AbstractIn the Persianate world, a mukhtār-nāma (deed of representation or a power of attorney) was a legal instrument that enabled people to transact business through a representative or agent (mukhtār or wakīl). This is a study of one such document written in Surat in 1821. It analyses the document for its socio-cultural, legal, and commercial significance as well as to explore the transition in the adjudication of commercial disputes and civil cases from Mughal to East India Company courts. It shows that there was a strong tradition of documenting business transactions in early modern South Asia and that such practices have continued into the colonial and postcolonial periods.

中文翻译：

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在早期殖民时期的印度西部通过/为他人交易业务：1821 年 Mukhtār-nāma 的文本、背景和意义

摘要在波斯语世界中，mukhtār-nāma（代表契约或授权书）是一种法律文书，使人们能够通过代表或代理人（mukhtār 或 wakīl）进行交易。这是对 1821 年写于苏拉特的一份此类文件的研究。它分析了该文件的社会文化、法律和商业意义，并探讨了从莫卧儿到东印度的商业纠纷和民事案件裁决的过渡公司法院。它表明，在近代早期的南亚，有记录商业交易的悠久传统，并且这种做法一直持续到殖民和后殖民时期。