 | This article's lead section may be too short to adequately summarize the key points.(September 2019) |
 | |
| Established | 1930 |
|---|---|
| Head | Dr. Kuldip Singh Dhillon |
| Location | , , |
| Website | khalsacollege/sikhhistoryresearch |
The management committee of Khalsa College Amritsar created the Sikh History Research Centre in 1930 to write and publish the Sikh history from a modern historical perspective. [1]
In 1930, a Sikh Research Centre was founded within the college of Ganda Singh, who headed it until 1947. [2] The Sikh Research Centre of Khalsa College has since grown to encompass a library and art galleries, containing thousands of artefacts, books, manuscripts, and paintings related to Sikhs and Sikhism. [2]
Karam Singh was to be given the lead role in creating this centre by the committee. However, due to his sudden demise, the centre was started instead as the Sikh History Department under Khalsa College by S. Jagat Singh and subsequently taken over by Dr. Ganda Singh on 20 October 1931. [3]
The current collection is 6,397 books, 375 paintings, 601 manuscripts, newspapers dating back to 1904, 675 files/books/journals, coinage, historical photographs, and weaponry. [2]
In this centre, historic resources relating to Sikh history are available, beginning with the time period of Guru Nanak up to the present. These resources are in languages including Persian, Punjabi, and English.
Generally, these have been collected by obtaining copies from Khudabakksh Library Patna, Rampur Raja Library Rampur (U.P.), Salarjung Museum Hyderabad, Sindhis office Puna, and the Jaipur State Archives department, as well as, from abroad, the India Office Library London. [3]
The Centre library contains approximately 7000 rare books. [4]
Apart from these, there are another 601 manuscripts, including 207 in Punjabi, 219 in Persian, 123 in English, 41 in Urdu, and 11 in Sanskrit and Hindi. [5] [1] There are volumes of Punjabi magazines like Phulwari, Gurmat Parkash and the English magazine Sikh Review, from 1904–1988, and 35 bound volumes of proceedings of the Sikh History Conference.
Also starting in 1904, there are 380 files of English, Punjabi, Urdu, and Hindi newspapers [6] from the Punjab region. Ninety files of selected newspaper cuttings are also available and 35 bindings are preserved of the in-house magazine of Khalsa College. The centre also houses a collection of old coins, armaments, paintings, and other items of historical importance.
For the facilitation of research scholars, the Centre has undertaken the task of conserving rare documents. Over 325000 pages have already been digitized at the Centre as part of its first phase of a broader digitization project.
Restoration of manuscripts is an ongoing, in-house project. Digitization of paintings and art effects will be completed sometime in the future, and numerous articles are already on display in various galleries that were set up in new the building of the Centre in December 2018. [5]
The Sikh History Research Centre has generated 21 publications to date, including:
Daya Singh was one of the Panj Pyare, the first five Sikhs to be initiated into the Khalsa order in 17th-century India.
The principal Sikh scripture is the Adi Granth, more commonly called the Guru Granth Sahib. The second most important scripture of the Sikhs is the Dasam Granth. Both of these consist of text which was written or authorised by the Sikh Gurus.
Khalsa College is a historic educational institution in the northern Indian city of Amritsar in the state of Punjab, India. Founded in 1892, the sprawling 300-acre (1.2 km2) campus is located about eight kilometers from the city-center on the Amritsar-Lahore highway, adjoining Guru Nanak Dev University campus, to which Khalsa College is academically affiliated.
Bhai Vir Singh was an Indian poet, scholar and theologist of the Sikh revival movement, playing an important part in the renewal of Punjabi literary tradition. Singh's contributions were so important and influential that he became canonized as Bhai, an honorific often given to those who could be considered a saint of the Sikh faith.
The Chief Khalsa Diwan or Chief Khalsa Diwan Charitable Society is a Sikh organisation that is the central organization of various Singh Sabhas spread across Punjab, India. Unlike the Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee, the C.K.D. is an apolitical body and only concerns itself with religious, educational and cultural issues. The organization originally controlled Sikh religious and educational concerns and was an advocate of Sikh political rights, though it presently is mostly limited to educational spheres. It was the main council of Sikhs until the birth of more radical organizations, such as the Central Sikh League, the S.G.P.C., and the Akali Dal.
A Hukamnama, in modern-times, refers to a hymn from the Guru Granth Sahib which is given as an injunction, order, or edict to Sikhs. It also refers to edicts issued by the contemporary Takhts. In the historical sense, it was used to refer to an issued commandment, instruction, injunction, order, or edict given by one of the Gurus of Sikhism or their officiated followers and associates during their lives.
