Importance Of History Understanding Ones Existence Everyone wonders why their environments and situations are like what

they are right now. All this can be explained by the study of history which can tell you the story of your species, race, country, state, forefathers and your culture. When you put all these together, you will understand why things are the way they are and clear your doubts. For A Better Future When we study about wars and other atrocities committed in the past, we also analyze their causes, their courses and their path. This helps us in preventing future wars and mistakes of similar kind. It also helps us in determine the future effects of our actions by comparing our situations with situations in history. Learn From Our Ancestors People like Einstein, Newton, Martin Luther King Jr., and Gandhi have contributed important thoughts and teachings to their respective fields. They had toiled extensively to garner these ideas for the future generations. All their great work will be wasted if we do not understand their ideals and appreciate the work done by them. We can also learn those ideals and implement them in our own life, thus paving the way for a successful and fruitful life. We may not be able to copy them or completely imbibe their ideas in our life, but when we study them, we prevent these ideas from being lost. We can always pass these on to our next generation. To Understand Working Of The Society To really understand the working of human society and formation of the intricate bonds of relationships and dependence, we need to learn the actual development of human society. This cannot be possible without learning the history of human society and cultures. When we learn how settlements grew into villages and then towns and finally cities, we also learn the sources of important believes and roots of some social evils. To Govern Efficiently To plan an efficient government we need the understanding of governing procedures that have been followed throughout history. We will also get an understanding of the policies, which were successful and also the ones that were not. This kind of analysis will increase our understanding of people and the ways to deal with them. Inventions & Discoveries Imagine what would have happened with the invention of bulb was lost in the pages of history! There are many important inventions, formulas, medicines and discoveries which belonged to our ancestors and were lost in time. In the course of historical research and reviews, these were discovered and then used. Ancient books and inscriptions have always been enchantingly detailed and possess far superior sense of understanding of life and sciences than the present times. To Have Solid Foundation

No matter what is the subject we are talking, studying or discussing about, it will always have a historical background to it. History provides the backbone on which most of todays theories and subjects are supported. Be it general science, languages or social sciences, all subjects are based on their history and studies by the pioneers throughout the ages.

1.1 History : Meaning and Importance The word history is derived from the Greek noun historia meaning inquiry or research. Aristotle regarded it as a "systematic account of a set of natural phenomena, whether or not chronological ordering was a factor in the account." The term "history" has now come to be applied to accounts of events that are narrated in a chronological order, and deal with the past of mankind. Learning by inquiry about the past of mankind was later developed into a discipline by the Greek historians Thucydides and Heredeotus (who is popularly known as Father of History). E. H. Carn defined history as an "unending dialogue between the present and the past." Jawaharlal Nehru observed that mans growth from barbarism to civilization is supposed to be the theme of history." Will Durant called history "a narrative of what civilized men have thought or done in the past time." World history is primarily concerned with the evolution of mankind. It traces the whole story of man as well as of his progress in civilization a culture from the dim past up to the present day. It indicates his failures and his successes, describes his laws and his wars, and reveals his religions and his arts. It gives an account of the significant developments that took place in the past with reference to the countries and the men and women who played a noteworthy part. Thomas Carlyle, a famous historian of the French revolution regards world history as the "biography of great men."

The importance of history is in its capacity to help one to draw conclusions from the past events. It may be said that history is to the human race, what memory is to each man. It sheds the light of the past upon the present, thus helping one to understand oneself, by making one acquainted with other peoples. Also, as one studies the rise and fall of empires and civilizations, the lessons of the past help one to avoid the pitfalls of the present. History makes ones life richer by giving meaning to the books one reads, the cities one visits or the music one hears. It also broadens ones outlook by presenting to one

an admixture of races, a mingling of cultures and a spectacular drama of the making of the modern world out of diverse forces. Another importance of history is that it enables one to grasp ones relationship with ones past. For example if one wonders why the U.S. flag has 48 stars or why Great Britain follows monarchy, one has to turn to history for an answer. History is of immense value to social scientists engaged in research. Thus thepolitical scientist doing research on the parliamentary form of government, has to draw his materials from the treasure trove of history. It preserves the traditional and cultural values of a nation, and serves as a beacon light, guiding society in confronting various crises. History is indeed, as Allen Nerins puts it, "a bridge connecting the past with the present and pointing the road to the future."