book.

• Theme 5: Nomadic Empires

Under this chapter, students will study another group of nomads – the Mongols of south Asia. They set up a transcontinental empire under the leadership of Genghis Khan that spread through the thirteenth and fourteenth century.

In this chapter , students will examine how the Mongols under the leadership of Genghis Khan adapted their traditional, social and political customs to create a very sophisticated form of government and a fearsome military.

The chapter also goes on to examine other important aspects of Mongolian empire like a military organisation, trade and communications, political organisations and the code of law followed by them.

• Theme 6: The Three Orders

Students will learn about feudalism in this chapter. It refers to the economic, legal, and political situation that existed at that time. It developed in Medieval France and spread to other parts of Europe.

This chapter discusses the Three Orders, which was a concept believed in by French priests. It divided western society between the period of the 9th and 16th century. These orders are - the clergy, the nobility, and the peasantry.

• Theme 7: Confrontation of Cultures

This theme scrutinises the encounters that took place between Europeans and people of the Americas. During this period, some Europeans like the Spanish and Portuguese ventured out into the sea to discover as well as new lands where spices and silver can be obtained.

The Class 11 History book PDF explores both economies along with their features, social life and religions of these native American cultures in detail.

• Theme 8: The Industrial Revolution

Industrial revolution refers to the phenomenon when significant changes began to take place in the field of industry, as machines and other improved means of manufacturing technology became available. The term was first used by European scholars – George Michelet in France and Friedrich Engels. Furthermore, in English, the term was used by economist and philosopher Arnold Toynbee while referring to the economic development that took place in England during the period between the 1780s to 1820.

The industrial revolution first took place in Britain because of several reasons. It had been politically stable since the 17th century. It was also unified under a monarchy, which means there were universal laws, a single currency and an unfragmented market. The Class 11 History book PDF will expand on these reasons in detail. Students will also learn the adverse effects of the industrial revolution.

• Theme 10: Displacing Indigenous Peoples

In this chapter, students will learn about the histories of indigenous native people of the Americas and Australia, and what happened to them when the Europeans started occupying their land.

The natives of America led a simple lifestyle and followed a subsistence economy. They exchange goods with Europeans to establish a friendship. However, the greed of Europeans affected their lifestyle in several ways and pushed them out of their land, which will be discussed further in Class 11 History book PDF.

• Theme 11: Paths to Modernisation 

This chapter focuses on how China and Japan Evolved to cope with the modern, changing world. At the turn of the 19th century, China dominated the whole of East Asia, whereas Japan was still a small island country.

However, within a few decades, the situation of these two countries underwent a complete change. Japan evolved to become a modern nation-state by creating a stable industrial economy and colonising Taiwan and Korea. It even invaded China in 1894 and Russia in 1905. On the other hand, China was slow to react to the changing times. The imperial government lost political control and was unable to establish suitable reforms which led to a civil war. 

This theme explains these concepts in great detail.

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