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BERKELEY

LIBRARY

UNIVERSITY OF
CALIFORNIA

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

       
 

152/ .ZEC JET; JEZJCEiZlZZCE’

INDIAN CIVIL SERVICE, COMPANION OF THE INDIAN EMPIRE,
OFFICIER DAGADEMIE FRAN QAISE. ~

7k 776961/ 629 duSpébu ; 711301. "rot mike; 63% Talcﬁeq ;
Ontss'xr 1. 17a.

- ' CALCUTTA:
iatimeh at the $211921! [ﬁenrstariat’iﬁressn
1892.

       

 

TO THE MEMORY OF
51:. 32111125 @152,
SOME TIME OIVIIa‘ EURGEON OF DAOOA,‘ I

THIS VOLUME,

_ r :

EMBODYING IN PART THE RESULTS OF HIS BEBEABOHEB DURING TE!

YEARS, RESIDENCE IN EASTERN BENGAL,

15 DEDICATED.

 

 

LA’B.

Léb, a title of Baniyas, of
the Khandiwar sub-caste of Bais
Baniyas and of the Oswal Baniyés
in Behar.

Lébar, a grim of the Séndilya
gotm of the Uttar-Barendra
Brahmans in Bengal.

Labnagar Kumet, a section
of the Majraut sub-caste of Groa-
151s in Behar.

Lachh, a section of Rautiés in
Chota Nagpur.

Ladilé, a section of Babhans
in Behar.

I Ladu, a sub-section of the
Kautsasa section of Utkal
Brahmans in Orissa.

Léek, a section of Utkal or
Orissa Brahmans.

Lagdingpé, a mi or sept of
the Bedtshan-gye sub-tribe of

Dejong Lhoris or Bhotias of the
south.

Lagmeté, a mu! or section of
the Naomulia or Majraut sub-
caste of Goalas in Behar.

 

LAHERI. I

Lagori, a sept of Hos in Sing-
um.

Léhé, a title of the Desa sub-
caste of Gandhabaniks; of
Mayaras, Kaibarttas, and of
Subarnabaniks in Bengal.

Léhégo’c, a mul or section of
the Naomulia or Grorié. sub-caste
of Goalés in Behar.

Lahakpé, a t/mr or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Lahanié, a section of Goalés
in the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Lahati, a section of Newars in
Darjiling.

Laher, a sub-sept of the Hem-
rom and Marndi septs of Santals.

La/zerd, a synonym for Léheri.

Léheri, a group of the Baren-
dra Goalas in Bengal. ,

Léheri, a gain of the Sandilya
gotra and a title of Barendra
Brahmans in Bengal.

itsheri, Laherd, a Behar caste engaged in the manufacture and

Origin and ' internal

structure.

sale of lac bangles (idle kd 01mm). The group
is probably a functional one, consisting of

members of several different castes who hap-

pened to adopt that particular profession.

In Behar it is divided

into two sub-castes—Dakhinhé and Tirh utié—residing respectively

north and south of the Ganges.

There are two sections,-—Kési and

Mahurié. Prohibited degrees are reckoned by the. standard formula
calculated to seven generations in the descending hne.
Laheris admit both infant and adult-marriage, but regard the

Marriage .

former practice as the more respectable. The
ceremony is of the standard type, but no tilak

is paid to the parents of the bridegroom. Polygamy is resorted to
only in the event of the ﬁrst wife proving barren. WldOWS. are
allowed to marry again by the sagai form. In such cases it. is
deemed right and proper for a woman to marry her late husband’s
younger brother if one has survived 111111,. but she 1s_under no
positive obligation to do so. A faithless Wife can be divorced by
establishing her guilt before a panchéyat. If, however, the offence

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LAHERI. 2

has been committed with a member of the caste, it is usually
condoned on payment of a ﬁne in the form of a feast given to the
heads of the caste. Adultery with an outsider involves instant
expulsion from the community.

In deciding questions of inheritance and succession the caste
profess to be guided by the Mitakshara, which
is the personal law of. most Hindus in Behar.
Disputes, however, rarely go beyond the panchayat, a highly
primitive tribunal, which cannot be credited with very precise
knowledge of the written law. To this circumstance, no doubt, we
owe the preservation among their scanty customs of the usage
known in the Panjab as chzmddvand, by which the sons, however
few, of one wife take a share equal to that of the sons, however
many, of another. In applying this rule no distinction is drawn
between the status of the wives, and the sons of a wife married by
the sagm’ form get the same share as the sons of a woman who was
married as a virgin by the regular ceremony.

Laheris consider themselves to be orthodox Hindus, and regard
Bhagavati as the deity whom they are more
especially bound to worship. Tirhutia Brah-
mans serve them as priests, and do not suffer in social esteem by so
doing. Their functions, however, extend only to attendance at
marriages and watching over the Observances due to the greater '
gods of the Hindu Pantheon. The minor deities, Bandi and
Groraiya, are worshipped by the heads of families themselves Without
the assistance of Brahmans. Goats, Wheaten cakes, milk, and sweet-
meats form the usual oﬁerings, which are afterwards eaten by the
members of the household.

In point of social standing the Laheris rank with Koiris and

_ Kurmis, and Brahmans will take water from
mac? Status and occu‘ their hands. Besides their original occupation

of making lac bracelets, many of them are
engaged in cultivation as occupancy raiyats. As a rule, however,
they will not guide the plough with their own hands, and none of
them are found in the lower grades of the agricultural system.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
the Laheri caste in 1872 and 1881 :—

Inheritance.

Religion.

 

 

DISTRICT. I 1872. l 1881. H DisrRIor. I 1872. I 1881.
Bardwan 333 158 - Mozufferpur... 2,212
Bankura 28 8 Tirhut Darbhauga } 6’643 { 2,673
Birbhum 98 149 Saran 617 32
Midnapur 206 15 Champaran 1,273 995
Hughli ... 246 24 Monghyr ... 1,995 2.209
24-Purganas 282 ...... Bhagalpur 1,306 1.046
Nadiya. ... 30 205 Purniah 501 708
Khulna ...... 103 Maldah 163 ......
Murshedabad ... 274 81 Santal Parganas 11 393
Dinajpur 98 74 Cuttack 4,656 3
Pabna ... 5 ...... Puri 1,879 ......
Decca 2 79 Balasore 1,018 39
Faridpur 353 153 Tributary States 914
Tipperah 6 826 Hazaribagh ...... 884
Noakhah 18 2 Lohardaga ...... 1,430
Patna ... 1,424 1,081 Singbhum ...... 9
Giza 2,651 714 Manbhum ...... 99
S ahabad 24,3 24. Tributary States ..... . 65

 

 

 

 

 

 

LAH-OGPA’.

Lah-ogpé. dwelling below la
or mountain-top or pass; a rm’ or
sept of the Ruichhung sub-tribe
of Dej ong Lhoris or Bhotias of the
south.

Lahoni, a thar or section of
N epali Brahmans.

Lahtaur, a sept of Rajputs in
Behar.

Léhulié, a sept of Réjputs in
Behar.

Léik, a title of Telis and
Mayarés in Bengal.

Laiyél, a timer or section of
N epali Brahmans.

Lakéndri. a tlzar or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Lakargarhé, a sub-caste of
Sunris in Manbhum.

Lékat, a sept of Réjputs in
Behar.

Lakhansarié, a section of
Madhesré Halwais in Behar.

Lakhaurié, a
Brahmans in Behar.

Lakhauriér, a
Kayasths in Behar.

Lakhipu’tra, a synonym for
Doai.

division of

section of

 

LA’LBEGI.

Lakhnaué, a section of the
Banodhié. and J aiswar Kalwérs
in Behar.

Lakhotia, a section of Mahes-
ris in Behar.

Lakhsarié, a section of Bhats.

Lakrihér, a section of Bans-
phor Doms in Western Behar.

Laksha, a gdin of the Batsya
gotra of Barendra Brahmans in
Bengal.

Laksham Seria, a section of
the Biyahut and Kharidahé.
Kalwars in Behar.

Lurks/um or Saranbanda, a class
of Sannyésis or Fakirs.

Lakshanpurié, a mu! or sec-
tion of the Naomulia 0r Majraut
sub-caste of Goal-as in Behar.

Laktoméhéng, a sept of
Limhus in Darjiling.

Lakwér, a section of the
Maghaya sub-caste of Barhis in
Behar.

Lél, Léla, a title of Kayasths,
Khatris, of the Banodhié sub-caste
of Kalwars and Sunris in Behar.

Ldld, a synonym for Kayasth
in Behar.

Lélbegi, a class of Mahomedan sweepers supposed to have

come from Upper India, some with sepoy regiments, others as
wanderers in search of work. Though styled Mahomedans, they
neither practise circumcision nor abstain from pork. The Lalbegi
are employed as sweepers in European households, and are always
addressed as jama’dar by the other servants. _

They eat the leavings of Europeans, and drink any sort of Wine
or spirits. They will not, however, eat with the Rant, who 1n their
turn pride themselves on abstaining from food thathas come from
a European table. Nor will they touch a dead body. .

The religious’rites of the Lalbegi are partly Hindu, partly
Muhammadan. As with Mussulmans generally, marrlages are
arranged by an old woman who acts as match-maker. . No Icabm
or marriage settlement is drawn up, but an ilmir or bond 15 executed,
in which both promise to love one another, and the bridegroom
undertakes not to bring a second wife into his house. Prevmus to
the wedding day the Khandﬁri ceremony is observed, as well as ‘
other Muhammadan customs, but the services of the Alchérjl Brahman

a 2

r"

LA’LBEGI. 4 LAMGORIA’.

are not required. Should the marriage be celebrated in the bride-
groom’s house, a fee of twenty annas is paid to the panchéyat; if in
the bride’s, only ﬁve annas.

A few of the Lalbegi keep the fast of Ramazan, although they
dare not enter a public mosque.

Their funeral ceremonies are peculiar. The dead may not be
buried in a Mussulman cemetery, but are consigned to the ground
in some waste and jungly spot. The corpse is wrapped in ﬁve
shrouds, a handkerchief is placed under each arm and in each hand,
a kasdwd or napkin is bound round the head, and a khirqd or
blouse is put on the body. After the grave has been ﬁlled in,
a cloth cover ([9de ka chadar) is laid over it, while four pieces of
“Agar” wood are inserted at the corners and set ﬁre to. The rest
of the funeral ceremonies are strictly Mahomedan. For four days
after a death a ﬁre is not allowed to be lighted in the dwelling-house
of the deceased, the family in the meantime receiving food from
their neighbours; but on the ﬁfth day a tray laden with betel-nuts
and adorned with ﬂowers is placed in front of the hut, and a feast is
given to the whole tribe.

The Lalbegis follow many Hindu customs, observing the
Diwali and the Holi as the greatest festivals of the year. On these
occasions a mud image of a mosque with ﬁve domes is made,
supposed to be a model of one still existing at Ghazni, in Kabul,
which belonged to Lal Beg, the eponymous ancestor of the tribe.
In front of the image a cock is sacriﬁced, and offerings of
pilao, sherbet, and sweetmeats are made in his name. L211 Beg is
identiﬁed by Sir H. Elliot1 with Lél Guru, the same as the
Rakshasa Aronakarat; but in Benares2 he is confounded with Pir
Zahr, perhaps the famous Chishtiya saint Sayyid Shah Zuhﬁr. In
the Panjab, again, Mihtars adore Lal Pir, or Baba Faqir, as
the dyers do Pir ’Ali Rangrez, and the blacksmiths Hazrat Daﬁd.
It seems not improbable, therefore, that the Lalbegi, like many
other tribes converted to Mahomedanism, have adopted a Maho-
medan saint as their common ancestor.

Lél-C hétéi , asub-group of Hele
Kaibarttas-in Central Bengal.

Lél~Gémia, a group of the Mih-
tar sub-caste of 'l‘elis in Behar.

Lél-Goélé, a hypergamous
group of Goalas in Eastern Bengal.

Lalihar, a bird, a totemistic
sept of Lohérs in Chota Nagpur.

Lama, a Hoar or sept of
Gurungs in Darjiling.

Lémé Khor, a section of Mur-
mis in Darjiling.

 

Lamamaka, a sept of Hos in
Singbhum.

Lémbé, a sectiOn or Goalas in
the N orth-Western Provinces and
Behar.

Lambach a, a sept of the Tung-
jainya sub-tribe of Chakmas in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Lémgéde, Lamgadeh, a sec-
tion of Kémis and a t/zm‘ or sept
of Mangers in Darjiling.

Lamgoria, a section of .Ba-
bhans in Behar.

‘ Supplemental Glossary, i, 32.
3 Sherrlng, Hindu Zkibes qf Benm‘es, p. 397.

LA’MI CHHANYA. 5

Lémi Chhanya, 9. Mar or sept
of Gurungs and Mangars in Dar-
jiling.

Lamjél, a t/mr or sept of
Mangers in Darjiling.

Lampochhé, a sept of the
Rautar sub-tribe of Tharus in
Behar.

Lamsani Tongi, a tlzar or sept
of the Das-Gurung sub-tribe of
Gurungs in Darjiling. It was
separated from its parent Hear, the
Lehbo Lamsani.

Lang, a kind of bird, a totem-
istic sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

Lang Chenre, a section of
the Mahili-Munda sub-caste of
Mahilis in Chota Nagpur.

Langjharajhari, a mu! or sec-
tion of Kesarwani Baniyas in
Behar.

Langsél or Lamsal, a ﬂmr of
the Bachh gotm of Nepali
Brahmans.

Laoti, he who was obeyed, a
sept of the Panther sub-tribe of
Limbus in Darjihng.

Léphaunchhé, a thaw or sept
of Khambus in Darjiling.

Lépung, a small bird, a totem-
istic sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

Larapé, monkey-eater, a sept
of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Larauni, a mad or section of
the Chhamulia Madhesié sub-caste
of Halwéis in Behar.

Larhora or Purbdl Mehter,
a sub-caste of Dome in Behar who
reverence Supat Bhagat, a devotee
Whom they believe to be the
par/ca or founder of their sub-
caste. They make baskets and
remove ﬁlth.

 

LATIHAR.

Lari, a sub-caste of Goalas in
Chota Nagpur.

Larka, the ﬁghters, a title of
the H0 tribe in Singbhum.

Larkor, a title of J aunpuri
Chamars in Behar whose women
act as midwives.

Larma, a sept of Ohakmas in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Larsunar, a sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Lartangar, a mu! or section of
the Kanaujia sub-caste of Sonars
in Behar.

Léruli, a ga’in of the Bharad-
waja gotm of Barendra Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Larwér, a dill or exogamous
section of the Gliarbait sub-caste
of Amats in Behar.

Larwarié, a section of Bath-
hans in Behar.

Laskar, a title of Pods in

Bengal.

Lat, a sub-sept of the Kisku,
Saren, and Tudu septs of Santals,
whose ancestor baked meat in a
leaf platter.

Latd-baidya, a synonym for
Barui.

Laté Punra, a section of
Pundarik or Pundas, so called
from their selling vegetables
grown from laid or creeper.

Later, a sub-tribe of Dhiméls
in the Darjiling Terai.

Lathaur, a sub-caste of Telis
in Behar, a section of Rajwars
and Rautias in Chota Nagpur.

Latihar, a variant for Laheri
or Churihér, who manufacture

lac bracelets or ckum‘s.

LAU.

Law, a sub-section of the
Harita section of Utkal Brah-
mans in Orissa.

Laugi, a title of Nagars in
Behar.

Lauki, a title of Hindu Jo-
lahas in Behar.

Laungijarhué, a mul or sec-
tion of the Satmuh'a or Kishnaut
sub-caste of Goalas in Behar.

Laurié, a section of Goalas in
Behar.

Lautni, a sept of Rajputs in
Behar.

Léwépur, a section of Maj-
raut Groalas in Behar.
Ldyd, a synonym for Maulik.

Leba, a sept of Chakmas in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Lechenche, the dissolute one,
a sept of the Yangorup sub-tribe
of Limbus in Darjiling.

 

6 LEPCHA.

Legbahang, a sept of the
Tambrkhola sub-tribe of Limbus
in Darjiling.

Legma, the worker in mud,
a sept of the Chhothar sub-tribe
of Limbus in Darjiling.

Leh Lama, a ﬂaw or sept of
Gurungs in Darjiling the mem-
bers of which are called in to
ofﬁciate at the obsequies of the
dead by throwing earth on the
grave, and to read the funeral
prayers.

Lekh ogma, he of the swollen
testes, a sept of the Yangorup sub-
tribe of Limbus in Darjiling,

Lenda, earthworm, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Leng, a totemistic sept of the
Bhumij tribe in Manbhum, the
members of which will not touch
or eat a mushroom.

Lenka, a title of Chasas in
Orissa.

ﬂﬁpthm Rang, K/zamba, Mon, a Mongolian tribe of Sikkim,

Origin. ling.

Western Bhutan, Eastern Nepal, and Darji-
They are divided into two branches—

Rong and Khamba. The former claim to be the original inhabit-
ants of Sikkim, While the Khamba are believed to have immigrated
some 250 years ago from the Kham province of China, whither
a deputation of Lamas had been sent to choose a ruler for Sikkim.
The Ra]a selected by them brought with him a number of his own
tribe, who retained the name of their original home as associating
them w1th the ruling family. The distinction, however, has not
operated as a bar to intermarriage, and the two branches are now
thoroughly amalgamated. Both, in fact, probably come of the same
original stock, and represent two successive migrations of Mongols
into Sikkim.

“In person,” says Dr, Campbell,1 “the Lepchas are short,
averaging about ﬁve feet in height: ﬁve feet
.- six inches is tall, and four feet eight inches
is a common stature among the men. The women are shorter in the
usual pr0p0rtr0n. The men are bulky for their height, but rather
fleshy than s1newy. The muscular development of their limbs is
inferior to that of the Magars, Gurungs, Murmis, and other

Physical type.

 

1 Journal 9)“ Ethnological Society qf'London, vol. I, N 0- 2-

7 LEPCHA.

Parbattiahs. They are very fair of skin, and boys and girls in
health have generally a ruddy tinge of complexion. This is lost,
however, in adolescence, although the fairness continues. The
features are markedly Mongolian, but there is a fulness and
roundness of feature accompanied by a cheerful expression and
laughing eye which renders the face a most pleasing one. The
total absence of beard and- the fashion of parting the hair along the
crown of the head adds to a somewhat womanly expression of
countenance in the men, and the loose bedgown sort of jacket, with
wide sleeves, Which they wear, contributes still more to render it
rather difﬁcult for strangers to distinguish the sexes, especially in
middle age. The men very often look like women, and the women
sometimes like men. The hair is worn long by both sexes; the
younger men allowing it to hang loose over the shoulders, the elders
plaiting it into a tail, which sometimes reaches to the knees. The
women of rank wear their hair in two, and sometimes in three tails,
tying it with braids and silken cords and tassels. The Lepchas, both
male and female, are dirty in person, rarely having recourse to
'ablution. In the cold and dry season this renders them unpleasant
inmates of a close dwelling, but in the rains, when they move about
and are frequently wet, they are clean and sweet. The tempera-
- ment of the Lepcha is eminently cheerful, and his disposition really
amiable. In ordinary intercourse they are a very fascinating
people, and possess an amount of intelligence and rational curiosity
not to be met with among their Bhotia, Limbu, Murmi, or Gurung
neighbours, and indeed rarely, if ever, to be seen among people so
completely secluded from foreign intercourse as they always have
been. The marked contrast in these respects between the Lepchas
and the listless, uninquiring natives of the plains renders association
with them a source of much pleasure to Europeans. They are
wonderfully honest, theft being scarcely known among them; they
rarely quarrel among themselves. I have never known them to
draw their knives on one another, although they always wear them.
For ordinary social purposes of talking, eating, and drinking, they
have great unanimity, but for any more important purposes of
resistance to oppression, the pursuit of industry or trade, their con-
ﬁdence in one another is at a low pitch ; they ﬂy bad government
rather than resist it, and used to prefer digging for yams in the
jungle and eating wretchedly innutritious vegetables to enduring
any injustice or harsh treatment. They are singularly forgivmg
of injuries, when time is given them, after hasty loss of temper.
Although they were ready enough to lodge complaints before the
Magistrate against one another in cases of assault and other offences,
they rarely prosecuted to a decision, generally preferring to submit
to arbitration or making mutual amends and concessions.”

The internal structure of the tribe, so far as I have been able
to ascertain it, is shown in Appendix I. The
subject is most obscure, and Lepchas them-
selves seem unable to throw much light upon it. Besides the main
divisions of Rong and Khamba, which, as has been statedoabove,
have no special bearing on marriage, the Lepchas recognize ten

Internal structure.

LEPCHA. 8

groups, which they call titers. These appear to have been at one
time exogamous, and the Adinpuso ﬂaw is said to be so still. The
rest, however, have lost their exogamous character, and their
members may marry women of their own or of other groups. Two
thars, Barphungpuso and Adinpuso, rank higher than the other
eight, and do not permit intermarriage with them. The distinction
is said to arise from the fact that the oﬁicials of the Sikkim State are
invariably chosen from these two than, and they probably are the
descendants of the Khamba. clansmen who followed the chief from
Tibet. Village headmen (mandals) are drawn from among the eight
lower titers, and these groups represent the main body of cultivators
in Sikkim. Members of these tkars again may intermarry with
Limbus, which is forbidden for Barphungpuso and Adinpuso.

The primitive rule of exogamy having thus fallen into disuse,
the Lepchas supply its place by a table of prohibited degrees which
does not differ materially from that expressed by the common formula.
mamem, ckaclzem, etc, already often referred to. Intermarri-
age is barred only for three generations in the descending line,
except when a mat/z or adoptive relationship has been entered into,
in which case the prohibition is said to extend to nine generations.
The ceremony observed in mm is of the same general character as
among the Murmis. but Lamas, not Brahmans, oﬂiciate as priests,
and Tibetan scarves are exchanged as pledges of amity instead of
the rupees used by the Murmis. The wives of the two friends take
part in the ceremony, and are not troubled by the strict etiquette
which among the Nepalese regulates the conduct of a wife towards
her husband’s dost.

Lepcha girls usually marry between the ages of sixteen and
eighteen. Men marry later owing to the
difﬁculty of getting together the bride-price,
which ranges from Rs. 40 to Rs. 100 according to the rank of the
parties. The freest courtship is permitted, and sexual license before
marriage is tolerated. If a girl becomes pregnant, the man is
expected either to marry her or to pay some compensation to her
parents for the reduction in value which she has undergone. Formal
proposals of marriage are usually made to the bride’s parents by
102'sz or go-betweens acting on behalf of the lover. If the proposal
is accepted, the pibus go to the bride’s house with Rs. 5 as earnest-
money, and ten seers of mama beer and a Tibetan scarf. An
auspicious day for the marriage is then ﬁxed by the Lamas. The
ceremony, performed ﬁrst at the bride’s and then at the bridegroom’s
house, is of a very simple character. Bride and bridegroom sit
side by side on a carpet, and the Lama ties a silk scarf round the
neck of each and then changes the scarves, so that the bride wears the
bridegroom’s and vice cared. Rice is sprinkled over their heads, they
eat together, and drink marud beer out of the same cup. The pro-
ceedings end with a feast. The married couple spend three days in
the husband’s house, and then usually go on a month’s visit to the
bride’s parents.

When a man is too poor to pay the bride-price, he is often
allowed to marry, as it were, on credit; but the bride does not leave

Marriage.

9 LEPOHA.

her father’s house, and the husband goes to live with her and work
for his father-in-law until the full amount has been made up.

Polyandry, though comparatively rare, is not entirely unknown
among the Lepchas. As might be expected, the Tibetan form of the
custom is followed, and the younger brothers share the favours of
the eldest brother’s wife. Polygamy is permitted, but is not practised
on a large scale.

A widow may marry again, and is subject to no express restric-
tions in her choice of a second husband. It is considered, however,
proper for her to marry her late husband’s younger brother, and if
she marries an outsider, this brother-in-law usually keeps the children,
and in any case may claim repayment of the bride-price. The full
ceremony may be employed at the marriage of a widow, but the
parties usually content themselves with the mere announcement by
a Lama that they have become man and wife.

If a married couple cannot agree, arbitrators (Mints) are appointed
to attempt to adjust their differences. If they fail after two or three
_ attempts, a formal divorce is effected with the concurrence 'of the
Lama who married the pair. The wife returns to her father’s house,
and her husband pays some compensation to her parents. When
a woman is taken in adultery, a panchayat considers the case and
determines the amount of ﬁne (gr/sh) to be paid to her husband by
the paramour. The amount of the ﬁne is not ﬁxed by custom, nor
does it bear any stated proportion to the bride-price. Where
adultery is proved, the husband has a right to divorce his wife
without paying compensation to her parents, and to take away her
ornaments. Physical chastisement is never inﬂicted, nor is the
right of divorce invariably exercised. Divorced wives may marry
again by the same ceremony as is in use at the marriage of a virgin.

In matters of inheritance and succession the Lepchas follow
a tribal custom of their own, which is adminis-
tered by the panchayats of the tribe, and
rarely comes before the regular courts. At a man’s death his
property is supposed to be divided equally among his sons, but the
rule of equal division is liable in practice to be modiﬁed by other
considerations. Thus the widow and daughters of the deceased
usually live with the eldest son, and where this is the case he gets
an extra share of the property. In Sikkim, again, it is held that
the rule of equal division only applies where the sons render equal
service to the Raja of the country, so that if one son does service
and the others do not, that one gets an extra share of the property.
A similar principle is recognized by the Lepchas of Darjiling.
In dividing an inheritance account is taken by the panchayat of the
extent to which the different heirs have contributed to the improve‘
ment of the property, and their shares are adjusted accordingly.
Brothers have no claim by right of descent, but shares may be
awarded to them by the panchayat in proportion to the work they
have done during the lifetime of the deceased. Wills are unknown ;
but a father may make a verbal declaration in favour of a particular
son, and the panchayat will give effect to this declaration of his
wishes. If sons survive, the unmarried daughters are maintained

Inheritance.

LEPCHA. 10

by them, and neither they nor married daughters take any share in
the property. If, however, there are no sons, a married daughter
may succeed, provided that she and her husband have lived in her
father’s house. The whole system, however, is extremely ﬂuid and
indeﬁnite, and the rules stated above are in practice constantly modi-
ﬁed by the panchayat with the object of doing substantial justice
to the various claimants.

Most Lepchas at the present day profess to be Buddhists, and
follow in a more or less intelligent fashion
the Observances of the northern sect of that
religion. It is clear, however, that at no very distant time their
sole belief was a form of Shamanistic Animism of the same general
character as that described in the article on the Limbus. Conspi-
cuous traces of this faith still survive among them, imperfectly
hidden by the thin veil of Buddhistic usage. In the belief of the
average Lepcha, mountain and forest, rock and stream represent
ill-deﬁned but formidable powers who threaten mankind with a
variety of physical ills, and require to be constantly appeased
through the agency of Bijuas or exorcists. Not all of these powers
are evil, and some are even credited with taking a kindly interest
in human affairs. But savage theology, expressing doubtless the
experience of primitive man as to the distribution of good and evil
in the world, teaches that the good gods abide in their own place
and take no heed of mankind, while the malevolent deities are in
a constant state of jealous and mischievous activity. The former
therefore gradually drop out of notice and fade from the memories
of men, while the latter, strong in the fears they inspire, may even
outlive an entire change of religion on the part of their votaries.
The snow-clad giant Kinchinjanga, chief among the elemental deities
of the Lepchas, who vexes men with storm and hail and sends down
avalanches and torrents to wreck their ﬁelds and sweep away their
homes, has been translated to the milder system of Buddhism, where
he ﬁgures as the tutor of Sakya Muni himself. Eshegenpu, Palden
Lhamo, Lapen-Rimbuchi, Genpu-Maling-Nagpu, and Wasungma
are less easy to identify ; but the fact that they receive offerings of
meat and marud beer in addition to the ﬂowers, fruit, rice, and
incense sanctioned by Buddhist usage, lends some weight to the
conjecture that they belong to an earlier and more barbarous system.
Chirenzi or Lachen-Om-Chhup-Chhimu is said by the Lepchas to
be the same as Mahadeva. His wife is Umadeva. Both are believed
to have been worshipped by the Lepchas before the introduction of
Buddhism.

Tibetan Lamas serve the tribe as priests, and preside at all
Buddhist ceremonies. Lepchas themselves rarely become Lamas, but
many of them are exorcists (Bijuas or thas), and exercise consider-
able inﬂuence by their power of averting the ill-will of the gods and
appeasing the spirits of the dead.

The dead are usually buried, fully clothed and in a sitting
position, facing towards the east. Before
burial the corpse is kept sitting in the house
for two or three days with food before it. The grave is lined with

Religion.

Disposal of the dead.

11 LEPCHA.

stones and a round cairn built on the top surmounted by a ﬂag.
Among the Rong Lepchas an tha is called in about a month after
death to perform a simple propitiatory rite, at which a cow or a goat
is killed and much marud beer is drunk. This is sometimes repeated
on the ﬁrst anniversary of the death. The object is to put the dead
man’s spirit to rest, and to prevent him from plaguing the living
with bad dreams. At harvest time offerings of rice, marud beer,
and various kinds of food are presented by the head of the house-
hold for the beneﬁt of ancestors in general.

The higher classes of Khamba Lepchas burn their dead, pound
the fragments of the bones which remain, and throw them into
a river, not into a j/zord or hill stream. The subsequent propitiatory
ceremony is sometimes very elaborate, as in the case of the obsequies
of the sister of the Sikkim Raja, described by Mr. J. Ware Edgar,
0.8.1., in the following passage 1:—

“Before the ﬁgure [meant to represent the dead person, in
> this case the Sikkim Rajah’s sister, who was a nun] was a table

on which were different kinds of food; on another table at the side

' were various things which had belonged to the woman when alive;

while on a third, 108 little brass lamps were arranged in rows.

Long lines of monks in dark red robes and with very tall caps of

bright crimson on their heads sat on carpets placed in the middle of

the chapel and chanted litanies throughout each day of my stay at
Toomlong. -

“ It chanced that I saw the conclusion, and learned the meaning
of this ceremony at Pemiongchi, where the lay-ﬁgure of the nun
was taken some days after I left Toomlong. There for three days
the ﬁgure was seated before the altar, and the monks chanted the
litanies for the departure of the soul of the dead nun * * * . On
the third day the relations, friends, and dependents of the deceased
brought or sent gifts of food or clothing or money, which were all
laid before the ﬁgure of the dead woman; while the head Lama,
standing in front of his chair and turning towards the ﬁgure, stated
the nature of each gift and the name of the donor. Towards even-
ing the tea-cup of the nun was freshly ﬁlled with tea and her murwa
jug with murwa, and all the monks solemnly drank tea with her.
Then many people who had known and loved the nun when
alive went up, and, prostrating themselves before the ﬁgure, kissed
the hem of the robe as a last farewell, while the monks chanted
the litanies more zealously than ever, and the head Lama, who had
left his chair and gone to one of the tables, went through some
elaborate ceremonies the meaning of which I could not make out.
At about nine o’clock the chanting ceased, and the Lama again stand-
ing in front of his chair made a long speech to the soul of the nun,
in which he told her that all that could be done to make her journey
to another world easy had been done, and that now she would have
to go forth alone and unassisted to appear before the king and judge
of the dead * * "‘ * * "‘ *
When the Lama had ﬁnished his address, some of the monks took

 

‘ Report of a Visit to Sikkim, pp. 57-58.

. LEPCHA. 12

down the lay-ﬁgure and undressed it; While others formed a
procession and conducted the soul of the nun into the darkness
outside the monastery, with a discordant noise of conch-shells, thigh-
bone trumpets, Tibetan ﬂutes, gongs, cymbals, tambourines, drums,
and other most disagreeable but nameless instruments.”
“ The Lepchas,” says Dr. Campbell,l “ have no caste distinctions.
Food Those who live under the Nepal Government
' are obliged to conform to the Hindu laws of
that State, which prohibit the killing of the cow. This they do,
however, with a very bad grace, and rarely forego an opportunity
of visiting Darjiling to indulge their beef-eating propensities.
They are gross feeders, eating all kinds of animal food, including
the elephant, rhinoceros, and monkey, and all grains and vegetables
known to us, with the addition of many roots and plants altogether
excluded from our culinary list. Pork is their most favourite ﬂesh ;
next to that beef, goat, and mutton. The yak is considered the best
beef, the next to that the ﬂesh of the Sikkim cow, aﬁne animal, and last
the Bengali and common cow. All birds are included in their list
of eatable game. Of the carrion of wild animals, that of the elephant
is most prized. The favourite vegetable food is rice; next to it
wheat, barley, maize, millet. murwa, and a ﬁne species of yam called
“ bookh,” which grows allover these mountains, at elevations of from
1,500 to 3,000 feet. During the rains, when grain is scarce, they
contentedly put up with ferns, bamboo roots, several sorts of fungi,
and innumerable succulent plants found wild on the mountains. A.
large-rooted arum is much used at this season, after being soaked in
water for six days to remove its acrid juice ; still it often produces
colic, and is poisonous. Fond of fermented and spirituous liquors,
the Lepchas are nevertheless not given to drunkenness ; their common
beverage is a kind of beer made from the fermented infusion of
Indian corn and murwa, which is weak, but agreeably acid and very
refreshing. They drink this at all times when procurable, and When
making a journey it is carried in a large bamboo “chunga,” and
diligently applied to throughout the day. They have no distilled
liquor of their own, but they greatly admire and prize all our strong
waters—our port and sherry, cherry brandy, and maraschino. Tea
is a favourite beverage, the black sort brought from China in large
cakes being that preferred. It is prepared by boiling, after which
the decoction is churned up in a “chunga,” with butter and salt.
Milk is never taken with tea. Their cooking is careless, coarse, and
not cleanly. Rice is generally boiled when travelling in pieces of
the large bamboo; at home, in coarse iron pots. Vegetables are
always boiled in oil, when the latter is procurable, and spiced with
capsicum and ginger, of which these hills possess very ﬁne kinds.
Salt is not a commonly used condiment, the chief source of its supply
till lately being Tibet, whence rock-salt is brought on men’s backs :
the easier communication with the plains of Bengal by the new
Darjiling road admits of the importation of this article at a cheaper
rate, and sea-salt is rapidly taking the place of the other.

1 Journal of the Ethnological Society of London, vol. I, No. 2,
pp. 147-49.

13 LEPCHA.

“ The Lepcha dress is simple and graceful. It consists of a robe
of striped red and white cotton cloth crossed
over the breast and shoulders, and descending
to the calf of the legs, leaving the arms bare ; a loose jacket of red
cotton cloth is worn over the robe by those who can afford it, and
both are bound round the waist by a red gridle; some strings of
coloured beads round the neck, silver and coral earrings, a bamboo
bow and quiver of iron-pointed arrows, and a long knife complete
the dress of the men. The knife, called “ban” by the Lepchas,
and “ chipsa” by the Bhotias, is constantly worn by the males of
all ages and ranks; it hangs on the right side, suspended from the
left shoulder, and is used for all purposes. With the “ban” the
Lepcha clears a space in the forest for his house and cultivation;
it is the only tool used by him in building; with it he skins the
animals that fall a prey to his snares and arrows ; it is his sword in
battle, his table knife, his hoe, spade, and nail-parer. Without the
“ban ” he is helpless to move in the jungle; with it he is a man
of all work: the expertness with which it is used by the boys of a
few years old even is the astonishment of strangers.1 The women
are less neatly dressed than the men: a piece of plain unbleached
cotton cloth, or the cloth of the caster-oil insect—the indi—rolled
round to form a sort of petticoat, with a loose red gown of the same,
and a profusion of mock coral and coloured bead necklaces, form
their entire wardrobe. They are the domestic and farm drudges of
the men, performing all out and in-door work along with their
husbands, and much besides. It is not unusual to meet a stout and
active man, bow in hand, sauntering along the road followed by his
wife and sisters heavily loaded with grain or merchandise. It is
the delight of a Lepcha to be idle; he abhors the labour of practising
any craft, but he expects that while he is amused and unemployed
the female part of the household shall be busily engaged in the ﬁeld,
or in looking after the pigs and poultry. In recent times they have
taken to work in tea plantations and as chair-bearers: and the
necessity for money, since we introduced it into their country, has
made them more steady workers.”

9 “The Lepchas are poor agriculturists, their labours in this art
being conﬁned to the careless growing of rice,
Indian corn, murwa (Sessasum Orientalz's), and
a few vegetables, of which the brinjal, cucumber, and capsicum are
the chief. Their habits are incurably erratic: they do not form
permanent villages, and rarely remain longer than three years in
one place, at the expiration of which they move into a new part of
the - forest, sometimes near, often distant, and there go through the
labour of clearing a space for a house, building a new one, and
preparing the ground for a crop. The latter operations consist in
cutting dOWn the smaller trees, lopping off the branches of the large
ones, which are burnt, and scratching the soil with the “ban,” after

Dress.

Occupation.

 

' The “ban” is a straight sword with a wooden scabbard open along one

de.
2 Journal qf tke Ethnological Society of London, vol. I, N o. 2, p. 151.

LEPCHA. 14

LIMBU.
which, on the falling of a shower of rain, the seed is thrown into
the ground. Their houses are built entirely of bamboo, raised about
ﬁve feet from the ground, and thatched with the same material, but

a smaller species, split up.”

The Lepchas numbered 3,952 in 1872 and 202 in 1881 in the

district of Darjiling.

Lepuriet, a mu! or section of
the Naomulia or Majraut sub-
caste of Goalas in Behar.

Let, a sub-caste of Bagdis
found in Murshedabad and Bir-
bhum.

Lethrani, the designation of
the women of the Limbu
caste in Darjiling.

Levétié, a section of Majraut
Goalas in Behar.

Lhasung, a sub-sept of the
Pon-po sept of Dejong Lhoris or
Bhotias of the south, the members
of which oﬁiciate as priests of all
the septs.

Lha-yo, a ﬂaw or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Lhebo Lamsani, a ﬂzar or
sept of the Das-Grurung sub-tribe
of Gurungs. There is a tradition
that in ancient times two Gurungs
-—-father and son— quarrelled and
separated from each other. The
father’s party remained at Lehbo
and the son’s party emigrated to

 

a distant place. The latter
were called Lamsani Tangi (tangi
in Gurung means ‘separated ’).

Lhopa, a native of Bhotan.

leopa Bhotia, a synonym for
Dejong Lhori.

Lhoring’ten, the chief of Mo-
rang, a sept of the Chaibisa sub-
tribe of Limbus. This t/zar was
formerly under the Morang
Raj a.

Lhorong, a sub-tribe of Yakhas
in Darjiling.

Libang, the archer, a sept of
the Miakhola sub-tribe of Limbus
in Darjiling.

Lihimba, dove, a totemistic
sept of Juangs in Orissa.

Lila, ﬁsh, a totemistic sept of
Oraons in Chota Nagpur.

Lilla, wild cow, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Liluai, a sept of Birhors in
Chota Nagpur.

’ﬂlimhu, a large tribe, probably of Mongolian descent, ranking
next to the Khambu and above the Yakha

Traditions of origin.

among the

three upper divisions of the

 

Kirénti group. The precedence given to the Khambus is supposed
to be due to their having a larger proportion of Khas and Newar
blood, while the Limbus have interbred freely With the Lepchas.
The Yakha are a minor tribe, concerning which little is known.
Unlike the other two, they have no generally recognized honoriﬁc title,
though they claim to be addressed as dewan and call themselves Yak
Thomba or yakherds, with reference to the tradition that this was
their characteristic occupation before the tribe crossed the Himalaya
. into Eastern Nepal. The name Limbu, or Das Limbu, from the
ten sub-tribes (really thirteen) into which they are supposed to be
divided, is used only by outsiders. Tibetans have no special name

l 5 LIMBU.

for the Limbus; they call all the tribes of the Indian side of the
Himalaya by the general name Monpa or dwellers in the ravines.
The Lepchas and Bhotias or Tibetans settled in Bhotan, Sikkim, and _
Nepal speak of the Limbus as Tsong, because the ﬁve Mums or sub-
tribes included in the class known as Lhasa-gotra emigrated to
Eastern Nepal from the district of Tsang in Tibet. Lepchas call
them Chang, which may be a corruption of Tsong. By other
members of the Kirénti group they are addressed by the honoriﬁc
title of Subah or Suﬁah, a chief.

The Limbus, according to Dr. Campbell, “form a large portion
of the inhabitants in the mountainous country lying between the
Dud-Kosi and the Kanki rivers in Nepal, and are found in smaller
numbers eastwards to the Mechi river, which forms the boundary of
Nepal and Sikkim. In still fewer numbers they exist within
the Sikkim territory, as far east as the Tista river, beyond
which they rarely settle. In Bhutan they are unknown except as
strangers.” Hodgson locates them between the Arun Kosi and
the Mechi, the Singilela ridge being their boundary on the east.
. The Limbus themselves claim to have held from time immemorial
the Tamba Khola valley on the upper waters of the Tamba Kosi
river; and the fact that one of their sub-tribes bears the name
Témbakhola suggests that this valley may have been one of their
early settlements. They have also a tradition that ﬁve out of
their thirteen sub-tribes came from Lhasa, while ﬁve others came
from Benares. The former group is called the Lhasa-gotra, and the
latter the Kasi-gotra; but the term gotra has in this case no bearing
on marriage. All that can safely be said is that the Limbusare
the oldest recorded population of the country between the Tamra
Kosi and the Mechi, and their ﬂat features, slightly oblique eyes,
yellow complexion, and beardlessness may perhaps afford grounds for
believing them to be the descendants of early Tibetan settlers in
Nepal. They appear to have mixed little with the Hindus, but
much with the Lepchas, who of late years have migrated in large
numbers from Sikkim to the west. Dr. Campbell compares the two
tribes in the following words z—“ The Limbu is a very little taller
in stature than the Lepcha, somewhat less ﬂeshy, and more wiry
in the limbs, as fair in complexion, and as completely beardless.
He is scarcely ever as ruddy as the Lepchas sometimes are; his
eyes are, if anything, smaller, and placed more to the front than
the Lepcha’s, and his nose, although somewhat smaller, is rather
higher in the bridge than that of the Lepcha. He wears his hair long,
but does not plait it into a tail; has no fancy for bead necklaces;
wears a ku/cm' instead of the Mn} and wide trousers and a jacket or
chap/com in preference to the robe and long jacket of the Lepchas.”

At the time of the Gurkha conquest of Nepal the country east
of the Arun Kosi was held by petty Limbu chiefs on quasi-feudal
terms from the Hindu Raj as of Bijapur and Makwanpur, at whose
courts representative Limbus discharged the duties of C/chzmtm or
prime minister. Taking refuge in the hill forts with which each

 

1 The long, straight knife used by the Lepchas.

LIMBU. 16

chiefship was provided, the Limbus offered a gallant resistance to the
invading Gurkhas, and the latter underwent many repulses before their
supremacy was fully established. Although used to bearing arms,
and deeming themselves a military race, they do not rank among the
regular ﬁghting tribes of Nepal, and they are not admitted into the
Gorkhali regiments of the Nepalese army. Their principal occupa-
tions at the present day are agriculture, grazing, and petty trade.
They serve in the Kiranti regiments raised about 30 years ago by
J ang Bahadur, and some of them have enlisted in our own Gurkha
battalions. Some authorities believe them, with the rest of the
Kiranti, to be inferior in soldierly qualities to the Khas, Mangar,
and Gurung tribes, from whom our best recruits are drawn, but this
opinion seems to be giving away, among the present generation of
Gurkha oﬂicers, to a more favourable estimate of their military
capacity, and their behaviour in the-Sikkim compaign of 1888 is
understood to have borne out the latter view.

The internal structure of the tribe is extremely complicated, and
can best be studied in the Appendix, Where it
is shown in a tabular form. The Limbus are
divided into thirteen endogamous sub-tribes, each of which is again
broken up into a number of exogamous septs. The names of the
septs are extremely curious. Two or three at the most are totemistic,
a few are local or territorial, and one only is eponymous. By far
the greater number of them refer to some personal adventure or
peculiarity of the original founder of the sept, and they suggest the
existence of a considerable body of rather grotesque folklore. The
rule of exogamy goes by the male side, and is supplemented by
forbidding intermarriage between persons descended in a direct line
from the same parents as long as any relationship can be traced.
Intermarriage between cousins is barred for three generations, or, as
some say, for seven. In practice, however, while the rule forbidding
marriage within the tlzar is most strictly observed, there seems to be
much uncertainty about prohibited degrees, and I believe near
alliances with the mother’s kindred are by no means uncommon.
A further complication is introduced by the restrictions on inter-
marriage arising from with (Limbu saiba) friendship or on ﬁctitious
brotherhood among most of the hill races. Two men contract
friendship by a special ritual at which a Brahman, or, when the
parties are Buddhists, a Lama, ofﬁciates, and reads mantras or
mystic formulae, while the two friends thrice exchange rupees, hand-
kerchiefs, or scarves, and daub each other between the eyebrows
with the paste made of rice and curds which is used in the marriage
ceremony. The effect of the union is that the friends are reckoned
as brothers, and intermarriage between the two families is prohibited
for several (some say eighteen) generations. Any breach of the
rule is punished in British territory by exclusion from caste. In
Nepal, I am informed, more severe punishments, such as death or
slavery, are inﬂicted.

Members of the Murmi, Lepcha, and Bhotia tribes may be
admitted into the Limbu tribe after being approved by the tribal
council, called by the Limbus thum-tkum, and giving a feast to the

Internal structure.

17 _ , LIMBU.

local community. In some cases the new member is required to ﬁle
a written statement to the effect that he has entered the tribe and
will abide by its rules. Khambus and Yakhas, being Kirantis them-
selves, may be admitted into the tribe by the simpler and more direct
process of adoption. In any case the children of a Limbu man by
a Bhotia, Lepcha, Gurung, Sunawar, Mangar, or Murmi woman, or
of a Limbu woman by a man of any of these groups, are admitted
without question into the Limbu community.

The phlegmatic and utilitarian habit of mind which a German
ethnologist has noticed as characteristic of the
Mongolian races comes out conspicuously in the
nonchalant attitude of the Limbus towards religion. Where their
surroundings are Hindu, they describe themselves as Saivas, and
profess to worship, though with sparing and infrequent observance,
Mahadeva and his consort Gauri, the deities most favoured by the
lax Hinduism of Nepal. In a Buddhist neighbourhood the yoke of
conformity is still more easy to bear: the Limbu has only to mutter
the pious formula, om mam' padme cm, and to pay respect and
moderate tribute to the Lamas, in order to be accepted as an average
‘ Buddhist. Beneath this veneer of conformity with whatever faith
happens to have gained local acceptation, the vague shapes of their
original Pantheon have survived in the form of household or forest
gods, much in the same way as Dionysus and other of the Greek gods
may be traced in the names and attributes of the saints who preside
over the vintage, the harvest and rural festivals of various kinds in
remote parts of Greece at the present day. Under such disguises,
which serve to mask departures from the popular creeds, the Limbus
Worship a host of spiritual beings whose attributes are ill-deﬁned,
and whose very names are not easy to ascertain. Yuma, Kapoba,
and Theba rank as household gods, and are propitiated once in
ﬁve years, or whenever disease or loss of property threaten the
family, by the slaughter, outside the house, of buffaloes, pigs or
fowls. The votaries eat the sacriﬁce, and thus, as they express it,
“dedicate the life-breath to the gods, the ﬂesh to ourselves.” N 0
special days are set apart for the ceremony; but it cannot be per-
formed on Sunday, as that day is sacred to Himariya. Those who
wholly neglect the duty are supposed to suffer in person or property,
and the common hill disease of goitre is believed to be one of the
special modes by which the gods manifest their displeasure.
Temples and idols are alike unknown, nor, so far as I can ascertain,
does the imagination of the Limbus trouble itself to clothe its vague
spiritual conceptions with any bodily form.

Himariya, the god of the forest, is propitiated on Sundays by
offerings of sheep, goats, fowls, pigeons and Indian-corn. A stone
under a tree by the roadside is smeared with vermilion and bound
with thread, and this place of sacriﬁce is marked by consecrated
rags tied to a bamboo pole.

In addition to these more or less beneﬁcent, or at least neutral,
divinities, the Limbus are compassed about by a multitude of name-
less evil spirits, “ who require peculiar management in warding off
their caprices.” To appease and propitiate these is the special function

1)

Religion.

LIMBU. 18

of the Bijués, a class of wandering mendicants peculiar to Sikkim
and the eastern parts of Nepal. Bijuas are Wholly illiterate, and
travel about the country muttering prayers and incantations, dancing,
singing, prescribing for the sick and casting out devils. They wear
a purple robe and broad-brimmed hat, and are regarded with great
awe by the people, into whom they have instilled the convenient
belief that their curses and blessings will surely be fulﬁlled, and that
ill-luck will attend any one who allows a Bijua to leave his door
dissatisﬁed.

While the Bijua acts as exorcist and devil-worshipper for all
the Himalayan races, the equally illiterate Phedang a is the tribal
priest of the Limbus for the higher grades of spirits, and oﬂiciates at
sacriﬁces, marriages, and funerals. He is also called in at births to
foretell the destiny of the infant, and to invoke the blessings of the
gods. The ofﬁce frequently descends from father to son, but any
one may become a Phedangbd who has a turn for propitiating the
gods, and for this reason the occupation shows no signs of hardening
into a caste.

It will be apparent from the facts stated above that the leading
principle of the Limbu religion is animism,
“the belief in the existence of souls or spirits
of which only the powerful—those on which man feels himself
dependent, and before which he stands in awe—acquire the rank
of divine beings and become objects of worship.”1 Among the
Limbus, as among the aborigines of Chota Nagpur, who appear
to have reached a very similar stage of development, this belief has
given‘ birth to a number of primitive miscellaneous divinities whose
functions are very vaguely deﬁned, and who do not owe allegiance
to any centralised authority. This multiplicity of deities would of
itself seem to favour the growth of Shamanism, a phenomenon
which Sir John Lubbock regards as a widely distributed phase of
thought forming a necessary stage in the progress of religious
development. Others have gone so far as to use Shamanism as a
sort of general name for all those animistic religions which make
prominent use of the agency of the Shaman. Without disputing
the convenience, or indeed the necessity, of introducing a class-
name of some kind, I would urge that Shamanism is a term
singularly ill-suited to serve as the designation of a large group
of religions. For in the ﬁrst place the practice which it denotes is
common to religions of all varieties of culture, and is by no means
conﬁned to the religions specially called Shamanistic; and secondly,
the word, while calling attention to the superﬁcial, fails to connote the
essential characteristics of the class of religions in question. It may,
indeed, possibly be the case, as has been hinted above, that the com-
plicated departmentalism of certain animistic religions, where the
supreme power is cut up into fractions and distributed among an army
of gods, ghosts and demons, has led to the development of Shaman-
ism by leaving it uncertain to whom a man should apply for the
alleviation of any particular evil. The Shaman, like the touts who

Animism.

 

1 Tiele, Outlines of ﬂee History (3)“ the Ancient Religions, p. 9.

1 9 LIMBU.

hang about our public ofﬁces, professes to help people out of this
difﬁculty, and to show them not only to what god their petitions
should be addressed, but in what form they should be couched, and
by what ceremonies introduced. But even on this showing the prac-
tice is the consequence, not the cause, of certain primitive ideas; and
it is these ideas, not any of their more or less variable consequences,
which a deﬁnition should aim at expressing. Taken by itself, then.
the word Shamanism seems to fall short of completeness as a
description of the Limbu religion. For all religions of that type the
term animism should be retained as denoting the entourage of vague
spiritual inﬂuences which is of their essence. In dealing with these
surroundings different agencies are resorted to: sometimes the fetish
predominates; sometimes the medicine man. According as one or
the other of these predominates, the particular form of animism
may conveniently be styled fetishistic or Shamanistic. Following
this principle, the Limbu religion may be deﬁned as a rather
elementary form of Shamanistic animism, in which the Bijué
and Phedangnia play the part of Shaman, the former operating
on the demons, and the latter having for his department the gods.
Finally, we may perhaps hazard the conjecture that the original ,'
religion of the Limbus is closely akin to the P011 or ancient religion
of Tibet. In both we ﬁnd the forces of nature and the spirits
of departed men exalted into objects of worship. In both systems
temples and images are unknown, while propitiatory offerings
occupy a prominent place. To complete the parallel, neither recog-
nize a deﬁnite priestly order, while both encourage resort to
Shamans or medicine men to ward off the malign inﬂuences which
surround the human race.
Both cremation and burial are in vogue among the Limbus,
Disposal of the dea d the latter being the more common, and probably
' the older, practice. The corpse is placed lying
on its back with the head to the east. The grave is lined with stones,
and a cairn, consisting of four tiers for a man and three for awoman,
erected on the top. The Phedangpoa attends at the funeral and
delivers a brief address to the departed spirit on the general lot of
mankind and the doom of birth and death, concluding with the
command to go whither his fathers have gone and not to come back
to trouble the living with dreams. Neither food nor clothes are
placed in the grave, but sometimes a brass plate with a rupee in it
is laid under the head of the corpse. For nine days after the
funeral the sons of the deceased live on plain rice without any salt ;
and for a month or two the relatives wear ﬂowers in their hair
and avoid merry-makings. The special and characteristic sign of
mourning is a piece of white rag tied round the head. There is no
periodical ceremony for the propitiation of ancestors. .
At a man’s death his sons, natural or adopted, divide his property ;
but an adopted son or a natural son by a wife
informally married (kuc/zcki sidi) takes only
one-half of a legitimate son’s share. The division of the property is
usually made by the tribal council (Mum-Mum), who set apart an
extra share for the eldest son. The youngest son is allowed to

(22

Inheritance.

LIMBU. 20 ' LIN GKHIM .

choose his share ﬁrst, and the other shares are then allotted by the
flzumLthum. Failing sons, the sons-in-law actually living in or
willing to live in the family homestead are entitled to divide the
property. Brothers are the next heirs, and married sisters, if they
attend the funeral, usually get a small share in the inheritance,
although it is said that they have no positive right to claim this
concession. An exception to these rules of devolution occurs in the
case of dag/0 or property given to a sister or daughter or acquired
from a maternal uncle or father-in-law. This is equally distributed
among the sons of the woman to whom or on whose behalf it was
given, and in the event of her dying without children it reverts to her
own family. This simple customary law is administered by the
headmen of the tribe. and hardly any instances are known of Limbus
having resorted to our courts for the settlement of disputes regarding
property. -

The Limbus stand wholly outside of the Hindu caste system,
and their social position can only be deﬁned
with reference to the other Himalayan races.
They belong to the upper division of the Kiranti group, which
inhabits the middle hills of the Himalayas, and rarely descends
below an elevation of 2,000 feet. Within this division the Limbu
take rank below the Khambu and above the Yakha, but this distinc-
tion is probably unknown beyond the limits of the Kiranti group, -
and in the eyes of society at large the three tribes occupy practically
an equal position. They consider themselves, and are regarded by
others, as superior to the Danuar, Hayu, and Thami, who make
up the lower division of the Kiranti. Their relations to the people
of Nepal are less easy to deﬁne. They are certainly deemed inferior
to the Khas, and probably also to the Mangers and Grurungs,
both of whom are classed as military tribes. Newars hold a place
second only to the Khas; Gurungs are inferior to the Newars.
Mangar and Sunwar have their place next to the Gurungs; Limbus,
Khambus, and Yakhas are inferior to the Mangar and Sunwar.

In the matter of food, they have very few prejudices. They
eat beef, pork, and the ﬂesh of all clean-feeding animals, and drink
wine. In fact, the only restrictions on their diet appear to be those
imposed on certain thars by the obligation not to eat the totem or
beast-eponym of the group. They will eat with all the castes of the
hills except the Kami, Damai, Sarki, and Gain.

The Census Report of 1881 returned 2,429 Limbus in the
district of Darjiling.

Linda, eel, a totemistic sept of Lingden, a sept of the Yan-
Oraons in Chota Nagpur. gorup sub~tribe of Limbus,
said to be admitted from the
Lepchas.

Social status.

Lin-dseh-bo, a mi or sept of
the Bedtshan-gye sub-tribe of
Dejong Lhoris or Bhotias of the Lingdenbeh, a sept of Lim-
south. bus in Darjiling.

Lingdam, a sept of the Char- Lingkhim, a sept of the Tam-
khola sub-tribe of Limbus, said brkola sub-tribe of Limbus in
to be admitted from the Lepchas. Darjiling.

LIN GLA’MPHEN .

Linglamphen, a sept of Lim-
bus in Darjiling.

Ling-tamba, a mi or sept of
Dejong Lhoris, whose ancestor
had emigrated from Bhotan.

Liokiché, 9. Mar or sept of
Sunuwars in Darjiling.

Lipo, a tree, a totemistic sept
of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Litiya, a bird, a totemistic sept
of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Lo, 3. section of Murmis in
Darjiling.

Lodyat, a synonym for Kuri
or Mayaré. in Tipperah.

Lodah, a sub-tribe of Bhumijs
in Chota Nagpur.

Lodarwa, a mul or section of
the Kanaujia sub-caste of Sonars
in Behar.

21

 

LOHAR.

Lodh, a. title of Dakshin-Rarhi
anil Bangaja Kéyasths in Ben-
ga . _

Lodhiyé, a sub-caste of Binds
in Behar.

Logéin, a mul or section of the

Kanaujia sub-caste of Sonars in
Behar.

Logna Kotra, small deer, a
totemistic sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Logo, 8. sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur believed to be
totemistic.

Lohé, iron, a totemistic sept
of Tantis, Oraons, and Gronds in
Ohota Nagpur.

Lohégun, a section of Kamis ;
a ﬁlm or sept of Mangers in
Darjiling.

(ﬂﬂhiit-Euﬁ, a small caste found along the banks of the

Meghna, who represent themselves as the descendants of a Kaibartta
ﬁsherboy, bought during a season of famine by a Kuri, or parcher of
grains, who took this means of securing a husband for his daughter.
The caste has separated into two subdivisions, those following the
father’s profession of ﬁsherman having repudiated connection with
the maternal branch, who parch grain.

The Lohait-Kuri at present associates neither with the Kaibart-
tas nor with the Kuri or Mayara. The majority are ﬁshermen, who
will not cast a net or ﬁsh from the shore, but angle with a rod from
boats drifting with the stream. The name Lohait-Kuri is said to
come from their using large rectangular iron hooks, with a shank
nearly two inches long. Iron sinkers are preferred to leaden ones,
and the only bait used is a small ﬁsh.

A. Patit Brahman ministers to them, and the srddd/m is kept at
the expiry of a lunar month. Like other ﬁshermen, they observe the
J él-palani for seven days. A heavy fee is paid for a wife, as the
caste is a small one, and one hundred rupees is not an unusual bride-
price, while a widower may have to pay as much as two hundred. The
Lohait-Kuris carry on a considerable trade with their own boats, but
will not accept service with any other caste.

Lohar, a sub-caste of Barhis Lohar caste. The latter are

in Behar who work only in iron.
They are, however, distinct from,
and do not intermarry with, the

probably of Dravidian descent,
while the former appear to be
an occupational group.

LOHAR. 22

Lohér‘, a synonym for Kamar caste of Goélas in Behar; a
in Behar; a mu] or section of section of Kamis in Darjil-
the Naomulia or Majraut sub- ing.

Etohsr, the blacksmith caste of Behar, Chota Nagpur, and
Western Bengal. The Lohars are a large and
heterogeneous aggregate, comprising members
of several different tribes and castes, who in diiferent parts of the
country took up the profession of working in iron. Of the various
sub-castes shown in Appendix I, the Kanaujié claim to be the
highest in rank, and they alone have a well-marked set of exogamous
sections. They regard Viswamitra as their legendary ancestor, and
worship him as the tutelary deity of their craft. The Kokés Lohars
seem to be a branch of the Barhis, who have taken to working in
iron and separated from the parent group for that reason. The
Maghaiya seems to be the indigenous Lohérs of Behar, or opposed
to the Kanaujia and Math uriyé, who profess to have come in from
the North-West Provinces. Kamér-Kalla Lohars may perhaps be
a degraded oﬁshoot from the Sonar caste. The Mahur or Mahulia
Say they came from the N orth-Western Provinces, and the fact that
all Hindus can take water from their hands renders it likely that they
may have broken oif from some comparatively respectable caste.
Their traditions, however, are not deﬁnite -
enough to enable this conjecture to be veriﬁed.
The Kamié. Lohars found in Champaran have immigrated from
Nepal, and are regarded as ceremonially unclean. Many of them
have become Mahomedans. In the Santal Parganas, a sort of
ethnic border land between Bengal and Behar, we ﬁnd three sub-
castes of Lohars,—Birbhumié, from the neighbouring district of
Birbhum; Govindpurié, from the subdivision of Grovindpur, in
Northern Manbhum; and Shergarhié, from the pargcmd of that
name in Bardwan. The names give no clue to the tribal aﬂinities
of these three groups, but the fact that they have the totemistic section
Sal-méchh shows them to be of non-Aryan descent, probably Bauris
or 'Bagdis, who took to iron-working and called themselves Lohérs.
Of ‘the four sub-castes into which the Lohars of Bankura are divided,
two bear the names Gobré and dhetié, which occur among the
sub-castes of the Bauris. Two others—Angarié and Pénsili—
I am unable to trace. The Manbhum Lohérs acknowledge three sub-
castes,—Lohér-Ménjhi, Danda-Ménjhi, and Bégdi-Lohér, names
which suggest a connexion with the Bagdi caste. Lastly, in Lohar-
daga we have the Sad-Lohérs, claiming to be immigrant Hindus;
the Manjhal-Turiyés, who may well be a branch of the Turi caste;
and the Mundé-Lohérs, who are certainly Mundas. The great
number of the sub castes, coupled with the fact that in some cases
we can determine with approximate certainty the tribes of which they
once formed part, seem to point to the conclusion, not merely that
the aggregate termed the Lohar caste is made up of drafts locally
levied from whatever groups were available for employment in a
comparatively menial occupation, but that all castes whose functions

Tradition of origin.

Internal structure.

. 23 LOHAR.

are concerned with the primary needs of social life are the result of
a similar process.

Further indications of the different elements from which the
caste has been formed may be traced in its
social customs. The Lohars of Chota Nagpur
and Western Bengal practise adult as well as infant-marriage, a.
price is paid for the bride, and the marriage ceremony is substantially
identical with that in use among the Bagdis. Polygamy they
allow without imposing any limit on the number of wives a.
man may have, and they recognize the extreme license of divorce
charaCteristic of the aboriginal races. In Behar, on the other
hand, infant-marriage is the rule and adult-marriage the rare excep-
tion. The ceremony is modelled on the orthodox type. A bridegroom-
price is paid, and polygamy is lawful only on failure of issue by the
ﬁrst wife. As to divorce, some diversity of practice seems to prevail.
Kanaujias profess to prohibit it altogether, while other sub-castes
admit it only with the permission of the panchayat, and regard the
remarriage of divorced wives with disfavour. Widow-marriage is
. recognized both in Behar and elsewhere; but this is by no means
a distinctively Dravidian usage, but rather a survival of early Aryan
custom, which has fallen into disuse among the higher castes under
the inﬂuence of Brahmanical prejudice.

Equally characteristic differences may be observed in the religi-
ous usages of the main branches of the caste.
Kanaujia Lohars and all the Behar sub-castes,
except the Nepalese Kamias, pose as orthodox Hindus, employ
Maithil Brahmans, and worship the standard gods. In Chota
Nagpur and Western Bengal, though some profession of Hinduism
is made, this is little more than a superﬁcial veneer laid on at
a very recent date, and the real worship of the caste is addressed to
Manasa, Ram Thakur, Baranda Thakur, Phulai Grosain, Dalli
Gorai, Bhédu, and Mohan Giri. In the latter we may perhaps
recognize the mountain god (Marang Buru) of the Mundas and
Santals. To him goats are sacriﬁced on Mondays or Tuesdays
in the months of Magh, Ashar, and Agrahayan, the ﬂesh being after-
wards eaten by the worshippers. The Lohars of Bankura and the
Santal Parganas have taken to employing 10W Brahmans, but in
Lohardaga the aboriginal priest (pd/ran) and the local sorcerer (mati,
ojhd, or sols/ad) minister to their spiritual wants. The Sad-.Lohars
alone show an advance in the direction of orthodoxy, 1n that
they employ the village barber to act as priest in the marnage
ceremony. V .

In Behar the caste work as blacksmiths and carpenters, while
many have taken to cultivation. They buy
their material in the form of pigs or bars of
iron. Iron-smelting is conﬁned to the Lohérs of Chota Nagpur,
and is supposed to be a much less respectable form of 1ndustry than
working up iron which other people have smelted. In the Santél
Parganas Lohérs often cultivate themselves, While the women of the
household labour at the forge. None of the Western Bengal
Lohérs combine carpentry with working in iron.

Marriage.

Religion.

Occupation.

LOHAR.

24

LOKMAHUNG.

In Behar Lohars rank’with Koiris and Kurmis, and Brahmans

Social status.

take water from their hands.
caste in Western Bengal is far lower, and they

The status of the

are associated in matters of food and drink with Bauris, Bagdis,

and Mals.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of

Lohérs in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. DISTRICT. 1872. 1831-
Bardwan a) 202 Gya. . 17,216 16,659
13:11:33: . . ﬂ 3’33; ShahabadM . ﬂ 27,959 33,328

, .. , . ozu e ur 5
Midnapur .. g . 812 T1rhut{Darbha;£a } 57’3“ 11:83]-
Hughll . _ 3 2 87 Saran 38.449 42.025
24-Parganas ﬁg 57 Champaran 26.953 24,015
Nadiya I 3d Monghyr .. 7.179 4,232
Jessere . .EM 238 Bhagalpur 22,405 9,789
Dmmpur t g a t 101 Purniah 16,083 7,952
RaJshahye egg 10 Maldah ...... 307
Bogra 33-3 19 Santal Parganas .. 14.870 2.913
Pabna, :3 10 Cuttack 1 o :1 :l f 300
Darjilmg a so 577 Balasore ... .. I ’65" ° 33
Kuoh Behar “3 3 Tributary States 3.52 . 1.387
Farldpur. . g l 2 Hazaribagh *- a»: 2 4 8.422
Maimansmh a 6 Lohardagé. $3“? I 341.103
Chlttagong J k 19 Singhhnm .. “sou I 1,826
Patna. . .. 7,304: 8,054 Manbhum 2.25% 1.531

Tributary States a '- 10,302

 

 

 

 

 

 

Loharé, a sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur. '

Lohar-Agarié, a sub-tribe of
Agarias in Ohota Nagpur.

Loharétengi, a section of
Bajwars in Western Bengal.

Loharbans, iron, a totemistic
sept of Chiks; a section of
Grhésis in Chota Nagpur.

Lohér-Kémér. a sub-caste of
Kamérs in Midnapur.
Lohérkoriyé, a

Bhéts.

Lohér Ménjhi, a sub-caste of
Lohars in Manbhum.

Lohatié, a section of Sonars
in Behar.

Lohchab, a section of Goalés
in the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Lo/mi, a synonym for Asura
and Lohér. -

section of

 

Lohra Asur, a sub-tribe of
Asuras in Chota Nagpur.

Lohrakhukhri, a kind of wild
mushroom, a totemistic sept of
Mundas in Chota. Nagpur.

Lohrié, an iron-smelter.

Lohsé, a sub-caste of Kémérs
in Manbhum.

Lohtamié, a sept of Réjputs
in Behar.

Lohutié, a mul or section of
the Ghosin sub-caste of Goalés in
Behar.

Loityal, a ﬂaw or section of
Nepéli Brahmans.

Lokéndri. a. section of Kamis
in Darjiling.

Lokérk, a. pm' or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Lokmahung, a se 1: of the
Phedéb sub-tribe of 'mbus in
Darjiling.

LOKSOHM.

Loksohm, a sept of the'
Yongorup sub-tribe of Limbus,
said to be admitted from the
Lepchas.

Lolutra, a mu! or section of the
Chhamulia Madhesié. sub-caste of
Halwais in Behar.

Lomasé, a Brahmanical sec-
tion of Khatris in Bengal.

Longa, a bird with long tail,
a totemistic sept of Mundas in

Chota Nagpur.

Lopéte, a Mar or sept of
Grurungs in Darjiling.

Lopchan. a section of Murmis
in Darjiling.

Lori, a dugu or section of the
Kochh—Mandéi in Dacca.

Loskra, a sept of Chakmés in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Lothéng, a thar or sept of
Gurungs in Darjiling.

Lowa, a sept of Pans in Ohota
Nagpur.

Loyé. a section of Mahesris
in Behar.

Loyna, a sept of Chiks in
Chota Nagpur.

Lu, a title of Tantis in Bengal.

Ludhi, a sub-caste of Baniyas
who deal in lodk or catechu.

Ludhna, a sub-caste of Bhuiyas
in Singbhum.

Lugniér, hare, a totemistic

25

 

sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

LUTI.

Lugum, a tree, a totemistio
sept of Mundas in Chota Nag-

pur.

Lugumah, a sept of Limbus
in Darjiling.

Lugunki, a sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Luhé, a sept of the Panthar
sub-tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.

Lu khasan, a section of Goalas
in Behar.

Luksom, a sept of Lepchas
in Darjiling.

Lukum, a sept of Réjputs
in Behar.

Lulang, asept of the Tung-
jainya sub-tribe of Chakmas in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Lumphongma, those who
shared the land, a sept of the
Phedab sub-tribe of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Lumria, fox, 9. totemistic sept
of Lohars in Chota Nagpur.

Lungyeli, a ﬂaw or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Lum'd, a synonym for Nunia.

Luniwél, a section of Goalas
in the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Lupu, paddy husks, a totem-
istic sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

Luti, small black ﬂy, a totem-
istic sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

MACHHILHA’.

26

MADHUNAPIT.

M

Machhilhé, a section of Sonérs
in Behar.

Machhué, a sub-caste of
Bagdis and Kewats; a synonym
for Gonrhi, Kewat, and Tiyar; a
title of Mals and of low class
Mahomedans who sell ﬁsh retail.
The latter do not catch ﬁsh
themselves, but obtain their
supplies on a system of advances
from the regular ﬁshing castes.
Hindus who follow the same
avocation are called Nikéri, 9.1;.

Machi, a section of Sonars in
Behar.

Machiwér, ﬁsh, a totemistic
sept of Pans in Chota Nagpur.

Machli, ﬁsh, a totemistic sept
of Mundas; a. section of Saraks
in Chota Nagpur.

Madak, a synonym for Madhu-
m’xpit and Mayara.

Médalwér, a section of Turis
in Chota Nagpur.

Madén, 3. Mar or
Gurungs in Darjiling.

Madéri, a subocaste of Male,
who are often employed as snake-
charmers.

Maden, the son of his mother,
a sept of the Chhothar and
Phedab sub-tribes of Limbus in
Darjiling. The name may possi-
bly have reference to a system of
female kinship which has now
fallen into disuse.

Maderwér, a sept of Khar-
Wars in Ghota Nagpur.

sept of

 

Médhab, a family of the
Kulin group of Jugis in Bengal.

Médhabéchérjya, a sect of
Vaishnavs in Bengal.

Madha Gauré, a sub-caste of
Gaura Brahmans in Behar.

Médhéi, a me! or hypergamous
sub-group of Rérhi Brahmans in
Bengal.

Madhepurie’c, a mul or section
of the Naomulia or Majraut sub-
caste of Groalas in Behar.

Madhesia, a sub-caste of
Goﬁlas, Halwais, and Kandus in
Behar.

Madhubanié, a pm or section
of Sakadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Madhu Goélé, a sub-caste of
Goalés in Bengal.

Madhugrémi, a gdin of the
Batsya gotm of Uttar-Bérendra
Brahmans in Bengal.

Madhukari, a sub-caste of
Téntis in Bengal.

Madhukuliya, Madhukulya,
an exogamous section of Baidyas ;
of Baruis and Napits in Bengal,
a section of Sénkharis, Tantis,
Telis, and Subarnabaniks in
Bengal; of Kaibarttas in Central
Bengal; of Sutradhars and
Bauri-s in Western Bengal; of
Khyans in Northern Bengal.

Madhu-Madak, a sub-caste of
Madhunépits in Bengal.

ﬁshhnnapﬁ, Madak, a. confectioner caste of Bengal Proper

Origin.

who regard themselves as distinct from the
Mayaré. In explanation of their origin the

story is told that the religious reformer Chaitanya being one day in

MADHUNAPIT. 27 MADHURISHI.

a hurry ordered two of his servants to shave him. They carried out
the command, but pointed out to their master that expulsion from
caste privileges was the penalty which their obedience had brought
upon them. Chaitanya accordingly bade them become confectioners
and make sweetmeats for him. Since that time their descendants
have followed the same trade, and their purity, according to Hindu
ideas, is such that even goddesses partake of the dainties they
prepare. Another more romantic version is that a barber named
Madhu, who was called in to shave the head of Chaitanya on the
occasion of his becoming a Sannyési, was so impressed with the
importance of the function he had performed that he asked to be
released from his hereditary profession ; for, he said, having touched
the head of Chaitanya, how could he cut the toe-nails of ordinary
men ? As Chaitanya ﬂourished about the beginning of the sixteenth
century, this legend would make the Madhunapit caste a comparatively
recent oﬁshoot from the Napit. Such an origin, however, is not in
great favour among the members of the caste, who prefer to assume
a special act of creation.

The sub-castes and sections of the Madhunapit are shown in
Appendix I. Neither series throws any light
upon the origin of the caste. A man may not
marry a woman belonging to his own section, nor one who stands
towards him in the religious relation of sapz'nda or samdnoda/ca.
Madhunépits marry their daughters as infants, forbid widows to
remarry, and do not recognize divorce. Although not mentioned by
name in the various couplets deﬁning the Nava-Sakha, the Madhu-
napit are generally admitted to belong to that group, and Brahmans
will take water from their hands. Considering that the Napit and
Madak are unquestionably members of the Nava-Sakha group, and
the Madhunapit certainly derive their origin from one or other
of these castes, their title to be Nava-Sékha seems to be beyond
dispute. Most of them are Vaishnavas by creed.

The Madhunapit, says Dr. Wise, is the most respected confectioner
in Eastern Bengal, for the caste Mayara or
Madak is rarely met with, and the Halwai is
usually a Ghulam Kayasth, a Khontta Brahman, or a Kandu.
They assume great airs, neither intermarrying with other castes—
not even with barbers—nor shaving themselves. In former days
they would not fry sweetmeats in ghi or butter, but now they are
less fastidious. The common sweetmeats prepared by the Madhu-
napit are jalebz', amritz’, [clad/d, cit/landward, laddu, gajd, and sar-b/zdjd.
The delicacies offered to idols are perd, barﬁ, ildc/n' ddmi, batdsd, and
sandes.

The Madhunapit do not cultivate the soil, but are found employed
as writers, goldsmiths, grocers, cloth merchants, and pohcemen.

Marriage.

Occupation.

Madhuré, a sub-caste of Bab. Madhurasiérk, a your or section
bans in Behar. of Sakadwipi Brahmans in

Madhuras, a totemistic sept Behar.
of Mundas in Chota Nagpur Madhurishi, a section of
who cannot eat honey. Mayarés in Bengal.

MADHUST.

Madhust, a section of Mag-
haiyé. Kumhérs in Behar.

Madhwél, a sept of Rajputs
in Behar.

Madhyabhég, a. saméj or
local group of the Séndilya gotra
of the Paschétya Baidik Brah-

mans in Bengal.

Madhya-bhég or Madhyam-
kul, a sub-caste of Haris in
Bengal.

Madhyagrémi, a gdin of the
Kasyapa gotra of Barendra
Brahmans in Bengal.

Madhyakul, a group of the
Aswini Tantis in Bengal.

Madhyalé, a hypergamous
group of J ugis in Bengal.

Madhyalya, a hypergamous
group of the Bangaja Kayasths.

Madhyam Kurmi, a sub-caste
of Kurmis in Manbhum.

' Madhya-sreni, a sub-caste of
Brahmans and Kayasths in West-
ern Bengal.

Madhyasreni Kéyasth a, a
sub-caste of Kayasthas in Midna-

pur.

MédOWén, a mal or section of
the Ghosin sub-caste of Goalas in
Behar.

Madrishi, honey-bee, a totem-
istic section of Sunris in the

28

 

MAGH.

Santal and Man-

bhum.

Madrisi or Madhukulya, a
section of Goalés in Bengal.

Parganés

Médura, Mddar, a contraction
of Mahadanda, a sub-caste of
Kewats in Behar Who sell sdl
leaves and wood.

Mag, a synonym for Magh.

Mégadha, a territorial divi-
sion of Brahmans in Behar.

Magadha Goéré. a sub-caste
of Goalés in Orissa.

Magalzgom'a/z, a variant for
Maghaya Gorilla or Maghaya
Gonrh.

Magahiyé, a sub-caste of
Doms in North Behar, who are
cultivators and thieves, in Gya.
basket-makers, and in Bengal
musicians and basket-makers; a.
sub-caste of Dhanuks, Dosadhs,
Hajj ams in Behar, and of Kémérs
in Manbhum; of Kéndus, Tam-
bulis, Kahars, and Chamérs in
Behar; and of Mails in the Santél
Parganas.

Magai or Mdgaa’ln', a. sub-
caste of Goélés in Bengal.

Magar, a synonym for Man-
gar.
Maggah, a section of the

Tirhutiya sub-caste of Dome in
Behar.

thﬂagh, Mag, the popular designation of a group of Indo-
Chinese tribes, who describe themselves by the

Origin.

various titles of Maramagri, Bhuiyé Magh,

Barué Magh, Réjbansi Magh, Marmé. or Myam-ma, Roéng
Magh, Thongtha or dumia Magh. Concerning the use and“
derivation of the name Magh there has been much discussion, and
the question cannot be considered as having been ﬁnally settled.

29 MAGH.

Wilson,l followed by Ritter,2 Fr. Muller,3 and Colonel Yule,4 deﬁnes
it as “ a name commonly applied to the natives of Arakan, parti-
cularly those bordering on Bengal or residing near the sea,-——the
people of Chittagong.” Sir Arthur Phayre, quoted by Colonel
Yule, derives the name from “ Maya, the name of the ruling race
for many centuries in Magadha (modern Behar). The kings of
Arakan were no doubt originally of this race; for though this is
not distinctly expressed in the histories of Arakan, there are several
legends of kings from Benares reigning in that country, and one,
regarding a Brahman, who marries a native princess and whose
descendants reign for a long period.” Dalton5 appears to take much
the same view regarding the Arakanese as an outlying branch of the
Burmese, and adding that the name Magh is exclusively a foreign
epithet, unknowntothe Arakanese themselves. Mantegazza6 follows
Dalton on the whole, but seems to look upon the term Magh as
rather a tribal name than the general designation of the people who
inhabit a particular tract of country.

In its actual use at the present day the term Magh includes
three endogamous groups :7 the Thongtha,
Thongcha, or dumia Magh;8 the Marma,
Myamma, Rating or Rakhaing Magh;9 and the Méramagri,
otherwise known as Rajbansi, Barué, or Bhuiyé Magh. The
ﬁrst and second have been described by Lewin under the name
Khyoungtha or ‘ children of the river,’ a designation based upon
locality and not corresponding to any real tribal distinction. Both
the Jumia and the Roang Maghs probably belong to the same
original stock, but the former have so long been settled in the Chit-
tagong country that they regard themselves as the aberigines of the
Hill Tracts, while the latter belong to a more recent stream of
immigrants from Arakan.9 The physical characteristics of both
tribes are unmistakeably Mongolian. Their stature is low, the face
broad and ﬂat, cheekbones high and wide, nose ﬂat and bridgeless,

Internal structure.

 

1 Glossary, 330. Magh.

3 Erd-Kunde, V, 324.

3 Allgemeine Ethnographic, 405.

‘ Anglo-Indian Glossary, 3.1). Mugg.

5 Ethnology of Bengal, 112.

5 Studii sull’Etnologia dell’India, p. 331.

7 Hill Tracts of Chittagong, p. 36.

8 Some remarks on the defects of Captain Lewin’s classiﬁcation of the
hill tribes into Khyoungtha and Toungtha will be found in the article on
Chakma above. To those objections it should be added that the classes Khy-
oungtha. and Toungtha do not appear to be mutually exclusive. Captain
Lewin himself states (p. 37) that “ Khyoungtha means those who inhabit the
banks of mountain streams and support themselves by hill cultivation ;"
and if this deﬁnition be accepted, it is diiﬁcult to see how the line between the
two classes should be drawn.

9 Roang seems to be a corruption of Rakhaing, the indigenous name for
the Arakan country or its inhabitants. Arakan, again, is the European form
of Rakhaing or Rakhang. Colonel Yule (Anglo-Indian Glossary, art. Arakan)
thinks that we may have got Arakan through the Malay, but the early
connexion of the Arabs with Chittagong seems to justify the conjecture that
the word may be simply Al-Rakhan g.

MAGH. 30

and eyes small with eyelids obliquely set ;I while according to Lewin
the men have neither beard nor moustache. The Maramagri or
Rajbansi Magh are of an entirely different type. They are
supposed by Colonel Phayre to be “the offspring of Bengali women
by Burmans when the latter possessed Chittagong ;” and this theory
of their origin is borne out by the fact that their exogamous septs
are similar to those of the Thongtha and Marma. All external
indications of their Mongolian descent have, however, been obliterated
by generations of intermarriage with the non-Aryan Bengalis of
Chittagong and Noakhali; and the Rajbansi Maghs, who are
largely employed as cooks in Calcutta, have the glossy black
complexion, wavy hair, and abundant beard and moustache which
characterise the lower castes of Eastern Bengal. It fmay be added
that their somewhat insolent bearing and excitable manner of speech
complete the contrast with the stolid, but amiable Mongolians, from
Whom they are remotely descended.

The septs of the three sub-tribes are shown in Appendix I.
Most of them, as Lewin has pointed out, appear to be the names of
the rivers on which the original settlements of the sept Were situated.
They observe the simple rule that a man may not marry a woman of
his own sept, supplemented by a table of prohibited degrees, which
does not differ materially from that arrived at by the standard
formula already often referred to. In applying these prohibitions,
however, there seems to be some laxity where descent is traced
through females, for I am informed that a man may marry the
daughters of his father’s sister and of his mother’s brother—a
connexion which would not ordinarily be allowed.

The Maramagri marry their daughters either asvinfants or as
adults, and there is some tendency among them
to regard the former usage as more respectable
from the social point of View. Marmas and Thongchas adhere to the
more primitive custom of adult-marriage, and more or less expressly
tolerate sexual intercourse as one of the necessary incidents of pre-
matrimonial courtship. Their marriage ceremony, says Lewin/1 “is
distinctive and uncommon. On a young man attaining a marriage-
able age, that is, about 17 to 18, his parents look about for some
young girl Who would be a good wife to him, unless, as is more
often the case, he has ﬁxed upon a partner for himself. Having
determined upon a suitable match, a male relative of the family is
sent off to the girl’s parents to arrange matters. On arriving at
their village he proceeds to the house, and before going up the
house ladder he gives the usual salutation, with both hands joined
and raised to the forehead. ‘ Ogatsa,’ he says, ‘ a boat has come
to your landing place; will you bind it or loose it?’ A favourable
response is given, and he then goes up into the house. On seating
himself he asks, ‘Are the supports of the house ﬁrm?’ If the

Marriage.

 

1 The apparent obliquity of the Mongolian eye is due to a peculiar confor-
mation of the eyelids, and does not extend to the orbit itself. See Topinard,
Ele’ments d’Anthropologie Ge’ne’rale, p. 998.

2 Hill Tracts of Ckittagng, p. 4.9.

31 MAGH.

answer is, ‘They are ﬁrm,’ it is favourable, and matters may then
be more fully entered into. The affair is taken into consideration,
and he returns to his own village to report good progress to the bride-
groom’s parents, and to request them to ﬁx a day for taking the
omens. On the appointed day the parents meet, the young people
being supposed to know nothing of all this. A fowl is killed by the
fathers, its tongue taken out, and, accordingto certain marks thereon,
the matter is pronounced good or bad. The bridegroom’s parents
sleep for the night at the house of the intended bride, and all parties
look anxiously for dreams by which to foretell the happiness or the
reverse of the union. On going away, should everything be propi-
tious, their intended daughter kneels at their feet for a blessing, and
they present her with a new petticoat and a silver ring. Learned
persons are then called in, who, by consulting the stars and casting
the nativity of the parties, determine a favourable day and hour when
the ceremony shall be undertaken. Meantime the parents on both
sides prepare pigs and spirits, rice and Spices, unlimited, for the
marriage feast. They also send round to all their kith and kin
a. fowl and a letter giving notice of the intended marriage ; in some
places a pice or copper coin is substituted for the fowl. On the
auspicious day, and at the hour appointed, the bridegroom and all his
relatives set out for the bride’s house, dressed in the gayest colours,
both men and women, with drums beating before them. On arriving
at the entrance of the village the female relatives of the bride bar
the approach with a bamboo. Across this barrier the bridegroom
has to drink a loving cup of fraternity, generally spirits. Should
the females on the bride’s side muster strong, the road will probably
be barred ﬁve or six times before the entry into the village is fairly
made. The bridegroom, however, does not drink all that is given
him, but after taking the liquor in his mouth he is allowed to eject it
again upon the ground.

“ In the village, on some open turfy spot, a number of bamboo
booths have been erected, adorned with ﬂowers and green boughs, and
filled with materials for feasting. Here also sit an opposition party
of drummers, and mighty is the row as the bridegroom’s party deﬁles
on to this spot. A separate and specially beautiﬁed booth has been
erected for the young lover and his parents, and here they sit in state
and receive visits from all the village. The bride in like manner,
surrounded by her near relatives, sits in her father’s house. The boys
of the village, irrepressible as is the wont of that species, make raids
upon both parties, for the purpose of chafﬁng and getting alternate
feasts of comestibles. They also organize an amateur band of music,
and serenade the bride towards evening with ﬁddles and ﬂutes. Of
course, all the girls of the village are congregated at the bride’s
father’s house, and, as license and riot are the order of the day, the
fun here grows fast and furious. Towards nightfall the bridegroom
ascends to his bride’s house amid a tempest of cheers and a hailstorm
of drums. After this outburst a temporary lull ensues, to permit of
the ceremony being performed. The bride is brought forth from an
inner chamber in the arms of the women. On the ﬂoor of the house
are placed water in jars, rice, and mango leaves. Round these

MAGH. 32

a new-spun cotton-thread is wound and carried again round the two
contracting parties as they stand opposite to each other. The ‘ poong-
yee,’ or priest, now comes forward; he recites some prayers in a
language that is not understood even by himself (_ probably Pali), and
then taking Cooked rice, a handful in each hand, he crosses and
recrosses his arms, giving seven alternate mouthfuls to the bride
and bridegroom; after this he takes their hands and crooks the little
ﬁnger of the bridegroom’s right hand into the little ﬁnger of the
bride’s left. The ceremony is then concluded by more unintelligible
mutterings. The bridegroom now takes the bride by the hand, and
together they make the circuit of the room, saluting lowly the elder
relatives of both families. They then sit down—the bride to the left
of her husband, and their clothes are tied together. The wedding
guests then come forward and place at their feet, each according to
his or her means, some presents of clothes or household furniture.
After this a saturnalia ensues, of dancing, drinking, ﬁghting, and
love-making. The bride and bridegroom are expected to sit up all
night. I should add that the happy man does not consummate his
marriage until he and his Wife (sleeping apart) have for seven days
eaten together seven times a day.”

