Persian And Arabic Epigraphy Of Gujarat - Their Historical Significance (An Old And Rare Book)

This small publication is a result of the four lectures delivered by Dr. Z. A. Desai, in the Department of History, The M. S. University of Baroda, under the Special Assistance Visiting Lecturer Series in 1979-80. We are grateful to Dr. Desai for accepting our invitation to give these lectures and subsequently retouching them for publication.

As Dr. Desai has amply shown in his lectures, Gujarat has an abundant wealth of inscriptions, especially in Persian and Arabic, during the medieval age. They throw a flood of light on the polity, society and economy of the age of the Sultans and the Mughals. Co-related with the inscriptions in Sanskrit and Gujarati, which too are available in ample number, they add a new dimension to our understanding of this age. Much work has been done and is being done in this area; there is certainly no one today who can speak with greater knowledge and authority about Persian and Arabic epigraphs than Dr. Desai. We hope that this publication will form an introduction to a more detailed corpus of epigraphic material which Dr. Desai might prepare for publication subsequently.

This publication marks the first of the series of the Special Assistance Programme Lecturer Series. We hope to be able to follow it up by bringing out subsequent works which shed light on significant themes.

**Contents and Sample Pages**