A fourteenth-century traveller from North Africa crossed Central Asia overland and reached Sind. He had heard that the Sultan of Delhi was a generous patron of arts and letters, so he went on to Delhi through Multan and Uch. The Sultan was impressed by his learning and gave him a high post, which he held for several years until he fell out of favour. Later the Sultan sent him as envoy to the Mongol ruler of China. On the way he went down to the Malabar coast, crossed by sea to a place where he stayed for eighteen months, and then went on to Sri Lanka.
Identify the place where the traveller stayed for eighteen months on this journey.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → The Maldives
Option (1) The Maldives — Correct. From Malabar Ibn Battuta went to the Maldives, stayed there eighteen months as the qazi, and then moved on to Sri Lanka.
Option (2) The Lakshadweep islands — Incorrect. These islands lie close to Malabar, but they are not where he stayed on this journey.
Option (3) Sumatra — Incorrect. He reached Sumatra much later, by ship, just before sailing on to China.
Option (4) The Andaman Islands — Incorrect. These islands lie in the Bay of Bengal and do not come into his route here.
NCERT (2026-27): “2.1 An early globe-trotter … |