Kahn Singh Nabha was a Punjabi Sikh scholar, writer, anthologist, lexicographer, and encyclopedist. His most influential work, Mahan Kosh, inspired generations of scholars after him. He also played a role in the Singh Sabha movement.
Karam Singh (1884–1930) was a Sikh historian. He was born in Jhabal a town 8 kilometres (5 mi) south of Amritsar. His father Jhanda Singh belonged to traditional Sikh family.
The Khalsa Akhbar, Lahore, was a weekly newspaper and the organ of the Lahore Khalsa Diwan, a Sikh society. Published from Lahore in the Punjabi language, the newspaper was established in 1886 and functioned sporadically till 1905. Founded by Bhai Gurmukh Singh, a professor of Punjabi at the Oriental College, Lahore, who also established the Khalsa Press in Lahore, the paper was taken over by Giani Ditt Singh, a scholar and a poet. It was one of the most prominent and influential Sikh periodicals prior to 1920.
The Panjab Digital Library is a voluntary organization digitizing and preserving the cultural heritage of Panjab since 2003. With over 65 million digitized pages, it is the biggest resource of digital material on Panjab. There are many historically significant documents stored and made available online. Its scope covers Sikh and Punjabi culture. The library funded by The Nanakshahi Trust was launched online in August 2009. Its base office is located at Chandigarh, India.
Fauja Singh was one of 13 Sikhs killed at violence during a protest against the Sant Nirankaris in 1978.
The Singh Sabhā Movement, also known as the Singh Sabhā Lehar, was a Sikh movement that began in Punjab in the 1870s in reaction to the proselytising activities of Christians, Hindu reform movements and Muslims. The movement was founded in an era when the Sikh Empire had been dissolved and annexed by the British, the Khalsa had lost its prestige, and mainstream Sikhs were rapidly converting to other religions. The movement's aims were to "propagate the true Sikh religion and restore Sikhism to its pristine glory; to write and distribute historical and religious books of Sikhs; and to propagate Gurmukhi Punjabi through magazines and media." The movement sought to reform Sikhism and bring back into the Sikh fold the apostates who had converted to other religions; as well as to interest the influential British officials in furthering the Sikh community. At the time of its founding, the Singh Sabha policy was to avoid criticism of other religions and political matters.
The Sikh Reference Library was a repository of an estimated 20,000 literary works located in the Darbar Sahib at Amritsar, Punjab which was destroyed during Operation Blue Star. In 1984, the library's contents were confiscated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the empty building allegedly burned to the ground by the Indian Army on 7 June. In recent years the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) has attempted to recover the looted material but has not yet recovered substantial materials. To date, the status of library manuscripts and artifacts is unclear; the vast majority remain in the hands of the government, a few office files and passports were returned, and as many as 117 items were destroyed for being "seditious" materials. After the events of Operation Blue Star, the library was revived and its current collection has surpassed the total contents of the original library.
Giani Ditt Singh was a historian, scholar, poet, editor and an eminent Singh Sabha reformer. Singh wrote over 70 books on Sikhism, the most famous of which is Khalsa Akhbar. His Dayanand naal mera Samvaad and Durga Parbodh are considered major texts of Sikh philosophy.
Harbans Singh was an educationist, administrator, scholar and the editor-in-chief of the Encyclopaedia of Sikhism. He was respected for his contributions to Sikh scholarship and Punjabi literary studies and had a vital and pervasive influence in the field of religious studies, with special reference to Sikhism.
Ganda Singh was an Indian Punjabi and Sikh historian and Padma Bhushan awardee. In addition to scores of research papers, booklets and pamphlets, he published over two dozen full-length volumes of historical value.
Baba Darbara Singh, also known as Diwan Darbara Singh, was second Jathedar of Budha Dal and third leader of the Akal Takht. He should not be confused with other Darbara Singh of Sirhind who fought in the Battle of Anandpur.
Twarikh Guru Khalsa is a historical book of the Sikhs from their origin to the time when they lost the Punjab to the British. The author of the book is Giani Gian Singh.
Gian Singh Naqqash was a Punjabi Sikh artist. He was a fresco painter and worked at the Golden Temple for more than 33 years. He is particularly known for painting in the style that is known as the Sikh School of Painting.
The Khalsa Samachar is a weekly Sikh newspaper that was founded in 1899 by Vir Singh. The periodical covers Panthic news, the tenets of the Sikh religion, elucidation of gurbani, and imparting the teachings of Sikhism. It was one of the early Punjabi and Gurmukhi newspapers that left a lasting influence and one of the most influential Sikh newspapers prior to 1920.