The bride-price among Thongohas and Marmas is said to be
about Rs. 30. With the Maramagris, who as a class are wealthier,
the average amount paid for a wife is Rs. 60, which may rise to .
Rs. 80 if the bridegroom is of inferior status, as, for example, in the
event of thuiya Magh marrying the daughter of a Rajbansi Magh.
The ceremony in use among the Maramagris is of the same general
character as that described above, the essential portion being the
crooking together of the little ﬁngers of the bridegroom’s left hand
and the bride’s right, while the priest pours water over the hands
thus joined. This is followed by sina’urddn or smearing vermilion
on the bride’s forehead—a form which appears to have been
borrowed from the Hindus. The Marina ritual is still more like
that of the Thongohas, and does not include sindurddn. In the
course of the wedding the bride and bridegroom eat some curry
and rice from the same dish, and what they leave is kept in a covered
earthen vessel for seven days, during which time the married couple
may not leave the village or cross running water. 0n the eighth
the vessel is opened, and if maggots are found in the food it is deemed
an excellent omen, showing that the marriage will be a fruitful one.

Polygamy is recognized: a man may have as many Wives as
he can afford to maintain. The ﬁrst wife, however, is regarded as
the highest in rank. and takes precedence of all subsequent Wives,
who are expected to treat her with special consideration.

In all the sub-tribes Widows are allowed to marry again, and
are fettered by no restrictions in their choice of a second husband.
No special ritual is ordained for this purpose, and as a rule
the parties simply go and live together as man and wife. Divorce
is permitted, with the sanction of the tribal panchayat, on the ground
of adultery or inability to live happily together. A written
agreement is usually drawn up, and sometimes, when the authority
of the panchéyat is deemed insufﬁcient, this “ writing of divorcement ”

33 MAGH.

is laid before theMagistrate of the district. Among the Thongchas
the parties giveone another ﬂowers, and after bathing go off in
different directions, exchanging all kinds of abusive e ithets.
Divorced wives may marry again by the ritual in use or the
remarriage of widows.

All Maghs are Buddhists of the Southern school, and regard
the northern Buddhists of Tibet as wholly
unorthodox. The wilder sections of the Thong-
chas, however, retain some vestiges of an earlier animistic faith,
which bids them sacriﬁce cattle, goats, and swine, and make offerings
of rice, fruits, and ﬂowers to the spirits of hill and river. Among
the Maramagris, on the other hand, the tendency is to follow after
modern Hinduism, particularly in its Tantric developments, and to
add the gross worship of Siva and Durga to the simple Observances
prescribed by their own communion. It thus comes to pass that
while the Buddhist Pkngyz's or 1302058 are the recognized priests of
all the tribes, considerable respect is shown to Brahmans, who are
frequently employed to determine auspicious days for particular
actions, and to assist in the worship of the Hindu gods. Among
the Thongchas old women often devote themselves to the service of
religion, and although not charged with special ceremonial functions,
are regarded as in some sense priestesses, and are called by the
distinctive name lem’ama.

The funeral ceremonies of the Maghs are thus described by
LeWin :—“ When a person has died, his rela-
tives assemble. Some one of them sits down
and commences to beat the funeral roll on the drum; the women
weep and cry, and the men busy themselves, some in performing the
last ofﬁces to the corpse, of washing, dressing, etc, while others go
off to the woods and bring wood for the funeral pile, and bamboos
with which to construct the bier. About 24 hours generally elapse
from the time of death to that of cremation. In bearing the corpse
from the house to the burning ground, if the deceased were a man
of wealth or inﬂuence, the body may be borne on a wheeled car ; all
women also have this privilege; the plebs, however, are simply
carried to the funeral pile on the shoulders of their relatlves. The
procession is after this fashion :—First come the priests, if there are
any in the vicinity to attend; they march gravely at the head of
the party, bearing on their shoulders their curved palm-leaf fans,
clad in their ordinary saffron-coloured robes, and attended by their
disciples. Next come relatives of the deceased, two and two,
bearing food, clothes, etc, which have been offered as alms to the
priests on behalf of the departed. Next is borne the bier, carried on
bamboos by six men, and accompanied by as many drums as can be
procured. Behind the cofﬁn come the male relatives; and lastly,
the procession is closed by the women of the Village, clad 1n their
best. The funeral pile is composed of four layers .of wood for
a woman, three for a man. The body is placed on the pile ; the lead-
ing priest takes an end of the dead man’s turban, and, holding 1t,
repeats some passages of the law, four of the deceased’s male relatrves
standing meanwhile at the four corners of the pile and sprinkling

0.

Religion.

Disposal of the dead.

MAGH. 34

a few drops of water thereon. The nearest blood relative, male
or female, of the dead man then ﬁres the pile. When the ﬁre
is extinguished the ashes are scrupulously collected together
and buried over the spot; a small conical mound of earth is
heaped up, and a very long bamboo pole, with an equally lengthy
ﬂag, is erected over the grave. On returning from the place all
parties bathe themselves. If it is the master of the house who

as died, the ladder leading up to the house is thrown down,
and they must eifect an entrance by cutting a hole in the back wall
and so creeping up. The relatives eat and drink, ' and each
contributes according to his means to defray the expenses incurred.
After seven days the priests reassemble at the house to read prayers
for the dead.”

In the case of priests and persons of high social position the
corpse is dried or embalmed and kept for a year in a special cofﬁn,
while arrangements are being made for an elaborate funeral, which
usually takes place on the lst of Baisakh. A temporary pagoda is
built of bamboo decorated with coloured paper and ﬂags, and is set up
in some open place faced by a row of bamboo cannon mounted on
wheels, crammed to the muzzle with tightly-rammed powder and
ﬁtted with a long fuse. These cannon are presented by persons
desirous of doing honour to the deceased, and it is deemed an act of
great merit to send a cannon to the funeral of a Phungyi. On the
arrival of the cofﬁn a mimic conflict—a ‘tug of war ’—-takes place over
it, the women pulling it one way and the men the other. According
to another account the contest is not between the men and the
women, but between the unmarried and married persons of either
sex. The cofﬁn is then placed in the pagoda, and the bamboo
cannon are discharged in order of the precedence of those who
presented them. Last of all the pagoda and cofﬁn are burned, and
a long bamboo, carrying a triangular ﬂag forty-ﬁve feet long, is set
up on the place. A funeral offering (kangmu) of various kinds of
food is placed on the ground on the eighth day, and this ceremony is
repeated every year.

The social status of the Maghs does not admit of very precise
deﬁnition, as the entire community is outside
of the regular caste system, and orthodox
Hindus will take neither food nor water from their hands. In the
matter of diet they are highly promiscuous, eating beef, pork, fowls,
ﬁsh of all kinds, snakes, ﬁeld-rats, lizards, and certain kinds of
Worms. Both sexes indulge freely in spirituous liquors. For all
this they are not wholly free from prejudice as to the caste of the
persons with whom they will take food; and no Maghs, except
those who are ﬁshermen themselves, will eat, drink, or smoke in the
same hookah with members of the ﬁshing castes, such as Kaibarttas
and Males, or with the Jugi caste of weavers. Tantis and N apits,
on the other hand, are considered ceremonially pure, and Maghs
will take water from their hands. '

The Thongcha sub-tribe live almost entirely by the peculiar
method of cultivation known in Chittagong,
Assam, and Northern Bengal by the name

Social status.

Occupation.

35 MAGH.

jlm'm; in Burmah and Arakan as tungyd; and in Chota Nagpur
and the Central Provinces called da’lwi or panic. Captain Lewin
describes the system as follows :—-

“In the month of April a convenient piece of forest land is
ﬁxed upon, generally on a hillside, the
luxuriant under-growth of shrubs and creepers
has to be cleared away, and the smaller trees felled: the trees of
larger growth are usually denuded of their lower branches, and left
standing. If possible, however, the jhumia ﬁxes upon a slope
thickly covered with a bamboo jungle of the species called ‘ dolloo.’
This compared with a dense tree jungle is easy to cut, and its ashes,
after burning, are of greater fertilising power. Although the
clearing of a patch of dense jungle is no doubt very severe labour,
yet the surroundings of the labourer render his work pleasurable in
comparison with the toilsome and dirty task of the cultivators of the
Plains. * is * * * i

By his comparatively pleasurable toil the hill-man can gain two
rupees for one which the wretched ryot of the plains can painfully
earn, and it is not to be wondered at that the hill people have
a passion for their mode of life, and regard with absolute contempt
any proposal to settle down to the tame and monotonous cultivation
of the dwellers in the low-lands.

“ The jhum land once cleared, the fallen jungle is left to dry in
the sun, and in the month of May it is ﬁred: this completes the
clearing. The ﬁring of the jhums is sometimes a source of danger,
as at that season of the year the whole of the surrounding jungle is
as dry as tinder and easily catches ﬁre. In this way sometimes
whole villages are destroyed, and people have lost their lives. I
have myself seen a whole mountain-side on ﬁre for four days and
four nights, having been ignited by jhum-ﬁring. It was a magni-
ﬁcent sight, but such a ﬁre must cause incalculable injury to the
forest: young trees especially would be utterly destroyed. Gener-
ally, however, by choosing a calm day, and keeping down the ﬁre at
the edges of the jhum, by heating with boughs, the hill people
manage to keep the ﬁring within certain prescribed limits. A
general conﬁagration, such as I have mentioned, is of quite excep-
tional occurrence. If the felled jungle has been thoroughly dried,
and no rain has fallen since the jhum was out, this ﬁring will reduce
all, save the larger forest trees, to ashes, and burn the SOll to
the depth of an inch or two. The charred trees and logs pre-
viously cut down remain lying about the ground: these have to
be dragged oif the jhum and piled up all round, and w1th the
addition of some brushwood form a species of fence to keep out Wlld
animals.

“Work is now at a standstill, till the gathering of the
heavy clouds and the grumbling of thunder denote the approach
of the rains. These signs at once bring a village into a state
of activity; men and women, boys and girls, each bind on the
left hip a small basket ﬁlled with the mixed seeds of cotton, rice,
melons, pumpkins, yams, and a little Indian corn; each takes

02

J hum cultivation.

MAGH. 36

a ‘dao ’1 in hand, and in a short time every hillside will echo to the
‘ hoiya,’ or hillcall (a cry like the Swiss jodel), as party answers party
from the paths winding up each hillside to their respective patches of
cultivation. Arrived at the jhum, the family will form a line, and
steadily work their way across the ﬁeld. A dig With the blunt square
end of the dad makes a narrow hole about three inches deep : into this
is put a small handful of the mixed seeds, and the sowing is completed.
If shortly afterwards the rain falls, they are fortunate and have judged
the time well; or (unparalleled luck) if they get wet through with the
rain as they are sowing, great will be the jolliﬁcation on the return
home, this being an omen that a bumper season may be expected.

“The village now is abandoned by every one, and the men set to
work to build a house, each in his own jhum, for the crop must be
carefully watched to preserve it from the wild pig and deer, which
would otherwise play havoc among the young shoots of the rice.
The jhums of the whole village are generally situated in propin-
quity : a solitary jhum is very rare. During the rains mutual help
and assistance in weeding the crop is given; each one takes his turn
to help in his neighbour’s jhum; no hoeing is done; the crop has
merely to be kept clear from weeds by hand labour, and an ample
return is obtained. If the rain be excessive, however, the cotton crop
is liable to be spoilt, as the youngr plants die from too much water.

“ The ﬁrst thing to ripen is Indian corn ; this is about the end of
July. Next come the melons, of which there are two or three sorts
grown in the jhums : afterwards vegetables of all sorts become ﬁt for
gathering; and ﬁnally, in September, the rice and other grain ripens.
At this time the monkeys and jungle fowl are the chief enemies
of the crop. In the month of October the cotton crop is gathered
last of all, and this concludes the harvest. The rice having been cut,
is beaten from the ear in the jhum: it is afterwards rolled up in
rough, straw-covered bales and carried to the granary in tile village.

9!! if 9K 9k

 

1 “The ‘ daé’ is the hill knife, used universally throughout the country.
It is a blade about 18 inches long, narrow at the haft, and square and broad
at the tip; pointless, and sharpened on one side only. The blade is set in a
handle of wood ; a bamboo root is considered the best. The ﬁghting ‘ 6.3.6 is
differently shaped. This is a long pointless sword, set in a wooden or ebony
handle; it is very heavy, and a blow of almost incredible power can be given
by one of these weapons. With both the ﬁghting and the ordinary dao one
can make but two outs ; one from the right shoulder downwards to the left,
one from the left foot upwards to the right. The reason of this is that in shar-
pening the blade one side only gives the edge, slanting to the other straight
face of the blade. Any attempt to cut in a way contrary to those mentioned
causes the dad to turn in the hand on the striker, and I have seen some bad
wounds inflicted in this manner. The weapon is identical with the “ parang
latok ” of the Malays. The ordinary hill dad is generally stuck naked into the
waist-band on the right hip, but the ﬁghting dad is provided with a scabbard
and worn at the Waist. The dad to a hillman is a possession of great price. It
is literally the bread-winner. With this he cuts his jhum and builds his houses;
without its aid the most ordinary operations of hill life could not be performed.
It is with the dad that he fashions the women’s weaving tools ; with the dad
he ﬁnes OE his boat; with the dad he notches a stair in the steep hillside
leading to his jhum ; and to the dao he frequently owes his life, in defending
himself from the attacks of wild animals.”

MAGH. 37
Besides grain and cotton, the hill tribes grow tobacco. This is
planted principally in small valleys on the banks of the hill streams.”
In order to scare birds, deer, and wild pigs from the growing
crop, a cleft bamboo is planted in the middle and connected by a .
long cane with the hut built for watching the crop in such a manner
that by pulling the cane the two halves of the bamboo can be clashed
together and a harsh rattling noise produced.

The Marinas and Maramagris have for the most part adopted
a settled mode of life and taken to plough cultivation. They also
catch and sell ﬁsh, hew wood, dug-out canoes. and weave baskets
and mats. The Rajbansi Maghs are accomplished cooks, and are
largely employed by Europeans in that capacity. As a rule they take
a keen interest in their profession, and it may be that their skill is in
some measure due to their freedom from the social and religious
prejudices which debar other classes of native cooks from tasting the

MAGHNIA’. "

dishes which they prepare.

Maghé Chewér, a and or
section of the Sﬁtmulia or Kish-
'naut sub-caste of Groz’ilas in

Behar.

Maghad Khandi, a sub-caste
of Telis in Bengal.

Maghaié, a sept of Lohars in
Chota Nagpur.

Maghaiyé, a
Kumhars and Telis
and Chota Nagpur.

Maghayé, a native of Mag-ha
(Magadha) or South Behar; a
designation of numerous sub-
castes, such as Barai, Beldar,
barber, Dhanuk, Dhobi, Grangota,
Goala, Kandu, Nunia, Sunri,
and Teli castes in Behar; a sub-
caste of Barhis in Behar who
work in both wood and iron
and do the rougher woodwork
required for houses, as distin-
guished from the Kanaujias, who
are joiners and cabinet-makers.
Representatives of this sub-caste
are found both in the town of
Bhagalpur and in the north of
the district, but intermarriage
between the two groups is believed
to be rare. The headman of
the former is styled Sdtun, while
the headman of the latter bears
the usual title of Manj/mn ;

sub-caste of
in Behar

 

a sub-caste of Bhars in Man-
bhum, comprising the ﬁve sections
of Mayur, Bel, Basrisi, Kasyab,
and Brahmarshi, of which the
ﬁrst four are totemistic and the
last appears to have been bor-
rowed from the Brahmans; a sub-
caste of Doms in Behar who play
the d/wZ and tzm' ; a sub-caste of
Halwais or confectioners in Behar,
who have to some extent aban-
doned their distinctive occupation
and ﬁnd employment as servants
and petty shopkeepers dealing in
miscellaneous articles. Many of
them fry rice, chum, etc., and are
called b/wy'a 61mm ; a sub-caste of
Koiris in Behar, which, though
endogamous as regards the rest
of the caste, intermarries with the
Chirme or Chirmait sub-caste;
a sub-caste of Kumhars in Behar
and Western Bengal, Which used
formerly to be endogamous, but
now intermarries with the Tirhutia
sub-caste; a sub-caste of Thathera
or brass-chaser in Behar.

Maghayd Brahman, a synonym
for Babhan.

Maghi, a sept of Chiks in
Chota Nagpur.

Maghnié, a sept of Lohars in
Chota Nagpur.

Maer.

Magi, a sub-caste of Kumhars
in Dacca and Téntis in Bengal;
a sub-caste of Béitis in
Faridpur.

Magrathi, a ﬂaw or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Maguri, a title of Bangaja
Kéyasths in Bengal.

Mahabara, atotemistic sept of
Chiks in Chota Nagpur who
never kill or chase the wild
boar.

Mahabhé’t, a section of the
Kamér sub-caste of Dosadhs in
Behar.

Mahébrahman, Mahépétra
or Kantéha, a division of Brah-
mans in Behar who ofﬁciate as
priests 0n cremation.

Mahédanda, a sub-caste of
Kewats in Behar.

Mahédanta, a title of Brah-
mans.

Mahéjan, money-lender, a
title of the Ariér sub-caste of
Bais Baniyas.

Méhakarié, a section of
Goalas in the North-Western
Provinces and Behar.

Mahalé, a section of Goalas
in the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Mahaldér, a title of men who
measure grain for Mahajans, also
called Kayals ; a title of J aunpuri
Chamars and Muchis in Behar
whose women act as midwives;
a title of certain Musalmans, also
called Pajra, who sell ﬁsh and
are boatmen.

Mahali, a synonym for
Mahili; a sept of Lohérs in
Chota'Nagpur.

38

 

MAHARA.

Mahali-Munda, a sub-tribe
of Mundas in Chota Nagpur;
a sept of Lohars in Chota
Nagpur.

Mahallé—navis, an honorary
title of Kayasths in Bengal.

Mahémandé, a section of
the Mahmudabaz sub-caste of
Napits in Central Bengal.

Mahénadi, a river, a sept of
Bediyas and Chiks in Chota
Nagpur.

Mahénadié, a sept of Gonds
in Chota Nagpur.

Mahénéik or Sreskta-Khan-
ddit, a sub-caste of Khandaits in
Balasore and Cuttack.

Mahénandié, a sept of Pans
in Chota Nagpur.

Mahéni, a title of Tambuhs,
Telis, and other trading castes.

Makant, S.; the head of a reli-
gious establishment of the men-
dicant orders of the Hindus.

Mahanta, a priest of the J ugi
caste in Tipperah; a spiritual
guide in the Vaishnava sect; a title
of Kurmis in Western Bengal.

Mahanti, Mdhz‘ntz‘, a titular
section of Utkal or Orissa Brah-
mans; a title of Chassis and
Karans in Orissa.

Mahépétra, a hypergamous
group of the Bangaja sub-caste
of Kayasths in Bengal; 3. title
of Brahmans‘ and Karans in
Orissa; a title of Khandaits in
Chota Nagpur.

Mahar, a section of Goélés in
Behar. ’

Maharé, a title of the Dhusié.
sub-caste of Chamars; a title of
Kahars in Behar who carry
palanquins and work as boatmen.

MAHA’RA’I.

Mahéréi, a title of Kurmis in
Behar.

Mahéréj, a title affected by
certain mendicants and Brah-
mans; a title of respect applied
to Behar Brahmans who are
employed as cooks.

Mahéréné, a title of Nagars
in Behar.

Mahéréno, a mu! or section of
the N aomulia or Majraut sub-
caste of Goalas in Behar.

Maharashtra, a ﬂaw or section
of Nepali Brahmans.

_ Mahéréshtriya, a territorial
division of the Paneha Dravira
Brahmans who live in the south
of the Vindya range, a country
of the Marathi language.

Mahérath or Mahdraz‘laz', great
charioteer, a title of Khandéits
in Orissa.

Mahéraus, a sept of the
Suryabansi sub-tribe of Rajputs
in Behar.

Maharné, a section of Kewats
in Behar.

Mahéset, a group of Ma-
ghaiya Telis and Sunris in Behar.

Mahés i b, literally ‘ an account-
ant, ’ a section of the Maghayé.
sub-caste of Telis ; a title of Sunris
in Behar.

Mahasthan, Mastén or Hélié,
a sub-caste of Utkal Brahmans
in Orissa.

Mahat, a sub-caste of Goalas
in Chota Nagpur; a title of up-
country Brahmans and of some
trading castes; a title of the
Kochh tribe in Northern Bengal.

39

 

MAHDAURIA’R. '

Méhété, a title of Khatris in
Bengal.

Mahéthé. a section
Maghaiya Kumhérs in Behar.

of

Mahathwér, a section of the
Chamar and Bhuiya castes.

Mahétmé, a mu! or section of
the Ghosin sub~caste of Goalas ;
a section of the Chaubhan sub-
caste of Nunias and a section
of the Bancdhié. and Jaiswar
Kalwars in Behar.

Mahétman, a section of the
Maghaya sub-caste of Kumhérs
in Behar.

Mahato, a title of Goélas,
Kurmis, Koiris, Kahars, Kum-
hérs, Rajvvars, Dhanuks, Mun-
das, Chiks or Pains and Pasis ; a
sept of Oraons in Chota Nagpur;

Mahatoar, a sept of Pains
and Agarias in Chota Nagpur.

Mahaulié, a section of

Kaseras in Behar.

Mahaut, a sept of Tharus in
Behar.

Méhbarié, a [ml or section of
Babhans in Behar.

Mahbho, a sept of the Yan-
gorup sub-tribe of Limbus in
Darjiling; branch of the same
sept may not intermarry.

Mah bu, the physician, literally
a shakerwone who, being ridden
by ghosts or devils, shakes him-
self free: hence a physician; a
sept of the Charkola sub-tribe of

Limbus in Darjiling.

Mahdauriér, a pm' or section
of Sékadwipi Brahmans in
Behar.

MAHENDRA KHYA’N I. \

Mahendra Khyéni, a group
of the Barendra Sunris in Eastern
Bengal.

Méhepuré, a mul or section of
the Ohhamulia Madhesia sub-caste
of Halwais in Behar.

Maher, a‘ section of Kumhars
_ in Singbhum.

Mahesbaréit, a section of the
Kamar sub-caste of Dosadhs in

40

MAHILI.

said to be illegitimate and per-
haps coming of slave mothers.
The Mahesri are almost invari-
ably Hindus, while the Agarwal
and Oswal castes contain a
large proportion of J ains. They
have 72 exogamous subdivisions
(acts), a few of which are shown
in Appendix I. Like the Agar-
wals, they observe a complex
rule of exogamy. A man may
not marry into (a) his own
section, (1)) his mother’s, (0) his

Behar.

maternal grandmother’s, (03) his
father’s maternal grandmother’s,
(3) his mother’s maternal grand-
mother’s.

ﬁahesrt, a trading caste of
Northern India and Marwar,
closely allied to the Agarwals
and Oswals with Whom they eat
and drink. Like the Agarwals,
they have a sub-caste called Dasa,

Maheswar, a pm or section of
Sakadwipi Brahmans, and of
Maghaiya Kumhérs in Behar.

 

$311111, Mahala, a Dravidian caste of labourers, palanquin-
bearers, and workers in bamboo found in
Chota. Nagpur and Western Bengal. They
.. are divided into ﬁve sub-castes—Bansphor—
Mahlll, who make baskets and do all kinds of bamboo work; Patar-
Mahili, basket-makers and cultivators; Sulunkhi-Mahili, who are
cultivators and labourers; Tanti-Mahil i, who carry palanquins; and
MahiliTMunda, a small outlying sub-caste conﬁned to Lohardaga. A
comparison of the totemistic sections of the Mahilis shown in Appendix
I with those of the Santals seems to warrant the conjecture that the
main body of the caste, that is to say the group comprising the
Bansphor, Sulunkhl, and Tanti Mahilis, is merely a branch of the
Santals, separated at a comparatively recent date from the parent
tribe. _ The exact causes of the separation are, of course, lost in the
obscurity whlch enshrouds the early history of all tribal movements.
But the fact that the Mahilis make baskets and carry palanquins,
occupatlons whlch every Santal would deem degrading, suggests
that the adoption of these pursuits may have given the ﬁrst impulse
to the formation of the new group. The Mahili-Munda possibly
parted from the Munda tribe for similar reasons. Besides the
sectlons shown 1n the Appendix the entire sub-caste regard the pig
as their totem, and consider it wrong to eat pork. It is rumoured,
indeed, that appetite often gets the better of tradition, but that
in such cases the carcase alone is eaten, and the consequences
of breaking the taboo averted by throwing away the head.
The Patar-Mahili are a Hinduised sub-caste of South-East

Manbhum, who employ Brahmans as priests and abstain from
eating beef. '

Origin and internal

structure.

41 MAHILI.

A man may not marry a woman of his own section or of
the section to which his mother belonged before her marriage.
Beyond these limits marriage is regulated with reference to the
standard formula for prohibited degrees.

Mahilis marry their daughters both as infants and as adults,
but the former practice is deemed the more
respectable, and there can, I think, be little
doubt that in this, as in other castes 0n the borders of Hinduism,
the tendency at the present day is towards the entire abolition of
adult-marriage. The customary bride-price paid for a Mahili girl
is supposed to be Rs. 5, but the amount is liable to vary according
to the means of the bridegroom’s parents. On the wedding
morning, before the usual procession starts to escort the bridegroom
to the bride’s house, he is formally married to a mango tree, while
the bride goes through the same ceremony with a mahua. At the
entrance to the bride’s house the bridegroom, riding on the shoulders
of some male relation and bearing on his head a vessel of water, is
received by the bride’s brother, equipped in similar fashion, and the
two cavaliers sprinkle one another with water. The bride and
' bridegroom are then seated side by side on a plank under a canOpy
of sal leaves erected in the courtyard of the house, and the bride-
groom touches the bride’s forehead ﬁve times with vermilion, and
presents her with an iron armlet. This is the binding portion of
the ritual.

So far as positive rules are concerned, the Mahilis appear to
impose no limit on the number of wives a man may have. It
is unusual to ﬁnd a man with more than two; and practically,
I understand, polygamy is rarely resorted to unless the ﬁrst wife
should happen to be barren. Widows may remarry, and are under
no restrictions in their choice of a second husband, though it is
deemed right and proper for a widow to marry her deceased husband’s
younger brother if such a relative exists. Divorce is permitted on
the ground of adultery or inability to agree. When a husband
divorces his wife he gives her a rupee and takes away the iron
armlet (lolwir khdru) which was given her at her wedding. He must
also entertain his caste brethren at a feast by way of obtaining their
sanction to the proceedings. Divorced wives may marry again.

Like the Bauris and Bagdis, the Mahilis admit into their caste
men of any caste ranking higher than their own. The conditions
of membership are simple. The person seeking admission into the
Mahili community has merely to pay a small sum to the headman
(pargandit) of the caste and to give a feast to the Mahilis of the
neighbourhood. This feast he must attend himself, and signify his
entrance into the brotherhood by tasting a portion of the food
left by each of the guests on the leaf which on these occasions
serves as a plate. ,

In matters of inheritance and succession the Mahilis profess to
follow whatever law applies to the Hindus of
the locality—the Dayabhaga in Manbhum and
the Mitakshara in Lohardagé. Statements of this kind, however,
import little more than a vague assumption of conformity with

Marriage.

Inheritance.

MAHILI. \ 42

what is supposed to be the custom of all respectable men; and there
is no reason to believe that the headman (pargandz’t) and caste-
council (panchdg/at), who settle the civil disputes of the caste, have
any knowledge of, or pay the smallest regard to, the rules of the
regular Hindu law. The questions which come before this primitive
tribunal are usually very simple. Its decisions are accepted Without
question, and I know of no instance where an attempt has been
made to correct them by appealing to the regular courts. It does
not follow, however, that Mahilis and castes of similar standing
have escaped the inﬂuence of the Codes and have preserved a distinct
customary" law of their own. On the contrary, the written law
certainly ﬁlters down to these lower grades of society, not through
the regular channels of text-books and courts, but in virtue of their
tendency to imitate the usages of the groups immediately above
themselves. If men of these lower castes are asked what law they
follow, a common answer is that they have the same law as their
landlords; and the landlords, to whatever caste they may belong,
almost invariably get their law from the text-books and the courts.
To this inﬂuence it is probably due that the practice of giving an
extra share (jet/a-angs) to the eldest son in dividing an inheritance
is gradually dying out among the Mahilis, and the tendency is
towards an equal division of property.

The religion of the Mahilis is at present a mixture of half-
forgotten animism and Hinduism imperfectly
understood. They affect indeed to worship all
the Hindu gods, but they have not yet risen to the distinction of
employing Brahmans, and their working deities seem to be Bar-
pahari and Manasa. The former is merely another name for the
well-known mountain god of the Mundas and Santals, while the
latter is the snake goddess, probably also of non-Aryan origin,
whose cult has been described in the article on the Bagdis. To
these are offered goats, fowls, rice, and ghi, the offerings being
afterwards eaten by the worshippers themselves.

The Mahilis of Northern Manbhum bury their dead face down-

Dis m1 of the dead wards; but this practice is not universal, for

p ' the Patar Mahilis and the Mahilis of the
Santal Parganas burn their dead and bury the ashes near at hand.
On the eleventh day after death offerings of milk, ghi, and rice
are made at the place of burial. Similar offerings are presented in
the months of Kartik and Chait for the propitiation of departed
ancestors in general. The anniversary of the death of an individual
ancestor is not observed. '

Mahilis rank socially with Bauris and Dosadhs. They eat beef,

. pork, and fowls, and are very partial to strong
paﬁg§?15tatus and °c°u' drink. Field-rats, which are reckoned a special

delicacy by the Oraons, they will not touch.
They will eat cooked food with the Kurmi, the Bhumij, and the
Deswali Santals. They believe their original occupation to be
basket-making and bamboo work generally. Many of them are
now engaged in agriculture as non-occupancy raiyats and landless
day-labourers.

Religion.

MAHILI.

43

MA’HTO.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of

Mahilis in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. Drsmrcr. 1872. 1881.
Bardwan 644 57 Maldah 1,365 218
Bankura ...... 77 Santal Parganas 9,521 1,252
Birbhum ...... 35 Cuttack ...... 53
Midnapur ... .. 3,497 866 Bulasore ...... 7
Nadiya 18 31 Tributary States ...... 604
Khulna. ...... 10 Hazaribagh 1,979 2,286
Dinajpur 3 302 Lohardazé. 8,999 7,510
Rajshahye ... 28 196 Singbhum 1.301 1,196
Pabna 60 ...... Manbhum 7,895 4,772
Moughyr . 375 ...... Tributary States 111 13
Bhagalpur 648 ......

 

MahiIi-Mundé, a sub-caste of
Mahilis in Western Bengal.

. Mahinté, a gdz‘n of the Batsya
gotm of Barhi Brahmans in
Bengal.

Mahisirupjén, a mu] or section
of the Naomulia or Majraut sub-
caste of Groélés in Behar.

Méhkur, Mékur, a sub-caste of
Goalas in Chota Nagpur.

Mahlaingtsa, a sept of
Maghs in the Hill Tracts of
Chittagong.

Mahli, a sept of Birhors in
Chota Nagpur.

Mahmudébéz, a sub-caste of
Napits in Eastern Bengal.

Mahmudpurié, a sub-caste of
Kamérs in Western Bengal.

Mahré, a mul or section of the

Biahut sub-caste of Kalwérs in
Behar.

Méhré, a title of Chamars
and men employed to herd
cattle.

Mahréghési, a sub-caste of
Ghésis in Chota Nagpur who
serve as bearers.

Mahrajié, a section of Bhats.

 

 

Mahréna, a pangaz‘ or section

of Bansphor Dome, and of
Dosadhs in Behar. ,

Mahrano, a title of Hindu
Jolahés in Behar.

Mahrasié, a pm or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Mahrat, a mu! or section of
the Ayodhia sub-caste of Haj -
j ms in Behar.

Mahraul, a mu! or section of
the Goria sub-caste of Goalas in
Behar.

Mahraur, a sept of the Chand-
rabansi Rajputs in Behar. They
cannot intermarry with persons
of the Besain and Chaubhan septs.
being supposed to have had their
common origin in the same saint.

Mahté, a section of Goalas in
the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Mahtha, a section of the
Amashta sub-caste of Kéyasths
in Behar.

Méhto, (i) a village headman;
(ii) a title applied in Behar to
Kurmis who by age or by per-
sonal inﬂuence have attained a
leading position in their villages.
In some parts of the country the

MAHTO. 44

title is used as almost synony-
mous With Kurmi; and a Kurmi,
When asked to what caste he
belongs, will reply “ Mahtof’ (iii)
a title of the following castes :—
Dhanuks, Dosadhs, Goria Goalﬁs,
Koiris, Sunris; the Bhojpuria
and Ayodhia sub-castes of
Nunias in Behar; also Tharus;
the Bediyas, Mahilis, Nageswars,
and Kharwars in Chota Nagpur ;
Cheros and the Malwe Raj puts in
Chota Nagpur; Tantis, Kewats,
Binds and Dhobis in Behar.

Mahtoar, a totemistic sept of
Chiks in Chota Nagpur.

Mahtwar, a section of Goalas
in Behar.

 

MAIN PURI.

Mah ué, a tree, a totemistic sept
of Pans, Doms, Bedyas, and
Chamars in Chota Nagpur.

Mahuér, a sept of Rajputs in
Behar.

Mahuéri, a section of Babhans
and of the Biyahut and Khari-
daha Kalwars in Behar.

Mahukal, a bird, a totemistic
sept of Mundas, Bediyas, and
Kharwars; a section of Mahilis in
Uhota Nagpur.

-Mahu|i, a section of the sat-
mulia Maghaya sub-caste of Kan-
dus in Behar.

Mahur or Makuliyd, a sub-
caste of Lohars in Behar.

Méhuri, a sub-caste of Baniyas in Behar, Who occupy nearly as

high a rank as the Agarwals in social estimation.

Like the Sikhs,

the Mahuris strictly prohibit the use of tobacco, and a man detected

smoking would be expelled from the community.

Another peculiar

usage is that marriages are always celebrated at the bridegroom’s

house, and not at the bride’s.

Trade and money-lending are the

proper occupations of the Méhuri. Some of them have acquired
substantial tenures and set up as landholders and zamindars.

Mahurié, a section of Laheris
in Behar.

Mahwé. a section of the Tirhu-
tia sub-caste of Doms in Behar.

Maiduchhé, a thar or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.

Maikam, a thaw or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.

Mai ketéri beguné bégh,
“ harrow, sugarcane, egg-plant,
garden,” a formula or Shibboleth
distinguishing a section of the
Maghayé. sub-caste of Koiris in
Behar.

Maikhola, a sub-tribe of
Limbus in Darjiling.

Méil, a mul or section of the

Chhamulia Madhesia sub-caste of
Halwais in Behar.

 

Méilidhurlak, a mad or
section of the Naomulia or
Majraut sub-caste of Goalas in
Behar.

Mailwér, a section of Cheros,
Kharias, Kharwars, and Lohars
in Chota Nagpur.

Méilwar, a med or section of
the Naomulia or Majraut sub-
caste of Goalés in Behar.

Mainé, a bird, 3. totemistic sept
of Goalés, Parhaiyas, Mundas, and
Bediyas in Chota Nagpur.

Mainkiswar, a section of
the Kamar sub-caste of Dosadhs
in Behar.

Mainpuri, a class of Baniyas
in Behar.

MA’IR.

Mair, a sub-caste of Sonars in

Behar who do not permit the.

remarriage of their widows.

Mairié. a section of Bébhans
in Behar.

Maisasari, a sub-caste of Kur-
mis in Orissa.

Méitél, a title of Kansaris or
braziers in Western Bengal.

Maitbukru, a place where he
buries his bones, being his an-
cestral birthplace, a section of
Mahilis in Chota Nagpur.

Maithil or Tirhutié, a terri-
torial division of the Pancha
Gaura Brahmans in Behar, de-

riving its name from Mithilé. or
~Tirhut.

Méiti, Méti, a title of Utkal
Brahmans and of Kaibarttas in
Orissa and Bengal.

Maitra, a gdin of the Késyapa
gotm of Bérendra Brahmans in
Bengal.

Majar or Minjur, peacock, a
totemistic sept of Mundas and
Pans in Chota Nagpur.

Méjhéliér, a mad or section of
the Satmulia or Kishnaut sub-
caste of Goélas in Behar.

MajhaI-Turiya, a sub-caste of
ltajwérs in Lohardaga.

Méjhasthén, a sub-caste of
Kumhars in Pabna.

Méjhauré, a section of the
Biyahut and Kharidaha Kalwars
in Behar.

Majh iaur, a sept of the Rautar
sub tribe of Tharus in Behar.

45

 

MA’L.

Majhiya, a section of Rajwars
in Western Bengal.

Majhrot, a title of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Majhwat, a sub-caste of Goélés
in Chota Nagpur.

Meiji, a title of Kandhs in
Orissa.

Majilpur, a samdj or local group
of the Dakshinétya Baidik Brah-
mans in the 24-Parganas.

Majlishi, a sub-caste of Sunris
in Eastern Bengal.

Majlisi (Maudgalya), a section
of Kaibarttas in Murshedabad.

Majraut or Naomulié, a sub-
caste of Goalés in Behar.

Majumdér, an honorary title
of Brahmans, Kéyasths, Béruis,
Jugis, and Sunris in Bengal; a
hypergamous group of Kaibart-
tas in Bakarganj.

Majurrishi, a
Mayaras in Bengal.

Makadé. a section of Goalas

in the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Makhaiwér, a pm or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

section of

Mékhpawér, a pur or section
of b‘akadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Maki, Illa/ti, a synonym for
Grhési.

Makunda, a sub-group of the
Haliya or Hele Kaibarttas in
Central Bengal.

Makundpuri,
Sonars in Behar.

a section of

£31, a Dravidian cultivating caste of Western and Central

Traditions of origin.

Bengal, many of whom are employed as
clzaukiddrs or village watchmen and have gained

an evil reputation for their thieving propensities. Beyond the vague
statements current among the Mals of Eastern Bengal, that they
were wrestlers (Malia, Mala) at the court of the Dacca N awabs and
gained their name from this profession, the caste appear to have no

 

MM"... 46

traditions, and their origin has formed the subject of much discussion,
the general drift of which is stated by Mr. Beverley1 as follows :—~
“ In his late work on the Ancient Geography of India, General
Cunningham quotes a passage from Pliny, in which the Maﬁa" are
mentioned as this :——‘ Gentes : Culingce prom'mz' muri, et supra Manda}
Mullz', quorum mans Mullusﬁnisque e/us tractus est Gunges.’ In another
passage we have, ‘A6 at (Pulibotkrz's) in interiore situ Monedes et Suarz',
quorum mans Mullus’ ; and putting the two passages together, General
Cunningham ‘thinks it highly probable that both names may be
intended for the celebrated Mount Mandar, to the south of Bhagalpur,
which is fabled to have been used by the gods and demons at the
churning of the ocean.’ The Mandez' General Cunningham iden-
tiﬁes ‘ with the inhabitants of the Mahanadi river, which is the Munaa’a
of Ptolemy.’ ‘ The Maui or Mulei would therefore be the same people
as Ptolemy’s Munduloe, who occupied the right bank of the Ganges
to the south of Palibothra,’ the Mundalaa or Manda/3' having been
already identiﬁed with the Moneu’es and the modern Munda Kols.
‘Or,’ adds General Cunningham, ‘they may be the people of the
Rajmahal hills who are called Maler, which would appear to be
derived from the Canarese Male and the Tamil Malez', a ‘hill.’ It
would therefore be equivalent to the Hindu pukdri or pdrbutz‘yu,
a ‘hillman.” Putting this last suggestion aside for the present. it
seems to me that there is some little confusion in the attempt to
identify both the Monedes and the Mum with the Mundas. If the
Mandei and the Mullz' are distinct nations—and it will be observed
that both are mentioned in the same passage—the former rather
than the latter would seem to correspond with the Monedes or Mundas.
The Mulli would then correspond rather to the Suari, quorum mans
Mullus—the hills bounded by the Ganges at Rajmahal. They may
therefore be the same as the Mals. In other words, the Mals—the
words Maler and Malhar seem to be merely a plural form—may
possibly be a branch of the great Sauriyan family to which the
Rajmahal Pahariz’is, the Oraons, and the Sabars all belong, and which
Colonel Dalton would describe as Dravidian. Fifteen hundred or
two thousand years ago this people may have occupied the whole
of Western Bengal. Pressed by other tribes, they have long since
been driven into corners, but not without, as it were, leaving traces
of their individuality behind. In Mal-bhumi (Manbhum) instead
of ‘the Country of the Wrestlers, ’ as Dr. Hunter puts it, we seem
to have the land of ‘ Mons Mullus ’ and the Mals. The Maldah district
may also possibly owe its name to their having been settled there.
As to the name, indeed it is quite possible that it means nothing
more than highlanders; the word Multus being simply the Indian
vernacular for the Latin mans. If a native were asked the name of
a hill in the present day, he would reply, as Pliny’s informant probably
replied years ago, that it was a ‘ hill ;’ and if asked the name of the
people who lived there, he would probably say they were ‘ hillmen.’
“ These Mals appear to have been driven eastwards and to have
spread over the Whole of Bengal, where they have become merged

 

1 Report of the Census of Bengal, 1872, by H. Beverley, p. 184.

47 MA’L.

in the mass of low-caste Hindus. This will account to some extent
for what Colonel Dalton calls the Dravidian element in the com-
position of the Bengali race. Under the Hindu system the Mals,
like other aboriginal tribes who came within the pale of Hinduising
inﬂuences, appear to have formed one of the forty-ﬁve tribes of
Chandals, the lowest or sweeper class among Hindus. Chandals are
found in every district of Bengal, their aggregate number in the
present day being over a million and a half. In Mymensingh,
where we ﬁnd 20,000 Mals, we have 123,000 Chandals. In the
south-eastern districts they seem to have lost their name in the
generic term of Chandals, but in the eastern districts they still retain
it. In Birbhum and Bankura, in each of which districts there are
about 9,000 Mals, there are not as many hundred Chandals. In
Murshedabad there are 29,000 Mals against 22,000 who described
themselves as Chandals. Most ofﬁcers say the Mals are identically
the same as the Chandals. Some say they are wrestlers, others
attribute to them the same occupation as that of the Madaris or
Sampheriyas, viz., that of snake-charmers. Others, again, say they
are Musalmans, and identify them with Bediyas or Babajiyas; but
in this explanation there seems to be some confusion, the two last
tribes not being generally considered identical. The Babajiyas,
though an itinerant tribe like the Bediyas, are employed, like the
stationary Pasaris, in selling drugs. The returns, however, show
that some of the Mals are Musalmans.” '

The most primitive specimens of the caste are met with in
Bankura, where they have distinctly totemistic
sections, and are divided into the following
sub-castesz—Dhaiié, Gobré or Guré, Khera, Réjbansi, and
Sénégénthé. In Midnapur and Manbhum we ﬁnd Dhunakété,
Rajbansi, Sépuryé or Bedya Mal, and Tunga; in Birbhum
Khaturia, Mallik, and Réjbansi ; in the Santal Parganas Deswar,
Magahiyé, Rajbansi or Réja Mél, Rarhi Mél, and Sinduré;
while in Murshedabad the sub-castes are the same as in Bankuar,
except that Dhalia’. is not known. The origin of these groups is
extremely obscure, and I doubt whether any amount of inquiry
would throw much light on the subject. Réjbansi, for example,
is the name adopted by a very large proportion of the Kochh
tribe; but there is no reason to suppose that the Mals are Kochh,
and they might easily have acquired the name Réjbansi in the
same manner as the Kochh have done by identifying themselves
with the lineage of a local Raja, who may or may not have
belonged to the same race. The simplest solution of the difﬁculty
appears to be to assume that M211 is nothing more than a
variant of Male, ‘man,’ the name by which the Male Paharias
describe themselves. It is possible, again, that the Rajbansi Mals
may be the same as Raja Mals whom Buchanan noticed among
the Mail Paharias at the beginning of the century. The monkey-
catching Gobras bear the same name as one of the sub-castes of
Bagdis ; and Khera is not far removed from Khaira, whom some
regard as a branch of the Doms. The Sénaganthé take their name
from making sdnds, the uprights through which Weavers pass their

Internal structure.

MA’L. 48-

thread. The Dhunékété‘Méls collect resin (dlmna) by tapping
sdl trees; the Tungé sub-caste are cultivators; while the Sapuria or
Bedya Méls live by charming snakes, catching monkeys, hunting or
conjuring, and roam about the country carrying with them small
tents of coarse gunny—cloth. Although they catch snakes, Sépuria
Mals hold the animal in the highest reverence, and will not kill it,
or even pronounce its name, for which they use the synonym latd,
‘ a creeper.’

The names of the last-mentioned group raise the probably

Kinship with the Be diy as insoluble question of the connexion of the

‘ Mals with the Bediyas. Dr. Wise treats both
Mal and Sumperia’. or Sépuria as subdivisions of the Bediya tribe;
but it is equally possible that the Mal may be the parent group,
and that the Bediyés may have separated from it by reason of
their adhering to a wandering mode of life when the rest of the
tribe had taken to comparatively settled pursuits. There certainly
seem to be reasons for suspecting some tolerably close afﬁnity
between the two groups. The Mals of Dacca, for instance, are
called Ponkwah, from their dexterity in extracting worms from
the teeth, a characteristic accomplishment of the Bediyés. They
repudiate the suggestion of kinship with the latter tribe, but it is
said that many can recollect the time when relationship was readily
admitted. At present, however, in spite of some survival of roving
habits, peculiar physiognomy, and distinctive ﬁgures, Mals are with
difﬁculty recognized. Many of them are small bankers (makdjans),
never dealing in pedlar’s wares, but advancing small sums, rarely
exceeding eight rupees, on good security. The rate of interest
charged is usually about ﬁfty per cent. per annum ; but this demand,
however exorbitant, is less than that exacted by many money-lenders
in the towns. The Dacca Mals never keep snakes, and know
nothing about the treatment of their bites. The women, however,
pretend to a secret knowledge of simples and of wild plants. They
are also employed for cupping, for relieving obscure abdominal pains
by friction. and for treating uterine diseases, but never for tattooing.
The Mals of Eastern Bengal do not intermarry with Bediyas, and
even within the limits of their own group a sharp distinction used
to be observed between settled Mals and gipsy Mals; so that if one
ofthe former sought to marry a girl of the latter class, he was
required to leave his home, give up his cultivation, and adopt a.
wandering life. This custom has gradually given way to a keener
sense of the advantages of settled life, but its general disuse is said
to be still resented by the elders of the caste.

Plausible as the conjecture may be which would trace some
bond of kinship between the Bediyés and the Mals, the evidence
bearing on the point is not precise enough to enable us to identify
the Sapuria Mals of Midnapur with the b‘amperiya Bediyas of
Eastern Bengal. Snake-charming is an occupation likely enough
to be adopted by any caste of gipsy-like propensities, and there is
no reason why both Maids and Bediyas should not have taken to it
independently. Further particulars will be found in the article
Bediyé.

49 MA’L.

The Mals of Western and Central Bengal seem on the whole
to.b.e the most typical representatives of the
original Mal tribe. Among them the primitive
rule of exogamy is in full force, and a man may not marry awoman
who belongs to the same totem group as himself. Prohibited degrees
are reckoned by the standard formula calculated in the descending
line to ﬁve generations on the father’s and three on the mother’s
side. Outsiders belonging to higher castes may be admitted into the
Mal community by giving a feast to the Male of the neighbour-
hood and drinking water in which the headman of the village (mdnjki)
has dipped his toes. N o instance of any one undergoing this disagree-
able ordeal has been quoted to me, and such cases must be very rare.

Girls may be married either as infants or after they have
attained puberty, the tendency being towards
the adoption of the former custom. The cere-
mony takes place just before daybreak in a sort of arbour made
of ma/zua' and Sid/ed branches in the courtyard of the bride’s house.
After the bride has been carried seven times round the bridegroom
the couple are made to sit side by side facing the east, and a.
vessel of water which has been blessed by a Brahman is poured over
their heads after the manner of the Mundas and Oraons.1 Garlands
of ﬂowers are then exchanged, the clothes of the pair are knotted'
together, and if adult they retire into a separate room in order to
consummate their union. On their reappearance they are greeted by
the company as husband and wife. Polygamy is permitted, but
most Mals are too poor to maintain more than one wife. A widow
may marry again,2 but no special ritual is in use, except among
the Réja’. Mals of Birbhum, who exchange necklaces of beads or
seeds of the tulsi (chmum sanctum); and such marriages, which
are called scmga, are eifected by paying a small fee to the headgnan
(Ickdmz'd or mdnﬂzi) and to the father of the widow. Divorce may
be effected, with the sanction of the panchayat, on the ground of
adultery by the Wife, and divorced women may marry again in
the same manner as widows.

Mals profess to have completely adopted Hinduism, and no
vestiges of any more primitive religion can
now be traced among them. They seem to
belong to whatever Hindu sect is popular in the locality where
they are settled; and in different districts they describe them-
selves as Vaishnavas, Saivas, or Saktas, as the case may be. The
snake goddess Manasa is believed to be their special patroness,
and is worshipped by them in much the same fashion as by the
Bagdis. Sacriﬁces of rice, sweetmeats, and dried rice are also offered
by the heads of families to the tutelary goddess of each village,
who bears the name of the village itself with the termination sim’

Exogamy.

Marriage.

Religion.

 

 

1 According to some accounts Jalmé, the goddess of water, must ﬁrst be
worshipped with gifts of ﬂowers at a neighbouring tank, and water drawn
from this tank must be used in the marriage in addition to water blessed
by a Brahman. . .

7 This is the general rule, but the Rajbans1 Mals of Midnapur have
recently abandoned widow-marriage.

d

MAL. , 50

added; so that the goddess of the village Pathara would be called
Patharasini. In most districts they have not yet attained to the
dignity of employing Brahmans, but elders of the caste 0r headmen
of villages serve them as priests (khdmid). In the Santal Parganés,
however, the Brahmans of the Let sub-caste of Bagdis oﬂiciate also
for the Raja Mals. The dead are burned, usually at the side of
a stream, into which the ashes are thrown. A
meagre imitation of the orthodox srdddh
ceremony is performed on the eleventh day after death in ordinary cases,
and on the third day for those who have died a violent death. On
the night of the Kali Puja in Kartik (October—November) dried jute
stems are lighted in honour of departed ancestors, and some even say
that this is done to show their spirits the road to heaven. Libations
of water are oﬁered on the last day of Chait. Female children are
buried mouth downwards, and the bodies of very poor persons are
often buried with the head to the north in the bed of a river.

Agriculture is supposed to be the original profession of the caste,
and most Méls, except those of distinctly gipsy
habits, are now engaged in cultivation as occu-
pancy or non-occupancy raiyats and landless
day-labourers. None appear to have risen to the higher rank
of zamindar or tenure-holder, except in Bankura, where one sarddr
ghatwdl, one sadidl, 56 tdbz’ddrs, and 35 cka’kardn ckaukiddrs are
Male. In Manbhum, on the other hand, which some believe to be the
original home of the caste, no Male are found in possession of these
ancient tenures, though some are employed as ordinary village
c/lau/ciddrs. The women of the caste and some of the men often
make a livelihood by ﬁshing—a fact which accounts for their bearing
the title of Machhua. Their social status is very low, and is clearly
deﬁned by the fact that Bagdis and Koras will not take water from
their hands, while they will take water and sweetmeats not only
from those castes, but also from Bauris. Mals pride themselves on
abstaining from beef and pork, but eat fowls, all kinds of ﬁsh,
ﬁeld-rats, and the ﬂesh of the gosdmp (Lacerta godz'ca). The sta
Male, however, do not touch fowls.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Male in 1872 and 1881:—

Disposal of the dead.

Occupation and social
status.

 

 

 

DISTRICT. I 1872. ‘ 1881. H DISTRICT. ‘ 1872. l 1881.
Bardwan 3,078 7344 Jalpigori 16
Bankura 8,436 12,348 Dacca 4,663 7,835
Birbhum ... 9,346 21,530 Faridpur 957 2,272
Midnapur 5,726 4,042 Bakarganj 2,95 877
Hushli 1 053 507 Maimansinh 20,166 14.782
Howrah m ...} ’ 16 Tipperah 3.970 4.755
24-Parganas 955 329 Chittagong 9
Nadiya. 4,407 4,696 Noakhali 3 21
Khulna ... '70 Shahabad 907 7:016
Jessore 5,577 2,398 Bhagalpur 71 6'”
Murshedabad... 29,281 8,368 Maldah 2,062 885
Dinajpur 1,446 1,026 Santal Parganas 8,820 489
Ragshahye 1,051. 267 Tributary States, Orissa 1,933 ......
Remapur 386 318 Lohardaga as: ......
Boers 818 743 Singhhum 1,367 31
Pabyly 1,682 1,310 Mnnbhum 4,031 1.676
Darjllmg 2 ...... Tributary States .. 1,042 ------

 

 

 

 

 

 

MA’L.

Mél, a sub-caste of Bhuiyas
in Singbhum; a title of Kaibart»
tas; a section of the Maghaya
sub-caste of Koiris and a section
of Turis; a sub-sept of the Saren

51

MALE.

Mélédhérkhéni, a me! or
hypergamous sub-group of Rarhi
Brahmans in Bengal.

Maldr, a synonym for Kathak
in Singhhum.

sept of Santals.
Malar, a sept of Mundas and
Ghasis in Chota Nagpur.

Malauriér, a pm‘ or section of
Sékadw1p1 Brahmans in Behar.

Méldhié, a section of the Sat-
mulia Maghaya’. sub-caste of
Kandus in Behar.

Mal or Mar, 9. sub-caste of
Mauliks in Chota Nagpur.

Mala, a title of Kapalis and
Kawalis in Eastern Bengal.

Mélabhumié, a sub-caste of
Muchis in Bengal.

 

emailé, M21, Sdmam'd Male’, Savar Palmrid, Saum'd, Sa’mil Pakdm’d,
Asal Pa/zdm'd, Sangz‘, a Dravidian tribe of the
Rajmah-il hills, closely akin to the Oraons, and
probably an isolated branch of the large and Widely diffused Savar
tribe. The actual name of the tribe appears to be Mal, which is
combined with the pronouns an, em, and e’ in order to form the
present of the verb substantive. Thus Malen is the ﬁrst person
singular, I am a Mail; Mélé, the third person singular; Malem, the
ﬁrst person plural; and Maler (used in the spelling Malair by Lieu-
tenant Shaw as the name of the tribe), the third person plural. The
selection of Malé as the tribal name for the purpose of this work
is therefore both arbitrary and incorrect, and can only be justiﬁed by
the necessity of having some distinctive designation to mark off these
Mals from the Mail Paharias of the southern hills and from the
Mél caste of Bengal. In respect of physical characteristics the Malé
represent the extreme type of the Dravidian race as we ﬁnd it in
Bengal. The nasal index measured on 100 men of the tribe yields
an average of 945, which closely approaches the proportions ascer-
tained for the Negro. The average stature is low, the complexion
dark, and the ﬁgure short and sturdy.

Owing to the rocky and forest-bound character of their country,
and their incessant internal struggles, the Malés
of the Rajmahal hills maintained a virtual
independence during the period of Musalmén
ascendancy in Bengal. It appears that, although they never com-
pletely recognized the imperial authority, they had a rude indigenous
system of government, which was worked in moderate accord with
the zamz'nddrs of the low country bordering on the hills. The hills
included in each tappa’ or subordinate ﬁscal division were subject to
one or more divisional headmen, called sarddrs, to whom the village
headmen (mdnﬂtés) were in their turn subordinate. The sarddrs,
who were possibly more civilized than the rest of the tribe, received.
from the zaminddrs allotments of land in the plains on jdgér or
service tenures, in consideration of which they made themselves
responsible for the prevention and detection of crime among .the
. hill people. Besides this, the passes leading from the hills 1nto

d2

Origin.

Early history of the
tribe.

MALE. 52

the plain country were guarded by outposts of Males, whose duty
it was to stop any bodies of men from making raids upon the plains,
and to give warning of an impending inroad. For further security,
the zamz‘nddrs themselves maintained at the foot of the hills a chain
of clzau/cés or police outposts, which were independent of the Malé
guardians of the passes within the hills. Once every year, at the
Dasahara festival, the divisional headman (sarda’r) of each tappd
came down to the plains with his subordinate mdnj/zés, and there
partook of a feast and received a turban at the zammddr’s expense,
at the same time formally renewing his engagements to keep the
peace within his jurisdiction. For a long time this system kept
crime within bounds, and promoted good feeling between the Males
and the people of the low country; but about the middle of last
century a show of independence on the part of the hill people
was treacherously resented by the zaminddrs, who took the oppor-
tunity of the annual public feast to murder several of the village
headmen. On this the Malés within the hills gave up the guardian-
ship of the passes, and commenced a series of depredations, which
were held in some check up to 1770 by the line of zammddré police
posts without the hills. In that year, however, the famine which
desolated the neighbouring districts pressed with peculiar severity
upon the alluvial strip of country lying between the Réjmahal
hills and the Ganges; the police outposts were abandoned, and
the plains thus lay at the mercy of the Malés, who, owing to their
aboriginal practice of living upon jungle foods, had escaped the
extremity of distress. It was therefore in the years following the
famine of 1770 that the raids of the hillmen upon the low country
became most frequent and most systematic. Plunder no doubt was
their main object, and the desire to revenge the treacherous murder
of their headmen; but many of their inroads were in the ﬁrst
instance instigated by the landholders, who were in the habit of offering
the Males a free passage through their own lands on condition that
they ravaged those of the neighbouring zaménddrs. At any rate, the
terror they occasioned was so widespread that the alluvial country
Was deserted by its cultivators; no boat dare moor after dusk on the
southern bank of the Ganges; and even the Government mail-
runners, who in those days passed along the skirts of the hills, by
way of Réjmahal and the Telia’. Garhi Pass, were frequently robbed
and murdered at the foot of the hills. Up to 1778 the British
Government, like the Muhammadans before them, made various
attempts to suppress the Mélés by military force. In 1772 a
corps of light infantry, armed expressly for jungle ﬁghting, was
raised and placed under command of Captain Brooke. But the
Males never gave the troops a chance in the open country; while
in the tangled undergrowth of the hills ﬁrearms had no decided
advantage over the strong bamboo bows and heavy poisoned arrows
of the hillmen. Besides this, the absence of roads, the difﬁculty
of keeping up supplies, and the fatally malarious climate of the
Rajmahéil jungles, made the permanent subjection 0f the Méle’s
a hopeless undertaking for native troops. In 1778 Captain Brown,
then commanding the corps of light infantry, submitted to

53 MALE.

Government a scheme for the paciﬁcation of the hillmen, the essential
elements of which were the followingza-First, the sarddrs or divi-
sional headmen of the Males were to be restored to their original
position as chiefs of the tribe, receiving formal sanca’s of appoint—
ment from Government, and in their turn entering into engagements,
renewable annually, to perform certain speciﬁed duties. Similar
engagements were to be taken from the mduﬂaz‘s or village head-
men, binding them to obey the sarddrs in all matters laid down in.
the samods. Second, those sarddrs whose tappds bordered upon the
public road were to receive a ﬁxed pecuniary allowance, nominally
for the purpose of maintaining police to protect the mail-runners,
but in fact as a bribe to deter them from committing robberies them-
selves. T/eird, all transactions with the hill people were to be
carried on through their sarddrs and mam/5278, but intercourse with
the inhabitants of the plains was to be encouraged by establishing
markets on the outskirts of the hills. Fourth, the old chauki bandi
or chain of police outposts, which had been abandoned in 1770, was
to be completely re-established and maintained by Government
until the service lands attached to them had been brought under
cultivation. But the control of these outposts was to be taken from
the saminddrs and made over to t/zdndddrs or police ofﬁcers appointed
by Government, who were again to be subordinate to sazdwals or
divisional superintendents. This police force was further to be
strengthened by conferring grants of lands below the hills on
invalid sepoys, on the condition that they settled on their allotments
and gave assistance in the event of a Male inroad. The total
annual expense of the scheme was estimated at £100. Early in
1778 Captain Brown’s scheme was approved by Government; and
both the chain of police posts below the hills and the system of
aIIOWances to the sarddrs on the public road were partially estab-
lished before the end of the year. But in 1779 the hill country of
Réjmahal was transferred from Captain Brown’s jurisdiction, and it
thus fell to Mr. Augustus Cleveland, who had been appointed
Collector of Bhagalpur, to carry out the foregoing scheme. In the
following year (1780) Mr. Cleveland reported that forty-seven hill
chiefs had of their own will submitted to Government authority.
With the view of retaining these men as loyal subjects he subse-
quently proposed that a corps of hill archers, four hundred strong,
should be enrolled from among the Males and oﬂicered by eight
sarddrs or divisional headmen, under the command of the Collector
of Bhagalpur. The ofﬁcers were to be paid Rs. 5, and the common
soldiers Rs. 3, per mensem. Every village headman, he suggested,
should be called upon to furnish recruits to the corps, and should
receive for this service an allowance of Rs. 2 a month. The yearly
expense of this arrangement, including the cost of the purple Jackets
and turbans which were to form the uniform of the corps, was
estimated by Mr. Cleveland at £3,200. Warren Hastings, who was
then Governor-General, at ﬁrst objected to the enrolment of the
corps of archers on the ground of this heavy expense, and sanctioned
a scheme which Mr. Cleveland had proposed in the meantime, for
granting pensions of Rs. 10 a month to all divisional headmen

MALE. 54

(sarddrs) and of Rs; 5 a menth to their ndébs or deputies; mdnj/zés or
village headmen were to receive no allowance at all. But towards
the end of 1780 the enrolment of a corps of archers was sanctioned,
mainly in consequence of the Commander-in-Chief having expressed
his approval of the scheme when passing through Bhagalpur on his
way to the Upper Provinces. At the same time the ﬁscal divisions
of Ambér and Sultanabad were transferred to Mr. Cleveland’s
jurisdiction, it having been found that the chiefs of the southern
portion of the Réjmahal hills would not give in their allegiance as
long as they were exposed to continual inroads from the inhabitants
of those pargands. Shortly afterwards, at the special request of the
sarda’rs and mdnj/zés 0f Belpatta, that ﬁscal division was also placed
under Mr. Cleveland, pensions being granted to the chiefs and
recruits furnished for the hill archers.

Not long after the enrolment of the hill archers an outbreak
that occurred in the hills was quelled by them so eﬁectively that a
proposal by Mr. Cleveland that the corps should be drilled and armed
like regular sepoys was readily sanctioned, and Lieutenant Shaw was
appointed adjutant; the name of the corps being at the same time
changed to “The Bhagalpur Hill Rangers,” by which name they
were known until disbanded on the reorganization of the Native
army after the Mutiny in 1857.

From the ﬁrst enrolment of the hill archers petty offences com-
mitted by the members of the corps were punished by a rude court-
martial of the ofﬁcers. In 1782, however, one of the archers
murdered a Male woman, and in order to punish this, the ﬁrst
serious crime that had occurred, Mr. Cleveland proposed the forma-
tion of a distinct tribunal, the jurisdiction of which should be limited
to members of the corps. This, which was at ﬁrst styled court-
martial, and afterwards hill assembly, was to consist of three or
more ofﬁcers of the corps, the power of appointing and dissolving
the court resting with Mr. Cleveland. Mr. Cleveland was also to
approve of all sentences passed by the court, except when capital
punishment was awarded. In that case an assembly of ﬁve or more
hill chiefs (sarddrs) was to be convened, and a ﬁnal decision to be
passed in accordance with the opinion of the majority. Mr. Cleveland
further proposed that offences committed by the inhabitants of the
hills generally, with the exception of those who were enrolled in
the corps of archers, should be withdrawn from the jurisdiction of
the ordinary courts and placed under a tribunal of chiefs (sardérs)
presided over by himself. The entire scheme, both as regards the
court—martial for the archers and the assembly of sardcirs for the
hillmen generally, was approved by Government in April 1782.
Shortly afterwards Mr. Cleveland reported that he had arranged
for assemblies to be held twice a year, and gave the following
account of the proceedings of the ﬁrst trial :—“ I have settled with
the chiefs that they are regularly to assemble here twice a year for
the purpose of trying all prisoners who may be brought before them ;
and as particular cases occur which may require immediate 1nqu1ry,
they have agreed to attend whenever I ﬁnd it necessary to summon
them. One assembly has been already held, at which 1 principal

55 MA’LE‘.

chief (sarddr), 74 mdnjlzés, and 120 common hill people were tried
for plundering the pargcmd of Kharakpur of near nine hundred head
of cattle. The trial lasted three days, and was conducted with as much
ceremony and formality as the nature and disposition of the people
would admit of. I have the pleasure to observe, however, that the chiefs
appeared to conduct themselves throughout the trial with the greatest
attention and impartiality, and the result of their proceedings, which
I have conﬁrmed, is as follows :-—One principal chief, Bidji of
Titoria, and one common hill man, Chandra of Pupat, to be hanged
immediately; and the sentence was accordingly carried into execu-
tion this morning, in the presence of the corps of hill archers and
all the principal hill chiefs and mdnjhés. One man/7&5, Jarua of
Tatakpara, to be hanged twenty days hence, unless the whole cattle
plundered are delivered up in that time, in which case he is to be
pardoned. Seven mdm‘hz’s to be conﬁned for their lives, unless the
whole of the cattle plundered are delivered up in twenty days, in
which case they are to be pardoned. Sixty-ﬁve mdm'laés and 120
common hill people acquitted.”

. The rules of Mr. Cleveland’s Hill Assembly were subsequently
incorporated in Regulation I of 1796, which “provided that the
~Magistrate should commit all important cases to be tried before an
assembly of hill chiefs. He was to attend the trial as superintending
ofﬁcer, and conﬁrm or modify the sentence, if not exceeding
fourteen years’ imprisonment. Higher sentences were referred to
the Nizamat Adalat, as the Supreme Criminal Court was then called.
This unusual procedure was followed till 1827, when the law was
repealed by Regulation I of that year; the mountaineers were then
declared amenable to the ordinary courts, but some of the hill mdnj/zz’s
were to sit with the Magistrate as assessors when he tried cases in
which the hill men were concerned; and the ménjhz’s were also autho-
rized to adjudicate summarily in disputes about land, succession, and
claims to money when the value of the claim did not exceed one
hundred rupees.” It appears that the Hill Assembly, when no longer
kept together by the personal inﬂuence of Mr. Cleveland, became
almost unmanageable. Considerable difﬁculty was experienced in
getting the chiefs to meet at all ; and when present they would not
attend to the proceedings of the court, while their sentences were
hasty and capricious in the extreme. It was found, too, that even
when the assemblies could be induced to do their work, the power they
had been entrusted with was too uncontrolled, and that the total per-
sonal exemption of the Malés from the jurisdiction of the ordinary
courts was a measure of doubtful policy, the more so as It seems to
have been held that under Regulation I of 1796 the Maglstrate had
no power to try and punish Malés for petty offences on his own
motion. Regulation I of 1827 has now been repealed by Act XXIX
of 1871.

In 1783, the year before his death, Mr. Cleveland proposed that
the Males should be given extensive grants of waste land at the
foot of the hills on the following terms :——(1) Every sarddr was to
have a rent-free jdgz’r or service tenure, in perpetuity, of from 100_to
300 bégkds of land. (2) Any Malé of lower rank than a. chief

MALE. ‘ 56

might be allowed any quantity of land rent-free for ten years, it
being liable to subsequent assessment at equitable rates. (3) In order
to secure that the foregoing provisions should really come into oper-
' ation, Mr. Cleveland suggested that all sarddrs and mun/Ms holding

pensions from Government should forfeit their pensions unless they
settled in the plains Within twelve months. It was hoped that by
thus forcing the hill men to settle in the plains they would become
civilized by intercourse with the lowlanders; while as they learned
more productive methods of agriculture it would be possible to make
them contribute to the cost of administration. But the scheme was
never carried out, and the immigration of Santals from the west has
now almost completely out off the Males from close intercourse
with the plains. In any case, it may be doubted whether they would
have left their hills; while from all that is known of the Oraons
and other Dravidian races, Mr. Cleveland’s expectation that the Malés
would take to manufactures appears to have been utterly unfounded.

The traditions of the Male are meagre. In Lieutenant Shaw’s

Traditions well-known monograph on the tribe1 publish-
' ed in 1795, astory is told of seven brothers
who were deputed by the gods to peOple the earth. A feast was
made, and it was arranged that each brother was to take of such food
as he liked and go to the land which he had chosen to dwell in.
One took one thing and one another, and their choice determined the
caste of their descendants. From the brother who took goat’s ﬂesh
sprang the Hindus ; another who took ﬂesh of all kinds, but refused
pork, became the father of the Mahomedans ; another chose pork,
and from him are the Kiratis; another is the ancestor of the
‘ Kawdir ’ (Kadarl, and so on. Only the eldest brother, who was
sick, got all sorts of food in an old dish. He was left in the hills as
an outcast, and from him the Malé are descended. This myth is
clearly only an echo of the similar story told by the Mundas and
Hos. Both versions agree in their general tenor and in some of their
details; both must have arisen after the tribes had been for some time
in contact with Hindus, and both, it may be added, ﬁnd it necessary
to provide a place for the English in their account of the making of
mankind.

All my correspondents agree in assuring me that the Males
have no endogamous or exogamous subdivi-
sions, and that their marriages are regulated
solely by the standard formula for reckoning prohibited degrees
which is explained in the introduction. If this is correct, a point
upon which I am not yet fully convinced, the fact is remarkable.
The Males have been less exposed to Hindu inﬂuences than their
kinsmen, the Oraons, yet the latter retain a long list of exogamous
totems, while the former have no exogamous groups at all, and in
this respect are more modern than most Hindu castes. The question
seems to me to call for further inquiry. One would wish to know
whether the Male ever observed the characteristic Dravidian system
of exogamy ; and if so, how it came to fall into disuse.

Internal structure.

 

lAsiatz'c Researckes, vol. IV.

57 MALE.

Free courtship is allowed, and girls are married, when of full
age, to men of their own choice. Sexual inter-
course before marriage is not recognized in
theory, but if an unmarried girl becomes pregnant a sacriﬁce is
offered to atone for the indisoretion, and arrangements are made to
get her married without delay.

Marriage brokers (Sit/Ml) are employed to conduct the prelim-
inary negotiations, and to settle the difﬁcult question of the bride-
price. When this has been satisfactorily arranged, an auspicious
day is ﬁxed, when the bridegroom goes with his friends to the bride’s
house, taking with him a goat to furnish forth the wedding feast,
and the bride—price. a portion of which is sometimes paid before-
hand through the sz't/m. The parties are made to sit opposite each
other, the bridegroom facing east and the bride west, while her girl
friends comb and oil her hair. Then the father takes the bride by
the hand and gives her to the bridegroom, pointing out that she is
not halt, maimed or blind, and enjoining him to treat her kindly.
This done, the sitku takes the bridegroom’s right hand, dips the
.little ﬁnger in sindur, and makes ﬁve dots with it on the girl’s fore-
head, afterwards using her ﬁnger to perform the same ofﬁce for the
bridegroom. Guns are ﬁred to mark the completion of this essential
rite, and the married couple then eat together out of the same dish
in symbol of their union. The proceedings are concluded by
a feast.

Divorce is permitted with the sanction of the leading men of
the village. If the husband demands a divorce
on the ground that his wife is barren, that
she has committed adultery, or that she is incurably lazy, he is
entitled to claim a refund of the bride-price which he paid for her
in the ﬁrst instance. He forfeits this right if the reasons which
he gives are deemed to be frivolous and insufficient. If the wife
claims a divorce on whatever grounds, her family must refund the
bride-price. The ritual observed consists in tearing a sdl leaf or
breaking a small branch or a piece of string in token of separation,
and pouring a vessel of water over the woman’s head. Divorced
women may marry again.

The religion of the Males is animism of the type common among
Dravidian tribes. At the head of their system
stands the Sun called Dharmer Gosain, and
represented by a roughly-hewn post set up in front of each house.
He is worshipped with olferin gs of fowls, goats, sindur, and oil at the
commencement of the harvest season, and at other times when
any misfortune befalls the family. When people are gathered
together for this purpose, the village headman, who acts as priest,
goes round the congregation with an egg in his hand, and recites the
names of certain spirits. He then throws away the egg, apparently
as a propitiatory offering, and enjoins the spirits to hold aloof and
abstain from troubling the sacriﬁce. Among the minor gods
mentioned by Lieutenant Shaw, Raksi now appears as the tutelar
deity of strong drink, who is worshipped by the headman of the
village before beginning to distil liquor from the fresh ma/mcz crop,

Marriage.

Divorce.

Religion.

MALE. 58

According to Lieutenant Shaw, Raksi is sought out when a man-
eating tiger infests a village or a bad epidemic breaks out, and is
worshipped in the form of a black stone set up under a tree and
hedged round with Ezm/zorbm plants. Chal or Chalnad is a god
presiding over a group of ten villages, and represented by a black
stone set up under a mukmum tree. Goats and pigs are the
animals usually offered to him, and the sacriﬁce of a cow, said by
Lieutenant Shaw to be performed every three years, seems to have
fallen into disuse. Pau-Gosain. the god of highways, lives under
a bel, kurare, or mutmum tree. He is invoked by persons going on
a journey. When Lieutenant Shaw wrote the offering was a cock. N ow
it is a white goat, and the sacriﬁce is said to be a very expensive one,
by reason of the large amount of rice-beer—ten or twelve maunds—
that must be offered to the god and drunk by his assembled votaries.
The tutelary deity of the village, spoken of by Lieutenant Shaw under
the name of Dwara Gosain, is now called Béra-Dwari, because he is
supposed to live in a temple with twelve doors. The whole village
worship him in the month of Magh. Colonel Dalton suggests that
this god may perhaps be the same as the Oraon Dara. Kul Gosain,
‘ the Geres of the mountaineers,’ and Autga, the god of hunting, appear
not to be known at the present day. Gumo Gosain, or the god of
the pillar, is represented in every household by the wooden post
(gumo) which supports the main rafters of the roof. On this the
blood of a slain goat is sprinkled to propitiate the spirits of ancestors.
The fact that this god is common to the Males and Mail Paharias (see
page 70 below), and is worshipped by both in the same way, seems to
tell strongly in favour of the common origin of the two tribes. As
in Lieutenant Shaw’s time, (lhamda Gosain still ranks high among
the tribe, and demands offerings on a larger scale than any other god.
A sacriﬁce consisting of twelve pigs and twelve goats, with rice,
oil and sindur in proportion, must put a severe strain on the resources
of a Male villager. In order to commemorate the event, three
bamboos decorated with streamers of bark painted black and red
at the ends, the natural colour being left in the centre, are set
up to represent Chamda Grosain in front of the house of the
person who organizes the sacriﬁce. One bamboo has ninety stream-
ers, another sixty, and the third twenty, and the poles are also
decorated with peacock’s feathers. The night is spent in dancing,
and in the morning sacriﬁces are offered in the house and in the
ﬁelds for a blessing on the family and on the crops. The bamboos
are then taken inside and suspended from the roof of the house to
show that the owner has performed the full sacriﬁce.

The question whether the Males have any functionaries who
can properly be called priests is in some respects an obscure one.
According to Buchanan, they formerly had priests called Naiyas or
Laiyas, a designation common enough in Western Bengal, but
these, it is said, have now disappeared, and their functions have
devolved upon the Demanos, who were originally Only diviners
selected for their supposed intimacy with the spirits, their capacity
for going into trances. and [so forth, these powers being 1n some
mysterious way bound up with their long hair, which may on no

59 . MA’LE.

account be out. More recent observers, however, assure me that
the Demano merely directs religious and ceremonial Observances,
but does not himself ofﬁciate as priest. The duties of priest are
discharged by the village headman or the chief member of the
household, or by any inﬂuential person chosen for the occasion, and
the Deméno is merely a spiritual director endowed with certain
supernatural powers, such as that of discerning the causes of all
diseases, so that when a man falls ill he can say which of the gods
has afﬂicted him and what sort of sacriﬁce should be offered to
bring about his recovery. On the occasions when Ohamda Gosain
and Grumu Grosain are worshipped, the Demano is decorated with
a necklace of cowrie shells. No Domino may eat turmeric. Besides
the Demano there is another rlass of divines called Cherin, whose
duty is to select persons to. oﬁiciate as priests. This he does by
balancing a bow on his two hands and watching its oscillations,
while he calls out one by one the names of the persons present, the
idea being that the god thus signiﬁes from whose hands he wishes
to receive the oifering. The ﬂesh of the animals offered in sacriﬁce
is eaten by the male worshippers : women may not partake of it.

As a rule the Male bury their dead, the corpse being laid on
a layer of bile/alt leaves with the head pointing
towards the north. The bodies of those who
died of snake-bite or have come to a violent end are exposed in the
jungle. According to Colonel Dalton, the bodies of Demanos are
dealt with in this fashion, on the ground that if they are buried
in the village, their ghosts walk and cause annoyance to the living.
On the ﬁfth day after death a feast is given, to which all members
of the family are invited. Six months or a year later a special care
mony is held for the purpose of appeasing the spirit of the dead
man. The chief part is played by the Demano, who represents the
deceased, and is dressed so as to personate him as closely as possible.
In this character he demands clothes, ornaments, food and whatever
the dead man was fond of in this life, the belief being that if
they are given to the Demano, the spirit will in some unexplained
fashion have the use of them in the world of the dead. When
the Demano has got all that he asked for, he goes into a ﬁt and
remains insensible for some minutes, during which time he is sup-
posed to be in communication with the spirit of the deceased. On
his revival the company partake of a feast.

The property left by the dead man cannot be divided until this
second feast has taken place. According to Colonel Dalton, the
eldest son takes half, and the remainder is equally divided among
the agnates. Some say, however, that division among the sons takes
place on a sort of diminishing scale according to order of birth, the
eldest getting the largest share, the second less, and so on.

The Male Villages are usually built on the summits of the range

, , of hills occupied by the tribe. Their houses are

Mo‘le 0f hvmg’ constructed of wattled bamboo, the interstices

of which are ﬁlled with grass, no mud being used. They cultivate
by burning the underwood and sowing seed in the ashes, a system
usually known as ﬂame or pardo, but by them called kale mandate,

Disposal of the dead.

M-A’LE. 60 MA’LI.

or ‘jungle-burning.’ Although addicted to this destructive method
of agriculture, the Male are great lovers of trees, which they plant
freely on their village sites. In matters of diet they acknowledge
none of the restrictions recognized by Hindus. They eat beef,
pork, domestic fowls, all kinds of ﬁsh, and the leavings of people of
other castes, and indulge freely in strong drink.

Male Kumchhé, 3. Mar or sept Malhén, a section of the
of Khambus 1n Darjiling. Baranwar sub-caste of Baniyas
in Behar.

. Malhé, a title of Kaibarttas Mélhétié, a mad or section of
1n Orissa. l Kesarwani Baniyas in Behar.

($71311, M'a’la'kar, a caste employed in making garlands and
providing ﬂowers for the service of Hindu
temples. In Bengal the caste is included
among the Nava-Sakha, and its members profess to trace their descent
from the garland maker attached to the household of Raja Kansa of
Mathura, who, when met by Krishna, was asked for a chaplet of
ﬂowers and at once gave it. On being told to fasten it with a string,
be, for want of any other, took off his sacred thread and tied it, on
which Krishna most ungenerously rebuked him for his simplicity
in parting with his paiz‘d, and announced that for the future his
caste would be ranked among the Sﬁdras. Like others of the higher
castes, the Mélékars claim to have originally come from Mathura’. in
the reign of Jahangir. They are few in number, but in every Hindu
village there is at least one representative, who provides daily
offerings of ﬂowers for the temples and marriage tiaras for the
village maidens.

They are divided into two main groups—the Phulkété-Méli,
who make ornaments, toys, etc., from the pith
of the sole, and the Dokéne-Méli, who keep

shops. The former group is again broken up into Rérhi, Bérendra,
and A’thgharié, the last of whom are supposed to be descended
from eight families outcasted for some cause now forgotten. Their
sections, which are shown in Appendix I, belong to the ordinary
Brahmanical series, and are supplemented by the regular rules
regarding prohibited degrees. In Dacca, according to Dr. Wise, the
caste has only one gotm, Alamyan, and two dais, or unions, between
which there is no real difference. If, however, a member of one
union marries into a family belonging to the other, the marriage
feast will be more expensive than if he took a bride from his own, as
he must invite the members of both dais to the ceremony. The
bridal dresses must be made of red silk brought from Murshedabad,
as cotton cloth is prohibited. The bride is always carried in a palki
or palanquin, while the bridegroom rides on a pony or in a Sedan
chair. Malis marry their daughters as infants, forbid widows to
marry again, and do not recognize divorce. If a wife is proved to
be unfaithful, she is turned out of the caste, and her husband performs
a 'sflllOf penance to purify himself from the slur of having associated
' Wit er.

Tradition of origin.

Internal structure.

61 ~MA’LI.

The Malakars are all Vaishnavas by creed, and it is said that
none of them worship Siva. A. Groséin is their
guru, while their Brahman is common to them
and to the Nava-Sakha.

“ AMéli will not cultivate with his own hands, and never works

as a kitchen-gardener, the gardeners of Bengal
being generally Chandals and Uriyas. Many
Malis, however, hold land as occupancy raiyats, which they cultivate
by means of hired labourers. In Dacca members of the caste keep
shops for piece-goods, practise medicine, act as vaccinators, and
take service in temples. Their principal occupations, however, are
making wreaths, fabricating artiﬁcal Chaplets and toys from the pith
of the sole. (Hedysariirn iagenarium). The garlands placed every
morning before idols are collected and arranged by Malakérs, who
nevertheless refuse to paint ﬁgures, this being the profession of. the
Granak and Rangrez. All the tinsel decorations put on the images
and their carriages are designed by Malékars. At marriages their
services are indispensable, for they prepare the crowns (Mu/cum)
worn by the bridal pair. Morover, no bride would consider the
attire complete unless her hair was adorned with a Khopajiira, or
ornament for the hair-knot, made with leaves of the jack-tree mixed
with white Bela blossoms, while at one side of it they place a rose or
some other bright ﬂower. For the bouquet delivered on the bridal
morning the Malakar expects to be paid a rupee.

“ The profession of a Malékar requires aconsiderable knowledge
of ﬂowers, for some are forbidden to be used in religious services
and others can only be exhibited before the shrines of the deities
to whom they belong. Thus the ‘Dhatliré.’ is sacred to Siva;
the ‘Aparajita’ (Clitoria ternatea) to Kali; the ‘Békas’ (Justicia
adhatoda) to Saraswati; and the ‘Asoka’ (Jones-in mom) to Sashthi.
The ‘ Java ’ (Hibiscus rosa Sinensis) or China rose is of most
unlucky omen, and can only be presented to Kali, but not to other
idols, nor employed at weddings.

“ Strong scented blossoms are selected for religious oiferings,
and these in Bengal are the ‘ Champé ’ (Michelia Champaca),
‘ Chameli ’ (Jasmin-um grandiﬂorum), ‘ Jui’ (Jasminum auricu-
latum), ‘ Bela’ (Jasminum Zambac), ‘ Gandhraj ’ (Gardenia ﬂorida),
and the ‘ Harsingér’ (Nyctaiit/zes arbor-tristz's).

“ Chaplets offered to idols must be tied with the dried ﬁbres of
the plantain stem, not with string, and if picked and arranged by
one not a Malékar they are unclean. From sixteen to twenty-four
annas a month are received by the garland-maker for providing
a daily supply of ﬂowers to a temple; but, as with everything else,
the price of bouquets has greatly risen, and a rupee only
procures about half the quantity it formerly did.

“One of the chief occupations of this caste is inoculating for
small—pox and treating individuals attacked by any eruptive fever.
Hindus believe that Sitalé, the goddess of small-pox, is one of seven
sisters, who are designated Motiya, Matariya, Pakauriya, Masxirika,
Uhamariya, Khudwa, and Pansa. The ﬁrst four are varieties of
small-pox, the names referring to the form, size, and colour of

Religion.

Occupation.

MA’LI. 62 ‘

the pustules; the ﬁfth is Vm'iola maligna ; the sixth is measles; and
the seventh is water-pox. Every Malakar keeps images of one or
more of these goddesses, and on the ﬁrst of Chait (March 15th) a
festival is held, and the Malakars superintend the details. It is
popularly called ‘Malibégh,’ from the garden Where the service is
performed, and thither Hindus and Muhammadans repair with
oiferings of clotted milk, cocoanuts, and plantains in the hope of
propitiating the dreaded. sisters.

“ When small-pox rages, the Malakars are busiest. As soon as
the nature of the disease is determined, the Kabiréj retires and
a Malakar is summoned. His ﬁrst act is to forbid the introduction
of meat, ﬁsh, and all food requiring oil or spices for its preparation.
He then ties a lock of hair, a cowrie-shell, a piece of turmeric, and
an article of gold on the right wrist of the patient. The sick person
is then laid on the ‘ Majh-pattaj the young and unexpanded
leaf of the plantain tree, and milk is prescribed as the sole article of
food. He is fanned with a branch of the sacred ném, and any one
entering the chamber is sprinkled with water. Should the fever
become aggravated and delirium ensue, or if a child cries much and
sleeps little, the Mali performs the Mata puja. This consists in
bathing the image of the goddess causing the disease and giving
a draught of the water to drink. To relieve the irritation of the skin,
pease-meal, turmeric, ﬂour, or shell-sawdust is sprinkled over
the body. ,

“If the eruption be copious, a piece of new cloth in the ﬁgure of
eight is wrapped round the chest and shoulders. On the night
between the seventh and eighth days of the eruption the Mali has
much to do. He places a waterpot in the sick room, and puts on it
alwé. rice, a cocoanut, sugar, plantains, a yellow rag, ﬂowers, and
a few m'm leaves. Having mumbled several mantras, he recites
the kissa, or tale, of theparticular goddess, which often occupies
six hours.

