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{{Short description|Indian historian}}
{{short description|Indian historian (born 1959)}}
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2015}}
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2015}}
{{Infobox officeholder
{{Infobox officeholder
| order              = Head of the Department (History)
| name                = Upinder Singh
| office              = University of Delhi
| order              = Dean of Faculty
| parents            = {{ubl
| office              = Ashoka University
| [[Manmohan Singh]] (father)
  | term_start    = 2018
| [[Gursharan Kaur]] (mother)
| birth_date          = {{birth date and age|df=y|1959|06|22}}
}}
| parents            = {{ubl|[[Manmohan Singh]] (father)|[[Gursharan Kaur]] (mother)}}
| birth_date          = <!-- must be attributed to reliable sources -->
| spouse              = Vijay Tankha
| occupation          = [[Historian]]
| occupation          = {{hlist|[[Historian]]|[[Professor]]}}
| education          = PhD from [[McGill University]], [[Canada]]<br />[[St. Stephen's College, Delhi]]
| education          = [[McGill University]], [[Canada]] {{small|([[PhD]])}}&lt;br/&gt;[[St. Stephen's College, Delhi]]
| children            = 2
| children            = 2
| relatives          = [[Daman Singh]] (sister)
| awards              = [[Infosys Prize]]
}}
}}
'''Upinder Singh''' is an Indian [[historian]] and the former head of the History Department at the [[University of Delhi]].<ref name=UniDelhi>{{cite web | url=http://www.du.ac.in/index.php?id=270&fmember=2859&cid=437 | title=Prof. Upinder Singh | publisher=University of Delhi | access-date=29 October 2012}}</ref><ref name=InfosysFoundationLink/> She is the dean of faculty and professor of history at [[Ashoka University]]. She is also the recipient of the inaugural [[Infosys Prize]] in the category of Social Sciences (History).<ref name=InfosysFoundationLink>[http://www.infosys-science-foundation.com/prize/laureates/2009/upinder-singh.asp The Infosys Prize in Social Sciences – History], [[Infosys Science Foundation]]</ref> She is the daughter of former Prime Minister of India, [[Manmohan Singh]].
 
'''Upinder Singh''' (born 22 June 1959) is an Indian [[historian]] who is a [[professor]] of History and Dean of Faculty at [[Ashoka University]].&lt;ref&gt;{{cite web | url=https://www.ashoka.edu.in/profile/upinder-singh | title=Ashoka University: Leading Liberal Arts and Sciences University }}&lt;/ref&gt; She is the former head of the History Department at the [[University of Delhi]].&lt;ref name=UniDelhi&gt;{{cite web | url=http://www.du.ac.in/index.php?id=270&amp;fmember=2859&amp;cid=437 | title=Prof. Upinder Singh | publisher=University of Delhi | access-date=29 October 2012}}&lt;/ref&gt;&lt;ref name=InfosysFoundationLink/&gt; She is also the recipient of the inaugural [[Infosys Prize]] in the category of Social Sciences (History).&lt;ref name=InfosysFoundationLink&gt;[http://www.infosys-science-foundation.com/prize/laureates/2009/upinder-singh.asp The Infosys Prize in Social Sciences – History], [[Infosys Science Foundation]]&lt;/ref&gt; She is the daughter of Former Indian Prime minister [[Manmohan Singh]].


==Education and professional life==
==Education and professional life==
Singh is an [[alumna]] of [[St. Stephen's College, Delhi]] and received a PhD from [[McGill University]] in [[Canada]]. She has a Master of Arts in history and an M.Phil. in history, both from the University of Delhi. She has a Ph.D. from McGill University, Montreal, Canada, with a thesis titled ''Kings, Brahmanas, and Temples in Orissa: an epigraphic study (300-1147 CE)''. She is a Professor in the Department of History at Ashoka University.<ref name="InfosysFoundationLink" />
Singh is an [[alumna]] of [[St. Stephen's College, Delhi]] and received a [[PhD]] from [[McGill University]] in [[Canada]]. She has a [[Master of Arts]] in history and an [[M.Phil.]] in history, both from the [[University of Delhi]]. She has a Ph.D. from McGill University, Montreal, Canada, with a thesis titled ''Kings, Brahmanas, and Temples in Orissa: an epigraphic study (300-1147 CE)''. She is a Professor in the Department of History at [[Ashoka University]].&lt;ref name="InfosysFoundationLink" /&gt;


