Choose a chronological division before searching for an event

Punjabi University’s reference entry identifies Umdat-ut-Tawarikh as Sohan Lal Suri’s Persian chronicle, organised into five daftars and concerned principally with Ranjit Singh and his successors. Its broader range begins with Guru Nanak and ends with British annexation in 1849. The divisions have different subjects and chronological coverage. The entry assigns Daftar IV to successor rulers including Kharak Singh, Nau Nihal Singh, Sher Singh and Duleep Singh, while Daftar V reaches the Anglo-Sikh wars and annexation. Choosing the division changes the evidence being requested. A citation to the title alone leaves a reader unsure which part of this extensive account supports a claim.[1]

The entry describes Daftar III as covering 1831–1839 through court proceedings and summaries of letters from governors, princes, commanders and reporters. Such material can reveal information reaching the Lahore court. A letter’s report and an independently verified event remain different kinds of evidence. Preserve the day or passage reference, and identify whether the chronicle is narrating proceedings or relaying correspondence before using it to reconstruct events elsewhere in Punjab.[1]

Physical volumes need not match the daftar sequence

CiNii’s record for Guru Nanak Dev University’s 2002 English edition credits translation by V. S. Suri and lists five physical volumes covering daftars 2–5, with Daftar III divided between parts 1–3 and 4–5. This is not five consecutively numbered original daftars in five matching bindings. Recording both daftar and part avoids a common ambiguity when moving between a bibliography, a library holding and a page reference.[2]

An earlier edition has a separately traceable record

The Rijksmuseum library holds a 1961 English Daftar III published by Chand in Delhi. Its record names Sohan Lal Suri and contributors Sita Ram Kohli and V. S. Suri, notes an index and assigns persistent identifier 300226972. This supplies another edition identity to compare with the later university set. Keep publication, volume and page together; a page number should not be transferred between editions without checking the actual books.[3]

Sources & notes

Source records include access dates and, where known, limits on what was examined. Checks used AI assistance; independent human or specialist review has not been completed.

  1. Bhagat Singh, Encyclopaedia of Sikhism, Punjabi University. Umdāt ut-Twārīkh ↗authored university scholarly reference entry · Source date: publication date not established · Locator: Opening and five-daftar contents, especiallyDaftar III 1831–1839 court proceedings and letters. Accessed 2026-11-01.Actual complete entry inspected. Broad contents used, not inconsistent lithograph date or claimed current location of Wade copy. Reported court correspondence is not independent proof that every event described in a letter occurred. No underlying Persian manuscript claimed as read.Return to Choose a chronological division before searching for an event, paragraph 1 ↑Return to Choose a chronological division before searching for an event, paragraph 2 ↑
  2. National Institute of Informatics, CiNii Books. Umdat ut-tawarikh: daftar, NCID BA 75574242 ↗institutional union-catalogue record · Source date: publication date not established · Locator: 2002 GNDU imprint, Sohan Lal/V. S. Suricredit, English/Persian language fields and five physical volumes coveringdaftars 2–5. Accessed 2026-11-01.Actual full record inspected. Physical volume count differs from original daftar sequence; no missing-daftar censorship claim inferred.2002 is edition date, not historical composition. Holdings not a guarantee of full-text access.Return to Physical volumes need not match the daftar sequence, paragraph 1 ↑
  3. Rijksmuseum Research Library. Umdat-ut-Tawarikh, Daftar III: chronicle of the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh,1831–1839 ↗institutional edition and holdings record · Source date: publication date not established · Locator: Title, author/contributors, ChandDelhi 1961 Englishedition, index and persistentidentifier 300226972. Accessed 2026-11-01.Actual complete record inspected.1961 is book publication, not catalogue publication. Sita Ram Kohli/V. S. Surikept as contributors as catalogued, not guessed editorial roles. No English or Persian passage from book claimed read; descriptive title’s outstanding judgement not adopted.Return to An earlier edition has a separately traceable record, paragraph 1 ↑
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Record PH-COL-0011 · English edition · human review not performed