Spectres of agrarian territory in southern India

Through a study of the old geographic maps that define borders & sensitive regions, such as Tamil Nadu on India's southeastern peninsula, the author studies the history of premodern spaces. The study traces the modern legacy of premodern spaces, replaces the temporal layers of historical documentation of older geographies with the ideas that force them into new environments; & locates their origins & traces their transformations. Tamil Nadu's territorial history includes records of medieval territories in stone & copper inscriptions in the 9th century, new territorial forms around the 14th century documented by some inscriptions & substantial lore; & early-modern agrarian territory after the 16th century, documented in texts produced by the East India Co. In the 19th century, old territories of identity, entitlement, conflict & spatial order were increasingly ignored by modern legal & political institutions. The modern village is the remaining fragment of the old national agrarian territory, & it reflects the specters around which caste conflict, social inequality, & struggle are yet located. L. A. Hoffman