“ When the pustules are mature, the Mali dips a thorn of the
karaunda (Carissa) in til oil, and punctures each one. The body
is then anointed with oil, and cooling fruits given. When the scabs
(dewli) have peeled , 01f, another ceremonial, called ‘Godam,’ is
gone through. All the offerings on the waterpot are rolled 1n a.
cloth and fastened round the waist of the patient. These oiferings
are the perquisite of the Mali, who also receives a fee.

“These minute, and to our ideas absurd, proceedings are
practised by the Hindus and Muhammadans, including the bigoted
Farazi, whenever small-pox or other eruptive fever attacks their
families. Government vaccinators earn a considerable sum yearly
by executing the Sitala worship, and when a child is vaccinated
a portion of the service is performed.”

The Malis of Beharhold a respectable position among the castes
of that province. They rank with Kumhars,
Koiris, and. Kahars, and Brahmans will take
water from their hands. The main difference between them and the
Bengal Malis is that they practice widow-marriage, and do not take
an extreme View of the necessity of getting their daughters married as

Social status.

MA’LI.

63’

MALLA’H.

infants. With this exception, the account given above of the Bengal
Malls applies for the most part to the Behar members of the caste.
The following statement shows the number and distribution of

Mélis in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

 

 

Drsrmcr. 1872. 1881. DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.

Bardwan ... 3,376 2,171 Chitt on

Bankura _ 535 1,634 Noakiﬁli g 333 1g?
Birbhum 536 2,225 Patna. 4 995 5 611
Midnapur 6.156 7,942 Gya 8:577 7,671
Hug 1h } 2,652 { 2,469 Shahabad 3,432 5:100
04olv’vra 1,163 T'-h t Mczuﬁerpur 11,543
- - nrganﬁs ... 2,586 2,390 n, u {Darbhanga } 16'222 10 004
Eadlya 2,980 6,345 Saran 4,691 6:909
J hulna ...... 2,176 Champaran 4,974 7,367
eesore 1,811 4,323 Monghyr .. 5,360 5,249
Murshedabad... 2,483 3,613 Bhagalpur 2,877 4 428
Dlnamur . . 2,184 3,133 Purniah 4,663 ' 25
Rajshahye .. 452 890 Maldah ... 567 883
gangpur 2,062} 1,456 Santal Parganés 1,252 3,728
Poﬁxa 1,079 864 Cuttack .. 3,346 4,493
:DJ pa. 2,986 ‘ 1,731 Puri 11,669 11,186
Jalrjyhng 1'13 220 Balasore 1,305 1,690
Ka phgoglh .. 600 960 Tributary States 10,6“6 9,777
Due e ar ”"L: 2,156 Hazaribagh .. 1,556 2,735
‘aeca 2,157 2,709 Lohardaga .. 5,205 2,750
laridpur . 1,317 2,310 Siugbhum 34 2,369
ﬁiixaniiisniiih 123% i530] Munbhum 4,105 3,601
. . . , 79 Tributar t ... '
Tipperah 5,244: 2,480 y S ates 224 453

 

 

 

 

 

 

Méli, a synonym for Bhuin-
mali; a sept- of the Malwe Raj-
puts in Chota Nagpur.

Malik, a title of Rajputs, Telis
and Doms in Behar.

Malik, a title of Kandhs in
Orissa.

Malikaulie’l, a section of Bab-
hans in Behar.

Malitwér, a section of Bab-
hans in Behar.

Maljéda, a bastard or son of
a harlot.

 

Mélkarnauti, a mul or section
of the Sétmulié, or Kishnaut sub-
caste of Goalés in Behar.

Mélkas, a section of Oswals.

MaZk/zdjam'a, from malklzdjand,
a payer of land revenue, a zemin-
dar.

Mélkié, a mu] or section of
the Satmulia or Kishnaut sub-
caste of Groalas in Behar.

Malla, wrestler, a title of.
Khandaits in Orissa and of the
Aguri or Ugrakshatri caste in
Western Bengal.

Mallabhumia, a sub-caste of
Bauris in Western Bengal.

Malléh, Am, a sailor, a boatmanta generic term current. in
Behar and Bengal as the popular des1gnat10n of various boatmg

and ﬁshing castes.

Mr. Sherring notices this general use of the

word, but adds that there is a special tribe of Malléhs divided into

the following sub-castes:—(1)Ma|léh,

(2) Muria or Muriéri, (3)

Pandubi, (4) Bathawa or Badhariyé, (5) Chaini, Chain or Chai,
(6) Suréyé, (7) Guriyé, (8) Tiar, (9) Kulwant 0r Kulwat, (10) Kewat,

MALLA’H. ‘ 64 MA’LO.
He also mentions the tradition that all these “are descended from
a common father, by name Nikhad, but that the Kewats alone were
born in lawful wedlock.” Nikhad is merely a variant for Nishad or
Nishada, a Dravidian tribe mentioned in the Rig-Veda, from which
several of the ﬁshing castes may possibly derive their origin. It is
clear, however, that while the ten groups enumerated by Mr. Sherring
may at one time have belonged to a single tribe, that tribe must have
broken up some time before the Arabic word Malldk can have been
current in India long enough to stand any chance of being adopted
as a tribal name. If, then, Mr. Sherring’s statement is correct, a
point on which there is room for some difference of opinion, it merely
shows that a certain number of distinct ﬁshing castes belieVB
themselves once to have formed part of a larger group, to which they
give the modern name Mallah, a foreign word denoting an occu-
pation, not a caste, and throwing no light on the afﬁnities of the
people who use it. '

The castes to which the term Mallah is ordinarily applied in
Bengal are the following z—Gonrhi, Chain, Bind, Kewat, Tiyar,
Muriéri, Surahiya, Malo, and Jaliya Kaibartta.

Mallametié, Mdtz'd, or Mdtidl, Malo, a sub-section of the

a sub-caste of Bagdis in Bengal,
by profession ﬁshermen and
earth-workers.

Mallik, a sub-caste of Mials in
Birbhum; an honorary title of
Brahmans, Doms, Kayasths, Kai-
barttas, and Subarnabaniks in
Bengal; a section of the Biyahut
and Kharidaha Kalwars and of
Malis and Sonars in Behar.

 

Kautsasa section of Utkal Brah-
mans.

Mélo, a title of the class of '
Rajputs to which the Raja of
Bishenpur claims to belong. It
is a plausible conjecture that this
name, unheard of among ad-
mitted Raj puts, may have arisen
from the connexion of the Raja
with the Mal tribe, who are
numerous in Bankura.

£13113, Mala-Patna", a Dravidian boating and ﬁshing caste,
supposed by Buchanan to have come from
Western India. This opinion, however, is
unsupported by any evidence beyond a resemblance of names, which
may be either wholly accidental or may have arisen from the
tribal name Malo being confounded with the Arabic word Mallah,
‘ a boatman.’ Dr. Wise considers the three ﬁsher castes—the
Kaibartta, Male, and Tiyar—to be “ undoubtedly representatives of
the pre-historic dwellers in the Grangetic delta. As a rule they are
short and squat, of a dark-brown colour, often verging upon black.
Although Hindus by creed, they are fond of showy garments, of
earrings, and of long hair, which is either allowed to hang down in
glossy curls on their shoulders or fastened in a knot at the back of the
head. The whiskers and moustaches are thin and scrubby, the lips
often thick and prominent, the nose short with the nostrils expanded.
The physiognomy indicates good temper, sensuality, and melancholy
rather than intelligence and shrewdness.” The sections of the Malos,
shown in Appendix I, seem on the whole to bear out the view that-

Internal structure.

65 MA’LO.

they are the remnant of a distinct aboriginal tribe, and not merely
an occupational group. These sections are peculiar to the Malos,
and do not appear to have been borrowed from any other caste.
I am unable to analyse them completely, but I venture the conjecture
that some of them are totemistic, the totems being the rivers, which
the Malos regularly worship. There are no sub-castes. The Raj-
bansi, which some authorities are disposed to regard as a sub-caste of
the M5110. are clearly Kochh, who have taken to ﬁshing, while the
Kétar or Bepari Malo, who deal in, but do not catch, ﬁsh, and derive
their name from their practice of cutting up their wares and sellin
them by weight, are Muhammadans in no way connected with the
Malo caste.

The rule of exogamy is in full force among the M2110. A man
may not marry a woman of his own section or
of the section to which his mother belongs.
For the rest, marriage is regulated by counting degrees down to seven
generations in the descending line. Females are married as infants.
A price is paid for the bride, which of late years has risen to the
large sum of Rs. 100. The ceremony is of the orthodox type, the
giving of the bride and the bridegroom’s formal acceptance of the
gift being the essential and binding portion of the rite. Polygamy
is permitted in theory, and a man may marry two sisters, provided
that he takes the eldest ﬁrst. In practice, however, I understand it
is unusual to marry a second wife unless the ﬁrst proves barren.
Widows may not marry again, nor is divorce permitted. A woman
taken in adultery is abandoned by her husband and turned out of
the caste.

Malos as a rule belong to the Vaishnava sect. Their purohit
is a Patit Brahman, and their guru a (n‘rosain.
Special reverence is paid by them to the great
rivers on which they live, and these, together with their boats and
nets, have their regular seasons of worship. Khala-Kumari is
worshipped in Sravan (July—August), offerings are made to Bura-
Buri in fulﬁlment of vows, and lights are launched on the water in
honour of Khwaj a Khizr.

The dead are usually burned on the bank of a river, and the
ashes cast into the water. Srddd/a is performed
on the thirty-ﬁrst day after death, then once
a month for a year, and again on the ﬁrst anniversary of the death.
Usually, however, the monthly srdddks are lumped together towards
the close of the year. In the case of persons who die a violent death,
the ﬁrst srddd/z is performed on the fourth day, and a ﬁnal srdddk on
the thirty-ﬁrst day.

Although the social rank of the Malos is low, and Brahmans
will not take water from their hands, the N apit
and Dhoba usually work for them. They are
on good terms with the Tiyar and Kaibartta, and members of the
three castes will even smoke together. The Malo, however, says
Dr. Wise, “is the lowest in rank, while the Kaibartta and Tiyar still
dispute about their relative positions. The Kaibartta, again, is more
thoroughly Hinduised than either of the other two. A ridiculous

6

Marriage.

Religion.

Disposal of the dead.

Social status.

MA’LO. 66 , MA’L PAHA’RIA.

distinction is always cited in proof of the inferior rank of the M2110.
The Kaibartta and Tiyar in netting always pass the netting needle
from above downwards, working from left to right; while the Male
passes it from below upwards, forming his meshes from right to left.
It is remarkable that the same difference is adduced by the Behar
ﬁsherman as a proof of the degraded rank of the Banpar.” The
only titles met with among Malos are Manjhi, Patra, and Bepari,
while among other ﬁsher castes no honorary distinctions exist.
Under the Muhamadan Government they served as boatmen,
ohaprasis, mace-bearers (asabardér), and staff-bearers (sonte-bardar)
in processions. They were also employed in conveying treasure from
Dacca to Murshedabad, while a tradition still survives that early in
this century two of their number became great favourites with N awab
Nasrat J ang, who presented them with golden spinning wheels for
their wives’ use. The Mélos therefore extol the golden age that has
passed, and inveigh against the equality and degeneracy of the present.

Mélos generally use a shorter J alka’. boat than the Tiyars, but
when they ﬁsh with the long Uthar net they
fasten two boats stem to stern. Like the
Kaibartta, the Malo is often a cultivator, and in Bhowal he has been
obliged by changes in the course and depth of the rivers to relinquish
his caste trade. Malos manufacture twine, but not rope, and traﬂic in
grain, while those who have saved a little money keep grocer’s shops
or become ﬁshmongers. Male women sell ﬁsh in the bazurs, but in
some places this practice is considered derogatory to their gentility
and is prohibited.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Males in 1872 and 1881 :—

Occupation.

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. i 1881. i DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Bardwan 9,333 454 Bakarganj 1,751 989
Bynkura 6,933 . 22,079 Maimansinh 13,999 11,454
Bl_rbhum ... 586 3,158 Tipperah 2,600 1,720
Midnapur ... 39,804 40,236 Chittagong 525 31
Hughh } 1 820 2,097 Noakhali ... 110 ......
Howrah ... ’ 657 Patna ... ... 17,559 19,099
24-Parganas 2,333 1,542 Gya 11,518 11,906
11811111313. 13,311 1g,6g2 ShahabadM "'ff 15,267 14,943

11 11a ...... ,3 0 . ozu erpur 89,273
Jessore . 12,600 10,765 T‘rhut {Darbhanga i159’730 115.217
Murshedabad... ... 7,386 7,598 Saran 21,849 22,599
Dinajpur ... ... 1.203 1,222 Champaran 45,581 55,222
Rajshahye 1,768 1,484 Monghyr 13,996 21,850
Rangpur ... 1,392 1,148 Bhagalpur 11,754 18,891
Bogra ... 3,637 1,120 Purniah ... 21,016 27,570
Pabna ... ... 16,490 6,566 Maldah ... 1,656 4,281
Darjiling ... 26 1,175 Santal Parganas 1,865 2,889
Jalpigori ... 251 3 Hazaribagh ... ... .'.. 1,466 3,475
Kuoh Behar ... ...... 133 Lohardaga ... ... 7,250 10,924
Dacca 6,437 1,949 Singbhum ...... 443
Faridpur 6.033 2,389 Manbhum 1,671 1.918

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mdlo-Pdtm', a synonym for 1116110.

3656 ﬁahériﬁ, a Dravidian tribe inhabiting the Ramgarh
Hills in the Santal Parganas, who until recently
lived by hunting and jln’tm or kardo cultiva-
tion Their tribal afﬁnities are extremely obscure, and have formed

Origin.

67 MA’L PAHA’RIA’.

the subject of some discussion. Buchanan1 gives the following
account of them :e“ The northern tribe2 consider their southern
neighbours as brethren, and call them Maler,3 the name which they
give themselves; but the southern tribe, shocked at the impurity of
the others, deny this consanguinity, and most usually call the northern
tribe Chet, while they assume to themselves the denomination of Mél
or Mar, which, however, is probably a word of the same derivation
with Maler. The M211, however, divide themselves into three tribes—
Kumarpali, Déngrpali, and Marpali; and they often call the
northern mountaineers Sumarpali, thus, as it were, acknowledging
a common origin, which I have little doubt is the fact. The manners
and language of the three southern Pali are the same, and the

speak a very impure dialect of the Bengalese. The three Pali
were originally local distinctions, but now all live intermixed, have
exactly the same customs and language, and intermarry but there
are ﬁve real hereditary distinctions, which descend in the male
line. The highest rank consists of the Rajas or chiefs and their
descendants, all of Whom are called Singhas or lions. Next to
these are certain families that were at one time rich, and are
called Grihi. They assisted their poorer brethren with loans, and
seem to have been a kind of bankers, like the Vaisyas of the Hindus.
They never seem to have held any ofﬁce in the State. The third in
rank were the Manjhis or chiefs of villages, and none but persons of
this rank were ever permitted to hold this ofﬁce. The persons of
the Ahriti or fourth class were by birth hunters, and at ﬁrst in all
probability were the lower and labouring class, like the Sudras of
the Hindus; for what is now considered as the lowest and ﬁfth class
is composed of the Naiyas, who are allowed to have originally
been the priests, but have been totally discarded from that ofﬁce.”
Against Dr. Buchanan’s description of the Mail Pahariés as a
Hinduised branch of the Maler, we have to set Colonel Dalton’s
opinions4 that the former tribe “ appear to be altogether unconnected
with the Réjmahal hillmen,” and Mr. Ball’s statement,5 based
upon personal observation, that the Mail Paharias “are altogether
distinct in appearance, customs, and language from the Asal Paharias,
who occupy the Rajmahal hills proper.” It should be observed,
however, that even in Dr. Buchanan’s time (1807—1814) a wide breach
had been established between the two groups, and the southern
Paharias at least strenuously disowned all kinship with the northern.
Sixty years later the breach must have been greatly widened by the
M51 Paharias continually adopting Hindu customs, while the Males
seem to have stubbornly resisted all impulses in that direction, and
this movement may possibly account for the impression formed by
Mr. Ball. On the question of language the evidence seems to be

inconclusive. Colonel Dalton gives a very meagre list of words '

obtained by Dr. Coates from a Mail Paharia prisoner in the Hazari-
bégh Central Jail. On this he observesz—“I cannot say I have

 

 

‘ Eastern India, ii, 126. 3 Malér is the plural of Malé.
2 The Malés of Rajmahal. 4 Ethnology of Bengal, p. 274.

5 Jungle Life in India, 13. 229. 2
6

MA’L PAHA’RIA- 68

found in it analogues sufﬁcient to justify its association with the
Dravidian dialects, but it is equally unlike K01.”1 A comparison
of the list with Mr. Droese’ s Malto Vocabulary shows, however, that
some slight correspondence may be traced between the language of
the Malé and the mongrel dialect spoken by the Mail Paharias.
Thus, clzapta, ‘the foot’; Malto, sole of the foot: ekore, ‘to go’;
Malto, e/cz» : tindz'dnd, ‘to eat.’ seems to be a causal formed in Hindi
fashion from the Malto tinde, ‘to feed:’ maler, ‘aman,’ is the
nominative plural of male: bdtker, ‘ a woman,’ and better, ‘a
daughter,’ are curiously like the Malto batg, ‘ virginal,’ and bdtgm‘,
‘a maiden’: chic/m is the Malto word for ﬁre: dmma is not far
removed from amu, the Malto for water: clu'ore, ‘to give,’ appears
to be from the same root as ckz’ye: malaga, ‘no,’ merely adds a
syllable to the Malto maid: and Mimi, ‘ a cock,’ may perhaps be
connected with the Malto kdkre, ‘to cry out.’ These slight resem-
blances of course fall far short of establishing the identity of the
two tribes, but they tend on the whole to show that Buchanan’s
opinion is not so clearly untenable as has been sometimes supposed
to be the case. Mr. Droese, with whom I discussed the subject some
years ago, cdnsidered the two tribes to be of common origin. This
view is borne out by the fact that they understand one another’s
language readily, though they assert that the dialects are diﬁerent ;
as well as by the identity of their ancestral worship, a point in which .
all races display a remarkably conservative spirit. As for the anta-
gonism which at present prevails between the north and south
Paharias, it is only another instance of what has been commonly
observed in Chota Nagpur, that two sections of the same tribe
which in any way happen to become separated are often far more
strongly opposed to one another than if they had been originally
distinct tribes.

The Mal Paharias are divided into two sub-tribes—Mél Pahérié
proper and Kumér or Komar-Bhég. The
latter group, which corresponds with Buchanan’s
Kumarpali, is the more Hinduised of the two. The septs are given
in Appendix I. They appear to be identical with Buchanan’s
“ hereditary distinctions.” He would doubtless have discovered the
fact that they are exogamous had the subject of exogamy attracted
any attention at the time when he wrote. Their names are
apparently titular, and throw no light upon the afﬁnities of the
tribe. The Mail Paharias also observe a table of prohibited degrees,
which “differs little from that deﬁned by the standard formula
referred to in the article on Bais. They have no traditions worth
mentioning, except a vague legend that their ﬁrst parents were born
from a cow. The same story is told of the ancestor of the Pachete
family in Manbhum, whose estate borders on the country where
the Mail Pahérias are now found. It is possible, indeed, that the
Pachete Raj may in early times have extended further to the east,
and that the head of that house may have been the Raja of Whom
Buchanan speaks as having formerly appointed from among the Ma]

Internal structure.

 

‘ Ethnology of Bengal, p. 27 4.

69 MAL PAHA’RIA’.

Paharias a dewan, a faujdér to command in predatory expeditions,
and the manjhis or headmen of villages. This, however, is the
purest conjecture. The tendency to borrow a myth current in a
landholding family may be frequently observed in Chota Nagpur.
Marriage is either infant or adult. Girls are rarely married
before the age of ten or eleven, and usually
not until they are fully grown up. In the
latter case sexual intercourse before marriage is tacitly recognized,
it being understood that if an unmarried girl becomes pregnant
her lover will come forward and marry her. A professional match-'
maker (sit/m) is usually employed by the bride groom’s people to
search for a suitable wife. When his selection has been made, a
visit of inspection is paid by the parents; and if the proposed
bride is approved of, the price to be paid for her is settled by
personal discussion. Custom ordains that the amount shall be an
odd number of rupees, not less than ﬁve, nor more than twenty-ﬁve.
It must be paid either in a lump sum or by instalments before the
marriage can be celebrated. On the occasion of the ﬁnal payment
the bridegroom’s parents send by the sit/m some bdjrd beer and
a sém’ for the bride, which is made over to her maternal uncle
to be kept till the day of the wedding. Particular inquiries were
made regarding the reason for thus selecting the maternal uncle as
a sort of trustee for the bride’s peculium, but no deﬁnite result was
arrived at; and this usage, undoubtedly one of great antiquity, seems
only to be explicable as a survival of female kinship, a system of
which no other traces are met with in the tribe. Shortly after the
bride-price has'been paid, the sithu is again sent to the bride’s house,
this time bearing an arrow wound round with yellow thread tied in
as many knots as there are days to the date proposed for the wedding.
The bride’s people make their preparations accordingly, undoing
a knot as each day passes. On the day before the bridegroom arrives
and is lodged near the bride’s house. Early next morning a big feast
is given, after which the bridegroom takes his seat facing the east
in a sort of arbour of mil branches built for the purpose. Here he
is joined by the bride, dressed, like him, in a new cotton wrapper
dyed yellow with turmeric, who sits besides him while the maidens
of his company comb out her hair. A sdl leaf cup is offered to
the bridegroom, containing red lead, which he daubs on the bride’s
- forehead and the parting of her hair. The girls who combed the
bride’s hair take her hand, dip a ﬁnger into the red lead, and make
seven spots on the bridegroom’s forehead. This ﬁnal and binding rite
is received with a shout of applause, which is the signal for the Dom
musicians in attendance to beat the drums for a dance. Towards
evening the wedded pair go off to the bridegroom’s house, where
the whole party spend the night in dancing and drinking. Poly-
gamy is permitted, and, in theory at least, there are no restrictions
on the number of wives a man may have. Practically, however,
the poverty of the tribe and their hand-to-mouth fashion of living
set strict limits to the exercise of this right, and few Paharias
indulge themselves with the luxury of a second Wife, except when
the ﬁrst happens to be barren. A man may marry two sisters, but

Marriage.

MA’L PAHA’RIA’. 70

he must follow the order of age, and if already married to a
younger sister, may not take an elder sister to wife.

A widow may marry again. She is expected to marry her
late husband’s younger brother if there is one; but if he does not
wish to marry her, any member of the caste not barred by the
prohibited degrees may have her on paying a bride-price of Rs. 2
to her late husband’s relatives. No ceremony is required, nor is
smdur used. The husband merely gives the woman a new cloth
and takes her to his house. A wife may be divorced with the
sanction of the caste council or panchayat for adultery or persistent
and incurable ill-temper. As a rule arrangements of this sort
are effected by mutual consent, the parties tearing a set! leaf in two
before the panchayat as a symbol of separation. The seducer of
a married woman is required to repay to her husband the sum
which she cost him as a virgin. Divorced wives may marry
again in the same manner as widows, and for the same bride-
price, which is paid to their own, not to their late husband’s
relations.

At the head of the Pahéria religion stands the sun, to whom
reverential obeisance is made morning and
evening. On occasional Sundays 3. special
worship is performed by the head of the family, who must prepare
himself for the rite by eating no salt on the previous Friday and.
fasting all Saturday, with the exception of a light meal of molasses
and milk, taken at sunset after bathing. Before sunrise on Sunday
morning a new earthen vessel, a new basket, some rice, oil, areca
nuts, and vermilion, and a brass late of water with a mango branch
stuck in it, are laid out on a clean space of ground in front of the
house. The worshipper shows these offerings to the rising sun and
prays, addressing the luminary as ‘ Grosain, ’ that he and his family
may be saved from any speciﬁc danger or trouble that is supposed to
threaten them. The rice is then given to a goat, which is decapi-
tated while eating by a single blow from behind. The body of the
animal is then cooked and served up at a feast, of which the neigh-
bours partake; the head alone, which is deemed pmsdd, or sacred,
being carefully reserved for the members of the family. Next in
honour to the sun are Dharti Mai, mother earth; her servant, or as some
say sister, Garémi; and Singhbéhini, who bears rule over tigers,
snakes, scorpions, and all manner of noxious beasts. To the earth
goats, pigs, fowls, etc., are offered in Ashar and Magh, and buffaloes
or goats are sacriﬁced about the time of the Hindu Durga Puja to the
goddess Singhbéhini, who is represented for sacriﬁcial purposes by
a lump of clay daubed With vermilion and oil and set up in front
of the worshipper’s house. The village Ménjhi oﬂiciates as priest.
The Magh worship of Dharti Mai is clearly the festival described by
‘ Colonel Dalton under the name Bhuindeb, the earth god.1

“The Mails plant in their dancing place two branches of the
sci! tree, and for three days they dance round these branches, after
which they are removed and thrown into a river, which reminds one of

Religion.

 

‘ Ethnology Q)" Bengal, p. 274.

71 MAI. PAHA’RIA.

the Karma festivals as solemnised' by the Oraons and Kols in’ Ghota
Nagpur. On this occasion the men and women dance m’s-d-m’s to
each other, the musicians keeping between. The men dance holding
each other above their elbows, the left hand' of one holding the
right elbow of the other, whose right hand again holds the left
elbow of the arm that has seized him. The fore-arms touching are
held stiny out and swayed up and down. They move sideways,
advance, and retire, sometimes bending low, sometimes erect. The
women hold each other by the palms, interlacing the ﬁngers, left
palm upon right palm, and left and right fore-arms touching. They
move like the men.”

Two curious points may be added. The man at whose instance
or for whose beneﬁt the ceremony is performed must sleep the night
before on a bed of straw; and the dancing party, who are greatly
excited with drink, shout continually 6227', Mar (pudendum muliebre),
a mode of invocation believed to be especially acceptable to the
goddess. In this somewhat indelicate cry we may perhaps see a
barbarous and” undraped reference to the m’s genetrix naturw so
prominent in many early forms of belief.

Besides these greater elemental deities, the Mal Pahariés recog-
nize and propitiate a number of vaguely-deﬁned animistic powers,
chief among whom is Chordanu, a malevolent spirit, needing to be
appeased at certain intervals with sacriﬁces and the ﬁrst fruits of
whatever crop is on the ground. To the same class belongs Maha-
dana, for whom eggs are the appropriate offering. Among the
standard Hindu deities Kali and Lakhi Mai (Lakshmi) are honoured
with sparing and infrequent worship, the offerings in this case being
the perquisite of the village headmen.

Ancestor worship is in full force, and the sacra privata of 3.
M61 Paharia household correspond precisely with those observed by
the Male tribe. The Lares are known to both by the familiar term
Gumo Gosain or Deota, the gods of the wooden pillar (Gumo),1
which supports the main rafters of the house. Around this centre
are grouped a number of balls of hardened clay, representing the
ancestors of the family, to whom the ﬁrst fruits of the earth are
offered, and the blood of goats or fowls poured forth at the foot of
the pillar that the souls may not hunger in the world of the dead.
As every household is guarded by its ancestral gods, so every
village has a tutelary deity of its own—Larem agrz' custodem, who
lives in a sdl tree within the village. This tree is daubed with red
lead and worshipped on certain occasions, and may on no account be
cut down. The tribe have no priests, and the head of the household
or village, as the case may be, performs all religious and ceremonial
Observances. Brahmans, however, are to some extent held in honour,
and presents are given to them on festal occasions.

The dead are usually burned, and a piece of bone is saved from

D. 1 f th d d the ﬂames to be thrown into a river or a deep
“pm 0 0 ea ' tank the waters of which do not run dry. The
relatives are deemed impure, and may not eat salt for ﬁve days. At

 

1 The word is Malto.

MA’L PAHA’RIA’. 72 MA’LUA.

the end of that time they are shaved, and partake of a feast provided
by the eldest son. The funeral expenses are a ﬁrst charge on the
estate, and after these have been paid the balance is equally divided
among the sons, daughters getting no share. Very poor persons,
who cannot afford to give a feast, bury their dead in a recumbent
position with the head towards the south, and give nothing but a
little salt and meal (sattu) to the friends who attend the funeral.
In Buchanan’s time it was the universal custom to bury the dead on
the day of death. No srdddh is performed by the M51 Paharias
proper, but some of the wealthier members of the Kmnér Bhég sub-
tribe are beginning to adopt a meagre form of this ceremony in
imitation of their Hindu neighbours.

The tribe believe jht’cm tillage and hunting to be their
original occupations, and a large proportion
of the tribe still adhere to these primitive
modes of livelihood. Their system of j/utm cultivation is thus
described by Buchanan :—-—“ On the hills the bdm‘ is neither ploughed
nor hoed. The men out the trees and burn them, and the women
sow the seed. In the ﬁrst year they scatter over the surface
seed of the kinds of millet called khem’ and kangm‘, and with a
stick pointed with iron (khantd) form small holes, in which they
drop seed of maize, janird, and a pulse called bard or kalai. In the
second year they plant only maize and janird.” By the third year
the land is worked out, and the cultivator must seek a fresh patch
of jungle for his operations. A large tract of hill land is therefore
required to keep a Paharié village going. Buchanan observed that
although their progress in agriculture was greater than that of their
northern neighbours, their huts were much more wretched and dirty,
their clothing more scanty, and their women less cleanly and worse
provided with ornaments. In bad seasons they supplement their
scanty food-supply with jungle roots and herbs, of which, like the
Sikkim Lepchas, they have a minute empirical knowledge. Of late
years many have taken to plough cultivation at the foot of the hills,
where they hold land as occupancy raiyats at‘the rents ﬁxed in the
current settlement. Standing as they do wholly outside the regular
caste system, they can hardly be said to have any social status in the
ordinary sense of that phrase. From the Hindu point of view their
diet is certainly unclean, for pork, fowls, and all kinds of ﬁsh are
deemed lawful food; but the fact of their abstaining from beef,
snakes, lizards, and ﬁeld-rats would probably lead the average
Hindu to regard them as a shade purer than the Malés and their
congeners the Oraons.

Mél Pahérié pr0per, a sub- Malué, Mdlud, a sub-caste of ’
tribe of Mal Pahariés in the Bauris in Western Bengal whose
Santal Parganas. original residence is said to have

. . . been Manbhum; a section of
in Illgiilllplam. a section of Mahesris Ohik s or Pans in Chota Nagpur;
' a sub-tribe of Kandhs 1n Omssa.

Malta. a sept of Chiks in Mélué or Manué. a sub-caste
Chota Nagpur. of Karangas in Western Bengal.

Occupation.

MALWAR.

Malwar, a class of braziers who
make lcka'ru and other brass
ornaments for the hand.

Malwe or Mér—Réjput, a
sub-tribe of Réjputs in Chota
Nagpur. *

Main, 3. title of Bangaja
Kayasths in Bengal.

Mana, a title of Dakshin-
Rarhi and Bangaja Kayasths.

Mana nmanéras, a mu! or sec-
tion of the Chhamulié Madhesié
sub-caste of Halwéis in Behar.

Manér, a title of Cheros in
Chota Nagpur.

Manarié, a. section of Bab-
hans in Behar.

Manchhihé, Manchié. a kul
or section of Bébhans in Behar.

Mdnddi, a synonym for Kochh.

Manda], (i) a headman of a
village ; (ii) a title of Kaibarttas,
Chandals, Goélés, Sunris, Sad-
gops, Telis, Tantis, and Béuris;
of Népits, Kurmis, Kapalis, Pods,
Santals, and Subarnabaniks; (iii)
a sub-caste of Dhénuks in Pur-
niah. Some Brahmans in Bankura
bear the title; of Réjputs in
Behar; a title of Khambus in
Darjiling.

» Mandap, a section of Rum-
hats in Singbhum.

Mandar, probably a variant
of Manda], a title of cultivating
Dhanuks; a pangat or section
of Dosadhs and Kadars; a title
of the Chéb and Kurin sub-
castes of Gonrhis; a title of the
Maghayé sub-caste of Koiris and
Telis; a section of the Chaubhén
sub-caste of Nuniyas and of Sunris
and Khatwes in Behar; a section

73

 

MAKER.

of the Kanaujié. sub-caste of
Goalas and a title of Kishnaut
Goalés in Behar; a title of
Gangotés and Kewats and of
Kharwérs in Lohardagé.

Mandaréné. a sub-caste of
Sutradhars in Western Bengal.

Mandérane, a sub-caste of
Sunris in Western Bengal.

Mandari. a title of Hindu
J oléhas in Behar.

Méndéroné, a group of the
Aswini Téntis and of Dwédas
Telis in Bengal; a sub-caste of
Doms in Bengal.

Méndhayé, a section of Goa-
lés in the North-Western Prov-
inces and Behar.

Méndiér, a sept of Réjputs in
Behar.

Mandilwér, a section of the
Amashta sub-caste of Kéyasths
in Behar.

Manding, mam, medicine, a
practiser of medicine, a sub-sept
of the Nah-pa sept of Sherpa
Bhotias.

Mandré, a section of Bébhans
in Behar.

Mandri, a section of the Kédar
caste in Behar.

Mandriér, a section of
Mahilis in Chota Nagpur.

Mandus, a title of Ganjwér
Sunris in Behar.

Manem-ma, a sept of the
Phégu sub-tribe of Yakhas in
Darjiling.

Maner, a section of the sat-
mulié. Maghayé sub-caste of
Kandus in Behar.

MAN ERAR. 74 MAN GAR.

Manepar, a section of” Awa- Mangal, a section of the Agar-
dhia HaJJams 1n Behar. wala caste in Behar.

Manerié. a section tof the
Biyahut and Kharidéha Kalwars Mangar, crocodile. a totem-
1n Behar. istic section of Kurmis in
Mangaf, asection of the Biya- Chota Nagpur and Orissa; a
hut and Kharidahé. Kalwars in section of Binjhias in Chota
Behar. Nagpur.

gl’ﬂangsr, Mayer, Tbnmi, one of the ﬁghting tribes of Nepal,
_ _ . belonging, with the Gurung Khas and Sunn-
51.325336. and Internal war, to the Mukhya group, and highly esteemed
for their military qualities. The Mangars
believe their original habitat to have been the valley of Dhoreh
on the banks of the Karnali-Bheri river in Western Nepal :
thence they spread to Likhukhola, and thus gradually made their
way into Eastern Nepal. The internal structure of the tribe, so far
as I have been able to ascertain it, is shown in tabular form in
Appendix I. The subject, however, is an extremely obscure one, and
I am not yet in a position to throw much light upon it. There are
four sub-tribes—Athérah Panth, Burathoki, Gharti, and Sakhali.
The Gharti are probably descended from emancipated slaves (see
article Gharti) ; the originof the rest is uncertain. The exogamous
septs are very numerous, and the list given in Appendix I contains
many names of the territorial type common in India along with
others which seem to be nicknames of the founders of septs, such as
are found among the Tibetans and Limbus. Judged by their
physical characteristics, the Mangars must be classed as Mongoloid,
their naso-malar index being slightly lower than that of the Tibetans,
while their complexion, eyelids, stature and the general cut of
their features stamp them as a cross. in which the Mongolian
element on the whole predominates. The septs are exogamous,
the rule being that a man may not marry a woman of his own sept.
There seem to be no rules excluding more than one sept in marriage.
Prohibited degrees are reckoned by the standard formula for three
generations in the descending line.
' Girls are married after they attain maturity, and sexual license
M . before marriage is tolerated on the under-
amage' standing that if a girl becomes pregnant,
the father of her child shall at once be called upon to marry
her. The marriage ceremony is of the Hindu type, sindurddn,
or the smearing of vermilion on the bride’s forehead, being its
binding portion. Brahmans usually ofﬁciate, but this is not essential.
A man may marry two or three wives, the only limit in practice being
his ability to maintain them. A widow may not marry again by
the standard ritual (byd/L) appointed for the wedding of a spinster,
but a man may take her to live with him, and she is counted as his
wife. Her children by her second husband are considered legitimate;
they rank as Mangars (instead of belonging to a special category
like the offspring of Brahman widows in Nepal), and they share

75 MANGAR.

in their father’s property on equal terms with the children of a wife
married in the regular form. Moreover, if any one runs away with
a widow, he has to pay damages to the man she is living with just
as if she were his regular wife. In Nepal husbands are entitled
to wreak summary vengeance on the seducers of their wives. An
adulterer taken in the act is killed oifhand, and the faithless wife
has her nose cut off. In such cases the question of divorce clearly
does not arise. But in British territory, and I believe frequently in
Nepal itself, disagreements of this sort are settled without resort to
bloodshed. The wife goes off with her paramour, and the husband
claims from the latter as damages the amount of the bride-price
which he paid for the woman in the ﬁrst instance. The panchéyat
enforces his claim, and justice is held to have been satisﬁed.

The religion of the Mangars may best be described as lax
Hinduism tempered by survivals of an earlier
animistic cult. Satya N arain is one of their
favourite deities. Sansari and Aitahareh are also worshipped with
offerings of goats, fowls and pigeons. Upadhya Brahmins assist at
. the cult of Satya Narain and of the recognized Hindu gods; but
Sansari and Aitabareh are worshipped by the heads of households
without the assistance of priests. Brahmans are not held to. be
degraded by serving as priests in Mangar families.

The funeral ceremonies of the Mangars, which are the same as
those of the Gurung and Sunuwars, are curious
and interesting. Immediately after death the
corpse is tied with three pieces of rope to a stout pole and carried
to the grave. There it is stripped, dressed in new clothes, and
laid on its back in the grave with the head pointing to the north.
The forehead is smeared with sandal wood paste. One of the
maternal relatives of the deceased, usually the maternal uncle, is
then chosen to act as :priest for the occasion, and to conduct the
ritual appointed for the propitiation of the dead. First of all
he puts in the mouth of the corpse some silver coins and some coral,
which is greatly prized by the Himalayan races. Then he lights
a wick soaked in clariﬁed butter, touches the lips with ﬁre, scatters
some parched rice about the mouth, and lastly covers the face
with a] cloth called pujunm'. Two bits of wood, about three feet
long, are set up on either side of the grave. Inthe one are cut
nine steps or notches forming a ladder for the spirlt of the dead to
ascend to heaven ; on the other every one present at the funeral cuts
a notch to show that he has been there. As the maternal uncle
steps out of the grave, he bids a solemn farewell to the dead and
calls upon him to ascend to heaven by the ladder that stands
ready for him. When the earth has been ﬁlled in, the stick notched
by the funeral party is taken away to a distance and broken in two
pieces, lest by its means the dead man should do the survivors
a mischief. The pole used to carry the corpse 15 also broken up, and
the spades and ropes are left in the grave.

When the mourners return home, one of their party goes ahead
and makes a barricade of thorn bushes across the road midway
between the grave and the house of the deceased. ()n the top of

Religion.

Disposal of the dead.

MAN GAR. 76 MAN IMANARAS.
the thorns he puts a big stone on which he takes his stand, holding
a pot of burning incense in his left hand and some woollen thread
in his right. One by one the mourners step on the stone and pass
through the smoke of the incense to the other side of the thorny
barrier. As they pass, each takes a piece of thread from the man
who holds the incense and ties it round his neck. The object of
this curious ceremony is to prevent the spirit of the dead from
coming home with the mourners and establishing itself in its old
haunts. Conceived of as a miniature man, it is believed to be unable
to make its way on foot through the thorns, while the smell of the
incense, to which all spirits are highly sensitive, prevents it from
surmounting this obstacle on the shoulders of one of the mourners.
Agriculture, trade and soldiering are the chief occupations of
_ . the Mangars, but no means of earning a
3:“Pat‘0“ and “”1 livelihood comes amiss to them, provided that
' it does not involve doing things which are
recognized as the proper business of the lower castes. They abstain
from beef, but eat pork and domestic fowls, and indulge freely in
strong drink. Before marriage a Mangar will eat any sort of food
withaGrurung or Khas, but after he has been married, he can only take
chupatties from these castes, and may not take rice or dal. Mangars

O
stat

smoke in the same hookah with Gurungs, Khas and Brahmans.

Mangaréj, a title of Khandéits
in Orissa.

Man-Gaurénga, a sub-caste of
Sutradhars in Murshedabad.

Mang—beh-pé, a mi or sept of
Dejong Lhori Bhotias, the mem-
bers of which are of a low mixed
origin.

Manglagpa, a sept of the Pan-
thar sub-tribe of Limbus in Dar-
jiling, whose ancestor was ridden
by a god and danced.

Mangmu, a sept of the Yan-
gorup sub-tribe of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Mangoyak, a sept of Limbus
in Darjiling.

Mangréti. a section of Kémis
in Darjiling.

Mangrauni, a section of Beth-
hans in Behar.

Mangthong, a sept of the

Phagu sub-tribe of Yakhas in
Darjiling.

 

Mang-tshang—wa, a mi or
sept of the Ruichhung sub-tribe
of Dejong Lhoris or Bhotias of
the south.

Mangyong, a sept of Limbus
in Darjiling.

illanhdrid, shopkeepers who
deal in miscellaneous goods,
chieﬂy fancy articles.

Mani, a sub-caste of Sunris
in Maldah.

Manihéri, a functional group
of J ugis in Bengal.

Manikchakdudhpuré, a mu!
or section of the Naomuh'a or

Majraut sub-caste of Goalas in
Behar.

Ménikmah anta, Moim’lcmania,
a title of Kurmis.

Maniksharié, a section of

Babhans in Behar.

Manimanéras, a section of
Madhesia Halwais 1n Behar.

MANJ AR.

Manjar, cat, a totemistic sec- (

tion of Rautias and a sept of
Kharwars in Chota Nagpur.

Manjari, a section of Kamars
in Singbhum and the Santal
Parganas.

Manjhal-Turiya a sub-caste
of Lohars in Chota Nagpur.

Manjhan, the title of the
headman of the Tior and Dom
castes in Behar who has under
him a messenger bearing the
title of Chkarz’ddr. The Maghaya
Barhis and the Araiya Telis of
North Bhagalpur also have
headmen bearing this title. In
the case of the latter the juris-
diction of each mam/can is said to
extend to 22 villages.

Ménjhi, (i) the steersman of
aboat, a ferryman: hence, aboat-
man generally. (ii) A village
headman among the Santals,
and a title by which Santals
frequently describe themselves in
answer to inquiries as to their
caste. (iii) A title used by the
Kaibartta, Kahar, Kumhar, Teor,
Patni, Kochh, Bégdi, Mala, J elia,
Goala, the Male of the Hajmahal
hills, the Khetauris in the Santal
Parganas; a section of Sunris
in Behar; a title and a sept of
Bauris and Kharwars; a title of
Asuras, and Korwas in Chota
Nagpur; a sept of Nagesars
‘in Ohota Nagpur; a title of
Binjhié, Rautia, Oraon, Turi;
a title of Kapalis and Kawalis

77

 

MA’R.

in Eastern Bengal; a section of
Kadars; a title of Malos in
Eastern Bengal; of Parhaiyas
and Khandaits in Chota Nagpur ;
a section of Doms and Dosédhs
in Behar; a title of Cheros and
Mahilis; a title and a sept of
Mal Paharias; a title of Tantis
1n Behar.

Manjhié, a sub-tribe of Khar-
Wars in Southern Lohardaga.

Manjh i-Kh i I, a sub~sept of the
Hansda, Marndi, and Tudu septs
of Santals.

Ménki, Mdnkz' Sa’ln'b, an
honoriﬁc title bestowed in Ban-
kura on the eldest son of a well-
to-do cultivator of the Bhumij
tribe. In Chota Nagpur Proper
the term denotes the headman of
a group or circle of villages. It
is also the designation of a sept
and a sub-tribe of Mundas. See
Muré.

Ménné, a title of Kaibarttas,
Mayaras, and Napits in Bengal.

Manoharshahi, a group of the
Fatehsing Telis in Murshedabad ;
a sub-caste of Kotals in Western
Bengal.

Manrayé, a kul or section of
Babhans in Behar.

Mantiéni, a title of the Barui
caste in Bengal.

Mantrawar, a section of Kur-
mis in Chota Nagpur and
Orissa.

Wt, Mdlwé Raj/mt, a small cultivating caste of Chota
Nagpur, Who say that they came from Malwa and were formerly
Kshatriyas, but dropped the sacred thread and took to the plough.
Colonel Dalton thought them ‘ more Aryan than anythmg else, With
a dash of aboriginal blood.’ But if this view be correct, it seems
diﬁicult to account for their abandoning the characteristic Ra] put
sept names and adopting the totems peculiar to DraVIdian tribes.
‘ They have Brahmans for priests, worship the host 0t Hindu gods,
and, like the Kandhs. especially adore those among their ancestresses
who became Sétis, though in their present degraded state they allow

MAR.

78

MARICHIGRA’M.

of widow-marriage, and a man always takes to Wife, by the custom
called sagm', his elder brother’s Widow.’

Mar, rice broth, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Uhota Nagpur.

Marai, a wild animal, a
totemistic sept of Pans and
Gonds in Chota Nagpur.

Maraié, a section of the
Kadar caste in Behar.

Maraiya, a title of Barhis in
Behar.

Maralbai, a sept of Rajputs in
Behar.

Méramagri, Ra'jbansi, Barud
or Bimiyd Magk, a sub-tribe of
Maghs in the Hill Tracts of
Chittagong.

Marandi, a sept of Santals.

Marar, a title of Kumhérs
and Tantis in Behar; a title of
Surahiyas, Tiyars, Kewats, and
of Gareris; a section of the
Bansphor sub-caste of Doms in

Behar.

Marér, a title of Amats in
Behar, indicating some degree
of social importance and deemed
superior to either Rant or Kha—
Was; a title of Sunris, J olhas; a
title of the headmen of the Dom
caste in Behar who have under
them servants called Chharidérs
to execute or communicate their
orders; a title of the Dhusia
sub-caste of Chamérs; a title of
the Majraut sub-caste of Goalas ;
a section of the J athot division
of the Parbatti-Kurin sub-caste of
Gonrhis; a title applied in Behar
to Kurmis Who by age or personal
inﬂuence have attained a leading
position in their villages; a title
of Beldérs and N unias.

Marare—Sihaul, a mul of the
Késyap section of Maithil Brah-
mans in Behar.

 

Marare-Jagaul, a mul of the
Kasyap section of Maithil Brah-
mans in Behar.

Marare—Ukki, a mul of the
Kasyap section of Maithil Brah-
mans in Behar.

Marare-Barhampur, a mu! of
the Kasyap section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Marare—Adauri, a mul of the
Kasyap section of Maithil Brah-
mans in Behar.

Marare-Misrauli, a mu] of the
Kasyap section of Maithil Brah-
mans in Behar.

MarareRajauré, a med of the
Kasyap section of Maithil Brah-
mans in Behar.

Marare-dagatpur, a mu! of
the Késyap section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Mardahé. a pangat or section
of Dosadhs in Behar.

Mardanié, barbers, a sept of
the Rautar sub-tribe of Thérus
in Behar.

Mérh, a title of Kaibarttas
in Bengal.

Mérhwér, a sept of Rajputs
in Behar.

Maria, a sept of Chiks in
Chota Nagpur.

Mariali, a sub-caste of Tantis
in Bengal.

Mariér. a sept of Rajputs in
Behar.

Marich-bhuswal, a section of
Sonars in Behar.

Marichigrém, a sama’j or local
group of the Sébarna gotm of

MARICHIGRA’M.

Péschétya Baidik Brahmans in
Bengal.

Marichwér, a sub-tribe of
Tharus in Behar.

Marik, a title of Tantis and
a section of the Bénsphor sub-
caste of Doms in Behar.

Mérik, a title of Béruis in
Bengal; a section of the Kadar
caste in Behar which intermar—
Iies with the Bérik, Kapari,
Manjhi, Mandar, and Naiya sec-

79

 

MARLI.

tions, but not with the rest; a
title of Hindu J olhas, Doms,
Dosadhs, Goalas, Koiris, Kumhérs,
and other castes in Behar.

Marj-bhuswal, a section of
Sonérs in Behar.

Markam, a sept of Goalas in
Chota Nagpur.

Mérkanda, Mérkandérk, a
your or section of Sékadwipi Brah-
mans in Behar.

gﬁla’trkanhe, a small cultivating caste found in Bhagalpur and

the Santal Parganés. They have neither sub-
castes nor sections, and I can ﬁnd no evidence
tending to afﬁliate them with any existing caste or tribe. Their
own tradition is that they are descended from Markandeya Muni,
a sage who was outcasted for eating the leavings of certain Brahmans
who had invited him to a feast.

The Markande practise infant-marriage and allow polygamy

without setting any deﬁnite limit on the
number of wives a man may have. Widows
» may marry again, and enjoy full freedom of choice in selecting a
second husband. Divorce is not recognized. A faithless wife is
simply turned out of the caste.

In matters of religious and ceremonial Observances the Mir-
kande exhibit little divergence from the stand-
ard of orthodox Hinduism. In the worship
of the greater gods they employ Brahman pure/am, who are not
held to be degraded by serving the caste in this capacity. The
minor god Karmani is worshipped by the members of the household
without the assistance of priests.

In point of social standing Markandes rank with Goalas, Kurmis,
' and Koiris. Brahmans will take water and
certain kinds of sweetmeats from their hands.
Their sole occupation is agriculture. The bulk of the caste are
occupancy raiyats, but some have risen to the position of tenure-
holders.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
the Markande caste in 1872 and 1881 :—

Origin.

Marriage.

Religion.

Social status.

District. 1872. 1881
Shahabad . 6 . .....
Darbhanga ...... 5
Monghyr 5,780 1,983
Bhagalpur 3,587 3,384
Purniah . . . 6,561 3,598
Santal Parganas 3,044 4,390

Mérkandeya, a gotm or section

Marli, 13. sept of Hos and
of the Baidya caste in Bengal.-

Santals.

MARMA’.

Marmé, Myammd or ~‘Rodng
Magic, a sub-tribe of Maghs in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Marmu, a sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Mérndi, grass, 9. totemistic
sept of Santéls.

Marotsa, a sept of Maghs in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Mérre, a section of Bébhans in
Behar.

Marri, a section of Méhilis
in Manbhum, the members
of which do not allow their
daughters to enter their houses
after marriage.

Marrik, a section of Rajwars
in Western Bengal.

Marsyéngdi, a tkar or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Marturié, a section of Lohars
in Behar.

Marué, a mul or section of
the Chhamulié. Madhesia sub-
caste of Halwais in Behar.

Marué, Marua’ba’dz‘ (marud =
Indian corn (Eleusz'ne carom/m)

 

80 MA’RYA.

and dbddi = cultivator), a con-
temptuous epithet applied to
Hindustanis and especially to
up-country boatmen who ply on
the Bengal rivers on account of
their stupidity in comparison with
Bengalis.

Maruéhé. a mul or section of
the Tinmulié. Madhesia sub-caste
of Halwais in Behar.

Maruiporé, a sub-caste of
Brahmans in Bengal, who have
degraded themselves by ofﬁciating
as priests at the funerals of
Sudras.

Marwahe, a section of the
Bahannajati sub-caste of Khatris
in Bengal.

Mdrwdrz', literally a native of
Malwa or Marwar. Most of the
Marwaris found in Bengal are
bankers and traders, usually
J aims. The name gives no deﬁn-
ite indication of caste, but it
will be found as a rule that a
Marwéri belongs to the Agarwal,
Oswal, Maheswari, or Srimal
castes. In fact all traders from
Raj putana and the neighbouring
districts are commonly called
Mérwaris.

ﬁfﬁ‘pé, a small iron-working caste, possibly of Dravidian

Marriage.

descent, found in the Santél Parganas.
information at my disposal does not warrant

The

any conjecture regarding their origin. So far as I can ascertain,
they have neither sub-castes nor sections, and their marriages are
regulated by a very rough enumeration of prohibited degrees, which
admits of intermarriage between persons descended from the same
parents after the expiry of three generations on the father’s side
and one on the mother’s. Daughters are married either as infants
or as adults, and polygamy is allowed without any theoretical
limitation on the number of wives a man may take. Widows may
marry again, but are under no restriction in their choice of a second
husband. Divorce is permitted for adultery or for inability to
agree, and divorced women may marry again.

Maryés profess to be Hindus, but they do not employ Brahmans
for religious and ceremonial purposes, and the
functions of the priest" are discharged by
selected members of the caste. The dead are burned and the ashes

Religion.

MA’RYA’.

buried, but no regular srdddk is

81

MA’TIA’.

performed, and the only funeral

observance consists of a feast given to the caste brethren by a man’s

heir ten days after his death.

The caste ranks with Lohérs, Chamars, and the lowest grades

of Dravidian Hindus.
indulge freely in spirituous and fermented

Social status.

They eat fowls and

liquors. Ironsworking is believed to be their original occupation,

and most of them are blacksmiths at the present day.

Some,

however, have taken to cultivation, and a few are said to have risen
to the comparatively high position of tenure-holders.
The Census Report of 1881 returned 857 Maryas in the Santal

Parganas.

Masélchi, a title of Bagdis,
probably arising from their
employment as palanquin-bearers,
one of the duties of a bearer
being to carry a torch. It is also
possible that the term may denote
an oﬂiee held by the Bagdi caste
under one of the Rajas of
Western Bengal.

Masanta, a title of Tilis in
Bengal.

Masére keraut, a section of
the Biyahut and Kharidéha
Kalwars in Behar.

Mésaur, a section of the sat-
mulia Maghaya sub-caste of

Kéndus in Behar.

Masawér, a sub-caste of Kum-
bars in Chota Nagpur and
Behar.

MéSChal’ak, a gdin of the
Sa’mdilya gctm of Barbi Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Méski, a thar or sept of Man-
gars in Darjiling.

Mésle, a sub-caste of Telis in
Bengal.

Masnat‘n. a sub-caste of Telis
in Behar.

Masrakhiyé, a section of the
Bansphor sub-caste of Doms in
Behar.

 

Mastén, Mahasthén or Hélié,
a sub-caste of Utkal Brahmans.

Mésya, a functional group of
Jugis in Bengal.

Matasyési, a gdz‘n of the san-
dilya gotm of Barendra Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Matha Ség. a vegetable, a
totemistic sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Mathgrémi, a 902m of the
Kasyapa gotra of Barendra Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Mathia, brass bracelet, a
totemistic sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Mathrwér, a section of Kur-
mis in Chota Nagpur and
Orissa.

Méthur, a division of Brah-
mans and a sub-caste of Kayasths
in Behar.

Mathurébési, a section of
Goalas in Behar.

Mathuré or Mathurébési, a
sub-caste of Goalas in Orissa.

Math urié, a sub-caste of Telis,
Barhis and Lohars in Behar and.
Chota Nagpur.

Métié, a sub-caste of Bagdi
in Bengal who are cultivators
and earth-workers.

f

MATIAL.

Métial, a sub-caste ofKewats
in Orissa.

Métiél, a sub-caste of Bagdis
in Bengal who sell ﬁsh and vege-
tables.

Métiél, Metel, Metz'd, “terree
ﬁlius,” a title of Kaibarttas in
Orissa and also of Bagdis, Bauris,
Koras, and other earth-working
castes in Bengal. As a rule the
term is used only by outsiders.

Matibans-Ténti, a sub-caste of
Téntis in Orissa.

Mat" um, a title of the Bhumij
tribe in Manbhum.

Matsendra, king of ﬁsh, a
section of Jugis.

Mattarié, a sub-caste of Hal-
wais in Behar.

Matti, a title of Goalas in
Behar.

Matwéré, a section of Raj-
wars in Western Bengal.

Maudgalya, a gotm or section
of Brahmans, Baidyas, Kayasths,
Subarnabaniks and Telis in

82

 

MAULIK.

Bengal; a section of Sudras
in Eastern Bengal; of the
Paschim Kuliya Sadgops; an
eponymous section of Kamars,
Malis, Madhunapits, and Napits
in Bengal; a section of Bérendra
Sunris in Eastern Bengal.

Maudgalya or Madhukulya,
a section of Pods in Central
Bengal.

Maugh, ﬁsh, a totemistie
sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

Maughé, a group of the Baren-
dra Sunris in Eastern Bengal.

Mauharia, a. sub-caste of

Rastogis in Behar.

Maulavi, a title of Bauris in
Western Bengal.

Mauh'k, a synonym for Dhimal. .

Maulik, a hypergamous group
of Kﬁyasths, of the Dakshinatya
Baidik Brahmans, Baidyas, Sad.-

. gops, Chasadbohés, and Subarna—
i baniks in Bengal.

The name
appears to be connected with
mul, root, stock, or origin.

ﬁanlik, Ldyd, Ndyd, a Dravidian caste of Manbhum and

Western Bengal, who claim aﬂinity with the Mal Paharias of
Rajmahal, and who may possibly be an offshoot from that tribe,
to. whom, as being the earliest settlers in the country, the duty of
propitiating the forest gods may easily have come to be assigned.

The Maulik of Northern Manbhum and the Santal Parganas are
divided into siX sub-castes—Chandana, Hari-
yén or dehariyé, M51! or Mar, Sauriyé, Raj-
bansi, and Deobansi. The last two groups call themselves Hindus,
and allege that their ancestors were at one time in possession of the
Pandra estate in Manbhum. The sections of all the sub-castes are
totemistic. A man may not marry a woman belonging to his own
section, nor one who falls within the usual formula for reckoning
prohibited degrees.

Adult-marriage was formerly in vogue among the Mauliks, as it
is still among the Mundas and Oraons. Of
late years the example of the Hindus around
them has led tothe adoption of infant-marriage ; and this practice,
involving, as is ordinarily believed, an advance in social respectability,

Internal structure.

Marriage.

83 MAULIK.

tends to become constantly more popular. The earlier custom,
however, still survives, and sexual indiscretions before marriage are
said to be not uncommon, and as a rule are leniently dealt with.
After the bride has been selected and a small bride-price paid, the
bridegroom is married to a mango-tree and the bride to a mahua.
This is followed by the ordinary ceremony performed under an open
canopy made of sal leaves. The two Hinduised sub-castes employ
a Brahman to recite mantras on this occasion ; for the others a man of
their own caste serves as priest. The binding portion is the markin
of the bride’s forehead with vermilion, which is done by the bride-
groom with the jdnti or cutter used for slicing areca nut.

Polygamy is not formally recognized, but a man is allowed to
take a second wife if his ﬁrst wife is barren. A widow may marry
again by the sangd form, and is subject to no restrictions in her choice
of a second husband. Great license of divorce is allowed, the tearing
of a sail leaf in symbol of separation being the only form required
to complete the act. Divorced wives may marry again.

Although, as has been stated above, the Deobansi and Rajbansi
sub-castes call in Brahmans of low rank, known
locally as Panres, to assist in their marriage
ceremony, even they have not yet taken to worshipping Hindu deities
or employing Brahmans as their family priests, and the caste as
a whole still adheres to the rude animism characteristic of the abori-
ginal races of Western Bengal. Their ofﬁces as priests of the various
spiritual powers who haunt the forests, rocks, and ﬁelds and bring
disease upon man and beast are in great request. A Bhumij or
a Kurmi who wishes to propitiate these dimly-conceived but potent
inﬂuences will send for a Maulik to offer the necessary sacriﬁces in
preference to a Laya or priest of his own caste—a fact which speaks
strongly for the antiquity of the settlement of the former in the
country. Besides serving as priests, they also collect lac, catechu,
and other jungle produce, and work as cultivators and day-labourers.
Their social rank, according to orthodox ideas, is exceedingly low,
and no Hindu will take water from their hands. Mauliks them-
selves Will eat boiled rice with Bhuiyas, and sweetmeats, etc., with
Santals and Mundas. The more advanced Deobansi and Rajbansi sub-
castes abstain from beef, and believe themselves to be thereby raised
in ceremonial purity and social estimation above their fellows. It IS
curious to observe that while the non-Hinduised Mauliks will eat no
one’s leavings, the more orthodox sub-castes have no prejudices on this
point so far as the members of the higher Hindu castes are concerned,
and will eat the leavings of Brahmans, Rajputs, and Kayasths.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Mauliks in 1872 and 1881 :—

Religion.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. | DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Monghyr 5,492 608 Lphardagé. ... 371 ......
Bhagal ur ...... 95 Singbhum .. 578
Santal arganas 9,179 3,5:4 Manbhum 687 5,446
Hazaribagh 688 18 Tributary States ...... 179

 

 

 

 

 

 

MAULO.

Maulo, a title of Muchis in
Western Bengal.

Maulwér, a sept of the Suraj-
bansi division of Réjputs in
Behar.

Maunachh, a sept of Rajputs
in Behar.

Maunas, a section of Brah-

mans; a sept of Rajputs in
Behar.

Maura, a mul or section of the
Kanaujia sub-caste of Haj J aims
in Behar.

Maureswari, a sub-caste of
Telis in Bengal.

'84

 

MAYARA

Maurhié, a section of the
Banodhia and Jaiswér Kalwars
in Behar.

Mauriyér, a your or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Mautkaha, a gotm or section
of N epéli Brahmans.

Mawéli, a title of Chandals
in Eastern Bengal.

Mawar, peacock, a totemistic
sept of Chiks in Chota Nagpur.

Mawér, a title of Babhans in

' Behar.

Mayéhang, a thar or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.

éﬁaparé, Modak, Maird, Kari, the confectioner caste of Bengal
Proper, a heterogeneous functional group, to
be distinguished from the Madhunapit, on
whom popular usage sometimes confers the.
titles Modak and Kuri. Some, indeed, regard the Madhunapit as
merely a sub-caste of Mayara, but it will be seen from the article
on Madhunapit that there are grounds for believing that group to
be a distinct homogeneous caste owing its origin to a schism among
the Napits. In Central Bengal the Mayaré. caste is divided
into four sub-castes—Rérh-ésram, Méyur-asram, Aja—ésram,
and Dharm-ésram or Dharm-sut. In Dacca, where there are
comparatively few Mayaras and the occupation of sweetmeat-making
is almost wholly in the hands of the Madhunapit, the former group
has only two sub-castes-u—Ekpétié and Dopétié. The distinction
between these is curious: the former in their marriage ceremony
simply carry the bride seven times round the bridegroom, While the
latter carry both round in concentric circles, the bridegroom following
the inner and smaller circle of the two.

The sections of the Mayara caste which are given in the
Appendix show a singular mixture of elements derived from the
Brahmanical goims and survivals from the earlier totemistic sections
which we ﬁnd among the non-Aryan castes. It is impossible now
to determine what tribes may have contributed to form the Mayara
caste as we now ﬁnd it, but the fact that distinct traces of totemism
may be discerned will perhaps be held to justify the conjecture that
the group is not wholly of Aryan extraction. As a rule marriage
within the section is strictly prohibited, but in some partsof the
country the law of exogamy is disregarded, and marriage is
regulated solely by calculation of prohibited degrees. Mayaras
have not yet developed a full-blown system of hypergamy, but
they appear to be on the road towards doing so, for the famihes
who bear the titles Ash, Barét, D515. and Nandi are called

Origin and internal

structure.

85 MAYARK.

Kulins. At present, however, the distinction is meaningless so far
as marriage is concerned. Men belonging to Maulik families may
marry Kulin women, and the only privilege attached to Kulinism is
the right to receive presents of cloth, etc., at marriages and other
domestic festivals.

Mayaras profess to marry their daughters as infants, but they
are not so particular in this matter as the
higher castes, and instances of girls marrying
after puberty, though rare, are said to occur occasionally without
entailing any serious loss of reputation for the family concerned.
The marriage ceremony is performed in accordance with orthodox
usage; sampraddn, or the giving and receiving of the bride, being
the essential portion of the rite. A price, varying according to the
social status of the parties, is paid for the bride. Polygamy is
permitted, no limit being placed, in theory at least, on the number of
wives a man may have. Widows may not marry again, and divorce
is not recognized. A woman taken in adultery is turned out of the
caste.

The caste profess to be orthodox Hindus, belonging for the most
part to the Vaishnava sect. They regard
Games as their special deity, and make images
in his honour. The special season for his worship is towards the
end of the cold weather, before the sugarcane crop has been cut,
and freshly-prepared molasses cannot be used in the manufacture of
sweetmeats until the god has been duly propitiated. Brahmans
oﬂiciate as their priests, and are not looked down upon by other
members of the sacred order. In Manbhum, Mohan Giri, Sahib Mia,
Sashthi, and Bhadu are among their minor gods, whom the
members of each household worship with sacriﬁces of goats and
offerings of rice, fruit, and sweetmeats. In this domestic worship
Brahmans take no part. The dead are burned and the ashes thrown
into the Ganges or any river that may be conveniently situated
for the purposes. iS'rddd/i is performed on the thirty-ﬁrst day after
death.

Mayaras believe the making of sweetmeats to be their original
occupation, but many of them at the present
day have entered Government service or taken
to trade, While a few are engaged in agriculture as tenure-holders and
occupancy raiyats. They will, however, on no account cultivate
sugarcane themselves or take any part in the preparation of
molasses. In a country where sweetmeats form a staple article of
diet, and are often the only food that an orthodox Hindu can
partake of on a journey, when he has no time to go through the
elaborate process of preparing his own food, it is essential that there
should be no doubt about the social status and ceremonial purity of
the caste which supplies the community with sweetmeats. Mayarés
therefore rank among the Navasakha, and Brahmans will take
water from their hands. Their own rules regarding diet are those
of most respectable Hindus. They will eat cooked food only with
Brahmans, and will take water or sweetmeats from members of the
Navasakha group.

Marriage.

Religion.

Occupation .

MAYARA’. 86 MECH.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Mayaras in 1872 and 1881, the ﬁgures for Halwais being included
in the former year for the districts of Bengal Proper :—

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. ‘ 1872. ' 1881. It DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Bardwan 17,040 12,240 Darjiling 90 65
Bankura. 3,719 7,579 Jalpigom 270 1,104
Birbhum 10,066 8,165 Kuch Behar ... ...... 336
Midnapur 6,010 7,066 Dacca 2,112 1,297
Hughli ‘ }8278 6,382 Faridpur 897 am
Howrah ’ 2,769 Bakarganj ,., 1,450 270
24-Parganas 6,864 2,990 Malmansmh 5,017 4,780
Nadiya 9.337 17,076 Tlpperah 5,901 536
Khulna ...... 737 Chlttagong 231 233
Jessore 1,942 3,322 Noakhali 616 428
Murshedabad 3,ng 5,232 glalgaihp .3. .l 279 1,219

' ' ur m ‘ an d arganas 9,045
iiisrletEhye 909 898 Lohardaga ...| The ﬁflg‘eg if 26
Rangpur 5,798 18,150 Singbhum 1 “63110,? bel .4 572
Bogra 200 1,080 rManbhum ...| g; Hglwaase | 11,363
Pabna 1,522 1,894; Frlbumry States ...J ' L 71

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mayur, a totemistic section of Mayur-ésram, a sub-caste of
the Bhar caste in Manbhum, the Mayaras in Central Bengal.
members of which will not touch Mazumdér, a title of Népits
or kill the peacock. in Bengal.

33121311, Meclw', a Mongoloid tribe found in the Goalparé district
of Assam and in the Himalayan Terai from'
the Bhutan Duars westward to the Konki
river. In Northern Bengal they have given their name to the
Mechi river, and in Goalpara to the large tract of country called
Mechpara, the proprietor of which, however, calls himself a Rajbansi
and repudiates all connexion with the Mech tribe.JL Ritter2 identiﬁes
them with the Dhimal, and remarks that in point of agricultural

skill they are about on a level with the Garos. Fr. Miiller3 classes

them among the Lohitic races, and says they are of the same stock

as the Kachari or Bodo. A good observer“ writes thus of the

Mech:——“They are probably the original inhabitants of the Dar-

jiling Terai, and are a distinctly Mongolian race, with fair skins

and large bones and limbs. Their physical appearance and charac-

teristics are quite distinct from the Tharu of the Western Terai.

They are disappearing, absolutely dying out, faster than any race of

which I have known or read. The reason is, no doubt, that their

distinctive cultivation is by jlmm, which is barred by Government

forest conservancy, and the spread of settled plough cultivation

from the South.” In another place Mr. Oldham speaks of the

Dhimal and Rajbansi as “ dark-skinned Dravidians, and lays stress

on the contrast between them and the fair-complexioned Mech.

The compiler of the Assam Census Report, on the other hand,

includes the Mech and the Kochh under the generic term Bodo, and

appears to regard both as belonging substantially to the same race.

Origin.

 

1 Dalton, Ethnology quengal, p. 88.,

3' .Erdlcunole, iv, 109.

3 Allgemeine Ethnographic, p. 406.

4 Mr. W. B. Oldham, late Deputy Commissioner of Darjiling.

87 MECH.

. A singular reference to both Mech and Dhimal is met with
In the Limbu legend that when the three brothers, their ancestors,
were ﬁrst dropped by the gods from Heaven they fell in Benares
whence they wandered northward, seeking the place appointed fof
them to dwell in. So they came to the Elmo/tar, or mule-country as
the Nepalese call the tract at the foot of the hills between ’the'
Brahmaputra and Kosi rivers. There the youngest brother deter-
mined to settle, and became the father of the Kochh, Dhimal and
Mech; while the two others went further into the hills, and ’their
descendants are the Limbus and Khambus of Nepal. A third story
makes Assam the proper home of the Mech, and seeks to connect
them with the Géros. Others, again, say that the Mech and Dhimal
are descended from Nepalese who, being driven out of Nepal for
breaches of caste rules, settled in Khachar and married women of
the locality. Without attaching any historical value to these traditions,
we may perhaps infer from them that considerable intermixture of
blood has taken place between the inhabitants of the hills and the
plains, and that types originally distinct may in this way have been
greatly modiﬁed and to some extent amalgamated. The process of
fusion has, however, not yet gone so far as to render it impossible
to discern in the Mech traces of a primary Mongolian stock, while
the Dhimal tribe appears to be connected by features and com-
plexion with the black races, who may be conveniently designated
aboriginal.

The Mech of the Darjiling and Jalpigori district are divided
into two sub-tribes‘——Agnié-Mech and déti-
Mech, which are practically endogamOus, seeing
that a member of the former group cannot marry into the latter
without thereby forfeiting his position in his own group. The
Agnié sub-tribe have twelve exogamous septs, which are shown in
Appendix I, while the J éti—Mech regulate marriage by the standard
formula calculated to three generations in the descending line. The
same rule is observed on the mother’s side by the Agnia-Mech,
who, however, extend the prohibition in the male line to seven
generations.

The Agnia-Mech admit only Réjbansis into their own group;
while the J ati-Mech receive also Dhimals, Dhekras, and Agnia-Mech.
In all cases the new member has to give a feast as a sort of entrance-
fee and by way of proclaiming his membership. Such admissions are
usually brought about by men of the higher groups taking mistresses
from the women of the lower, and thus forfeiting their place in their
own society.

Among the Agnia-Mech the usual age for marriage is twelve
years for females and sixteen for males, though
here, as elsewhere, the inﬂuence of Hinduism
shows itself in the desire on the part of well-to-do people to get their
daughters married at a still earlier age. For the most part, however,
the earlier usage of free courtship still holds its ground, and the

Internal structure.

Marriage.

 

1 Further east, I understand, that four sub-tribes are known—Agnié-
Mech, Assam-Mech, Kachra-Mech, and Thampéi-Mech. Kéchra-Mech are
probably the same as the Kacharl.

MECH. ' 88

consent of the parents is sought only after the young people have
arranged matters between themselves. Even then, if objections are
raised, the girl often solves the difﬁculty by going off with her lover
and thus compelling her parents to take steps to get her married.
The same system prevails among the J éti-Mech, but with them the
age for marriage ranges from sixteen to twenty for both males and
females, and it is not uncommon to ﬁnd a woman married to a man
younger than herself. The bride-price, called mothom thekd by Agnia
and c/mmnd or sod/ad by the Jati—Mech, is supposed to be ﬁxed with
reference to the beauty and accomplishments, and may rise in
the Agnia sub-tribe as high as Rs. 120 or even more. Among the
J ati-Mech it is supposed to be ﬁxed at Rs. 63, but this amount may
be, and usually is, reduced by haggling.

In both sub-tribes the marriage ceremony is exceedingly simple.
Among the Agnia-Mech the essential and binding portion of the
rite is the formal washing of the bride’s feet in the presence of the
friends and relatives of both parties with Water poured from abamboo
water-vessel (chungd‘). This being done, she enters a‘ room where the
bridegroom is awaiting her, and consummation is supposed to take
place at once. When she comes out a cock and a hen are sacriﬁced
and two betel leaves and areca nuts offered to Siva, the latter articles
being afterwards eaten by the wedded pair. Feasting then com-
mences by the bride serving ﬁrst the bridegroom, and after him the
other guests, with meat and boiled rice. rl‘he J ati-Mech do not wash
the bride’s feet, but make the pair exchange betel leaves and areca
nuts. This is held to be the essential rite, and is followed by the
sacriﬁce of a cock and hen to Siva.1

A widow may marry again, but if she has children it is deemed
more respectable for her to live as a widow with her late husband’s
relatives, to whom in any case her children belong. If, however, she
determines to contract a second marriage, she may not marry any
relative, whether elder or younger, of her deceased husband, but
must return to her parents’ house and get married from there by an
informal ceremony called m'lca, in which the bridegroom makes with
his little ﬁnger a single spot of vermilion on the bride’s forehead.
Fowls are sacriﬁced as in the regular form, but the bride’s feet are
not washed, nor does she exchange betel leaves and areca nuts with
the bridegroom. The bride-price for a woman marrying a second
time is reduced to one-half of the original amount, and if she marries
a third time to one-fourth. In the presumably rare case of a woman
marrying for the fourth time, no bride-price at all is paid. A
remarried widow is deemed to be socially the inferior of a woman

 

1 Some of my correspondents distinguish three modes or forms of marriage :
thus—(1) the ordinary marriage, in which the parents’ consent is obtained before
the girl goes to her husband; (2) the dakud marriage, in which the bride elopes
or is carried oﬁ‘, and may be reclaimed by her parents if the bride-price is not

id; (3) the ghar sundi marriage, when a girl takes a fancy to a man, goes to
his house of her own accord, and sits as a suppliant b the symbol of the
ghar-dem', which stands in the corner of the chief room. 11 such cases, after
refusing the girl as a matter of form, the man is bound ultimately to yield
to her importunit . Clearly, however, these are not so much forms of marriage
as modes of proposing marriage.

89 . MECH.

married as a virgin, and is not entitled to serve boiled rice to the
guests assembled on any public or ceremonial occasion. Divorce may
be effected, with the sanction of the panchayat, at the wish of the
parties or on the ground of the wife’s adultery. In the latter case
the seducer is liable to repay the bride-price to the injured husband,
and cannot marry the woman until he has done so. Divorced wives
can only be remarried by the curtailed ceremony in use at the
remarriage of a widow, and they hold the same social status as the
latter. Their children also belong to the father. It would seem at
ﬁrst sight that the unrestricted courtship permitted by the Mech can
hardly promote a high standard of female chastity, and in fact sexual
intercourse before marriage, though not expressly recognized, is
virtually tolerated, it being understood that if a girl becomes
pregnant her lover will at once come forward and marry her.
Regarding married women, however,. a different order of ideas
prevails, and as soon as a girl has ﬁnally pitched upon a husband,
she is required to be strictly faithful to him. A curious usage, to
which parallels may be found in European folklore, deserves notice
in this connexion. In the courtyard of every Mech house a sij plant
(Euphorbia Indz'ca) is carefully tended as the abode of the god Siva
and as the emblem of conjugal ﬁdelity. Should the leaves of the
plant wither, this is supposed to show that something is wrong with
one of the women of the household. Rice is deposited under the
tree, and on the next day a panchayat is called, before which all the
women are summoned and a handful of rice is given to each to chew.
She who fails to masticate her portion is held guilty of unchastity,
and if married is at once turned out of the house. If it is an
unmarried girl who breaks down in the chewing ordeal, she is called
upon‘ to disclose the name of her paramour, so that arrangements
may be made to get her married at once.

The religion of the Mech, like that of the Dhimal, is still in
an early stage of transition from animism to
Hinduism. They describe themselves as Hin-
dus of the Saiva sect, and worship Siva under the name of Batho,
and his consort Kali as Bali Khungri. To the former the Agnia-
Mech sacriﬁce buffaloes, goats, and pigeons ; While his wife has to put
up with the less respectable offerings of pigs, fowls, and goats, which
the Jati-Mech offer indifferently to either. The Jéti-Mech also
reverence as a household goddess (ghar-devi), a nameless personage,
supposed to be the mother of Siva, who is represented by a lump of
sun-dried clay set in the corner of the chief room. Pigs, fowls,
plantains and parched rice are oﬁered to her on any day in the week
except Sunday, Tuesday, or Wednesday. Among their other deities
may be mentioned Tsimising, Tista Burhi (Buchanan’s ‘ old lady of
the Tista’), Mahesh‘l'hakur, Sonnisi and Mahakél. They have no
Brahmans, and priests (d/tdm’i 0r oj/Id) chosen from among the tribe to
serve them for religious and ceremonial purposes.

Those who can afford a funeral pyre prefer to burn the dead,
while the poorer members of the tribe bury,
placing the corpse face upwards with the head
pointing towards the south. In the latter case a small ﬁre is kindled

Religion.

Disposal of the dead.

MECH. 90

upon the grave, in which food and drink are burned for the beneﬁt of
the deceased. The Agnia-Mech perform a meagre propitiatory rite
on the eighth day, and the Jéti-Mech on the fourth day, after death.
With both the important part of the proceedings is the feast which is
given to the friends and relatives of the deceased. Some repeat the
ceremony every year after the manner of the Hindus, but this is
unusual.

Judged by the Hindu standard, the social status of the Mech is
extremely low. Both Réjbansis and Dhiméls
look down upon them; and they themselves,
while claiming higher rank than Garos, Lepchas, and Tibetans, admit
the social superiority of the Rajbansis. Dhimals they appear to look
upon as standing on much the same level as themselves, though the
former profess to be stricter in matters of food and drink, and
strenuously disclaim kinship and social intercourse with the Mech.
They eat pork, fowls, all kinds of ﬁsh, lizards, and the imp/m silk-
worm, but abstain from beef, the ﬂesh of the long-tailed sheep,
snakes, ﬁeld-rats, and the leavings of other people. Buﬁalo ﬂesh
now ranks as beef, at any rate with the Agnia-Mech; but this
seems to be a comparatiVely modern reform, for some Mech are said
to eat buﬁalo ﬂesh, and those who do not seem to pride themselves on
their asceticism. Spirituous liquors are indulged in without stint.

A curious story is told in the Terai to account for the fact that
the Nepalese will take water from the hands of the Mech. It is said
that some twenty years ago J ang Bahadur, then Prime Minister of
Nepal, while shooting in the Terai, fell in love with a Mech girl, the
daughter of Ujir Singh Jamadar, of Dhulabari, and took her with
him to Nepal as his mistress. As the price of her person, and in
accordance with the wishes of the tribe, he issued an edict that in
future no subject of Nepal should refuse to take water from a Mech,
or, as my informant adds, from a Dhimél also. I am unable to say
what amount of truth there may be in this tale, but if such an edict
were ever actually published, it can hardly have done more than
recognize and conﬁrm a practice already existing. Even J ang Baha-
dur’s despotic power must have yielded to popular prejudice if the
Nepalese had really deemed the Mech unclean. The fact, however,
seems to be that there is a considerable strain of Nepalese blood
among the Mech, and other facts may be mentioned which go to
conﬁrm this View. Like the Nepalese, for example, the Mech
have much greater liberty in matters of food before marriage than
after, so that an unmarried man may take rice from people who are
not deemed pure enough to give food to a married man. Both observe
the Tihar festival; both call the bride-price sodkd or the/rd. These
coincidences may of course be due merely to that transfusion of
custom which is everywhere observable ; but taking all the circum-
stances into consideration, I think it more likely that they have
arisen from intermixture of the two races.

Husbandry by the j/n’mz method is regarded by the Mech as
their original occupation, but of late years many
have taken to settled cultivation as raiyatsof
fats in the Terai. The rearing of the implm silkworm, which splns

Social status.

Occupation.

MECH.

91

MEN DRU.

the silk used in the chequered cloths worn by the Mech, was at
one time a regular industry, but has fallen off notably Within the last

generation.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
the Mech tribe in 1872 and 1881 :—

DISTRICT.
Bogra
Ran gpur
Darjiling
J a1 pigori
Kuch Behar

Mechari. a sept of Tantis in
Chota Nagpur.

Zl/Ieckz', a synonym for Mech.

Mech 0, a hypergamous group
of Kaibarttas in J essore.

Medari, a gdin of the
' Sébarna gotm of Barendra Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Meghalbariérpur, a mu! or
section of the Naomulia or Maj -
raut sub-caste of Goalas in Behar.

Meghi, a ﬂaw or sept of Gur-
ungs in 1)an iling.

Mehalo, a title of Doms in
Behar.

Mehéus, a section of the Sat-
mulia Maghayé sub-caste of Kan-
dus in Behar.

Mehdipur Mohdia, a mu! or
section of the Naomulia or Maj -
raut sub-caste of Goélas in Behar.

Meheden, a section of the
Barajéti sub-caste of Khatris in
Bengal.

Meheré, a section of the
Charjati sub-caste of Khatris in
Bengal.

Mehménpur, a mu! or section
of the Naomulia or Majraut sub-
caste of Goalés in Behar.

Mehos, a mu! or section of the
Maghayé sub-caste of Kandus in
Behar.

 

 

...... 6,835
893 1,063
40 8,760
...... 224.

' Mehré, a sept of Rajputs in
Behar.

Mehran, a section of Sunris in
Behar.

Mehréna, a title of the Tir-

hutia sub-caste of Kumhars in
Behar.

Mehri a se t of Ra' uts in
Behar. ' P JP

Mehtar, Milatar, a sub-caste of
Haris who remove night-soil.

Mehtar, a section of Maghaya
Kumhars; a title of Nunias,
of the Dhusia and Dohar sub-
castes of Chamars; a section
of the Kulsunri sub-caste of
Sunris and of the Dharkar sub-
caste of Doms in Behar.

Meh’caria, a section of Mag-
haya Dhobis in Behar; also a
title of Chamars.

Mekchan, a section of Mur-
mis in Darjiling.

Mekhun, a dugu or section of
the Kochh-Mandai in Dacca.
The name indicates the original
habitat of the group, probably
a hill or village in Assam, and at
the present day has no bearing
upon marriage.

MemOphagpa, a sept of the
Chaibisa sub-tribe of Limbus in
Darjiling. _

Mendru, a sept of Réjputs in
Behar. '

MENG.

Meng, 3. their or sept of Man-
gars in Darjiling.

Mengi, a thar or sept of
Gurungs in Darjiling.

Menwér. a section of Bhéts in
Behar.

Menyangbo, the unsuccessful
one, a sept of the Yangorup sub-
tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.

Meongba, a sub-sept of the
Thekim sept of Limbus in Dar-
jiling.

Meph agpa, the butcher, liter-
ally pig-roaster, a sept of the
Pénthar sub-tribe of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Mert, a sept of Bhuiyas in
Chota Nagpur.

Mesha, sheep, a title of Tantis
in Bengal.

Mesh-rési, a section of M $1105
in Eastern Bengal.

Mete, a title of Kaibarttas in
Bengal.

Methi, a section of Oswéls in
Behar.

Met/mid, a synonym for Dhan-
gar in Chota Nagpur.

Mewakhola or Terothar, a
sub-tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.

Mihtar, a sub-caste of Telis in
Behar.

Millak, a section of Mahesris
in Behar.

Millong, a sept of the Tung-
jainya sub-tribe of Chakmas in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Min, sail ﬁsh, a totemistic
section of the Kumhar caste in
Manbhum; a section of J ugis in
Bengal.

92

 

MISR.

Minag-pé, a mi or sept of
Sherpa Bhotias of Nepal.

Mind, a sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur. '

Minj, a snake, the totem of a
section of Oraon-Dhéngars set-
tled for several generations in

Behar.

Minji, eel, a totemistic sept of
Oraons in Chota Nagpur.

Mir or Mair, a sub-caste of
Sonars in Behar.

Mirchaié, a section of the
Baranwar sub-caste of Baniyas
in Behar.

Mirchwén, a section of Sonérs
1n Behar.

Mirdéha, a section of the
Kadar caste in Behar which
intermarries with the Darbe,
Manjhi, Kampti, and Bare sec-
tions, but not with the rest;
a section and a title of Maghaya
Doms; a title of men of the
Turi and Dosadh castes who fol-
low the profession of hawkers or
falconers; a title of Binjhiés and
Khandaits in Chota Nagpur.

Miriésin, a class of Mahom-
edan musicians in Behar who
also deal in and apply leeches.

Mirich bhusai’t, a mu! or
section of the Ayodhiabasi sub-
caste of Sonérs in Behar.

Mirslzz'kdr, a chief huntsman ;
a low class of Mahomedans who
live by snaring birds.

Mising, a sept of Tipperahs
in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Misir. a section of the Sri-
bastab sub-caste of Kayasths in
Behar.

Misr or Misra, a title of Gaura,
Maithil, Kanaujia, and Saraswat

MISR.

Brahmans and of Bébhans in
Behar.

Misra, a title of the Dakshi-
nétya Baidik Brahmans in
Bengal; a thar of the Atri gotm
of Nepali Brahmans; a section
of Gaura Brahmans in Behar;

a section of Utkal or Orissa
Brahmans.

Ma'strz', a synonym for Barai,
Karangé, and Dhohi in Behar.

Mistri, a carpenter or mason,
000. A title of Barhis, Kanaujia
Lohars, and of Kémérs in Behar;
a title of Sutradhars, Chasédho-
has, Dhobés, and Pods in

Bengal.

Mithan, a section of Agar-
Wals in Behar.

Mithorié, a section of Maj-
raut Goélés in Behar.

Mitra, a title of Kayasths and
Béruis in Bengal.

Mitraseni Beharé, a sub-caste
of Bhuinmalis in Bengal.

Mittal, a gotra or section of
Agarwéls in Behar.

Moéli, a gdin of the Kasyapa
gotm of Barendra Brahmans in
Bengal.

Mobrishya, a section of
Sénkharis in Bengal.
Mochhére, a sept of the

Agnia sub-tribe of Meches in the
Darjiling Terai.

Mochi, a title of J aunpuri
Chamérs who make shoes ; also a
title of Dhusia Chamars in
Behar.

Mochién, a mul or section of
the Kanaujié sub-caste of Sonérs
in Behar.

Modak, a synonym for Mayaré.

93

 

MOIRA’.

MOdéSi. a group of the Raj-
bansi sub-caste of Kochhs in
Northern Bengal.

Modgalya, a section of Gan-
dhabaniks in Bengal.

Modhégrémi, a gdz'n of the
Kasyapa gotm of Bérendra.
Brahmans in Bengal.

