Class 11 Sample Paper History (Half Yearly)

SAMPLE
PAPER
Half Yearly Examination

Prepared For
NCERT BASED SYLLABUS
Applicable For
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HALF YEARLY EXAMINATION
SAMPLE QUESTION PAPER

Class - XI Subject – History
Time – 3 Hours Maximum Marks- 80

General Instructions

1. Answer all the questions. Some questions have internal Choice. Marks are indicated against
each question. This Question paper contains six sections.
2. Section A: Question numbers 1 to 16 are objective type questions carrying 1Mark and should
be answered in one word or one sentence each (Attempt any 15)
3. Section B: Question number 17 to 19 are case based questions having multiple choice
questions. Each question has 4sub -parts. Attempt any three sub parts from each question.
4. Section C:Answer to questions carrying 3 Marks (question number 20-23) should not exceed
100 words each
5. Section D: Answer to questions carrying 8 marks (question number 24-26) should not exceed
350 words each.
6. Section E: Question numbers 27-29 are source based questions carrying 5marks each
7. Section F : Question number 30 is a Map question that includes the identification and location
of significant test items. Attach the map with the answer book.

Section A
[1x15=15]
1. Which was known as ‘The city' in mesopotamia?
2. Match the following
A Homo Erectus I Southern
Ape
B Homo Sapiens II The tool
maker
C Homo Habilis III The wise
and
thinking
man
D Australopithecus IV The
Upright
man

3. What does Rasul mean ?

4. What does Mesopotamia mean ?

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5. Which of the following nomadic communities were in power in Mari ?
A. Akkadians
B. Amorites
C. Assyrians
D. Aramaeans
6. What does Ghengis Khan means?
7. Which of the following were the biggest urban centres that lined the shores of the
Mediterranean?
A. Carthage, Alexandria and anacdotal
B. Carthage anacdotal and antioch
C. Carthage, Alexandria and Antioch
D. All of the above
8. What does Spectacula mean?
9. Name the gold coin introduced by Constantine. Mention its measurement of gold ?
10. Who was the founder of Islam?
11. Arrange the following Khalifas in chronological order
A. Khalifa Ali
B. Khalifa Umar
C. Khalifa Abu bakr
D. Khalifa Uthman
12. Name the most prominent pilgrimage centre of the Arabian tribes in the seventh century.
13. Who was Gilgamish?How many tablets were used to write the Gilgamish epic ?
14. What was the original name of Ghengis Khan
15. Assertion (A ) : The monetary system of the late empire broke with the silver based
currencies of the first three centuries
Reason (R ): The Spanish silver mines were exhausted
Codes
A. Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A
B. Both A and R are true but R is not the correct explanation of A
C. A is true but R is not true
D. A is not true But R is true

16. Recognise the following Roman emperor

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Section B
17. Read the following excerpt carefully and answer any three questions.
On the Treatment of Slaves
Soon afterwards, the City Prefect,Lucius Pedanius Secundus, was murdered by one of his
slaves. After the murder, ancient custom required that every slave residing under the same
roof must be executed. But a crowd gathered, eager to save so many innocent lives; and
rioting began. The senate-house was besieged. Inside, there was feeling against excessive
severity, but the majority opposed any change (....) [The senators] favouring execution
prevailed. However, great crowds ready with stones and torches prevented the order from
being carried out. Nero rebuked the population by edict, and lined with troops the whole
route along which those condemned were taken for execution.'
Tacitus (55-117), historian of the early empire.
i. Choose the correct option.
Codes
Assertion (A) All the slaves under the same roof of the slave who killed the city prefect was
taken for execution
Reason( R ): A crowd tried to prevent it.
A. Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A
B. Both A and R are true but R is not the correct explanation of A
C. A is true but R is not true
D. A is not true But R is true
ii. This is about the system of ______
A. Dynastic succession
B. Successive repression
C. Slavery
D. Both B and C
iii.Who wrote this excerpt?
A. Pliny
B. Tacitus
C. Thebes
D. Olympiodorus
iv. The incident happened under which Roman emperor?
A. Tiberius
B. Nero
C. Trajan
D. Augustus

18. Read the following excerpt carefully and answer any three questions.
The Warka Head
This woman’s head was sculptured in white marble at Uruk before 3000 BCE. The eyes and
eyebrows would probably have been made taken lapis lazuli (blue) and shell (white) and

bitumen (black) inlays, respectively. There is a groove along the top of the head, perhaps
for an ornament. This is a world famous piece of sculpture, admired for the delicate
modelling of the women’s mouth, chin and cheeks. And it was modelled in hard stone that
would have been imported from a distance.

