THE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY OF BETEL SELLERS IN NORTH CENTRAL INDIA: FROM THE ANCIENT TO THE EARLY MEDIEVAL PERIOD

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Abstract

This paper is in an attempt to explore the role of betel sellers and the circulation of betel (tambula) in the socio-economic and urban life of ancient and early medieval north central India. Betel has received attention as a part of food habits, ritual practices, and elite culture, but the occupational group linked with its cultivation, preparation, distribution, and sale has received comparatively less attention. By focusing on betel sellers and other related occupational attention, this study tries to examine the relationship between specialized petty trade, markets, and urban society. By using epigraphic and literary sources, the paper explores references to "tambula," "tambulikas," and other related terms in order to know their occupational identity and economic role in its trade. The presence of specialized sellers and the regular consumption of betel may provide useful insights into the functioning of markets, occupational specialization, and patterns of everyday consumption in early medieval urban and semi-urban centres. This study highlights that the history of betel and its sellers can help us understand larger economic and social processes. Instead of studying betel only as a cultural or religious item, the paper investigates its production, trade, and consumption in the modern period. It also reflects the role of small occupational

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