Modi, a title of Baniyés,
Halwéis, Kalwars, Koras, and
Sunris in Behar.

Mogalkéché, a mu! or section
of the N aomulia or Majraut sub-
caste of Goélés in Behar.

Mogha, a title of men who
(iress as females and earn their
llVlng by dancing and singing.

Moghalié, a section of the
Dhus1é. sub-caste of Chamérs.

Mohali, a sub-caste of Dome
in Behar. The similarity of
name suggests a connection
with the mat and basket-making
caste of Mahili in Western
Bengal.

Mohani, a title of Gonrhis in
Behar.

Mohér, a mu! or section of
the Chhamulia Madhesié sub-
caste of Halwais in Behar.

Mohara, a tkar or sept of
Damis in Darjiling whose chief
profession is sewing.

Mohbaita, a section of the
Pachainya sub-caste of Dome in
Behar.

Mohdiar, a section of Ghésis
in Uhota Nagpur.

Moira, a synonym for Mayaré.

MOKTA’N.

Mokte’in, a section of Mufmis
in Darjiling.

Molé, a sub-caste of Béuris in
Western Bengal.

Molé, a section of Doms in
Western Bengal.

Molén, a section of Goalas in
the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Moldhié, a section of Goalas
in the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Moldiar, a section of Bahhans
in Behar.

Molima,
sept of Chakmas in the
Tracts of Chittagong.

Molima-Sege. a
Hill

Molo, a sub-caste of Korés in
Western Bengal.

Momin, ‘faithful’; a synonym
for Musalman; a designation of
Mahomedan Jolahas which dis-
tinguishes them from the Hindu
J olahas.

Man, a synonym for Lepcha.

Mongar, a section of Goalas in
Behar.

Mongbai, a sept of Tipperahs
in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Monghyr, a dell: or local sec-
tion of the Maghayé sub-caste
of Telis in Behar. The system
of exogamy among this sub-caste
of Telis seems, however, either to
be dying out or to be of recent
introduction, for some of the
Maghayas say they have no (ii/as,
but merely prohibit marriage
within nine pawns or degrees of
relationship.

Monglé, a sept of the Tung-
jainya sub-tribe of Chakmés in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

94

 

MRUNG.

Mongri, thorny ﬁsh, a totem-
istic sept of Pans in Chota
Nagpur.

Mongtupo, a sept of the
Yangorup sub-tribe of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Monmatar, Mott's, Motam' (from
mot, B., ‘a burthen ’) a porter, a
carrier of burthens, and generally
a day-labourer employed other-
wise than in agriculture.

Mor, peacock, a totemistic
section of Khandaits in Orissa
and Chota Nagpur.

Mormu. deer, a totemistic sept
of Lohars in Chota Nagpur.

Morpachi, a sept of Goalés in
in Chota Nagpur.

Moti, a sept of Gonds in Chota
Nagpur.

Motiomén, a. sept of Kaurs in
Chota Nagpur.

Motlié, a section of (30511215 in
the North-Western Provinces and
Behar.

Motrlhé, a section of the Bano-
dhia and J aiswar Kalwars in
Behar.

Mo-u, a sept of the Tung-
jainya sub-tribe of Chakmas in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Mowar, a section of Babhans
in Behar.

Mowl, a sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Mradha, a title of Héris in
Bengal.

Mridha, the head of the
menial servants in a zamindar’s
establishment.

Mrung, a for

'l‘ipperah.

synonym

95 ‘ MU CHI.

ﬁluthi, Rishi} the leather-dressing and cobbler caste of Bengal,
by origin doubtless a branch of the Chamars, though its members
now repudiate that name and claim to be a distinct caste of
somewhat higher social position. Mr. Nesﬁeld observes that “the
industry of tanning is preparatory to, and lower than that of,
cobblery: and hence "‘ * "‘ * the caste of Chamar ranks
decidedly below that of Muchi. The ordinary Hindu does not
consider the touch of a Muchi so impure as that of a Chamar,
and there is a Hindu proverb to the effect that ‘ dried or prepared
hide is the same thing as cloth,’ whereas the touch of the raw hide
before it has been tanned by the Chamar is considered a pollution.
The Muchi does not eat carrion like the Chamar, nor does he eat
swine’s ﬂesh; nor does his wife ever practise the much-loathed art of
midwifery. He makes the shoes, leather aprons, leather buckets,
harness, portmanteaux, etc., used by the people of India. As a rule
he is much better off than the Chamar, and this circumstance has
helped amongst others to raise him in the social scale.” It may be
gathered from this description that in the North-West Provinces
the Muchi never dresses freshly-skinned hides, but conﬁnes himself
to working up leather already tanned by the Ghamar. This distinc-
tion does not appear to be so sharply drawn in Bengal, Where
Muchis tan hides like the Chamars, but will only cure those of the
cow, goat, buffalo, and deer.
The origin of the Muchi caste is given in the following legend,
Traditions of origin related to Dr. Wise by one of their Brahmans,
' and afterwards reported to me substantially in
the same form from an independent source :-—One of the Praja-pati,
or mind-born sons of Brahma, was in the habit of providing the ﬂesh of
cows and clariﬁed butter as a burnt offering (Ahuti) to the gods. It
was then the custom to eat a portion of the sacriﬁce, restore the victim
to life, and drive it into the forest. On one occasion the Praja-pati
failed to resuscitate the sacriﬁcial animal, owing to his wife, who was
pregnant at the time, having clandestinely made away with a
portion. Alarmed at this he summoned all the other Praja-patis,
and they sought by divination to discover the cause of the failure.
At last they ascertained what had occurred, and as a punishment the
wife was cursed and expelled from their society. The child which
she bore was the ﬁrst Muchi, or tanner, and from that time forth
- mankind being deprived of the power of reanimating cattle slaugh-
tered for food, the pious abandoned the practice of killing kine
altogether. Another story is that Muchiram, the ancestor of the
caste, was born from the sweat of Brahma While dancing. He
chanced to offend the irritable sage Durvasa, who sent a pretty

 

1 Buchanan met with a tribe of ﬁshermen in Puraniya called Rishi, and
considered them to be an aboriginal tribe of Mithila. Rishi, however, is
often used as a pseudonym to hide the real paternity of a caste: thus the
Mﬁsahar often calls himself “Rishi-balaka,” or son of a Rishi, and the
Bengali Chamar tries to pass incognito as a Rishi. In the case of the Mﬁsahar
it is possible that Rishi may be lehi or Bikh-Mun, the bear, one of the
original totems of the Bhuiya or Mlisahar tube, and the same may hold good
for the Chandal. This explanation, however, is mainly conjectural.

MUCHI. ‘ 96

Brahman widow to allure him into a breach of chastity. Muchiram
accosted the widow as mother, and refused to have anything to do
with her; but Durvasa used the miraculous powers he had acquired
by penance to render the widow pregnant, so that the innocent
Muchiram was made an outcaste on suspicion. From the widow’s
twin sons Bara Ram and Chhota Ram descended the Baré-bhégiyé
and Chhotabhégiyé sub—castes, which are the two main divisions
of Muchis at the present day. The Chhota-Bhégiyé deal in hides,
act as musicians, and do various kinds of leather work; while the
Baré-bhagiyé profess to be only cultivators. The latter are again
divided into Uttar-Rérhi and Dakin-Rérhh i, who do not intermarry
or eat together. The other sub-castes, Cnésé-Kurur or Chésé-i
Kolai, are agriculturists; the Betué make cane baskets and also
cultivate; the Jugi-Muchi or Koré weave coarse cloth of cotton,
often mixed with» silk; the Tikékar Konai, who make the film? or
charcoal balls used for lighting pipes; and the Baitél, Kurur, Méla
bhumié, Sabarkéré, and Sénki, are shoemakers, cobblers, and
curriers. Muchis have only two sections, Kasyapa and Sandilya,
which have been borrowed from the Brahmanical system, and has no
bearing upon the prevention of intermarriage between near relatives.
M , They follow the ordinary rules as to prohibited
arriage. . . ,

degrees, and permit the marriage of two Sisters

to the same man, provided that the younger is not married ﬁrst.
Both infant and adult-marriage are recognized for girls, but the
former practice is deemed the more respectable, and is resorted
to in the large majority of cases. In the Dacca district a father
generally receives from ﬁfty to sixty rupees for his daughter, from
which it may be inferred that the custom of polygamy has tended
on the whole towards the preponderance of males in the caste. In
other districts, however, the bride-price is not so high, and in Pabna
it is said to vary from Rs. 5 to Rs. 25-4, according to the means of
the bridegroom. The marriage ceremony is a simpliﬁed form of
that in use among the higher Hindu castes; smdurda’n, or according
to some the burning of kiwi or parched paddy before the bride and
bridegroom. being the binding portion. The bride is dressed in red
garments. In former years, says Dr. Wise, the marriage ceremonies
of the Rishi were scenes of debauchery and intemperance, but of late
intoxicating liquors haVe been prohibited until all the regular forms
have been observed. Even Hindus, who rarely have anything
favourable to say of the Rishi, confess that now-a-days, owing to
some unknown cause, both the Chamars and Rishis have become
more temperate and more attentive to their religious duties than
formerly. Polygamy is permitted with no restriction on the
number of wives, except the man’s ability to maintain them and
their children. Divorce is permitted on the ground of adultery.
Usually the panchayat of the caste are called together by their
president (pardmdnik or moidli) to give their sanction to the
proceedings ; and if this is not done at the instance of the husband,
the Wife has a right to appeal to the panchayat. With the permission
of that body divorced wives may marry again by the wage or m‘ka
form. Widows also may marry a second time by this ritual, the

97 ‘ MUCHI.

binding portion of which consists of exchanging garlands made of
the ﬂowers of the tulsi (Ocymum sanctum). Here also the sanction
of the panchayat is required, and a feast is given to the members.
A small sum, varying from Re. 1 to Rs. 5, is paid as pan. Indica-
tions are not wanting that the opinion of the caste tends to condemn
widow-marriage, and that the custom may be expected to die out
within a generation or two unless some special inﬂuence is brought
to bear in its favour. Already some Muchis hold that only virgin
widows can properly marry again, and that the remarriage of
a full-grown woman who has already lived with her husband is
little better than concubinage. The children of sanga marriages
are deemed to be in some sense degraded, and, if males, have to
pay a heavy ﬁne before they can obtain wives. Like Bauris and
Bagdis, the Muchis admit into their community members of any
caste higher than their own. The new member is required to give
a feast to the caste panchayat, and to eat with them in token of fellow-
ship. Instances of men of other castes thus becoming Muchis are
rare, and occur only when a man has been turned out of his own
caste for having intercourse with a Muchi woman and taking food
from her hands.

The majority of the caste are believed to belong to the Saiva
sect. but a large proportion of the Betua sub-
caste are Vaishnavas. They imitate the Sudras
in most of their religious ceremonies, while others peculiar to
themselves resemble those of the Chamars. Though regarded as
utterly vile, they are permitted to make offerings at the shrines of
Kali, which a Jugi is not allowed to do. They keep many Hindu
festivals. the chief being that in honour of Viswakarme’. on the last
day of Bhadra. When small-pox prevails they offer a pig to Sitalé,
ﬁrst of all smearing the animal’s snout with red lead and repeating
certain incantations, after which it is set free, and any one can seize
it. Like the Chamar, Dhoba, Dosadh, and other low castes, the
Muchis worship Jalka Devi whenever cholera or other epidemic
disease breaks out. The Muchi women, however, only collect con-
tributions in their own quarter, and wear the wreath of plantain,
date‘pahn, or bend (Audropogon mem‘catm) for two and a half days
instead of for six, as is the custom of the Chamérs. Muchiram Das,
the reputed ancestor of the caste, and Rui Dds, are also popular
objects of worship.

A Brahman was bestowed on the Baré-bhagiya Muchis by
‘ Ballal Sen, and the story goes that in the

palace of that monarch a certain Brahman,
having made himself especially troublesome by insisting upon being
appointed as priest to one of the newly-formed castes, had it intimated
to him by the Raja that he would belong to the caste which should
ﬁrst appear to him in the morning. There was also a Muchi, a
celebrated player on the naqdm/z, or kettledrum, whose duty it was
to sound the reveille. It was easily arranged that the Brahman
should ﬁrst cast his eyes on him when he awoke, and his descendants
have ever since ministered to this despised race. They rank among
the lowest of the Barna-Brahmans, and neither members of the

9

Religion.

Priests.

MUCHI. 98

sacred order nor men beIOnging to the A'ckamm‘ castes will take
water from their hands. The Chhota-bhégiya have priests of their
own. Muchis burn their dead and perform srddd/z on the thirtieth
day after death. In the case of men who have died a violent death
there 1s no srdddk, but a prdyascﬁitm, or expiatory ceremony, is
performed.

The Chhota-bhagiyé and Betué. sub-castes, like the Chandéls,
observe ten days of impurity and celebrate the srdddk 0n the
eleventh.

The social position of Muchis is, as has been intimated above,
perhaps a shade higher than that of Chamars,
but this is not saying much, and both castes
may properly be placed in one class at the bottom of the scale of
precedence recognized by the average Hindu. None of the regular
village servants will deﬁle himself by working for a Muchi, and thus
the caste has been compelled to provide itself with barbers and
washermen from among its own members. Illegitimate children are
usually brought up to these professions, and wherever the community
is a large one no inconvenience is felt. Their rules regarding diet
are in keeping With their standing in society. The Chhota-bhégiya
sub-caste eat beef, as the Chamars do; are very partial to chickens,
and regard pork as a delicacy. The Bara-bhégiya, Betua, and
Chasa-kolai abstain from beef and pork, but not from fowls; and
they are far less particular than the higher castes as to the kinds of '
ﬁsh which they eat. Like the Chamars, all Muchis are great spirit-
drinkers, and notorious for their indulgence in the more dangerous
vice of ganja-smoking. No other caste will eat food prepared by
a Muchi, but Doms will take water from their hands and will
smoke from the same hookah.

Muchis work as tanners, shoe-makers, saddlers, musicians, and
basket-makers. Their mode of preparing skins
is as followsz—The raw hide is rubbed, and
then soaked for ﬁfteen to twenty days in a strong solution of lime.
It is then deprived of its hair and of any fat that remains, and
steeped for six days in acid tamarind juice. Finally, it is put in
a vat containing a solution of lac and pounded babul (Acacia), garan
(Oerz'Ops Roxburgkianus), and sundari (Heritz'em minor) barks, the
hide being after this immersion regarded as properly cured.

The town Muchis buy hides from their brethren resident in those
parts of the country where cattle abound. The village Muchis of the
Chhota-bhagiya sub-caste, while they pride themselves on not skin-
ning the carcasses of their own cattle, row up and down the-rivers
in their neighbourhood in search of carcasses, and when epidemic
diseases attack the herds they ﬁnd so much to do that the villagers
attribute the spread of the disease to them. It is doubtless often
the case that they puncture a healthy cow with an AcacIa thorn
impregnated with virus, but they are rarely, if ever, detected at this
villainous trade. The people, however, ﬁrmly believe that they
increase their proﬁts in this way. In Western Bengal and Chota
Nagpur, where the sdl jungles form the chief pasturmg grounds,
Muchis destroy cattle with arsenic rolled up in a bundle of ma/mé

Social status.

Occupation.

99 MUCHI‘.

petals. These are a favourite food for cows, and can be strewn on the
ground without rousing any suspicion.

The Muchi will not touch a corpse, but will skin the carcass
of a dead animal. The skin of the buffalo sacriﬁced at the
Durga Pi’ij a is their perquisite, and the skinning of the animal often
gives rise to bitter quarrels between rival families.

Most Muchis make shoes, but of inferior quality to those
manufactured by the Chamars. The Betua sub-caste are famous
for making baskets with rattan (Ualamus rotamg), which natives
assert are so closely woven that they will hold water. They also
collect the roots of the dub grass (Panicum), and manufacture the
brush (martian) used by weavers for starching the warp. In some
parts the Muchi castrates bull calves, but this they stoutly deny.
Others, again, work as sweepers and remove night-soil, but those
who do so are excluded from intermarriage with the rest of the
caste, and appear to be on the way to form a sub-caste of their
own.
The tabla-wala, or drum-maker, is always a Muchi. Goats’
skins are used for the covering, while cows’ hides supply the strings
for tightening the parchment. On every native drum, at one or
both ends, black circles (klzz'ran) are painted to improve the pitch.
The Muchi prepares a paste of iron ﬁlings and rice, with which
he stains the parchment. At all Hindu weddings they are employed
as musicians, and engaged in bands, as among Muhamadans.
Their favourite instruments are drums of various shapes and sizes,
the violin, and the pipe.

The female Muchi differs from the Chamain in never acting as
a midwife, in wearing shell bracelets instead of huge ones of bell-
metal, and in never appearing as a professional singer.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Muchis in 1881, the ﬁgures for 1872 having been included with
those of Chamars :—

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1881. DISTRICT. 1881.
Bardwan . .. 48,684 Darjiling 74
.Bankura 9,094 Dacca 411
Birbhum 25,716 Faridpur ... 3,336
Midnapur 11,854 Bakarganj 1,547
Hughli ... ... 10,909 Maimansinh .. . 6,902
Howrah ... 3,517 Tipperah 2,613
24-Parganas . .. ... 24,814 Chittagong ... . .. 584
Nadiya .. . . . . 34,068 Noakhali .. . 221
Khulna .. . 41,147 Maldah 2,883
J essore 22,347 Santal Parganas 5,651
Murshedabad 10,076 Outtack .. . . .. 862
Dinajpur 3,305 Puri 56
Rajshahye . .. . .. ... 2,795 Balaosre 249
Rangpur 2,834 Tributary States 571
Bogra 1,908 Singbhum 577 _
Pabna . . . . .. 4,899 M anbhum 7,307

 

 

 

MUCHIRA’M DA’S.

Muchirém Dés,
Muchis in Bengal.

Muddapurié, a. section of the
Kamar sub-caste of Dosadhs in
' Behar.

Mudgal, a section of Karans
in Orissa.

a title~ of

Mudgul, a section of the .
Srotriya sub-caste of Utkal
Brahmans.

Mudi, petty shop-keeper’s sell-
ing rice, doll, sugar, etc.; a
title of Binds and Bagdis; a
synonym for Kora, professional
diggers and excavators; a title
of bullock-drivers engaged in
trade; a section of Oraons whose
chief profession is earthwork.
They also carry palanquins and
cultivate land.

Mud i r, frog, a totemistic section
of Jagannathi Kumhérs in Orissa.

Mudu, a sept of Tantis in
Chota Nagpur.

Muduk, a sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Muduli, a title of Chassis in
Orissa.

Mugrish. a section of Khyéns
in Northern Bengal.

Mt/mrrir, Mo/zam', a vernacular
writer, a clerk who either does
not know English or is employed
in a post which requires no
knowledge of English.

Muhkim, supervisor, a title
of Tantis in Bengal.

Mujaimiya, a [ml or section
of Babhans in Behar.

Mujaniar, a sept of Korwas
in Ohota Nagpur.

Mujganji-Paréménik, a' sub-
caste of Napits in the 24-Par-
ganas. -

Mujgarni, a group of the
Daspéra sub-caste of Kumhérs
in Pabna.

100

 

MUKRUA’R .

Mujni, a section of Koiris in
Behar.

Mujnié, a section of the Biya-
hut and Kharidaha Kalwars in
Behar.

Mukéranchhé. a thaw or sept
of Khambus in Darjiling.

Mukarié, a section of the

Dhapra sub-caste of Doms in
Behar.

Mukem‘, a person employed in
grinding wheat-ﬂour.

'Mukh, a section of Maghaiya
Kumhars in Behar.

Mukhaiti, a gdz‘n of the
Bharadwaja gotra of Rérhi
Brahmans in Bengal.

Mukhi, a section of Ghasis in
Uhota Nagpur: hence Mukkidm,
an opprobrious term applied to
women of the Ghasi and other
low castes from their quarrel-
some habits.

Mukhié, a mul or section of
the Ghosin sub-caste of Goalés in
Behar; a section of Kewats ;
a. title of Binds and Kurmis in
Behar; a title of Khambus in
Darjiling.

Mukhiér, a title of Tiers and
of the Chab sub-caste of Gonrhis
in Behar.

Mukhiyé, a section of the
J éthot division of the Pérbatti-
Kurin sub-caste of Gonrhis in

Behar.

Mukhya-Kulin, a hypergam-
ous group of Rérhi Brahmans
in Bengal.

Mukmed, a section of the
Maghayz’t sub-caste of Barhis in
Behar.

Mukruér, spider, a sept of
Asuras in Cheta Nagpur.

MUKTA’NG.

Mukténg, a section of Murmis
in Darjiling.

Mukta-sil, a title of barbers
in Eastern Bengal.

Mukund. a section of Barhis
in Behar.

Mul, a gain of the Kasyapa
gotm of Rarhi Brahmans in
Bengal; a sept of Tantis in
Chota Nagpur.

Mula. a group of the Barendra
Goalés in Bengal.

101

 

1))su )c o g, .

I i
i» 'n 0". .
., . NBA.

Mulhatié, a section of the
Kasarwani sub-caste of Baniyas
in Behar.

Mulki, a sub-tribe of Rajputs
in Western Bengal.

Mulmahéli, a section of the
Biyahut and Kharidahé Kalwars
in Behar.

Mulukjuri, a gain or sub-
section of Saptasati Brahmans in
Bengal.

Mulukuas, a tlzar or sept of
Khambus in Darjil‘ing.

Ctﬁtha, Mum, Ewo-kon, a large Dravidian tribe of Chota
Nagpur classed on linguistic grounds as
_ Kolarian, and closely akin to the Hos and
Santals, and probably also to the Kandhs. The name Munda is of
Sanskrit origin. It means headman of a village, and is a titular or
functional designation used by the members of the tribe, as well as
by outsiders, as a distinctive name much in the same way as the
Santals call themselves Ménjhi, the Bhumij Sardar, and the Khambu
of the Darjiling hills Jimdar. The general name Kol, which is
applied to both Mundas and Oraons, is interpreted by Herr Jellinghaus
to mean pig-killer, but the better opinion seems to be that it is
a variant of bore, the Mundari for man. The change of r to l is
familiar and needs no illustration, while in explanation of the conver-
sion of It into k, we may cite km, the Mundari for ‘child,’ which in
Korwa becomes Icon and karo, the NIan form of hero, ‘ a. man.’ It
may be added that the Kharias of Chota Nagpur call the Mundas
Kora, a name closely approaching K01.

The Munda myth of the making of mankind tells how the self.
existent primeval deities Ote Boram and Sing
' Bonga created a boy and a girl and put them
together in a cave to people the world. At ﬁrst they were too
innocent to understand what was expected of them, but the gods
showed them how to make rice-beer, which inﬂames the passions, and
in course of time their family reached the respectable number of
twelve of either sex. As is usual in myths of this class, the children
were divided into pairs; and Sing Bonga set before them various
kinds of food for them to choose from before starting in the world.
The fate of their descendants depended on their choice. Thus “the
ﬁrst and second pair took bullocks’ and buﬁaloes’ ﬂesh, and they
originated the Kols (Hos) and the Bhumij (Matkum) ; the next took
of the vegetables only, and are the progenitors of the Brahmans and
Chhatries; others took goats and ﬁsh, and from them are the Sudras.
One pair took shell-ﬁsh and became Bhuiyas; two pairs took
pigs and became Santéls. One pair got nothing, seeing which the
ﬁrst pairs gave them of their superﬂuity, and from the pair thus

Origin.

Tradition.

._.
ti‘,‘,":’."‘[', iv<\ .
\{Itit ’ ‘ i ‘
WN— 102
. IL t...“ 0“ ,( z,

provided spring the Ghasis', who toil not, but live by preying on
others.”1

The Mundas are divided into thirteen sub-tribes, several of which,
such as Kharia-Munda, Mahili-Munda, Oraon-
Munda, appear to be the result of crosses with
neighbouring tribes, while others again, like Bhuinhar-Munda and
Manki-Munda, have reference to the land and communal system of
the tribe. The Mahili—Munda sub-tribe has the pig for its totem,
and for them pork is tabooed. But appetite has proved stronger
than tradition, and the taboo is satisﬁed by throwing away the head
of the animal, the rest of the carcase being deemed lawful food.
The septs or kih’s, which are very numerous, are mainly totemistic,
and the totem is taboo to the members of the sept which bears its
name. Alist of the septs is given in Appendix I. If it were possible
to identify them all, and to ascertainprecisely to What extent and in
What manner the taboo of the totem is observed by each, the inform-
ation would probably throw much light upon the growth of early
tribal societies.

A Munda may not marry a woman of his own sept. The
sept-name goes by the father’s side, and inter-
marriage with persons nearly related through
the mother is guarded against by reckoning prohibited degrees in the
manner common in Behar. Adult marriage is still in fashion, and
sexual intercourse before marriage is tacitly recognized, but in all
respectable families matches are made by the parents, and the parties
themselves have very little to say in the matter. The bride-price
varies from Rs. 4 to Rs. 20. Sindurddn, or the smearing of vermilion
on the bride’s forehead by the bridegroom and on the bridegroom’s
forehead by the bride, is the essential and binding portion. The
practice described by Colonel Dalton of marrying the bride to a
mat/mat tree and the bridegroom toa mango seems now to have been
abandoned. Traces still survive among the Mundas of a form of
marriage, resembling the Santali nir bolok. It is called dlmko era,
meaning a bride who has entered the household of her own accord.
The children of a woman thus married seem to have an inferior
status in respect of their rights to inherit the landed property of
their father. The late Babu Rakhél Das Héldér, Manager of the
estate of the M aharaja of Chota Nagpur, gave me an illustration of
this fact. Some years ago the mundd or headman of one of the
villages of the Government estate of Barkagarh died, leaving an only
son by a dlmko em wife, and a question was raised as to the latter’s
right to succeed. Under Colonel Dalton’s orders, a number of
headmen of villages were called together, and their opinions were
taken. No decided results, however, could he arrived at. Some
thought the son should get the whole property. Others proposed to
exclude him altogether, and a third party considered him entitled
to maintenance. Eventually the question was compromised by
admitting the son’s right to one-fourth of the land and the whole of
the personal property. The case is a curious comment on the

Internal structure.

Marriage.

 

‘ Dalton, Ethnology, p. 185.

103 . MUNDA.

uncertainty of tribal custom. Widows may marry again by the
ritual known as sagm', in which sindurddn is performed with the left
hand. Divorce is allowed at the instance of either party, and divorced
women are permitted to marry again. In cases of adultery the
seducer is required to pay to the husband the full amount of the
bride-price.

At the head of the Munda religion stands Sing-Bonga, the
sun, 3. beneﬁcent but somewhat inactive deity,
who concerns himself but little with human
affairs, and leaves the details of the executive government of the
world to the gods in charge of particular branches or departments
of nature. Nevertheless, although Sing-Bonga himself does not
send sickness or calamity to men, he may be invoked to avert
such disasters, and in this view sacriﬁces of white goats orwhite
cocks are oﬁered to him by way of appeal from the unjust punish-
ments believed to have been inﬂicted by his subordinates. Next
in rank to Sing-Bonga comes Buru-Bonga or Marang-Buru, also
known as Pat-Sarna, a mountain god, whose visible habitation
is usually supposed to be the highest or most remarkable hill
or rock in the neighbourhood. “ ln Chota N égpur,” says Colonel
Dalton,1 “ a remarkable bluff, near the village of Lodhma, is
the Marang-Buru or Maha-Buru for a Wide expanse of country.
Here people of all castes assemble and sacriﬁce—Hindus, even
Mahomedans, as well as Kols. There is no visible object of worship;
the sacriﬁces are offered on the top of the hill, a bare semi-globular
mass of rock. If animals are killed, the heads are left there, and
afterwards appropriated by the pahan or village priest.” Marang-
Burn is regarded as the god who presides over the rainfall, and is
appealed to in times of drought, as well as when any epidemic
sickness is abroad. The appropriate oﬁering to him is a buffalo.
Ikir Bonga rules over tanks, wells and large sheets of water; Garha-
era is the goddess of rivers, streams and the small springs which occur
on many hill sides in Chota Nagpur; while Nage or N aga-era is a
general name applied to the minor deities or spirits who haunt the
swampy lower levels of the terraced rice-ﬁelds. All of these are
believed to have a hand in spreading disease among men, and require
constant propitiation to keep them out of mischief. White goats
and black or brown cocks are offered to Ikir Bonga, and eggs and
turmeric to the Nage. Deswali or Kara-Same is the god of the
Village who lives with his wife J ahir Burhi or Sarhul-Sarna in
the Sarné or sacred grove, a patch of the forest primeval left
intact, to afford a refuge for the forest gods. Every village has its
own Deswali, who is held responsible for the crops, and receives
periodical worship at the agricultural festivals. His approprlate
offering is a kdré or he-buifalo; to his wife fowls are sacrlﬁced.
Grumi is another of the Sarna deities whose precise functions I have
been unable to ascertain. Bullocks and pigs are sacriﬁced to him
at irregular intervals. Chandor appears to be same as Chando
Omol or Chanala, the moon worshipped by women, as the wife of

Religion.

 

1 Ethnology of Bengal, 188.

MUN DA. 104

Sing Bonga and the motherpof the stars. Colonel Dalton mentions
the legend that she was faithless to her husband, and he cut her in
two, ‘ but repenting of his anger he allows her at times to shine
forth in full beauty.’ Goats are offered to her in the Sarna.
Haprom is properly the homestead, but it is used in a wider sense
to denote the group of dead ancestors who are worshipped in the
homestead by setting apart for them a small portion of every meal
and with periodical offerings of fowls. They are supposed to be
ever on the watch for chances of doing good or evil to their descen-
dants, and the Munda fully realise the necessity for appeasing and
keeping them in good humour.

The festivals of the tribe are the following :-——(1) Sarhul or
Sarjum-Baba, the spring festival correspond-
ing to the Baha or Bah-Bonga of the Santals
and Hos in Chait (March-April) When the sdl tree is in bloom.
Each household sacriﬁces a cock and makes offerings of sdl ﬂowers
to the founders of the village in whose honour the festival is held.
(2) Kadleté. or Batauli in Asarh at the commencement of the
rainy season. “Each cultivator,” says Colonel Dalton, “sacriﬁces
a fowl, and after some mysterious rites a Wing is stripped off and
inserted in the cleft of a bamboo and stuck up in the rice-ﬁeld and
dung-heap. If this is omitted, it is supposed that the rice will not
come to maturity.” (3) Nana or Jom-Nana, the festival of new
rice in Asin when the highland rice is harvested. A white cock
is sacriﬁced to Sing-Bonga, and the ﬁrst fruits of the harvest are
laid before him.. Until this has been done, it would be an act of
impiety to eat the new rice. (4) Kharia puja or Kolom Singh,
called by the Hos Deswali Bonga or Magh Parab celebrating
the harvesting of the winter rice, the main crop of the year. Five
fowls and various vegetables are offered to Deswali, the god of the
village at the Ir/mh'lzan or threshing ﬂoor. Among the Hos of Sing-
bhum the festival is kept as a sort of satumzale, during which the
people give themselves up to drunkenness and all kinds of debauchery.
This is less conspicuously the case with the Mundas of the plateau
who live scattered among Hindu and Christian neighbours, and do
not form a compact tribal community like the Hos of the Kolhan.
The festival, moreover, is kept by the Mundas on one day only, and
is not spread over a month or six weeks, during which time the

eople of different villages vie with each other in dissipation, as
they do in the Kolhz’m.

The funeral ceremonies of Mundas do not differ materially from
those of the Hos, of which Colonel Dalton’s description has been
quoted in the ﬁrst volume of this Glossary.

Succession among the Mundas is governed by their own
customs, which appear to have been little affected
by the influence of Hindu law. Property is
equally divided among the sons, but no division is made until the
youngest son is of age. With them, as with the Santals, daughters
get no share in the inheritance; they are allotted among the sons
just like the live-stock. “ Thus if a man dies, leaving three sons and
three daughters and thirty head of cattle, on a division each son

Festivals.

Succession.

105 ‘ MUNDA.

would get ten head of cattle and one sister ; but should there be only
one sister, they wait till she marries and divide the pom,” or bride-
price, which usually consists of about six head of cattle. Among the
Hos of Singbhum the bride-price is higher than with the Mundas,
and the question of its amount has there been found to affect seriously
the number of marriages.

According to ancient and universal tradition, the central table
land of Chota Nagpur Proper was originally
divided into par/ads or rural communes, com-
prising from ten to twenty-ﬁve villages, and
presided over by a divisional chief, called the rdjd or mz’mda of
the par/2d. In 1839, titular rd/ds of the par/ad were still existing
in the Fiscal Division of Khukra near Ranchi, who retained
considerable authority in tribal disputes, and at times of festival
and hunting. But this element in the Munda village system has now
fallen into decay, and survives only in the jkandds or ﬂags of the
parkd villages, and in the peculiar titles bestowed on the culti-
vators themselves. The exclusive right to ﬂy a particular ﬂag at
the great dancing festivals is jealously guarded by every Munda
village, and serious ﬁghts not unfrequently result from the violation
of this privilege. Besides this, individual villages in a par/2d bear
speciﬁc titles, such as réjci, dz'wdn, Iczmwdr, tied/cur, cit/iota 16!, etc.,
similar to those which prevail in the household of the reigning family,
which obviously refer to some organization which no longer exists.
I am informed that these ofﬁcials still make the arrangements for the
large hunting parties which take place at certain seasons of the

ear.

A K01 village community consists, when perfect, of the following
oflicersz—lednda, mdhato, palm, bizanddré, gordit, godld, and lo/zdr.
Washermen, barbers, and potters have been added since 1839, and
even now are only found near much frequented halting places, and
in villages where the larger Hindu tenure-holders live. The Kols
invariably shave themselves, and their women wash the clothes.

(1) MUNDA.—The mdnda is the chief of the blzm'n/zdrs, or de-
scendants of the original clearers of the village. He is a person
of great consequence in the village; and all demands from the
bkuinhdrs, whether of money or labour, must be notiﬁed by the owner
of the village through the minds. He is remunerated for his trouble
by the blam’nkdré land, which he holds at a low rate of rent, and
receives no other salary. In pargana’. Lodhma, and in the south-
eastern portion of Lohardaga he sometimes performs the md/zato’s

Village communes and
ofﬁcials.

duties as well as his own, and he then gets a small jdgér of half y,

a pdwd of land rent-free.

(2) MAHATO.-—The functions of a md/zato have been compared to
those of a patwdri or village accountant, but he may be more aptly
described as a rural settlement oﬂicer. He allots the land of the
village among the cultivators, giving to each man a goté or clod of
earth as a symbol of possession ; he collects the rent, pays it to the
0Wner, and settles any disputes as to the amount due from the wig/ate ,-
and, in short, manages all pecuniary matters connected with the land.
He is appointed by the owner of the village, and receives one pdwé

MUN DA. 106

of rdjlms land rent-free, as -a jctgér or service-tenure. But the ofﬁce
is neither hereditary nor permanent, and the mdhato is liable to
be dismissed at the landlord’s discretion. Dismissal, however, is
unusual, and the mdhato is often succeeded by his son. Where the
mdhato collects the rents, he almost universally receives a fee, called
bdttd, of half an dnmt from each cultivator, or of one dnmi for every
house in the village. In one village ba’ttd amounts to four dnnds
and a half on every pdwd of land. Occasionally, where there is no
bkanddrt or agent for the owner’s rent-paying land, the mdﬁato gets
three bundles (kamés) of grain in the straw, containing from ten to
twenty sers apiece, at every harvest. Thus during the year he would
receive three bundles of gondlz' from the cold weather crop, and the
same amount from the yard or early rice, and the don or late rice.
In Ichdlsd villages, which are under the direct management of the
Maharajé, the mdkato often holds, in addition to his ofﬁcial jdgér,
a single péwd of land, called klzarcha or rozina Met, from the proceeds
of which he is expected to defray the occasional expenses incurred
in calling upon cultivators to pay their rent, etc.

The functions of the mdhato are shown in greater detail in the
following extract from Dr. Davidson’s Report of 1839 :—-“ On a day
appointed, the thikddér or farmer proceeds to the akhrd or place
of assembly of the village, where he is met by the mdhato, pct/m,
b/Ianddré, and as many of the myats as choose to attend. He pro-
ceeds, agreeably t0 the dictation 0f the mdkato, to write down the '
account of the cultivation of the different myats, stating the number
of pdwds held and the rent paid by each. Having furnished this
account, any new rag/ate who may wish to have lands in the village,
after having the quantity and rent settled, have a goti given to them.
If any of the old myats require any new land, a gotz' is taken for
that, but not for the old cultivation. The mdhato collects the rent
as the instalments become due, according to the above-mentioned
account given to the farmer; and all differences as to the amount of
rent payable by a rayat, if any ever arise, which very seldom happens,
are settled by the opinion of the md/zato. So well does this mode
answer in practice, that in point of fact a dispute as to the amount
of rent owed by a rayat is of rare occurrence. When a farmer
wishes to cheat a rag/at, he accuses him of having cultivated more
land than he is entitled to, or of owing him maswdr or grain-rent
for land held in excess; and if such a thing as a dispute as to the
amount of rent owed ever does arise, the mdhato’s evidence is gene-
rally considered conclusive by both parties.”

(3) PAHN.—The importance of the pdlm, or priest of the village
gods, may be inferred from the current phrase in which his duties
are contrasted with those of the mdkalo. The pdlm, it is said,
“ makes the village ” (gdon bandtd), while the md/zato only “ manages
it” (gdon chaldtd). He must be a blzuinkdr, as no one but a
descendant of the earliest settlers in the village could know how to
propitiate the local gods. He is always chosen from one family ; but
the actual palm is changed at intervals of from three to ﬁve years
by the ceremony of the 812]) or winnowing-fan, which is used as
a divining rod, and taken from house to house by the boys of the

107 MUNDA.

village. The bhuinkdr at whose house the 82210 stops is elected palm.
On the death of a pdlm, he is frequently, but not invariably, succeeded
by his son. Rent-free lands are attached to the ofﬁce of pdlm under
the following names :—(1) Pdlmé, the personal jdgér or service-
tenure of the priest, generally containing one pdwd of land. (2)
Ddhlcatdrz’, for which the pdlm has to make offerings to J ahir Bﬁrhi,
the goddess of the village. It is called ddlikatdm', as it is sup-
posed to defray the expenses of the Karm festival, when a branch
(ddlé) of the karma tree is cut down and planted in the ﬁelds. (3)
Desauh‘, a sort of bﬁutlcketa or devil’s acre, the produce of which is
devoted to a great triennial festival in honour of Desauli, the divinity
of the grove. This land is either cultivated by the palm himself, or
by razyats who pay him rent. (4) Pdnbhdrd and td/zdlu- are probably
the same. Lands held under these names are cultivated by the
palm himself or his near relations; and whoever has them, is bound
to supply water at the various festivals.

(4) BHA‘NDARf.—The bhanddm' or bailiff is the landlord’s agent in
respect of the management of the village. He is usually a Hindu,
and represents the landlord’s point of view in village questions, just
as the palm is the spokesman of the biminlzdrs or original settlers.
He generally holds one pdwd of land rent free from the owner,
receiving also from every raz'yat three kamés or sheaves of each crop
as it is cut—one of gondli, one of early rice, and one of wet rice.
Instead of the land, he sometimes gets Rs. 3 or Rs. 4 in cash, with
12 [cats or 4% cwt. of paddy.

(5) GORAIT.—The gordz’t is, in fact, the chaukéddr or village watch-
man. He communicates the owner’s orders to the miyats, brings
them to the mdkato to pay their rents, and selects coolies when
required for public purposes. As a rule he holds no service land,
but receives the three usual kamés or sheaves from every cultivator.

(6) AHIR or GOA’LA’.-—-Tl16 d/u'r’s duty is to look after the cattle
of the village, and to account for any that are stolen. He is remune-
rated by a payment of one kdt of paddy for each pair of plough-
bullocks owned by the cultivators whose cattle are under his charge.
He also gets the three karaés or sheaves at harvest time, besides
an occasional 822;) or winnowing fan full of paddy. If cows are
under the dhz'r’s charge, the milk of every alternate day is his per-
quisite. In the month of A'glmn (December) he takes ﬁve sers of
milk round to the cultivators, receiving in return pakhérd or 20 sers
of paddy as a free gift. He always pays the dbwdb known as
dddani g/zé, and in some villages has to give the baitkdwdn gké as well.
In a very few cases the dim holds half a pdwd of land rent-free.

(7) LOHA’R.——Th0 lohdr or blacksmith gets one kdt of paddy and
the three kamés for every plough in the village, and is also paid two
or three dnnda for every new phdr or ploughshare. In a very few
villages he holds half a pdwd of land rent-free.

The 11705de or constable and the claaulcéddr or watchman do not
belong to the genuine Munda village system, and need not be
mentioned here.

In the Fiscal Division of Tori the bulk of the inhabitants belong
to the Kharwér sub-tribe of Bhogtas, and the village system differs

\\

MUN DA. 108 MUN J AN IAR.
from that which prevails .on the central plateau. Here the pdim is
the only ofﬁcial who holds service land, and he gets half a mm, or
not quite two standard big/ads. He performs the village pujds, and
often does the work of a mdlzato, when the owuer of the village is
an absentee. But even then the landlord sometimes employs a
bailiﬁ’, called bdr/zz'l, to collect the rents.

In the tract known as the Five Parganés, including Tamar,
Bundu, Silli, Babe, and Baranda, as well as in the Mdn/cipatté, or
that part of Sénpur pargand which borders on Singbhum district, we
meet with mdnlcis and mr’mdas who are undoubtedly the descendants
of the original chiefs, and still hold the villages which their ancestors
founded. Here the par/2d divisions exist in their entirety, as groups
of from twelve to twenty-{our villages. each of which has its own
mimda or village head; while the whole commune is subject to
a divisional headman called manki, who collects the ﬁxed rents payable
by the mz’mdas. The chief village Ofﬁcer is the palm, who holds from
one to ﬁve kdts of land rent-free as da’lz‘katdrz'. 1:121: in this sense is
a measure of land analogous to, if not identical with, the khandé of
the Kolhan in Singbhum, and denotes the quantity of land which
can be sown with one kdt of seed. In this part of the country the
mz’mda sometimes has a deputy called dz’u-dn who assists him to
collect his rents, and b/zanddrés are occasionally met with.

Mundabérik, a class of bar- Mundu or Badar, a dense -

bers in Chota Nagpur who only
shave Mundas.

Munda-Kharié, a sub-caste of
Khariés in Chota Nagpur.

MundaLohér, a sub-caste of
Lohérs in Lohardaga.

Mundé-Mahili, a sub-caste of
Mahilis in Chota Nagpur.

Munda-Ménjh‘i, a sub-tribe of
Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Munda-Oraon, a sub-tribe of
Oraons in Chota Nagpur.

Mundiba, mahud tree, a
totemistic sept of J wings in
Orissa.

Mundoraj, a tree, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Uhota Nagpur.

Mundra, a section of Mahesris
in Behar.

Mundri, quail, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Chota Nag-
pur.

 

jungle, a sub-sept of the Saren
sept of Santéls.

Munduah, small mushroom, a
totemistic sept of Juéngs in
Orissa.

Munduia, a sept of Hos in
Singbhum.

Mundus, a section of the
Kulsunri sub-caste of Sunris in
Behar.

Munga, coral, a totemistic sept
of Kharwars in Chota Nagpur;
a section of the Karan sub~caste
of Kayasths in Behar.

Munga Ség, a vegetable, a
totemistic sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Muniar-Ga‘njhu, a sub.caste
of Kharwars in Hazaribagh.

M um’s, an agricultural labourer.

Munjaniar, a fruit from
which oil is made, a totemistic
sept of Ohiks in Chota Nagpur.

MUN J N IAR.

Munjniar, a wild creeper, a
totemistic sept of Oraons in
Chota Nagpur.

Munri, fried rice, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Munshi, an honorary title of
Brahmans.

Munsif, an honorary title of
Kéyasths in Bengal.

Muntri, a section of Goalas in
Behar.

Mura, a synonym for Munda,
an honoriﬁc title bestowed in
Bankura on the eldest son of
a well-to-do cultivator of the
Bhumij tribe. See Ménki.

' Mimic, a synonym for Koiri.
Muréri, Murdh', a corruption
of Mundari, sometimes used out-

side of Chota Nagpur as a
synonym for Munda.

Murba, a section of the Dhap-
rat and Paehainya sub-caste of
Doms in Behar.

Murchulia, a sept of Pans
in Chota Nagpur.

109

 

MURIARI.

Murdéfarash, a sub-caste of
Doms in Bengal who attend to
the cremation and disposal of
dead bodies, or undertakers, each
in charge of a burning gkdt.
They do the same work as

Gangaputras, but the latter rank
higher.

Murga, cook, a totemistic sept
of Oraons in Ghota Nagpur.

Murgear, a section of Kharias
in Chota Nagpur.

Murgi, hen, a totemistic sept
of Binjhias and Kharwars in
Chota Nagpur. .

Murhia or Sebaka', a group
of the Panda sub-caste of Utkal

- Brahmans in Orissa.

Muri, a totemistic sept of Kor-
was in Chota Nagpur whose
ancestors made a chat/d of four
sculls and cooked their dinner;
a sept of Mundas Whose totem is
wild fowl.

Muria or Muriéri, a sub-caste
of Mallahs in Behar.

ﬁnriari, Mariydm', a boating, ﬁshing, and cultivating caste of

. . Behar.
Origin.

Malas, was of opinion that

connect them with the Kewat.

The origin of the Muriari is uncer-
tain. Buchanan,‘ who calls them Mariyari

they belonged to an aboriginal race
from the upper valley of the Ganges.

Other authorities, however,

Their only tradition is the some-

what vague one that their progenitor was a certain Kal Das, who

came from ‘the south country.’

The Muriyari marry their daughters as infants or as adults

Marriage.

according to their means, the former practice
being of course the more fashionable of the two.

Polygamy is sanctioned in theory, but is found too expensive in

actual life for many to indulge in it.

A widow may marry again by

sagai. She is expected to marry her husband’s younger brother if he

leaves one, but otherwise her choice is free.

Divorce is not allowed.

Their religion, marriage ceremony, funeral Observances, and

Religion.

so forth, are of the orthodox type. Maithil
Brahmans act as their priests, and are said to

 

’ Martin’s Eastern India, i, 172.

\\

MURIARI. I 10 MURMI.

incur no social degradation by doing so. Bandi, Parameshwari,
and the Panch Pir are their favourite minor gods, to whom they
offer ﬂowers, betel leaves, sweetmeats, etc., in a part of their own
houses which is plastered with cow-dung for the occasion and called
gosamghar.
The social position of the Muriyari is much the same as that
S . of Grangotas, Kurmis, and Koiris, and Brahmans
ocial status. . . .

Wlll take water and certain kinds of sweetmeats
from their hands. Their diet is that of most orthodox Hindus,
except that, like most of the boating and ﬁshing castes, they indulge
freely in spirits. In Bhégalpur Muriyaris who have taken to culti-
vation call themselves Maghaya’, and profess to look down upon
the boating and ﬁshing members of the caste, whom they represent
as having come from the North.Western Provinces. It is not clear
that this divergence of occupation has as yet led to the formation of
two distinct sub-castes. The cultivating section of the caste, indeed,
appears not to be a very strong one, and few of its members have
risen above the status of a non-occupancy raiyat, while many are
landless day-labourers paid in cash or kind. In this connexion it
deserves notice that in Arrah, where the Mariyari are very numerous,
they are employed as ferrymen, boatmen, and ﬁshermen, but refuse
to carry palanquins or to settle down as cultivators. Many large
boats manned by them arrive at the Véruni fair in November, laden
with pulse and other vegetable products.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
the Muriéri caste in 1881 :—

Monghyr 385
Bhagalpur 272
Purniah 1,764
Maldah 1,051
Santal Parganés . 255

Murkia, a section of Mahesris in Behar.

g’ﬂurmi, Tamcmg Bkotz’a, Ishdng, Sam, a Mongolian or semi-

I t 1 t t Mongolian caste, who claim to be among the

H mm S rue um earliest settlers in Nepal. About their origin
little is known, nor do their own traditions throw much light upon
the question ; but their physical characteristics, and the fact that
their exogamous divisions (thaws) bear Tibetan names, seem to lend
support to the opinion that they are descended from a Tibetan stock,
modiﬁed more or less by intermixture with Nepalese races. Like
most Himalayan castes, the Murmis have a large number of than,
which are shown in Appendix I. The form of exogamy observed is
the simple one that a man may not marry a woman of his own timr.
For the rest marriage is regulated by the standard formula mamem,
chow/rem, etc., calculated to seven generations in the descending line.
In the case of descents through females these prohibitions are not so
strictly observed, and public opinion does not disapprove of marriages
with tolerably near relatives, provided that the primary rule of
marrying outside the Mar is not departed from. The question of
prohibited degrees among the Murmis is greatly complicated by the
rules regarding adoptive brotherhood (mit/a, dosti, kanyaketi)—a

111 MURMI. '

very obscure subject which I have been unable to work out thorough-
ly. When a man desires to adopt another man as his brother, he
sends a message intimating his feelings, and if the reply is favourable
presents are exchanged. A day is then ﬁxed for the performance of
the regular ceremony, at which a Brahman ofﬁciates as priest. The
two friends stand facing one another, each with a rupee at his feet.
The rupees are solemnly interchanged, and the pair bedaub one
another between the eyebrows with the mixture of rice and curds
used in the marriage ceremony. A fee of Re. 1 is paid to the
Brahman, and the proceedings end with a feast.

The ﬁctitious relationship thus established is regarded as
equivalent to actual kinship. The adopted
brothers may not address or speak of one
another by name, nor may they talk to each other’s wives, even
though these may have taken part in the ceremony. Their descend-
ants, agaln, are supposed not to intermarry till seven generations
have passed. Some, indeed, say that this prohibition extends to the
entire than and enumerate several thaws which may not intermarry
by reason of their founders having contracted mit/z. Others, again,
say that miﬂz can only be entered into by members of the same
tkar, whose descendants in the ﬁrst generation would in any case be
forbidden to intermarry. Great importance is attached to the
observance of the rules connected with mit/z. In British territory
a man who infringes them by marrying a woman within the for-
bidden degrees is punished by exclusion from the caste, and no
Murmi will eat, drink, or smoke with him. In Nepal the penalties
are said to be far more severe: the olfender is denounced as
kdr-plmrd, and is liable to be sold as a slave, or, according to some
accounts, to be punished capitally. Murmis may contract mitlz with
Bhotias, Lepchas, Limbus, Khambus, Yakhas, Mangars, Gurungs,
and Sunwars; and members of the last six castes may even be
admitted into the Murmi community.

With the Murmis, as with most of the Himalayan castes, adult-
marriage prevails, and sexual intercourse before marriage is tolerated,
it being understood that if a girl becomes pregnant she will disclose
the name of her lover, and he will come forward to marry her. A
bride-price (sot) of Rs. 50 to Rs. 60 in ornaments and cash is paid
to the bride’s parents. The marriage takes place at night in the
house of the bride. A Lama ofﬁciates as priest and besmears the
foreheads of the couple with a mixture of curds and rice. The
bridegroom then puts vermilion on the bride’s forehead and the
parting of her hair and changes places with her, after whlch the
Lama brings their heads together so that their foreheads touch
(lagam). This is deemed the binding portion of . the ceremony.
Polygamy is permitted, but is not much resorted to 1n practice, and
it is unusual to ﬁnd a Murmi with more than one Wife. WldOWS
are not allowed to marry again by the regular ritual; but they
may be kept as mistresses, and the children of women so kept are
said to be considered not inferior to those born in regular wedlock.
Divorce is permitted on the ground of adultery or unsuitabllity

Marriage.

\\

MURMI. 112

of temper. Divorced wives may not marry again, but become
concubines on the same terms as widows. ‘ .

In the matter of inheritance the Murmis follow a tribal custom
of their own. Sons inherit in equal shares ; failing sons, the father
succeeds; then the daughters take equal shares. Failing daughters,
the widow inherits, and in any case she must be maintained by the
persons who succeed to the property.

The religion of the caste is not easy to deﬁne. We may discern in
it a substratum of primitive animism overlaid
by elements borrowed from Hinduism, and, less
freely, from Buddhism. Everything tends towards gradual adop-
tion of the Nepalese form of Hinduism, and Buddhist usages are
believed to be on the decline, though the Lama still serves as priest
at a Murmi wedding, and ﬂags stamped with the sacred om may
be seen ﬂying in Murmi villages. _Notwithstanding this general
tendency towards the triumph of Hinduism, some of the popular
deities of the caste seem to belong to an earlier type. The stone
fetish called Thangbaljho is honoured by winding cloth round
it and sprinkling rice on its top; and every September goats
and fowls are sacriﬁced and their blood poured forth on the
stone. Similar offerings are made to Purbujé devaté, a forest god
who lives in a tree and Visits with fever and rheumatism those
who neglect his worship. Bhim Singh, one of the Pandava brothers,
is worshipped at the Durga Puja with sacriﬁces of buffaloes, goats,
fowls, and ducks. Sherkijho is a fetish of ill-deﬁned attributes;
while Gyong and Changreshi appear to be deiﬁed Lamas. Behind
these again are the village and household gods, a shifting and
shadowy multitude, which no man can number or describe, clamouring,
like the ghosts who crowded round Odysseus, for their share of
sacriﬁce and libation.

Brahmans have not yet been called in to organize this chaotic
Pantheon. Their functions are conﬁned to presiding over the
ceremony of with, and occasionally assisting at the worship of some
of the standard Hindu gods. The daily religion of the caste is
looked after by Lamas or by any Murmi who has a turn for cere-
monial ministration. -

The rich burn their dead and preserve a piece of bone to be
deposited in a private gumpa. The ordinary
practice is to bury, the body being laid in the
grave with the head to the north and ﬁre applied to the mouth.
A small enclosure roofed in with a big stone is built round the
grave, a cairn is piled on the stone, and a ﬂag is planted hard by.
For seven days after death the relatives of the deceased observe
formal mourning and do not eat salt with their food. On the
eighth day a propitiatory offering of meat, rice, eggs, plantains,
and sweetmeats is presented at the grave, and a feast is given
by the chief mourner. For the next six months small daily offer-
ings are made in the house to a piece of cloth torn from the shroud
of the deceased: at the end of that time a Lama is called in and
the ﬁnal ceremony is performed.

Religion.

Disposal of the dead.

MURMI. 113 MUSAHAR.
The bulk of the Murmi caste are cultivators, and regard agricul-
ture as their original and ﬁtting occupation.
Many of them serve in the police, and Lama
Murmis are enlisted as recruits by the 1st Gurkhas. In Nepal
they are not reckoned among the regular ﬁghting castes, but they
are admitted into the Kirénti regiments raised by J ang Bahadur
some thirty years ago. A considerable number are employed as
labourers on the tea gardens near Darjiling. In the matter. of
diet they have few scruples: they eat beef, pork, fowls, and frogs,
and indulge freely in spirituous liquors. Notwithstanding this,
their social status in the Himalayan region is respectable, and
Nepalese Brahmans and Chattris will take water and sweetmeats
from their hands. They themselves eat with Limbus, Khambus,
Lepchas, and Bhotias.

In. 1872 the Murmis numbered 6,557 in Darjiling and 23 in
J alpigori, while in 1881 they numbered 5,324 only in Darjiling.

Murti, asection of the sat-
mulia Maghaya sub-caste of
Kandus in Behar.

Murum, stag, a totemistio sept
of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Murwé, a section of the

Occupation and status.

Murmu, nilgao, a totemistie
section of Kurmis in Chota N ag-
pur and Orissa; a sept of Hos
and Santals.

Murmuér, a totemistic section
of Mahilis in Manbhum, the

members of which will not touch,
kill, or eat the murmu or nilgai.

Murmurwar, a sept of Khar-
wars in Chota Nagpur.

Muro. a sub-sept of the Mur-
mu sept of Santals.

Muromah, a sept of Mundas
in Chota Nagpur.

Murtel, a thar of the Gargya
gotra of N epali Brahmans.

 

Tirhutiya sub-caste of Doms in

Behar.

Mus, rat, a totemistic sept of
Goalas, Chamars, and Kharwars
in Chota Nagpur; a section of
Kurmis in Uhota Nagpur and
Orissa; a totemistic sept of Chiks
and Doms.

Musa 0r Musu, mouse, a to-
temistic sept of Mundas and

Pans in Chota Nagpur.

ﬁnsahar, Bkm'yd, ded Banrdj, Bannadmtsh, a Dravidian

cultivating and servile caste of Behar, who appear to be an offshoot
from the Bhuiya tribe of Chota Nagpur. The grounds for this
opinion are stated at length in the article Bhuiyé and need not be
repeated here. The question of the origin of the caste has been
examined by Mr. J. C. Nesﬁeld in an elaborate monograph on
The Mushems of Central and Upper India, published in the Calcutta
Review for January 1888. ,
Mr. Nesﬁeld’s inquiries into the traditions of the Musahars
(as I prefer to spell the name) tend to connect
them with the Uherus and Savars, who play a
prominent part in the legendary history of the
Ganges valley. From this it would follow, if the standard classrﬁca-
tion be accepted, that the Musahars belong to the Kolarian group of

h

Origin according to
Mr. Nesﬁeld.

MUSAHAR.‘ 114

tribes, while my hypothesis would class them among the Dravidians.
The distinction, however, between Kolarian and Dravidian appears
to me, and, I believe, also to Mr. Nesﬁeld, to rest solely upon
peculiarities of language, which in this case at any rate do not
correspond to real differences of race. If the test of language is
rejected, and We look only to physical characteristics, the so-called
Dravidians and Kolarians can only be regarded as local varieties of
one and the same stock. This being so, there is really no material
difference between Mr. Nesﬁelcl’s view and my own. He connects
the Musahars of the North-Western Provinces with the Dravidian
Savars and Cherus; I trace the Musahars of Behar to the equally
Dravidian Bhuiyas of Southern Chota Nagpur. Both hypotheses
may conceivably be correct. We both agree in thinking the Musa-
hars a fragment of some Dravidian tribe recently and imperfectly
absorbed into the Hindu caste system; and if this main point he
conceded, it is not very important to determine from which of the
known Dravidian tribes the fragment was broken oﬁ‘.

1 The meaning and derivation of the name Musahar have often
begn discussed, and Mr. N esﬁeld has the following remarks on the
su ject :—

“ The name given to the tribe in this essay has been spelt
throughout as M ushéra, which is a slight departure from the spelling
or spellings hitherto adopted in English books. The name has
been supposed to be made up of two Hindi words signifying ‘rat-
taker.’ Hence in Buchanan’s Eastern India they are described
as a people ‘who have derived their name from eating rats.’ But
rat-catching or rat-eating is by no means the peculiar, or even a
prominent, characteristic of the tribe; and the name in Upper
India at least is pronounced by the natives of the country as
Mushera, and not as Mﬁsahar (rat-taker) or Mﬁsarha (rat-killer).
In an old folk-tale which has recently come to my knowledge, the
name is made to signify ﬂesh-seeker or hunter, being derived from
mdsd, ‘ ﬂesh,’ and Ize’m, ‘ seeker,’ and a legend is told as to the event
which led to the tribe being driven to maintain itself by hunting
wild animals. This is a more comprehensive title than rat-catcher,
besides resting on better authority. Probably, however, both deriva-
tions are fanciful,—Hindi versions of a name which is not of
Hindi origin. It is certain that the more isolated members of the
tribe, who still speak a language of their own unconnected with Hindi,
call themselves by a name which sounds like Mushéra; and it is
not likely that men who have preserved their original speech con.
tinuously for so many centuries would. have designated themselves
by a name borrowed from a foreign language.

“ There are one or two other names by which the tribe is
known besides Mushéra. In all the districts of Oudh in which the
tribe is found, they are commonly, and in some places exclusively,
known by the title of Banmanush, or man of the forest. The
name Banmanush is of purely Hindi origin; and though intended
to be a term of reproach applied by Hindus to a people from
whom they stand aloof as impure and savage, it has been accepted
by Mushéras themselves, many of whom scarcely know themselves

1'15 MUSAHAR.

by any other title, and all of whom are entirely ignorant of its
origin and meaning. Other names, less commonly known or used,
are Deosiya, derived from their great ancestor Deosi; Banraj, or
king of the forest, a less contemptuous, or perhaps an ironical, form
of the name Banmanush; and Maskhan, or eater of ﬂesh, another
form of the name Maséhra or Mushéra. Sometimes, if a Mushéra
is asked to which of the great Indian castes he belongs, he will
tell you that he is an Ahir, or rather a subdivision of Ahir, the
caste of cowherd; and he appears to be rather anxious to have his
title to this honour recognized. But in point of fact he has no
claim to any such lineage. Mushéras are the hereditary enemies
of Ahirs, as all their legends testify, and many are the petty
raids that they have made against them for the possession of cattle
and forest.”

I am myself inclined to believe that the popular etymology
“rat-catcher” or rat-eater is the true one, and that the word is an
opprobrious epithet bestowed by the Hindus on the caste with reference
to their fondness for eating ﬁeld-rats. From Vedic times down to the
present day we ﬁnd the promiscuous habits of the non-Aryans
in respect of food exciting the special aversion of the Aryan colonists
and forming the basis of depreciatory names which tend to sup-
plant the original tribal designation. It can hardly be expected
that the givers of contemptuous names should be guided by a nice
sense of scientiﬁc precision, and would stop to consider whether
the practice of eating rats was really the peculiar or prominent
characteristic of a particular tribe. The nickname would be
bestowed at random, and it is conceivable that even in the same part
of the country it might be conferred upon several different tribes.

The internal structure of the caste is shown in Appendix I. So

I t 1 t tum far as I can ascertain, the only sub~castes are

H mm s we ' Tirhu’tié and Maghaiyé, and it is doubtful
whether the distinction between these amounts to true endogamy or
represents anything more than the fact that marriage between families
living on opposite sides of the Ganges is comparatively uncommon.
The divisions Rikhmun and Balakmun appear now to be purely
titular groups, which bear no deﬁnite relation to marriage. It is a
plausible conjecture that they were at one time exogamous sections,
which broke up into smaller groups and thus lost their exogamous
character. On the north of the Ganges the system of exogamy
followed by the Tirhutia Musahars is very elaborate, and a man
may not marry a woman belonging to his own section, or the
sections of which his mother and his paternal and maternal grand-
mothers were members. If, again, the excluded ascendants of a
particular couple happened to be of the same section, the marriage
is forbidden, although the boy and girl themselves belong to diﬁerent
sections. Among the more primitive Musahars further south the
simpler rule prevails that a man may not marry a woman of his own
section. This is the case also among the Bhuiyas; and there seem
to be grounds for inspecting that the minute regulations which the
Tirhutia Musahars affect to observe have been borrowed by them
from some of their Hindu neighbours.

It 2

\\

MUSAHAR. 116

On the north of the Ganges, Tirhutié Musahars are said to

Marriage practise infant-marriage; while in Shahabad

' girls are usually not married until they have

passed the age of puberty, and sexual intercourse before marriage is

said to be tolerated. A bride-price of Rs. 2 is paid for a virgin, but

the tender is reduced to half if there are reasons to doubt her

integrity. The marriage ceremony is based on the Hindu model,

and does not differ materially from that in vogue among other low
castes in Behar. The well-known formula——

Ganga ka pani samundar ki sank

Bar Kanya jag jag anand

(May Ganges water and sea-shell betide
Enduring bliss to bridegroom and to bride)

is recited by one of the elders present, and water and rice are
sprinkled on the bridegroom’s head. The bride is then lifted by
her mother, and the bridegroom marks her forehead ﬁve times with
vermilion. Consummation follows at once, and the married couple
usually leave for the bridegroom’s house next day.

Polygamy is said to be unknown. The remarriage of widows
by the sagm' form is permitted, and is not fettered by the common
condition requiring the widow to marry her late husband’s younger.
brother. Divorce is allowed, with the sanction of the caste pan-
chayat, for inﬁdelity on the part of the wife. The husband breaks
in two a piece of dried grass (It/2dr) in the presence of the panchayat,
and formally renounces his wife by saying that in future he will
look upon her as his mother. Divorced women may marry again
by the ritual appointed in the case of widows.

The religion of the Musahars illustrates with remarkable
clearness the gradual transformation of the
fetichistic animism characteristic of the more
primitive Dravidian tribes into the debased Hinduism practised in
the lower ranks of the caste system. Among the standard gods of
the Hindu Pantheon, Kali alone is admitted to the honour of regular
worship. To her the men of the caste sacriﬁce a castrated goat,
and the women offer ﬁve Wheaten cakes with prayers that her favour
may be shown to them in the pains of childbirth. In parts of Gya
and Hazaribagh an earlier stage of her worship may be observed.
Her shrine stands at the outskirts of the village, and she is regarded
as a sort of local goddess, to be appeased on occasion, like the
Thakurani Mai of the Hill Bhuiyas, by the sacriﬁce of a hog. It is
curious to observe that the deﬁnite acceptance of Kali as amember of
the Hindu system seems rather to have detracted from the respect in
which she was held before she assumed this comparatively orthodox
position. Her transformation into a. Hindu goddess seems to have
rendered her less malignant. Her worship, though ostensibly put
forward as the leading feature of the Musahar religion, seems to be
looked upon more as a tribute to social respectability than as a
matter vitally affecting a man’s personal welfare Kali, or Debi
Mai, as she is commonly called, may be appeased by an occasional

Religion.

117 MUSAHAR.

sacriﬁce, but the Birs require to be kept constantly in good humour, i
or they may do serious mischief. The six Birs or heroes known as
'l‘ulsi Bir, Rikmun, Ram Bir, Bhawar Bir, Asan Bir, and Charakh
Bir are believed to be the spirits of departed Musahars who exercise
a highly malignant activity from the world of the dead. Rikmun is
often spoken of -as the parka or ancestor of the caste, and when
a separate sacriﬁce is oifered to him the worshipper recites the names
of his own immediate forefathers. On ordinary occasions the Birs
are satisﬁed with offerings of sweetmeats prepared in ghi, but
once in every two or three years they demand a collective sacriﬁce of
a. more costly and eluborate character. A pig is provided, and
country liquor, with a mixture of rice, molasses, and milk is oﬁered
at each of a number of balls of clay which are supposed to represent
the Birs.l Then a number of Bhakats or devotees are chosen, one
for each Bir, with the advice and assistance of a Brahman, who
curiously enough is supposed to know the mind of each Bir as to the
ﬁtness of his minister. The shaft of a plough and a stout stake
being ﬁxed in the ground, crossed swords are attached to them, and'
the Bhakats having worked themselves up into a sort of hypnotic
condition, go through a variety of acrobatic exercises on the upturned
sword-blades. If they pass through this uninjured, it is understood
that the Birs accept the sacriﬁce. The pig is then speared to death
with a sharp bamboo stake, and its blood collected in a pot and
mixed with country liquor. Some of this compound is poured forth
on the ground and on the balls of clay, while the rest is drunk by
the Bhakats. The ceremony concludes with a feast in which the
worshippers partake of the offerings.

The Musahars have not yet attained to the dignity of keeping
Brahmans of their own, though they call in
Brahmans as experts to ﬁx auspicious days for
marriages and important religious ceremonies, to assist in naming
children, and even to interpret the will of characteristic Musahar
deities like the Birs. In the matter of funeral ceremonies the
tendency is to imitate Hindu usage. A meagre version of the
standard srddd/z is performed about ten days after death, and once
a year, usually in the month of October, regular oblations are made for
the beneﬁt of deceased ancestors. It deserves notice that with
Musahars, as with Doms, the sister’s son of the deceased oﬁiciates as
priest at the STddd/l.

The social status of the caste is pretty closely deﬁned by the

g , 1 t t a fact that they will eat any kind of food with

"mm H u' all Hindu castes except Chamars, Dosadhs,
Dhobi, Dom, and Mihtar, but Doms alone will take food from them.
In matters of diet they have few scruples, eating pork, fowls, frogs,
tortoises, alligators, jackals, cats, wild and tame snakes, snails, and
various sorts of lizards, particularly the gosamp or iguana, while
ﬁeld-rats are esteemed a special delicacy. Beef and the ﬂesh of

Priesthood.

 

‘ Some speak of the balls as the “houses" of_the Birs, but this seems
to be a modern reﬁnement on the primitive idea, Whlch recognizes no distinc-
tion between the god himself and the fetish thh represents hlm.

\\

MUSAHAR. 118

horses and donkeys they-hold to be forbidden. In the North-West
Provinces, according to Mr. Nesﬁeld, the Dolkérha or palanquin-
bearing Musahars eat horse ﬂesh and keep fowls, while the Pahari
and Dehéti sub-tribes abstain from both, and regard the horse as
atabooed animal, whom it is sin for a Musahar to touch. The Paharis,
however, eat beef when they can get it, and are only deterred from
extensive cattle-lifting by their fear of the pugnacious grazier castes.
Musahars are skilled, too, above other men in the knowledge of
forest products, and use for food a number of roots, leaves, and fruits
of which the ordinary Hindu knows nothing. They will not,
however, cut or injure the Icm'lmr tree, which is also held sacred by
the Chamars.

In Behar the bulk of the caste are ﬁeld-labourers and palanquin-

Occupation bearers, and only a few have attained to the

' dignity of cultivating on their own account, or

have become possessed of occupancy rights. Further west the hill
Musahars, described by Mr. Nesﬁeld, “do not even know the use
of the plough.” but burn patches of forest and raise small crops in
the ashes. Wherever the caste is found they strive to eke out the
scanty yield of their agricultural labours by a variety of semi-savage
pursuits, their heritage from more primitive modes of life. The
rearing of tamr silkworms, collecting stick-lac, resin and gum,
making catechu, supplying Baidyas and Pansaris with indigenous.
drugs, stitching leaf plates and cutting wood for sale—all these may
be reckoned amorlg the characteristic occupations of the Musahar.
We may add the watching of ﬁelds and crops by night, which
Mr. Nesﬁeld shrewdly connects with the notion that the Banmanush,
or “man of the forest” (a common designation of Musahars), is
best able to propitiate the primeval deities whose ancient domain
has been invaded by the plough. An interesting parallel may be
found in Colonel Dalton’s statement that in Keonjhar, Bonai, and
other Tributary States to the south the Bhuiyas, whom I hold to be
the parent tribe from which the Musahars have sprung, “retain in
their own hands the priestly duties of certain old shrines to the
exclusion of Brahmans.” The whole subject of the occupations
of the Musahars is discussed with the utmost thoroughness in
Mr. Nesﬁeld’s admirable monograph.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Musahars in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Drsrmcr. 1872. 1881. DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Bardwan .. 3 Gya ... .. 60,895 16,247
ﬁ-Paﬁgﬁnas d... ...... I; ShahabadM ...ﬂ 10,117 13,213

urs e aba ... ...... 1,09 -. . ozu erpur 33,555
Dinajpur .. ...... 45 Tub“ {Darbhanga . } 83’668 66,822
Rangpur ...... 17 Saran .. 5,317 6,465
Bogra ...... 18 1 Champaran 26,844. 38,053
Darjiling ...... 883 lMonghyr 112,585 123,337
Faridpur ...... 1 Bhagalpur ... 69,907 79,584
Maimansinh ...... 159 Purniah ... ... 20,014 31,225
Chittagong ...... 6 Santal Parganas 10,353 18,548
Maldah ...... 139 Hazaribagh 4,297 8,753
Patna ... 27,208 36,884 Lohardaga ... 54:

 

 

MUSALMA’NIA’.

Musalménié or Turk-Nam, a
sub-caste of Hajjams in Behar
Who are Mahomedans.

Musamié, a section of Kamar-
kalla Sonars in Behar.

Musawz'r, a painter.

Mushahar, a subdivision of
Bhuiyas—low Bhuiyas as distin-
guished from the higher Ghatwal
Bhuiyas. The former take ser-
vice, while the latter do not.

Mushrif, an honorary title of
Kayasthe in Bengal.

Musipur, a group of Maghaiya
Telis in Bengal.

Mustauﬁ, an honorary title of
Kéyasths in Bengal.

119

 

MUTRIAR-

Musuhang, the lowland chief,
a sept of the Phedéb sub-tribe of
Limbus in Darjiling.

Mutabar, a title of Kapalis,
signifying a headman of the

\ panchayat of the caste.

Mutai, a thaw or sept of Damis
in Darjiling Whose chief profes-
s1on ls sewmg.

Muthé, a section of Kore’mch
Kandus; a title of headman
among the Kandh tribe in
Orissa.

Muthbéri, a ﬂaw or section of
Nepali Brahmans.

Mutri, a sept of Mundas in
Ohota Nagpur.

Mutriar, a sept of Lohérs' in
Chota Nagpur.

\\

NABIK.

Nébik, a title of Kaibarttas.

Néd, a title of Bangaja
Kayasths.

Nadhié, a section of Goalas
in the N orth-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Nadi Samp, river snake, a
totemistic sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Nég, “snake,” a totemistic
section of the Kumhar, Koiri,
and Rajwar castes in Chota
Nagpur, the members of which
will not touch or kill a snake; a
title of Kayasths; of the A’ut
sub-caste of Gandhabaniks; a
totemistic section of Nunias; a
family title of Kashta Baidyas;
a section of Binjhieis, Barais,
Baruis, Rautiés; a totemistic sept
of Ahirs, Bairagis, Bedias,
Birhors, Chamars, Bhuiyés, Khar-
wars, and Nagesars in Chota
Nagpur; a section of Goalas and

120 '

 

NA’GAR.

N

a sept of Béjputs in Behar ; asept
of Asuras, Gonds; a section of
Kahars, Kharias ; a section of
Chiks or Pans in Chota Nagpur;
of Telis in Bengal; a totemistic
section of Khandaits; of Kamars
in Singbhum and the Santal
Parganés; of Dhanuks and Doms ;
a sub—sept of the Kisku sept of
Santéls; atitle of Senkhéris; a.
section of Mals in Bankura; a
sept of Bhumij, Mundas, Santéls.
Lohars, Parhaiyas, Pators; a title
of, Mayaras in Bengal.

Négé, Na’ger, Na’gaba’s, nga-
makanta, (i) corruption of Nanga,
‘naked;’ a small sect of reli-
gious mendicants, many or most
of whom have now taken to
cultivation, call themselves a
caste, and are regarded by other
people as low-caste Brahmans;
they take alms at srddd/zs : (ii) a
title of Maharashtriya Brahmans.

Nagar, a section of Goélés in
Behar.

gﬁégar, a small cultivating caste of Bhégalpur and the Santél

Parganés.

Origin and internal

structure.

The afﬁnities of the Négars are
obscure. They have lost their original sections,

and the whole caste now professes to belong to

the deynpa gotra, a section-name borrowed from the Brahmanical
system and inoperative for the purpose of controlling intermarriage.
They are divided into ﬁve sub-castes—Jetha ut, Pulauns, Négbansi,
Kéthautié, Bhétnégar. Of these all are endogamous except the
ﬁrst two, which have begun to intermarry within the last ﬁfteen
years. In all the sub-castes the degrees prohibited for marriage
are deﬁned by the formula chaclzerd, mamera’, etc., calculated to
seven generations in the descending line.

Both infant and adult-marriage are in vogue, and polygamy
is recognized in the event of the ﬁrst wife
being barren. The marriage ceremony is of
the standard low-o .ste type, siudurddn being its essential portion.

Marriage.

NAGAR.

L121

NAGER.

Widows may marry again by the sagai form, and are subject to no
restrictions in their choice of a husband. Divorce is not permitted.
In their religious and ceremonial Observances Nagars do not

Religion.

appear to depart materially from the standard
ordinances of popular Hinduism. They employ

Brahmans as their priests, who are received on terms of equality by

other members of the sacred order.

Their social status is low, and they rank just above the Dosadhs,

Social status.

with whom they will smoke, using the same

hookah. Neither Brahmans nor members of the
castes from whom Brahmans can take water will accept water from

the hands of a Nagar.

Some few have risen to the position of

tenure-holders, but the large majority of the caste are occupancy
or non-occupancy raiyats and landless day-labourers.
The following statement shows the number and distribution of

Nagars in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Murshedabad 2,463 Monghyr 7,876 9,784
Dinajpur ...... 4 Bhagalpur 3,998 2,284
J alpigori ...... 94 Purniah 2,853 1.030
Shahnbad 2 ...... Maldah ...... 12,319
Darbhanga 696 473 Santa} Parganas 211 24.7
Champaran l 254. 171

 

 

Négar, a hypergamous group
of Maithil Brahmans; in Behar
a synonym for Nat, qxv.

ngarckz', a synonym for
Démi in Darjiling.

Nagare-Chhutér, a sub-caste
of Sutradhars in the Santél Par-
ganas.

Nagarié, a section of the
Banodhia and J aiswar Kalwars
in Behar.

4 Négasé. an eponymous section
of Karans and Khandaits in
Orissa.

Négésan, a mu! or section of
the Naomulia or Goria sub-caste
of Goalés in Behar.

Négasya, a section of Telis
in Chota Nagpur.

Négbans, cobra, a totemistic
sept of Oraons in Chota Nagpur.

Négbansi, (i) in Behar a sec-
tion of Babhans and also of

 

Dosédhs and Négars; a sept of
Rajputs; a title of Tambulis; (ii)
in Chota Nagpur a sub-tribe of
pseudo-Réjputs, probably of Dra-
vidian descent, to Which the
Maharaja of Chota Nagpur
belongs; a title of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Négbansi MundaI a sub-tribe
of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Négbasriér, a section of Kur-
mis in Chota Nagpur and
Orissa.

Nag-Olakang Shakzng, a syn-
onym for Sherpa Bhotia of
Nepal.

Négduar, a water insect, a.
totemistic sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Nagen, a sept of Limbus in
Darjiling.
Nager, a maker of stones for

rin s, an occupation followed by
Ma omedans.

'\\

N A’GESAR. 122 NA’IA’R-

gﬂégmar, ngasia, Kisan, a small Dravidian tribe of Chota
Nagpur, described by Colonel Dalton as of dark complexion, short
stature, and very ugly features. They have two sub-tribes, one of
which uses vermilion (sindur) in their marriage ceremony, while the
other substitutes oil. The names Sendaré and Telié. have reference
to this practice. Their sections bear totemistic names which occur
among the Mundas and among many other Dravidian tribes.
According to Colonel Dalton adult-marriage is in vogue, but
matches are arranged by the parents. The standard bride-price is
two baskets of rice and one rupee in cash.

In Sarguja the Nagesar worship the sun with offerings of White
cocks, and sacriﬁce goats to Shikaria deota, but their chief god is
said to be the tiger. In J ashpur they swear by the tiger, but do not
worship him, and their chief god is Moihidhunia, to whom fowls are
offered every year and a buﬁalo once in three years. They also
recognize Darha, the village god of the Mundas, and keep the

Sarhed festival like them.

Négeswar, a mu! or section of
the Chhamuliz’i Madhesia sub-
caste of Halwais in Behar.

Négh, a mu! or section of the
Ghosin sub-caste of Goalas in
Behar.

Négneswar, a mul or section
of the Chhamulié Madhesia sub-
caste of Halwais in Behar.

Nagpuria, a sept of Birhors
in Ohota Nagpur.

Négré, a mul or section of the
Satmulia or Kishnaut sub-caste
of Goalas in Behar.

Négraj, a mad or section of
the Gorié. sub-caste of Goalas in
Behar.

‘ Négrishi, snake, a totemistic
section of the Paripal sub-caste
of Sunris in Manbhum; a section
of Mayaras and Subarnaloaniks
in Bengal.

V Nagrua, a kind of mud, a
totemistic sept of Mundas in

Chota Nagpur.

Naguria, a sept of Hos and
Santalst

Néha, Néhé, a title of Baruis
in Western Bengal; a title of
Bangaja Kayasths in Bengal.

 

Nahadié, a section of Goalas
in the N orth-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Nah-dik, a sub-sept of the
Pon-po sept of Dejong Lhoris
or Bhotias of the south.

Nah-pa, a mi or sept of
Sherpa Bhotias of Nepal.

Naheri, a title of Hajjams in
Behar.

Nahlibo, he who chased his
Wife, a sept of the Miakhola sub-
tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.
The story is that the Wife of the
founder of the ﬂaw ran away
from him, but he caught her and
brought her back and afterwards
had a large family by her.

Nahmah-pé, a mi or sept of
the Ruichhug sub-tribe of Dej on g
Lhoris or Bhotias of the south.

Ndz‘, a synonym for Napit in
Bengal and for Hajjém in Behar.

Nata, the village priest in
the communal organization of a
village (Sans. Nayaka), vulgarly
called lays.

Néiér, a section of the Bahama
najati sub-caste. of Khatris in
Bengal. '

N AIGRA'MI.

Naigrémi, a ga’z‘n of the Sé-‘

barna gotm of Barendra. Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Néik (Sans. Nayaka), leader,
a title of Acharji or astrological
Brahmans in Orissa; of Khan-
daits in Chota Nagpur and
Orissa; of the Dhusia sub-caste
of Chamérs in Behar; of Kai-
barttas in Bengal; of Uhésas and
Kewats in Orissa; of Mel Paha-
rias, Raj puts, and Telis in Behar;
of Kharias, Binjhiés, Ghasis,
Chiks, Paturias, and Telis in

gains, a small Dravidian

123

 

NAMBON.

Chota Nagpur ; also a section of
Sunris in Behar.

Néiki-Khil, a sub-sept of the
Hansda, Hemrom, Marndi, and
Tudu septs of Santéls.

Na imba, a coolie class in Nepal.

Nami, a woman who performs
the duties of a Naia or village
priest.

Naitam, a sept of Gonds in
Chota Nagpur.

Naithung, a sept of Tipperahs
in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

caste found only in Bhégalpur.

The sections of the Naiyas appear to be totemistic, and this fact,
coupled with their bearing the title Pujéhé, leads me to regard them
as a caste formed by the fortuitous aggregation of a number of
N aiyas or Layas, priests of the aboriginal forest deities, into an endog-
amous group. For an instance of this process having taken place
under very similar conditions, see the article on 313111112. A sub-
caste of the Kédar bears the same name, and it is perhaps owing
to this that the Naiyas were not separately enumerated in the Census

of 1881.

Naiyé, a sub-caste of Kédars;
a section of the Kadar caste in
Behar which intermarries with
all the other sections except the
Marik, Hazari, Naiya, Kampti,
and Bare.

Nakat, a section of Oswals.

Nékhudé, a commander of a
veSSel, a title of Gonrhis in
Behar.

, Naknesé, a section of Madhe-
sia Halwais in Behar.
Nakutwér, a mul of the Kau-

sika section of Maithil Brahmans
in Behar.

Nalakhié, a. section of the
Biyahut and Kharidéha Kalwars
in Behar.

Nélsi, a 962% or sub-section

of Saptasati Brahmans 1n
Bengal.
Nal Tiyar, a sub-caste of

Tiyars in Bengal.

 

Nalu, a title of Bangaja
Kayasths in Bengal.

Name, a synonym for Chandal.

Namadhéni, a title of Chan-
déls in Eastern Bengal who live
on agriculture.

Namah, short for N ama Sud-
ra, a title of Chandals in Bengal.

Namahaté, a title of Brah;
mans and Kayasths in Bengal.

Namang—po, a mi or sept of
Dejong Lhoris, the members of
which are of a low mixed origin.

Nama Sudm, a synonym for
Chandal.

N dm did, a synonym for Lohérs

in Manbhum who serve as servants
to local zamindars.

Némbochhé, a ﬂzar or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.
Nambon, a sub-sept of the

Pon-po sept of Dejong Lhoris or
Bhotias of the south.

NA’MDUNG.

Némdung, a thaw or sept. of
Khambus in Darjiling.

Namjali, a thew or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling. .

Nam-tsang-koba, a rm‘ or sept
of the Bedtshan-gye sub-tribe of
Dejong Lhoris or Bhotias of the
south.

Namzingmung, a sept of Lep-
chas in Darjiling. ‘

Nénakséi, a gdm or sub-
section of Saptasati Brahmans in
Bengal.

Ndnalcshdhz', a worshipper of
Guru Nanak, a synonym for Sikh.

Nanda, a group of the Srotriya
sub-caste of Utkal Brahmans.

Nandan, a title of Bangaja
Kayasths.

Nandanébési, a gdin of the
Séndilya 901%]; of Barendra
Brahmans in Bengal.

Nandark, a pm or section of
Sakadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Nandbansi, a sub-caste of
Goélés in the North-Western
Provinces and Behar.

Nandi, a gain of the Sébarna
gotm of Rérhi Brahmans in
Bengal ; a family title of Kashta
Baidyas, Baruis, Kayasths,
Mayarés, Napits, Sénkharis,
Subarnabaniks, ’l‘éntis, and ’l‘ilis
in Bengal.

124

 

N A’PIT.

Néndi, a section of the Bahan-
najati sub-caste of Khatris in
Bengal.

Nandigrémi, a ga’z’n of the
Bharadwaja gotm of Barendra
Brahmans in Bengal.

Nandkiriér, a
Kayasths in Behar.

Nangeswari, a class of mendi-
cants who go about naked.

Néngtoyér, a section of Kur-
mis in Chcta Nagpur and Orissa
who give children their ﬁrst rice
naked.

Nénié, a section of Goalas in
the North-Western Provinces and
Behar.

Naniar, a section of Kharias
in Chota Nagpur.

Nanjoré, a section of Babhans
in Behar.

Nénkér, a section of the
Dhengar sub-caste of Gareris in
Behar.

Naomulié. or Majraut, a sub-
caste of Goalas in Behar.

Naorakhié, a section of
Bhojpuria Halwéis in Behar.

Néphék, a dugu or section
of the Kochh-Mandai in Dacca.
The name indicates the original
habitat of the group, probably a
hill or village in Assam, and now-
a-days has no bearing upon
marriage.

section of

gﬁs’tpit, the barber caste of Bengal, descended, according to one

Origin.

opinion, from a Kshatriya father and Sudra
mother, and according to Parésara from a Kuveri

father and a Pattikar mother. Some, again, ascribe the origin of the
caste to an act of special creation on the part of Siva, undertaken to
provide for the cutting of his wife’s nails. Several different versions
of this myth are current, all of which are too childish to be worth
quoting here. The caste is clearly a functional group, formed in all
probability from the members of respectable castes who in dlﬁerent
parts of the country adopted the profession of barbers.

Népits are divided into the following sixteen sub—castes :—

Internal structure.