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i. Where did they get the Warka head ?
A. From Uruk
B. From the city
C. From Ur
D. Both A and B
ii. What was /were the most admired feature of the Warka head ?
A. Mouth
B. Chin
C. Cheeks
D. All of the above
iii.What was used for eyes and eyebrows ?
A. Lapis Lazuli
B. Shell
C. Bitumen
D. All of the above
iv. How old must have been the Warka head
A. Around 3000 years old
B. Around 5000 years old
C. 3000 years
D. None of the above
19. Read the following excerpt carefully and answer any three questions

Islamic Calendar
The Hijri era was established during the caliphate of Umar, with the first year falling in 622
CE. A date in the Hijri calendar is followed by the letters AH.
The Hijri year is a lunar year of 354 days, 12 months (Muharram to Dhul Hijja) of 29 or 30
days. Each day begins at sunset and each month with the sighting of the crescent moon.
The Hijri year is about 11 days shorter than the solar year. Therefore, none of the Islamic
religious festivals, including the Ramazan fast, Id and hajj, corresponds in any way to
seasons. There is no easy way to match the dates in the Hijri calendar with the dates in the
Gregorian calendar (established by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582 CE). One can calculate the
rough equivalents between the Islamic (H) and Gregorian Christian (C) years with the
following formulae:
(H x 32/33) + 622 = C

(C-622) x 33/32 = H
i. When was the Hijri year established?
A. 622 CE
B. 722 CE
C. 822CE
D. 1922 CE
ii. The Hijri year is a
A. Lunar year

B. Solar year
C. Universal year
D. Planet year

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iii.How many days are there in Hijri year
A. 354
B. 365
C. 365 ½
D. 353

iv. Who established the solar calendar mentioned in this
A. Pope Gregory
B. Christians
C. Muslims
D. Prophet Muhamad

Section C

20. How is the division of labour believed to be the main factor behind the growth of
urbanisation ?Why trade was important for the development of the River valley civilisation
of Mesopotamia [1.5+1.5=3]
21. Explain the courier system of Genghis Khan [3]
22. What was the religion of the people of Roman empire? Explain [3]
23. How were the fossils of Homo named? Explain with examples [3]

Section D

24. What in your opinion could be the uses of Writing in early civilizations ? [8]
25. Explain the social hierarchies of the the Roman Empire
OR
Explain Late antiquity in the Roman context [8]

26. Explain the major teachings of Islam [8]

Section E

27. Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow:

The Discovery of Australopithecus, Olduvai Gorge, 17 July, 1759
The Olduvai Gorge was first 'discovered' in the early twentieth century by a German
butterfly collector. However, Olduvai has come to be identified with Mary and Louis
Leakey, who worked here for over 40 years. It was Mary Leakey who directed
archaeological excavations at Olduvai and Laetoli and she made some of the most exciting
discoveries. This is what Louis Leakey wrote about one of their most remarkable
That morning I woke with a headache and a slight fever. Reluctantly, I agreed to spend the

day in camp. With one of us out of commission, it was even more vital for the other to
continue the work, for our precarious seven-week season was running out. So Mary
departed for the diggings with Sally and Toots [two of their dogs] in the Land Rover la
jeep-like vehicle), and I settled back to a restless day off.
5

Some time later-perhaps I dozed off-I heard the Land-Rover coming up fast to camp. I had
a momentary vision of Mary stung by one of our hundreds of resident scorpions or bitten
by a snake that had slipped past the dogs.

The Land-Rover rattled to a stop, and I heard Mary's voice calling over and over: "I've got
him! I've got him! I've got him!" Still groggy from the headache, I couldn't make her out.
"Got what? Are you hurt?" I asked. "Him, the man! Our man," Mary said. "The one we've
been looking for 23 years. Come quick, I've found his teeth "

1. What is this source tells us about? [1]
2. What does Australopithecus mean? [2]
3. Who discovered the first fossils of Australopithecus? [2]
28. Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow:
The Capture of Bukhara

Juwaini, a late-thirteenth-century Persian chronicler of the Mongol rulers of Iran, carried an
account of the capture of Bukhara in 1220. After the conquest of the city, Juwais reported,
Genghis Khan went to the festival ground where the rich residents of the city were and
addressed them: "O people know that you have committed great sins, and that the great
ones among you have committed these sins. If you ask me what proof I have for these
words, I say it is because I am the punishment of God. If you had not committed great sins,
God would not have sent a punishment like me upon you'... Now one man ha escaped from
Bukhara after its capture and had come to Khurasan. He was questioned about the fate of
the city and replied: They came, they [mined the walls], they burnt, they slew, they
plundered and they departed.'
Questions

(i) By whom is the above passage written? What does he describe in it [2]
(ii) What do you know about Genghis Khan? [1]
(iii) What did Genghis Khan say to the conquered people? [2]

29. Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow:

In India, early stone seals were stamped. In Mesopotamia until the end of the first
millennium BCE, cylindrical stone seals, pierced down the centre, were fitted with a stick
and rolled over wet clay so that a continuous picture was created. They were carved by
very skilled craftsmen, and sometimes carry writing; the name of the owner, his god, his
official position, etc. A seal could be rolled on clay covering the string knot of a cloth
package or the mouth of a pot, keeping the contents safe. When rolled on a letter written on
a clay tablet, it became a mark of authenticity. So the seal was the mark of a city dweller’s
role in public life.
Questions

(i) Which type of material was used to make seals? [1]
(ii) What were the various types of seals? [2]
(iii) Who carved these seals? Write a few features of these seals (Mesopotamian seals) [2]

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Section F

30. Map question [1x5=5]
Mark in the given out line map of Europe the following places

1. Capital of Roman Empire
2. Altamira
3. Neander Valley
4. Heidel Berg
5. Gaul

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