Question

Read the following statements regarding Ibn Battuta’s travel experiences and choose the correct option :
I. His travel was unsafe as he was looted many times.
II. He travelled in caravans along with companions.
III. His journey took months due to vast distances.
IV. He has written his travelling experiences in Persian.

• A. I, II and IV are correct.
• B. I, II and III are correct.
• C. I, III and IV are correct.
• D. II, III and IV are correct.

Hint:

• *Rihla* literally means "The Journey."
• Ibn Battuta stayed in India for several years and served as the Qazi of Delhi.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is B

Concept:

• Ibn Battuta was a 14th-century Moroccan traveller who reached India during the reign of Muhammad bin Tughlaq.
• His accounts provide a global perspective on the Islamic world and the Indian subcontinent during the medieval period.

Step 1: Analyzing statements I, II, and III
Statement I is correct: Ibn Battuta recorded that travel in the 14th century was hazardous. He was attacked by bands of robbers several times and once even narrowly escaped with his life during a journey from Multan to Delhi.
Statement II is correct: Due to safety concerns and logistics, he preferred travelling in large caravans with other merchants and travellers.
Statement III is correct: Distances were enormous. For example, he mentions it took 40 days to travel from Multan to Delhi and about 50 days from Sind to Delhi.

Step 2: Evaluating Statement IV
Statement IV is incorrect: Ibn Battuta was from Tangier, Morocco, and was a scholar of Islamic law (Qazi). He wrote his travelogue, famously known as the *Rihla*, in Arabic, not Persian. The work was dictated to a scribe, Ibn Juzayy, upon his return to Morocco.
Since statements I, II, and III are correct, the correct option is (B).