Read the passage given below and answer the following questions: 1x10=10

 

The Maya people were an ancient civilization, who lived in the age that is Modern day Maxico
between approximately 2000 BC and 1600 AD. Many people have heard of them due to their
prediction that the world was going to end in the year 2012.

The Maya invented the most advanced form of writing in the ancient Americas. It is often referred to as hieroglyphics because it looks like ancient Egyptian writing. The Maya writing system has more than one thousand different glyphs. A glyph is a picture or a symbol used to represent a sound, word or syllable.
Just like modern people, the Maya wrote book about their gods, their leaders, their daily life and special occasions. These books were not like the books we have today as they were made of soft bark and were folded like a fan. A Maya book was called a codex ('codices' when plural).
Like modern books, codices had drawings as well as glyphs.
Around six hundred years after the Maya civilization had vanished, explorers from Spain arrived and found many Maya codices. The Spanish priests believed that they had found pictures of demons and devils so they destroyed all the codices which they saw. Although many were destroyed, fortunately some survived and approximately ten thousand individual codices have been discovered by arecheologist so far.
The Mayas worshipped the gods of the natural world daily and this was an important part of their lives. Some Maya gods include: the God of Rain, Lady Rainbow, the God of Maize and of course, the God of Sun. The Mayas believed that if they didn't pray to these important gods, then nothing would grow and everyone would starve.
All of the men, but none of the women, used mirrors. The Maya people believed that looking into a mirror required lots of courage. They said that monsters from the Place of Awe could put their hands through the mirror and kidnap you, taking you into other world.
Maya daily life and culture were strongly connected to their religion. The priests made decisions
about almost every aspect of Maya society. They said when to plant, marry and who to sacrifice.
Although it was not as common in the Maya culture as in the Aztech culture, the Maya used
to practise human sacrifice. In some religious rituals, priests killed people by cutting the person's
chest open and taking out their still beating heart as an offering to the gods.
While this seems barbaric to modern people, the Maya civilisation was extremely advanced in other ways. For example, the Maya had sophisticated methods of farming, using elevated fields, terracing and forest gardens to support the large populations in some areas.
Archeologists are still only just beginning to discover many aspects of Maya civilisation. However, the little we already know continues to fascinate and amaze us.

​

A. Tick the correct alternative. Write only item number. Do not write the answer with
statement. 1x10 = 10

​

(i) Prediction means
(a) something a person wants to become
(b) something a person believes will happen
(c) something a person fears
(d) something which just happened

​

Ans: (b) something a person believes will happen

​

(ii) Advanced means
(a) superior

(b) quick
(c) sharp
(d) ahead in development

​

Ans: (d) ahead in development

​

(iii) Starve means

(a) to suffer or die from lack of food
(b) thirst
(c) to have enough meal or food
(d) greed

 

Ans: (a) to suffer or die from lack of food

​

(iv) Courage means
(a) timidity

(b) faint-heartedness
(c) honesty

(d) bravery

​

Ans: (d) bravery

​

(v) Barbaric means

(a) savagely cruel

(b) civilized
(c) good natured

(d) heroic

​

Ans: (a) savagely cruel

​

(vi) Demon means
(a) doll

(b) angel
(c) an evil spirit

(d) saint

​

Ans: (c) an evil spirit

​

(vii) Ancient means
(a) advanced land

(b) contemporary
(c) primitive

(d) recent

​

Ans: (c) primitive

​

(viii) Explorer means
(a) Traveller

(b) Citizen
(c) Scientist

(d) Artist

​

Ans: (a) Traveller

​

(ix) Survived means

(a) declined

(b) remained

(c) faded

(d) ceased

​

Ans: (b) remained

​

(x) Sophisticated means

(a) naive
(b) crude
(c) backward limit.
(d) developed to a high degree of complexity

 

Ans: (d) developed to a high degree of complexity

​

​

B. Answer any five of the following questions each within 25 words. Do not cross word limit. 2x5=10

​

(i) Why did the Mayas think it was important to worship their gods?

Ans. Maya believed that if they didn't pray to gods nothing would grow and everyone would starve so           they thought it was important to worship their gods.

(ii) Why is Maya writing called hieroglyphics ?

Ans. Maya writing is called hieroglyphics because it books like Ancient Egyptian writing.

(iii) Why did the Spanish priests burn the Maya books?

Ans. The Spanish priests believed that they had found pictures of demons and devils so they burnt the Maya books.

(iv) Why did you have to be brave to look into a mirror in the Maya culture ?

Ans. Maya people believed that looking into a mirror required lots of courage. They said that monsters from the place of awe could put their hands through the mirror and kidnap you, taking you into the other world.

(v) How many Maya texts have been found up to now?

Ans. Only four Mayan codices are known to survive; the Dresden codex, or coded Dresdensis, Probably dating from 11th or 12 th century, a copy of earlier texts of the 5th to 9th centuries AD; the Madrid codex, Grolier Codex and Paris codex.

(vi) During human sacrifice, how was a person killed ?

Ans. Maya used to practise human sacrifice. In some religious rituals, priests killed People by cutting the persons chest open and taking out their beating heart as an offering to the gods.

​

 

2. Answer any five of the following questions each within 25 words. Do not cross word limit. 1x10=10

​

(i) The furniture was _______ (broke/broken/breaking) up for firewood.

 

Ans. broken

​

(ii) Prices are _______ (rising/going to rise/ risen) soon.

 

Ans. going to rise.

​

(iii) _________ embraces a wide range of information and communications technology applications
and approaches to teaching and learning foreign languages.

 

Ans. Computer

​

(iv) _______ is used as a link language in India.

 

Ans. English

​

(v) ________ tongue is used in Grammar Translation method.

 

Ans. Mother

​

(vi) English is taught as _______ based subject in the elementary level.

 

Ans. skill

​

(vii) NCF stands for ________.

​

Ans. National Curriculum Framework

​

​

​