Growth of Muslim Population in Medieval India, A.D. 1000–1800 c6.s1.48

c6.s1.48

In conclusion it may be said that on a study of the medieval chronicles it appears that with regard to the figures of the casualties of the ‘enemy’ in war our chroniclers, probably to glorify their heroes—conquerors and rulers—sometimes give inflated figures. Their estimates of the population of a city or region are also sometimes liable to be optimistic; their one major drawback is that they ignore the rural scene altogether. But in many other details, which are helpful in demographic study, they are fairly trustworthy. For instance, many chroniclers give reliable data about the prices of foodgrains and other commodities pertaining to their times. About the same period the amount of revenue, the rate of revenue, the price-schedules on which the revenue demand was settled, are also given. All this information helps in calculating the total amount of produce on which the then population subsisted and estimating, on the basis of per capita consumption of foodgrains and other edibles, the then density of population. Thus, in spite of their few weaknesses, the facts and figures supplied by medieval chroniclers are of great value in our study.