OUR PASTS
Did you notice the title of this book, Our Pasts? We have used the word ‘pasts’ in the plural to draw attention to the fact that the past was different for different groups of people. For example, the lives of herders or farmers were different from those of kings and queens, the lives of merchants were different from those of craftspersons, and so on. Also, as is true even today, people followed different practices and customs in different parts of the country. For example, today most people living in the Andaman Islands get their own food by fishing, hunting, and collecting forest produce. By contrast, most people living in cities depend on others for supplies of food. Differences such as these existed in the past as well.
Besides, there is another kind of difference. We know a great deal about kings and the battles they fought because they kept records of their victories. Generally, ordinary people such as hunters, fishing folk, gatherers, farmers, or herders did not keep records of what they did. While archaeology helps us to find out about their lives, there is much that remains unknown.
Source: This topic is taken from the NCERT TEXTBOOK