==Personal life==
==Personal life==
Singh is the daughter of [[Manmohan Singh]], the former [[Prime Minister of India|prime minister of India]], and [[Gursharan Kaur]].<ref name="Indian Express">{{cite news | url=http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/pms-daughter-has-nothing-to-do-with-book-on-ramayana/278188/ | title=PM’s daughter has nothing to do with book on Ramayana | newspaper=[[Indian Express]] | date=28 February 2008 | access-date=29 October 2012}}</ref> She is married to Vijay Tankha, a professor of philosophy and has two sons.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Raote|first=Rrishi|date=10 August 2008|title=This Singh is King of History|work=[[Business Standard]]|url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/beyond-business/this-singh-is-king-of-history-108081001001_1.html|access-date=26 December 2021}}</ref>
Singh is the daughter of [[Manmohan Singh|Dr. Manmohan Singh]], the former [[Prime Minister of India|prime minister of India]], and history professor [[Gursharan Kaur]].&lt;ref name="Indian Express"&gt;{{cite news | url=http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/pms-daughter-has-nothing-to-do-with-book-on-ramayana/278188/ | title=PM's daughter has nothing to do with book on Ramayana | newspaper=[[Indian Express]] | date=28 February 2008 | access-date=29 October 2012 | archive-date=23 September 2012 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120923022543/http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/PMs-daughter-has-nothing-to-do-with-book-on-Ramayana/278188/ | url-status=dead }}&lt;/ref&gt; She is married to Vijay Tankha, a professor of [[philosophy]] and has two sons.&lt;ref&gt;{{Cite news|last=Raote|first=Rrishi|date=10 August 2008|title=This Singh is King of History|work=[[Business Standard]]|url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/beyond-business/this-singh-is-king-of-history-108081001001_1.html|access-date=26 December 2021}}&lt;/ref&gt;


==Honours==
==Honours==
Singh was awarded the Netherlands Government Reciprocal Fellowship in 1985, to pursue research at the Instituut Kern, Leiden. She was awarded the [[Ancient India and Iran Trust]]/Wallace India Visiting Fellowship to pursue research in Cambridge and London in 1999. She was also a visiting fellow of [[Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge]]. Singh has received the prestigious Daniel Ingalls Fellowship at the [[Harvard-Yenching Institute]], [[Harvard University]] in 2005.<ref name=InfosysFoundationLink/>
Singh was awarded the Netherlands Government Reciprocal Fellowship in 1985, to pursue research at the Instituut Kern, Leiden. She was awarded the [[Ancient India and Iran Trust]]/Wallace India Visiting Fellowship to pursue research in Cambridge and London in 1999. She was also a visiting fellow of [[Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge]]. Singh has received the prestigious Daniel Ingalls Fellowship at the [[Harvard-Yenching Institute]], [[Harvard University]] in 2005.&lt;ref name=InfosysFoundationLink/&gt;


She is the national coordinator for history at the Institute of [[Life Long Learning]] at the University of Delhi.<ref name=InfosysFoundationLink/>
She is the national coordinator for history at the Institute of [[Life Long Learning]] at the University of Delhi.&lt;ref name=InfosysFoundationLink/&gt;


She was visiting professor at the [[KU Leuven|University of Leuven]], Belgium, as the recipient of the [[Erasmus Mundus]] Fellowship, May–June 2010.<ref name=UniDelhi/>
She was visiting professor at the [[KU Leuven|University of Leuven]], Belgium, as the recipient of the [[Erasmus Mundus]] Fellowship, May–June 2010.&lt;ref name=UniDelhi/&gt;


==Controversies==
==Controversies==
On 25 February 2008, right wing activists demonstrated in the University of Delhi campus, in protest of an essay by [[A.K. Ramanujan]], titled ''[[Three Hundred Ramayanas]]''. The activists felt the essay was offensive, and alleged that Singh was responsible for its inclusion in a list of recommended readings for the BA programme in history. The University denied the allegation and stated that Singh was "… neither the editor nor compiler of the book on ''Cultural History of Ancient India''."<ref name="Indian Express"/>
On 25 February 2008, right-wing activists demonstrated at the [[Delhi University]] campus, in protest against an essay by [[A.K. Ramanujan]] titled ''[[Three Hundred Ramayanas]]''. The activists felt the essay was offensive, and alleged that Singh was responsible for its inclusion in a list of recommended readings for the [[Bachelor of Arts|BA]] programme in [[history]]. The University denied the allegation and stated that Singh was "… neither the editor nor compiler of the book on ''Cultural History of Ancient India''."&lt;ref name="Indian Express"/&gt;