A'narpurié, Bémanbane, Barendra,_ Uttar-
rérhi, Dakshin-rérhi, Paschim-rérhl, Mah-

mudébéz. Saptagrém, Sétgharié, Khotta. There are two sub~castes

125 NAPIT.

in Noakhali—Bhulué-Népit and Sundipé-Néplt, while in the
24-ParganAs there are tbur—Héldér-Paréménik, Kolié-Paré—
manik, Hansadahé-Parémanik, and Mujganji-Paréménk. No
trustworthy tradition seems1 to be extant regarding the origin
of these groups, but their names appear to indicate that they
are based upon territorial distinctions, and refer to the early
settlements of certain main divisions of the caste. The Uttar-rarhi
claim to be of higher rank than the Dakshin and Paschim-rarhi,
and support their claim by the foolish tale that one of their ancestors
was so skilful an operator that he used to shave the Raja of N adiya
without waking him. In reocgnition of his services he received
a large grant of land, with the injunction that neither he nor his
descendants should touch the feet of a woman or of a man of low
caste. The three Rérhi sub-castes have Kulins and Mauliks
among them; but these divisions are not strictly hypergamous, and
a Maulik man may marry a Kulin woman, an arrangement wholly
impossible among the castes which regularly practise Kulinism.
Anarpuria N apits do not practise the profession of the caste, but make
their living by trade, medicine, and all kinds of clerical Work. Many
of them are employed as néibs and mu/zarm‘rs in the management
of landed property. The sections, which are shown in Appendix I,
have for the most part been borrowed from the Brahmans; and the
exceptions to this rule observed among Mahmudabaz N apits throw
no light upon the origin of the caste as a whole. The theory is
that a man may not marry a woman of his own gotra; but this
prohibition appears not to be very strictly observed, and marriage
is regulated for the most part by counting prohibited degrees.

Girls are married as infants between the ages of from six to ten
years. A professional matchmaker (gkata/r)
belonging to the Napit caste, or one of the
friends of the bridegroom’s family, ﬁnds out a suitable match and
carries on the preliminary negotiations. A formal visit is then
paid by the bridegroom’s people for the purpose of seeing the
bride and settling the important question of bride-price (pan),
the amount of which is supposed never to be less than Rs. 100, while
it may rise as high as Rs. 200 or Rs. 250. The guardians of the
bride also visit and inspect the bridegroom. On these occasions small
presents 0f betel-leaves, areca nuts, fresh ﬁsh, milk, etc., are exchanged.
The amount of pan having been agreed to, the guardians of the
bridegroom bestow their blessing (cisirbad) on the bride and present
her with some article of jewellery. Her people do the same for the
bridegroom and give him a few rupees. The date of the wedding
is then ﬁxed, and an instalment of the pan is paid.

Two days before the bridegroom himself, and the bride through
her guardians, perform rzdmlz'muk/i srdddh for the propitiation of their
ancestors. This is followed on the next day by ad/n'bds, when the
bridegroom. copiously anointed with turmeric and mustard oil, wear-
ing new clothes, and having his right wrist bound round with cotton
and blades of grass, sits on a wooden seat, while a basket containing

Marriage.

 

 

‘ Some authorities regard the Madhunapit as a sub-caste of barbers. This
opinion, however, rests merely on an obscure tradltlon, and I have preferred to
treat them as a separate caste.

N A’PIT. 126

ﬁve saucers (pradz'p) for burning oil, ﬁve lumps of coloured earth,
a looking-glass, a small wooden box (/cotud), some vermilion,
turmeric, paddy, and grass is carried seven times round him by a
married woman whose husband is alive. The basket, with the
things in it, is carefully kept that it may be taken next day to
the bride’s house.

On the wedding day the bridegroom is seven times rubbed with
mustard oil and turmeric, and after bathing is dressed in a. red
silk wrapper. Towards evening he is taken in a palanquin with
much discordant music to the bride’s house, where the women of
the family receive him and carry the basket already referred to
round him seven times, touching him with it on the forehead at
each turn, and crying um ulu for good luck.

The bride and bridegroom, both dressed in red silk. are then
conducted to the chhdyd-mandap or ceremonial canopy, Which is set
up in the courtyard. A sketch plan of this, showing approximately
the relative positions of the chief parties to the ceremony, is given
below :—

c—c
b .................................................................................... b
’ .................... .~
r
*a *a
.
0 i ; U
i 9 l
‘0 d 6 Q
h f
ta *a
b ........................................................................................ o
b b
0—0

a Vessels of water covered with mango boughs.
6 Tall shoots of bamboo drawn together at the top, so as to meet over
the central water vessel.
c-c Lines of cotton thread joining the bamboos at about ﬁve feet from
the ground.
*a Plantain stems ﬁxed in the ground.
d The bridegroom, facing east.
6 The bride, facing west.
f The bride’s father, facing north.

‘ Th est. .
'3, Th: Esther, facing the bride and pronouncing the Gaur-vachana dlscourse.‘ '

127 N A’PIT.

The leading persons being placed as shown above, the priest
dictates certain mantras or sacred texts, which are repeated by the
bridegroom, the bride, and her father in turn, while the bride places
her hands, palm downward, on the palms of the bridegroom, where
a silver coin or some small fruit has been previously placed. This
joining of the hands completes the ceremony, and it remains only
for the barber to repeat to the wedded pair Gaur-cachana, an
admonitory discourse about the marriage of Siva and Parvati, having
for its moral the duty of submitting to one another and of bearing
with each other’s inﬁrmities of temper. The bride and bridegroom
are then taken to the bdsarg/mr,1 a room in the house where they
spend the night in the company of a number of young married
women, friends of the family, who enjoy the privilege of tormenting
the bridegroom with all manner of small witticisms and practical
jokes. Early next morning the bride is taken in procession to the
bridegroom’s house, where she stays for a week and consummation
usually takes place. At the end of that time she returns to her
father’s house and stays there until ﬁnally fetched by the bridegroom
13. year or so afterwards.

Polygamy is permitted, and there seems to be no theoretical
limit to the number of wives a man may have. In practice, however,
most people content themselves with one. Divorce is allowed on the
ground of unchastity with the sanction of the panchayat, a powerful
and well-organized body, who summon both husband and wife before
them and inquire into the facts. If the panchéyat decline to grant
a divorce their orders are enforced, and the husband compelled to
take his wife back by the penalty of excommunication.

Most Napits are Vaishnavas, and comparatively few Séktas or
Saivas are found among the caste. They
employ Brahmans as priests, who are received
on equal terms by other members of the sacred order. The dead
are burned, and sra’ddlz performed in the orthodOX fashion on the
thirty-ﬁrst day after death. '

The social standing of the caste is high. They are included
in the standard couplet of Parasara deﬁning
the Nabasakh group, and Brahmans will take
water from their hands. Their own rules regarding diet are the
same as are followed by most respectable Hindus. Vaishnava Napits
do not eat ﬂesh, but as a rule allow themselves ﬁsh, except the
ndnen, ghdrud pangura, bag/m, and gajdr. Some, however, affect
special purity by abstaining from all kinds of animal food. saktas,
on the other hand, may take mutton and the ﬂesh of goats which
have been sacriﬁced. Indulgence in spirituous or fermented liquors
is supposed to be prohibited, but in practice this question seems to
depend more upon individual tastes than upon any general rule.

In Bengal, as elsewhere in India, the barber is an indispensable
member of the village community, and the
ofﬁce often descends from father to son, carrying
with it in some cases a small allotment of service land, held rent-free

Religion.

Social status.

Occupation.

 

_ 1For a description of a typical scene in the Basarghar, see pp. 95 E of
Bengal Peasant Life by the Rev. Lal Behéri Day.

\\

N A’PIT. 128

or at a low quit-rent. In large towns they work independently, and
there is no regulation against their following their occupation wherever
they like. As a rule, the working classes only shave every eight
days, but the higher ranks do so every four, sometimes every second
day. For shaving every four days, eight annas a month is usually
charged, and for a single shave one paisci, which also includes the
charge for ear-cleaning, nailparing, shampooing, and cracking
each joint of the body. In the houses of the rich the barbership is
often a hereditary post, as is that of the purohit, dhobé, and dai,
while he, like them, has free access to all parts of the house during
the day. The barber pares the nails of Hindu females as well as
males, and his presence is required at all domestic occurrences. The
day a child is born he pares the mother’s nails, and returns on the
ninth and thirtieth days to repeat the operation. At the houses of
Muhamadans he is only present on the sixth day, the c/zkat/zé.
For these services he is given pulse, rice, oil, salt, turmeric, and two
paisd, the rich generally adding a piece of cloth and a rupee. At
marriages, as has been mentioned above, his presence is essential, and
for some castes he performs the functions of a priest. His wife,
unlike the Hajjamin of Behar and Upper India, has usually no
occupation in Bengal, but the women of the Saptagrémi sub-caste are
employed as female barbers.

In addition to all these vocations, the barber, like his European
namesake of the seventeenth century, practises surgery, opening boils
and abscesses, inoculating for small-pox, and prescribing in all forms
of venereal disease. Often he is also an exerciser of devils, and is
called in to cure convulsions in newly-born children by j/mma-
phunlmd, or muttering spells and making passes with a m'm branch.
When a member of the Napit caste wishes to study medicine, he is
associated with a Kabiréj, who is then called Adhyépaka, or tutor.
The pupil is not bound as an apprentice, but he must obey his master
as implicitly as the disciple his guru. He compounds salves and
simples, and daily receives instruction from his teacher. The N apits
Who practise inoculation for small-pox are generally most reckless,
spreading the disease without the slightest consideration for the
unprotected. They possess a text-book, Vasanta-tiké, but few
study it.

Napits have the reputation of being thrifty and very acute, and
many plying their trade in one of the large towns hold land in the
country, which is sublet to others. Those who practise medicine
often amass considerable wealth and attain great inﬂuence in rural
society. Others, again, make a living by trade ; some few have found
their way in Government service and the legal profession; while
many devote themselves to agriculture as tenure-holders or occu-
pancy raiyats, rising in rare cases to the pos1tion of zamiudars. . A
N apit, however, will on no account till the soil With his own hands
or earn his living by ﬁshing, nor will he, like the Haj jam of Behar,
accept domestic service in the houses of low- caste men. In Eastern
Bengal he poses as a clean Siidra, condescending to shave Europeans
and Muhamadans, but refusing to have anything to do With the
Chandal, Bhliinméli, and castes of similar standing. He will shave

N A’PIT. - 129 N AR.

3. Sunri, but will not pare his nails, and will not attend at the
wedding of any but the clean Sﬁdras.

Although the Bengal Napits, unlike the barber-surgeon of the
Middle Ages in Europe, does his work more or less in the open air,
and has no shop where idlers lounge and the plethoric are bled, he
enjoys much the same reputation for loquacity and spreading scan-
dal. Constant observation of his neighbours gives him remarkable
insight into the character of all ranks in Hindu society. His expe-
rience takes a Wider range than that of the average villager, and
renders him by comparison a man of the world, full of anecdote and
repartee, and often gifted with a talent for debate which enables him
to take a prominent part in the affairs of the community. The secrets
of many households are knowu to him, and, if rumour is to be believed,
he plays the go-between in many an intrigue. Napits are very
clannish, and an insult received by one is resented by the whole body;
while melancholy indeed is the fate of a Hindu who offends his
barber. The whole dal or union of the village will refuse to shave
him, and at last, driven to desperation, he is glad, by the payment
of an exorbitant fee, to be restored to their good graces.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Népits in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Bardwan 26,092 17,897 Darjiling 435 S30
Bankura 7,428 12,222 Jalpigorl 2,505 4,834
Brrbhum . 7,746 8,194 Kuch Behar ...... 8,048
Midnapur 42,249 45,989 Dacca 18,208 21,715
Hughll . ... E 22287 { 13,987 Faridpur 12.685 18,897
Howrah ’ 11,454 Bakarganj 40,044 33,486
24-Parganas 36,660 21,803 Maimansinh... 19,875 32,768
Nadlya 21,657 19,449 Tipperah 21,642 22,206
Khulna 16,289 Chittagong 15,697 15,400
Jessore 29,660 25,002 Noakhali 10,528 12,671
Mvurshedabad 15,057 13,459 Hill Tracts 4 104
Dinajpur 11,653 12,206 Purniah ...... 11
Balshahye 7.949 8,455 Maldah 6,357 7,864:
Rangpur 13,726 12,940 Santa! Parganas ...... 14,073
Bogra 3,854 3,917 Singbhum 1,875 1,423
Pabna ... 10,623 11,686 Manbhum 13,504 15,174

 

Ndpz‘t, a synonym for Bhandari.

£315, Nat, Nartak, thak, a dancing and musician caste of
Eastern Bengal, whom Dr. Wise identiﬁes with the Brahmanical
Kathak of Hindustan, mainly on the strength of a tradition that
they ﬁrst came to Dacca in the days of the Nawabs. Another theory
of their origin makes them out to be the same as the Nuri who
manufacture lac bracelets. Ward mentions that in his day none
of the caste were to be found in Bengal, and that the Brahmans
trace their descent from a Mélakér and a female Sadra. The modern
Natas, not satisﬁed with this pedigree, claim to be the offspring
of Bharadwéja Muni and a dancing girl, and assert that the Ganak
Brahmans are sprung from a son of the same holy man, so the Nars
of Bikrampur affect to trace their origin to a dancer banished from
Indra’s heaven and condemned to follow his profession on earth. In

2'

\X

N AR. 130 NA RAUN E-TEGHRA’.

Hindustan the Kathaks still wear the Brahmanical cord and confer
the Asir-bad, or benediction, on Sﬁdras; but in Bengal the Nars no
longer do so, as the original settlers, being few in number, were
obliged to take wives from mean castes, and became degraded.
Although the Na]; caste requires to support aBrahman of its own, the
' Sﬁdra Napit and Dhoba work for it. The Nars have one gotra, the
Bharadwaj a, and their patronymics are Nandi and Bhakta, by which
latter title the caste is sometimes known, but whenever an indi-
vidual excels in music, he is digniﬁed by the title Ustéd. Like
other Sﬁdras, the Nars celebrate the srciddka on the thirtieth day,
are generally Vaishnavas in creed, and have a Patit Brahman to
ofﬁciate to them. They decline to play in the houses of the Chandals,
Bhﬁinmalis, and other low castes, and as their services are no longer
required, have ceased to perform before Muhamadans. The Hindu
Nar occupies a position corresponding to that of the Muhamadan
Bﬁjunia, but the former is more sought after, as no Hindu will have
a Muhamadan musician in his house if he can possibly avoid it.

When young the Na; boys, then called Bhagtiyas, are taught
dancing, but on reaching manhood they become musicians, or
Samparda, and attend on dancing girls (Bai), who are usually Muha-
madans. If they have no car for music, they become cultivators or
shop-keepers. In former days no Hindu girls ever danced in public,
although dancers among the Bézi-gar and other vagrant tribes were
common, but at present Baistabis and Hindu prostitutes are found
among professional Néch girls. There has been a tendency within
the last thirty years for the Nar caste to separate into two classes——
one teaching boys to dance and playing to them, the other attending
the Muhamadan Béi. The latter class are the better paid and more
skilful musicians, and a band (Sampardai) accompanying a popular
dancing girl often earn as much as twenty rupees a night, while the
former consider they are well paid if they get ﬁve rupees for one
night’s amusement. The musical instruments generally used by the
N ars are the Sérun gi, Behla and Kasi varieties of ﬁddles, the Tabla
or drum, and the Manjira or cymbals. N ars treat their instruments
with great veneration, and always, on ﬁrst rising in the morning,
make obeisance before them. On the Sri Panchami in Magh, sacred
to Saraswati, a Nar will not play a note until the worship of the
goddess is ﬁnished. Like the Bishi women, the Nar women will not
play, sing, or dance in public, although at marriages of their own
people they still do so.

It is currently believed that many Nars have of late years
become Muhamadans, but this accusation is denied by the caste.
It is nevertheless true that when a Samparda falls in love with
a dancing girl, his only chance of marrying her is by becoming
a Muhamadan.

Naradwér, a section of Bab- Nara-Sundar, a title of Na-
bans in Behar. pits in Bengal.
Narangbali, a section of the Naraune—Tegl‘lré, a mu! of the

Karen sub-caste of Kayasths in Parasara section of Maithil
Behar. Brahmans in Behar.

N ARAUN E-SAKTA’RA’PUR.

Naraune—Saktérapur, a mu! ‘
of the Parasar section of Maithil N

Brahmans in Behar.

Narauni, (i) a mul or section
of the Tinmulia, Madhesia, and
Bhojpuria sub-castes of Halwais
in Behar ; (ii) a sept of Chandra-
bansi Rajputs.

Nérba, a section of Murmis in
Darjiling.

Nardauchha, a tlzar or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.

Narhan, a dik or exogam-
ous section of the Gharbait sub-
caste of Améts in Behar.

Narhatiér, a section of Kay-
asths in Behar.

Ndm', a low class of people
who make lac bracelets. Occ.

Nérikéité, cutters of the navel-
string, a sub-caste of Haris. The
men cultivate and the women
act as nurses (cl/Edi).

Néri-tepé, pulse-feeler, a title
of Baidyas used by outsiders.

Nariyé, a me! or hypergamous
sub-group of Rérhi Brahmans in
Bengal.

Narjenére, a sept of the Agnia
sub-tribe of Meches in the Dar-
jiling Terai. .

Nartoroé, a sub-caste of Kor-
wés in Ohota Nagpur.

Narware-Rémpur, a mu] of
the Kasyapa section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar. '

Naskar, a title of Brahmans,

Kayaeths, and Kaibarttas in
Bengal.
. Naskarpuré, a section of

Patnis in Bengal.

131

 

 

NAURIYA’.

Natabaidya,’ a synonym for
at.

Natanya, a section of Kumhars
in Singbhum. ‘

Néth, (i) a lord ; master ; a title,
perhaps ironical of, and a sync-
nym for, the J ugi caste in
Bengal. (ii) A title of Dakshin-
Rarhi and Bangaja Kayasths
and Subarnabaniks in Bengal.
Intermarriage is prohibited Within

the title. (iii) A section of the
Orissa Brahmans. (iv) A title
of Binjhi-as.

Néthén, a sub-caste of Béruis
in Bengal.
Néihji,

a title of Jugis in
Bengal. .

Nathur, a title of Rajputs in
Singbhum.

Nam, Naud, a synonym for
Napit in Bengal and for Hajjam
in Behar.

Naué. a sub-tribe of Thérus
in Nepal.

Nauékuri. a section of Kurmis
in Chota Nagpur and Orissa.

Nauhatta, a sub-caste of

Beldars in Behar.

ﬁankanbri, 9. Nepal caste
Who work as carpenters.

Nau-ldkk Khambu, a synonym
for Khambu.

NauIi-Karan, a sub-caste of
Karans in Orissa.

Nauniyér, a synonym or
variant for Rauniar,.wh1ch 1s
a sub-caste of Baniyés in
Behar.

Nauriyé, a section of the
Bansphor sub-caste of Doms 1n
Behar.

z' 2

N AUTANA.

Nautana, a sub-caste of Kim-
hars in J essore.

Nauthni, a sept of Chandra-
bansi Rajputs in Behar.

Navadwip, a samdj or local
grou of the Bharadwaja gotm of
Pasc atya Baidik Brahmans in
Nadiya.

Nawalpurié, a sept of the
Rautér sub-tribe of Thérus in
Behar.

Naya, priests (worshippers of
the titular deity) of Santals,
Bhuiyas, Mauliks, Rajwars, etc.

Néyd, a synonym for Maulik.

Néyéri, a 96in of the Sébarna
gotm of Rarhi Brahmans in

Bengal.

Nechéhli, 9. Mar or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.

Nedhuri, a gdz’n of the Sébarna
gotra of Bérendra Brahmans in
Bengal.

Nekéri, Nikdm', a synonym
for Machhué, qm.

Neki, a section of Murmis in
Darjiling.
Nekutwér-Barahi, a mm! of

the Kausik section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Nembang, the swollen one, a
sept of the Charkhola sub-tribe
of Limbus in Darjiling.

Nembong, a sub-sept of the
Phejom sept of Limbus in Dar-
jiling.

Nenijor, a section of the

Sétmulia Maghaya sub-caste of
Kandus in Behar.

Neogi, an honorary title of
Brahmans, Kayasths, Sadgops,
etc, in Bengal.

132

 

NIDRA’LI.

Neopéni, Nivipémya, a thar
of the Kaundin gotra of Nepali
Brahmans.

Nepali, a sub-caste of Brah-
mans in Nepal.

Nepéliyé, a. ﬂaw of the
Dharta-Kausik gotm of Nepéli
Brahmans.

Nepré, a section of the Sett-
mulié. Maghayé sub-caste of
Kandus in Behar.

Nerméh, a sept of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Nesur, a section of Murmis in
Darjiling.

Netrié, a section of Kamérs
in Singbhum and the Santa]

Parganés.

Neul, weasel, a totemistic
section of J agannathi Kumhars
in Orissa.

Neurédarvesh. Na’radarcesh,
Neurdja’tz', Ndmjatz', a title of a.
sect of Vaishnavas who shave
their heads.

Newra, mongoose, a totemis-
tic sept of Chiks in Chota Nag-
pur.

Nléli. a section of Kaibarttas
in Orissa. ‘

Nich Kurmi, a sub-caste of
Kurmis in Chota Nagpur who
marry their daughters as adults
and permit 'sexual license before
marriage.

Nichondia, a sub-caste of
Baniyas in Behar.

Nidréli, a gdz‘n of the Batsya
gotm of Bérendra Brahmans in
Bengal.

NIGAM.

Nigam. a sub-caste of Kéyasths
in Behar.

Nigénié, a section of Goalas
in the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Nigham, a mu! or section of
the Kanaujia sub-caste of Sonérs
in Behar.

Nij, a sub-sept of all the septs
of Santals.

Nikari, a gdin of the Sébama
gotm of Bérendra Brahmans in
Bengal.

Nikéri, Nikirz', Hindu ﬁsh-
mongers, who do not catch ﬁsh
themselves, but obtain their
supplies on a system of advances
ﬁ'om the regular ﬁshing castes.
Mahomedans who follow the same
avocation are called Mechua, q.v.

Nikhar, a sub-caste of Gareris
in Behar.

Nikharbans, a. sept of Chiks
in Chota Nagpur.

Nikhati, a grim of the Bharad-
Wéja gotm of Barendra Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Nikitia-Kandh, a sub-tribe of.

Kandhs in Orissa.

Niktawér, Nikutwér, a. sec-
tion of Bébhans in Behar.

Nikthé. a section of the Banc-
dhié. and J aiswa’u' Kalwars in
Behar.

Nikum, a section of Goalas
in the N orth—Western Provinces
and Behar.

Nikumbh, a sept of the Saraj-
bansi division of Réjputs in
Behar.

133

 

 

 

NIRA’BIL.

Nilué. a sub-caste of Jugis .in
Northern Bengal whose special
business it is to dye in blue.

Niméchandpuré. a mu! or
section of the Naomulia or

Majraut sub-caste of Goélas in
Behar.

Niméi, a family of the Kulin
group of J ugis in Bengal.

Nimak, salt, a totemistic sept
of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Nimémbaunchhé, a tkar or
sept of Khambus in Darjiling.

Nimandih, a. section of Kay-
asths in Behar.

Nimavat, a sect of Vaishna—
vas.

Nimri, 19. sept of Réjputs in
Behar.

Nimuani, a sept of Chiks in
Chota Nagpur.

Nimundih, a sept of the Sur-
yabansi Raj puts in Behar.

Ninauchhé, a thar or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.

Ninglehku, one who cuts
poisonous plants, a sept of the
Phedéb sub-tribe of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Ninhiém, a. mad or section of

the Chhamulia Madhesia sub-
caste of Halwéis in Behar.

Niparia, a mu! or section of
the Kanaujié sub-caste of Haj-
jams in Behar.

Nir, a sub-caste of Tantis in
Bengal.

Nirébil, a patlzi or hypergam-
ous sub-group of Bareudra
Brahmans in Bengal.

\\

NIRB KN.

: Nirbén, a section of Goals: in
the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

N irbhaYa, a title of Sunris in
Bengal.

Nirola, a thar or section of
Nepali Brahmans.

Nisén, a sept of the Chan-
drabansi division of Rajputs in

Behar.

Nisan k, a group of the Srotriya
sub-caste of Utkal Brahmans.

N is/n', a synonym for Muchi.

Niskalanka, a section of Telis
in Bengal.

Niti Siné, a sub~caste of
Dhobés in Central Bengal.

N iyérishi, a section of Telis.

gﬁiyérms’r, Neydm', Nz'yariyd,
Niydrdbod, a 10W caste who
sift and wash the ashes and
refuse of goldsmiths.’ shops
for the scraps of precious metal
"which may be recovered by this
process.

Nobéiére, a sept of the Agnia
sub-tribe of Meches in the Dar-
jiling Terai.

Nobonapuria, asection of the
Kamar sub-caste of Dosadhs in
Behar.

Nodé, a sub-caste of Bagdis
found in the 24-Parganas and
Hughli, said to have come from
Bankura.

Nogo, a sept of Limbus in
Darjiling.

134

 

N UN HAR.

Nokdr, a variant'of Lohar.

Noinj oré, a section of Sonars
in Behar.

Nois, a sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Nolka, a section of Oswéls in
Behar. .

Nomahang, a ﬂaw or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling. . ,

Nonaitwér, a mu] of the
Séndil section of Maithil Brah-
mans, and a kul or section of
Babhans in Behar.

Nom'ydn, a synonym for Nunié.

Nonoér, a section of Goraits
in Chota Nagpur.

Non-pé, a mi or sept of
Sherpa Bhotias of Nepal.

Nowattié, a sept of Tipperahs
in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Nrisingha, a section of Gran-
dhabaniks in Bengal.

Nunéon, a section of the Biya-
but and Kharidaha -Kalwars in
Behar.

Nun-Bind, a sub-caste of

Binds in Eastern Bengal.

Nuneswar, a section of the
Biyéhut and Kharidaha Kal-
Wars in Behar.

Nunetwér, a. mul of the Séndil
section of Maithil Brahmans in
Behar.

N ngoh'd, a synonym for N unié.

Nunhar, a section of the Biya-
hut and Kharidaha Kalwars in

, Behar.

135 i N UN IA’.

gﬁunié, Nom'ydn, a Dravidian caste of Behar and Upper
India engaged in cultivation, saltpetre-making,
and various kinds of earthwork. The caste
seem to have no traditions except of a silly story that the Awadhia
are descended from an ascetic named Bidur Bhakat, who broke his
fast on salt earth, and being thereby disqualiﬁed for the higher life
of meditation, was condemned by Ram Chandra to betake himself
to the manufacture of saltpetre. This throws small light on the
origin of the Nunias. It seems, however, to be generally believed
that they are closely connected with the Binds and the Beldars,
and I venture the conjecture that the Binds may be the modern
representatives of an aboriginal tribe from which the Nunias have
branched off as saltpetre-makers and the Beldars as earth-workers.
All three groups are now endogamous. The hunting and ﬁshing
proclivities of the Binds seem to suggest that they are the oldest of
the three, while the totemistic sections of the Nunias stamp them as
Dravidian. The Beldars are probably a more recent offshoot, but
the fact that the name Beldar (mattock-bearer) is assumed by
members of any caste when employed on earthwork renders it
difﬁcult to determine their precise afﬁnities. The Nunias of Behar
are divided into seven sub-castes:-——Awa-
dhia or Ayodhiabési, Bhojpuria, Kharéont,
Maghayé, Orh, Pachainyé or Chauhén, and Semarwér. Their
sections, which are given in Appendix I, appear to be for the most
part totemistic. A man may not marry a woman belonging to
his own section, but no other sections are barred to him; and the
rule of simple exogamy is supplemented by the standard formula
mamerd, c/mckerd, etc., already quoted. It deserves notice that
intermarriage in the ckacherd line is forbidden as long as any
relationship can be traced, While in the other three lines the
prohibition only extends to three or, as some say, to ﬁve generations.
All Nunias who can afford to do so marry their daughters as
infants, adult-marriages being considered unfashionable, if not dis-
reputable. Polygamy is permitted, but it is unusual to ﬁnd a man
with more than two wives; and I gather, although there is no
distinct rule on the subject, that practice is held to be justiﬁed only
by the necessity of procuring offspring. Widows are allowed to
marry again by the sagai form, and are subject to no restrictions
in their choice of a: second husband except those arising from
consanguinity. It is considered, however, right for a widow to marry
her deceased husband’s younger brother. Divorce is effected on
grounds of adultery or incompatibility of temper by the order
of the caste council (panchayat). A. divorced woman may marry again
by the sagai form unless she has gone wrong with a man of another
caste—an offence which entails summary expulsion.

Tirhutia Brahmans serve the Nunias as priests, and oﬂiciate
at their marriages. The marriage ceremony is
of the standard type. The bridegroom-price
(tilak) is ﬁxed by custom at a sum varying from Re. 1 to Rs. 5

Origin.

Internal structure.

Marriage.

N UN IA'. 136

and a pair of dlzotis. Afterthe marriage the bride does not go with
the bardt to her husband’s house, but stays with her parents until she
attains puberty, when her husband goes to fetch her with a. few
of his friends and brings her home in procession (dim gawau).
Consummation is not effected until after this ceremony. Awadhiya
Nunias have a curious custom called a’smdwz‘ shddz‘, which requires
that the bride and bridegroom shall be held OE the ground during
the marriage ceremony.

In matters of religion the Nunias follow the ordinary forms of
Hinduism current in Behar. Most of them
are Saktas, and there are said to be compara-
tively few Vaishnavas in the caste. Bhagavatiji is their favourite
goddess. Bandi, Groraiya, and Sitala are worshipped on Tuesdays,
Wednesdays, and Saturdays. There are no deities specially wor-
shipped by women and children, but women take part in the worship
of Sitala. Sannyasi fakirs are the'gurus of the caste. The dead
are burned, and srddd/z performed on the thirteenth day after
death. The ashes are thrown into any river that may be handy.
The bodies of children dying under ﬁve years of age are buried——
a point wherein Nunias depart from the usual custom, which is to
bury after eighteen months.

The caste believe the extraction of salt and saltpetre from saline
earth to be their original occupation, and it is
possible, as has been suggested above, that
they may have broken off from the Binds by reason of their adopting
this profession. At the present day we ﬁnd them also employed in
road-making, tank-digging, well-sinking, building and thatching
houses, and all kinds of agricultural ﬁeld labour. Many of them
also hold lands of their own, and a few have gained a more secure
position as occupancy raiyats. Nunias who have no land often
wander about during the dry season in search of work, and build
small grass huts for temporary shelter. None of them are artisans.
In Bengal, according to Dr. Wise, Nunias readily obtain service
with Goalas or other clean Sudras, but refuse to work as labourers
or domestic servants with low-caste families. The social standing
of Nunias seems to vary in different parts, and does not admit of
very precise deﬁnition. In Patna, Mozuiferpur, and parts of

s . 1 t t Monghyr they 'rank with Kurmis, Koiris,

0% S a “5' Kumhars, etc., and Brahmans will take water
and certain kinds of sweetmeats from their hands. In Bhagalpur,
Purniah, Champarun, Shahabad, and Grya they are placed on the
same level as Tantis, and none of the higher castes will take water
from them. In addition to the various kinds of food that are lawful
for Hindus of the middle class, Nunias eat ﬁeld-rats and pork, and
drink fermented and spirituous liquors. It is signiﬁcant of the
Nunias’ point of view in such matters that they think little of
Bhakats, who practise small forms of asceticism by abstaining from
certain kinds of food and drink; and I am informed that very few
Bhakats are found among them.

Religion.

Occupation.

N UN IA’.

137

N URI.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of

Nuniés in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Drsmrcr. 1872. 1881. DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Bardwan 32 Patna ... 10,316 18,249
Bankura ...... 1 Gya. 14,916 16,608
ﬂighum ... ...... 4 6&2; ShahabadM ... 13,183 18,666

1 napur ... . ..... , - ozuﬁerpur ... 41,616
Hughh ...... 39 TM“ Darbhanga. . } 69342 27,776
M-Parganés ... ...... 451 Saran . 65,854 68,368
Nadlya .. ..... . 25 Champaran .. 35,102 45,324
Murshedabad... ...... 80 Monghyr 9,218 9,369
Dlnajpur ..... . 1,336 Bhagalpur ... .. 3,436 7,377
RaJShahye ... ... .. 23 Purniah 971 1,984
Rangpur ... ...... 1,365 Santa] Parganés 847 1,662
Bogm .. .. . ...... 287 Cuttack 726
Pabna ..... . 28 Puri ... at ......
Durplmg ... ... ...... 862 Balasore ... 1
Jalplgon ...... 275 Tributary States 1
Kuoh Bebar ...... 702 Hazaribagh 278 2.316
Malmansmh ...... 2,218 Lohardaga .. 2,635 4,116
Maldah 34:4 Sinzbhum 4 32

Manbhum ... 228 533
* The ﬁgures are included with “other labouring castes.”
Nuniér, a subd1v1s10n of Nuri, a. title of J oléhas in

Baniyas who deal in saltpetre.

Nuniyér, a section of Key-
asths in Behar.

Nunkharié, a section of the
Biyéhut and Kharidaha Kalwérs
in Behar.

Behar who make lac bracelets,
dye for the lips, etc; the same
as Churihér and Laheri. A
Bengal caste of jewellers and
lac-workers said to have been
brought from Orissa by one of
the Raj as of Krishnagar.

\

CARL

138

ORAON.

O .

Cari, a section of the Karan
sub-caste of Kayasths in Behar.

Oaria, verandah, a. totemistic
sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

Obarséri, a totemistic sept
of the Bhumij tribe in Chota
Nagpur.

Obung-gyakpa, the dweller
above the fountain, a sept of the
Phedab sub-tribe of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Odania, a territorial section of
Binds in Behar.

Odhalaba, fox, a totemistic
sept of J wings in Orissa.

Oh—A’r. a sept of the Chandra-
bansi RAj puts in Behar.

Ohdér, a title of Khandaits
and Kharwérs in Chota Nagpur.

Oinwér, a mu] of the Kasyapa
section of Maithil Brahmans in
Behar.

thé, a group of the Adi-Gama
sub-caste of Gaura Brahmans; a
title of Babhans; a section of
the Pargah caste in Behar.

Oj-hé, Ujhé, or dhé, a title
of Maithil Brahmans in Behar.

 

thaiyé, a sept of the Rautar
sub-tribe of Tharus in Behar.

Okinwér, 3. [ml or section of
Bébhans in Behar.

Okrabo, a sept of the Phégu
sub-tribe of Yakhas in Dary-
ling.

Olingthopa, a section of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Om, a title of Dakshin-Rarhi
Kayasths in Bengal.

On-chh ombo, the horse-seller,
23. sept of the Tambrakhola sub-
tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.

Ongdéhba, a rm" or sept of
Dejong Lhoris Whose ancestor
had emigrated from Bhotan.

Ongyo, a sept of the Tung-
jainya sub-tribe of Chakmés in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Onwér, a section of Babhans
in Behar.

Ophia, a sept of Parhaiyas
in Chota Nagpur.

Or, a sub-caste of Turis in
Chota Nagpur.

Oré, a sept of Maghs in the
Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

(Dram, Urdon, Kunokh, Kunmklz, a Dravidian cultivating tribe

Tradition of origin.

of Chota Nagpur, classed on linguistic grounds
as Dravidian, and supposed to be closely akm

to the Mélés of the Rajmahal hills, Their traditions say that their

139 ORA’ON.

original home was in the west of India, whence they came to the-
Kaimur hills and the plateau of Rohtas in Shahabad. Driven from
Rohtés by the Muhamadans, the tribe split into two divisions.
One of these, under the Chief, followed the course of the Ganges,
and ﬁnally settled in the Rajmahal hills; while the other, led by
his younger brother, went up the Son into Palamau, and turning
eastward along the Koel took possession of the north-western
portion of the Cheta Nagpur plateau. Some say that they expelled
the Mundas from this portion of the country, and forced them
to retire to their present settlements in the south of Lohardaga;
but this statement is not borne out by local tradition, nor can it be
reconciled with the fact that the few Mundas found in the Oraon
pargands on the plateau are acknowledged and looked up to as the
descendants of the founders of the villages in which they live.

The colour of most Oraons is the darkest brown, approaching
to black; the hair being jet black, coarse, and
rather inclined to be frizzy. Projecting jaws
and teeth, thick lips, low narrow foreheads, broad ﬂat noses, are
the features which strike a careful observer as characteristic of the
. tribe. The eyes are often bright and full, and no obliquity is
observable in the opening of the eyelids. No signs of Mongolian
aﬂinities can be detected in the relative positions of the nasal
and malar bones, and the average naso-malar index for a hundred
Oraons measured on the system recommended by Mr. Oldﬁeld Thomas
omes to 1136.

“The dress of the men,” says Colonel Dalton, “consists of a
long narrow strip of cloth carefully adjusted as
a middle garment, but in such a manner as to
leave the wearer most perfect freedom of limb, and allow the full
play of the muscles of the thigh and hip to be seen. They wear
nothing in the form of a coat; the decorated neck and chest are
undraped, displaying how the latter tapers to the waist, which the

oung dandies compress within the smallest compass. In addition
to the cloth, there is always round the waist a girdle of cords made
of tasar silk or of cane. This is now a superﬂuity, but it is no doubt;
the remnant of a more primitive costume, perhaps the support of the
antique ﬁg leaves. After the age of ornamentation is passed, nothing
can be more untidy or unprepossessing than the appearance of the
Oraon. The ornaments are nearly all discarded, hair utterly neglect-
ed, and for raiment any rags are used. This applies both to males
and females of middle age. The ordinary dress of the women depends
somewhat on the degree of civilization, and on the part of the country
in which you make your observations. In the villages about Lohardaga,
a cloth from the waist to a little below the knee is the common
working dress; but where there is more association with other races,
the persons of young females are decently clad in the coarse cotton
cloth of the country, white with red border. Made-up garments are
not worn except by the converts to Christianity. The one cloth, six
yards long, is gracefully adjusted so as to form a shawl and a petti-
coat. The Oraons do not, as a rule, bring the upper end of the
garment over the head, and so give it the functions also of a veil, as

Physical characteristics.

Dress and ornaments.

ORALON. 140

it is worn by the Bengali women; they simply throw the end of the
dress over the left shoulder, and it falls with its fringe and ornamented
border prettily over the back of the ﬁgure. Vast quantities of red
beads and a large heavy brass ornament, shaped like a torque, are
worn round the neck. On the left hand are rings of copper, as many
as can be indued on each ﬁnger up to the ﬁrst joint; on the right hand
a smaller quantity. Rings on the second toe only, of brass or bell-
metal, and anklets and bracelets of the same material are also worn.
The hair is, as a rule, coarse and rather inclined to be frizzy, but by
dint of lubrication they can make it tolerably smooth and amenable;
and false hair or some other substance is used to give size to the
mass (the chignon) into which it is gathered, not immediately behind,
but more or less on one side, so that it lies on the neck just behind,
and touching the right ear; and ﬂowers are arranged in a receptacle
made for them between the roll of hair and the head. The cars are,
as usual with such people, terribly mutilated for decorative purposes;
spikes and rings are inserted into holes made in the upper cartilage,
and the lobe is widely distended. When in full dancing costume,
they add to their head-dress plumes of heron feathers, and a gay
bordered scarf is tightly bound round the upper part of the body.” ,

In matters of domestic economy the Oraons are a slovenly race,
and their badly-built mud huts afford no
sufﬁcient accommodation for the unmarried
members of the family. In the older Oraon villages this difﬁculty '
is provided for by a. house called the dhﬁmkﬁria, in which all the
bachelors must sleep under penalty of a ﬁne. Where the girls
sleep is, says Colonel Dalton, “ somewhat of a mystery.” In some
villages a separate building, under the charge of an elderly woman.
is maintained for their use ; and more commonly they are distributed
among the widows of the village. “ But however billeted, it is well
known that they often ﬁnd their way to the bachelors’ hall, and
in some villages actually sleep there.”

This curious institution is not peculiar to the Oraons. We
meet with it among the J uangs, the Hill Bhuiyas of Keonjhur
and Bonai, and the J humia Maghs of the Chittagong Hill Tracts.
The Onion system, though already looked upon as an ancient custom,
and apparently tending to disuse in newly-formed villages, is
still very elaborate. “ The Dhﬁmkuria fraternity are under the
severest penalties bound down to secrecy in regard to all that
takes place in their dormitory; and even girls are punished if they
dare to tell tales. They are not allowed to join in the dances
till the oﬁence is condoned. They have a regular system of fagging
in this curious institution. The small boys serve those of larger
growth, shampoo their limbs, and comb theirhair, etc., and they
are sometimes subjected to severe discipline to make men of them.”
It is difﬁcult not to see in this a survival of more primitive modes
of life, possibly even of the initiatory ceremonies to which many
tribes of savages attach so much importance. .

The internal structure of the Oréon tribe is shown in a tabular
form in Appendix I. The exogamous septs
are extremely numerous, and all that can be

Bachelor’s dormitory.

Internal structure.

141 ORAON.

identiﬁed are totemistic, the totem being taboo to the members of
the sept. The rule of exogamy in force is the simple one that a man
may not marry a woman of his own sept. The sept name descends
in the male line, and there is no objection to a man marrying a
woman belonging to the same sept as his mother. In addition to
this some system of prohibited degrees seems to exist among
them, though no one can state it clearly, nor is it expressed
in a deﬁnite formula. Still every Oraon will admit that he cannot
marry his maternal aunt or his ﬁrst cousin on the mother’s side,
though he will probably not be able to say how far these prohibitions
go in the descending line. So also no one can marry his younger
brother’s widow or the elder sister of his deceased wife, though
marriage with an elder brother’s widow or a deceased wife’s younger
sister is deemed permissible.

Seventeen years ago, when Colonel Dalton published his account of
the Greens, infant-marriage is said to have
been entirely unknown among the tribe. A.
few of the wealthier men, who affect to imitate Hindu customs,
have now taken to this practice, and marry their daughters before
they have attained puberty. Among the mass of the people,
however, girls marry after they are grown up, and the freest
courtship prevails at dances, festivals, and social gatherings of
various kinds. Young men woo their sweethearts with offerings of
ﬂowers for the hair and presents of grilled ﬁeld-mice, “ which the
Oraons declare to be the most delicate of food.’ ’ Sexual intercourse
before marriage is tacitly recognized, and is so generally practised
that in the opinon of the best observers on Green girl is a virgin at
the time of her marriage. To call this state of things immoral is to
apply a modern conception to primitive habits of life. Within the
tribe indeed the idea of sexual morality seems hardly to exist, and the
unmarried Oréons are not far removed from the condition of modi-
ﬁed promiscuity which prevails among many of the Australian
tribes. Provided that the exogamous circle deﬁned by the totem is
respected, an unmarried woman may bestow her favours on whom
she will. If, however, she becomes pregnant, arrangements are
made to get her married without delay, and she is then expected
to lead a virtuous life. Prostitution is unknown. Intrigues beyond
the limits of the tribe are uncommon, and are punished by summary
expulsion. '

Colonel Dalton gives the following account of the Oréon
marriage system :—

“ When a young man makes up his mind to marry, his parents
or guardians go through a form of selection for him; but it is always
a girl that he has already selected for himself, and between Whom
and him there is a perfect understanding. The parents, however,
have to arrange all preliminaries, including the price of the damsel,
which is sometimes as low as Rs. 4 (88.) In the visits that are inter-
changed by the negotiators, omens are carefully observed by the
Greens, as by the Mundas, and there are, consequently, similar
difﬁculties to overcome; but when all is settled, the bridegroom
proceeds with a large party of his friends, male and female, to the

Marriage.

\\

ORAON. 142

bride’s house. Most of the males have warlike Weapons, real or‘
sham, and as they approach the village of the bride’s family the
young men from thence emerge, also armed, as if to repel the
invasion, and a mimic ﬁght ensues, which, like a dissolving view,
blends pleasantly into’ a dance. In this the bride and bridegroom
join, each riding on the hips of one of their friends. A bower
is constructed in front of the residence of the bride’s father, into
which the bride and bridegroom are carried by women, and
made to stand on a curry-stone, under which is placed a sheaf
of corn, resting on a plough yoke. Here the mystery of the
sindz’crddn is performed; but the operation is carefully screened from
view, ﬁrst by cloths thrown over the young couple, secondly by
a circle of their male friends, some of whom hold up a screen cloth,
while others keep guard with weapons upraised and look very ﬁerce,-
as if they had been told oif to cut down intruders, and were quite
prepared to do so. In Oraon marriages the bridegroom stands on
the curry-stone behind the bride, but in order that this may not be
deemed a concession to the female, his toes are so placed as to tread
on her heels. The old women under the cloth are very particular
about this, as if they were specially interested in providing that the
heel of the woman should be properly bruised. Thus poised the
man stretches over the girl’s head and daubs her forehead and crown
with the red powder sinddr ; and if the girl is allowed to return the .
compliment (it is a controverted point whether she should do so or
not), she performs the ceremony without turning her head, reaching
back over her own shoulder and just touching his brow. When this
is accomplished, a gun is ﬁred; and then, by some arrangement,
vessels full of water, placed over the bower, are capsized, and the
young couple and those who stand near them receive a drenching
shower-bath. They now retire into an apartment prepared for them,
ostensibly to change their clothes, but they do not emerge for some
time, and when they appear they are saluted as man and wife.
Dancing is kept up during their retirement, one of the performers
executing a pas seal with a basket on her head, which is said to
contain the trousseau. The Oraons have no prescribed wedding
garments. They do not follow the Hindu custom of using saffron-
coloured robes on such occasions. The bride is attired in ordinary
habiliments, and no special pains are taken to make her lovely for
the occasion. The bridegroom is better dressed than usual. He
wears a long coat and a turban. Nor have the Oraons any special
days or seasons for marriages. The ceremony may take place in any
month of the year, but, with all natives, the hot, dry months are
generally selected if possible. There is then not much work on hand;
granaries are full, and they prefer those months for marching and
camping out.” .
Polygamy is permitted, and in theory at least there is no limit
to the number of wives a man may have. This luxury, however, is
but little sought after. Oraons are usually too poor to maintain
many wives, and the majority content themselves with one. Widows
may marry again, and are subject to no restrictions in selecting their
second husbands. In such marriages the full ceremony is not

143 .ORAON.

performed: it is deemed sufﬁcient for the female relatives of the
ridegroom to smear vermilion on the bride’s forehead and the
parting of her hair. Sometimes even this meagre form is omitted,
and a valid marriage is constituted by the mere fact of the parties
living together. Notwithstanding this laxity of formal, observance,
the children of a widow are recognized as holding equal rank with
those of a woman married by the full ritual used in a ﬁrst marriage.
Divorce is readily effected at the will of either husband or wife.
The consent of the panchayat is not required, nor is the intention
to separate attested by any particular form. A husband turns
away his wife, or a wife runs off from her husband, and the fact
in either case is accepted as constituting a. valid divorce. If a
woman has children, her husband may be compelled to contribute
to their maintenance if he divorces the mother on any other
ground than adultery. Similarly, when a wife deserts her husband,
not on account of ill-treatment, but merely because she takes a
fancy to another man, her parents may be called upon to repay the
bride-price which they received at her marriage. Divorced wives
may marry again on the same terms and by the same form as
widows.

“The religion of the Oraons,’ says Colonel Dalton, “is of
a composite order. They have, no doubt,
retained some portion of the belief that they
brought with them to Chota Nagpur; but, coalescing with the
Mundas and joining in their festivals and acts of public worship,
they have to a certain extent adopted their ideas on religion and
blended them with their own. There is, however, a material
distinction between the religious systems of the two people. The
Mundas have no symbols and make no representations of their gods;
the Onions, and all the cognates whom I have met with, have
always some visible object of worship, though it may be but a stone
or a wooden post, or a lump of earth. Like the Mundas, they
acknowledge a Supreme God, adored as Dharmi or Dharmesh, the
Holy One, who is manifest in the sun ; and they regard Dharmesh as
a perfectly pure, beneﬁcent being, who created us, and would in his
goodness and mercy preserve us, but that his benevolent designs are
thwarted by malignant spirits whom mortals must propitiate, as
Dharmesh cannot or does not interfere if the spirit of evil once
fastens upOn us. It is therefore of no use to pray to Dharmesh
or to offer sacriﬁces to him; so though acknowledged, recognized,
and reverenced, he is neglected, whilst the malignant spirits are
adored.

“ I do not think that the Oraons have an idea that their sins are
visited on them, either in this world or in a world to come. It is
not because they are wicked that their children or their cattle die,
or their crops fail, or they suffer in body; it is only because some
malignant demon has a spite against them, or is desirous of harming
them. Their ideas of sin are limited. Thou shalt not commit
adultery, thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not bear false witness against
thy neighbour, is about as much of the Decalogue as they would sub-
scribe to. It is doubtful if they see any moral guilt in murder,

9

Religion.

,\\

ORA’ON. 144

though hundreds of them have suffered the extreme penalty of the
law for this crime. They are ready to- take life on very slight provo-
cation, and in the gratiﬁcation of their revenge an innocent child
is as likely to suffer as the actual offender. There is one canon of
the Mosaical law that they in former years rigorously enforced—-
‘ Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.’ I have dwelt on this sub-
ject in treating of the Mundas. If left to themselves, the life of
elderly females would be very insecure. As it is, a suspected old
woman (and sometimes a young one, especially if she be the daughter
of a suspected old one) is occasionally condemned, well drubbed and
turned out of the village ; and she does not always survive the treat-
ment she is subjected to. If we analyse the views of most of the
Onion converts to Christianity, we shall, I think, be able to discern
the inﬂuence of their pagan doctrines and superstitions in the
motives that ﬁrst led them to become catechumens. The Supreme
Being who does not protect them from the spite of malevolent spirits
has, they are assured, the Christians under His special care. They
consider that, in consequence of this guardianship, the witches
and Mutts have no power over Christians; and it is, therefore, good
for them to join that body. They are taught that for the salvation
of Christians one great sacriﬁce has been made, and they see that
those who are baptized do not in fact reduce their live-stock to pro-
pitiate the evil spirits. They grasp at this notion; and long after-
wards, when they understand it better, the atonement, the mystical
washing away of sin by the blood of Christ, is the doctrine on which
their simple minds most dwell. I have not found amongst the pagan
Oraons a trace of the high moral code that their cousins of the
Réjmahal hills are said to have accepted. I consider that they have
no belief whatever in a future state, whilst to the Rajmahalis is attri-
buted a profound system of metempsychosis. The Oraons carry
that doctrine no further than to suppose that men who are
killed by tigers becoms tigers, but for other people death means
annihilation. As the sole object of their religious ceremonies is the
propitiation of the demons, who are ever thwarting the benevolent
intentions of Dharmesh, they have no notion of a service of thanks-
giving; and so far we may regard the religion of the Mundas as
of a higher order than theirs. When suffering or misfortune befall
a man, he consults an augur, or ojhd, as to the cause of his afﬂic-
tion, and acts according to the advice given. The ojkd has it in his
power to denounce a mortal or a particular devil. The method
employed has been described in the account of the Mundas, and the
result is the same. If a fellow-being is denounced, it is said that he
has caused his familiar to possess and afﬂict the sufferer; and the
person denounced is seized and tortured, or beaten, to force him to effect
the expulsion of the evil spirit. But the family or village bhztt may
be accused. The ojkd, under inspiration, of course, decides what is
to be sacriﬁced, and frequently ruins, if he does not cure, the patient
consulting him. In the process of propitiation, the fetish nature of
the Onion belief is shown. The sorcerer produces a small image
of mud, and on it sprinkles a few grains of rice. If fowls are to be
the victims, they are placed in front of this image; and if they peck

145 ORA’ON.

at the rice, it indicates that the particular devil is satisﬁed with the
intention of his votaries, and the sacriﬁce proceeds. The ﬂesh of
the animals killed is appropriated by the sorcerer, so it is his interest
to have a hecatomb if possible. In regard to the names and attri-
butes 0f the devils, the Oraons who live with Mundas sacriﬁce to
Marang Bﬁrﬁ and all the Munda Bongas. The Oréons on the
western portionof the plateau, where there are few Mundas, ignore
the Bongas and pay their devotion to Darha, the Sarna Burhi (Lady
of the Grove), and the village bluits, who have various names.
Chanda or Chandi is the god or goddess of. the chase, and is always
invoked preparatory to starting on great hunting expeditions. Any
bit of rock, or stone, or excrescence on a rock, serves to represent
this deity. The hill near Lodhma, known to the Mundas as Marang
Blirﬁ, is held in great reverence by the Oraons. To the spirit of the
hill, whom they call Baranda, they give bullocks and buffaloes, espe-
cially propitiating him as the Matt, who, when malignantly inclined,
frustrates God’s designs of sending rain in due season to fertilise the
earth. In some parts of the country Darha is almost the only spirit
they propitiate. If fowls are offered to him, they must be of divers
colours, but once in three years he should have a sheep from his
votaries; and once in the same period a buffalo, of which the ojlzd
or palm gets a quarter. The Onion must always have something
material to worship, renewed every three years. Besides this
superstitious dread of the spirits above named, the Oraon’s imagin-
ation tremblingly wanders in a world of ghosts. Every rock, road,
river, and grove is haunted. He believes that women who die in
childbirth become ghosts, called c/zomil ; and such ghosts are fre-
quently met hovering about the tombstones, always clad in robes
of white, their faces fair and lovely, but with backs black as
charcoal, and inverted feet, that is, they walk with their heels in
front. They lay hold of passers-by and wrestle with them, and
tickle them; and he is lucky, indeed, who, thus caught, escapes
without permanent injuries.” Women who die within ﬁfteen days
of their conﬁnement are behaved to be likely to become choraz’ls ;
but this danger may be averted by offering sacriﬁces for the repose
of their spirits.

The Oraons do not employ Brahmans, and their religious and
ceremonial Observances are supervised by priests of their own tribe
known as Naiyas. -

“ The Oraons and Mundas keep the same festivals; but, accord-
ing to Mr. Luther, the Karm is, with the
former, the most important. It is celebrated
at the season for planting out the rice grown in seed-beds, and
is observed by Hindus as well as by Kols and other tribes. On
the ﬁrst day of the feast the villagers must not break their fast
till certain ceremonies have been performed. In the evening a
party of young people of both sexes proceed to the forest, and cut
a young karma tree (Nam/ea parmTfo/ia), or the branch of one,
bearing which they return in triumph,—dancing, and singing, and
beating drums,-—and plant it in the middle of the dkhra. After
the performance of a sacriﬁce to the Karma. Deota by the palm, the

I:

Festivals.

\\

ORA’ON. 146

villagers feast, and the nightis passed in dancing and revelry. Next
morning all may be seen at an early hour in holiday array; the
elders in groups, under the ﬁne old tamarind trees that surround the
ékhra, and the youth of both sexes, arm-linked in a huge circle,
dancing round the karma tree, which, festooned with garlands,
decorated with strips of coloured cloth, sham bracelets and necklets
of plaited straw, and with the bright faces and merry laughter
of the young people encircling it, reminds one of the gift-bearing
tree so often introduced at our own Christmas festival, and suggests
the probability of some remote connection between the two. Pre-
paratory to the festival, the daughters of the headmen of the
village cultivate blades of barley in a peculiar manner. The seed
is sown in moist, sandy soil, mixed with a quantity of turmeric,
and the blades sprout and unfold of a pale yellow or primrose
colour. On the karma day, these blades are taken up by the
roots, as if for transplanting, and carried in baskets by the fair
cultivators to the dkhra. They approach the karma tree, and,
prostrating themselves reverentially, place before it some of the
plants. They then go round the company, and, like bridesmaids
distributing wedding favours, present to each person a few of the
yellow barley blades, and all soon appear, wearing, generally in
their hair, this distinctive decoration of the festival. Then all join
merrily in the karma dances, and malignant indeed must be the
(mat who is not propitiated by so attractive a gathering. The '
morning revel closes with the removal of the karma. It is taken
away by the merry throng and thrown into a stream or tank; but
after another feast dancing and drinking are resumed. On the
following morning the effects of the two nights’ dissipation are
often, I fear, very palpable.” Colonel Dalton notices that the karma
festival is celebrated by Hindus as well as by the aboriginal tribes,
and quotes a passage from the Bhavishya Purana, the object of
which appears to be to explain how a festival of an aboriginal people
came to be adopted by the Hindus. He also points out that the
necessity of the females of the family joining in the ceremony is an
argument against its Hindu origin.

“The Oraons have some Observances during the Sarhﬁl festival
that differ a little from those of the Mundas. Their idea is that at
this season the marriage of Dharti, the earth, is celebrated; and this
cannot be done till the sdl trees give the ﬂowers for the ceremony.
It takes place, then, towards the end of March or beginning of
April; but any day whilst the sat trees are in blossom will answer.
On the day ﬁxed the villagers accompany their palm to the sarna,
the sacred grove, a remnant of the old sat forest, in which the
Oréons locate a popular deity, called the Sarna Bﬁrhi, or woman of
the grove, corresponding with the Jahir Era and Desauli of the
Mundas. To this dryad, who is supposed to have great inﬂuence
on the rain (a superstition not unlikely to have been founded on the
importance of trees as oloud-compellers), the palm, arriving with
his party at the grove, offers ﬁve fowls. These are afterwards
cooked with rice, and a small quantity of the food is given to each
person present. They then collect a quantity of sdl ﬂowers and

147 ORA’ON.

return laden with them to the village. Next day the pct/m, with
some of the males of the village, pays a visit to every house, carrying
the ﬂowers in a wide, open basket. The females of each house take
out water to wash his feet as he approaches. and, kneeling before
him, make a most respectful obeisance. He then dances with them,
and places over the door of the house, and in the hair of the women,
some of the sdl ﬂowers. The moment that this is accomplished,
they throw the contents of their water-vessels over his venerable
person, heartily dousing the man whom a moment before they
were treating with such profound respect. But to prevent his
catching cold they ply him with as much of the home-brew as he
can drink, consequently his reverence is generally gloriously drunk
before he completes his round. The feasting and beer-drinking
now become general; and after the meal the youth of both
sexes, decked with sdl ﬂowers (they make an exceedingly becom-
ing head-dress), ﬂock to the dis/era, and dance all night and best
part of next day.”

“ Where a death occurs in an Oréon family, it is made known
by the lamentations of the women, who loosen
their hair (a demonstration of grief which
appears to prevail in all countries) and cry vigorously. They lay
out the body on the common cot, called cladrpdi ; and, after washing
it carefully, convey it to the appointed burning-place, covered with
a new cloth, and escorted by all the villagers, male and female, who
are able to attend. In some families the funeral procession proceeds
with music, but others dislike this custom, and nothing is heard but
the cries of the women. When they have arrived at the place where
the funeral pile has been prepared, the body is again washed, and the
nearest relations of the deceased make offerings of rice, and put rice
into the mouth of the corpse, while others put pice or other coin.
The body is then placed on the pile and anointed ; further
oﬁerings of rice are made, and the pile is ignited by a father or
mother, a wife or husband. When the body has been consumed,
notice is given in the village, and there is another collection of
friends, and relatives to collect the charred bones which remain.
These are placed in a new earthen vessel, and ceremoniously taken
to the village; and as the procession returns, parched rice is
dropped on the road to mark the route selected. The cinerary urn
is suspended to a post erected in front of the residence of the
deceased; the guests are feasted, and the party then breaks up. In
the month of December or January next ensuing, the friends and
relations are all again -collected to witness the disposal of the bones
in the place that, from the ﬁrst establishment of the community, has
been appropriated to the purpose. This is a point on which the
Oraons are exceedingly tenacious; and even when one of them dies
far from his home, his relations will, if possible. sooner or later,
recover the fragments of his bones, and bear them back to the
village, to be deposited with the ashes of his ancestors. The burial
ground is always near a river, stream, or tank. As the procession
proceeds with music to this place, offerings of rice are continually
thrown over the cinerary urn till it is deposited in the grave prepared

k2

Disposal of the dead.

ORA’ON. 148

for it, and a large ﬂat stone placed above. Then all must bathe,
and after paying the musicians the party returns to the village. The
money that was placed in the mouth of the corpse and afterwards
saved from the ashes is the fee of the musicians. The person who
carried the bones to the grave has to undergo puriﬁcation by incense
and the sprinkling of water. It is to be observed that this ceremony
occurs in each village but once in the year; and on the appointed
day the ashes of all who have died during the year are simultaneously
relegated to their ﬁnal resting place. N 0 marriage can take place in
a village whilst the bones of the dead are retained there. The most
ardent lovers must patiently await the day of had/Jam} or sepulture.
The marriage season commences shortly afterwards.”

In the eyes of the average Hindu the Oraons have no social
status at all, and are deemed to be entirely
outside the regular caste system. In the
important matter of diet the main body of the tribe have as yet
made no concessions to Hindu prejudice. Beef, pork, fowls, all
kinds of ﬁsh, alligators, lizards, ﬁeld-rats, the larvae of bees and
wasps, and even the ﬂesh of animals which have died a natural
death, are reckoned lawful food. Oraons, in fact, will eat almost
anything, and are looked down upon as promiscuous feeders by the
Bagdis, Bauris, and other dwellers upon the outskirts of Hinduism.
A common charge is that they eat snakes and jackals, but this is
only partially true, for the ﬂesh of these animals is used solely
for certain obscure medicinal purposes, and is not recognized as a
regular article of diet. It is a singular fact that the Oraons hold
the ass to be sacred, and will not kill it or eat its ﬂesh, thus
assigning to the animal much the same position and dignity as the
Hindus give to the cow. No reason can be given by the members
of the tribe for delighting to honour an animal which is in no way
characteristic of heir present habitat ; nor do I ﬁnd any evidence to
support the obvious conjecture that the ass may have been a tribal
totem. The question of such totenis and its bearing upon the
problem of the origin of exogamy has been discussed at length in
the Introduction to the ﬁrst volume.

The Oraons claim to have introduced plough cultivation into

. Chota Nagpur, and thus to have displaced

occupamn' the barbarous ddkd method of tillage which

is carried on by burning the jungle and sowing a crop of pulse
or Indian-corn in the ashes. They were certainly among the
earliest settlers on the plateau of Chota Nagpur, and many of them
even now hold bhm‘n/zdri tenures in right of being the ﬁrst clearers
of the soil. These rights, however, are now fast passing out of their
hands, and the modern competition for land tends rather to reduce
them to the position of tenants-at-will or landless agricultural
labourers. “Their lot,” says Colonel Dalton, “is not a happy one.
N ot one of their own people now occupies a position which would
give him the power to protect, or the inﬂuence to elevate, them from
the state of degradation into which a majority of the tribe have long
fallen. They submit to be told that they were especially created as
a labouring class. They have had this so often dinned into their ears,

Social status.

149 ORA’ON.

that they believe and admit it ; and I have known instances of their
abstaining from claiming, as authorised by law, commutation for the
forced labour exacted by their landlords, because they considered
that they were born to it. There are indeed some amongst them,
stern yeomen, who cling with tenacity to the freeholds they have
inherited, and will spend all they possess in defending them; but
the bulk of the people seldom rise, in their own country, above
the position of cottiers and labourers. There the value of labour
has not risen in proportion to the advance that has taken place in
other parts of India ; and Onions are easily induced to migrate for
a time to other climes, even to regions beyond the great ‘black'
water,’ where their work is better remunerated. But those who return ‘
with wealth thus accumulated regard it not. They spend in a month
what would have made them comfortable for life, and relapse into
their lot of labour and penury, as if they had never had experience of
independence and plenty. I believe they relish work, if the task-
master be not over-exacting. Oraons sentenced to imprisonment
without labour, as sometimes happens, for offences against the
excise laws, insist on joining the labouring gangs. and wherever
employed, if kindly treated, they labour as if they felt an interest in
the work. In cold weather or hot, rain or sun, they go cheerfully
about it; and after some nine or ten hours of toil, they return
blithely home, in ﬂower-decked groups, holding each other by the
hand or round the Waist, and singing.

“The constitution of the Onion village is the same as that
of the Mundéri. In each the hereditary ”122mm or headman and the
hereditary palm or priest have their lands on privileged terms, as
the descendants of the founders of the village. The hereditary
estates of the two families are called klnints, and there is sometimes
a third Haunt, called the md/mto ; on all of these a very low rent is
ﬁxed, but there are conditions of service attached. These may now
be commuted to cash payments at the instance of either party.
There is also, under charge of the pdlm, the land dedicated to the ser-
vice of the village gods. The priestly ofﬁce does not always descend
from father to son. The latter may be ignorant and disqualiﬁed, or
he may be a Christian; therefore, when vacated, it is ﬁlled by
divination. The magic 32219, or winnowing-sieve, properly spelled
like a divining-rod, conducts the person holding it to the door of
the man most ﬁtted to hold the ofﬁce. A priest there must be ; an
Oraon community cannot get on without one. The fate of the
village is in his hands; in their own phraseology, it is said that ‘ he
makes its aﬁairs.’ He is also master of the revels which are for
the most part connected with religious rites. The doctrine of the
Oraons is that man best pleases the gods when he makes merry
himself; so that acts of worship and propitiatory sacriﬁces are
always associated with feasting, drinking, dancing, and love-making.
The mz’mda or mdhato is the functionary to whom the proprietor
of the village looks for its secular administration. In contradis-
tinction to the pdlm who makes (bandtd) the affairs, the mdhato
administers (ckaldtd) them; and he may be removed if he fail to
give satisfaction.”

\\

ORA’ON.

150

OSWAL.

The following statement 'shows the number and distribution of

Oraons in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

strmcr. 1872. 1881. DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Bardwau 991 2,413 Chittagong 1 43
Bankura .. 105 76 Noakhali .. .. ...... 25
Birbhum 5,159 5,567 Patna. 6 97
Midna. pur ... ... 528 83 Gya . .. 35 11
Hushh } 696 { 24,0 Shahabad 712 106
Howrah ' 19 Darbhanga .. 886 1.224
241-Pargauas 3,362 1,439 Saran 37 103
Nadiya 265 633 Uhamparan 2,288 1,492
Khulna ...... 14 Monshyr 8 43
Jessore 2 133 Bhagalpur 5,612 3,132
Murshedabad... 6,131 2,499 Purmah . 8,066 7,354
Duyaqur 2,735 2,187 Maldah 3,165 2,622
Ragshahye 6,619 2,825 Santa! Parganas 3,062 1.963
Rangpur 242 79 Cuttack ...... 20
Bogra 1 67 422 Balasore ... ...... 67
Pabna . . 200 185 Tributary States ..... 50
DarJihng 1,618 605 Hazaribagh ... 1,775 1.493
Jalplgori .. 453 210 Lohardaga 151,810 60,934
Kuch Behar ...... 3 Singbhum . 1,937 1.505
Dacca 2 ...... Manbhum 19 67°
Faridpur. 11 Tributary States 53.342 48.975
Maxmansmh 5 60

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oréon, a section of Ghasis; a
sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Oréon-Kharié, a sub-caste of
Kharias in Chota Nagpur.

Oraon‘Munda, a sub-tribe of
Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Orea, basket-maker, a sept of
Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Orgonra, hawk, a totemistic
sept of Oracns in Chota Nagpur.

Orh, a sub-caste of Nunias
in Behar and of Kaibarttas in
Orissa. It deserves notice
that 0d or Odh is a well-known
vagrant caste of earth-workers in
the Panjab, Rajpute’lna, and
Western Hindustan. See Mr.
Ibbetson’s Report on the Census
of the Panjab, p. 308.

Orha, Our/m, synonyms for
Uriya, a native of Orissa.

 

Orhchésé or Mundi—chdsd, a
sub-caste of Chases in Orissa.

Orh-Pén or Uriya—Pén, a.
sub-caste of Pans in Orissa.

Orié, a sub-caste of Sonars in
Behar.

Or—Méhali, a sub-caste of

Mahilis Who are basket-makers,
the same as Doms.

Oséi, a section of the Biyahut
and Kharidaha Kalwars in
Behar.

Osiér, a par or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Osté, Ostad, a title of
Hajjams in Behar.

Osti, a thar or section of
Nepali Brahmans.

Osui, a sept of Tipperahs in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

69511031, a wealthy and respectable trading caste of Behar and

Origin.

Upper India, Who say that their name _is
derived from Osia or Osnagar, a town in

Marwér. Colonel Tod places them among the mercantile clans .of
Réjputs, and they themselves, like many other trading castes, claim

oser. ' ’ 151 OTONIA’.

to be pure Vaisyas. However this may be, no one can fail to
observe in them a reﬁned type of features and a comparatively
fair complexion—characteristics which can only be accounted for by
supposing them to be of tolerably pure Aryan descent. A few of
the sections of the caste are shown in Appendix I. They differ entirely
from those of the Agarwéls. The Oswéls observe a complex rule
of exogamy. A man may not marry into (a) his own section, (1)) his
mother’s, (0) his maternal grandmother’s, (d) his paternal grand-
mother’s, (6) his paternal great-grandmother’s. This, though reaching
much further than the common rule which bars only a man’s OWn
section, does not enable the caste to dispense entirely with the usual
system of counting prohibited degrees. There is only one sub-caste,
the Dasé. which is debarred from intermarriage with Oswals proper.
According to Mr. Ibbetson1 the word “means ‘hybrid,’ and is
used for members of other castes who have departed from the custom
of the caste or whose descent is not pure.”

Oswals marry their daughters as infants, prohibit widow-
marriage, and do not recognize divorce. Like
the Agarwals, they also forbid polygamy.
Many of the caste are Swetambari Jains, but in spite of this
difference of religion they intermarry freely with Hindu Oswals,
most of whom belong to the Vaishnava sect, and thus do not offend
Jain prejudice by partaking of animal food. Graur Brahmans serve
the Oswéls as priests, and do not forfeit their high position by doing
so. The social rank of Oswéls is about the same as that of
Agarwals, and Brahmans will take water and certain kinds of sweet-
meats from their hands.

The Oswals were not returned separately in the Census Report
of 1872. The following statement, however, will show the distribution
of the caste in 1881 :—

Marriage.

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1881. U DISTRICT. 1881.

Bardwan 2 Maimansinh 11
Ranzpur 106 Patna 2
Pabna 3 Shahabad 4-1
Bogra 4. Monghyr 23
Darjiling 164 ‘ Santal Parganﬁs 3
Jalpigori 3 i Lohardaga 7
Kuch Behar 20 ‘

 

Otonié, a section of the Biyahut and Kharidaha Kalwérsin
Behar.

 

‘ Panjdb Census Report, para. 533.

PA’B.

Péb, a synonym for Pain.

Pébai ke kisén. a section of
the Biyéhut and Kharidahé
Kalwérs in Behar.

Paban, a family name of the
Grihasth group of Jugis in
Bengal.

Pachéin, a ﬂaw or sept of
Mangars in Darjilin g.

Pachéinya, a sub-caste of
Doms in Behar.

Pachainyé or Ckauhdn, a
sub-caste of Nuniés in Behar.

Péchak. a maker of digestive
pills and preserves; also a title
applied to a Brahman cook.

Péchél, a title of Kaibarttas.

Pachés-gharia, a group of
the Bar-gohri sub-caste of Khan-
daits in Chota Nagpur.

Pachauté, a section of Mad-
hesia Halwéis in Behar.

Pach bhaj ué. a section of
Bébhans in Behar.

Pacherié, a section of Goalas
in the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Pachgauti, a section of Raj puts
in Behar.

Pachgotya, a section of Beb-
hans in Behar.

Pachhainya, a sub-caste of
Agarwéls.

Pachhainyé Madesié. a sub-
caste of Halwéis in Behar.

Pachhanié, a sept of Rajputs
in Behar.

152

 

PACHTARIA’.

p

Pachhién, a sub-caste of Cha-
mars in Behar.

Pachlzimd Bra/imam, a synonym
for Babhan.

Pachhwér, a pm or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Pachia, a sept of Gonds in
Chota Nagpur.

’Pachimé. or Kanmgjz'a’, a sub-
caste of Kumhérs in Manbhum.

Pachi Pargana, a mul or sec-
tion of the Naomulié or Majraut
sub-caste of Goalas in Behar.

PachKésyapa. a section of
Sonérs in Behar, apparently
adopted from the Brahmanical
system.

Pachlor, a mu! or section of
the Kanaujiﬁ sub-caste of Sonérs
in Behar.

Pachmait, a section of Mag-
haya Kumhars in Behar.

Péchnarié. a section of the
Biyahut and Kharidéhé. Kal-
wars in Behar.

Péchottar, a mu! or section
of the Tinmulia and Chhamulié
Madhesia and Bhojpurié. sub-
castes of Halwéis in Behar.

Pach pékar, a section of Sonérs
in Behar.

Pachpanié, a sub-caste of
Grulgulias in Hazaribagh and
Gya.

Pachtar, a section of Madho-
sia Kandus in Behar.

Pachtarié, a sept of Rajputs
in Behar.

PADAHA’RI.

Padahéri, a group of the
Panda sub-caste of Utkal Brah-
mans.

Paderéchhé. a ﬁrm or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.

Padhén, corruption of Pra-
dha’in, a. title of Chasas in Orissa.

Padhénié, a section of Goalas
in the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Padmaréj, Padardj, lotus-
king; a title of Pods and Jaliyas
in Bengal.

Padma-rési, a section of
Malos in Eastern Bengal.

Padowar, a sept of Palms in
Chota Nagpur.

Pégmal, a family name of
the Kulin group of J ugis in
Bengal.

Pégulwér-Barhiém, a mu! of
the Séndil section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Pagulwar-Tarélohi, a mul of
the Séndil section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Pagulwér-Dhen, a mu! of the
Séndil section of Maithil Brah-
mans in Behar.

Péhari, a sub-caste of Ghésis
in Chota Nagpur; a section of
Saraogis in Behar.

Pahérié-Agaria, a sub-tribe
of Agariés in Chota Nagpur.

Pahérié~Asur, a sub-tribe of
Asuras in Chota Nagpur.

Pahérié—Binjhié. a. sub-tribe
of Biujhias in Chota Nagpur,
so called from living in the

hills.

Paharia-Korwa, a sub-tribe
of Korwas in Ghota Nagpur.

153

 

PAITI.

Pahasrait, a section of the
Pachainya sub-caste of Doms in
Behar.

Pahlampuri, a section
Kanaujia Lohars in Behar.

Pai, a title of Bangaja Kay-
asths.

'Paiharwére, a section of
Madhesié Halwais in Behar.

Pa‘ilc, a foot soldier, a title of
Goalas, Khandaits, Chasédhobas,
Pods, and Dhobis. In Midnapur
and Guttack the Pa’z‘lcs hold
small landed tenures and serve as
rural police and village watchmen.
Ahir Paiks prepare chard.

Paikdr, a dealer, a wholesale
purchaser, a. broker. In the silk
industry of Bengal the term is
applied to the agents who buy
silk cocoons from the cultivators
and deliver them to the factory.

Paikaré, a sub-tribe of Kaurs
in Chota Nagpur.

Pailahé, a section of the
Biyahut and Kharidaha Kalwars
in Behar.

PaiIé-Sudhé, a sub-caste of
Sudhas in Orissa.

Pailwér, a sub-caste of
Dosédhs; a sept of Rajputs in
Behar.

Paindi. 9. Mar or sept of
Gurungs in Darjiling.

Painju, a ﬂaw or sept of the
Das-Gurung sub-tribe of Gru-
rungs, so named after a place
in the frontiers of Nepal and
Tibet near the head waters of
the Kaliganga.

Paitél, a title of Téntis or

weavers, who manufacture silk
cloth and also mats.

Paithan, a section of Awa-
dhié Hajjams in Behar.

Pai‘ti, a title of Tambulis in
Behar.

of

PA’KAR.

Pékar, a fruit, a totemistic
sept of Konrs in Chota Nag-
pur.

Pakarye-Maheshi, a. mu! of
the Késyap section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Pékari, a ga‘z‘n of the Sebarna
gotra of Barendra Brahmans in
Bengal.

Pékbasanta, bird, 3. totem-
istic section of Bagdis in Bengal.

Pdlc/zdh', a
Dhohé.

Pakharpailo, a sub-section of

the Bharadwaja section of Utkal
Brahmans.

Pakhichéte’i, a section of Telis
in Chota Nagpur.

synonym for

Pékhiméré, ‘bird-killer,’ a

.title of Bediyas.

Pakhora, a sept of Mundas
in Chota Nagpur.

Pakhrin, a section of Murmis
in Darjiling.

Pakhué, a sept of Korwas in
Chota Nagpur.

Pakli, a section of Karan
Kayasths in Behar.

Pakonyal, a ﬂaw or section of
N epali Brahmans,

Pakra, a section of Goria’.
or Dahiar Goélas in Behar.

Pékrési, a ga’z‘n of the Kasyapa
gotra of Rérhi Brahmans in

Bengal.

Pékuri, a title of Goalés in
Behar.

Pél, a title of Dakshin-Rarhi
and Bangaja Kayasths, Telis,
Sadgops, Kumhars, Tambulis,
Tantis, Suharnabaniks, and Sutra-
dhars in Bengal. Intermarriage
is 1usually prohibited Within the
tit e.

154

 

PALIWA’R-HARIPUR.

Péladhi, a gdz’n of the Késyapa
gotm of Barbi Brahmans in
Bengal.

Palainggritsa, a sept of
Maghs in the Hill Tracts of
Chittagong.

. Palaingtsa, a sept of Maghs
1n the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Palak Pénre, a ml or sec-
tion of the Biéhut sub-caste of
Kalwars in Behar.

Palémi, a ﬂaw or sept of
Gurungs in Darjiling.

Palankhéi, a title of Bégdis
in Western Bengal.

Palésa, a sept of Maghs in the
Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Palésram, a group of the
Sundi sub-caste of Sunris in
Bengal.

Palaur, a section of Mahesris
in Behar.

Péli, a mul or section of the
Sétmulia or Kishnaut sub-caste
of Goalas, and a section of the
Sétmulia Maghaya sub-caste of
Kandus in Behar.

Péli’c, a title of Kéyasths in
Bengal.

Péliwér-Mangrauni, a mu! of
the Batsya section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Paliwér-Mahesi, a mu! of the
Batsa section of Maithil Brah-
mans in Behar.

Paliwér-Dibré, a med of the
Batsa section of Maithil Brah-
mans in Behar.

Paliwér-Sakuri, a me! of the
Batsa section of Maithil Brah-
mans in Behar.

Paliwér-Haripur, a mad of
the Bétsa section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

PA LIWA’R-SAMA UL.

Paliwar-Samaul, a mu! of the
Batsa section of Maithil Brah-
mans in Behar.

Paliwér—Kachhré, a mu! of
the Batsa section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Paliwér—Phuldéha, a mu] of
the Batsa section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Paliwér—Mahendra, a mu! of
the Bétsa section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Paliwér—Jarhatyé, a mu! of
the Batsa section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

1321523, Poliya, Pola, a Dra-
vidian cultivating caste of North-
ern Bengal, originally Kochh.

Paliyér-Parghé, a subcaste
of Parghas.

155

PAN.

Pallab or Ballabh. a sub-caste
of Goalés in Bengal.

Pallal, a group of Barendra
Goalas in Bengal.

Palli, a sub-tribe of Savars in
Orissa.

Palmohé, a
Koiris in Behar.

Palséi, a ga’in of the Kasyapa
gotm of Rarhi Brahmans in
Bengal.

Pélu, a sept of Limbus in
Darjiling.

sub-caste of

iﬁalmar, an up-country caste,
by profession dealers in ghz', boat-
men, cultivators, makers of brick-
dust; some are also engaged as
moharirs in the ﬁrms of trades-
men. Suryabansi is their title.

Pamér, a sept of the Surya-
bansi division of Rajputs in

Behar.

Pamia, a tree, a totemistic sept
of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Pélki, a sept of Rajputs in
Behar.

 

1331!, Printed, Prim, de, Pdm'lcrz, Chi/c, Claik-Bardilt, Bardz'k,
Ganda, Illa/tam, Sdu-asi, Tdntz', a low weaving,
basket-making, and servile caste scattered
under various names throughout the north of .Orissa and the
southern and western parts of Chota Nagpur. “In feature,”
says Colonel Dalton, “these people are Aryan or Hindu rather
“than Kolarian or Dravidian. Their habits are all much alike,
“repudiating the Hindu restrictions upon food, but worshipping
“ Hindu gods and goddesses, and having no peculiar customs which
“stamp them as of the other races.” In Singbhum .they are
said by the same authority to be “domesticated as essential consti-
tuents of every Ho Village community,” and “now almost undis-
tinguishable from the Hos?” In another place they are described
as “in all probability remnants of the Aryan colonles that the Hos
subjugated.3” . . .
From these somewhat contradictory utterances 1t 1s not quite
easy to gather what was Colonel Dalton’s ﬁnal opinion as to the origin
of the Him. In one place he credits them With features of an
Aryan or Hindu type, in another he speaks of them as .almost
undistinguishable from the Hos—the most markedly N egrlto-hke

1 Dalton, Ethnology of Bengal, p. 325.
‘1 Dalton, op. git, 196, 325.
3 Dalton, 010.005., p. 185.

Origin.

 

\\

PA’N. 156

representatives of the Dravidian race. The distinction between
Kolarian and Dravidian mentioned by him is of course purely
linguistic, as has been explained in the introduction to these volumes.

The suggestion that the Pans may be the remnants of Aryan
colonies subjugated by the Hos takes us back into prehistoric times,
and raises the probably insoluble question : Were there ever Aryan
colonies in the region where we ﬁnd the Pens; and if so, is there any-
thing to show that the Hos subjugated them? To the best of my
knowledge the only evidence for the existence of such colonies
consists of certain scanty architectural remains buried here and there
in the jungles of Chota Nagpur, and of the shadowy tradition
that the Singbhum copper mines were worked by the Jains.
This seems a slender foundation for the conjecture that the Pans of
the present day are the descendants of prehistoric Aryan colonists
who were subdued by the Dravidian races of Chota Nagpur and
settled down as helots in communities of alien blood, retaining
their religion, but parting with that purism in matters of food
pghich has always distinguished the Aryan in comparison with the

asyu.

Fortunately there is no necessity to enter upon this speculative
line of inquiry. Not only do their own tradi-
tions claiming descent from the snake throw
doubt on the Aryan pedigree which has been made out for
them, but the most cursory examination of the exogamous
divisions of the Pans affords convincing evidence of their Dravidian
origin. The caste has a very numerous set of totems, comprising
the tiger,‘ the buffalo, the monkey, the tortoise, the cobra, the mon-
goose, the owl, the king-crow, the peacock, the centipede, various
kinds of deer, the wild ﬁg, the wild plum, and a host of others which
I am unable to identify. They have in fact substantially the same
set of totems as the other Dravidian tribes of that part of the country,
and make use of these totems for regulating marriage in precisely
the same way. The totem follows the line of male descent. A
man may not marry a woman who has the same totem as himself,
but the totems of the bride’s ancestors are not taken into account, as
is the case in the more advanced forms of exogarny. In addition to
the prohibition of marrying among totem kin, we ﬁnd a beginning of
the supplementary system of reckoning prohibited degrees. The
formula, however, is curiously incomplete. Instead of mentioning
both sets of uncles and aunts and barring seven generations, as is
usual, the Pans mention only the paternal uncle and exclude only
one generation. They are therefore only a stage removed from the
primitive state of things when matrimonial relations are regulated by
the simple rule of exogamy, and kinship by both parents has not
yet come to be recognized.

Like most castes which are spread over a large area of
country, the Pans appear under several different names, the origin of

Traditions.

 

'It is a singular fact that the tiger giVes its name to two separate
groups. One of these is called Kulhai, a word which must have denoted
tiger in the original language of the Pans (compare the Santali Kulh) ; while
the other, Bdghail, is obviously of Hindi origin.

157 ' PA’N.

which it is now difﬁcult to trace. Thus in Manbhum they call them-
selves Baréik. ‘ the great ones,’ a title used by the Jadubansi Raj puts,
the Binjhias, Rantias, and Khandaits ; in Western Lohardagé and
Sarguja we meet them under the name of Chik or Chik Baréik;
in Singbhum they are SaWQSI or Ténti, and in the Western Tribu-
tary States they are called Ganda, a name which suggests the
possibility of descent from the Gonds, a tribe which in former times
appears to have extended further to the east, and to have occupied
a more dominant position than is the case at the present day.

In Orissa ﬁve sub-castes are known:——(l) Orh-Pén or Uriya-Pén,
a semi-Hinduised group supposed to have
sprung from a liaison between a Pan woman
and a member of one of the lower Uriya castes, but now claim-
ing a higher social status than the Fans of the original stock;
(2) Buna-Pén, including those Pans who weave cloth only;
(3) Betra—Pén or Raj-Pén, basket-makers and workers in cane, also
employed as musicians, syces, and chaukidars. (4) Pén-Baistab, com-
posed of Pans who have become Vaishnavas and who ofﬁciate as
priests for their own caste. As a general rule it may be laid down that
religious differences within the pale of Hinduism do not lead to the
formation of endogamous groups. Among Agarwals and Oswals
J aims and Hindus intermarry. it is only in Orissa that the Vaishnava
members of several castes seem to out themselves off from their own
caste and from the general body of Vaishnavas, and form a new sub-
caste under a double name denoting the origin of the groups.
(5) Patradié, consisting of those Pans who live in the villages of the
Kandh tribe, work as weavers and perform for the Kandhs a variety
of servile functioas. The group seems also to include the descendants
of Pans, who sold themselves as slaves, or were sold as Merias or
victims to the Kandhs. The precise history of the Patradia’. sub-caste
is of course obscure, but I see no reason to doubt the possibility of an
endogamous group being formed in the manner alleged. There is no
question whatever as to the Pans occupying a separate quarter,—
a kind of Ghetto,—in the Kandh villages, where they weave the cloth
that the tribe requires, and also work as farm-labourers, cultivating
land belonging to the Kandhs, and making over to their landlords
half the produce as rent. These Pains naturally come to be looked
down upon by other Pans who serve Hindus or live in villages of
their own and then come to be ranked as a separate sub-caste as
regards the slave class alleged to be included in the group.
We know that an extensive trafﬁc in children destined for
human sacriﬁce used to go on in the Kandh country, and
that the Pans were the agents who “sometimes purchased, but
more frequently kidnapped, the children, whom they sold to the
Kandhs, and were so debased that they occasionally sold their own
offspring, though they knew of course the late that awaited them.”
Moreover, apart from the demand for sacriﬁcial purposes, the practice
of selling men as agricultural labourers was until a few years ago
by no means uncommon in the wilder parts of the Chota Nagpur
Division, where labour is scarce and cash payments are almost
unknown. Numbers of formal bonds have come before me whereby

Internal structure.

\\

PAN. 158

men sold not only themselves, but their children for a lump sum to
enable them to marry, and‘on several occasions attempts have been
made to enforce such contracts in the courts, and to prevent the Kamid,
as a slave of this class is called, from emigrating to the tea districts
of Assam, or from otherwise evading the obligations he had taken upon
himself. There is nothing therefore antecedently improbable in the
existence of a slave sub-caste among the Pans.

