Oral tradition
Topic: Studying Indian History: Sources, Dating and Historiography · NCERT: Class 6, Ch 7 "India's Cultural Roots"; Class 6, Ch 8 "Unity in Diversity, or 'Many in the One'"
Meaning
Oral tradition is knowledge passed down by speech, memory and practice rather than by writing. It includes hymns, songs, stories, family histories and local versions of epics. It is a key source for India's cultural history, especially for times and communities that left little writing. Because it can change as it passes from person to person, historians compare it with other evidence.
Example
The Vedic hymns, such as those of the Rigveda (c. 1500–1000 BCE), were learnt by heart and chanted for many centuries before being written down. Strict methods of memorising kept the words very accurate. Many tribal communities in India also have their own spoken versions of the Ramayana and Mahabharata.
Don't confuse with
- Literary sources: texts used as evidence. Some began as oral tradition and were written down later, but oral tradition lives through speaking, not through a written text.
Related concepts
- Sources of history
- Archaeology
- Numismatics
- Archaeo-botany
- Underwater archaeology
- Literary sources
- Hagiography
- Kalhana
- Rajatarangini
- Indica of Arrian