==Publications==
==Publications==
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* {{cite book|last1=Singh|first1=Upinder|last2=Dhar|first2=Parul Pandya|last3=Vatsyayan|first3=Kapila|title=Asian Encounters: Exploring Connected Histories|date=2014|publisher=Oxford University Press| isbn=9780198099802 |author-mask=With |name-list-style=amp}}
* {{cite book|last1=Singh|first1=Upinder|last2=Dhar|first2=Parul Pandya|last3=Vatsyayan|first3=Kapila|title=Asian Encounters: Exploring Connected Histories|date=2014|publisher=Oxford University Press| isbn=9780198099802 |author-mask=With |name-list-style=amp}}
* {{cite book|last1=Singh|first1=Upinder|author-mask=0|title=Political Violence in Ancient India|date=2017|publisher=Harvard University Press|isbn=9780674975279}}
* {{cite book|last1=Singh|first1=Upinder|author-mask=0|title=Political Violence in Ancient India|date=2017|publisher=Harvard University Press|isbn=9780674975279}}
*{{cite book|last1=Singh|first1=Upinder|author-mask=0|title=Ancient India: Culture Of Contradictions| date=2021 | publisher= Aleph Book Company | isbn=9390652618}}<ref>{{cite news|url=https://m.tribuneindia.com/news/reviews/story/upinder-singhs-ancient-india-meditations-on-the-past-343691|title=Upinder Singh’s ‘Ancient India’, meditations on the past}}</ref>
*{{cite book|last1=Singh|first1=Upinder|author-mask=0|title=Ancient India: Culture Of Contradictions| date=2021 | publisher= Aleph Book Company | isbn=978-9390652617}}&lt;ref&gt;{{cite news|url=https://m.tribuneindia.com/news/reviews/story/upinder-singhs-ancient-india-meditations-on-the-past-343691|title=Upinder Singh's 'Ancient India', meditations on the past}}&lt;/ref&gt;


===Books edited===
===Books edited===
* {{cite book|editor1-last=Singh|editor1-first=Upinder|editor1-mask=0|title=Delhi: Ancient history|date=2006|publisher=Social Science Press|location=New Delhi|isbn=9788187358299}}
* {{cite book|editor1-last=Singh|editor1-first=Upinder|editor1-mask=0|title=Delhi: Ancient history|date=2006|publisher=Social Science Press|location=New Delhi|isbn=9788187358299}}
* {{cite book|editor1-last=Singh|editor1-first=Upinder|editor2-last=Lahiri|editor2-first=Nayanjot|editor2-link=Nayanjot Lahiri | title=Ancient India: new research|date=2009|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=Delhi|isbn=9780198060284|editor-mask=With}}
* {{cite book|editor1-last=Singh|editor1-first=Upinder|editor2-last=Lahiri|editor2-first=Nayanjot|editor2-link=Nayanjot Lahiri | title=Ancient India: new research|date=2009|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=Delhi|isbn=9780198060284|editor-mask=With}}
* Upnayan - the beginner children's educational ancient tradition in the Hindu religion scripts.


=== Papers ===
=== Papers ===
* {{cite journal|last1=Singh|first1=Upinder|author-mask=0|title=Amaravati: the dismembering of the Mahācaitya (1797–1886)|journal=South Asian Studies|date=January 2001|volume=17|issue=1|pages=19–40|doi=10.1080/02666030.2001.9628590}}
* {{cite journal|last1=Singh|first1=Upinder|author-mask=0|title=Amaravati: the dismembering of the Mahācaitya (1797–1886)|journal=South Asian Studies|date=January 2001|volume=17|issue=1|pages=19–40|doi=10.1080/02666030.2001.9628590|s2cid=194091154}}
* {{cite journal|last1=Singh|first1=Upinder|author-mask=0|title=Cults and shrines in early historical Mathura (c. 200 B.C. – A.D. 200)|journal=World Archaeology|date=September 2004|volume=36|issue=3|pages=378–398|doi=10.1080/0043824042000282803}}
* {{cite journal|last1=Singh|first1=Upinder|author-mask=0|title=Cults and shrines in early historical Mathura (c. 200 B.C. – A.D. 200)|journal=World Archaeology|date=September 2004|volume=36|issue=3|pages=378–398|doi=10.1080/0043824042000282803|s2cid=161320144}}


==See also==
==See also==
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[[Category:Historians of South Asia]]
[[Category:Historians of South Asia]]
[[Category:Indian Sikhs]]
[[Category:Indian Sikhs]]
[[Category:Punjabi people]]
[[Category:People from Punjab, India]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Children of prime ministers of India]]
[[Category:Children of prime ministers of India]]