Pén girls are usually married after they are fully grown up,
and the Hindu practice of infant-marriage is
conﬁned to a few well-to-do members of the
Orh-Pan sub-caste, who have borrowed it from their orthodox
neighbours as a token of social respectability. The standard
bride-price is said to be Rs. 2 in cash, a maund and a half
of husked rice, a goat and two saris—one for the bride and one
for her mother-in-law. In Orissa the simple marriage ceremony in
vogue is performed by a member of the Pan-Vaishnava sub-caste,
who, as has been mentioned above, serve the Pans as priests, and are
often spoken of inaccurately as their “Brahmans.” In Chota Nagpur,
where the organization of the caste is less elaborate than in Orissa,
men of the Nageswar caste not unfrequently serve the Pans as
priests; or again any member of the caste with a turn for cere-
monial functions may otﬁciate, and the post is usually ﬁlled by a
Bhakat or devotee. The most essential portions of the ritual are
believed to be sindurddn, the smearing of vermilion on the bride’s
forehead, and the parting of her hair and tying together the hands
of the bride and bridegroom.

The widows may marry a second time, and it is deemed the
proper thing for her to marry her deceased husband’s younger
brother. She may in no case marry the elder brother. Divorce is
permitted, for almost any reason, with the sanction of the caste
panchayat. In Orissa the headman of the caste, styled Dalai or
Behera, presides on such occasions, and a chhdda-patra or bill of
divorcement is drawn up. The husband is also required to provide
her with food and clothing for six months. Divorced wives are
allowed to marry again.

The professed religion of the Rains is a sort of bastard Hindu-
ism, varying with the locality in which
they happen to be settled. ln Orissa and
Singbhum they incline to Vaishnavism, and tell a silly story
about their descent from Duti, the handmaiden of Radha, while
in Lohardaga the worship of Mahadeva and Devi Mai is more
pOpular. This veneer of Hinduism, however, has only recently
been laid on, and we may discern underneath it plentiful traces of
the primitive animism common to all the Dravidiau tribes. Man is
surrounded by unseen p0wers—-to call them spirits is to deﬁne _too
closely—which need constant service and propitiation, and vis1t a
negligent votary with various kinds of diseases. The Pans seem now
to be shufﬂing 0E this uncomfortable creed and deserting-their anoient
gods, while as yet they have not taken vigorously to Hinduism, and
they are described by one observer as having very little religlon. of
any kind. Among the minor gods in vogue among them mention

Marriage.

Religion.

PA'N. 1 59 PAN CHAUBHE-KHAJ ULI.
may be made of Pauri Pahéri or Bar-Pahar, a divinity of unques-
tionably Dravidian origin, who inhabits the highest hill in the
neighbourhood and demands the sacriﬁce of a he-goat in the month
of Phélgun, and occasional offerings of ghi all the year round.
The snake is also worshipped as the ancestor of the caste. An attempt
was made recently by the Pans of Moharbhanj to induce Brahmans
t0 ofﬁciate for them as priests at marriages and funeral ceremonies,
but no Brahmans could be persuaded to undertake these ofﬁces.

The southern Pans usually bury their dead in Orissa with
the head pointing to the east, while in Sing-
bhum it is turned towards the north. In
Lohardaga both cremation and burial are in vogue. Rape seed and
water are offered to the deceased and to his ancestors on the eleventh
day after death.

The social status of the caste according to Hindu ideas is
exceedingly low. They eat beef, pork, and
fowls, drink wine, and regard themselves as
better than the Hari in virtue of their abstain-
ing from horse ﬂesh. In Lohardaga they eat lcacln', drink and
smoke with Mundas and Oraons. Their original occupation is
admitted to be weaving, but many of them have now taken to culti-
vation. The Buna Pans of Orissa are noted thieves.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Pans in 1872 and 1881 :—-— ‘

Disposal of the dead.

Social status and occu-
pation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DIsrmor. ‘ 1872. 1881. DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Birbhum ...... 36 Chittagong 2 ......
Midnapur 9,709 ...... Tipperah . ......
24-Parganas ... 11 ...... Cuttack 64,765 78,967

hulna ...... 2 Yuri . 5,242 6,124
Rnngpur ...... 57 Balasore 36,946 48,192
Bogra 15 Tributary States 112,628 106,567
Dacca 52 ...... thardaga . 12,387 217
Bakarganj 41 41 Marlbhum .. 536
Maimansinh 94: . Tributary States 30,433 719

, , . . .
Pan, a sect of Dasnaml dwelhng 1n the valleys of the

Sannyasis; a title of Telis and
Aguris in Western Bengal.

Panarha, a title of Chamars
in Behar.

Panchabati, a ga’m of the
Sébarna gotm of Barendra Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Pancha Drévira, one of the
two main divisions of Brahmans
dwelling in the south of the
peninsula.

Pancha Gauriya, one of the
two main divisions of Brahmans

 

Ganges and Jumna.

Panchakoti, a sub-caste of
Brahmans, Baidyas, and Bauris
in Western Bengal.

Panchapéndava, “the ﬁve
Pandus,” a title of Kshatriyas.

Panchaparibar, a man with
ﬁve families, a pangat or sect of
Bairagis in Bengal.

Panchésié, a sub-caste of -
Sunris in Tipperah.

Panchaubhe-Khajuli, a mu]

of the Sébarna section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

\\

PANCHAUBHE-JHAUA’.

Panchaubhe—dhaué, a my! of
the Sébarna section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Panchaubhe-Birpur, a mu! of
the Sébarna section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Panchaubhe-BarhmauI, a mu!
of the Sabarna section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Panchaubhe-Bhithi, a mul of
the Bahama section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Panchaubhe-Dadri, a mu! of
the Sébarna section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Panchaubhe-Kariaun, a mu!
of the Sébarna section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Panchbatiér, a pm or section
of Sakadwipi Brahmans in
Behar. '

Panchbhaié, a functional sec-
tion of Babhans and Turis in
Behar.

Panch biha, a section of Tantis
and Pans in Chota Nagpur.

Panchhai, a purer section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Panchhié, a sept of Pans in
Chota Nagpur.

Panchjéti, a sub-caste of Kha-
tris in Bengal.

Panchkanthi, a pm" or section
of Sakadwipi Brahmans in
'Behar.

Panchku’ti, a ﬂaw or sept of
Damis in Darjiling Whose chief
profession is sewing.

Panchnémé mandar, a title
of Nagars in Behar.

Panchobe, a [ml or section of
Babhans in Behar.

160

 

PANDIT.

Panchsaméj, a group of the
Bérendra Sunris in Eastern
Bengal.

Pénchsata Bahéttarghar, a
sub-caste of Kaibarttas in Central
Bengal.

Pénchsau-gharié, a group
of the Bar-gohri sub-caste of
Khandaits in Gangpur.

Pénchurié, an endogamous
division of Barendra Brahmans
in Bengal. They are held in the
same estimation among Baren-
dras as Piralis among Rarhis.

Pandé, a sub-caste of Utkal
Brahmans in Orissa, who serve in
temples resorted to by pilgrims.
The term is especially applied to
temple priests in Orissa.

Pandar, a tree, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Pénde, a title of Babhans; a
section of the Sribastab sub-caste
of Kayasths in Behar; also
a designation of clerks of the
Kéyasth caste in Chota Nagpur.

Pande or Panre, a title of
Gaura, Kanaujia, and Seiraswat
Brahmans in Behar.

Péndiém, a section of Telis in
Chota Nagpur.

Pandiér, a pm or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Pandit, (i) a learned man:
hence, ironically, a title of
Bagdis, Doms, Jugis, and other
low castes, Who do not employ
Brahmans. (ii) A section of the
Banpar sub-caste of Gonrhis in
Behar. (iii) A title of Kumhars.
(iv) A title of Séraswat Brahmans
in Behar; a tkar or section of
Nepali Brahmans. (v) Atitle of
priests of Barnasankar castes in
'l‘ipperah. ‘

PAN DITRATN I.

Panditratni, including Kes-
abi, Gurbhabani, Maladhari, and
Brahmachari, a mel or hyper-
gamous sub-group of Rérhi
Brahmans in Bengal.

Pandki, a section of Ghésis
in Chota Nagpur.

Pé ndré, a section of Saraogis
in Behar.

Pandrasau-gharié, a group
of the Bar-gohri sub-caste of
Khandaits in Gangpur and
Bonai.

Pandubi, a sub-caste of Mal-
léhs in Behar.

Panduchone, a sept of Mun-
das in Chota Nagpur.

Panduki or Pandki, dove, a
totemistic sept of Mundas and
Telis in Chota Nagpur.

Paner, .Pcmeri, Panhdrz‘, a
seller of pdn or betel leaf, a title

of Barais and Tambulis in
Behar.

Paneru, a ﬂaw or‘section of
Nepali Brahmans.

Pang-Karmo, pang, ‘pasture,’
and karma, ‘white’—a dweller in
high pastures, a sub-sept of the
Nah-pa sept of Sherpa Bhotias.

Péni, a section of Utkal or
Orissa Brahmans.

Pénié, a dealer in pan or
betel-leaf, a title of Barais and
Tambulis in Behar.

Pénihé chaur, a section of

the Biyahut and Kharidéha
Kalwars in Behar.

Pénika, a synonym for Pan.

Paniyér, a section of the
Maghaya sub-caste of Kumhars
in Behar.

161

 

PANSHA.

Pénjé. heap of bricks, a title
of Barendra Brahmansand Kai-
barttas in Bengal.

Panjiér, Panjiéré. a caste
ofﬁcial who keeps up genealogies
and registers of marriages in Be-
har; a section of Maghaya Kum-
hars and a pangat or section of
Dosadhs ; a title of Nagars; a
section of the Banapar sub-caste
of Koiris and Sunris ; a title
of Goalés and Telis in Behar; a
title of Kharwars in Lohardaga.

Pénjibaddh, a hypergamous
group of Maithil Brahmans in
Behar.

Pankharayé, a section of the
Biyahut and Kharidaha Kal-
wars in Behar.

Pankhi, a bird, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Ghota Nagpur.

Pénkunda, a sama'j or local
group of the Séndilya gotm of
Paschatya Baidik Brahmans in
Bengal.

Pénpétra, a group of the
Daspara sub-caste of Kumhars
in Pabna.

Panr, a sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Pénr, a synonym for Pain.

Pénre, a section of Kanaujié
Lohars and of the Banpar sub-
caste of Gonrhis in Behar.

Pénre ke panre, a section of
the Biyahut and Kharidaha Kal-
Wzirs in Behar.

Pénru, snake, a totemistic
sept or Lohars in Chota Nagpur.

Pansain, a section of the
Amashta Kayasths in Behar.

Pénsha, a sub—caste of Tam-
bulis in Behar who deal in betel-
leaves.

I

PANSILI.

Pansm, a Sub-caste of Lohars
in Chota Nagpur.

Pén-Tanti, a class of Tantis or
Weavers in Chota Nagpur, who
allow widoWs to marry, eat fowls,
- drink Wine, etc., while the other
class, Aswini Tantis, do no‘ such
things.

Panthar, a sub-tribe of Lim-
bus in Darjiling.

Pénthi, a tkar or sept of Man-
gars in Darjiling. See Pénti.

Panthpékar, a section of the
Biyéhut and Kharidahé Kalwars ;
a mul or section of the Tinmulia
Madhesia sub-caste of Halwéis
and of the Ayodhiabasi sub-caste
of Sonars in Behar.

- Panti, Print/M7, a title of Telis
and Tambulis in Bengal who sell
pdn (piper betel).

Pénwa, a“. synonym for Pan.

Panwér, a sept of the Suraj-
bansi division of Réjputs in
Behar.’

Pépriwél, a section of Saraogis
in Behar.

Papson, the adopted one, a
sept of the Chaibisa sub-tribe of
Limbus in Darjiling.

Parabwér, a dill or exogam-
ous section of the Gharbait sub-

caste of Amats in Behar.

Péréjuli, a thar of the Kaun-
din gotra of Nepali Brahmans.

Parak, a dugu or section of
the Kochh-Mandai in Dacca.
The name indicates the original
habitat of the group, probably
a hill or village in ‘Assam, and
now-a~days has no bearing upon
marriage.

162”

 

 

PARBA’I‘E.

Paraménanda Misra, a me!
or hypergamous sub-group of
Rarhi Brahmans in Bengal.

Paréménik, a title of Tantis,
Telis, Napits, Bagdis, Doms,
Bauris, and of Goalas in Bengal;
of Kurmis in Behar ; a section of
Patnis and of the Chapota sub-
caste of Hindu Joléhas in Behar;
a hypergamous division of Telis
and '1‘iyars in Bengal.

Paraménna, a title of Kai-
barttas in Bengal.

Parésara, a gotm or section of
Brahmans ; of Tantis in Bengal ;
an eponymous sept of Réjputs in
Behar; a section of Bébhans in
Behar, borrowed from the Braha
manical system and superadded
to the original exogamous groups
(kuls) characteristic of the caste;
a gotra or section of J olahas in
Behar. This designation has been
borrowed from the Brahmans in
comparatively recent times, and,
being used indiscriminately by all
J olahas, does not operate as a bar
to intermarriage. ' In fact, the
Behar J olahas have no working
exogamous sections, and reckon
prohibited degrees by the formula
mamem, ckac/zem, etc., explained
in the article on Bais. A section
of Karans in Orissa; of Kayasths,
Madhunapits, Tambulis, Sénkha-
ris, and Subarnabaniks in Bengal ;
an eponymous section of Bhuin-
malis in Eastern Bengal.

Pardsar Dds, a synonym for,
and sub-caste of, Kaibarttas. ‘

Péréswar, 9. Mar of the
Basishth gotm of Nepali Brah-
mans.

Parayé, a sept of Hos in Sing-
bhum.

Parbate, a section of Kémis
in Darjiling.

PARBATEH.

Parbateh, a thar or sept of
Mangers in Darjiling.

Parbatti-Kurin, a sub-caste
of Gonrhis in Behar, which,
though endogamous as regards
the other sub-castes of Gonrhis,
allows of intermarriage with the
K01 sub-caste.

Parbatya, a Mar or section of
Nepali Brahmans.

Pérbbat, a sect of Dasnami
Sannyasis.

Parbe, a pangat or section of
Dosadhs in Behar.

Pardhén (Pradhén), a title
of Khandait Paiks, Kharias, and

iﬂarghé, Pariglzd, a small
Origin.

j ecture.

163

 

probably of Dravidian descent, found
Monghyr, Bhagalpur,
The origin of the Pargha is obscure, an
no light upon their tribal afﬁnities. One
miraculous type says that the ﬁrst Pargha was .creaat
of one of the Hindu gods in order to be a warrior.

them as Paliya or ‘fugitive ’ Réjputs,
before the avenging Parasu Ram, .
Brahmanical threads and threw them into the river Son.
of Dinajpur, themselves originally Koch
and so have other Dravidian castes whom to
position to pass themselves off as Rajputs.

nothing primd facie improbable in the hypo
may be nothing more than an outlying
arguments based on similarity of names
and I know of no deﬁnite evidence either
Mr. C. F. Magrath, in his memorandum on the castes 0f

PARGHA.

Kharwars in Chota Nagpur; a.
section of Sunris in Behar.

Pardhiel Kokaw, a totemistio
sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Parel, a title of Kaibarttas in
Bengal.

Parel, Pondyél, a thar of the
A’trai gotra of Nepali Brah-
mans.

Parewé, pigeon, a totemistic
sept of Bedias in Chota Nagpur.

Pérgéché, a tlmr or sept of
Sunuwars in Darjilin g.

Parganabh uséri, a di/z or
local section of the Maghaya
sub-caste of Koiris in Behar.

cultivating and labouring caste,
1n
and the Santal Parganas.
(1 their traditions throw
legend of the common
ed from the sweat
Another describes,
who ﬂed from the north-west
and on the way tore oﬁ their
The Paliyas
h, have a similar tradition,
rtune has placed in 3.
There would indeed be
thesis that the Parghé.
branch of the Paliyé; but
are apt to prove fallacious,
for or against such a con-

Behar included in the Report of the Census of Bengal for 1872, was

disposed to infer from their location t

hat they must be a Hinduised

oﬁshoot of the Bhuiyzis; but this suggestion again seems to be

unsupported by any tangible evidence. .
The Parghas of Bhagalpur are divided into two sub-castes—

Internal structure.

as titles.

the Pargha these groups are exogamous.
reckoned by the usual formula calculated to seven

descending line.

Supa-Pargha and Paliyér-Parghé, and into

several sections, which are shown in Appendix I.

The section-names are of no special interest.
terms, such as Marar, Rant, and the like, .
I am informed, however, on gOOd authority that among

Most of them are
used by many other castes

Prohibited degrees are
generations in the

32

\\

PARGHA’. 164 ’ .PARHATIA’.
Girls of the Pargha caste may be married either as infants or
as adults, but the former practice is deemed
the more respectable, and no father who could
afford to get his daughter married as a child would allow her to reach
the age of puberty unmarried. The standard low-caste ritual is
followed, in which the smearing of vermilion 0n the bride’s forehead
is believed to constitute the valid and binding portion. Polygamy is
permitted in the sense that a man may take a second wife if the
ﬁrst is barren. Widows may marry again, and are bound by no
restrictions, except those arising from the prohibited degrees, in their
choice of a second husband. Divorce is not formally recognized;
and when a woman goes wrong, she is simply cast off by her
husband. She is not, however, turned out of the caste, and she may
marry again.

The religion of the Parghés offers no points of special interest,
and appears to differ little from that of other
Hindus of about the same social standing.
Maithil Brahmans serve them as priests, but their rank is low among
those of the sacred order. The funeral ceremonies of the caste are
for the most part framed on the orthodox model, and are performed
on the thirteenth day after death; but in the case of persons who
die by a violent death, some Parghas construct a small round heap of
dried mud, which is called after the dead and worshipped with
offerings of goats and sweetmeats as a minor god.

The bulk of the caste are occupancy or non-occupancy raiyats
and landless day-labourers ; some are tenure-
holders, and a few exceptionally fortunate
individuals have risen to the status of zemin-
dars holding petty estates. In point of social standing Parghés
rank a little lower than Dhanuks. They observe the standard
scruples regarding food, and profess to abstain from spirituous
1i uors.

q The following statement shows the number and distribution of
the Pargha caste during 1872 and 1881 : —-

Marriage.

Religion.

Occupation and social
status. '

DISTRICT.

Champaran
Monghyr .
Bhagalpur ...
Santal Parganas...
iasrhaips, Parlm'd, a small
Dravidian tribe of Palamau, des-
cribed brieﬂy by Colonel Dalton
and at greater length by Mr. L.
R. Forbes in his report on the
settlement of Palamau. Their
sections are totemistic. Colonel
Dalton speaks of them as ‘the
mere remnant of a tribe who,
according to their own traditions
in this district and the traditions
of other races (Lohardaga), once
formed an important section of

 

1872. 1881.

4
979 444
6,466 6,145
],850 1,161

the population.’ They worship
Dharti Mai, the earth goddess,
and Grohet.

Parhépe. a section of Bath-
hans in Behar.

Parhar, a section of Goalas in
the North-Western Provinces and
Behar.

Parhatia, a sub-section of the
Bharadwéja section of Utkal
Brahmans.

PA’RIA’L.

Périél, a Min of the Sébarna
gotra of Rérhi Brahmans in
Bengal.

Parién, a section of Sonérs in
Behar.

Pariér, a your or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Périch. a mul of the Késyapa
section of Maithil Brahmans in
Behar.

Pdriclasm‘ddr, a head of the
pdm‘chs or exogamous sections into
which some castes are divided.

Paridé, a title of Chases in
Orissa.

Pam'glzd, a synonym for Par-
ghé.

Périhél, a gdin of the Sandilya
gotra and a me! or hypergamous
sub-group of Rarhi Brahmans in
Bengal.

Parihar, a section of Kumhars
in Lohardagé.

Pari hair, a sept of the Chandra-
bansi and Suryabansi sub-tribes
of Rajputs ; a section of the
Banpér sub-caste of Gonrhis and
of Sunris in Behar.

Pariharbéri, a section of the
Biyahut and Kharidaha Kal-
wérs in Behar.

Parihasta, a title of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar. ,

Parijai Kavala, a thar or
section of Nepali Brahmans.

Paripél, a sub-caste of Sunris

in the Santal Parganés and
Manbhum.

Pariré, a sub-tribe of Savars
1n Orlssa.

Parjé, a title of Agarias, Asu-
ras, Binj hiés, Oraons, and Kharias
in Chota Nagpur.

165

 

PARWARIA.

Pérkhari, a sept of Limbus
in Darjiling. '

Parkhié, a virtuoso, an exam-
iner of jewels.

Pérnégrahi, a group of the
Srotriya sub-caste of Utkal Brah-
man s.

Pérni, a title of several
ﬁshermen castes—Chandal, Mélo,
Kochh, etc., Who act as ferrymen.

Parrarit, a section of

Maghaiya Kumhars in Behar.

Parsaié, a mu! or section of
the Ayodhiabési sub-caste of
Sonars in Behar.

Parsarié, a [ml or section of
Babhans in Behar.

Parsautié, a section of the
Sétmulia Maghayé. sub—caste of
Kandus in Behar.

Parselé, amul or section of
the Ghosin sub-caste of Goalés
in Behar.

Parsi, Parsu, a bush. a totem-
istic sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

Parubo, a mi or sept of
Dejong Lhoris Whose ancestor
had emigrated from Bhotan.

Parue-Mahendra, a mu! of
the Kasyap section of Maithil

Brahmans in Behar.

Pérui, a sub-caste of Chavndals
in Eastern Bengal; a title of
Kaibarttas in Bengal.

Paruré, a section of Awadhié
Hajjams in Behar.

Parus, a section of the Mag-

haya sub-caste of Barhis in
Behar.
Parwarié, a section of the

Dhapre’t sub-caste of Doms in
Behar.

PARYA

Paryé, Parkya‘, “ a low Brah-
man who takes from Hindus
alms, such as oil, old black
blankets, etc.; all black things on

every Saturday, which is account- ,

ed a black day.” Fallon, s..'v
Pésbén, “watchman,” a title

of Dosadhs in Behar, where.

members of that caste are largely

166

PASL
Paschimé, a sub-caste of
Kamars in Eastern Bengal.

Paschim-Kabét, west gate, a
title of Khandaits in Orissa.

Pasch im-Kuliyé, a sub-caste
of Sadgops in Bengal.

Paschim-rarhi, a sub-caste of
Napits in Bengal.

employed as ckaulcz'ddrs or village 1

we h .
to men Paserea, a class of people who

Pasché'tya Baidik,a sub-caste: hawk about goods for sale;
of Baidik Brahmans in Bengal. ' pedlars.

 

iaéﬁi, a Dravidian caste of Behar, whose original occupation
is behaved to have been the tapping of the

almyra, date, and other palm trees for their
sap. The name Pési is usually derived from prim, a noose or cord,
which Mr. Nesﬁeld interprets as disclosing that they have only
recently emerged from the hunting state. It seems, however, more
probable that the name refers, not to the snaring of Wild animals,
:but to the sling or noose used by Pasis in climbing palm trees.

Pasis are divided into four sub-castes—Béydhé, Gaid uha,
Kaméni, and Tirsulié. There are also Mahom-
edan Pa'sis, distinguished by the designation
Turk. The Byédha sub-caste say that their original occupation was
to collect the water-chestnut or singhzira (Traps bispinosa, Roxb.),, but
now they tap date tree‘s like the other sub-castes. There is only one
section, Késyapa, which has been borrowed from the Brahmanical
system in comparatively recent times, and has no bearing on the
regulation of marriages. Prohibited degrees are reckoned by the
standard formula mameré, chacherd, etc., calculated to seven gener-
‘ations in the descending line. Pasis marry their daughters as infants
or as adults according to their means, the
former practice being deemed the more respect-
able. The marriage ceremony is -of the ordinary low—caste type. It
is preceded by Zagcm, When a Brahman stirs up in water two grains
of rice, representing the bride and bridegroom, and sprinkles vermilion
over them as soon as the grains ﬂoat into contact with each other.
This favourable omen having been observed and a triﬂing sum paid
as bride-price, a date for the marriage is ﬁxed. The binding portion
of the ceremony is the smearing of vermilion on the bride’s forehead
with the bridegroom’s left hand. Opinions differ as to the practice
of the caste in the matter of polygamy. Some say that a man may
have as many wives as he can aﬁord to maintain ; others that he'can
only take a second wife with the consent of his ﬁrst wife, and for the
purpose of obtaining offspring. A widow may marry again by the
Isagai form, but is expected to marry her deceased husband‘s younger
brother if there is one. Failing him, she may marry any one not
within the prohibited degrees. Divorce is eﬁected, by the consent

Origin.

Internal structure.

Marriage.

167 £551.

of the panchayat, when a woman is convicted of adultery with another
member of the caste. Women divorced on these grounds may marry
again on paying a ﬁne, which usually takes the form of a feast
to the caste panchayat. Adultery with an outsider admits of no
such atonement, and a woman detected in this offence is turned out
of the caste, and usually becomes a regular prostitute.

In matters of inheritance the caste professes to be guided by the
principles of the Mitakshara law, which are
enforced in cases of dispute by the caste-council
(panchayat). Daughters, however, and daughters’ sons, do not
inherit so long as any deddz' relative survives.

Most Pasis belong to the Sékta sect of Hindus, and regard
Bhagavati as the goddess whom they are chieﬂy
bound to worship. In their religious and
ceremonial Observances the Kamani sub-caste alone employ Tirhutia
Brahmans, who are said to incur no social degradation by serving
them. The other sub-castes call in degraded (patit) Brahmans for
marriges only. Such Brahmans rank very low in social reputation,
and their employment by the Pasis seems to be a reform introduced
at a. very recent date, for in all funeral ceremonies and at sacriﬁces
oﬂ'ered to the greater gods whenever the services of a Brahman are
not available the worshipper’s sister’s son (blzdnjd) performs the
functions of the priest. Among the Pasis 0f Monghyr this ancient
custom, which admits of being plausibly interpreted as a survival of
female kinship, still prevails in such force that the caste has not yet
been convinced of the necessity of engaging Brahmans at all. The
guru of the Pasis is usually a Nanak-Shahi ascetic.

The minor gods of the Pasis are very numerous. Bandi,
Goraiya, Sokha, Sambhunath, Mahamaya, Ram Thakur, Mian
Kabutra, Naika Grosain, Masan, 0stad, and Kartar are the names
mentioned in different parts of Behar. Goats, pigeons, cakes, milk,
.etc., are offered to them six times in the year, the offerings being
afterwards eaten by the worshippers. In the month of 'Jeth the
sickle (hansuh’) used for cutting the palm tree is set up and solemnly
worshipped with oiferings of ﬂowers and grain.

Pasis rank socially below Tatwas, and on much the same

_ level as Binds and Chains, except that, unlike
paﬁgcn‘flsmus and “cm these, they nowhere attain to such consider-

ation that Brahmans will take water from
their hands. Most Of them eat fowls and ﬁeld-rats, and indulge
freely in spirituous and fermented liquors. Many of them have
taken to cultivation instead of, or in addition to, their traditional
avocat’ion, and hold land as occupancy or non-occupancy raiyats.
Others are employed as day-labourers, porters, coolies, or servants
to low-caste shop-keepers. In Bengal there is comparatively little
demand for their services as palm-tappers, for the owners of teddy
and date palms either extract the juice themselves or employ Bhuin-
malis to do so, and shops for the sale of spirituous liquors are usually
owned by Sunris or Outcaste Sudras. According to Dr. Wise, the
extraction of the juice of the id], or palmyra palm, as well as that
of the Ichajdr, or date palm, is a most important operation in

Succession.

Religion.

' PKSI. 168

PA’TAR MA’HILI.

Eastern Bengal, although it-has not given rise to the formation of
a special caste. The tail trees are tapped from March to May; the
date palms in the cold season. The juice of the former, or teddy
(tdri), is used in the manufacture of bread, and as an intoxicating
liquor by adding sugar and grains of rice. Hindustani drunkards
often add dkatzird to increase its intoxicating properties. In Dacca
a tail grove is usually rented, and on an average twelve annas a tree
are obtained. The quantity of juice extracted varies from an average
of ﬁve to ten pounds. When fresh this sells for two annas a seer,
but if a day old for only one anna. Date palm tdm’ is rarely drunk,
being popularly believed to cause rheumatism, but is extensively

used in preparing sugar.
annas a year.

A date palm is generally leased for seven

The following statement shows the number and distribution of

Pasis in 1872 and 1881:—

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DIsrnror. 1872. 1881. Drsrmcr. 1872. 1881.
Bardwan 318 254 Tipperah 21 ......
Bankura. ... 4 6 Patna ... . 33,299 37,135
Birbhum 6 45 Gya 344,050 69,309
ﬁidrliﬁpur ... . . 643 213 1SwhahaEPad 9,541 $111,973

115 1 . . 75 ozu erpur... .711
Howrah 813 { 44.6 Darbhanga } 19’339 12,810
24-Parganas .. 1,226 648 Saran 4,767 5.562
Nadiya 1 1 Champamn 1,658 2,535
Khulna ...... 1 Monghyr .. 12,362 18,998
Murshedabad ... 265 56 Bhagalpur 5,258 6,690
Dinajpur 90 47 Purniah . 520 2,030
Rajshahye ... 1 924 Maldah 312 567
Rangpur . .. 194 1 Santal Parganas .. 1,716 2,205
Bogra. 2 Cuttack .. ~ 1,062 631
Pabna. ... ... 12 2 Puri ... 1,246 3,074
Darjiling . ...... 13 Balasore 1,256 63
Jalpigori 4s 63 Tributary States 206 164
Kuch Behar 3 Hazaribagh 2,404 3,882
Dacca 19 43 Lohardaga ... 1,103 2,400
Faridpur . 25 9 Singbhum 27 36
Bakargan] ... 66 ...... Manbhum 97 57
Maimansinh 25 ...... Tributary States 41 172

. , . .
Pasupatzya, a worshlpper of castes; a section of the Pargha

Siva under the name of Pasupati,
‘ Lord of Animals.’

Pataiwér, a dz'k or exogamous
section of the Gharbait sub-
caste of Amats in Behar.

Patélang, a sept of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Pétalkat, a class of stone-
cutters in Gya whose ancestors
are said to have been brought
from Jaipur to build the Vishnu-
pad temple. They make stone
cups, idols, and toys.

Pétar (Sans. Pétra),_a title of
Kaibalttas and various other

 

caste in Behar.

Pétér, a section of Bhojpuria
Halwais in Behar.

Paté-Ratnauli, a sub-group of
Maghaiya Telis in Behar.

Pétéri, a grim or sub-sec-
tion of Saptasati Brahmans in
Bengal.

Patariér, a section of Mahilis
in Chota Nagpur.

Pétar Méhili, a sub-caste of
Mahilis in the south of Man-
bhum.

PATA SAYA’.

Pata Sayé, a sept of Hos in
Singbhum.

Patatri, a Sanskrit word for
‘bird,’ a 'title of the low class
mountebanks called Harbolds, who
imitate the tunes of birds and
make their livelihood thereby.

Pétbandh, a sub-tribe
Kharwars in Palamau.

of

Pate, a group of the Srotrya
sub-caste of Utkal Brahmans.

Péthé, goat, a title of Barendra
Brahmans in Bengal.

Pathaiér, a pm or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Péthak, a title of Kanaujia
and Séraswat Brahmans in Behar;
of Dakshinatya Baidik Brahmans
in Bengal; a section of Utkal
or Orissa Brahmans; a title of
Babhans in Behar.

Pathal, a. section of Kharias

169

 

in Chota Nagpur.
ﬁatial, a mat-making caste

that they ever cultivate the soil with their own hands.

PA’TIKAR.

Péthar, a headman among
tank-diggers in Tipperah; a
hypergamous group of Kaibarttas
in Bakarganj.

Pather, Paitar, Patm, a title
of Bhuiyas in Western Bengal.

Patheri, a title borne by per-
sons employed in stringing beads
and trinkets with silk.

Péthu, a title of Maithil Brah-

mans in Behar.

Path uri, a title of Kaibarttas.

Path uri, dealers in articles of
stone.

Pathurié, a mu! or section
of the Ayodhiabasi sub-caste of
Sonars in Behar. A prostitute.

Pati, a section of Utkal or
Orissa Brahmans.

Pétia Dés, a synonym for
Doai.

of Eastern Bengal who deny
Some say

that they are a branch of the Kayasths, but no tangible evidence in
support of this view seems to be available. The mats made'by them,
coarse, dark-coloured, and thick, are called Motapati, to distinguish
them from the ﬁner kinds made at Silhet, known as Sitalpati. The
only plant cultivated for mat-making is the Mathara (Maranta
dichotoma), which grows luxuriantly in low, marshy country. It
ﬂowers in June and July, and is cut, while still green, about the
middle of September, the stems being divided into. sllps and hung
from the rafters, and when required for use steeped 1n waterf

Among the Silhet Patials women make the mats'; consequently
the money value of a girl who is a skilful workman 1s cons1derable,
and a father receives from three to ﬁve hundred rupees when his
daughter marries. In Dacca, on the other hand, .men are the sole
workers. Although chieﬂy found in Dacca, the Patlals arescattered
throughout Eastern Bengal, wherever the nature of the_s011 admits
of the cultivation of the Maranta. The caste is eclusively Vaish-
nava. 'l‘he headman has the title Pradhan, or Mu’tabar.

Pétikar. Patmi, Sdlubi, an
endogamous class of low Mahom-
edans, who paint pictures illus-
trating Hindu mythology and

hawk them from door to door
with songs. Although Patikars
are supposed to be Mahomedans,

they, like the Nasyas of Rang-put,

PA’TIKAR. 170 PA’TNI.

are very lax in their religious Patiyér, a pm or section of
practices. They worship the r0se Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.
as a 1027', and have a great respect Patkumié, a sub-tribe of

for the black kite, which they -- -

believe to be a bird of good 1311111111] in Manbhum.

omen. Patmurmurara, a sept of-
Kharwars 1n Chota Nagpur.

Patita-Ks/zatri, a synonym for Patnéik, a title of Kaibarttas
Kochh. in Bengal.

iBattni, Pdtmzi, Pdtaum’, Dom-Pdtni, a low boating, ﬁshing,
basket-making, trad in g, and cultivating caste of Eastern Bengal, whose
dark complexion, short and muscular frame, snub nose, and expanded
nostrils stamp them as of Dravidian descent. They are, says
Dr. Wise, very reserved and uncommunicative, but there can be little
doubt they were originally Doms. . In Rangpur, and throughout
the valley of the Brahmaputra, they are still designated Dom-Patni,
and in Bengal this is applied to them as a term of abuse. Their other
titles are Gangaputra, Ghat-manjhi, or simply Ménjhi.

According to some authorities they are descended from a Raj aka,

Ori in or washerman, and a woman of the Vaisya
g ' caste. Patnis, however, claim to be the off-
spring of Madhava, who ferried Rama across a river on his way from
Ayodhya to Mithila, and relate how Madhava, having witnessed
the resuscitation of Ahalya, was afraid to transport the god to the
other bank until he had extracted the promise that Rama would sit
on the gunwale with his feet in the water. The simplicity of this
ferryman was remarkable. When Rama landed, Madhava com-
plained that the colour of the boat had been changed to a hideous
yellow, and that he was ruined. The reply was that the ferry-
boat had been converted into pure gold, and as a punishment for the
Patni’s stupidity Rama announced that his descendants would always
be ferrymen, and that he himself would after death become the
ferryman of the Vaitarani, or Hindu Styx.

Another ﬁction in the history of the Patnis pertains to the reign
of Ballal Sen. The monarch became enamoured of a ferryman’s
daughter named Padma-vati, and married her. At the feast Ptikas-
parsa, when the bride cooks and the bridegroom for the ﬁrst time eats
from her hands, the Patnis, with inborn obtuseness, and to the great
grief of the queen, presented themselves at the end of the festival.
For this misconduct they were degraded and enrolled among the
.Nz’cka or low castes.

The Patnis are divided into ﬁve sub-castes—JétrPétni, who

are agriculturists and small traders, usually

Internal Strmture' keeping shop as‘mudis or grocers; Ghét—Pétni,
"Balami or Ghétwél, who work as boatmen and take charge of
ferries; Dom—'Pétni, Machhwé, or Nagérchi, who ﬁsh, keep pigs,
and get casual employment as musicians at weddings and festivals
.of various kinds; Bansphor and Dégaré, who hunt, manufacture
sieves and baskets of cane, and tie the framework of kdncbd houses.
The last two, from the nature of their pursuits, are more or less

171 PATN I.

nomadic, making only temporary settlements in neat round huts
of sirkz', which they build on the outskirts of villages near rivers.
All the sub-castes are endogamous. The Dom-Patnis are said to
admit outsiders into their sub-caste on condition of undergoing a
degrading ceremony, one feature of which is that the proselyte must
drink water in which the others have washed their feet.

The exogamous sections of the Patnis shown in Appendix I
appear to be for the most part of the territorial type, and do throw no
light upon the tribal afﬁnities of the caste. It deserves notice that
one of the sections bears the name Tentulié, which also denotes one
of the Bégdi sub-castes. The prohibited degrees are much the same
as with other low-caste Hindus.

Patnis marry their daughters as infants by the standard
ceremony. A bride-price (pan) is paid by the
parents of thebridegroom to those of the bride.
Polygamy is recognized in theory, but rarely resorted to in practice.
Widows are not allowed to marry again, and divorce is not permitted.
Traces of widow-marriage still Survive among the Paitnis of Noakhali,
but even there the custom is looked upon as disreputable, and seems
likely soon to die out.

In religious and ceremonial observances Patnis conform on the
whole to the practice of orthodox low-caste
Hindus. They employ Patita or Varna Brah-
mans, who generally assume pompous titles, such as Chakravartti
and the like, by way of covering the degradation incurred by serving
the Patni as priests. The Gosains, on the other hand, who act as the

gurus of the caste, are received on equal terms by other Brahmans.
' Most Patnis belong to the Saiva Sect, whose tenets involve little
interference with their ﬂesh-eating and spirit-drinking propensities.
Only a few Vaishnavas are to be found among them, except in
Noakhéli, where Vaishnavism is the prevalent faith, and the Patnis
give to it a nominal adherence, which does not, however, prevent
them from indulging their tastes in matters of food and drink.
The dead are burned, and srdddlz is performed
on the thirty-ﬁrst day after death. Like most
Hindu boatmen, they invoke the Panch l’ir on embarking or when
overtaken by a storm. The chief religious festival is the Ganga
Pujé, and Patnis never enter upon the work of a ferry without
ﬁrst sacriﬁcing a white kid to the river goddess. They also propitiate
Pavan, the Hindu ruler of the winds, with offerings .of salt, .sugar,
milk, and gdnjd.

In point of social status Patnis rank with J eliyas, Males, and
the ﬁshing Kaibarttas. Brahmans will not
take water from their hands, and they have
'barbers and washermen of their own caste, as the regular Napit
and Dhoba will not work for them. They consider, however, that
they have raised themselves in the social scale by prohibiting the
remarriage of widows, and in. various small matters they ape the
prejudices of the higher castes. For example, they will caulk a boat,
but deem it derogatory to paint it, and though they indulge freely
in intoxicating drinks, they will never own to doing so. ’

Marriage.

Religion.

Disposal otthe dead.

Social status.

PA'TN I.

172

PA’TUNI.

The following statement shows the number and distribution
of the Patnis in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Bnrdwau 125 14 Bogra 1,407 1,134.
Bankura 51 Pabna _ 3,551 4,782
Birbhum 1041 33 J alpigorl . . . . .. ... 35 60
Midnapur 195 842 Kuch Behar... 93
Hughh } 393 { 1741 Dacca ... ... 4,695 4,147
Howrah 115 Faridpur . 1,369 3,363
24-Parganas 1,374 592 Bakargan] 4,518 8,836
Nadiya 3,564 3,696 Maiman'sinh 21,726 26,952
Khulna 3,670 Tipperah 6,305 5,814
Jessore 4,369 2:12 Chittagong 150 51
Murshedabad 2,529 2,066 NOakhali 2,419 2,104
Dinajpur 1,906 1,296 Purniah . ...... 6
Rajshahye 2,052 1,167 Maldah 1,126 1,066
Rangpur 2,178 1,770 Santal Parganas ...... 8

Maubhum ...... 17

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pétni, a section of Saraogis in
Behar.

Pétodi, a section of Saraogis
in Behar.

Pétoli, a title of Jaliyés,
ﬁshermen.

Pétori. a section of Majraut
Goélas in Behar.

Pdtkpariya, synonym for pdtkak,
a Brahman who reads epic poems,
Puranas, etc., in public.

Patra, Patlzam, a title of
Tantis, cocoon-weavers.

Pétra, Pdtor, a synonym for
Mahépétra, gm; 3. title of Kai-
barttas, Pods, and Téntis in
Bengal; a title of Malos in East-
ern Bengal; a sept of Mal
Pahariés; a title of Mahilis,
Khandéits, and Telis in Chota
Nagpur.

Patradés, a title of the Kurar
or Kural sub-caste of Muchis, who
work as cobblers and beat drums
at festivals.

Patradié, a sub-caste of Pans
in Orissa.

Pétrishi (the bean), a totem-
istic section of Bégdis; a section

 

of Méls in Midnapur and Man-
bhum.

Pattadér, an honorary title of
Kéyasths in Bengal.

Péttar, a sub-caste of Tantis
in Bengal; 3. class of ﬁshermen
in Eastern Bengal who enclose
portions of newly-formed char
lands at high tide by small weirs
made of reed grass (sirki), and
catch the ﬁsh when the water
recedes. They do not use nets.
Pattars also sell ﬁsh purchased
from J eliyas and other ﬁshing
castes.

Péttér, a class of Mahomedans
who string silver and gold ema-
ments.

Pétué, a group of the Karalai
sub-caste of Kaibarttas in N 03.-
khéli.

1331113, Patu, Potoi, Pole, Potua',
Patuddr, a class of people, both
Hindu and Mahomedan, whose
profession is painting Hindu
deities. .

Pétuli, a title of Kaibarttas.

Pdtum', a synonym for Dom
in Northern Bengal.

PA’TURA-CHHUTA’R.

Péturé-Chhutér. a. sub-caste
of Sutradhars in the Santal Par-
ganas.

Paturié, a Mahomedan dan-
cing girl.

Pé’turié, asub-caste of Bauris
in Western Bengal.

iﬁatma, Patkem, Pathem', a
maker of fancy silk strings and
fringes. Patwas also prepare
and hawk about tasar silk. They
are divided into three endog-
amous groups—Gauria, Rewar,
and Ténti.

Patwa’r, a generic term in
Central Bengal for persons
employed in zamz'nddm' business,
possibly a survival from times
when there were patwdris in
Bengal.

Patwéri, a sept of Tharus in
Behar.

Patwe, a pangat; or section of
Dosadhs in Behar.

Pétyakar, a synonym for
Patial, mat-makers and labourers.

Paulastya, a. section of Brah-
mans.

Paundrakéli, a. gdin of the
Bétsya gotm of Barendra Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Paum'a, certain castes in Behar
entitled to receive gifts from the
village community, viz. Nana,
Dhobi, Lohar, Kumhér, Churihar,
Teli, Chamar, Mali, Barhi,
Laheri, Ghasi, and Koiri.

Paurié, a sub-caste of Koiris
in Chota Nagpur.

Paurié or Paulié, a sept of
Santéls.

Pauriér, a section of Awa-
dhia Haj jams in Behar.

173

 

PHAGUAHI.

Pawaiyér, a pm' or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Péwarié, Paum'd, a class of
Mahomedan women who dance
and sing in male costume at the
births of children in the houses of
Well-to-do people.

Peché, a bird, a totemistic
sept of Bediyas‘ in Chota Nag-
pur.

Pechgotra, a section of the
Ayodhia sub-caste of Nuniés
in Behar.

Pekhé, a sept of Limbus i
Darjiling. ~

Pengi, a ﬂaw or sept of
Gurungs in Darjiling.

PenkéI-Méchh, a section of
Mals in Midnapur and Man-
bhum.

Peo, a bird, 9. totemistic sept
of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Peroan, pigeon, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Ohota Nag-
pur.

Peshékar, Peshdkdrin, a pros-
titute.

Petehimba, a sub-sept of the
Thekim sept of Limbus in Dar-
jiling.

Peth okote, a sept of Mangers
in Darjiling.

Petungbah, a sept of Limbus
in Darjiling.

Phédém, a sept of the Agnié.
sub-tribe of Meches in the Dar-
jiling Terai.

Phégu, a sub-tribe of Yakhas
in Darjiling. ,

Phaguahi, a sept of Gonds in
Chota Nagpur.

PHAKSA.
Phaksa. a sept of Chakmés in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Phalechhuah, a
Limbus in Darjiling.

sept of

Phansia, a. section of Ghasis
in Chota Nagpur.

leria, a synonym for Kunjra
—vegetable-sellers.

Pharkiet, a section of the
Maghaya sub-caste of Kumhérs
in Behar.

Pharphar, a gain or sub-sec-
tion of Saptasati Brahmans in
Bengal.

Pharsédhen’ti, a sept of Kaurs
in Chota Nagpur.

Phawahong, the name of a
village, a sept of the Yangorup
sub-tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.

Phedéb or Bhuiphuta, a sub-
tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.

Phe-dang-sirri, a sept of
Chakmas in the Hill Tracts of
Chittagong.

Phedungsa, a sept of Chak-
mas in the Hill Tracts of Chitta-
gong.

Phehim, the singer, a sept of
the Phedab sub-tribe of Limbus
in Darjiling.

Phejom, the kukri—bearer, in-
cluding (a) N embong, (b) Sardak-
peapi, a sept of the Panthar sub-
tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.

Phekuram, a special ancestral
deity of the Bahiot sub-caste of
Amats in Behar.

Phema, a sept of Chakmas
in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Phendué, the hammerer of
iron, 9. sept of the Tamhrkhola
sub-tribe of Limbus in Darjilin g.

174

 

PHULEHLI.

This other were formerly the
blacksmiths of the tribe.

Phensa-pé, 3. mm" or sept of
Dejong Lhoris who are descen-
dents of emigrants from Bhotan
and Nepal.

Pheodan, the water-carrier,
a sept of the Panther sub—tribe
of Limbus in Darjiling.

Pherké, a title of Bagdis in
Western Bengal.

Phetié, a sept of Rajputs
in Behar.

Pheyak, a. sept of Limbus
in Darjiling.

Phir’ti, a. group of the Karaléi
sub-caste of Kaibarttas in Noa-
khali.

Phluméchhé, a t/zar or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.

Pho-omphu, the hangman, a
sept of the Phedab sub-tribe of
Limbus in Darjiling.

Photédér, a title of the
Ariér sub-caste of Bais Baniyés
and a pangat or section of
Dosadhs in Behar.

Photro, a sept of the Char-
khola sub-tribe of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Phrangroatsa, a sept of
Maghs in the Hill Tracts of
Chittagong.

Phul, a group of the Barendra
sub-caste of Sunris in Eastern
Bengal; ﬂower, a sept of Chiks
in Chota Nagpur.

Phulaus, a sub-caste of Na-
gars in Behar.

Phulehli, a tkar or sept oi
Khambus in Darjiling.

PHULGOT. 1
Phulgot, a totemistio section
of Nunias in Behar.

Phulhéri, a title of Haris in
Eastern Bengal who are not
sweepers, but are engaged as
ohaukidars and gardeners.

Phuli, a mu! or section of the
Chhamulié. Madhesié. sub-caste of
Halwéis in Behar.

Phulié, a mel or hypergamous
sub-group of Rarhi Brahmans in
Bengal.

Phulké’té-Méli, a
of Malis in Bengal.

Sub-caste

Pkulmdlz', a synonym for Mali.

Phulnépit, a sub-caste of
Népits in Western Bengal who
have given up their profession of
shaving and taken to cultivation.

Phulwar, a sept of Goalas in
Chota Nagpur.

Phungthag, he who stole to
order; a sept of the Phedab
sub-tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.

Phungun, a sept of Chiks in
Chota Nagpur.

Phunknali, a sub-section of
the Bharadwaja section of Utkal
Brahmans.

Phunvél, a Mar or section of
Nepali Brahmans.

ﬁhunmali, a mendicant caste
of the Darjiling Terai regarding
which little is known.

‘Phurkeli, a ﬂair or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.

Phurti, a sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Phuti, rainbow, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Phutka, vegetable, a totemistic
sept of Lohars in Chota Nagpur.

~

I

 

5 PIPPALAI.
Phyagpa, the knife- grinder,
a. sept of the Pénthar sub-tribe
of Limbus in Darjiling.

Phyuyéli, a tkar or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Pichagma, the son of the
monkey, a sept of the Chaibisa
sub-tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.
This then“ is said to have formerly
worshipped the monkey.

Pikord, a bird, 9. totemistic
sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

P”, a. title of Dakshin Rarhi
and Bangaj a Kayasths.

Pilé, a totemistic sept of the
Bhumij tribe in Chota Nagpur.

P i lchwér, a section of Babhans
in Behar.

Pilich, a section of the sat-
mulia Maghaya sub-caste of
Kandus in Behar.

Piliksawér, a section of Bab-
hans in Behar.

Pirlkhait, a section of Bab-
bans in Behar.

Pilua, a section of Mahilis in
Chota Nagpur.

Pindwél, a section of Koranch
Halwais in Behar.

Pingue’l,
Singbhum.

a sept of Hos in

Pipar, a fruit, a sept of Telis
in Chota Nagpur.

Piparié, a mu! or section of
the Kanaujia sub-caste of Sonar-s
in Behar.

Pipi, a title
Kayasths. .

Pippaléi, a gdz‘n of the Batsya
gotra of Rérhi Brahmans in
Bengal.

of Bangaja

PIPPALI.

Pippali, a gdin of the Bharad-
waja gotra of Barendra Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Pipret, a mul or section of the
Naomulia or Majraut sub-caste
of Goalas in Behar.

Pipriéti, a section of Barhis
in Behar.

Pirabhanga, a sept of Chak-
mas in the Hill Tracts of Chitta-
gong.

P i rél i, an endogamous division
of the Rérhi Brahmans in
Bengal. The popular story of the
origin of this group is that their
ancestor was degraded for having
accidentally smelled food Which
had been prepared in the house
of a Mahomedan. They are
held in the same estimation
among Barbie as Panchurias
among Bérendras.

Piruwal, a sub-caste
Khatris in Bengal.

of

176

 

POD.

Pishle, a sub-caste of Telis
in Bengal.

Pitamundi, a gdin of the
Kasyapa gotm of Rarhi Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Pithékoteh, a ﬂaw or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Pithéri, a grim or sub-section
of Saptasati Brahmans in Bengal.

Pithoér, a section of Goréits
in Chota Nagpur.

Pitraihé, a mul or section of
the Banodhia sub-caste of Kal-
wars in Behar.

PituIe-Kémér, a sub-caste of
Kamars 1n Midnapur.

Plembochhé, a thar or sept
of Khambus in Darjiling.

Poa, a sept of Chakmas in the
Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

3301], Padmardj, desi, a ﬁshing, cultivating, landholding, and

Origin.

is uncertain.

trading caste of Lower Bengal, found in large
numbers in the 24-Parganas.
Babu Bankim Chandra Chatterji, quoted at page 188

Their origin

of the Census Report of 1872, notices their “marked approach to the
Turanian and aboriginal type” of features, and seeks to identify
them with the Pundra mentioned in the Mahabharata as one of the
ﬁve chief races of Eastern India between Magadha and the sea.
The educated members of the caste claim for it a mixed descent from
a Kayasth father and a Napit mother. Others tell a highly indeﬁ-
cate story regarding the miraculous birth of the ﬁrst Pod from
Revati, the wife of Balarém.

The Pods are divided into four sub—castes—Bégande, Banglé,
Khotté, or Mauné and Uraiya. The ﬁrst two
are found chieﬂy in the 24-Parganas and
J essore, the third in Murshedabad and Maldah, and the fourth in
Midnapur and Balasore. All these groups are endogamous. Each
is subdivided into gotras or sections borrowed from the Brahmanical
system. The prohibited degrees are the same as among the higher
castes.

Pods marry their daughters between the ages of ﬁve and nine
years, forbid Widow-marriage, and do not
recognize divorce. The morality of Pod widows,
however, is alleged to be singularly lax, and the caste is tolerant

Internal structure.

Marriage.

177 POD

towards sexual indiscretions, so that the illegitimate children of
widows and of divorced women are received into the community.
Their marriage is of the orthodox type, the ceremony of Kusandﬂm
alone being omitted. Sampmda’n, or the offering of the bride to the
bridegroom and his acceptance of the gift, forms the binding portion
of the ritual.
In addition to the well-known sects of Saiva, Sékta, and
.. Vaishnava, we ﬁnd among the Pods a large
Rehgwn' number of Sauras and Granapatyas, sects very
sparingly represented among the higher classes of Hindus in Bengal.
The caste employ as their priests Barhi Brahmans, who are held to
be so far degraded by serving them that high class Brahmans will
not take food or water from their hands. The gurus of the Pods are
Barbi Goséins, but these, I understand, have in no way forfeited
their position among Brahmans, though in some cases they eat
and drink in Pods’ houses. An instance of this was brought to
my notice recently as evidence of the growth of the spirit of
religious toleration among the educated Hindus of Calcutta and
its suburbs.“ ,
The social status of Pods is decidedly low. They will eat
, sweetmeats, drink and smoke with the ﬁshing
800131 Status' sub-castes of Bagdis; and these are ordinarily
deemed to be nearly their equals in rank. Brahmans and members
of the Nava Sakha group will not take water from them; and the
Sutradhar and Kapali, while they will eat sweetmeats, drink and
smoke in company with a Pod, will not use the same pipe or drink
from the same lotd. In matters of diet their practice is orthodox
on all points except the indulgence in strong drink. They will
eat the leavings of Brahmans. Vaishnava Pods abstain from all
kinds of flesh. The great majority of the caste are engaged in
0 . agriculture, as tenure-holders, and occupancy
ccupation. . ,
or non-occupancy raiyats. A few have risen
to be zamindérs, and some at the other end of the scale work as
nomadic cultivators on freshly-cleared land in the Sundarbans,
changing their location every two or three years according to the
fortune of their crops. Many Pods have taken to trade, and gold-
smiths, blacksmiths, tinsmiths, carpenters, thatchers, etc., are found
among them.
The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Pods in Bengal in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. Disrnicr. 1872. 1881.
Bardwan 2'16 42 Dinajpur 24, 71
Bankura 3 196 Rajshahye 12 41
Birbhum 68 30 RH ngpur ... 1 57
Midnapur .. 4 10,53” Bogra 4 50
Hughli 16 727 1.958 Pabna ...... 9
Howrah } ’ 14,138 Dacca 101 ......
24-Parganas 249,075 217.266 Furidpur . 73
Nadiya 4,250 2,220 Bakargalu 314 ......
Khulna. H 66.790 Maimansmh 63 13
Jessore 21,562 7.047 Tipperah 85 33
Murshedabad . 86 8,137 M aldah ... 66 8,216

m

PODDA’R.

Poddér, a title of the Ariér
sub-caste of Bais Baniyas and of
Sonars in Behar; of Sunris and of
Subarnabaniks in Bengal who are
money-lenders and dealers in gold
and silver ornaments.

Podoro,

a. sept of Hos in
Singbhum.

Podret, a section of Maghaya
Kumhars in Behar.

Pohobait, a section of the
Pachainya sub-caste of Doms in
Behar.

Poié, a. sept of Gonds in Chota
Nagpur.

Poiti, a sept of Gonds in Chota
Nagpur.

Pokharmia, a section of L0-
hars in Behar.

Pokhrel, a section of Kamis in
Darjiling.

Poma, a sept of Ghakmas in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

, Pomo, the large family, a
sept of the Ahtharai sub-tribe of
Limbus in Darjiling.

Pondha, the wanderer, a. sept
of the Yangorup sub-tribe of
Limbus in Darjiling.

Pongwar, a. thaw or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Pongyangu, he who carries
his goods on his back, a sept of
the Phedab sub-tribe of Limbus
in Darjiling.

Ponkrishi (jungle cock), a
totemistic section of Bagdis in
Western Bengal

Pon-po, a rm‘ or sept of the
Bedtshan-gye sub-tribe of Dej 011g
Lhoris or Bhotias of the south.
This sept is composed of the ﬁve
allowing sub ~ septs :—Chhungpa,

178'

 

PRA’MA’NIK.

Lhasung, Nah-dik, Nambon, and
Yo-chan g.

Ponthék, a sept of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Poréri, a Min of the Késyapa
gotm of Rarhi Brahmans in
Bengal.

Poriél, a title of Telis.

Porri, a sept of Gonds in
Chota Nagpur.

Portel, a section of Kémis in
Darjiling.

Porti, crocodile, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Poté, a section of Kamars in
Singbhum and the Santal Par-

ganas.

Potaddr, Poddar (properly
Fotadar, from Persian fotdh, a bag
or purse), a cash-keeper, a money-
changer ; an ofﬁcer in Govern-
ment treasuries who examines and
weighs coins.

Prachanda. furious, a title of
Barendra Brahmans in Bengal.

Préchir, a section of Patnis in
Eastern Bengal.

Pradhén, (i) a title of Kai-
barttas, Suklis, Sunris, and others
in Bengal; a title of Kotals and
Binjhias; of Khandaits in Chota
Nagpur; Patnis, Chamérs, and
Santals; (ii) a village headman in
Singbhum; (iii) a section of Sunris
in Behar; (iv) a hypergamous
division of Tiyars.

Praharéj, a title of Khandaits
in Orissa.

ijdpati, a synonym for

Kumhar.

Préménik, a group of the
Daspéré sub-caste of Kumhz’trs
in Pabna. See Paréménik.

PRAMODN I.

Pramodni, a me] or hyper-
gamous sub-group of Rérhi Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Prési, a section of the Biya-
hut and Kharidahé Kalwérs in
Behar.

Prasidha. an eponymous sept
of Rajputs in Behar.

Pratihér, including Bangrém
and Gogram, a hypergamous
group of the Paschim Kuliya
Sadgops in Western Bengal.

Prati Iomaj, see Anu lomaj.

Prayégwél. a priestly class of
Brahmans in Prayég or Allaha-
bad.

Prohé-kerauta, a. section of
Sonars in Behar.

Puér, a sept of Rajputs in
Behar.

Pubié, daié, a sub-caste of
Utkal Brahmans in Orissa.

Puhénié, a section of Goalas
in the N orth—Western Provinces
and Behar. '

Puhér, a title of Chassis in
Orissa.

Puhoé, a sub-caste of Goalas
in Behar.

Puilé, a title of Bagdis in
Western Bengal.

Puin, a title of Bangaja
Kayasths.

Pujéha, a title of the Naiyé.
caste in Behar, which appears
to have reference to their original
functions as priests of the ahor—
iginal or forest deities.

Pujh or, priests, a sept of Mal
Paharias in the Santal Parganés.

179

 

PUR.

Puktebu, a sept of the Yan-
gorup sub-tribe of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Pulémi, a ﬂaw or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Pulauns, a sub-caste of Na-
gars in Behar.

Pumé, a sept of the Tung-
jainya sub-tribe of Chakmas in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Pun. a tlmr or sept of Man-
gars in Darjiling.

Pundérika, the white lotus
(Nelumbz'um speciosum), a title
of Pods, Kaiharttas, and occa-
sionally of J aliyas.

Pundarikéksha, szdam',
szra, lotus—eyed; a name of
Vishnu ; a title of Pods who rear
cocoons and cultivate chillies,
ginger, etc.

Pundérk, apm‘ or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Pundul, a sept of Rajputs in
Behar.

Pung, a film or sept of Man-
gars in Darjiling.

Pungi, a ﬂaw or sept of the
Das-Grurung sub-tribe of Gru-
rungs in Darjiling, so called after
the name of a place in Nepal.

Pungsika, a grim of the Sahar-
na gotm of Rarhi Brahmans in
Bengal.

Punrakhié, apw or section of
Sakadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Punrapaita, a title of Punras
who rear silk-worms only.

Punriér, a section of Kurmis.
in Chota Nagpur and Orissa.

Pur, a section of Goalés in
Behar. ,
m 2

PURA.‘

Pura, a title of Maithil‘Brah-
mans in Behar.

Puré, a hyper amous rou
of Karans in Orissg. g P

' Purabi, an endogamous divi-
smn of Nepali Brahmans.

Purain. a section of Awadhia
Haj 1 aims in Behar.

. Puralié, a section of Kamars
1n Singbhum and the Santél
Parganas.

Puran, a section of Bhéts who
read out verses in sabhds or caste
assemblies ; a sept of Tipperahs
in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong;
a synonym for Bhuiyé in Mohar-
bhanj.

Purandari, a
Tantis in Bengal.

sub-caste of

Purandwér, a sub-caste of
Haris in Bengal.

Pacésaini, a tbar or section of
Nepali Brahmans.

Purbba, a Min of the Bétsya
gotm of Rérhi Brahmans in
Bengal.

Purbba Banga, a samdj or
endogamous group of the Pascha-
tya Baidik Brahmans in Eastern
Bengal.

Purbbakul, a sub-caste of
Téntis in Bengal.

Purbba Kuliyé, a sub-caste of
Sadgops in Bengal.

Purbbasthéli, a samaj or en-
dogamous group of the Péschétya
Baidik Brahmans in N uddia.

Purbe, a section of Sunris and
of the Chapoté sub-caste of Hindu
Jolahas in Behar.

. Purbié, a sub-caste of Sunris
1n Behar.

180

 

PUSRA.

Purbiya, Purbiyé, a sub-caste
of Agarwals, a sub-tribe of Thérus
in Nepal.

Purbiyci K/mm‘, the distinct-
ive designation of the Bengal
branch of the Khatri caste.

Purbiyé. Madesié, a sub-caste
of Halwais in Behar.

Purl, a sect of Dasnami

Sannyésis.

Purthi, a sept of Hos in Sing-
bhum.

V Purti, a section of Kharias; a
sept of Lohars and Pans in Chota
Nagpur.

Purubansi, a sept of Rajputs
in Behar.

Purukh inu Naréi n, a section
of the Kamz’u' sub-caste of Dosadhs ,
in Behar.

Pusé, a section of the Pachai-
nya sub-caste of Doms in Behar.

Pusadih, a section of the
Tirhutiya sub-caste of Doms in
Behar.

Puséité, a section of the
Dhapré. sub-caste of Doms in
Behar.

Pusél, a thar or sept of Man-
gars in Darjiling.

Puseté, a section of the Pa-
chainya sub-caste of Doms in
Behar.

Pushali, Pushilél, a gdz’n of
the Kasyapa gotm of Rarhi
Brahmans in Bengal.

Pushéna, a gdin of the Sendi-
lya yotm of Barendra Brahmans
in Bengal.

Pusra, fruit of kusum tree, a
totemistic sept of Oraons in
Chota Nagpur.

PUSWAY.

. Pusway, a section of Binjhias
1n Chota Nagpur.

Putam, dove, a totemistic sept
of Mundas in Ghota Nagpur.

Puti, a gdz'n of the Bharad-
wéJa gotm of Bérendra Brah-
maus in Bengal.

Putitunda, a Min of the Bat-
sya gotm of Ri’u‘hi Brahmans in
bengal.

Putri, a tree, a totemistic sept
of Uraons in Chota Nagpur.

Pu—tsho—bo. a mi 01' sept of
the Bedtshan-gye sub-tribe of
bejong Lhoris or Bhotias of the
south, whose ancestor was a
mixed progeny of Lepcha mother
and Tibetan father.

181

 

PYO-CHHEMBO.

Pu-tsibo, a ‘rm’ or sept of
Dejong Lohris, the members of
which are the descendants of
emigrants from Bhotan and
Nepal.

Putulz', a synonym for Gandha-
banik.

Puyi-rési, a section of Males
in Eastern Bengal.

Pyakarel or Pokharyél, 9.
Mar of the Gargya gotra of
N epéli Brahmans.

Pyoochhembo, a mi or sept of
Dejong Lohris, the members of
which are the descendants of
emigrants from Bhotan and
Nepal. ' '

BA’BAD.

182

RA’I.

R

Rébad, a section of Goalas in
the North-Western Provinces and
Behar.

Rabchhéli, a ﬂu” or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.

Rabi-Dds, a synonym
Chamar.

Rachhuémi, a sept of Rajputs
in Behar.

Rédhéli, a worshipper of
Ream, the favourite mistress of
Krishna; a title of Vaishnavas.

Radhar, a sept of Kharwars
in Chota Nagpur.

Rafugar, a professional shawl-
mender; generally a Mahomedan.

Réghab, a section of the Mah-
mudabaz sub-caste of Napits in
Eastern Bengal.

Réghab GhOShéli, a me! or
hypergamous sub-group of Rarhi
Brahmans in Bengal.

Réghopurdih, a mu! or sec-
tion of the Naomulié or Majraut
sub-caste of Goélas in Behar.

Raghu, a family of the Kulin
group of Jugis in Bengal.

Raghubansi, a sub-tribe and
a sept of Rajputs in Behar; a,
bastard caste in Ohota Nagpur,
like Rautia, who act as servants
and are said to have originat-
ed since the time of Maharaja
Raghunath Shahi.

Raghunéthié, a sub-caste of
Utkal Brahmans in Orissa.

Rag’nunéthpurdiér, amul or
section of the Naomulié or Maj -
rant sub-caste of Goélés in

Behar.

for

 

Réhé, a title of Dakshin-
Rarhi and Bangaja Kayasths.

Rahapél, a section of Kémis;
a thew or sept of Mangars in~
Darjiling.

Rahdauriér, a your or section
of Sakadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

' Rahpéché, a ﬂaw or sept of
Sunuwars in Darjiling.

Rahtaur, a sept of the Suraj-
bansi division of Rajputs in
Behar.

Réhu, a title of Dosadhs in

Behar who worship the demon
Rahu.

Réhul, a thar or sept of the
Das-Grurung sub-tribe of Gru-
rungs in Darjiling. The name
is said to have arisen in conse-
quence of Rahul, the ancestor of
the t/mr, showing courage worthy
of the demon Réhu in certain
tribal feuds.

Réhut, a title of Dakshin-
Rérhi and Bangaj a Kéyasths.

Réi, a gdz’n of the Bharad-
waja gotm of Barendra Brahmans
in Bengal; a title of Brahmans ;
a section of the Sribéstab sub-
oaste of Kayasths in Behar ; an
honorary title of Kéyasths and
Subarnabaniks in Bengal ; a title
of Réjputs, Babhans, Dhanuks,
and Goalas in Behar ; of Jugis,
Baitis, and Sunris in Bengal;
asection of Khambus; a hyper-
gamous division of the Maghaya
sub-caste of Barhis; a title of
Chasadhobas, Kapz’ilis, Korés; a
title and a sept of Thérus; an
honoriﬁc title common among
many other castes.

RAIBHUIYA GHATWAL.

Raibhuiya Ghatwal, a well-to-
do class of Bhuiyas, Hai being
their title; some also call them-
selves Singh.

Raikwér, a sept of Rajputs in
Behar.

Raini, a [ml or section of Bath-
bans in Behar.

Réipur, a section of Patnis in
Bengal.

Réj, a title of Mayaras in
Bengal.

Ra'j, Rdjmz'stri, Rdjmajur, a
mason or bricklayer, an occupation
mostly followed by Kaibarttas,
Ghasadhobas, Bagdis, Chandals,
and Mahomedans

Raja, a bird, a totemistic sept
of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Réja, a family title of Kashta
Baidyas and of Dakshin-Rarhi
and Bangaja Kayasths.

Réjé. a section of the Maga-
hiya sub-caste of Doms in
Behar.

Rajabin, 3. Mar or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.
Réjéiswar, a section of the

Kamar sub-caste of Dosadhs in
Behar.

Raj/1k, a synonym for Dhoba
in Bengal.

Rajandipur, a section of the
Ariér sub-caste of Bais Baniyas
in Behar.

_ Réjépéker, a mul or section of
the Sz’itmulia or Kishnaut sub-
caste of Groélz’is and of the Kan-
aujia sub-caste of Sonars in
Behar.

‘ Réjépékur, a section of
Majraut (ioalas in Behar.

Rajépati-Sobhni, a mul or
section of the Naomulizi or M aj-
raut sub caste of Groélés in
Behar.

183

 

 

RA’J HAN S.

Rajata-kausik, a section of
the Uttar-Barendra Brahmans in
Bengal.

Raj bandh, a. section of Ghésis
in Chota Nagpur.

‘ﬂliéjbangsz, a Dravidian caste
of Northern Bengal, originally
Kochh, but now claiming to be
an outlying branch of Kshatriyas.

Réjbansi, a synonym for
Kochh, Rajwar, and for Tiyar;
a sub-caste of Tiers in Behar
who are said to wear the janeo or
sacred thread; a sub-caste of
Mauliks; a title of Bégdis in
Western Bengal.

Rajbansi or Réjd-Ma'l, a sub-
caste of Mals in Western Bengal.

Réjbansié, a sept of Pius in
Chota Nagpur.

iﬂéjh hilt, an lip-country caste
engaged in Bengal as gardeners
and cowherds. They claim to be
a distinct caste from the Bhars,
with whom they do not eat or
intermarry. In the North-
Western Provinces they are
engaged purely in agricultural
pursuits, and rank socially with
the Kurmis and Koiris.

Rajbhat, a sub-caste of Bhats,
who are the hereditary bards and
genealogists of the higher classes,
and are said to wear the sacred
thread.

Réjdom, a sub-caste of Doms
who affect Brahmanical customs.

Rajgiri, Réjgrihi, a section of
the Sétmulia Maghaya sub-caste
of Kéndus and of the Kanaujié.
sub-caste of Sonars in Behar

Raj Gond, a sub-tribe of
Gonds in Chota Nagpur who
affect Hindu customs.

Réjhans, Wild goose, a totem-
istic sept of Goalés in Chota
Nagpur.

RKJHASIA.

Réjhasia. swan, a totemistic
sept of Pans in Chota Nagpur.

Réjib, a section of the Mah-
mudabaz sub-caste of Napits in
Eastern Bengal.

184 '

RA’J PUT.

Réjkurin, a section of Mag-
haya Dhobis in Behar.

Réjmahalié, a sub-caste
Kumhars in Dacca.
Réjmor, a section of Kurmis

of

in Chota Nagpur and Orissa.

Réjpur, a saméj or local group
of the Dakshinatya Baidik Brah-
mans in the 24-Parganas.

,. , Rajput, a section of Grhésis;
, RaJkumat, a sept 0f Réjputs a sept of Mundas in Chota Nag-
1n Behar. pur.

233113”, Kskatm’ya, Olzlzatri, OIL/gettri, the ﬁghting and land—
holding caste of Northern India, who claim
to be the modern-representatives of the Ksha-
triyas of classical tradition, and who are in many cases entitled to
appeal to their markedly Aryan cast of feature in support of their
claim. Besides these Aryan Rajputs, the large group designated
indifferently by the name Rajput or Chhatri includes many families
of doubtful or non-Aryan descent, whose pretensions to membership
of the twice-born warrior caste rest solely upon the circumstances that
they have, or are supposed to have, some sort of proprietary dominion
over land. It would be out of place to attempt to give here an
exhaustive account of the Rajput community as it exists in Raj-
putana and N orth-Western India. The peculiar characteristics of the
pure-blooded Réjput have been described by several competent obser-
vers. Among the most conspicuous are a pride of blood, which
delights in endless genealogies and ranks every one according to
descent; a strong passion for ﬁeld sports, combined With an equally
pronounced distaste for peaceful and prosaic means of earning
a livelihood; and an exaggerated idea of the saving virtues of cere-
monial purity and precision in the matter of food and drink.

The same characteristics are doubtless to some extent trace-
able among the Rajputs of the Lower Provinces; but the pressure
of different conditions of life has tended to obliterate many dis-
tinctions, and the eastern Rajput is far less peculiar than the
Western. It is commonly said that the Rajput can only be
studied in his original surroundings, and that an account of the
tribe as it exists in Bengal must necessarily be valueless and
misleading. There is much truth in this view : at the same time it
may be observed that outlying branches of a tribe which have
wandered far away from the original habitat often preserve survivals
of usages which have died out among the original stock or have been
OVerlaid and obscured so as to he no longer traceable. Again,
if there is reason to believe, as several good observers think there is,
that the l-{ajput tribe itself has been recruited now and again by
irregular methods from men of alien lineage, may there not be
a better chance of observing the working of this process in distant
districts than in Rajputéna itself, where all departures from the

Rdj—detha, see Kés’th a.

Réjkuar, a sept of Raj puts in
Behar.

 

Origin.

185 RA'J PUT.

strict theory of descent are speedily condoned and hidden by the
operation of ﬁction ? .

In Chota Nagpur, for example, the methods by which many of the
chief landholding families have transformed themselves into Réjputs
may be traced beyond question at the present day. The M aharajas
of Chutia Nagpur Proper, that is of the elevated table land forming
the southern portion of the Lohardaga district, call themselves
N agbansi, and claim descent from a mysterious child found in the
jungle, concerning Whose origin a singular story is told. The
myth of the birth of the founder of the Uhutia Nagpur house from
a Brahman mother and a snake father, with the picturesque incidents
which Colonel Dalton relates, seems to be nothing more than an
ingenious invention contrived to mask the fact that a family of
Munda Chieftains had assumed the rank of Rajput. To this day
ladies of Nagbansi families will not employ a Munda to carry their
palkis, because they say he is their elder brother-1n-law (b/zm'sur),
and they veil their faces before him as they would before an elder
brother-in-law. The Pachete family call themselves Gobansi
Rajputs and tell a strange story, analogous to the N agbansi myth,
of the birth of their progenitor from a cow in the jungle near
Pachete. The zamindars of Barabhum, Patkum, Nawagarh and
Katiar in Manbhum all claim to be Rajputs, and boldly afﬁliate
themselves to the Raksel and Chandel clans. Some minor landholders
of the Bhumij tribe who hold ghatwali tenures in Barabhum
have followed the example of the zamindar of that estate, and call
themselves Rajputs, though in some cases it can be shown by
documentary evidence that their ancestors in the last generation
called themselves Bhumij._

The traditions of the tribe go back to the dateless antiquity
in which so many royal pedigrees seek
refuge. Accordnig to the usually accepted
version there are two branches of Rajputs~the Surajbansi or
Solar Race and the Chandrabansi or Lunar Race. To these
must be added the four Agnikulas or Fire Tribes. Surajbansi
Réjputs claim descent from lkshwaku, son of the Mann
Vaivaswat, who was the son of Vivaswat, the Sun. Ikshwaku, it is
said, was born from the nostril of the Manu as he happened to
sneeze. The elder branch of the Solar race sprang from Ikshwaku’s
eldest son Vikukshi, .and reigned in Ayodhyé. at the beginning of
the second or 'l‘reta Yuga. Another son named Nimi founded the
dynasty of Mithila., The Lunar race affect to be descended from
the moon, to whom they trace through Ayus, Pururavas and
Budha or Mercury, the son of Soma by Bohini or by Tara, wife of
Brihaspati. The Agnikulas or Fire ’l‘ribes are supposed to have
been brought into existence by a special act of creation of compara-
tively recent mythological date. After the Kshatriya had been slain
by Parasu Rama, gods and men, and more particularly the Brahman,
began to feel the consequences of the loss of their natural protectors.
The earth was overrun by giants and demons (Daityas and Asuras),
the sacred books were held in contempt, and there was none to whom
the devout could call for help in their troubles. Viswémitra, once
a Kshatriya, who had raised himself to be a Brahman by the might of

Traditions.

\\

RA’J PUT. 186

penance determined to revive the race that had been exterminated,
and moved the gods to assemble for this purpose on Mount Abu in
Rajputané. Four images of D/mba grass were thrown into the ﬁre
fountain, and called into life by appropriate incantations. From these
sprung the four ﬁre-tribes, Pramar, Sulanki, Parihar and Chauhan.

Turning from mythology to fact, the ﬁrst point to be noticed
about the Réjput tribe is that, in theory at any rate, it has no
endogamous subdivisions. All Rajputs are supposed to be of one blood,
and no distinctions are formally recognized among them as forming
a conclusive bar to intermarriage. The groupings Surajbansi,
Sombansi and Agnikula refer only to traditions of origin, and there
is nothing to prevent a man belonging to one of these divisions from
marrying a woman who belongs to another subdivision. It is no
doubt the case that some exogamous divisions are of higher rank
than others, and that to give a daughter in marriage into one of these
groups degrades her family in respect of future marriages for a
period of seven years. But with a few doubtful exceptions in
outlying districts the principle of hypergamy has not been pushed
to the point of forming strictly endogamous groups.

The original septs of the' Rajput tribe appear to be for
the most part of the territorial type, that
is to say, their names seem to denote the
tract of country in which the sept or its founder had their
earliest habitat. Sesodia and Bhadauria may be taken as
examples of this type. Other names again, such as dadubansi,
clearly refer to descent from particular families or stocks. In
addition to their original septs, long lists of which are given in
Appendix I, the Raj puts of Behar also recognize the Brahmanical
yotms, and the tendency is for the latter series to supplant
and take the place of the latter. Usually where the original sept
names are still held to govern intermarriage, the rule is that a man
may not marry a woman who belongs to the same sept as his father
or his mother, and the prohibition is often extended to the septs,
of the paternal and maternal grandmothers. Notwithstanding this
rule a case has been brought to my notice in which the son of
a Salanki Rajput of Behar married a woman of the Chandel sept,
although his father had married into the same sept. At the time
of the betrothal a question was raised as to the correctness of the
procedure, and the Brahmans held that, as the son’s betrothal,
though of the same tribal sept as his mother, belonged to a diﬁerent
Brahmanical gotm, the rule of exogamy would not be infringed by
the marriage. The standard formula for reckoning prohibited degrees
is also recognized by the Behar Rajputs, who in theory cons1dered
it binding dOWn to seven generations on the father’s, and ﬁve on
the mother’s side. A man may marry two sisters, but he must
take them in the order of age, and he cannot marry the elder Sister
if he is already married to the younger. , .

In theory, as has been already stated, the whole body of Raquts
constitutes a single tribe d1v1ded 1nto a
gaiiggmy and hyper‘ very large number of septs or clans of descent,

. each of which is supposed to be descended from
a common ancestor. Marriage within the sept is of course interdlcted

Internal structure.

187 I ‘RA’JPUT

to its member, and in theory a Raj put belonging to any given sept
has the whole community to choose from in seeking a bride for his
son or a bridegroom for his daughter. In fact, however, the ﬁeld of
selection is greatly restricted by the operation of the laws of
isogamy and hypergamy, the nature of which has been explained
in the Introductory Essay. In a society so organized as to give
the fullest play to the idea of purity of descent and the tradition
of ceremonial orthodoxy, it must needs be that offences should
come, and should be deemed to affect not only the offender
himself and his family in the narrower sense, but the entire sept to
which he belongs, which is conceived as an enlarged family. Thus
in course of time is developed an inﬁnite series of social distinctions
giving rise to complicated and burdensome obligations in respect of
marriage. In the case of the Réjputs these distinctions have not led
to the formation of endogamous groups, as commonly happens among
other castes, nor have they hardened into ﬁxed hypergamous group-
ings, such as are exempliﬁed by the Kulinism of Bengal. But
running through the entire series of septs we ﬁnd the usages of
isogamy and hypergamy which have exercised and continue to
exercise a profound inﬂuence on Rajput society. Isogamy or the
law of equal marriage is deﬁned by Mr. Ibbetsou1 as the rule which
arranges the septs of a given locality in a scale of social standing,
and forbids a father to give his daughter to a man of any sept
which stands lower than his own. Hypergamy or the law of
superior marriage is the rule which compels him to wed his daughter
with a member of a sept which shall be actually superior in rank to
his own. In both cases a man usually does not scruple to take his
wife, or at any rate his second wife, from a sept of inferior standing.
It will be readily seen how the working of these rules must have
given rise to all sorts of reciprocal obligations as between septs,
and must have restricted the number of available husbands in any
particular locality. The men of a higher sept can take their wives
from a lower sept, while a corresponding privilege is denied to the
women of the higher sept. Hence results a surplus of women in
the higher septs and competition for husbands sets in, leading to the
payment of a high price for bridegrooms, and enormously increases
the expense of getting a daughter married. Under these circum-
stances poor families are under a strong temptation to get rid of
their female infants by poison or intentional neglect in order to be
saved the expense of ﬁnding them suitable husbands or the disgrace
of being compelled to marry them to men of lower degree. »

There is no reason to believe that infanticide has ever been
practised by the Rajputs of Bengal on the
scale on which it has been known to occur
in North-Western India. The sentiment which would tend to the
commission of the crime is probably not so strongly developed
among the Eastern Rajputs, who are, as has been indicated above,
probably of much more mixed descent than the Rajputs of
Rajputéné.

Infanticide.

 

1 Report on the Census of the I’anjab, p. 356.

 

RKJ PUT. 188

The demand being for husbands, not for wives, it follows that
the negotiations leading to marriage are opened
by the father or guardian of the girl, who sends
his family priest and family barber to the boy’s house to make
inquiries and to answer any questions that may be asked. Some-
times a professional match-maker, aged or ghatak, is employed. In
any case these preliminary negotiations are known as agudi or
bartuham‘. If these results are satisfactory, and the girl’s family ﬁnd
that their offers are likely to be accepted, the same emissaries pay
a second visit to the boy’s house, accompanied by the girl’s father,
and bringing with them her horoscope, which is compared by the
Brahmans of the two families with the horoscope of the boy in order
to ascertain whether the match is likely to be auspicious. When this
point has been satisfactorily settled, the question of the bridegroom-
price (tilak and da/ij) to be paid by the girl’s family is discussed, and.
a certain proportion of it, usually half, is paid on the spot by way of
clinching the bargain. This is called bar chhenka or phaldci/z, and by
receiving it the boy’s people are deemed to bind themselves to marry
him to no other woman. Sometimes the father of the boy also pays
a small sum (sagun) as earnest money to the family of the girl. This
practice, however, is said to be unusual, and is only resorted to when
it is thought that the girl’s family may be disposed to evade fulﬁlment
of their obligations. The ﬁrst instalment of the tilak or bridegroom-
price is paid by one of the girl’s relations to the boy himself in the
presence of the family Brahman. At the same time a cocoanut is
presented to him and a mark (tile/9) is made with curds on his forehead.
Both the gift and the mark are supposed to bring good luck. The
balance of the bridegroom-price is paid in two equal instalments later
on—one before and one after the marriage. On the occasion of paying
the ﬁrst instalment of tilak, presents are made to the Brahmans and
barbers who have taken part in the proceedings, and a date is ﬁxed
for the celebration of the marriage, an interval of ﬁfteen days being
usually allowed.

A few days before the wedding dkanbatti takes place, a barber
is sent from the girl’s house to the boy’s with a present of unhusked
rice. The boy’s guardian takes this, mixes with it some rice of his
own, and has the mixture parched. Two days before the wedding the
women of the family scatter this parched rice about in the court
yard, singing songs which are supposed to bring good luck. On the
next day, that is the day before the wedding, the rite of ghz'd/zdm'
is performed in the houses of the bride and bridegroom separately.
The parents and nearest relations of the latter put on yellow clothes,
and in the presence of the family priests worship Ganesa, the deity,
who presides over success in life. The bridegroom is then smeared
with oil, turmeric and gki, offerings are made to the family gods,
and the hair of the bridegroom’s mother or his nearest female relative
is anointed with oil. The same ceremony is gone through in the
house of the bride, the only difference being that her family clothe
themselves in red for the occasion. Un the day of the marriage, but
before the wedding procession is arranged, the ceremony of belonkz‘
mangna is often, though not necessarily, performed. The parents

Marriage.

189 RA'J PUT.

of the betrothed couple distribute cakes to the neighbours, demand-
ing in return small presents of money (below/ti).

The marriage procession is formed at the house of the bride-
groom, and makes a somewhat noisy progress to the house of the
bride. There the entire party is entertained. The bride and
bridegroom are seated under a mama or wedding canopy, and after
the recital of appropriate mantras or texts, the family priest of the
bride’s household ﬁlls the bridegroom’s right hand with sindur, and
makes a mark with it on the bride’s forehead, the women of the
family meanwhile singing songs to celebrate the event. Among
the Ryéjputs of Tirhut this is deemed the binding portion of the
ritual, and the practice of walking round the sacred ﬁre, usually
considered essential in the marriage of the higher castes, is said to
be unknown. The married couple then leave the marwa and go to
the loo/war or house, where the family deity has been placed for the
occasion. They worship and make offerings to him, and this
concludes the marriage. The bridegroom then returns to the
janwdsa’ or lodgings reserved for his party, while the bride remains
in her own house. Early next morning they are brought out and
each is made to chew betel with which has been mixed a tiny
drop of blood drawn from the other’s little ﬁnger. This usage in
which we may trace an interesting survival of primitive ideas
is called sine/2 jorua, the joining of love. When it is over
the bride is taken to her husband’s house where she remains.
On the fourth day after her arrival she and her husband stand
together on a yoke such as is used for oxen, and a washerwoman
pours water over them. This symbolical washing is supposed to be
the ﬁrst occasion on which the couple see each other by daylight
after marriage. Among the Réjputs of North-Western India, and
in some parts of Behar, the bride and bridegroom do not live
together until after a second ceremony (called gauna’, or with reference
to the bride’s ‘going’ to her husband’s house) has been performed,
which may take place one, three, ﬁve or even seven years after the
marriage, and is ﬁxed with reference to the physical development of
the bride. In Tirhut, however, the custom of premature consum-
mation, mentioned by Buchanan as prevalent among the Réjputs bf
Behar, seems to have been introduced, and it is said to be unusual for
a bride to be kept at home until she attains puberty. Another custom
connected with marriage, which students of comparative ethnography
will also recognize as a survival of more primitive ideas, may be
referred to here. In Raj put families of Tirhut it is considered contrary
to etiquette for a young married couple to see each other by day so
long as the husband’s parents are alive, and in particular they
must avoid being seen together by the husband’s parents, and
must not speak to one another in their presence. It is of course
extremely difﬁcult to ascertain how far a rule of this sort is
actually observed, but I am assured that young married couples are
very careful to avoid infringing it, although as they grow older
their solicitude on this point is apt to Wear 03.

The remarriage of widows is strictly forbidden among the
Rajputs of Behar. Divorce is also prohibited, and when a. woman

RA’JPUT. 190

is taken in adultery, she is summarily expelled from the caste, and
either becomes a prostitute or joins herself to some religious sect of
more or less dubious morality. In certain cases, hOWever, where
a married couple ﬁnd themselves unable to live in harmony
together, a separation is arrived at by mutual consent, each agreeing .
to look upon the other as a parent. In such cases the wife returns
to her father’s house, and the husband marries again. This is not,
however, looked upon as a divorce.

