Travellers' accounts are an important part of India's past history.
Some of them are mentioned below.
This is just a collection of information.
Travellers | Reign of Rulers | Contribution and Misc. |
|---|---|---|
Deimachos Period: (320-273 BC) Who: Greek Ambassador | Came to India in the reign of Bindusara. | - |
Megasthenes Period: (302-298 B.C.) Who: Greek ethnographer & ambassador. | Ambassador of Seleucus Nicator, who visited the court of Chandragupta Maurya. | Wrote an interesting book Indica. |
Ptolemy Period: 130 A.D. Who: From Greece and Geographer. | - | Wrote “Geography of India” which gives a description of Ancient India. |
Fa-Hien Period: (405-411 A.D.) Who: Chinese Buddhist Monk | Came to India in the reign of Chandragupta II Vikramaditya. | - Visited the birthplace of Buddha, Lumbini. - His Travelogue “Records of Buddhist Kingdoms”. - Wrote Fo-Kyo-Ki. |
Hiuen-Tsang Period: (630-645 A.D.) Who: Chinese Buddhist Monk | Visited India during the reign of Harshavardhana. | - Came through Tashkent and Swat Valley. - Book is “Si-Yu-Ki or the records of the western world”. |
I-tsing Period: (671- 695 A.D.) Who: Chinese traveller | Visited India in connection with Buddhism. | - His works are Biographies of Eminent Monks. - Gives useful information about the social, religious and cultural life of the people of this country. |
Al-Masudi Period: (957 A.D.) Who: Arab Traveller | - | Gives an extensive account of India in his work “Muruj-ul-Zahab”. |
Al- Beruni or Abu Rehan Mahamud Period: (1024-1030 A.D.) Who: Muslim Scholar and Polymath | Came along with Mahmud Ghazni during one of his Indian raids. | - First Muslim Scholar to study India also known as the founder of Indology. - Wrote “ Tahqiq-i-Hind/Kitab-ul-Hind. |
Marco Polo Period: (1292-1294 AD) Who: Venetian Traveller | Visited South India in 1294 A.D during the reign of Pandyan ruler of Madurai, Madverman, Kulshekhara (1272-1311) | His work “The Book of Sir Marco Polo” gives an invaluable account of the economic history of India. |
Ibn Batuta Period: (1333-1347 A.D.) Who: Morrish traveller | Visited India during the reign of Muhammad-Bin-Tughlaq. | His book “ Rehla” (the travelogue) |
Shihabuddin al-Umari Period: (1348 A.D.) Who: Came from Damascus | - | He gives a vivid account of India in his book “ Masalik albsar fi-mamalik al-amsar” |
Nicolo Conti Period: (1420-1421 A.D.) Who: Venetian traveller | Came during the rule of Devraya I of the Sangam Dynasty of the Vijayanagar empire. | Given a graphic account of the Vijayanagara capital. |
Abdur Razzaq Period: (1443-1444 A.D.) Who: Persian traveller, Ambassador of Shahrukh of Timurid dynasty. | - Came during the rule of Devraya II of the Sangam dynasty of the Vijaynagar Empire. - Came in India at Zamorin's Calicut. | Given a brief account of this countryside, in his Matla us Saddin wa Majuma ul Baharain. |
Athanasius Nikitin Period: (1470- 1474 A.D.) Who: Russian merchant | Visited South India in 1470. | -He describes the condition of the Bahmani kingdom under Muhammad III (1463-82). - His narrative “ The journey beyond 3 seas” |
Duarte Barbosa Period: (1500-1516 A.D.) Who: Portuguese traveller | - | He has given a brief description of the government and the people of the Vijayanagar Empire. |
Domingo Paes Period: (1520-1522 A.D.) Who: Portuguese traveller | Visited the court of Krishnadeva Raya of Vijayanagar Empire. | - |
Fernao Nuniz Period: (1535-1537 A.D.) Who: Portuguese merchant | Came during the rule of Achyutdeva Raya of the Tuluv dynasty of Vijayanagar Empire. | Wrote a history of the empire from its earliest times to the closing years of Achyutdeva Raya’s reign. |
John Hughen Von Linschotten Period: (1583 A.D.) Who: Dutch traveller | - | Given a valuable account of the social and economic life of South India. |
William Hawkins Period: (1608-1611 A.D.) Who: Ambassador of James I, king of England. | Came to India during the reign of Jahangir, the great Mughal Emperor. William finch came with him. | - |
Sir Thomas Roe Period: (1615-1619 A.D.) Who: Ambassador of James I, king of England. | Came to India during the reign of Jahangir, the great Mughal Emperor. | - |
Edward Terry Period: (1616 A.D.) Who: Ambassador of Thomas Roe. | - | Describe Indian social (Gujarat) behaviour. |
Franciso Palsaert Period: (1620-1627 A.D.) Who: Dutch traveller stayed at Agra. | - | Gave a vivid account of the flourishing trade at Surat, Ahmadabad, Broach, Cambay, Lahore, Multan etc. |
Peter Mundy Period: (1630-34 A.D.) Who: Italian traveller | Came in the reign of the Mughal Emperor, Shahjahan. | Gives valuable information about the living standard of the common people in the Mughal Empire. |
John Albert de Mandesto Period: (1638 A.D.) Who: German traveller | Reached Surat in 1638 A.D. | - |
Jeen Baptiste Tavernier Period: (1638-1663 A.D.) Who: French traveller | Visited India 6 times in the reign of Shahjahan and Aurangzeb. | - |
Nicolao Manucci Period: (1653-1708 A.D.) Who: Italian traveller | He got service at the court of Dara Shikoh. | - |
Francois Bernier Period: (1656- 1717 A.D.) Who: French physician and Philosopher. | Danishamand Khan, a noble of Aurangzeb was his patron. | - |
Jean de Thevenot Period: (1666 A.D.) Who: French traveller | - | Given an account of cities like Ahmadabad, Cambay, Aurangabad and Golconda. |
John Fryer Period: (1672-1681 A.D.) Who: English traveller |
| Given a vivid account of Surat and Bombay. |
Gemelli Careri Period: (1695 A.D.) Who: Italian traveller who landed at Daman. | - | His remarks on the Mughal emperor’s military organisation and administration are important. |
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