Revision as of 17:18, 6 February 2026


Upinder Singh
Dean of Faculty Ashoka University
Assumed office
2018
Personal details
Born (1959-06-22) 22 June 1959 (age 67)
Spouse(s)Vijay Tankha
Children2
Parent(s)
RelativesDaman Singh (sister)
EducationMcGill University, Canada (PhD)<br/>St. Stephen's College, Delhi
Occupation
AwardsInfosys Prize

Upinder Singh (born 22 June 1959) is an Indian historian who is a professor of History and Dean of Faculty at Ashoka University.<ref>"Ashoka University: Leading Liberal Arts and Sciences University".</ref> She is the former head of the History Department at the University of Delhi.<ref name=UniDelhi>"Prof. Upinder Singh". University of Delhi. Retrieved 29 October 2012.</ref><ref name=InfosysFoundationLink/> She is also the recipient of the inaugural Infosys Prize in the category of Social Sciences (History).<ref name=InfosysFoundationLink>The Infosys Prize in Social Sciences – History, Infosys Science Foundation</ref> She is the daughter of Former Indian Prime minister Manmohan Singh.

Education and professional life

Singh is an alumna of St. Stephen's College, Delhi and received a PhD from McGill University in Canada. She has a Master of Arts in history and an M.Phil. in history, both from the University of Delhi. She has a Ph.D. from McGill University, Montreal, Canada, with a thesis titled Kings, Brahmanas, and Temples in Orissa: an epigraphic study (300-1147 CE). She is a Professor in the Department of History at Ashoka University.<ref name="InfosysFoundationLink" />

Personal life

Singh is the daughter of Dr. Manmohan Singh, the former prime minister of India, and history professor Gursharan Kaur.<ref name="Indian Express">"PM's daughter has nothing to do with book on Ramayana". Indian Express. 28 February 2008. Archived from the original on 23 September 2012. Retrieved 29 October 2012.</ref> She is married to Vijay Tankha, a professor of philosophy and has two sons.<ref>Raote, Rrishi (10 August 2008). "This Singh is King of History". Business Standard. Retrieved 26 December 2021.</ref>

Honours

Singh was awarded the Netherlands Government Reciprocal Fellowship in 1985, to pursue research at the Instituut Kern, Leiden. She was awarded the Ancient India and Iran Trust/Wallace India Visiting Fellowship to pursue research in Cambridge and London in 1999. She was also a visiting fellow of Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge. Singh has received the prestigious Daniel Ingalls Fellowship at the Harvard-Yenching Institute, Harvard University in 2005.<ref name=InfosysFoundationLink/>

She is the national coordinator for history at the Institute of Life Long Learning at the University of Delhi.<ref name=InfosysFoundationLink/>

She was visiting professor at the University of Leuven, Belgium, as the recipient of the Erasmus Mundus Fellowship, May–June 2010.<ref name=UniDelhi/>

Controversies

On 25 February 2008, right-wing activists demonstrated at the Delhi University campus, in protest against an essay by A.K. Ramanujan titled Three Hundred Ramayanas. The activists felt the essay was offensive, and alleged that Singh was responsible for its inclusion in a list of recommended readings for the BA programme in history. The University denied the allegation and stated that Singh was "… neither the editor nor compiler of the book on Cultural History of Ancient India."<ref name="Indian Express"/>

Publications

Books authored

  • Kings, Brāhmaṇas and temples in Orissa: an epigraphic study AD 300-1147. New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal Publ. 1994. ISBN 9788121506212.
  • Ancient Delhi. New Delhi: Oxford University Press. 1999. ISBN 9780195649192.
  • Mysteries Of The Past: Archeological Sites In India. India: National Book Trust. 2002. ISBN 9788123739793. (for children)
  • The discovery of ancient India: early archaeologists and the beginnings of archaeology. Delhi: Permanent Black. 2004. ISBN 9788178240886.
  • A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th Century. New Delhi: Pearson Longman. 2008. ISBN 9788131716779.
  • Rethinking Early Medieval India: A Reader. OUP India. 2012. ISBN 9780198086062.
  • With Dhar, Parul Pandya & Vatsyayan, Kapila (2014). Asian Encounters: Exploring Connected Histories. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780198099802.
  • Political Violence in Ancient India. Harvard University Press. 2017. ISBN 9780674975279.
  • Ancient India: Culture Of Contradictions. Aleph Book Company. 2021. ISBN 978-9390652617.<ref>"Upinder Singh's 'Ancient India', meditations on the past".</ref>

Books edited

  • Delhi: Ancient history. New Delhi: Social Science Press. 2006. ISBN 9788187358299.
  • With Lahiri, Nayanjot, eds. (2009). Ancient India: new research. Delhi: Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780198060284.
  • Upnayan - the beginner children's educational ancient tradition in the Hindu religion scripts.

Papers

See also

References