Raj puts are orthodox Hindus, and worship the Hindu divinities
favoured by the sect to which they happen
to belong. By the Surajbansi division, Special
honour is done to the sun, whom they regard as their eponymous
ancestor. Among minor gods Bandi and Narsingh appear to be
most in favour. Ancestors are worshipped with offerings of milk,
ﬂowers and rice. Mondays and Wednesdays are believed to be
the most propitious days for this worship. On the 15th day of
Asin married women offer cakes and oil to the souls of their
mother-in-law. grandmother-in-law and great grandmother-in—law.
This custom, known as the Jitia puja, has obviously been copied
from the sraddh celebrated in honour of the three immediate
descendants. The popular explanation of it is that it is intended to
express the gratitude that every married women ought to feel for her
good fortune in getting a husband. Mr. Grierson, in Belmr Peasant
Life,1 speaks of the jitiya puj a as “ a fast and worship performed by
women on the 8th of the dark half of Kartik (late in October) for
the beneﬁt of their children. Further inquiry on the subject would
perhaps bring out points of interest and might clear up the discre-
pancy of date

For religious and ceremonial purposes Rajputs employ Brah-
mans, who are received on equal terms by
other members of the sacred order. The
dead are burned and the ashes thrown into the Ganges or ones of its
tributaries. Sradd/e is performed on the thirteenth day after death,
and on the fourteenth a feast is given to the Brahmans of the
neighbourhood. It is followed by the barki sradd/z on the ﬁrst anni-
versary of the death, when the members of the dead man’s family
shave their heads and faces, and present a pimla to the deceased,
while the Brahmans recite mantras. Then the priests and the mem-
bers of the family partake of a feast. It is said to be a tradition
that the expenditure on this ceremony must not exceed half of that
incurred on the original smddh. After the bark/ti the tarpcm or
nit-tumult, a daily offering of water is presented regularly by all the
sons of the deceased, and particularly by the eldest. This prac-
tice, however, is observed only by highly-educated Rajputs, who
know their religious obligations in this matter. On the ﬁrst
ﬁfteen days of Asin the pitrt' pales/a or ancestors’ fortnight is
observed with offerings of water to all deceased ancestors. If
a man dies sonless, leaving a wife and daughter, the sradd/r and the
bar/vi are performed by one of them, the other ceremonies being

Religion.

Disposal of the dead.

 

1 Page 402.

I91 RA’J PUT.

omitted. Failing these the nearest agnate gotz‘a will take upon
himsalf these pious duties. In the event of a man dying away from
his peOple and being burned or buried without the proper rites, his
body is burned in efﬁgy by his relatives, and the other ceremonies
are performed in the usual fashion. When a man has died a sudden
or violent death, it is thought right for his son to make a pilgrimage
to Grya and perform the sraddh ceremony there in order to secure
the repose of his soul. ,

The high-ﬂown titles—Bhupal, Bhupati, Bhusur, Bahuja—in
use among Rajputs, and the name Ohhatri
itself indicate the exalted pretensions of the
tribe and their traditions concerning their
original occupation. Many Rajputs still cling to the belief
that Government and the trade of arms are their proper business
in life; and these notions lead them to regard education, and more
especially the higher education, in much the same light as a medieval
warrior looked upon the clerkly studies of his time. For this reason
the Rajputs as a body have rather dropped behind in the modern
struggle for existence, where book learning counts for more than
strength of arm, and the more intelligent members of the tribe are
quite conscious that their position is by no means what it was in the
classical ages of Hindu tradition. Their relations to the land still
help them to maintain a show of respectability and importance.
Many of them are zamindars, and those who hold cultivating tenures
claim in virtue of their caste a remission of rent of their homestead
lands. The jetlz-miyat or headman of a Behar village is frequently
a Rajput. He collects the rents and receives in return a yearly
allowance, known as pagm‘, from the zamindar. Rajputs are never
artisans, and it is unusual to ﬁnd them engaging in any kind of
trade. In theory their social status is second only to that of the
Brahman, but in Bengal Proper, where great Rajput houses do
not exist, popular usage would, I think, place them below the Baidya
and the Kayasth. Even in Behar the Babhans claim precedence
over them on the ground that they will not touch the handle (paw/tam
or lagna) of the plough, and that they use the full upanagan ritual
when investing their children with the janeo or sacred thread, whereas
the Rajputs plough and milk cows with their own hands, and shufﬂe
on the janeo in a rough-and-ready fashion when a boy gets married.

In respect of diet the Rajputs conform generally to the practice
of high—caste Hindus. The ﬂesh of the goat, the deer and the hare,
the pigeon, quail and ortolan may alone be eaten, and these animals, if
not killed in hunting, must be slaughtered in a particular way (Mata/m.)
by cutting the head off at asingle stroke. Fish is lawful food. Wine
is supposed to be forbidden. As regards the taking of food from
members of other castes, the following rules are in force :—

A Rajput cannot take law/2012i food, 6.6., rice or dd! or anything
that is cooked with water from anyone but a Brahman. Pa/cki
food, such as parched grain, sweetmeats and the like, he may take
from a man of any caste higher than his own or from a Dhanuk,
Kurmi, Kahar, Lohar, Barhi, Kumhar, Goala, Mallah, Hajjam,
Mali, Sonar, Laheri, or Gareri, provided that no salt or turmeric has

Occupation and social
status.

RAJ PUT. 192 RAJ WA’R.

been used in the making. These condiments he will add himself.
Water is governed by the rules applicable to pals/ti food. Rajputs
may not use the .hookahs of any other caste, but may smoke tobacco
prepared by men of any caste except the Dosadh, Dom, Chamar,
Musahar and Dhobi. ,

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Bajputs in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. DISTRICT. ' 1872. l 1881.
l
Bardwan 12,359 7,218 'Noakhali 350 158
Bankura 9,180 13,987 ’l‘ipperah . 2,161 1,162
Birbhum 7,028 8,344 Chittagong Hill Tracts 47 7
Midnapur 17,003 19,573 Patna 60,079 64,332
Hughli } 6993 s 5.530 Gya 102,918 114,402
Howrah ’ L 1,039 Shahahad 183,896 207,195
24-Parganas 8,683 12,604 MozufTerpur 2.,7 2'16 167,594
Nadiya 5.017 6,047 lDarbhanga ‘ , ‘ 90,053
Jessore 1,114 903 Saran . 213,348 213.972
Khulna ...... 551 Champaran 69,614 80,764
Murshedabad 13,141 8,955 Monghyr 47,006 56,067
Dinajpur ... 1,813 2,885 Bhazalpur 52,579 60,491
Rajshahye 1,541 1,233 Purniah 23,663 48,465
Bangpur 2,404 2,325 Maldah 3.207 5,104
Bogra 3,426 372 Santal Pargana 33,337 28,124
Pabna 664 455 Cuttack 10,718 10,782
Darjiling ... 8,972 6,352 Puri 2,946 3,898
Jalpigori 52:5 1,269 Balasore 2,053 2,770
Kuch Behar... ...... 3,197 Tributary States 6,510 3.551
Dacca ... 1,665 5,362 Hazaribagh 31.387 37,404
Faridpur 901 533 Lohardaga 37,752 47,471
Bakarzanj 952 468 Siugbhum 1,718 1,949
Maimausinh 2,470 2,167 Manbhum 16,588 15,942
Chittagong ... 359 1,040 Tributary States 2,589 5,258

 

 

 

 

 

’gﬁsjmar, a Dravidian cultivating caste of Behar, Western
Bengal, and Chota Nagpur, who are probably
a branch of one of the aboriginal races. This
opinion was held by Buchanan, who went so far as to identify them
with the Rachewars or Raj awars whom he came across in Mysore.
Colonel Dalton reckoned them among the mongrel tribes. “ Tradi-
tionally,” he says, “they appear to connect themselves with the
Bhuiyés; but this is only in Behar. The Rajwars in Serguja and
the adjoining States are peaceably-disposed cultivators, who declare
themselves to be fallen Kshatriyas: they do not, however, conform
to Hindu customs, and they are skilled in a dance called Chailo,
which I believe to be of Dravidian origin. The Raj wars of Bengal
admit that they are derived from the miscegenation of Kurmis
and K018. They are looked upon as very impure by Hindus, who
will not take water from their hands.” The Rajwars of Behar told
Buchanan “that their common ancestor was a certain Rishi, who
had two sons From the eldest are descended the Rajwars, who
became soldiers and obtained their noble title; from the younger
are descended the Musahars, who have obtained their name from
eating rats, which the Raj wars reject.” The suggestion of afﬁnity
with the Musahars seems to support Colonel Dalton’s statement that
the Rajwérs connect themselves with the Bhuiyas, for Musahars and
Bhuiyés are certainly closely related, if not one and the same.
On the other hand, it should be observed that the RaJWars of
Gyé. will not eat with Bhuiyas. The Rajwérs of Manbhum have

Origin.

193 RAJWA‘R.

a tradition that they came from Nagpur. They say that the king
of that country had two daughters, the elder of whom was lawfully
married to the elder of two brothers, while the younger daughter
ran away with the younger brother. On the death of the king the
brothers fought among themselves for the kingdom, but after a time
it was settled that the one who came ﬁrst to the capital on a certain
morning should be king. On his way to the city the younger brother
saw a golden crab and dismounted to get it, tying his horse to atree.
As he was reaching for the crab, a kite screamed over his head. He
mistook the kite’s scream for the neighing of his horse, assumed that
it had broken loose and went off to look for it. This took him so
long that he never got to Nagpur at all, but gave up his claims to the
crown and went home. The Rajwar caste are his descendants. The
legend may well have been suggested by the name Rajwar or the
title Rajbansi. The internal structure of the caste is shown in!
Appendix I. Some of the sections are totemistic
—a fact which may be taken as certainly indi-
cating Dravidian descent. The sub-castes are the following——
Angrok or Angwér, Chapwér, Sikharié, Sukulkéra, Bar-Gohri,
Majhal-Turiya, and Berra—Rajwér. The last three are found only
in Lohardaga. The third occurs among several castes of Western
Bengal, and refers to the tract of country between the Damodar and
Barakar rivers, east of the Parasnéth range of hills. The Doms of
Behar have a section called Angwar. All the sections are exogamous,
but in Behar the Marrik, Maj hiya, and Matwara profess not to
intermarry with members of the Bhogta group. For the rest they
follow the standard formula for calculating prohibited degrees.

Rajwars marry their daughters either as infants or as adults.
In the latter case sexual intercourse before
marriage is condoned, as with the Mundas and
Greens, provided that the lover marries the girl. An intrigue with
a man of another caste would of course be punished by summary
excommunication. The marriage closely resembles that in use
among the Kurmis, sindurda’n being the binding portion. Polygamy
is permitted. A man may have as many wives as he can afford to
maintain. A widow may marry a second time by the sangd form.
She is not bound to marry her late husband’s younger brother.
Some Rajwars of Gya and Shahabad assured me that only childless
widows might marry again, and that the privilege was under no
circumstances extended to a widow with children. This looks like
a ﬁrst step towards the introduction of further restrictions, but I doubt
whether my informants were correct in their statement; or, if they
were, whether the modiﬁed usage extended beyond a small number
of families. Divorce is allowed for adultery or incompatibility of
temper, and divorced wives may marry again.

The members of the caste profess to be Hindus of the Vaishnava
sect, and employ degraded Brahmans (J yosi or
Maithil) for religious and ceremonial observ-
ances. In Behar they also worship Goraiya, Dihwar, J agdamba,
and the other standard minor gods. They burn their dead and
perform a rather meagre srdddlz ceremony on the eleventh day. ,A'

2%

Internal structure.

Marriage.

Religion.

RAJWAR. RAM.

194
piece of bone is saved from the ﬁre in order that it may be thrown
into the Ganges or the Damodar. The reverence thus shown for the
latter river deserves notice, as it is always associated with the funeral
rites of the aboriginal races.

The social rank of the Rajwars is low, and Brahmans will not
ordinarily take water from their hands. Those
Brahmans, however, who serve them as priests,
and the Vaishnava ascetics, who act as their spiritual guides, will
eat sweetmeats and similar pa/ckvi food in their houses. In virtue
of their abstinence from beef and pork they believe themselves to
be raised above the Bauris and Doms; while the fact that they eat
fowls and the leavings of the higher castes, and indulge freely in
strong drink, cuts them oﬁ from the respectable classes from whose
hands Brahmans will take water. The Kurmis are the lowest caste
from whom they will take cooked food. Agriculture is their sole
occupatlon. Some of them are occupancy raiyats, but a large pro-

Social status.

portion have not risen above the condltion of landless day—labourers.
The following statement shows the number and distribution

of Rajwars in 1872 and 1881:—

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. ‘ 1872. t 1881. I DISTRICT. ‘ 1872. ‘ 1881.
Bardwan ...... 230 Patna 8:344 3,960
Bankura. ...... 61 Gya 39,484 43,773
Birbhum ...... 135 Shahabad 4,451 6,8”
M 1d napur ...... 10,265 Mozufferpur 72 531
Hughli ...... 2 Saran 117 304
Howrah ...... 133 Champaran 37 32
zit-Parmnas ...... 469 Monzh yr 114-
IVadiya 113 Bhagalpur 289 354
Murshedabad ...... 163 Purniah 213 62
BaJShahye ...... 211 Malduh ...... 23
Boar". ...... 41 Santal Parganas 5,080 6,173
Pabna 4 Hazaribagh 1.265 9,291
Dargilmg . ...... 20 Lohardaga .. 3,559 5,657
Furidpur ...... 51 Singbhum ... 33 101
Chittagong ...... 13 Manbhum 10,091 15,541

Tributary States 11.510 14.475

 

 

 

 

 

Rajwér, a sept of Réjputs in
Behar.

Rakhél, a ﬂaw or sept of Man-
gars in Darjiling.

Rakhali, a section of Khém-
bus in Darjiling.

Rakhi, a sub-caste of Kalwars
in Behar.

Raksa, a section of the Kan-
aujia sub-caste of Goélas in
Behar.

Rakséin, a sept of the
Suryabansi sub-tribe of Rajputs
in Behar.

Raksel a sept of Réjputs in
Behar. '

 

Rakshit, Rakhit, a title of
Baidyas, of Dakshin-Rarhi and
Bangaja Kayasths; Baruis,
Tamolis, and Telis, of Mayaras
and Sutradhars in Bengal.

Raksise, a mu! or section of
the Chhamulié. Madhesiz’t sub-
caste of Halwais in Behar.

Rakwér, a section of Rajputs
in Behar.

Rém, (i) a title applied to
Kurmis in Behar until by age or
personal inﬂuence they attain a
leading position in the village,
when they are called Marér or
Mahton; (ii) a title of Dosadhs;
(iii) a section of the Mahmud-
abaz sub-caste of Napits.

RA’MA’I’Y A .

Réméiyé, an endogamous
branch of the Chauan sub-caste
of Kurmis in Behar who are said
to have been outcasted for eating
by mistake for a goat the body
of audog which had been roasted
in a ﬁre which burned down a
village The Ramaiyas deny the
truth of this story, but, while
claiming to belong to the Chauan
sub-caste of Kurmis, can assign
no reason for their exclusion from
rights of food and intermarriage.

Réménuja, a sect of Vaish-
navas.

Rémévat, a sect of Vaish-
navas.

Ramayé, a section of Bab-
hans in Behar.

Ra’ma’yat, Rdma’t/z, a celibate
sect of Vaishnavas who worship
Rama and Krishna, wear the paita,
and are usually treated as Brah-
mans.

Rémer-Dhobé, a sub-caste of
Dhobas in Eastern Bengal.

Rémgarhié, a sept of Baira-
gis and Mundas in Chota Nag-
pur.

Rémi dhémi ke asami, a
section of the Banodhia and
J aiswar Kalwars in Behar.

Zﬂamjani, a caste of dancers,
singers, and prostitutes, synony-
mous with Gandharvin.

Ramkisan, a section of the
Biyahut and Kharidaha Kal-
wars in Behar.

Rémpéi, a section of Babhans
in the north of Manbhum to
whom the members of other sec-
tions will not give their daugh-
ters in marriage, though they
allow the men to marry Rampai
women.

Rémpuri, a section of Béis
,Sonérs in Behar.

195

 

RANGOMUNG.

Rampurié, a section of the
Banodhié. and J aiswér Kalwars
in Behar.

Rémudén, a section of Kamis
in Darjiling.

Réné. a title of the Bhar and
Mayarz’i castes; a pangat or section
of Dosadhs ; a section of the Suraj-
bansi division ‘of Réjputs in
Behar; a title of Dakshin-Rarhi
and Bangaja Kayasths; a title
of Aguris and Sutradhars; of
Kumhars in Behar; of Mangars
in Darjiling; a section of the
Magahiyé. sub-caste of Doms in
Behar.

Réné. Lamsani, a thar or sept
of the Das-gurun g sub-tribe of
Gurungs in Darjiling.

Ranasinha or Samarsinlza,
lion of the ﬁght, a title of Khan-
daits in Orissa.

Rénauchhé, a thar or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.

Ranauni, a sept of the
Suryabansi sub-tribe of Rajputs
in Behar.

Réncho, a section of Bégdis
in Western Bengal.

Réne, a section of Kanaujié
Lohars in Behar.

Ranga, a title of Dakshin-
Rérhi and Bangaja Kayasths.

Réngé, a sept of Dhimals in
the Darjiling Terai.

Rangataba, a. yellow bird,'a
totemistic sept of Juéngs in
Orissa.

Rdngdkdm', Rangdkdrid, a maker
of tin (rdngd) or pewter orna.
ments, an occupation followed by
Mahomedans ;' also a synonym for
Sonar.

Rangomung, a sept of 'Lepchas
in Darjiling.

n 2

RANGPIAR.

'Rangpiar, a section ,of the
Blyahut and Kharidéha Kal-
wars in Behar.

Rangrez, Rangrdj, a dyer, an
occupation usually followed by
Mahomedans.

Rangroz, a functional group
of J ugis.

Rani Poka, a red worm, a
totemistic sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Ranka, a section of Oswals in
Behar.

Rankankar, asept of Kaurs in
Chota Nagpur.

Rénki or Kalél, a sub-caste

(Mahomedan) of Kalwars in
Behar.

Rankwér, a sept of Rajputs
in Behar.

Ransadiyé. a section of Bab-
bans in Behar.

Ranubéd, a section of Kum-
bars in Singbhum.

Ranyacelunya, a sept of
Chakmés in the Hill Tracts of
Chittagong.

Ranyin, a sept of Chakmas in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Réorh, a section of Maghaya
Kumhérs in Behar.

L Réori, a title of Kéndus in
Behar.

Raot, a totemistic sept of Doms
and Chamérs in Chota Nagpur.

Raotié, crab, a totemistic sept
of Pans in Ohota Nagpur. ‘

Répungchhé, a thaw or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.

Rérh-ésram, a sub-caste of
Mayaras in Central Bengal.

196

 

.‘ RA’STOGI.

Rérher Rérhi, a sub-caste of _
Sunris in Eastern Bengal.

Rérh i, a sub-caste of Brahmans
in the Lower Provinces of Bengal
who derive their name from the
Rarh, or the high-lying alluvial
tract on the west bank of the river
Bhagirathi. They claim descent
from ﬁve Kanaujia Brahmans
brought by Adisur to perform
certain ceremonies which the local
Brahmans, who are now known
as Saptasatis, were incompetent
to undertake; a sub-caste of
Kewats in Orissa; of Kumhars,
Tantis, Telis; of Baidyas, Baruis,
Kayasths, Goalas, Kaibarttas,
J ugis, Subarnabaniks, and Sunris
in Bengal; of Kamars in
Murshedabad, and in Pabna also
called Das-Samaj ; a group 0
Phulkata’. Mélis. _

Rarh i-Mél, a sub-caste of Mals _
in the Santal Parganas.

Rérhiya-Saméj, a sub-caste
of Dhobas in Hughli.

Rérié, a section of Goalas in
the North-Western Provinces and
Behar.

Raséili, a section of Kamis ; a
tkar or sept of Mangars in
Darjiling.

Rasékmére, a mul or section
of the Naomulia or Majraut sub-
caste of Goalas in Behar.

Résamba, mushrooms that
grow on ant-hills, a totemistic
sept of J wings in Orissa.

Raséunmare, a mu! or section
of the Naomulia or Majraut sub-
caste of Goalas in Behar.

Rés-rishi, a section of Gran-
dhabaniks in Bengal.

Rast, a title of Goalas in Behar.

(£5,03ng a trading caste of Behar, usually engaged in selling
cloth and money -lending, but sometimes also dealing in grain and
native medicines. They practise two peculiar forms of petty
money -lending by 5“,“) that is by entry in books of account withdut

RA’STOGI. 197 ., RA’UN IA’.

the security of a separate bond. These are known as augdkz‘ or uga’lu'
and road/n} Mr. Hoey gives1 the following account of them :—-

' “Augdlzz' is lending of money to be repaid with interest at 20
per cent..in monthly instalments. Thus, if a Rastogi lends on the 1st
January ten rupees, he receives one rupee on the ﬁrst of each month
for twelve months, and thereby realises twelve rupees, of which two
rupees are interest. A Rastogi’s augdhz' bakz’ is a curiosity. It is
ruled like a chess-board, but has twelve columns. As each month’s
instalment is realised, it is entered in a square until the twelve squares
are ﬁlled. He generally keeps also a separate balm, in which the
principal is noted when lent. It may, however, be noted in the
margin of his check-pattern account. Rozdhz’ is money lent to be
realised in daily instalments with interest at 25 per cent. Thus, if
a rupee be lent, one-half anna (id/at roz) will be realised daily. The
account of this money is kept in a similar way, but the account-book
will be ruled in lines of 40 squares. A Rastogi keeps his accounts by
locality, that is, he has several khets, as he calls them; one, say, is
Saadatganj, another Hasanganj, a third Deori Agha Mir, and so on.
Debtors are called asdmis, and the amount to be collected is called
lagdn. A separate set of account-books is kept for each khet, and
a servant (generally a Brahman on Rs. 8 per mensem) is employed to
collect each kket.”

Mr. Sherring mentions three sub-castes—Amethi, lndrapati,
and Mauharié, which do not intermarry. Rastogis marry their
daughters as infants, forbid widows to remarry, and do not recognize
divorce. In matters of diet they aﬁect to be extremely punctilious,
and thus married women of the caste will not eat food that has been
prepared, or even touched by their husbands.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Réstogis in 1881. They were not returned separately in 1872 :—

 

 

 

DISTRICT. I 1881. l‘ DISTRICT. 1881.
Patna 258 Ohamparan 24
GYa. 8 Monghyr 296
Shahabad 186 Purniah 17
Mozuﬁerpur 10 Hazaribagh 164s
Darbhanga 36 Lohardaga .. ... ... 4,4.
Saran 1,4470

 

Rat, a section of Awadhia Ra’mébali, a with of the Bhar-
Hajjams in Behar. adwaj a gotm of Barendra Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Rathié, a sub-tribe of Kama . Ratwarié, a section of Lohérs
in Chota Nagpur. 1n Behar.

Rauné, a synonym for Rawéni‘,

, Rathitara, a section of the W" .
Paschatya Baidik Brahmans in Réunié, a section of the sat-
Bengal ; a Kshatrapeta gotra or mulia Maghaya sub-caste of Kain-
section of Brahmans. dus in Behar.

 

 

‘ Trade and Manufactures of Northern India, p. 144.

'RAUNIAR. , 198

‘ Rauniér, Raum'a, Nom'dr, a sub-caste of Baniyas' in Behar. -
Writing of the members of this group in the North-West Provinces,
Mr. N esﬁeld says :-—“ Raunia, more fully written Ravaniya, is from
mmm, which means the crying or hawking of wares for sale.” In
another place he adds :——“ The Raunia (which means literally a.
crier) moves in a circle of some eight or ten villages surrounding
his own; and if he cannot get cash for his grain, he barters it for
'spices, sugar, condensed treacle, etc. In these days he is seldom
able to live by trade alone, and in the intervals of business he
raises his own crops. But trade, and trade only, was his original
function.”

The Rauniérs of Behar profess to have come from the North-
West Provinces, and their allegation is likely
enough to be correct. They are divided into
exogamous sections (muls or gotrus), but the only section-names
I have been able to ascertain are Ekadasi and Ekassi, referring
possibly to the number of families comprised, or supposed to be
comprised, in each section. Their titles are Séhu and Modi. which
are common to them and to many other trading groups. In
Champaran they have broken up into two endogamous groups—
Chhatri and Samri, the former of whom claim to be Rajputs from
the North-West Provinces who were degraded for intermarrying
with women of the Baniya caste.

Rauniérs profess to marry their daughters as infants, but '
I am informed that cases of girls being married
after puberty are not uncommon where the
parents are poor or for any special reason there has been diﬂiculty in
ﬁnding a husband. It is clear therefore that the caste does not take
the extreme sacerdotal view of the necessity of infant-marriage
which prevails among Hindus of the higher classes, especially in
Bengal Proper. Their marriage ceremony is of the standard type,
and a price (Ma/c) is paid to the parents of the bridegroom.
Polygamy is allowed, but is rarely resorted to in practice, except
when the ﬁrst wife proves barren. Widows are allowed to remarry
by the sagaz’ form, of which sindurddn is the binding portion. The
widow is under no obligation to marry her deceased husband’s
younger brother. Divorce is not generally recognized; but in
Champaran it appears to be the practice to bring cases of unchastity
before a panchayat. which makes an order ofdivorce; and if the
otfenee has been committed with a member of the caste, the woman
is allowed to marry again by sagaz'.

In their religious and ceremonial Observances the Rauniérs are
orthodox Hindus and employ Brahmans, whose
social position is in no way affected by serving
them. Rauniars are not conspicuous for adhesion to any particular
sect, but in some parts of the country they are said to regard

Internal structure.

Marriage.

Religion.

 

‘ I have treated the hauniar as a sub-caste of Baniyé, instead of as a
separate caste, in order to avoid doing violence to popular usage._ Both
Natives and Europeans speak of the Baniya caste, and ignore the fact that the
expreseion denotes a group Comprising several distinct castes, which cannot
now be traced to any common stock. The subject is discussed at greater
length in the article on Baniyé.

RAUNIA’R.

199

RAUTIA.

Mahadeva as their tutelary deity. Like the Agarwals, they pay
special reverence to Lakhsmi, and celebrate the Diwali festival With

great pomp.

They also worship Bandi, Goraiya, Sokha, and

Mahabirji as household or village gods. .
Trading in grain, cloth, etc., and lending money, are their special

Occupation.

functions, but of late years some of them have
taken to agriculture, and a few have risen,

probably as a consequence of money-lending transactions, to be

zemindars.
raiyats, but such cases are rare.

Rauccm, a synonym for Teli.

Raut, a sub-tribe of Kharwérs
in Southern Lohardaga.

Réut, Rakut, a title of Amats,
Chamars, Dhanuks, Dosadhs,
Gonrhis, Goalas, Kadars, Kum-
hars, Nagars, Pargahs,
puts, and Sunris in Behar; in
Bengal of the Bhat Brahmans.
As a title of Malis in Behar,
it seems to be in process of
development into a sub-caste,
for the Raut Malis intermarry
among themselves; a title of
Beldars, N unias, Barais, Kahars,

Raj:

 

In Champaran Rauniyars are found as occupancy

Binds, and of Dhobis in Behar;
a section and a title of Kurmis in
Behar; a sept of Thérus; a title
of Gareris; a title of Chases and
Khandaits in Chota Nagpur and
Orissa; a section of Dharkar Dome
in Behar; a title of Bhuiyas; a sept
of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Rautar, a section of Sonars in
Behar.

Rautér, a sub-tribe of Tharus
in Behar.

Rauti, a section of Mahesris
in Behar.

Etienne, a landholding and cultivating caste of Chota Nagpur,
probably Dravidian in its original afﬁnities,
but since reﬁned in features and complexion
by a large infusion of Aryan blood. The name Rautia suggests
some connexion with Raj puts, and Mr. Beames has noticed that the
cognate term Raut is used in some districts to denote an inferior
. Rajpi’it, “the corruption of the name betokening the corruption of
the caste.”1 Their traditions say that they formerly dwelledvin
Sinhal—dwip (Ceylon), whence they migrated to Barhar, in Mirzapur.
In the time of the Emperor J ahéngir some Rautia’s were serving as
sentinels in the fort at Gwalior when Maharaj a Durjan Séh of Chutia
Nagpur was imprisoned there for failure to pay his tribute to
Dehli.2 During his conﬁnement the Bautiés treated the Raja
kindly, and he repaid their good ofﬁces on his release by giving
them lands in pargana Panari of Lobardagé. Further grants of
villages, groups of villages, and entire parganas were afterwards
made to them in jdgz'r, and many of these are in existence at the
present day. The titles of Baraik, Gaunjhu, and Kotwér W516 at
the same time conferred upon them.

Origin.

 

‘ Supplemental Glossary, vol. i, p. 24.

3 See extracts f"-om Tuzulc-i-Jakdngz’ri and MS. history of Chutiﬁ
Nagpur in J. A. S. B. for 1871, and Statistical Account of Bengal, vol. xvi,
p. 447 et seq.

RAUTIA’. 200

The Rautiés areB divided into (two endogamous sub-castes—
argohi‘i and hhot- ohri. The ori in of
IntemaIStruCture' this division is obscure? The Rautias gthem-
selves tell an absurd story to account for it. They say that the
Bar-gohris were the ﬁrst to arrive in their present habitat. When
the Chhot-gohris came they were asked with what cooking pots and
on what ﬁre-places they had cooked their food after the Bar-gohris
had started. On their replying that they had used the pots and
ﬁre-places left behind by the Bar-gohris, but had cleaned them, the
latter straightway took offence, and from that time forth have
refused to eat cooked food (kacki) with the Chhot-gohri. Following
the analogy of similar schisms in castes formerly united, it seems
more likely either that the Chhot-gohri were the ﬁrst settlers and
were outcasted for some such breach of caste rules as people are apt
to commit, or to be taxed with committing, when they settle in
outlandish parts of the country, or that the Chhot-gohri are the
offspring of alliances between the Bar-gohri and women of inferior
caste or purity of lineage. At the present day the Chhot-gohri eat
fowls and wild pig and drink spirits, all of which things are
forbidden for members of the higher group.

Within each sub-caste we ﬁnd a group called Berré. Rautié,
who are admittedly descendants of Rautias by concubines of other
castes. Although not strictly endogamous, the Berrés observe
certain special restrictions in the matter of marriage. Thus a Berra
whose mother was a Rajput will not marry a girl whose mother
was a Ghasi.

Both sub-castes have a long list of sections (pdm's or got), which
will be found in the Appendix. The fact that the list contains
totemistic, eponymous, and territorial names, tells on the whole in
favour of the view that the Rautias are people of mixed descent. The
rule that the totem is taboo to its bearers seems only to apply to the
animal-totems, which may be named, but not killed or eaten; for
a. Rautia of the sword or axe groups is not forbidden to use these
weapons, nor is a man of the Kasi group forbidden to touch the
grass from which his section is supposed to be descended.

The section name goes by the male side, and the prohibition
attached to it affects only a man’s own section and does not prevent
him from marrying a woman belonging to the same section as his
mother. This simple rule of exogamy is therefore supplemented
by a table of prohibited degrees made up, like our own, by
enumerating the individual relatives whom a man may not marry,
and not, as is more usual, by prohibiting intermarriage with certain
large classes of relations or with the descendants within certain
degrees of particular relations.

Girls are married either as infants or adults, usually between

M mg the ages of eight and eighteen. Sexual license

a ge. . . . .

before marriage 1s not openly recognized, as 1t

is among the aborigines of Chota Nagpur; but I am informed
that grown-up girls enjoy considerable liberty in this respect, it
being understood that in case of pregnancy a husband will be at
once forthcoming. In theory polygamy is allowed without any

201 RAUTIA’.

restriction being laid on the number of wives or any antecedent
condition being insisted on, such as that the ﬁrst wife must be
barren or be inﬂicted with an incurable disease in order to entitle
her husband to take another wife. In actual life, however, it is
unusual to ﬁnd a man with more than three or four wives. One
simple reason for this is that few men can afford to keep many wives
‘or have house-room to accommodate them, as by universal custom
each wife must have a separate room.

A widow is allowed to marry again by the sagai form, and
it is considered right for her to marry her late husband’s younger
brother. Under no circumstances can she marry the elder brother.
If she marries an outsider, her late husband’s brother, father,
or uncle have the right to the custody of all her children,
both male and female. In any case she acquires no rights in her
late husband’s property, the whole of which passes to his eldest
son, subject to certain obligations to provide, by way of main-
tenance, for younger brothers. If a widow marries her late
husband’s younger brother, her children byhim are not deemed
the children of her ﬁrst husband, nor have they any rights in respect
of his property.

The ritual used at the marriage of a widow is very simple.
Five married women whose husbands are living take a sdm', a pair
of lac bracelets, and a little vermilion (sindur) to the bridegroom
and get him to touch each article. They then return to the bride,
attire her in the sa’m' and bracelets, and (1an the vermilion on her
forehead. As in the case of a regular marriage, the proceedings

‘ conclude with a feast to the friends and relatives of the newly-
married couple.

A woman may be divorced for adultery or for eating with
a member of another caste. For lighter offences than these, separation
is the only punishment awarded; and in that case the husband is
bound to maintain his wife. A divorced woman may not marry
again. If she lives with a man, she ranks as a concubine and her
children are illegitimate.

The ceremony performed at the marriage of a virgin
bride contains several features of a primitive and non-Aryan
character. In the ﬁrst instance, both parties go through the
form of marriage to a mango tree (ambd bihd). The essential
and binding portions of the ritual are the knotting together
of the clothes of the bride and bridegroom and sindurda’n,
which is effected by smearing on the bride’s forehead a drop of
blood drawn from the little ﬁnger of the bridegroom, and vice
oer-9d. Sékadwipi Brahmans oﬂiciate, and offerings are made to
Gauri and Ganesa.

Marriages are arranged by the parents or guardians of the
parties, who have no freedom of choice in the matter. Professional
marriage-brokers are unknown. The ﬁrst offer is made by the father
of the bridegroom, and a bride-price (chili takd), varying according
to the means of the bridegroom’s parents, is paid to the parents of
the bride, by whom it is retained. No portion of the bride-price
becomes the special property of the bride. ,

(RAUTIA’. 202

The Mitaksharé commentary, which forms the personal law of
most Hindus in Lohardaga, does not apply to
Rautias, who are governed by special customs
of their own. The eldest son by a regularly-married (biha'i) wife
inherits the whole of his father’s property, subject to the obligation
of creating maintenance grants in favour of his younger brothers.
These grants are not equal in value, but are supposed to decrease in.
the order of age of the grantees, so that each younger brother gets
a smaller grant than his immediate elder, and so on. Instances,
however, have occurred among the Bar-gohri Rautiés in which, with
the consent of the eldest son, an entire property has been equally
divided. Sons by a sagaz‘ wife are included in this arrangement, but
get smaller grants than sons by a bihdi wife. The rule that sons by
a bihdz' wife take precedence of sons by a sagai wife is subject to the
important exception that an elder brother’s widow, though married
by the sagai form. ranks in. all respects as a bihdi wife, and her sons
have the full rights of succession to their father. This principle Was
afﬁrmed by the Civil Courts in a case which occurred a few years
ago. One of the Rautia Baraiks of Basia died leaving a widow and
infant son ; the widow married in the sngm’ form her late husband’s
younger brother, who was already married to a bi/zciz' wife. Both of
the wives bore sons, the sagai wife a few months earlier than the
bika’i wife. Meanwhile the infant son of the original proprietor died :
the whole property passed to his brother, and on his death was
disputed between his sons. It Was held that the son of the sagai
wife, being the eldest, was entitled to succeed under the custom of
the caste, and that the son of the (Wadi wife had only a right to '
maintenance. It will be seen from this instance that a brother
excludes a widow from succession. The latter is in fact entitled
only to maintenance, and may forfeit even that by misconduct
or infringement of caste rules. Brothers and uncles, or their
descendants, exclude daughters and their descendants. Succession
indeed is strictly agnatic throughout; the eldest male of the
eldest line taking the entire inheritance subject to the obligation
to provide maintenance for relatives within certain degrees on a.
scale progressively diminishing in relation to the age and propinquity
in relationship of the claimants. The distinction between ancestral
and self-acquired property, which has acquired such prominence in
the standard Hindu law, does not seem to be very clearly recognized
in the customary law of the Rantias. I gather, however, that such
property is not subject to the rule of primogeniture, but is
ordinarily divided equally among the male descendants.

Step-sons are not entitled to maintenance from the estate of
their step-father. Owing, however, to the fact that a widow may
marry her late husband’s younger brother and may not marry his
eldest brother, it happens that a large proportion of the step-sons
among the Rautiés are really the heirs to the estates of which their
step-fathers happen for the time being to be in charge. A ghdr dg'imi,
or son-in-law who lives With his wife in his father-in-law’s household,
retains his claims on his natural father’s property, but acquires
no right to a. maintenance grant from his father-in-law’s estate.

Succession.

203 RAUTIA’.

”Adoption is unknown—a circumstance from which we may either
infer that the Rautiés are free from the curse of childlessness, so
common in the higher ranks of Hindus, or that one of the
inducements to adopt sons has been removed by the rule regarding
land referred to in the next paragraph.

In the event of a Rautié dying without male heirs, his immov-
able property reverts to his superior landlord or the legal represen-
tative of the person by whom the land was originally granted.
In such cases the landlord is expected to make some small provision
for the maintenance of the females of the family. His movable
property goes to the person who performs his funeral rites.

An elder brother can transfer to a younger brother all his
rights in the family property, but the effect of such a transfer
is'limited to his own lifetime, and does not curtail the rights of his
son, who will succeed, in preference to the uncle on attaining his
majority.

The religion of the Rautiés may best be described as a mixture
of the primitive animism characteristic of the
aboriginal races and the debased form of
Hinduism which has been disseminated in Chota Nagpur by a class
of Brahmans markedly inferior in point of learning and ceremonial
purity to those who stand forth as the representatives of the caste
in the great centres of Hindu civilization. Among the Bar-gohri
- Rautiés many have of late years become Kabirpanthis; the rest,
with most of the Ohhot-gohri and the Berras of both sub-castes, are
Ramayat Vaishnavas. A few only have adOpted the tenets of tho
Saiva sects. Rama, Ganesa, Mahadeva, and G-auri are the favourite
deities, whose worship is conducted by Sakadwipi 'Brahmans mom or
less in the orthodox fashion. Behind the fairly deﬁnite personalities
of these greater gods there loom in the background, through a fog
of ignorance and superstition, the dim shapes of Bar-pahar (the
Marang Buru or mountain of the Mundas) ; Bura-buri, the supposed
ancestors of mankind; the seven sisters who scatter cholera, small-
pox, and cattle-plague abroad; Goraia, the village 'god—a sort of
rural Terminus ; and the myriad demons with which the imagination
of the Kolhs peoples the trees, rocks, streams, and ﬁelds of its
surroundings.

To Bar-pahar are offered he-bufi’aloes, rams, he-goats, fowls,
milk, ﬂowers, and sweetmeats; the animals in each case being given
some rice to chew and decked with garlands of ﬂowers before being
sacriﬁced. When offered in pursuance of a special vow, the animal is
called ckaréol, and is slain in the early morning in the samd or
sacred grove outside the village; rice. ghi, molasses, vermilion, ﬂowers,
and be! leaves being presented at the same time. No female may
be present at the ceremony. The carcase of the victim is distributed
among the worshippers, but no part of it may be taken into the village,
and it is cooked and eaten on the spot, even the remnants being
buried in the sarnd at the end of the feast. The head is eaten by
the man who made the vow and the members of his family, but no
others share in it, owing to the belief that whoever partakes of the
head would thereby render himself liable to perform a similar pujd.

Religion.

RAUTIA’. 204

When a buffalo is sacriﬁc‘edhthe Rautiés do not eat the ﬂesh them-
selves, but leave the carcass to the Mundas, Kharias, and other beef-
eating folk who may happen to be present.

To the seven sisters (devis) and their brother Bhairo a rude
shrine (devigar/zi) is erected in the centre of every village, consisting
of a raised plinth ﬁve cubits square covered by a tiled or thatched
roof resting on six posts of which trees (Plumem'a). In the
middle of the plinth, on a line running-north and south, stand
seven little mounds of dried mud, representing the seven god-
desses, while a smaller mound on one side stands for Bhairo. In
front of the Dem‘garhi, at some ten or ﬁfteen cubits distance, is a
larger mound representing Goraiya, the village god, to whom pigs
are sacriﬁced by the village priest (pd/mu) and by men of the
Dosadh caste. Regarding the names and functions of the seven
sisters there seems to be much uncertainty. Some Rautias enumerate
the following :— '
' Burhia Mai or Sitala.

Kankarin Mai.

Kali Mai.

Kuleswari Mai.

Bagheswari Mai.

Mareswari Mai.

Dulhari Mai.
Others substitute J wala-mukhi, Vindhyabasini, Malat Mai, and
J oginia Mai for the last four. J wala-mukhi is a place of pilgrimage
in the Lower Himalayas north of the Panjab, where inﬂammable
gas issues from the ground and is believed to be the ﬁre created
by Parbati when she desired to become a sati. Vindhyabasini is
a common title of Sitala Devi, who presides over small-pox
throughout Northern India. I cannot ﬁnd out which sisters are
supposed to be responsible for cholera and cattle-plague.
Kuleshwari (kul = ‘ tiger ’ in Mundari) and Bagheswari apparently
have to do with the tiger. He-goats, ﬂowers, fruit, and be! leaves
are offered to the seven sisters in front of the devi-gurki. Women
and children are present at the worship. A Sakadwipi Brahman
presides, but does not slay the victims.

The following are the festivals observed by the Rautias :—

(1) Nawa Khani—eating new rice with milk, molasses. and

Festivals ghi. 0n the 12th of the light half of Bhadon

' (middle of September) and the 15th of the light

half of Aghan (middle of November). These periods correspond
respectively to the harvesting of the low land and high land rice
cro s.
P (2) ditia parab.—On the 8th of the dark half of Asin (end
of September). The females of the village, after fasting a day,
bring a twig from a ﬁlm 19¢}an tree (Ficus religz’osa) and an ear of
rice, and plant them in the courtyard of a house, usually that of
the chief man of the village. Vermilion, arwd or rice husked
without boiling, ﬂowers, and sweetmeats, are offered to the twig.
Dancing, singing, and processions of various kinds follow, and in

205 RAUTIAT.

the morning, after watching the twigs all night, the women offer
ma’m- or rice gruel to their deceased ancestors.

(3) Dasaharé—corresponding to the Devi-puja and Vijaya
dasmi of the Hindus—On the 10th of the light half of Asin (early in
October).

_ (4) Debathan—a fast, followed by eating various kinds of
boiled fruit and roots—observed only by bachelors and spinsters on
the eleventh of the light half of Kartik (middle of November).

(5)‘ Ganesh Chauth.—On the 4th of the dark half of Magh
(middle of January). An image of Ganesa. is made out of cow-dung
and is worshipped with laddus or cakes of til, legends being recited
at the same time.

(6) Phagua—corresponding to the Holi of the Hindus—On
the 15th of the light half of Phagun (middle of March), when
ancestors are propitiated.

(7) Karma.-—On the 11th of the light half of Bhadon (begin-
ning of September). This festival is similar to the J itia, except that
a branch of a kamm tree (Nauclca cordg'folia) is planted in the court-
yard and the fasting is not continuous as in the Jitz'ya Par-ab.

The foregoing festivals are observed by all Rautiés. The more
Hinduised members of the caste add to them the Rath-jatra, the
J anmashtami, the Ramnabami, and the Ind Parab.

The dead are usually disposed of by burning, except in the

Disposalof the dead case of Kabirpanthi Rautiés, who are buried

' standing upright and facing to the north. In

the former case the corpse, covered with a new cloth, is taken to the
place of cremation (masdn) and there shaved, bathed, and clothed in
a new waistcloth and sheet. If the body he that of a woman whose
husband is alive, it is bathed, anointed with oil, and dressed in a new
scirz'. In the case of a widow the oiling is omitted. The corpse is
then placed on the funeral pile with the head to the north, and the
chief mourner, lighting a torch made of ﬁve dry twigs of a be! tree
tied to the end of a bit of wood and soaked in 9122', walks round the
pile seven times, applies the torch to the mouth of the deceased, and
then sets ﬁre to the pile. Before doing so however, he takes a
portion of the sheet in which the corpse is dressed and wraps up in
it a knife or a piece of iron. This piece of cloth must be kept for
ten days. After the body has been consumed, the ashes are collected
in a new earthen vessel (glea'nti). On returning home the mourners
wash their feet with water previously placed for them outside the
house. Inside the courtyard a shallow brass dish (thdli) is laid ready
with leaves of the tu/si (Ocymum sanctum) and kareli (Momardz'ca
charantia), one pice, and a vessel of water. Some person, not a
member of the family, pours a little water into the hand of each
mourner, who drinks it off. For ten days after the cremation the
ashes of the deceased (smut/2) are hung up in the vessel in which they
were placed. During this time the chief mourner must make daily
libations to the ashes, and must keep on his person the piece of sheet
and the iron already referred to. He may not change his clothes,
sleep on a bed, or eat salt, and he can only take one meal a day,
which he must cook himself. At the end of this time the ashes are

BAUTIA'. 206

either buried at the mama, or,. where the family are wealthy enough
to undertake the journey, are kept for transport to Benares or Gya.
On the tenth day he and the other relatives bathe, shave, anoint
themselves with a mixture of oil and oil-cake, and put on clean
clothes. The chief mourner also offers to the deceased ten cakes
(pinda) made of rice, milk, linseed, barley, and honey. On the
eleventh day the regular sroidd/a ceremony is performed with the A
assistance of a Kanaujia, or, failing him, of a Sakadwipi Brahman
who mutters unintelligble nonsensc, supposed to be Vedic texts, and
the Kantaha or Mahabréhman is fed and receives presents. On the
twelfth day Sakadwipi Brahmans and friends of different castes are
entertained, and one pinda is offered in order that the deceased may
be united to the company of ancestors. On the thirteenth day
relatives are fed and ﬁnal puriﬁcation is obtained. The anniversary
of the death is celebrated only once (bark/21' sra’ddlz). While this is
going on no marriage can take place in the family; and in order to
avoid this inconvenience the bark/22' swarm/2. is often performed some
months before a year has elapsed from the time of death. Oﬁerings
to ancestors in general (tarpun) are made through the agency of
Brahmans on the 15th of the dark half of A’sin (end of September),
and by the people themselves at the Nawa Khani, J itia, and Phagua
festivals. Ohiidless relatives, lepers, persons who die a violent death,
and women who die in child-birth, get only one Maria, and are not
counted as ancestors. Lepers are usually buried.

The Rautiés do not perform any of the ceremonies usual among
other castes during pregnancy. At child-birth
assistance is rendered by the Kusrain or
Dagrin, who cuts the umbilical cord. The ceremonies of ch/zatthz’,
bar/"12', and ekaisi are performed on the sixth, twelfth, and twenty-ﬁrst
days after birth. If the child is born under an unlucky star (asubh
lagan), a fourth ceremony, called Jataz'si, is added on the twenty-
seventh day, at which Brahmans are fed, and Gauri, Ganesa,‘
Mahadeo, and the Eu! elevates or family gods worshipped. The
father of the child does not lie up after its birth, or give up his
ordinary occupations, but he is supposed to contract impurity
(chhutka’) by reason of the event, and must keep away from his
neighbours until after the sixth day, when, if a poor man, he is

uriﬁed by bathing and by giving a feast to his relatives and to
£rahmans. The richer a man is, the longer is his term of impurity.
Tolerably well-to-do Rautias remain impure till the twelfth day,
while the wealthier of the castes cannot get puriﬁed till the
twenty-ﬁrst.

When a child is six months old, its ﬁrst meal of rice is com-
memorated-the ceremony of mung/mm, folIOWed by mundcm or
tonsure. The eﬁect of this latter rite is to remove from the
mother the last traces of the pollution of child-birth, and to qualify
to eat ﬂesh and to worship the family gods. Karnabed/z, the
boring of a boy’s ears by the village barber, is done between the
ages of six and fourteen, and is deemed to admit a boy among
the grown men of the caste. Kabirpanthi members of the bar-
gohri sub-caste assume the sacred thread (janeo) when 1n1t1ated'

Ceremonies.

207 ' RAUTIAI.

into the tenets of the sect. The thread so worn is a Chhatri janeo,
which differs from a Brahman’s in the form of the knot with
which it is tied.

The Rautias, though less plagued by the terrors of the unseen
world than are the Mundas and Oraons, have
certain superstitions which are worth recording.
Women who die in child-birth, persons killed
by a tiger, and all oj/ms or exorcists, are liable after death to
reappear as b/mts, or malevolent ghosts, and give trouble to the living.
In such cases an exorcist (ojlzd or mafz') is called in to identify the
spirit at work, and to appease it by gifts of money, goats, fowls,
or pigs. Usually the spirit is got rid of in a few months, but some
are specially persistent and require annual worship to induce them
to remain quiet. Spirits of this type, who were great exorcists
or otherwise men of note during their life-time, often extend their
inﬂuence over several families, and eventually attain the rank of
a tribal god. ,

Babu Rakhal Das Haldar, Manager of the Chutia Nagpur
estate, gives the following instance of exorcism from his personal
experience. In December 1884, when the Manager was in camp
at the foot of the Baragain hills in Lohardaga, a Kurmi woman
of Kukui was killed by a tiger, and the tiger-demon in her form
was supposed to be haunting the village. An (:77ch who was sent
for to lay the ghost, took a young man to represent the tiger-
demon, and after certain incantations put him into a kind of mes-
meric condition, in which he romped abouton all fours, and generally
demeaned himself like a tiger. A rope was then tied round his loins
and he was dragged to a cross-road, where the volent ﬁt passed
off and he became insensible. In this condition he remained until
the oj/za recited certain mantras and threw rice on him, when he
regained his senses, and the demon was pronounced to have quitted
the village.

Rautias believe military service to have been their original
occupation, but this is little more than a
distant memory of times long past, and at the
present day most members of the caste in Lohardaga are settled
agriculturists. The chief men of the caste hold taluks, ja’girs, ba’mz‘k
grants, and similar tenures paying quit-rents direct to the Maharaja.
of Chutia Nagpur, while the rank and ﬁle are raiyats paying light
rents and possessing occupancy rights. A few only are found in
the comparatively reduced position of tenants of raja’s lands at full
rents. In many of the tenures and occupancy holdings klmnt/ca’tz'
rights, entitling the tenant to hold at a low quit-rent, are claimed;
while others are liar/car, paying only one-half of the standard rates
of rent.

Socially the caste ranks fairly high, and Brahmans will take
water and sweetmeats from their hands. Bar-
gohri Rautias will not eat cooked food, smoke,
or drink with any but members of their own sub-caste; but they
will take sweetmeats from Brahmans, Rajputs, and Srawaks.
Chhot-gohris are equally particular about cooked food, but will take

Superstitions.
Spirits.

Occupation.

Social status.

RAUTIA’. 208

water and sweetmeats from, and will smoke with, Bhogtas, Ahirs,
J horas, and Bhuyias. They also drink spirits and fermented liquors,
and eat Wild pigs and fowls, all of which are forbidden for the
Bar-gohri sub-caste.
The Chhot-gohri Rautias have a representative assembly
. (mandh’) for groups of from ﬁve to ﬁfteen
blgepresentame assem' villages, which decides questions of caste usage.
Each village sends one member to the mandli,
which is presided over by an ofﬁcial called mahant, Whose ofﬁce
is hereditary. When the man/mat is a minor, his duties are carried
on by an adult member of his family or by any Rautié unanimously
chosen for this purpose by the mandh'. The orders of the mamﬂi
are enforced by ﬁnes, by refusing to eat and drink with the offender,
and by depriving him of the services of the barber and washerman
of the caste. Certain acts entailing ceremonial impurity, such as
accidentally killing a cow or having incestuous intercourse (gotm-budh)
with a woman of the same gotm, admit of being atoned for by giving
a feast to Brahmans and the caste brethren. But the wilful
slaughter of a cow, the repetition of the offence of gotm-bad/z, and
the cardinal sin of eating with a person of low caste, cannot be
expiated, and in such extreme cases the offender is turned out of
the caste. The Bar-gohri have no standing assembly, and panchayats
are summoned to deal with caste questions as occasion requires.

The services of the ijd are also called in to ascertain what spirit
(Unit) or Witch (daiin or bisa'hi) has caused a
particular illness, and to prescribe the cure.
On such occasions he comes after sun-down and demands a winnowing
fan, a small earthen lamp, rags for a wick, a handful of arwa rice,
and some oil. Having twisted a wick into the rude semblance
of a hooded snake, the ojlm lights his lamp and proceeds, by shaking
the rice in the winnowing fan, to divine the name of the bizz'tt or
ddz'n who is to blame. This point having been cleared up, he is
presented with a fowl to be sacriﬁed to his own birwat' or iskla dew,
and he then performs the ceremony of [cat band/z, by which he binds
the patient or his family to the spirit or witch. This is supposed to
put matters in train towards recovery, and the oj/zd departs, receiving
from the patient’s family a promise of presents of goats, etc., in the
event of the treatment proving successful. Rautias are in great
terror of witches, and believe, like many people, that they can act
upon their victims through objects belonging to or intimately
associated with them, such as bits of cut hair or nails ; but no special
care is taken to preserve or destroy such articles.

Dreams are believed to be caused by recently deceased relatives
of the dreamer, who appear to him in sleep and complain of hunger
and want of clothes, etc. Such importunate spirits are easily
appeased by sending for a Brahman and giving him the things
which have been demanded in the dream.

Among other curious superstitions may be noticed the notion
that a woman in the early stages of pregnancy should not cross
running water. The evil eye is believed in, but its inﬂuence is
attributed to inordinate appetite on the part of the person who has

Sorcery.

209 3mm .

overlooked any one. Its effects may be averted by mixing red
mustard seeds and salt, waving the mixture round the head and then
throwing it into the ﬁre. To ward oﬁ the evil eye from the crops,
a blackened earthen pot with rude devices scrawled on it in white
paint is stuck up in the ﬁelds.

Oaths and ordeals are sometimes resorted to for the settlement of
personal disputes and the decision of questions affecting caste.
Ganges water, rice that has been offered to J agannath, a mixture of
rice and cow-dung or COppeI‘ and tulsi leaves, are held in the hand
and a solemn statement is made touching the matter in dispute. It
is believed that some sort of misfortune will befall the person who
under these circumstances speaks falsely, but the consequences of lying
do not seem to be clearly deﬁned. In former days a more severe
test was in vogue: a ring was thrown into a deep pan of boiling
ghi, and the person whose conduct was in question was required
to take it out with his ﬁngers.

Boys whose elder brothers have died in infancy are given
opprobrious names, such as Akhaj, Bechan, Bechu (he who is for
sale), Khudi, Chuni, Grandaur, Kinu, Lohar, Ghamar, Dom or
Doman, Mochi, Ghasi, Mahili (names of low castes). Girls are
called by the feminine forms of these names—Akhji, Chamin, etc.
Rautias do not follow the custom, common among the higher castes,
of giving two names-one for ceremonial purposes and the other
for common use.

Lucky days for ploughing are the 12th of the light half of
Katik and the 5th of the light half of Aghan for low rice lands
(don), and the 1st of the dark half of Chait for high lands. The
3rd of the light half of Baisakh is good for sowing; but if there
is early rain, a Brahman may be got to ﬁx a lucky day before this
date. For transplanting the rice seedlings a lucky day may be
arranged by a Brahman at any time between the 2nd of the dark
half of Hear and the 11th of the light half of Bhado. It is
specially unlucky to plough during the Mrigdéh or Nirbisra period,
called Ambubachi in Bengal, when the sun is for three days in the
Mrigasira constellation; during the Karam festival (10th—12th of
light half of Bhado) ; and on the day of the Sarhﬁl. Rain during
the Mrigdah brings bad luck; but rainy weather, while the sun is in
the Rohini or Swati constellation, betokens good fortune. When rice
is transplanted, the Village [admin performs the bangari puja to the
god of the village. When a. well is sunk a Brahman is consulted as
to the site and the proper time for commencing work, and a prafz'shZ/zd
or dedicatory sacriﬁce is performed before the water is used.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Rautias in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Santal Parganas ...... 12 Singbhum . .. |
Hazaribagh 4 ...... Manbhum ...... 64
Lohardaga 16,387 18,633 Tributary States .. 8,242 8,264

 

 

RAUTIA.

Rautié, a sub-caste of Koiris
and a title of Cheros in Chota
Nagpur.

Raut Mehter, a sWeeper sub-
caste of Doms in Behar.

Rawéni, a sub-caste of Ken-
dus 1n Behar.

Rawéni or Ramdm‘, Raom‘,
Rohdnz’, a sub-caste of Kahérs 1n
Behar.

Rawanpur,
Kahars in Behar.

Raworh, a section of Maghaiyé
Kumhérs in Behar.

Réya, a title of Bréhmans,
Kayasths, and several other castes
in Bengal and Behar; of Khairés
in Chota Nagpur.

Réyi, a gdz'n of the Bharad-
wéja gotra and a 77an or hyper-
gamous sub-group of Rérhi Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Regélaunchhé, a ﬂaw or sept
of Khambus in Darjiling.

Regmi, a thaw of the Kausika
gotra of Nepali Brahmans.

Rekhaur, a sept of Rajputs
in Behar.

Reléti-Madak, a sub-caste of
Madhunapits in Bengal.

Renta, a sept of Pans in Uhota
Nagpur.

Reson, a synonym for Teli.

Retha, fruit, a totemistic sept
of Lohérs in Chota Nagpur.

Riéng, a sept of Tipperahs in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Rich'il, a dugu or section of
the Kochh-Mandai in Dacca.
The name indicates the original
habitat of the group, probably
a hill or village in Assam, and
now-a-days has no bearing upon
marriage.

Rigretsa, a sept of Maghs in
the Bill Tracts 01' Chittagong.

of

a. section

210

 

 

RITI.

Rijél, a ﬂaw of the Dhanjaya
gotm of Nepali Brahmans; a
section of Kamis; a tkar or sept
of Mangars in Darjiling.

Rikhab, a section of Brah-
mans.

Rikhi, a section of Rajwérs
and Bautiés in Chota Nagpur.

Rikhiésan, a sub-caste of
Bhuiyas in Hazaribagh; a sept of
Kharwars in Chota Nagpur; a.
section of Kadars and Musahars
in Behar; a totemistic sept of
Chiks in Chota Nagpur who may
not eat beef or pork.

Rikhiésan or Pé’crise, a sec-
tion of Mauliks in Western Ben-
gal.

Rikmun, a section of Muse.-
bars in Behar.

Rimél, a ﬂmr or section of
Nepali Brahmans.

Rimching, a ﬂaw or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.

Rimrimié, a section of Kurmis
in Chota Nagpur and Orissa.

Rishi, a title of the patit or
degraded priests, who minister
to the spiritual wants of the lower
castes; a section of the Bhar caste
in Manbhum. The term appears
to have been borrowed from the
Brahmanical system in compara-
tively recent times, as the caste
has also a set of the totemistic
sections characteristic of the
Kolarian race.

Rishi, Rislujputm, a synonym
for, and a title of, Muchis in
Bengal.

Risyél, a Mar or section of
Nepali Brahmans.
Riti, a title

of Ban gaj a
Kayasths.

ROCHINGKCHH A.

Rochingéchhé, a thar or sept
of Khambus in Darjiling.

Rohila, a pathz‘ or hyper-
gamous sub-group of Barendra
Brahmans in Bengal.

Rohini, a title of Kéhars in
Behar.

Rohi’ta, a section of Brahmans
and Kayasths in Bengal.

Roh-Lu’tur, ear-pierced, a sub-
sept of the Hansda, Hemrom,
Kisku, and Tudu septs of Santéls.

Roht, pa’njaun tree, a sub-sept
of the Marndi sept of Santéls.

Roi. a. title of Bangaja
Kayasths.

Rojé, a title of Kaibarttas in
Bengal.

Rondiar, a section of Mahilis
in Chota Nagpur.

Rong, a sub-tribe of Lepchas
in Darjiling.

Rorah, a sept of Réjputsin
Behar.

Rori, a fruit, a totemistic sept
of Oraons in Ohota Nagpur.

Rosréit, a section of the
Dhapra sub-caste of Doms in
Behar.

Rote, a sept of the Asuras in
Chota Nagpur.

Rudra, a title of Baidyas and
of Dakshin-Rarhi and Bangaja
Kayasths in Bengal.

Rudrabagchhi, a gdz‘n of the
Séndilya yotm of Barendra
Brahmans in Bengal.

Rudrabani k, a title of Baniyés
in Bengal.

Rudmbrms, a

synonym for
Kumhér.

211

 

RUTA’.

Rudmpal, a synonym for Kum-
bar in Bengal.

Rugri, a kind of mushroom,
a totemistic sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Ruhidés, a title laid claim to
by all Chamars, as denoting their
descent from a Bhagat ancestor
of that name; also a title of
Dosadhs in Behar.

Rui, a title of Khandéits in
Orissa.

Ruichhung, a sub-tribe of
Dejong Lhori or Bhotia of the
south.

Ruidés, a title of Muchis in
Bengal.

Rujél. a section of Kamis in
Darjiling.

Rujiché, a ﬂzar or sept of
Sunuwérs in Darjiling.

Rukéi, a tlzar or section of
Nepali Brahmans.

Rukhar, a group of the Aoghar
sect of Saiva ascetics founded in
Guzerat by a Dasnami mendi-

cant named Brahmagiri. See
Aoghar.
Rukhi. squirrel, a sept of

Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Rukhiér, a section of the
Amashta sub-caste of Kayasths
in Behar.

Rumba, a section of Murmis
in Darjiling.

Runda, fox, leopard (Wild
cat ?) , a totemistic sept of Mundas,
Oraons and Lohars in Chota
Nagpur.

Rupakheti, a thar 01 section
of Nepali Brahmans.

Ruté, a tree, a totemistic sept

, of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

02

. SABAIARE.

Sabéiére, a sept of the Agani
sub-tribe of Meches in the Dar-
jiling Terai.

Saber, a synonym for Savar.

Sabarkéré, a sub-caste of
Muchis in Bengal.

Sébarna, a gotm or section.
of Baidyas, Brahmans, Gan-
dhabaniks, Kayasths, Téntis, and
Subarnbaniks in Bengal; a
Brahmanical section of Bébhans
in Behar.

Sébarnia, a sept of the Chan-
drabansi division of Réjputs in
Behar.

Sabarnika, a section of Utkal
Brahmans.

Sabhaiyér, a pm or section
of Sakadwipi Brahmans in

‘212

’SADGOB

Sabkota, a tbar or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Saboktsa, a sept of Maghs in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Sabor, a sub-caste of Groélés
in Chota Nagpur.

Sabri, a section of Kanaujié
Lohérs in Behar.

’Sabu, a section of Mahesris in
Behar.

Sadé, a section of Sunris in
Behar.

Sédé, a sub-sept of all the
septs of Santals.

Sadébarti, a section of the
Banodhia and J aiswar Kalwars in
Behar.

Sédé Goélé, a hypergamous
group of Goalas in Eastern

 

Behar. Bengal.
Sabhé—Sundar, atitle of Dho- Sadésankar, a thaw or sept of
bits in Bengal. Mangars in Darjiling.

gahgop, Saigop, Ohdsd, a cultivating caste of Bengal Proper,
Who are supposed to have separated themselves
from the Goalas by abandoning pastoral
pursuits and taking exclusively to agriculture.
They are divided into two sub-castes—the Paschim Kuliyé, who
live to the west of the Bhagirathi, and the Purbba Kuliyé, whose
settlements are on the east of that river. The separation between
the two is said to have taken place in the time of Ballal Sen,
when the ancestors of the Paschim Kuliya group refused to accept
the institution of Kulinism, which was introduced among them at
a later date and in a somewhat different form. The Purbba
Kuliyés, a much smaller body, adopted the new rules and parted on
that account from the main body of the caste. Originally both sub-
castes were strictly endogamous, but of late years the rule has been
relaxed and marriages have taken place between members of the
two groups. The Purbba Kuliyés, however, recognize a further
division of their own sub-caste into the two endogamous groups
of Ghosh and Sarbesia. The hypergamous divisions of both sub-
castes and the sections of the Paschim Kuliya are shown in the
Appendix. One of the hypergamous groups, the Konr Gop, seems

Origin and internal

structure.

213 SADGOP.

to have develoPed- in comparatively modern times among the
Sadgops of Murshedabad, and deserves special notice for the light
it throws upon the mode in which hypergamous groups are formed.
The Konr Gop are in no sense of purer lineage than their brethren.
They are merely Sadgops who have grown rich and have risen
above the necessity of cultivating with their own hands. They
affect some sort of ill-deﬁned social pre—eminence, and while taking
their wives from among ordinary Satgops will not give their
daughters in marriage outside their own circle. The Purbba Kuliya
have no sections, and regulate their marriage by the standard rules
deﬁning prohibited degrees.

Infant-marriage is in full force among the Sadgops, and it would

, be deemed an indelible disgrace for a girl to
Marriage' be unprovided with a husband before she
reaches the age of puberty. Men, on the other hand, marry com-
paratively later in life, and the operation of the law of hypergamy,
popularly known as Kulinism, sometimes puts men of the lower
groups to considerable difﬁculty in ﬁnding wives. The marriage
ceremony is of the orthodox type, the binding portion being sdtpdk,
the carrying of the bride seven times round the bridegroom.
Although this is technically the essential rite, the marriage is held to
be complete at an earlier stage, as soon as the dsz‘rbdd, or blessing on
the married pair, has been pronounced. Polygamy is recognized so
far that if a man’s ﬁrst wife is barren or proves faithless he may
take a second; but such cases are said to be rare, and for all practical
purposes the caste may be regarded as monogamous. Widows are
not allowed to marry a second time. Divorce is not formally
recognized; but if a woman commits adultery or otherwise disgraces
herself, her husband may get rid of her by undergoing the ceremony
of pra’yasckitta or expiation for impurity and by performing her
srddd/i as if she were actually dead. Women so divorced may not
marry again.

The religious and ceremonial Observances of .the caste exhibit
no departure from the average Hinduism of
the middle classes in Bengal. Almost all
Sadgops are Vaishnavas, Hari and Satya Narayan being their
favourite deities. Lakshmi is also regarded with special reverence
as watching over their welfare, while Sashti and Mangalchandi are
worshipped by the women of the caste. The Brahmans who serve
them as priests are received on equal terms by other members of
the sacred order. The dead are burned, and the srddd/a ceremony
is performed according to the orthodox system. .

Agriculture is their characteristic pursuit, and they are com-

, , monly spoken of and addressed as Chase. In
sﬁgggtlpatwn and 8°01“ Central Bengal large numbers of them are
engaged in rearing silk-worms and selling raw

silk. The bulk of the caste are occupancy or non-occupancy raiyats.
Some hold tenures, and a. few, particularly in Midnapur, have risen
to be zamindars of fairly high position. Their social rank is
sufﬁciently deﬁned by stating that they belong to the N abasakha
group, and that Brahmans will take water and certain kinds of

Religion.

SADGOP.

214 SADRA.

sweetmeats from their hands, Their rules as to diet are the same
as are observed by all orthodox Hindus in Bengal Proper. One
curious custom may be noticed here. Sadgops will not eat pumpkin
(Ida) and ddl in the month of Asher, and by way of accounting for
this prohibition tell the abSurd story that they are descended from
one Kélu Ghosh, who, being appointed by one of the gods to look
after his cattle, killed and ate the sacred animals. Oddly enough,
instead of being punished for his sacrilege, the story goes on to
say that his descendants, who thenceforth applied themselves to
cultivation, were permitted to rank above the children of the other
brother, Murari Ghosh, who faithfully discharged his trust. Value-
less as the legend is, it deserves notice as a specimen of the folk-lore

current among the people regarding the origin of particular castes.
The following statement shows the number and distribution of

Sadgops in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Bardwan ... 185,804 112,128 Faridpur . . 693 820
Bankura. . 17,971 45,201 Bakarganj 186 240
Birbhum 109,446 82,764 Maimansinh 581 680
Midnapur 157,998 126,260 Tipperah . .. 158 456
Hughli } 63 774 61,025 Chittagong 35 167
Howrah ’ 12,692 Noakhali 25 ......
24-Parganas 38,058 20,570 Patna 21
Nadlya . 17,506 16,177 Monghyr 37 .. ..
Khulna ...... 5,021 Bhagalpur .. .. ...... 12
J essore 7,529 9,316 Purniah 11.674 1,323
Murshedabad 29,321 88,008 Maldah 1,385 1,548
Dinajpur 2,316 8,823 Santa] Parganas 1,109 2,581
Rujshahye 385 732 Cuttack 218 338
Rangpur 136 603 Puri 9 18
Bogra 568 942 Balasore 2,097 7,694
Pabna 419 882 Tributary States 51 125
J alpigori , 276 500 Lohardaga 69 9
Kuch Behar ...... 133 Sinzbhum 1,413 1,239
Dacca 1,085 2,381 Manbhum 6,415 2.955

 

Sédhak, a mu! or section of
the Ghosin sub-caste of Groélés
in Behar.

Sédhu, a. title of the Desé.
sub-caste of Gandhabaniks and
of Téntis in Bengal.

Sédhubagchhi, a grim of the
Séndilya gotm of Barendra
Brahmans in Bengal.

Sédhupaliyé, a sub-caste of
Kochhs in Dinajpur.

Sédh ya, la. hypergamous group
of the Barendra Kayasths.

Sédhya-Maulikor Bahatture,
a hypergamous group of the
Dakshin-Rérhi Kayasths in
Bengal.

 

Sédhya-Srotri ya, a hypergam-
ous group of Rarhi Bréhmans
in Bengal

Sad-Kémér, a sub-caste of
Kamérs who are cultivators.

Sad-Lohér, a sub-caste of
Lohars or Hindu blacksmiths in
Lohardaga. ‘

Sad-Munda, a sub-tribe of
Mundas affecting to follow the
Hindu religion.

Sad om, horse, a totemistic sept
of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Sadonga, a sept of Chakmés
in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Sadra, a section of Mahesris
in Behar.

SA’FI.

Sziﬁ, cleaner, a synonym for
Dhobi in Behar, only used by
persons who are not members of
the caste.

Ség, vegetable, a totemistic
sept of Chiks in Chota Nagpur.

Sagéh ut, a sub-caste of Sunris
in Behar who permit widows to
marry again by the sagdz’ form,
often opposed to Bidhut, who do
not tolerate such a practice. They
are ordinarily grain-dealers and
shopkeepers.

Ségéin, a grim or sub-section
of Saptasatl Brahmans in Bengal.

Ségarbansi, a synonym for
Ségarpesha.

Sdgarpeslzd, in Orissa a desig-
nation of the illegitimate offspring
of a Brahman woman by a
Kayasth man. '

Sagela Bagela, a mul or section
of Kesarwanl Banias in Behar.

Saghér, “vegetable-eater,” a
title of the Bahiot sub-caste of
Amats and of Dhanuks in Behar
who are employed as personal
servants to the higher castes.

Ségi, a section of Lohars in
Behar.

Sagin, the name of female
attendants in shops for the sale
of opium and its compounds, said
to be kept for the purpose of
attracting customers, and believed
not to be above reproach in
matters of morals.

Ségma, atotemistic sept of the
Bhumij tribe in Manbhum.

Sagunié, a sub-caste of the

Kraunchdwipi Brahmans in
Behar.
Sagun-ure, a title of the

Kochh caste in Northern Bengal.

Séh, a section of Saraogis in
Behar.

215

 

SAHMBAHAN G.

Séhé, 802%, a title of the Desa
sub-caste of Gandhabaniks in
Bengal; a title of N apits, Sonars,
Telis, and Sunris. The latter
invariably style themselves Séhas
or Sauloks. Tradition says that
they were created from the sweat
of the trunk (sunda) of the
elephant-mouthed Ganesa to
guard the celestial nectar for his
mother Durga; and hence they
were called Sundis (corrupted
into Sunris). Ballal assigned to
them such a low rank on account
of their tribal arrogance.

Sahadar, a section of the
Biyéhut and Kharidahé Kalwérs
in Behar.

Séhél, a section of the Biya-
hut and Kharidaha Kalwars in
Behar.

Séhani, a title of Mallahs in
Behar.

Sahar, a section of Bhats.

Séhari, a grim of the Bétsya
gotm of Barendra Brahmans in
Bengal.

Séharik, a with of the Bha-
radwaja gotm of Rarhi Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Saharwér, a section of Kamér-
kalla Sonars in Behar.

Sahasnangié, a section of
Babhans in Behar.

Sahbar, a section of Goalés in
Behar.

Sahdaulié, a [ml or section of
Babhans in Behar. .

Séhjéwén, a section of Goélés
in the N orth-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Sahmbahang, a sept of the
Tambrkhola sub-tribe of Limbus
in Darjiling. » '

 

I

SAHNL

Sahni, a title of Gonrhis in
Behar. ‘

Sého, a title of the Ariar and
Khandiwér sub-castes of' Bais
Baniyz’is; of Halwais, Kahars,
Kalwars, Kandus, Sonars, Sunris,
and Telis in Behar.

Sahrwér, a mu] or section of
the Naomulia or Majraut sub-
caste of Goalas in Behar.

Sahsrad ihI a mu! or section of
the Naomuh'a or Majraut sub-
caste of Goalas in Behar.

Séhu, a title of Khatris; of
Baniyés, Kalwérs, and Kandus
in Behar ; a title of Kewats in
Orissa; of Sonérs in Behar; a
section of the Kulsunri sub-caste
of Sunris in Behar; a title of
Laheris in Chota Nagpur.

Séhul, a section of Khariés in
Chota Nagpur.

Sahuliar, a. section of the
Sribastab sub-caste of Kayasths
in Behar.

Sahun, a mu! or section of the

Biahut sub-caste of Kalwérs in
Behar.

Sahuri. a mu! or section of the
Chhamulié Madhesia sub-caste of
Halwais in Behar.

Séi, a title of Brahmans.

Saidébéd. a. section of Patnis
in Bengal.

Saigal, a. section of the
Panchjéti sub-caste of Khatris in
Bengal.

Sai lum, porcupine, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Séin, a gdin or sub-section of
Saptasati Brahmans in Bengal;
9. title of Dakshin-Rérhi and
Bangaja Kayasths.

216

 

SAKATL

Séini, a sub-caste of Sutra-
dhars in Noakhéli.

Sainthwér, a sub-caste of
Kurmis in Behar.

53in a small agricultural
caste of Western Bengal, believed
to be closely related to Bagdis.

Sais, a mu] or section of the
Maghaya sub-caste of Koiris in
Behar.

Saisarunduar, a sept of Mun-
das in Chota Nagpur.

'Saj Sonarwar, a sept of
Kharwars in Chota Nagpur.

Séitgharié, a sub-caste of
Sutradhars in N oakhali.

Saitiya, a
Oswél Baniyés.

section of the

Saliva, a worshipper of Siva.

Saival, a timr or section of
Nepali Brahmans.

Sakaddi, a section of Sonérs
in Behar.

Sékadwipi or Sakaldwipi, a.
division of Brahmans in Behar.

Sékalya, a title of Dhobas in
Bengal.

Sakar—Ghore, a mu! of the
Sandil section of Maithil Brah-
mans in Behar.

Sakarpuriet, a mad or section
of the Naomulia or Majraut sub-
caste of Goalés in Behar.

Sakarwér, a mu! or section of
Babhans; of the Bhojpurié. sub-
caste of Halwais ; a sept of the
Chandrabansi division of Rajputs
in Behar.

Sékati, a gdz'n of the Bharad-
Wéja gotm of Barendra Brah-
mans in Bengal.

SAKERBASA’.

Sakerbasé, a mad or section
of the Kamarkalla sub-caste of
Sonars in Behar.

Sékhé, a title of Brahmans in
Western Bengal.

Sakhali, a sub-tribe of Man-
gars in Darjiling.

Sakhwait, a [ml or section of
Babhans in Behar.

Sakin, a section of the Pur-
biya Madesia sub-caste of Hal-
wais in Behar.

Sakmait. a. section of Bab-
hans in Behar.

Sékori, a mul or section of the
Chhamulia Madhesia sub-caste of
Halwais in Behar.

Sakréit, a section of Bans-
phor Doms in Western Behar.

Sakraiwér-Harari, a mu! of
the Kasyapa section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Sakraiwér-Tatail, a mul of
the Késyap section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Sakraiwér-Chhému, a mul of
the Kasyap section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Sakraul, a mad or section of the
Naomulié or Goria sub-caste of
Goalés in Behar.

Sakri, a mad or section of the
Kanaujié sub-caste of Sonars and
of Ghésis in Behar.

Sakrol, a mul or section of the
Ohhamulia Madhesié. sub-caste of
Halwais in Behar.

Saksena, a sub-caste of

Kayasths in Behar.

Sdkta, a worshipper of the
female principle in nature, of the
female forms of the Hindu deities,
and especially of Devi, the sakti

217

 

SALHARI'A’.

or female energy of Siva. Séktas
are divided into two classes :
Dakshinacharis, or Dakshinamar-
gis, “ followers of the right-hand
path,” and Vémacharis or Vilma-
margis, “ followers of the left-hand
path.” The former base their
religion on the Puranas and do
not practise mystical or secret
rites; the latter derive their
ritual from the magical treatises
known as Tantras, and are addict-
ed to practices of a grossly licen-
tious character. The Tantras are
said to be founded on the Kaula
Upanishad, and the left-handed
Séktas are therefore called Kauli-
kas.

Sakti, a title of Dakshin-
Rarhi Kayasths in Bengal.

Saktri, a gotra or section of
Brahmans and Baidyas in Bengal.

Sakuntalé, a sub-caste of
Brahmans in Behar.

Sél, ﬁsh, a totemistic section of
Khandaits; a sept of Mundas
and Oraons; a title of Dakshin-
Rarhi Kayasths.

Sél or Saula, a section of
Koras, signifying a ﬁsh.

Sdldkhd, a synonym for Sherpa
Bhotia of Nepal.

Sélék—khé, a merchant carry-
ing on trade, a sub-sept of the
Nah-pa sept of Sherpa Bhotias.

Sélangia, a section of Goalas
in the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Salankéyana, an exogamous
section of Baidyas in Bengal.

Sélbanwér, sdl jungle, a.
totemistic section of Kurmis in
Chota. Nagpur and Orissa.

’ Salharié, a kul or section of
Babhans in Behar.

SALKAR.

Salkar, a kind of potato, a
totemistic sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Sélkhini, a mu] or section of
the Naomulia or Majraut sub-
caste of Goalés in Behar.

Sélméchh, ﬁsh, a totemistic
sept of Savars in Orissa; a section
of Mails in Midnapur and Man-
bhum.

Sélodié, a section of Goalas
in the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Sélrishi or Sdlmdclz (the sail
ﬁsh), a section of Bagdis in
Bengal and of Chasas in Orissa;
a totemistic sept of the Bhumij
tribe in Manbhum, the members
of which Will not touch or eat the
80?! ﬁsh; a. section of Lohérs in
the Santal Parganés.

Sélu, a root in pond, a totem-
istic sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

Sélubi, a synonym for Pati-
kar, gm.

Sém, Syém, a title of
Dakshin-Rarhi and Bangaj a
Kayasths.

Sémé, a section of Koras in
Chota Nagpur.

Samaddar, a title of Chase-
dhobés in Bengal and a hyper-
gamous group of Kaibarttas in
Bakarganj.

Sémagéu. a singer of the Séma
Veda, a title of Brahmans.

Samaiér, a section of

Kayasths in Behar.

Samal, a title of Khandaits
in Orissa.

Sémal. a title of Chasés in
Orissa.

218

 

SA’MP.

Samal or Samar, deer, a
totemistic sept of Mundas.

Sémanta, a chief, a group of
the Srotriya sub-caste of Utkal
Brahmans; a title of Aguris,
Brahmans, Khandéits, Rajputs,
Sadgops, Telis, and some other
castes.

Sémantasér, a samaj or local
group of the Saunaka gotm of
Paschatya Baidik Brahmans in
Bengal.

Séménya-Maulik, a hyper-
gamous group of the Uttar-Rarhi
sub-caste of Kayasths.

Saméri, a sub-caste of Mal-
lahs in Behar.

Samaria, a synonym for Malé.

Samastipur, a mul or section
of the Naomulia or Majraut sub-
caste of Goalas in Behar.

Samat, pestle, a totemistic
sept of Korwas in Chota Nag-
pur.

Samdié, a section of Khariés
in Chota. Nagpur.

Samdoar, a sept of Mundas
in Chota Nagpur.

Samduar, a sept of Agariés
in Chota Nagpur.

Sémigrihi. a section of Utkal
or Orissa Brahmans.

Sémil Thékur, a section of
Kanaujia’. Lohars in Behar,

Samjhar, a sept of Chiks in
Chota Nagpur.

Sémp, snake, a totemistic sept
of Korwas; a section of Turis;
a section of Goalas in the
North-Western Provinces and
Behar.

SA’MPERIYA’.

Sémperiyé. Sémp-wéla. a
sub-caste of Bediyas who catch
and charm snakes. ’

Samswér, a sub-caste of

Kurmis in Behar.

§amudra, a with of the
sabarna gotm of Bérendra Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Samudwar, a sept of Khar-
Wars in Chota Nagpur.

Samundar-Khoré, a section

of Bonars in Behar.

Samwah, a sept of Limbus in
Darjiling.

San, heron, a totemistic sept
of Lohars in Chota Nagpur.

Sén. a title of Chasadhobas in
Bengal.

Séné, a title of Dakshin-
Rarhi Kéyasths in Bengal.

Sanédh ya, a
Gaura Brahmans.

sub-caste of

Sénégénthé, a sub-caste of
Male in Bankura.

Sanahié, a title of Hindu
J oléhas in Behar.

Sénchi, a sub-caste of Doms
in Bengal.

Sanda, a pangat or section of
Dosédhs in Behar.

Sandalié. a section of Beth-
hans in Behar.

Séndh, bullock, a totemistic
sept of Lohars; a section of
Goréits; a totemistic sept of
Chamérs and Doms in Chota
Nagpur.

Sandhawér, a section of the
Amashta sub-caste of Kayasths
in Behar.

Sandhod, a synonym for Niya-
riya, 9.12.

219

 

 

 

SA’NDILYA:

Sandi, plough, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Sandigurié, black monkey, a
totemistic sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Sandil, full moon, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Séndil, a gotm or section of
Babhans in Behar, borrowed
from the Brahmanical system
and superadded to the original
exogamous groups (kuls) charac-
teristic of the caste; a section of
the Kumhér caste in Western
Bengal, apparently borrowed
from the Brahmanical system and
added to the totemistic sections
characteristic of the caste; a sec-
tion of Utkal Brahmans; a
section of Chains.

Séndil or Sanrishi, a bull,
a totemistic section of the Pari-
pal sub-caste of Sunris in Man-
bhum, the members of which do
not castrate their own cattle, but
purchase bullocks and sell their
own bulls.

Sandilai, a sept of Pators in
Chota Nagpur.

Séndilya, a gotm or section
of the Aguri, Baidya, Brahman.
Kamar, and Subarnabanik castes
in Bengal; a section of the Sara}:
caste in Manbhum; of Kumhars,
Tantis, Telis and Kayasths in
Bengal; an eponymous sept of
Réjputs and Savars; a section
of Goalas, Kaibarttas, Madhuna-
pits, Malis, Mayaras, Muchis,
Napits, and Sunris in Bengal;
an eponymous section of Barhis,
Baruis, Rautiés, Chasédhobés,
Gandhabaniks; a sept of Bhu-
mijs; a section of Sénkharis,
Bhats; of Suklis in Midnapur;
of the Paschim Kuliya Sadgops;
of Sutradhars and Tambulis in
Bengal.

SAN DIPURTI.

Sandipurti, cock, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Chota 'Nag-

pur.

Sandi Sarin, fowl, a. totem-
istic sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

Sandwipé, a sub-caste of
Kumhars in Noakhali.

Sanga, a title of Bangaja
Kéyasths.

Sangé, or Sangoar, sweet
potato, a totemistic sept of
Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Séngé, a section of the Mahili-
Munda sub-caste of Mahilis in
Chota Nagpur.

Sangalwér, a sept of Lohérs
in Chota Nagpur.

Séngbé. a section of Murmis
in Darjiling.

Séngbah, a sept of Limbus in
Darjiliug.

Sang-behbo, a mi or sept of
Dejong Lhoris, the members of
Which are the descendants of
emigrants from Bhotan and Ne-
pal.

Sang Chiria, a kind of bird,
a totemistic sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Sangda, a sub-sept of the
Murmu sept of Santéls.

Séngdan, a section of Mur-
mis in Darjiling.

Sangz', a synonym for Mélé.

Séngir, a sept of the Surya-
bansi sub-tribe of Réjputs in
Behar.

Sangiri Thékur, a. section of
Kanaujia Lohars in Behar.

Sangma, a buffalo, apparently
a totemistic sept of the Chhothar
sub-tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.
The buﬂalo is taboo to this Mar :

220

 

SANKATWA’R.

the legend is the same as that of
the Khema than

Sangmi, a sept of Lepchas in
Darjiling.

Séngpéng, a ﬂaw or sept of
Khamhus in Darjiling.

Sangskér, a performer of cere-
monies, a title of Brahmans.

Sangtards, stone-cutters of vari-
ous castes.

Sangtarésh, a sub-caste of
Gonrhis in Behar. They say

they are not Gonrhis, and dis-

tinguish themselves as Gonrh.
They work in stone.

Sangwe, a title of Araiya
Telis in Behar.

Sanhé, a section of the Biyé-
hut and Kharidaha Kalwars in
Behar.

Sanhakié, a section of Bhats.

Sanicheré, a sub-caste of the

Kraunchdwipi Brahmans in
Behar.

Sanichré, a mu] or section of
Kalwérs 1n Behar.

Sanj 3kmah, a septiof Lim-
bus in Darjiling.

Sankar, a title of Sannyésis
and Bairégis.

Sankarjdtz’, a generic term for
the castes supposed to have been
formed by marriages or illicit
connexions between members of
the four primary castes.

Sankarpur, a mul or section
of the Naomulia or Majraut sub-
caste of Goalés in Behar.

Sankarshan, a section of the
Paschatya Baidik Brahmans in
Bengal.

Sankarwér, a sept of Rajputs
in Behar.

Sankatwér, a title of Dha-
nuks in Behar.

SA’NKH. 221 -SA’NKI~IA’RI.

Sénkh, conch shell, 9. sub- Sank/zabam‘k, a synonym for
sept of the Saren sept of Santals. Sénkhari in Bengal.

