This volume explores the emergence of Gujarat over three centuries in terms of its political, economic and religious landscape. It also analyses the linguistic and cultural foundations of the formation of the region and its history. It examines how the political scenario was differentiated by a variety of religious and sectarian groups competing for resources and legitimization. The book maps immigration and settlement, struggles over territory, and the evolving networks of trade in response to the strictures imposed by the environment, the climate, and natural resources. Sheikh argues that itinerancy and mobility were crucial to the polity under study and that the patterns of political formation were related to the tension between mobility and sedentarization. She engages with the current debates and conceptions regarding the study of regional histories.

Samira Sheikh works at The Institute of Ismaili Studies, London.