Question

Which of the following represents the town inhabited by merchants and traders in Chola
period?
A) Nagaram
B) Nadu
C) Sabha
D) Ur

Answer 1

Hint: The Chola dynasty was a Tamil thalassocracy empire in southern India, and it was one of the world's longest-ruling empires. The oldest datable allusions to the Chola can be found in inscriptions left by Ashoka of the Maurya Empire in the 3rd century BCE. Merchants operated their businesses through a corporation known as nagarattar.

Complete answer:
Nagaram was the commercial town in mediaeval Tamil country where merchants conducted economic activity throughout the eighth and ninth century. The Nagaram served largely as a market for the Nadus. Traders and merchants developed their own groups and organisations in this town.

Let us look at the given options to determine the correct answer:
A) Nagaram: This is the correct answer. Merchants and traders developed their own organisations and associations in Nagaram.
B) Nadu: This option is incorrect because larger divisions called Nadu were formed by groups of wealthy villages. It is not referred to as the town inhabited by merchants and traders in the Chola period.
C) Sabha: This option is incorrect because it does not refer to the town inhabited by merchants. An assembly of eminent Brahmana landholders known as Sabha was in charge of Brahmadeya (land transfers to Brahmans). Thus, sabha is an assembly of Brahmans.
D) Ur: Ur referred to the settlement of peasants during the Chola period whereas the question asks for a town inhabited by merchants and traders during the Chola period. Thus, this option is incorrect.

Thus, the correct answer is Option (A)i.e, Nagaram.

Note: The Ur was a village assembly located in southern India where the landowners were peasants rather than brahmins, and the Sabha was one of the local legislatures. It was a gathering of landowners from the Brahmin religion. Ur consisted of tax-paying residents.