16. Mahabalipuram monuments in Tamil Nadu were built by the:
(a) Cholas
(b) Pandyas
(c) Pallavas
(d) Rashtrakutas
Answer:
(c) Pallavas
Explanation:
The group of monuments at Mahabalipuram was constructed during the 7th and 8th centuries by the kings of the Pallava dynasty.
17. Aryabhatta was the contemporary of:
(a) Vishnugupta
(b) Harshavardhana
(c) Chandragupta Vikramaditya
(d) Yashovarman
Answer:
(c) Chandragupta Vikramaditya
Explanation:
The great mathematician and astronomer Aryabhata lived during the Gupta era, making him a contemporary of Chandragupta II (Vikramaditya).
18. Hiuen Tsang / Xuanzang came to India during the period of:
(a) Chandragupta Maurya
(b) Harshavardhana
(c) Samudragupta
(d) None of the above
Answer:
(b) Harshavardhana
Explanation:
Xuanzang was a famous Chinese Buddhist monk and scholar who traveled to India in the 7th century during the reign of Emperor Harshavardhana.
19. Mahavamsais a text related to:
(a) Buddhism
(b) Jainism
(c) Hinduism
(d) Ajivika sect
Answer:
(a) Buddhism
Explanation:
The “Mahavamsa” (“Great Chronicle”) is a carefully kept historical epic in Pali covering the history of Sri Lanka, heavily focusing on Theravada Buddhism.
20. At the time of Arab invasion, Sindh was under the rule of Raja:
(a) Porus
(b) Chach
(c) Dahir
(d) Jaypala
Answer:
(c) Dahir
Explanation:
Raja Dahir was the last Hindu ruler of Sindh; he was defeated and killed by the Umayyad general Muhammad bin Qasim during the Arab invasion in 712 CE.
21. Alberuni was a native of:
(a) Khwarizm
(b) Bukhara
(c) Nishapur
(d) Ghazni
Answer:
(a) Khwarizm
Explanation:
Al-Biruni, a renowned scholar and polymath, was born in Khwarazm (modern-day western Uzbekistan/northern Turkmenistan).
22. Vijayanagara’s capital city Hampi is located near the river:
(a) Godavari
(b) Kaveri
(c) Krishna
(d) Tungbhadra
Answer:
(d) Tungbhadra
Explanation:
The magnificent ancient city of Hampi, the former capital of the Vijayanagara Empire, is situated on the southern banks of the Tungabhadra River.
23. The port of Zayton famous for foreign trade in medieval era, was located in:
(a) Arabia
(b) Indonesia
(c) Sri Lanka
(d) China
Answer:
(d) China
Explanation:
“Zayton” (or Zaiton) was the Arabic name used by travelers like Marco Polo and Ibn Battuta for the major Chinese trading port of Quanzhou.
24. Alvars, the bhakti saints of South India, were devotees of:
(a) Vishnu
(b) Shiva
(c) Brahma
(d) Periyar
Answer:
(a) Vishnu
Explanation:
The Alvars were medieval Tamil poet-saints of South India who were devoted exclusively to Lord Vishnu and his avatars.
25. Sheikh Nasiruddin Chiragh Dehalvi belonged to which of the following sufi silsilahs?
(a) Suharvardi
(b) Chishti
(c) Firdausi
(d) Qadri
Answer:
(b) Chishti
Explanation:
Nasiruddin Mahmud Chiragh Dehlavi was a prominent 14th-century mystic and a major Sufi saint belonging to the Chishti Order.