Sankha. a section of Karans Sankkakdr, a synonym for

in Orissa, Sénkhéri in Bengal.
Sankha-A’sram, asub-caste of Sankhalai, a sub-caste of
Gandhabaniks in Bengal. Kamars in the Santal Parganas.

531112115131, Sankhakdr. Sank/zabamTk, the shell-cutting caste of
Bengal, some of whom have taken of late years
to working in gold and silver. Tradition
ascribes the origin of the caste, as of the goldsmiths, jewellers and
Kansaris, to one Dhanapati Saudagar of Karnata, from whose third
son, Srikénta, the Sankhari believe themselves to be descended.
They claim to be Vaisyas, and. say that up to the time of Adisur
they wore the Brahmanical thread, but were degraded by him at the
same time as the Subarnabaniks, because the latter had cut to pieces
a golden cow which the king had given to certain Brahmans at the
celebration of a special sacriﬁce. Sankhéris have the Brahmanical
gotras and observe the same table of prohibited degrees as the higher
castes. In Dacca they are divided into two sub-castes—Bara-
hégiya or Bikrampur Sénkhéri and
hhota-Bhégiya 0r Sunargéon Sénkhéri.
The latter are a comparatively small group, who work at polishing
shells, which they purchase ready cut—a departure from traditional
usage, which may account for their separation from the main body
of the caste. In other districts, owing possibly to the smallness of
the caste, no similar divisions seem to have been formed.

The Sénkhari, says Dr. Wise, have the character of being very
penurious and unusually industrious, young and
old working to a late hour at night. Boys are
taught the trade at a very early age, otherwise their limbs would not
brook the awkward posture and conﬁned space in which work is
carried on. When sawing, the shell is held by the toes, the
semi-circular saw, kept perpendicular, being moved sideways. The
caste are notoriously ﬁlthy in their domestic arrangements. A
narrow passage, hardly two feet wide, leads through the house to an
open courtyard, where the sewage of the household collects and is
never removed. Epidemic diseases are very prevalent among them,
and owing doubtless to their unhealthy mode of life the men as a
rule are pale and ﬂabby and. very subject to elephantiasis, hernia,
\ and hydrocele.

Dr. Wise describes the women as “ remarkable for their beauty,
conﬁnement within dark rooms giving them a light Wheaten
complexion. They are, however, squat, becoming corpulent in adult
life, and their features, though still handsome, inanimate. They are
very shy, but the fact that in former days their good looks exposed
them to the insults and outrages of licentious Muhammadan ofﬁcials
is a sufﬁcient excuse for their timidity. Even now-a-days the
recollection of past indignities rouses the Sankhari to fury, and the
greatest abuse that can be cast at him is to call him a son of Abdul

Tradition of origin.

B
Internal structure. 0

Character and habits.

SANKHARI. 222

Razzéq 01‘ of Raj a Ram Das. The former was a zamindar of Dacca ;
the latter the second son of' Raja Raj Ballabh, Diwan of Bengal. It
is stated that they frequently broke into houses and carried off the
Sénkhari girls, being shielded by their rank and inﬂuence from
any punishment.” ,

Sankharis marry their daughters as infants by the ceremony
in use among the highest castes. It is. the
_ fashion for the bridegroom to ride in the
marriage procession, while the bride, dressed in red, is carried in
a palanquin. Polygamy is permitted subject to the same restrictions
as are in force among the Brahmans and Kayasths. Widows are not
allowed to marry again, nor is divorce recognized.

Nearly all Sankharis belong to the Vaishnava sect, and
comparatively few Séktas are found among
them. Their principal festival is held on the
last day of Bhadra (August-September), when they give up work
for ﬁve days and worship Agastya Rishi. who, according to them,
rid the world of a formidable demon called Sankha Asura by cutting
him up with the semi-circular saw used by shell-cutters. Others say
that they revere Agastya, because he was the gum or spiritual guide
of their ancestor Dhanapati Saudagar. Rice, sweetmeats, and fruit
are offered to him, and are afterwards partaken of by the Brahmans,
who serve the caste as priests. These Brahmans act also as priests
for the Kayasths, and are received on equal terms by other members
of the sacred order. They also observe the Jhulanjritrd and
Janmdshtami festivals in honour of Krishna, kept by all Bengali
Vaishnavas. Sénkhéris burn their dead, mourn for thirty days, and
perform srda’d/z in the orthodox fashion.

In point of social standing the Sénkharis rank with the
Navasakha, and Brahmans will take water and
certain kinds of sweetmeats from their hands.
Their own rules regarding diet are the same as those of the highest
ranks of Hindus. Many of them indeed are vegetarians, and abstain
even from ﬁsh. Taken as a whole, the caste have been singularly
constant to their hereditary occupation—a fact which is due partly to
the smallness of their number, and partly to the steady demand for
the articles which they produce. In Bengal Proper every married
woman of the respectable castes wears shell-bracelets, which are as
much a badge of wedded life as the streak of red lead down the
parting of the hair. Of late years, however, a certain proportion of
the Sankharis have become traders, writers, timber and cloth
merchants, and claim on that account to be superior in social rank
to those who manufacture shell bracelets.

Dr. Wise collected from various sources the following interesting

. particulars regarding the traditional occupation
°°°upat1°”- of the Sénkharis :—

The shells used for manufacturing bracelets are imported from
the Gulf of Manaar. Natives distinguish many varieties, dlﬂ‘ering
in colour and size, but the ordinary conch shell is the Mazza or
Turbinella napa. The trade in these shells has ﬂourished from the
earliest historical times. The “chank” is mentioned by Abu Zaid

Marriage.

Religion.

Social status.

223 ‘sA'NKHA'RI.

in the tenth century of our era; Tavernier includes shell bracelets
among the exports of Dacca in 1666, and adds that in Patna and
Bengal there were over two thousand persons employed in manu-
facturing them.1

Towards the end of the seventeenth century the shell trade
became a monopoly in the hands of the Dutch. A French missionary
in 1700 writes2 :—“ It is scarcely credible how jealous the Dutch
are of this commerce. It was death to a native to sell them to
any one but to the factory servants at Ceylon. The shells were
bought for a triﬂe, but when despatched in their own vessels to
Bengal, the Dutch acquired great proﬁ .”

The chank ﬁshery3 became a royalty of the English Government,
yielding an annual revenue of 4,000!., but it is now open to all the
world. In former days six hundred divers were employed, and in a
single season four and a half millions of shells were frequently taken,
of the gross annual value of 8,0001. The shells are imported by
English merchants into Calcutta, purchased by rich Sénkharis, and
retailed to the cutters.

On the arrival of the shells the remains of the mollusc (pitta)
are extracted and sold to native physicians as a medicine for spleen
enlargement. The base (gherd), the lip, and point of the shell are
then knocked off with a hammer, the chips being used as gravel
for garden walks or sold to agents from Murshedabad, where beads
are made of the larger pieces, and a, paint, Mattiya Sindztr, of
the smaller. From two to eight bracelets are made from one shell.
The sawdust is used to prevent the pitting of small—pox, and as an
ingredient of a valuable white paint.

In the ordinary shell the whorls turn from right to left, but
when one is found with the whorls reversed, “Dakshiné-varta,”
its price is extravagant, as it is believed to ensure wealth and
prosperity. One belonging to a Dacca zamindar is so highly
prized that he refused an offer of 300 rupees.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Sénkhéris in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

DIsrmcr. ‘ 1872. l 1881. ‘ DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Bardwan 1,145 1,001 Dacca 853 1,217
Bankura. ... 479 637 Faridpur ... 335
B1rbhum ... ... 5741 159 Bakarganj ... ... 1,157 703
M1dnapur 1,513 1,438 Maimansinh 192 4-60
Huuhu } 968 { 533 Tipperah 171 95
Howrah 323 Chittagong 89 68
24-Parganas 1,226 366 1 Noakhali 252 2410
Nadlya . 175 73 [Maldah 311 71
Khulna ...... 218 'Hazaribagh 52 ......
Jessore 1,450 555 Lohardaga 153......
Mprshedabad 422 371 . Singbhum 4111
Dniajpur ,. 179 31 {Manbhum 859 40
RaJShahye 38 87 10uttack 1,135 1,061
Rangpur 35 3 lPuri . 270 289
Bogra . 12 67 |Balasore 41118 818
Pabna 158 93 Tributary States 57 105
Kuch Behar ......

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1 Tavernier, part ii, book ii. 183-84.

2 Lettres Ediﬁantes, ii, 278.

3 Accounts of this shell or “ sea~horn” ﬁshery are given by Jan Nieuhof in A. and
J. Churchill’s Voyages and Travels, vol. ii, 298, and, of a later date, in Lettres Ediﬁantu

x, 121 (ed. 1781).

SAN KHI.

Sankhi, a sub-tribe of Réjputs
in Chota Nagpur.

Sankhwér, a section of the
Kurmi caste in Chota Nagpur the
members of which may not wear
sankwd or shell ornaments. An-
other peculiarity of the section
is that its members wear a pagm'
in the marriage ceremony, and
are prohibited from wearing the
ornamental head-dress (mukut)
made of sold pith, generally used
on such occasions.

Sénki, a sub-caste of Muchis
in Bengal.

Sénkoé, a totemistic section of
the Rajwar caste in Manbhum.

Sénkriti, a section of Brah-
mans. -

Sankura, king crow, a totem-
istic sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

Sankwé, a section of Rajwars
in Western Bengal.

Sanmaulik, a hypergamous
group of the Uttar-Rarhi Kay-
asths in Bengal.

224

 

SAN TA’L.

Sénnyél, a gain of the Batsya .
gotra of Barendra Brahmans in
Bengal.

Sannyési Atit, a class of Atit
in Behar who adopt a purely
ascetic and celibate life, and
transmit their property to their
pupils (ckelds) by a sort of spiri-
tual succession.

Sannyasi or Kanphat, a reli-
gious group of Jugis.

Séno or Kabétkonié. a sub-
caste of Sudhas in Orissa.

Sénpu, a totemistic section of
the Kora caste in Manbhum, the
members of which will not touch
or kill a bull.

Sanpuri, a sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Sénréri (Jaideb), a section of
Majhraut Goalas in Behar.

Sanséit, a section of the '
Dhapra sub-caste of Doms in
Behar.

Sansdri. an epithet applied by
Christian Kolhs in Chota Nagpur
to their heathen neighbours.

Sanswér. a sub-caste of Kur-
mis in Behar.

$311k“, Sonthdl, Sanntdr, a large Dravidian tribe, classed on

Origin and traditions.

linguistic grounds as Kolarian, which is found
in Western Bengal, Northern Orissa, Bha-
galpur and the Santal Parganas.

According to Mr. Skrefsrud the

name Santal is a corruption of b‘aontar, and was adopted by the
tribe after their sojourn for several generations in the country
about Saont in Midnapur. Before they went to Saont they are
said to have been called Kharwar, the root of which, kkar, is a
variant of lzor, ‘man,’ the name which all Santals use among
themselves. As regards the derivation of the name of the tribe
from Saont, an obscure village, somewhat off the main line of
their recent migrations, it may be observed that Colonel Dalton
suggested a doubt whether the name of the place may not have been
taken from the tribe, and this view seems to derive some support
from his discovery of a. small tribe of Saonts in Sarguja and
Keunjhar. The point, however, is not one of great importance.
At the present day when a Santal is asked What caste he belongs
to, he will almost invariably reply ‘ Manj hi’ (literally ‘ Village

225 SAN TAIL.

headman,’ one of the commonest titles of the tribe), adding ‘ Santal
Ménjhi ’ if further explanation is demanded of him.

In point of physical characteristics the Santals may be regarded

as typical examples of the pure Dravidian stock. Their com-
lexion varies from very dark brown to a peculiar, almost charcoal-
ike, black; the proportions of the nose approach those of the Negro,
the bridge being more depressed in relation to the orbits than is the
case with Hindus ; the mouth is large, the lips thick and projecting;
the hair coarse, black, and occasionally curly ; the zygomatic arches
prominent, while the proportions of the skull, approaching the
dolichocephalic type, conclusively refute the hypothesis of their
Mongolian descent.

Santél tradition traces back the origin of the tribe to a wild
goose (lads-dale) which laid two eggs. From these sprang Pilchu
Haram and Pilohu Burhi, the parents of the race, who begat the
ﬁrst seven sub-tribes. Their earliest abode was Hihiri or Ahiri
Pipiri, a name which Mr. b‘krefsrud derives from lair origin, and
which others identify with pargana Ahuri in,Hazaribagh. Thence
they want Westward to Khoj-Kaman, where all of them were destroyed
for their wickedness by a deluge of ﬁre-rain, except a single pair
who were saved in a cleft of the mountain Hara. From Hare.
they went to Sasangbera, a plain on the banks of a great
river, and after that to Jarpi, where is the great mountain
Marang Buro, through which they could ﬁnd no pass. Here they
offered sacriﬁces to the mountain god, and prayed him to let them
through. After a while they found a pass leading into a country
called Ahiri, where they dwelled for a time, passing on to Kendi.
Chai, and ﬁnally Champa. In Champa they sojourned many
generations, and the present institutions of the tribe were formed.
At last the Hindus drove them out of Champa, and they established
themselves in Saont, and ruled there for two hundred years. Again
gessed by the Hindus, they wandered on under a Raja called

ambir Singh to the eastern part of the Manbhum district near
Pachet. Here after a while their Rajas adopted the Hindu
religion and set up as Rajputs, so that at the present day they
intermarry with the family of the Raja of Sarguja. But the people
would not change their religion, so they left their chief to rule over

Hindus, and wandered on to the Santal Parganas, where they are

settled now.

Neither as a record of actual wanderings nor as an example ,

of the workings of the myth making faculty does this story of

the wandering of the Santals appear to deserve serious consideration. "
A people whose only means of recording facts coumsts of tying .

knots in strings, and who have no bards to hand down a national
epic by oral tradition, can hardly be expected to preserve the :

memory of their past long enough or accurately enough for their

accounts of it to possess any historical value. An attempt has :

indeed been made by Mr. Skrefsrud to prove from these legends
that the Santéls must have entered into India from the north-west,
just as Colonel Dalton uses the same data in support of his
opinion that the tribe came originally from Assam. The one

P

SAN TA’L. 226

hypothesis is as tenable or as untenable as the other, and all that can
be said is that there is not a fraction of substantial evidence in
support of either. If, however, the legends of the Santals are
regarded as an account of recent migrations, their general purport will
be found to be fairly in accord with actual facts. Without pressing
the conjecture mentioned above, that Ahiri Pipri may be no other
than pargana Ahuri in the north-west of Hazaribagh district, it is
clear that a large and important Santal colony was once settled in
parganas Chai and Champa in the same district. A tradition is
noticed by Colonel Dalton of an old fort in Ohai occupied by one
J aura, a Santal Baja, who destroyed himself and his family on hearing
of the approach of a Muhamadan army under Sayyid Ibrahim Ali
alias Malik Baya, a general of Muhammad Tughlak’s, who died in
1353. This tradition, so far as it refers to the existence of a Santal
fort in Chai Champa, is to some extent corroborated by the following
pgssage from the legends of the Southern Santals collected by the
evd. J. Phillips and published in Appendix G to Annals of Rural
Bengal, ed. 1868 :—“ Dwelling there (in Chai Champa) they greatly
multiplied. There were two gates, the Ahin gate and the Bahini
' gate, to the fort of Chai Champa.” If, moreover, the date of the
taking of this fort by Ibrahim Ali were assumed to be about 1340
A.D., the subsequent migrations of which the tribal legends speak
would ﬁll up the time intervening between the departure of the
Santals from Chai Champa and their settlement in the present
Santél Parganas. Speaking generally, these recent migrations have
been to the east, which is the direction they might prima‘ facie have
been expected to follow. The earliest settlements which Santal
tradition speaks of, those in Ahiri Pipri and Chai Champé, lie on the
north-western frontier of the table land of Hazaribagh and in the
direct line of advance of the numerous Hindu immigrants from
Behar. That the inﬂux of Hindus has in fact driven the Santals
eastward is beyond doubt, and the line which they are known to
have followed in their retreat corresponds on the whole with that
attributed to them in their tribal legends.
The internal structure of the Santal tribe is singularly com-
Int 1 t t plete and elaborate. There are twelve exoga-
8’” S “1" “e- mous septs, (1) Hasdak, (2) Murmu, (3) Klsku,
(4) Hembrom, (5) Marndi, (6) Saren, (7) Tudu, (8) Baske, (9) Besra,
(10) Pauria, (ll) Chore, (12) Bedea. The ﬁrst seven are believed
to be descended from the seven sons of Pilchu Haram and Pilchu
Burhi or Ayo. The ﬁve others were added afterwards. All are
exogamous. In order that members of the various septs may recog-
nize each other when they meet, each sept, except Pauria, Chore
and Bedea, has certain pass-words peculiar to itself, which are
supposed to be the names of the original homes of the septslin
Champa or in one of the earlier settlements of the tribe. . The
pass-words are as follows':—(l) Hasdak—Tatijhari, Gangijauni,
Kara Guja, Sohodoro; (2) Murmu—Champagarh, Bagsumbha,
Naran Manjhi; (3) Kisku—Kundagarh; (4) Hembrom» Kunda,
Khairigarh, J alaghatia; (5) Marndi—Badoligarh, J elen SIDJO,
Dhano Ménjhi; (6) Saren—Anbali, Barha, Pero Pargana; (7)

227 SAN TA’L.

Tudu—Simgarh, Sukrihutup, Baru Ménjhi; (8) Baske—Ranga,
Chunuk-jhandu; (9) Besra—Dhokrapalania, Gulu, Phagu Manjhi.
These pass-words or shibboleths seem to serve among the Santéls the
purpose for which Australian and North American savages tattoo the
totem on the body. They preserve the memory of the tie of blood
which connects the members of the sept, and thus furnish an addi-
tional security against unconscious incest. They further go to
show that the sept in its earliest form must have been a group of
purely local character analogous to the communal septs which have
been mentioned in the article on Kandh. If due allowance is made
for the causes which must tend in course of time to scatter the members
of any particular sept over a number of different villages, it will be
seen to be a remarkable circumstance not that so few local septs are
now to be found, but that any traces of such an organization have
survived to so late a period. .v.

Concerning the origin of the ﬁve additional septs the following
stories are told. The eighth tribe, Baske, at ﬁrst belonged to the
seven, but by reason of their offering their breakfast (baa-kc) to the
gods while the Santals were still in Champa, they were formed into
a separate sept under the name of Baske. The Besras (N0. 9) were
separated on account of the immoral behaviour of their eponym, who
was called Besra, the licentious one. The tEDth sept, Pauria, are
called after the pigeon, and the eleventh, Chore, after the lizard; and
the story is that on the occasion of a famous tribal hunting party
the members of these two septs failed to kill anything but pigeons
and lizards, so they were called after the names of these animals.
The twelfth sept, the Bedea, was left behind and lost when the
Santals went up out of Champa. They had no father. so the story
goes—at least the mother of their ﬁrst ancestor could not say who
his father was, and for this reason they were deemed of lower rank
than the other septs. This sept is believed to have arisen during
the time of Mando Singh in Champs. when the Santals had begun
to come in contact with the Hindus. Some Santals say the father
was a Réjput and the mother a girl. of the Kisku sept. There
would be nothing antecedently improbable in the conjecture that
the well-known gypsy tribe of Bedea may owe its origin to the
liaison of a Réjput with a Santal girl; but the mere resemblance
of the names is a slender foundation for any such hypothesis.
Santals are very particular about the honour of their women, so far
at least as outsiders are concerned, and it is quite in keeping with
their ideas that a sept formed by a liaison with a Hindu should
have been looked down upon, and eventually banished from the
community. Any way it seems to be clear that the legend need
not be taken to indicate the prevalence of the custom of female
kinship in the tribe.

No Santal may marry within his sept (pdris), nor within any

‘ of the sub-septs (Mimi) (shown in Appendix I)
into which the sept is divided. He may marry
into any other sept, including the sept to which his mother belonged.
A Santal proverb says :—No one heeds a cow track or regards his
mother’s sept.

Marriage.

[)2

SANTAL. 228

Although no regard is paid in marriage to the mother’s sept, '
the Santals have precisely the same rule as the Kandhs concerning
the sub-sept or khunt. A man may not marry into the sub-sept or
klnmt to which his mother belonged, though it is doubtful whether
the Santals observe this rule for as many generations in the
descending line as is customary among the Kandhs. Many of the
sub-septs have curious traditional usages, some of which may be
mentioned here. At the time of the harvest festival in January
the members of the Sidup-Saren sub-sept set up a sheaf of rice
on end in the doorway of their cattle sheds. This sheaf they may
not touch themselves, but some one belonging to another sub-sept
must be got to take it away. Men of the Séda-Saren sub-sept do
not use vermilion in their marriage ritual; they may not wear
clothes with a red border on such occasions, nor may they be present
at any ceremony in which the priest offers his own blood to propitiate
the gods. The J ugi-Saren, on the other hand, smear their foreheads
with sindm' at the harvest festival, and go round asking alms of
rice. With the rice they get they make little cakes which they
offer to the gods. The Manjhi-Khil-Saren, so called because their
ancestor was a manjhi or village headman, are forbidden, like
the Sédé-Saren, to attend when the priest oifers up his own blood.
The Naiki-Khil-Saren, who claim descent from a naiki or village
priest may not enter a house the inmates of which are ceremonially
unclean. They have a jdkirtkdn or sacred grove of their own,
distinct from the common jdlzz‘rthdn of the village, and they dis-
pense with the services of the priest who serves the rest of the
village. The Ok-Saren sacriﬁce a goat or a pig inside their houses,
and during the ceremony they shut the doors tight and allow no
smoke to escape. The word 0k means to suﬂ’ocate or stiﬂe with smoke.
The Mundu or Badar-Saren offer their sacriﬁces in the jungle, and
allow only males to eat the ﬂesh of the animals that have been slain.
The Mal-Saran may not utter the word mal when engaged in a
religious ceremony or when sitting on a. panchayat to determine
any tribal questions. The Jihu-Saren may not kill or eat the film
or bahbler bird, nor may they wear a particular sort of necklace
known as ﬁlm mdld from the resemblance which it bears to the
babbler’s eggs. The ﬁlm is said to have guided the ancestor of the
sept to water when he was dying of thirst in the forest. The
Sankh-Saren may not wear shell necklaces or ornaments. The Barchir
Saren plant a spear in the ground when they are engaged in religious
or ceremonial Observances. The Bitol-Saren are so called because their
founder was excommunicated on account of incest.

Girls are married as adults mostly to men of their own choice.
Sexual intercourse before marriage is tacitly recognized, it being
understood that if the girl becomes pregnant the young man is bound
to marry her. Should he attempt to evade this obligation, he would be
severely beaten by the J ag-manjhi, and in addition to this he father
would be required to pay a heavy ﬁne. It is curious to hear that
in the Santal Parganas, shortly after the rebelllon of 1855, it became
the fashion among the more wealthy Santéls to imitate the usages of
high-caste Hindus and marry their daughters between the ages of

229 SAN TA’L-

eight and tWelve. This fashion has, however, since been abandoued,
and it is now very unusual for a girl to be married before she attains
puberty. Polygamy is not favoured by the custom of the tribe.
A man may take a second wife if his ﬁrst wife is barren, or if his
elder brother dies he may marry the widow. But in either case
the consent of his original wife must be obtained to the arrange-
ment. Instances no doubt occur in which this rule is evaded, but
they are looked upon with disfavour.

There seem to be indications that fraternal polyandry may
at some time have existed among the Santals. Even now, says
Mr. Skrefsrud, a man’s younger brother may share his wife with
impunity; only they must not go about it very openly. Similarly
a wife will admit her younger sister to intimate relations with her ‘
husband, and if pregnancy occurs scandal is avoided by his marry-
ing the girl as a second wife. It will of course be noticed that this
form of polyandry need not be regarded as a survival of female
.kinship.

The following forms of marriage are recognized by the Santéls
and distinguished by separate names z—(l) Regular marriage (bapla or
lrz'm'ng balm, literally bride-purchase); (2) Gkardijdwde; (3) Itut; (4)
Nir-bolok; (5) Sanger; (6) Kirmgjawae or husband-purchase. The
negotiations antecedent to a regular marriage are opened by the father
of the young man, who usually employs a professional match-maker
to look for a suitable girl. If the match-maker’s proposals are accepted
by the girl’s parents, a day is ﬁxed on which the girl, attended by
two of her friends, goes to the house of the jag-manjhi or superin-
tendent of morals, in order to give the bridegroom’s parents an
opportunity of looking at her quietly. A similar visit of inspection
is paid by the bride’s parents to the bridegroom’s house, and if every-
thing is found satisfactory the betrothal is concluded and an instal-
ment of the bride-price is paid. The ordinary price of a girl is
Rs. 3, and the bridegroom must also present a cloth (sdri) to the
girl’s mother and to both her grandmothers if alive. If more than
this is paid, the bridegroom is entitled to receive a present of a cow
from his father-in-law. In the case known as a goldt marriage, when -
two families, each having a daughter and a son of marriageable age,
arrange a double wedding, one daughter is set off against the other,
and no bride-price is paid by either party. For a widow’ or a woman
who has been divorced the bride-price is only half the standard
amount, the idea being, as the Santals pointedly put it, that such
women are only borrowed goods, and must be given back to their ﬁrst
husbands in the next world. As the second husband has the use of
his Wife only in this world, it is clearly fair that he should get her for
half-price. In an early stage of the marriage ceremony both bride
and bridegroom separately go through the form of marriage to a
mahud tree (Bassia latt/olia). In the case of the bride a double
thread is passed three or ﬁve times from the little toe of her left foot
to her left ear, and is then bound round her arm with some blades of
rice and stems of dhuba grass. The conjecture suggests itself that
this may be a survival of some form of communal marriage, but from
the nature of the case no positive evidence is available to bear out

SANTA’L. 230

this hypothesis, or to throw any light upon the symbolism of the
usage. The essential and binding portion of the ritual is sindurddn,
the smearing of vermilion on the bride’s forehead and on the parting
of her hair. This rite, however, is supposed to have been borrowed
from the Hindus. The original Santal ceremony is believed to have
been very simple. The couple went away together into the Woods,
and on their return were shut up by themselves in a room. When
they came out they were considered to be man and wife. A practice
closely resembling this was found by Colonel Dalton to be in vogue
among the Birhors, and it is quite in keeping with what is known of
the doings of primitive man in the matter of marriage. The
memory of it, however, only survives among the Santals in the form
of a vague and shadowy tradition upon which no stress can be laid.
Sindurddn, on the other hand, is nothing but a reﬁned and special-
ised form of the really primitive usage of mixing the blood of a
married couple and making them drink or smear themselves with the
mixture, and although it is possible that the Santals may have
borrowed sz'ndurddn from the Hindus, there are certainly good
grounds for behaving that the Hindus themselves must have derived
it from the Dravidian races.

The second mode of marriage, gkardi jdwa’e, is resorted to when
a girl is ugly or deformed and there is no prospect of her being asked
in marriage in the ordinary Way. An instance has been reported to
me in which a girl who had on one foot more than the proper
number of toes was married in this fashion. The husband is expected
to live in his father-in-law’s house and to serve him for ﬁve years.
At the end of that time he gets a pair of bullocks, some rice and
some agricultural implements, and is allowed to go about his busi-
ness.

The third form, ﬂat, is adopted by pushing young men who are
not quite sure whether the girl they fancy will accept them, and take
this means of compelling her to marry them. The man smears
his ﬁngers with vermilion or, failing that, with common earth, and,
watching his opportunity at market or on any similar occasion, marks
the girl he is in love with on the forehead and claims her as his
wife. Having done this, he runs away at full speed to avoid the
thrashing he may expect at the hands of her relations if he is caught
on the spot. In any case the girl’s people will go to his village
and will obtain from the headman permission to kill and eat
three of the offender’s or his father’s goats, and a double bride-price
must be paid for the girl. The marriage, however, is legal, and if
the girl still declines to live with the man, she must be divorced in
full form and cannot again be married as a spinster. It is said that
an itut marriage is often resorted to out of spite in order to subject
the girl to the humiliation of being divorced.

The fourth form, m'rbolok (air, to run, and bolok, to enter) may
be described as the female variety of itut. A girl who cannot get the
man she wants in the regular way takes a pot of hdndz‘d or rice-beer,
enters his house and insists upon staying there. Etiquette forbids
that she should be expelled by main force, but the man’s mother,
who naturally desires to have a voice in the selection of her

231 SAN TA’L.

daughter-in-law, may use any means short of personal violence to get
her out of the house. It is quite fair, for example, and is usually found
elfective, to throw red pepper on the ﬁre, so as to smoke the aspiring
maiden out; but if she endures this ordeal without leaving the house,
she is held to have won her husband and the family is bound to
recognize her.

The ﬁfth form, sanga, is used for the marriage of widows and
divorced women. The bride is brought to the bridegroom’s house
attended by a small party of her own friends, and the binding por- .
tion of the ritual consists in the bridegroom taking a dimbu ﬂower,
marking it With sindur with his left hand, and with the same hand
sticking it in the bride’s back hair.

The sixth form, lcz'm'ny jdwde, is resorted to in the comparatively
rare case when a girl has had a liaison with, and become pregnant
by, aman of her sept whom she cannot marry. In order that scan-
dal may be avoided, some one is procured to accept the post of
husband, and in consideration of his services he gets two bullocks,
a cow and a quantity of paddy from the family of the man by
whom the girl is pregnant. The headman then calls the villagers
together, and in their presence declares the couple to be man and
wife, and enjoins the girl to live with, and be faithful to, the husband
that has been provided for her.

A widow may marry again. It is thought the right thing for
her to marry her late husband’s younger brother, if one survives him,
and under no circumstances may she marry his elder brother.
Divorce is allowed at the wish of either husband or wife. If neither
party is in fault, the one who wants a divorce is expected to bear the
expenses. The husband, for example, in such a case would not be
entitled to claim a refund of the bride-price originally paid, and
would also have to pay a ﬁne and give the woman certain customary
dues. If, on the other hand, it is the wife who demands a divorce
without just cause, her father has to make good the bride-price in
addition to a ﬁne for her levity of behaviour. The divorce is effected
in the presence of the assembled villagers by the husband tearing
asunder three sdl leaves in token of separation, and upsetting a brass
pot full of water.

In the matter of inheritance Santals follow their own customs,
and know nothing of the so-called codes which
govern the devolution of property among
Hindus. Sons inherit in equal shares; a daughter has no claim to
a portion as of right, but usually gets a cow given to her when the
property is divided. Failing sons, the father takes; failing him, the
brothers; after them, the male agnates. Failing agnates, the
daughter inherits with succession to her children. If a man
dies leaving young sons, his widow manages the property till all
the sons are old enough to divide and start separate households.
She then takes up her abode with the youngest. Should the widow
marry outside the family, the male agnates take the property
in trust till the sons are of age, and she gets nothing. If a man has
male relatives, he cannot give away his property even to a SOD-JD-
law. Wills are unknown.

Inheritance.

SANTKL. 232

According to Mr. Skrefsrud traces may be discerned in the
background of the Santél religion of a
fainéaut Supreme Deity called Thakur, whom
the Santals have long ceased to worship for the sufﬁcient reason
that he is too good to trouble himself about anybody and does
neither good nor ill to mankind. Some identify him with the Sun,
whom the Santals regard as a good god and worship every ﬁfth or
tenth year with sacriﬁces of slain goats. But this point is un-
certain, and I am myself inclined to doubt whethere. god bearing
the Hindu name Thakur, and exercising supreme ‘powers which
mark a comparatively late stage of theological development, can
really have formed part of the original system of the Santals. How-
ever this may be, the popular gods of the tribe at the present day
are the following :—(1) Marang Buru, the great mountain or the
very high one, who now stands at the head of the Santal Pantheon,
and is credited with very far-reaching powers, in virtue of which he
associates both with the gods and with the demons. (2) M‘ereko,
ﬁre, now a single god, but formerly known to the Santals under
the form of ﬁve brothers. (3) Jéir Era, a sister of Moreko,\the
goddess of the sacred grove set apart in every village for the
august presence of the gods. (4) Gosain Era, a younger sister‘of
Moreko. (5) Pargané, chief of the bongas or gods, and more especiT
ally master of all the witches, by reason of which latter functions
he is held in especial reverence. (6) Ménjhi, a sort of second in com<
mand to Pargana, a personage who is supposed to be particularly
active in restraining the gods from doing harm to men. The two
latter are clearly deities constructed on the model of the communal
and village officials whose names they hear. The idea is that the gods,
like men, need supervising ofﬁcials of this sort to look after them and
keep them in order. All the foregoing gods have their allotted place
in the sacred grove (Jdlairt/adn), and are worshipped only in public.
Marang Burn alone is also worshipped privately in the family.

_ Each family also has two special gods of its own-the Oral:-
bonga or household god, and the Abge~bonga or secret god. The
names of the Orak-bongas are (1) Baspahar, (2) Deswali, (3) Sets,
(4) Goraya, (5) Barpahar, (6) Sarchawdi, (7) Thuntatursa. The
Abge-bongas are the following :-(1) Dharasore or Dharasanda, (2)
Ketkomkudra, (3) Champa-denagarh, (4) Garhsinka, (5) Lilachandi,
(6) Dhanghara, (7) Kudrachandi, (8) Bahara, (9) Duarseri, (10)
Kudraj, (11)Gosain Era, (l2) Achali, (l3) Deswéli. No Santal
would divulge the name of his Orak-bonga and Abge—bonga to any
one but his eldest son; and men are particularly careful to keep
this sacred knowledge from their wives for fear lest they should
acquire undue inﬂuence with the bongas, become Witches, and eat up
the family with impunity when the protection of its gods has been
withdrawn. The names given above were disclosed to Mr. Skrefsrud.
by Christian Santals. When sacriﬁces are offered to the Oraki
bongas the whole family partake of the offerings; but only men
may touch the food that has been laid before the Abge-bongas.
These sacriﬁces take place Om-e a year. No regular time is ﬁxed,
and each man performs them when it suits his convenience.

Religion.

233 SANTA’L.

There still lingers among éhe Sgntals a tradition of a ‘ mountain-
. o ( uru- on a) of unknown name, to

Human sacriﬁce" ahom human sicriﬁces used to be offered,
and actual instances have been mentioned to me of people being
. kidnapped and sacriﬁced within quite recent times by inﬂuential
headmen of communes or villages, who hoped in this way to gain
great riches or to win some specially coveted private revenge.
These are not the motives which prompted human sacriﬁce among
the Kandhs of Orissa, a tribe whose internal structure curiously
resembles that of the Santals. The Kandh sacriﬁce was undertaken
for the beneﬁt of the entire tribe, not in the interest of individual
ambition or malevolence. It is curious to hear that one of the men
credited with this iniquity was himself murdered during the Santél
rebellion of 1855, by being slowly hewn in pieces with axes, just
as his own victims had been—a mode of execution which certainly
recalls the well-known procedure of the Kandhs.

The chief festival of the Santals is the Sohrai or harvest festival,
celebrated in Posh (November—December), after
the chief rice crop of the year has been got
in. Public sacriﬁces of fowls are offered by the priest in the
sacred grove; pigs, goats and fowls are sacriﬁed by private families,
and a general saturnalia of drunkenness and sexual license
prevails. Chastity is in abeyance for the time, and all unmarried
persons may indulge in promiscuous intercourse. This license, how-
ever, does not extend to adultery, nor does it sanction intercourse
between persons of the same sept, though even this offence, if
committed during the Sohrai, is punished less severely than at other
times. Next in importance is the Balm puja, kept in Phalgun (Feb-
ruary-March) when the sdl tree comes into ﬂ0Wer. Tribal and
family sacriﬁces are held, many victims are slain and eaten by the
worshippers, every one entertains their friends, dancing goes on day
and night, and the best songs and ﬂute—music are performed. A.
peculiar feature of this festival is a sort of water-bottle in which
men and women throw water at each other until they are completely
drenched. ’ '

Mention may also be made of Erok-sim, the sowing festival
kept in Asar (May—June) ; Hariar-sim, the feast of the sprouting of
the rice in Bhadra (September-October) ; Trigundli nauai, the
offering of the ﬁrst fruits of the millets rim' (Panicum millaceum) and
gundlz’ (Panicum frumentaceum) also in Bhadra; J anthar puja.
in Aghran (October—November), the ﬁrst fruits of the winter
rice crop; Sankrént puja on the last day of Posh, when bread and
chira and molasses are offered to dead ancestors; Magh-sim in
the month of Magh, when the jungle grass is cut. This is the
end of the Santél year. Servants are paid their wages and fresh
engagements are entered into. On this occasion all the village
ofﬁcials, the Manjhi, Paramanik, Jag Manjhi, J ag-paraménik,
Gorait. Naiki and Kudam-naiki go through the form of resigning
their appointments, and all the cultivators give notice of throwing up
their lands. After ten days or so the manj hi or headman calls the
village together and says he has changed his mind and will stay on

Festivals.

4'”

SAN TA’L. 234

as manjhi if the village will have him. His olfer is accompanied with
free drinks of rice-beer, and 'is carried by acclamation. One by one
the other ofﬁcials do the same; the ryots follow suit, and after
a vast amount of beer has been consumed the affairs of the village go
on as they did before. The Sima-bonga or boundary gods are
propitiated twice a year with sacriﬁces of fowls offered at the
boundary of the village where these gods are supposed to live. J om-
81m puJa is an oﬁering of two goats, or a goat and a sheep, to the
sun. Every Santal ought to perform this sacriﬁce at least once in his
life. After a year’s interval it is, or ought to be, followed by Kutam
dangra, when a cow is offered to the household god, and an ex to
Marang burn and to the spirits of dead ancestors. Mak-more puj a,
literally ‘ the out ﬁve,’ is a sacriﬁce of three goats and many fowls
oﬁered to More-k0, the god of ﬁre, supposed to have been originally
ﬁve brothers, on occasions of public calamity, such as a failure of the
crops, an outbreak of epidemic disease, and the like.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Santals in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. ‘ 1872. ’ 1881. l DISTRICT. 1872. l 1881.
Bardwan 4,487 5,806 Dacca .. 1 ......
Bankura 25,378 20,034; Maimansinh 75 ......
Birhhum ... ... 6,9544 7 26 Chittagong 4 12
Midnnpur 96,921 568 Patna 4 ......
Hughli ... } 46 { 36 Tirhut , 6 ......
Howrah 67 Monghyr 13,957 ......
24-Parganés 814: 31 Hhagalpur 16,468 42
Nadiya 6 29 Maldah 215 833
J essore 23 55 Santa] Parganés 4,535,513 9,148
Khulna ... ... ... 19 Cuttack 3
Murshedabad 3.002 1,663 Balasore 1,176 389
Dinajpur 1,039 6,813 Tributary States 76,548 922
Rajshahye 5 139 Hazaribagh 35,306 ......
Ranspur ...... 7 Lohardaga 1,204: 7
Bo ra ... ... 75 252 Sinkbhum 51,132 51,954
Pa na ...... 130 Manbhum 132,445 86,403
Darjiling ...... 19 Tributary States 9 17,216

I

 

 

 

 

 

The communal organization of the Santéls is singularly complete.
The whole number of villages comprising
a local settlement of the tribe is divided into
certain large groups, each under the superintendence of a parganaz‘t
or circle headman. This ofﬁcial is the head of the social system of
the inhabitants of his circle ; his permission has to be obtained for
every marriage, and he, in consultation with a pcmckdyat of village
headmen, expels or ﬁnes persons who infringe the tribal standard of
propriety. He is remunerated by a commission on the ﬁnes levied,
and by a tribute in kind of one leg of the goat or animal cooked at
the dinner Which the culprits are obliged to give. Each village has,
or is supposed to have, the following establishment of ofﬁcials
holding rent-free land :-

1. Mamba—Headman, usually also z'jardar where the village is
held on lease under a zamindar, collects rents, and
allots land among the ryots, being paid for this by
the proceeds of the man land which he holds free of
rent. He receives Re. 1 as maroclza at each wedding,
giving in return a full launch of rice-beer.

Communal organization.

SANTA’L.

235

SAPANKOTYA.

2. Paramam‘k.—Assistant headman, also holding some mdn

land.

r Executive ofﬁcers, respectively, of the

3. Jag Man/hi <
4. Jag Patrolman-£79 l

| mam‘lu' and the pammam’k who, as the
Santals
orders,” which the Jag Man/hi and

describe it, “sit and give

L Jag Paramamk carry out.

5. Nailci.—Village priest of the aboriginal deities.

6. Kudam Naiki.—Assistant priest, Whose peculiar function it
is to propitiate the spirits (Units) of the hills and jun-
gles by scratching his arms till they bleed, mixing
the blood with rice, and placing it in spots frequented

by the bln'its.

7. Gomz’t.—-Village messenger, who holds mc‘m land and acts

as peon to the headman.
extent a servant of the zamindar.

The gorait is also to some
His chief duty

Within the village is to bring to the man/725 and Para-
mam‘k any ryot they want.

The communal circles of the Santals seem to correspond closely
to the mutas of the Kandhs and the par/ms of the Mundas and
Greens. It is a plausible conjecture that among all these tribes
this organization was once connected with marriage, as it is among the

Kandhs at the present day.

Santari, a section of the Maga-
hiya sub-caste of Doms 1n
Behar.

Séntaru, a sama'j or local group
of the Sébarna gotm of Paschatya
Baidik Brahmans in Bengal.

Séntré, Sdnt, a title of Kai-
barttas, Telis, and Bagdis in
Bengal.

Santu Kuséet, a section of
the Ghosin sub-caste of Goalés
in Behar.

Sanuani, a sept of Dhenuars
in Chota Nagpur who cannot
wear gold.

Sanuér, a section of Goalas in
Behar.

Sanukra, a section of Ghasis
in Chota Nagpur.

Sanwani, a sept of Kaurs and
Rautias in Chota Nagpur.

 

 

 

Sanwar, a goldsmith ; a
section of the Kémi caste in Dar-
jiling.

Sanwasi, a section of Ghasis
in Chota Nagpur.

Sénwét, a title of Cheros in
Palamau.

Saoasz', a synonym for Pain and
Ténti.

Séolé, a sept of the Bhumij
tribe in Manbhum.

Saonra. a title of Goalas in
Behar; a sub-caste of Goalés. in
Chota Nagpur.

Saonsié. a sept of Pans in
Chota Nagpur.

Sdontdr, a synonym for Santal.

Sapankotyé, a ﬂaw of the
Kannia gotm of Nepali Brha-
mans.

———'

SAPDOHA.

Sapdohé, a section of Beth-
hans in Behar. ~ ‘

Saphérk, a par or section of

236

SKRAK.

and consequently very few families
of them are now recognized by
the name of Saptasati.

Sépui, a title of Pods in

Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.
Bengal.

Sépkoté, a section of Kamis
in Darjiling.

Saptagrami, a sub-caste of
Napits and Telis in Bengal.

Sépurya or Bediyzi—Mdl, a
sub-caste of Mals in Midnapur
and Manbhum.

Saptagrami or Kusaddi, a S”’ a synonym for savan-
sub-caste of Tambulis in Bengal. Sér, a sub-caste of Rajus in

Midnapur.

Saréf, a title of the Ariér sub-
caste of Bais Baniyés.

Saptagrémi or Nadiyé, a
sub-caste of Subarnabaniks in

Bengal.

Saptasati or Sétsati, a sub-
caste of Brahmans in Bengal who
numbered seven hundred when
Adisur brought the ﬁve Brah-
mans from Kanauj in order to
perform certain jajna, owing to
their want of ceremonial purity.
They have since become mixed Saraiyér, a section of Kay-
with the later emigrant Brahmans, asths in Behar.

5&1‘313, Srdwak, a small caste of Chota Nagpur, who seem to
be a Hinduised remnant of the early Jain
people, to whom local legends ascribe the
ruined temples, the defaced images, and even the abandoned copper
mines of that part of Bengal. The temples and images indeed are
proved by their well-marked and characteristic symbolism to be the
handiwork of Jain artists, while there is nothing primdfacz'e improb-
able in the supposition that the mines also may be due to the
energy of this comparatively civilised race, whose well-wrought
stone pillars and lintels far surpass anything that the present
inhabitants of the province can execute. Neither history nor
tradition throws any clear light upon the causes which compelled
these peaceful settlers to desert the picturesque valleys, Where we
ﬁnd vestiges of their faith; but if we may suppose the majority of
them to have been gradually driven out by the incursion of the non-
Aryan races, nothing would be more likely than that the remnant
who remained behind, surrounded as they were by barbarians of
alien blood and religion, should have hardened into a. caste such
as the Saraks form at the present day.

The Siraks have no sub-castes. Their sections are of the
eponymous type, and this fact, coupled with
their comparatively reﬁned cast of features and
light complexion, seems to conﬁrm their claims
to be deemed of Aryan descent. The prohibited degrees are the
same as in the case of high-caste Hindus. They marry their

Sarai, a jungle fruit, a totem-
istic sept of Korwas and of Mun-
das in Chota Nagpur.

Saréihét, a section of the sat-
muhé. Maghaya sub-caste of
Kandus in Behar.

 

Origin.

Internal structure and
marriage. ,

SARAK. ' 237 SA’RANGIHA’R.

daughters as infants, forbid widows to remarry, and do not recognize
divorce. Polygamy is permitted in so far that a man may take
a second wife if he has no hope of obtaining male issue by his ﬁrst
wife. The marriage ceremony is of the standard type.

The Séraks of Manbhum, while retaining the tradition that their
ancestors were J ains, appear themselves to have
completely adopted Hinduism. They worship
the ordinary Hindu gods with the assistance of Brahmans; nor have
they retained, as might perhaps have been expected, any of the
characteristic tirtlmnkams or gloriﬁed saints of the J ains under the
disguise of minor or household gods. In Lohardaga, on the other
hand, Parswanéth, the twenty-third tirtkankam, who is believed to
have attained nirvana on Parasnath Hill in Hazaribagh, is still
recognized by the Séraks as their chief deity, though they also
worship Shyam Chand, Radha Mohan, and J agannath. Brahmans
oﬂiciate as their priests, and in no way forfeit their social reputation
by doing so. In all Jain temples, indeed, the ministrant priests are
Brahmans.

Séraks are skilful agriculturists, and are credited with having

. . introduced sugarcane cultivation on the plateau
“33:19am“ and “cm of Chota Nagpur. Most of them are occupancy
raiy'ats, and in pargana Sonpur 0f Lohardaga

a few villages are held by Séraks in permanency and at a ﬁxed rent
by the tenure known locally as britt-bhanda’r. In point of social
standing they rank high, and Brahmans will take water and pakki
articles of food from their hands. Séraks themselves retain all the
prejudices of the Jains in regard to eating the ﬂesh of any kind
of animal. Life may on no account be taken. Their,diet therefore
consists entirely of vegetables; and it is said that if in preparing
their food any mention of the word ‘ cutting ’ is made, the omen is
deemed so disastrous that every thing must be thrown away. Subject
to these conditions, Saraks will eat the leavings of Brahmans, and
will take water or sweetmeats from Réjputs, Baidyas, and Kayasths.

The following statement shows the number and distribution 0
Séréks in 1872 and 1881 :——- .

Religion.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DIsrnIcr. 1872. 1881. I DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Bardwan m‘ ...... 38 Monghyr ... ...... 27
Bankura . ...... 601 Santa] Parganas 448
Rangpur ...... 3 Hazaribagh ...... 103
Patna ... .. 342 Lohardaga 1,659 1,515
Gya ...... 123 Manbhum 8,327 8,218
Shahabad ...| ...... 5 Tributary States ...... 56
Mozuﬁerpur ...l ...... 8

Sérélié, a sub-caste of Kum- Sarangi, a section of Utkal or
bars and Bhulnméhs found in Orissa Brahmans.
Noakhah. Saréngi, a ﬂaw or sept of
Séramba. a tigress, a totem- Mangars 1n Darjlhng.
istic sept of Juéngs 1n Orissa. Sérangihér, a religious group
. of J ugis.

SARAOGI.

$3raugi, a mercantile caste
of Northern India closely allied
to the Agarwals and Oswals.
Like these, Saraogis are mostly
adherents of the Jain faith.
They profess to have 84 exogam-
ous groups deriving their names
from villages in Khandela and
Shekhawati. In marriage they
exclude both gots, like the Ma-
hesri, and reckon them on both
sides.

Sarari, a title of Byadhs who
kill birds by saw or arrows.

Séras, a water-fowl, a totem-
istic sept of Bhuiyas and
Kharwars in Chota Nagpur.

Séraswat, Sdrsatk, Scirsati, a
territorial division of the Pancha
Gaura. Brahmans found in Behar,
Said to derive its name from hav-
ing originally dwelled in the
country watered by the river
Saraswati in the Panjab.

Saraswati, a sect of Das-
nami Sannyasis.

Sarauli, a mul or section of
the Chhamulié Madhesia sub-
caste of Halwais in Behar.

Sarbbénandi, a 72261 or hyper-
gamous sub-group of Rérhi Brah-

mans in Bengal.

Sarbesia, a group of the
Purbba Kuliya Sadgops.

Sardak-peapi, a sub-sept of
the Phejom sept of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Sardér, a headman, a chief.
(i) In Bengal Proper an ironical
title of Tantis, Bagdis, Hans,
Doms, Kahars, and other low
castes; (ii) in Manbhum a title
of the Bhumij tribe, many of
whom are headmen of ghatwah’
villages; (iii) in the Santal Par-
ganas a title of Mal Paharias
and Santals.

238

 

SARMA.

Saren, a sept of Santals.

Sares Pargané Dadédih, a
mu! or section of the Naomulia or
Majraut sub-caste of Groalas in
Behar.

Sérgétié, a section of the
Biyahut and Kharidahé. Kalwérs
in Behar.

Sargrémi, a gdm of the Kas-
yapa gotra or Barendra Brahmans
in Bengal.

Sarihin, a sept of the Patar—
Mahili sub-caste of Mahilis in
Chota Nagpur.

Sarin, a section of the Dharkar
sub-caste of Doms in Behar.

Sariswe-Khéngor, a mu] of
the Séndil section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

SariSWe-Sakuri, a mu! of the
Sandil section of Maithil Brah-
mans in Behar.

Sariyél, a grim of the Bharad-
waj a gotra of Bérendra Brahmans
in Bengal.

Sarjél, a sept of Kaurs in
Chota Nagpur.

Sarjupari, see Sarwarié.

Sarkér, a title of Brahmans;
of Kurmis in Manbhum, used
both by members of the caste
and by outsiders ; of J ugis, Kai-
barttas, Kayasths, Napits, Pods,
Sadgops, and Tantis in Bengal.

Sarkaté, a mu! or section of
the Kanaujia sub-caste of Sonérs
in Behar.

$ﬂtki, the cobbler caste of
Nepal.

Sarmé, a synonym for Brah-
man; a title of Dakshin-Rarhi
and Bangaja Kayasths.

SARNABANIK. 239

SA’SMAL.
Samabam‘k, a synonym for

Sarna-Kamar, a sub-caste of
Subarnabanik.

Kamars in Midnapur.

gamakar, Se/crd, the working goldsmith and silversmith caste
of Bengal, an artisan group, probably traceable to the Karmakar
and wholly distinct from the Subarnabanik, who never work in
metal themselves. Sarnakars are divided into four sub-castes:
Brahman-desi, Dak‘nin-Rérhi, Khatangi and Uttar—Rérhi. They
have ﬁve exogamous groups, three Brahmanical and two Sabanta-
Rishi and Sa-rishi, suggestive of less distinguished associations.
Girls are usually married as infants, but this is said not to be
obligatory—a. view which is to some extent borne out by the fact
that a bride-price is paid, and the bridegroom-price characteristic of
the full development of infant-marriage has not yet been introduced.
The marriage ceremony is of the orthodox type; its essential and
binding portion being the gift of the bride to the bridegroom and his
formal acceptance of the gift. Widows may not marry again, and
divorce is permitted only on the ground of the wife’s adultery.

The religion of the caste is that of the average middle class
Hindu— Sékta or Vaishnava as the case may be. The divine artisan,
Viswakarma, is reverenced as the special patron of the caste. The
women have a special ceremony called Kulai, which is performed
during the rains without the assistance of any priest. Brahmans
are employed for religious and ceremonial purposes, but these
are not received on equal terms by those members of the sacred
order who serve the higher castes. The dead are burned, and the
srdddlz ceremony performed one month after death. The caste
believe the business of a goldsmith to be their original occupation,
but some of them engage in agriculture. Their social status is
low. None of the higher castes will take water from them, and
they admit that they will take water and sweetmeats from any
one except the very lowest castes, such as Hari, Muchi and Dom.

Samar, a curry vegetable,
a totemistic sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Sarnié, a sept of the Suraj-
bansi division of Raj puts in Behar.

Sarno, a sept of Oraons in
Chota Nagpur.

Sarpa, snake, a totemistic
section of J agannathi Kumhars
in Orissa.

Séru, a thaw or sept of Mangars
in Darjiling..

Sarué, a group of the Panda
sub-caste of Utkal Brahmans.
' Sarwal, a section of the

Panchjati sub-caste of Khatris in
Bengal.

 

Sarwarié or Saryupari, a
sub—caste of Kanaujia Brahmans
and Telis in Behar.

Sarwat, a section of Kanau-
jia Lohars in Behar.

Sarwe, a section of Babhans
in Behar.

Sésani or Srotriya, a sub-
caste of Utkal Brahmans in
Orissa.

Sésankhar, a section of
Kamis in Dar] 11mg.

Sésmal, a title of Suklis and
Kaibarttas in Midnapur.

SATAL.

Satal. a thar or sept of‘the
Bérah-Gurung sub-tribe of Gu-
rungs in Darjiling.

Saténandkhéni. a me! or
hypergamous sub-group of Rérhi
Brahmans in Bengal.

Satapasti. Satpati,a group of
the Srotriya sub-caste of Utkal
Brahmans.

Satarwér, a mu! or section of
the Kanaujié. sub-caste of Haj -
jams in Behar.

Satcha’sd, a synonym for Sad-
gop in Bengal.

Séteswari, a gdin of the Set
barna gotm of Rarhi Brahmans
in Bengal.

Sétgharié, a sub-caste of Na-
pits in Bengal.

Saigop, a synonym for Sadgop
in Bengal.

Sat Gosain, a sub-sect of
Vaishnavas recruited from the
higher castes and distinguished
for their proselytising zeal.

Séthiet, a mu! or section of
the Naomulia or Majraut sub-
caste of Goalés in Behar.

Sétisé, a sub-caste of Dhobas
in Central Bengal.

Sétlakshe—Sataur, a mu! of
the Késyapa section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Sétlakshe-Sétlaksha, a mu!
of the Kasyap section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Sétling, a sept of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Satola, a thar or section of
Nepali Brahmans.

Sétorié, a section of Goalas
in the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Satré, a section of Sunris in

Behar.

240

 

SAUDARPURAI-HAN SAULI.

Sétsaikiyé. a sub-caste of
Aguris in Western Bengal.

Satsudra, a group of castes
from whose hands a Brahman
can take water.

Sétté; a section of Patnis in
Eastern Bengal.

Sattyal, a tkar or section of
Nepali Brahmans

Sétun, a title of Barhis in
Behar.

Satya, truth, a section
Jugis.

Séu, a section of Goélés
Behar.

Sau or Chalita-Sau, a sub-
caste of Sunris in Western
Bengal.

Sauar, a mul or section of the
Maghayé sub-caste of Kéndus in
Behar.

Saubarnia, a
Babhans in Behar.’

Sauchand, a sub-caste of Kur-
mis in Behar.

Saudé Béek, a mul or section
of the Satmuh'a or Kishnaut sub-
caste of Groélés in Behar.

Saudarpuréi Mahié, a mu!
of the Sandil section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Saudarpuréi-Katké, a mu! of
the Séndil section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Saudarpuréi-J agaur, a. mu! of
the Séndil section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Saudarpurai-Sarso, a mu’ of
the Seindil section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Saudarpuréi-Suket, a mul of
the Séndil section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Saudarpuréi-Hansauli, a med
of the Séndil section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

of

in

section of

SAUDARPURA’I-KHOIR.

Saudarpuréi-Khoir, a mad of
the Séndil section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Saudarpuréi-Digaun, a mul,

of the Séndil section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.
Saudarpuréi—Kanhauli, a mul
of the Séndil section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.
Saudarpuréi-Ménik, a mu! of
the Séndil section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.
Saudarpurai-Rohar, a mu! of
the Séndil section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.
Saudarpuréi-Sundar, a mnl
of the Séndil section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.
Saudarpuréi-Dhaul, a mnl
of the Séndil section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar
Saudarpuréi-Baghét, a mu!
of the b‘éndil section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.
Saudarpuréi-Gaul, a mul of
the Séndil section of Maithil
Brahmans-in Behar.

Sauié, a sept of Hos in Sing-
bhum.

Saukélin, a section of Brah-
mans and of Kayasths in Bengal.

241

 

SAVAR.

Saul, ﬁsh, a sept of Pans in
Chota Nagpur.

Séulok, a general term for
members of the Séha or Sum'i
caste. '

Saunaka, a Kshatrwpeta gotm
or section of Brahmans. '

Sanndz'lm, a synonym for Sunri.

Saunt, a section of the Bans-
phor sub-caste of Doms in Behar,

Sauntia-Kandh, a sub-tribe
of Kandhs in Orissa.

Saupéyan, a section of Brah-
mans and of Kéyasths in Bengal.

Saur, a synonym for Savar;
a mu! or section of the Kanaujia
sub-caste of Sonérs and of
Goalas in Behar; a totemistic
section of Kharias and Turis
signifying a ﬁsh; a totemistic sept
of Doms and Chamars in Chota

‘Nagpur.

Sauréstriya, a sub-caste of
Brahmans found in Behar.

Sauriya, a sub-caste of Man-
liks in Chota Nagpur.

Saursambér, a section of the
Sétmulia Maghaya sub-caste of
Kandus in Behar.

$3h3t,‘ Saber, Saw, Sar, Sagar, Suir, Swim", a Dravidian

Traditions of origin.

cultivating and servile tribe of Orissa, Chota
Nagpur, Western Bengal, Madras, and the

Central Provinces. Colonel Dalton regards them as Dravidian,2
while Friedrich Muller,3 General Cunningham,4 and Mr. R. Cust,5

 

1 “ The origin of the name of Samara,” says General Cunningham, “ must
be sought for outside the language of the Aryans. In Sanskrit savqra
simply means a ‘ corpse.’ From Herodotus, however, we learn the Scythian
word for an ‘ axe’ was sagaris ; and as g and v are interchangeable letters,
savar is the same word as sagar. It seems therefore not unreasonable to infer
that the tribes who were so called took their name from their habit of carrying
axes. N ow it is one of the striking peculiarities of the Savaras that they are
rarely seen without an axe in their hands. This peculiarity has been frequently
noticed by all Who have seen them.”—Arckwological Survey, xvu, 113.

2 Ethnology of Bengal, p. 149.

3 Allgem. Ethnog.,462.

4 Ac/ueolog. Survey, vol. xvii, p. 122.

5 Modern Languages of ﬂu? East Indies, p. 85.

SAVARF 242

place them on linguistic grounds in the Kolarian group of tribes.
The evidence from language, however, is meagre and inconclusive; ‘
while on the other hand it is tolerably certain that the Savers,
Scattered and partially Hinduised as they are, represent the main
body of an ancient race, an isolated fragment of which survives in
the Male or Saur of the Rajmahal hills: The Savars are usually
identiﬁed with the Suari and Sabarai mentioned by Pliny1 and
Ptolemy. 2 General Cunningham shows in the paper referred to above
that the tribe is very widely diffused at the present day; and local
tradition ascribes to the Savars the conquest of the Cheros, and their
expulsion from the plateau of Shahabad, in about the year 421 of
the salivahana era, or A.D. 500. A number of ancient monuments
in the Shahabad district are still put down to the Savars or
Suirs, who are supposed to have been driven south by the in-
road of Réjputs under the Bhojpur chief, which made an end of
their rule. -

A good observer3 describes the Savaras near -Mahendragiri in
Ganjam as small but wiry, often very dark in
colour and sometimes quite black, which agrees
with Stirling’s account.4 “ Their hair is generally tied in a top-knot,
and sometimes it is cut short over the forehead, two long locks being
permitted to hang over the ears. A few individuals have frizzled
shocks, with which no such arrangement is attempted. Most of the
men have small, square beards. The nose is in general broad, with .
wide nostrils. Of those races in Bengal with whose appearance I am
familiar, they reminded me most strongly of the Bhumij, who belong
to the Munda family; but I could also perceive in them some points
of resemblance to the Dravidian Paharias of the Rajmahal hills.
They have not, however, the manly bearing and good physique of
the latter .......... Their manner of dancing resembles that
of the Rajmahal Paharias, as I have on one occasion witnessed it,
rather than that of either the Santals or Kols.”

The exogamous septs current among the Savars of Bankura are
shown in Appendix I. The totems Sélmachh
and Késibak OCCur also among the Bégdis and
several other Dravidian races of Western Bengal. The eponyms
Gargarishi and Séndilya a pear to have been borrowed from the
Brahmanical system. The avars of Orissa are said to have no
septs, and it is possible that the Bankura branch of the tribe may
have picked up their totemistic septs locally. The case of the
Telingas (see article on that caste) rather bears out this view.
Mention has been made in the article on the Male tribe of the
remarkable fact that they have no exogamous divisions, and regulate
marriage by the more modern system of counting prohibited degrees.
It follows from this that the section-names 0f the Savars throw no
light upon their connexion with the Male. Mr. W. B. Oldham,

Physical characteristics.

Internal structure.

 

1 Nat. Hm, vol. vi, 23. “ Suari, quorum Mons Mallus.”

5‘ Ptolemy VII, 1, 80. Lassen states that Karkaradama, the most
western of the cities of the Sabarai, was probably somewhere in Singbhum.

3 V. Ball Jungle Life in India, 1). 267.

‘ Stirling, Orissa, p. 42.

243 SAVAR-

however, considers the two tribes to be one and the same, and this
View may, I think, he accepted as correct.

The Savars of the Orissa Tributary States are divided into four
sub-tribes—Bendkar, Pariré, dharué, and Palli—which are strictly
endogamous. The origin of the names is obscure, but it seems
possible that both Palli and Pariré may have some reference to
the practice of using leaves as clothing. Varaha Mihira, quoted by
General Cunningham, speaks of the Parna or leaf-clad Savarasl ;
and a Savara messenger mentioned in the Katha Sarit Segara is
a described as carrying a bow in his hand “ with his hair tied up in
a knot behind with a creeper, black himself and wearing a loin
cincture of vilwa leaves.”

Girls may be married either as infants or after they have

M , attained the age of puberty. Infant-marriage
amage' is deemed the more respectable usage, but no
social stigma attaches to a family which is unable by reason of
poverty or any other cause to comply with the demands of fashion
on this point. Sexual license before marriage, though vehemently
condemned, is said to be tolerated, and if an unmarried girl becomes
pregnant her fault is condoned by marriage to the father of her child.
The Savars of Bankura observe a Hinduised ceremony, the binding
portions of'which are gotrdntar, or the transfer of the bride from her
own sept to that of the bridegroom, and the smearing of vermilion on
her forehead and the parting of her hair. In Orissa the ritual is
more simple, and appears to have been less affected by the inﬂuence
of Brahmanical usage. On the arrival of the bridegroom at the
bride’s house he is met by her female relatives, who greet him with
cries of [a la, and burn ghi, rice, areca nuts, turmeric, etc., in his
honour. This is followed by a curious practice, called se/ca, believed
to be peculiar to the Savars, in which the bridesmaids warm the tips
of their ﬁngers at a lamp and press them on both cheeks of the
bridegroom. The couple then pass on towards the bedi, a raised
platform of earth, in the courtyard of the house, stopping on the
way to sprinkle each seven times 'with a mixture of mustard seed and
salt. On reaching the [Jedi they make two and a half turns round
a pot of water, in which are mango leaves, after which an elder of the
tribe, nominated as priest for the occasion, makes them sit down side
by side, and binds their hands together with durba grass and leaves
of the borkoli plum tree. This is the closing and essential part of the
ceremony. The bride-price varies with the means of the families.
Among the Bendkar Savars, according to Colonel Dalton, it comprises
two bullocks—one for the girl’s father and another for her maternal
uncle—and a cloth and one rupee presented to her mother.

Polygamy is permitted, and no theoretical limit is set to the
number of wives a man may have Few Savars, however, indulge
in more than two, and usually a second wife is oniy taken in the
event of the ﬁrst being barren. In Orissa (but not in Bankura),
a widow may marry again, and is ordinarily expected to marry her

1 Professor Kern identiﬁes the Parna Savaras With the Phyllitae of
Ptolemy, but explains the name to mean " feeding upon leaves," which seems
improbable.

q 2

SAVAR. V 244

ﬁrst husband’s younger brother or cousin. No compulsion, however,
is exercised in the matter: and a. widow may marry any one she '
pleases, provided that she returns to her father’s house and remains
unmarried for a year after her ﬁrst husband’s death. N0 regular
ceremony is ordained for use on such occasions, and the union is
celebrated by a feast given to the relations of both parties. Divorce
is permitted for adultery or any other serious conjugal offence.
The case is 00nsidered by the members of the husband’s family,
who, if they ﬁnd it impossible or unadvisable to effect a reconciliation
between the parties, formally escort the woman to the house of her
father or guardian and leave her there. Divorced wives may marry
again in the same manner as widows.

The Savars of Bankura have become thoroughly Hinduised,
and Brahmans serve them as priests in the
worship of the standard gods. These Brah-
mans are received on equal terms by the mwohits of Bagdis, Koras,
Kewats, and other low castes. In Orissa the original faith of the
tribe has been less modiﬁed by the inﬂuence of Hindu usage. The
worship of the Brahmanical deities is indeed gaining ground among
them, but the elder gods, Thénpati, who dwells in the t/win or
sacred grove of the village, and “ Bansuri or Thékuréini, no doubt
the same as the blood-thirsty she-devil revered by the Bhuiyas,”1
still receive offerings of goats or fowls at the hands of the elders of
the community, who have not yet been supplanted in their ofﬁce by .
the professional Brahman.

The Orissa Savars recognize both burial and cremation as proper
modes of disposing of the dead. The Bankura
branch of the tribe only burn, and perform the
ceremony of srdddk more or less in accordance with regular Hindu
usage.

The Savars believe their original condition to have been that of
a wandering tribe, roaming through the hills
of Orissa and Chota Nagpur, living on the
fruits of the forest and acknowledging the rule of no recognized
chief. The memory of this primitive state is almost the only
tradition which the tribe still preserve, and it can hardly be doubted
that this primitive mode of life must have lasted, at any rate among
some branches of the Savars, down to comparatively recent times.

The bulk of the tribe have taken to plough cultivation and
massed themselves in regular villages; but the Bendkars of Keunjhar
still adhere in the main to the nomadic habits which their traditions
describe. An interesting account of this branch of the Savers was
given in 1842 by Colonel Tickell, of the South-Wrest Frontier Agency,
who found theminhabiting a tangled tract of hill and forest bounded
on the north and north-east by the cultivated land of the Ho com-
munities or Mrs of Kotgarh and Bar. They had lost their primitive
dialect, and Spoke either H0 or Uriya. . In physical appearance they
resembled the Bhuiyas of that part of the country, and were fair,

Religion.

Disposal of the dead.

Occupation.

 

 

‘ Dalton. Ethnology, p. 149. Thakuraini, it should be stated, is the name
of a range of hills in the north of Keunjhar.

245 SAVAR.

well-made, and intelligent. They worshipped Kali, with several minor
tutelary deities. In matters of food they appear to have been rather
exclusive. A Bendkar would take water from a Ho, but would not
eat with him, nor would he touch any food that had been cooked by a
Hindu. Their material condition was extremely poor. They possessed
no cattle, and only a few fowls. The houses were mere hovels, not
massed together in villages, but dotted about on the hillside in
separate groups of two or three, like those of Birhors in Palamau.
The crops usually cultivated were maize, high-land rice (90m dlzdn),
and gram (clumd), which were grown in straggling ﬁelds formed by
banking up the hillside water-courses. Edible jungle products were
largely used for food, and frequently made up an entire day’s sub-
sistence. They paid no rent for their land, but were liable to be
called upon for begdm' or gratuitous labour by the Raja of Kalikapra-
sad in Keunjhar. Their funeral ceremony consisted in simply burn-
ing the dead body; they did not collect the ashes from the pyre, nor
did they, like the Kols, destroy any of the deceased person’s property
with his corpse.

In writing of the same people Colonel Daltonl specially notices
their style of dancing :——“ The girls dance
with their heads covered, bodies much inclined,
and faces looking to the ground or to their feet, which have to
perform a somewhat intricate step; the right hand holds down at
arm’s length the portion of the dress that is thrown over the head.
The men, playing on tambourines or half drums, sing as they dance.
The girls appear too intent on their steps to respond to them; but
their peculiar attitude in the dance, the steps, and the melody, are
the same for all Bhuiyas, and are unmistakeable characteristics of
the race from the Ganges to the Mahanadi. The Kolarian dances
are quite different.” It seems to me that the argument from
similarity of custom to tribal afﬁnity has in this case been pressed too
far. Subject races everywhere have not been slow to imitate the
usages of the dominant people with whom they were brought into
contact, and the Savars have been too long under the virtual control
of the Bhuiyés for it to he at all surprising that they should have
adopted the dances characteristic of the latter. The Kolarian races,
on the other hand, have either maintained their isolation and inde-
pendence or have been brought in contact only with Hindus, whose
ideas on the subject of dancing would certainly not commend them-
selves to a sociable non-Aryan community.

Regarding the Bendkar methods of agriculture, Colonel Dalton.“
observes—“When ﬁrst I saw the Bendkar
hand-plough it was of wood,—only a branch
out with a large piece of the stem, from which it sprung attached,
and that shaped so as to give it the appearance of a miniature Native
plough; but they have improved on this, and now insert a piece of
iron as a share, in further imitation of the Native plough. The
implement answers well enough in preparing for seed the light

Dancing.

Mode of agriculture.

 

' Ethnology of Bengal, p. 150.
2 Ditto, p. 152.

SAVAR. 246 SEBAKA.

vegetable mould of the forest, to which they conﬁne their cultivation ; .
but in a stiﬁ clay it would be inoperative. The hill Bendkars
cultivate kangm‘ (Panicum Italicum), Ic/wri, lchodo (Eleusine coracana)
or mamd, gangoi makm‘ (Zea mays) or maize, a species of coxcomb,
the seeds of which they eat, a cereal called 827w, and a large bean,
Which is intoxicating or acts as an emetic if eaten raw, but is pleasant
and wholesome when well cooked; also uric]. They have ordinarily
no rice cultivation. They know well and use all the spontaneous
edible productions of the forests, and showed me some wild yams,
which they largely consume; they take an immensity of cooking.”
Here the suggestion seems to be that the Bendkar plough was
consciously shaped in imitation of the implement commonly in use in
India. It is, however, possible, and I think on the whole more
probable, that it represents the earliest form of the Indian plough—a
type which, though improved out of all recognition in the plains, may
still be traced back to the clumsy wooden hoe which the Bendkar
drags after him through the light ashes of his plot of j/mm land.

The social position of the Orissa Savars, like that of many
non-Aryan tribes, does not admit of precise
deﬁnition. Hindus alone are recognized
members of the caste system, and the Savars have not yet come to be
admitted as members of the Hindu community, though their
promotion to that position cannot long be deferred. Their ﬁrst
step will doubtless be to provide themselves with Brahmans, as the
Savars of Bankura have already done. The latter aﬁect to maintain
a high standard of ceremonial purity, and will not take cooked food
from the hands of any one except a Brahman. Their pretensions,
however, are not admitted by their neighbours, and at present their
social rank is certainly not higher than that of Bagdis, Lohars,
Koras, and similar castes who hang on the outskirts of the Hindu
social system.

The following table shows the number and distribution of the

Savar tribe in 1872 and 1881 :—

Social status.

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.

 

_________‘_____.__———,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

' .. ...... 1,462 Tributary States, Orissa... 36,845 20,871
$333111“ 16.589 20,217 Singbhum 277 494.
Puri .. 14,179 17,238 Manbhum ...... 197
Balasore 446 692 Tributary States 106 190

Savar-Munda, a sub-tribe of Sag/M, a synonym for Savar.
Mundas in Chota Nagpur. . ,

. t f G d . Sebak, a title of the so-called
C Sawﬁnl, a sep 0 on s in pure Sudras who perform per-
hota agpur. sonal servme for Brahmans.

Séwant, a section of the Maga- Sebaka or Murhia a group
. , - ' , i
11‘” sub Wt" 0f Dom “1 Behar' of the Panda sub-caste of Utkal
Sawdsi, a synonym for Pain. Brahmans.

SEDUAH. 247 SEN GRA .‘
Seduah, a Sept of Limbus in

Segul, a se t of Réjputs in
Darjiling. p

Behar.

Sejagé, a grim of the Sandilya.
gotra of Rérhi .Brahmans in
Bengal. .

Sek0wa, a sept of Chakmas
in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Sekré, a synonym for Sarnakér,

Sege. a sept of Chakmas in the
Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Segmang, a thar or sept of
the Bérah-Grurung sub-tribe of
Gurungs in Darjiling.

$2hti, a sweeper caste of Eastern Bengal, now converted to
Islam and admitted to worship in the mosque and to the privilege
of burial in the public graveyard. With their conversion the
Sekris have abandoned their original occupation and now taken
to cultivation and to the manufacture of lucifer matches, or rather
spills of wood tipped with sulphur. All of them assume the title
Shaikh, of which Sekri may perhaps be a derivative. Their

personal names

from the month in Which they were born.
and Shaikh Itwari are common appellations.

Sekwahdeng, a sept of Lim-
bus in Darjiling.

Sem, a title of Kaibarttas in
Bengal.

Semanohangiar, a sept of
Lohars in Chota Nagpur.

Semérbér, a sub-caste of Bel-
dérs in Behar.

Seméri, a sub-caste of Kai-
barttas and Gronrhis in Behar.

Semarkanda, root, a sept of
Mundas in Ohota Nagpur.

Semarwér, a sub-caste of

Nuniés in Behar.

Semerya, a sub-caste of Barais
in Behar.

Semraién, a section of

Babhans in Behar.

Sen, a family title of Siddha
Baidyas, Baruis,and Mayaras; of
Dakshin-Rarhi and Bangaja
Kayasths and of Subarnabaniks;
of Béitis, Sénkhéris, and of Tam-
bulis in Bengal.

 

are generally taken from the day of the week, or

Thus Shaikh Ramazan

Senapat, a section of Maghaiya
Kumhérs in Behar.

Senapati, general, a group of
the Srotriya sub-caste of Utkal
Brahmans; a title of Khandaits
in Orissa.

Senbhumié, a sub-caste of
Telis in Western Bengal.

Sendara-Nagasia. a Sub-tribe
of Nagesars who use sindur at
marriage.

Senduriér, apur or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Sene, a sept of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Senel, a dugu or section of the
Kochh-Mandai in Dacca. The
name indicates the original
habitat of the group, probably a
hill or village in Assam, and has
no bearing upon marriage.

Sengér, a sept of the Chandra-
bansi division of Raj puts in
Behar. ,

Sengra, horse, a totemistic sept
of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

 

SEN IHANG. 248

6':

Senihang, sons Lof the snow-
chief, a sept of the Phedab sub-
tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.

Senpurié, a section of Banc-
dhia and J aiswar Kalwars 1n

Behar.

Senthé, a sept of the Rautar
sub-tribe of Thérus in Behar.

Seonéréyani, a religious sect
found in Behar. See Sivndrdzm.

Seornié, a sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Sepéri, a sub-caste of Groélés
in Behar.

Serhar, a kind of bird, a to-
tcmistic sept of Mundas in Chota.

Nagpur.

Serling. the thief, a sept. of
the Yangorup sub-tribe of LED--
bus in Darjiling.

Serma, rent-collector, a sept of
the Panthar sub-tribe of Limbus
in Darjiling.

Serwa, a section of Mangars
in Darjilin g.

Set, Seth, a chief merchant,
from Sanskrit sreshtha, ‘best’ or
‘ chief,’ (i) a title of Telis; (ii) a
leading banker or trader among

the Marwari Baniyés, usually
J ains; (iii) a section of the Oswal

Baniyés.

Set or Set-télwér, a section of
the Charjati sub-caste of Kha-
tris in Bengal.

Setarapa. dog-eater, a totem-
istic sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

Seth, a section of the Banodhia
and J aiswér Kalwars in Behar.

Setisurwél. a thar or sept of
Mangers in Darjiling.

 

‘ SHEHEDPURIA.

Setu, a gdz’n of the Sébarna.
gotm of Bérendra Brahmans in
Bengal.

Setu-Suruél, a section of
Kamis in Darjiling.

$1211“, people of different
lower castes in Central Ben-
gal who extract the juice of the
date-palm and prepare molasses
from it. See Siuli.

Sewar, moss, a totemistic sept
of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Shahé, a sub-caste of Sunris
in; Eastern Bengal who have
given up their original and taken

~ to other professions, and thereby

raised themselves above their
caste brethren who sell wine, so
that at present they consider the
Sunris to be a caste different
from, and considerably inferior
to, them.

Shdlm, a synonym for Sunri.
Shéhé, see Séhé.

Shéhi Ugrakhatri, a sub-caste
of A’guris in Western Bengal
bearing the title Shah.

Shaini, a dugu or section of
the Kochh-Mandai in Dacca.

Shakya Lama, a thaw or sept
of Gurungs in Darjiling.

Shalankyana, a gotm or sec-
tion of the Baidya caste in
Bengal.

Shang—dah-bo, a mi or sept
of the Tongdu sub-tribe of
Dejong Lhoris, whose ancestor
was born at his maternal uncle’s
when some tutelary deities were
being propitiated.

Sizdm', a synonym for Bhét.

Shehedpuria, a section of
Maghaya Dhobis in Behar.

SHELO.

Shelo. sub-tribe of the Bhumij
tribe in Chota Nagpur who are
iron-smelters. '

Sheo, 3. Mar or sept of Man-
gars in Darjiling‘.

Sheor, ﬁsh, a totemistic sept
of Kharwars in Chota Nagpur.

Sherbé Khor. a section of
Murmis in Darjiling.

Shergarhié, a sub-caste of
Lohars in the Santal Parganas.

Shewa, a thar or sept of
Damis in Darjiling, whose chief
profession is sewing.

Shikhu Karmakér, a sub-
caste of Kamars in Noakhali.

Sikkhdar, Ski/calm, Sikdar, a
title of Sudras in Eastern Bengal ;
an honorary title of Kayasths
and Napits in Bengal; an
ofﬁcer in charge of a shz‘kk or
ﬁscal division under the Mahom-
edan revenue system; a title of
Brahmans, possibly of families
descended from some one who
held the ofﬁce of shikdar; a title
of Kapalis and Sunris.

Shirasina, a sub-caste of

Sunris in Maldah.

Shoélyié, a sept of Chakmas
in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Shushiché, a tkar or sept of
Sunuwars in Darjilin g.

Shyag—ch om-bo, a mi or sept
of Dejong Lhoris, the members
of which are the descendants of

emigrants from Bhotan and
Nepal.

Shyag—ding—pé. or Shyag—
tshang—pé, a mi or sept of the

Rui—chhung sub-tribe of Dejong
Lhoris or Bhotias of the south.

Shyag—tsangpé, a mi or sept
of Dejong Lhoris, the members

249

 

SIDDHI-PUTRA.

of which form the lowest class of
Bhotias.

Shyah-pé, a mi or sept of
Dejong Lhoris whose ancestor
had emigrated from North
Bhotan.

Shyang-ba, a mi or sept of
Sherpa Bhotias of Nepal.

Siér, jackal, a totemistic sec-
tion of Kurmis in Chota Nagpur
and Orissa ; a sept of Asuras.

Siérahé, a section of the

Banodhia and Jaiswar Kalwars
in Behar.

Siéri k, a gdin of the Sébarna
gotra of Barhi Brahmans in
Bengal.

Siér Tino, jackal, atotemistic
sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Sibala, a sub-sept of the Besra
sept of Santa-ls.

Sibingére, a sept of the Ag-
nia sub-tribe of Meches in the
Darjiling Terai.

Sib-rési, a section of Males
in Eastern Bengal.

Siddh, a t/zar 0r sept of Gru-
rungs in Darjiling.

Siddha, a hypergamous group
of the Barendra Kayasths in
Bengal.

Siddhal, a gdz’n of the Sébar-
na gotm of Rarhi Brahmans in
Bengal. '

Siddha-Maulik, a hypergam-«
ous group of the Dakshin-Rarhi
Kayasths in Bengal.

Siddha-Srotriya, a hypergam-
ous group of Rarhi Brahmans
in Bengal.

Siddhi-putm, a synonym for
Bhuinmali.

SIDHPUR.

Sidhpur, a mu! or section of
the Chhamulié Madhesi-é. sub-
caste of Halwéis in Behar.

Sidhyél, a Mar or section of
Nepali Brahmans.

Sidup or Siduk, a bundle of
straw, a sub-sept of the Saren.
sept of Stutals.

Sigadié, a section of Goalas
in the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Sihari, a Min of the Séndilya
gotm of Barendra Brahmans in
Bengal.

Sihésme-Khor, a mu! of the
Séndil section of Maithil Brah-

mans in Behar.

Sihasme-Sihésam, a mul of
the Sandil section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Sihogié, a section of Babhans
and a sept of Rajputs in Behar.

Sihorié, a section of Babhans
in Behar.

Sihujié, a section of Babhans
in Behar.

Sijapati, a ﬂaw or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Sikal gar, a section of the Mag-
hayé. sub-caste of Barhis in
Behar; a title of Lohars 0r
Kémérs.

Sikéri, a section of Kumhars
in Singbhum.

Sikéuriér, a par or section of
sakadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Sikbandhera, a section of the
Ariar sub-caste of Bais Baniyas
in Behar.

Sikcharo, a bird, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Chota Nag-
pur.

250

 

SIKRA.

Sikdér, a sept of Mel Pahé-
rias; a hypergamous group of
Kaibarttas in Bakarganj.

Sikharié, a sub-caste ofBauris,
Karangas, Koras, and Kurmis in
Chota Nagpur, who derive their
name from Sikharlohum, the tract
of country north of the Damudar
river, corresponding roughly to
the limits of the Pachet estate.
In this connexion it deserves
notice that Samet Sikhar is an old
name for Parasnath Hill, which is
conspicuously visible from every
part of Sikharbhum, and may
almost be looked upon as forming
the western boundary of the
tract. ‘ See Statistical Account of
Hazaribagh, p. 217. In the
case of the Bauris, the Sikharia
sub-caste is also called Gobarié,
which may perhaps have some
reference to gobar, ‘oow-dung,’ as
Bauri women earn money by
making the cow-dung cakes used
for fuel ; a sub-caste of Rajwars,
and of Doms in South Manbhum.

Sikharié or Sindurtopé, a.
sub-caste of Telis in Western
Bengal.

Sikhariyé or Memo, 9. sub-tribe
of Bhumijs in Ghota Nagpur.

Sikhorié, a sub-caste of Sun-
ris in Behar who deal in liquor.

SikhWéd, a section of Goalés
in the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Sikié, a mul or section of the
Chhamulia Madhesia sub-caste of
Halwais in Behar.

Sikilgar, a cleaner of weapons.

Sikiyé, chain, a sub-sept of
the Murmu sept of Santals.

Sikré, hawk, a totemistic
sept of Mundas and Pains 1n
Chota Nagpur.

SIKRAR. 251 ' SILA’RL

Sikrar, a pangat or section of Tantis in Bengal; ‘a section of
Bénsphor Doms in Behar. Oswell Baniyés in Behar.

Sil, a title of Subarnabaniks
and Napits; of Dakshin Rarhi Silaichié, a section of Sonars
and Bangaja Kayasths and of in Behar.

§iléri (Sansk. Sild, a stone), a magician employed in Eastern
Bengal to protect crops from hailstones. Formerly the Silari, like
the Garapagari of the Central Provinces, was a paid village servant;
and ofﬁciated as priest at an annual festival performed for the beneﬁt
of the crops. Now the festival has fallen into disuse, and a member
of any caste may become a Siléri, being remunerated in kind—it is
unlucky to give him money—according to the success of his enchant-
ments. Chandals, J ogis, and Bairagis are the ordinary Siléris, but
a Muhamadan often acts as one, his co-religionists believing as
implicitly in this occult science as their Hindu brethren.

“ At the present day,” says Dr. Wise, “ this magical art is falling
into disrepute, and it is no unusual thing for the peasantry to
punish a Silari who fails to protect their ﬁelds. The Silaris confess
that their skill is inadequate to call down a storm on a neighbour’s
crop, as was formerly done; but they still profess ability to drive
away a cloud threatening any tract of country.

“ As hailstorms in Bengal occur usually in March and April,
when the Boro-dhan, or spring rice, is in the ear, the services of
the magician are called for in low lands, where this crop is cultivated.
When a storm is impending the Silari, summoned by the peasantry,
rushes, almost naked, from his hut, with a rattan wand in his right
hand. Invoking Parameswara, the supreme god, he ascends a
mound, where, spreading abroad his hands, and waving his rod to
indicate the direction the storm-cloud is to take, he recites one or
other of the following doggerel incantations in the vernacular :—

I.

0 Narasinha! Narasinha! mighty Narasinha! whom the four-
teen gods fear ;

On hearing the name Narasinha the gods and spirits bend their
heads ;

My Guru’s name is Hira. Wherever you go that quarter of
the world is subdued, ‘

Whether it consists of hills or mountains, trees or jungle.

Should this charm of mine fail, Mahadeva’s hair will be up-
rooted and fall off.

II.

Diamonds cut stones.

Rivers retire before them.

A. gold knife is keen as a diamond.

I have cut it this day into thirty-two.
Begone to the mountains of the north
Having paid you tribute to the south.
Having scattered you, I go home.
My name is $iva Sankara.

SILA’RI. 252

SINGDIA’R.

' 'j‘The above metrical rhapsody was obtained from Rai Chand
Ba1rag1,. a celebrated Silari, residing at Shamgaon, in Tippera .”

Silewér a sept of Ré' uts
in Behar. ’ JP

Silhatia or Sirotia, a sub-
caste of Dosadhs in Behar.

Silhotia or Jeswar Emmi, a
sub-caste of Dhanuks in Behar
who call themselves Kuhn.

Silli, a sept of the Pater sub-
caste of Mahilis called after the
ancestral burying place of the
group ; a kind of ﬁsh, a totemistic
sept of Korwas and Pans in ,Chota
Nagpur.

Silongchhé, a tbar or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.

Silothéer, a section of Maj -
raut Goalas in Behar.

Simalwél, a section of Groélas

in the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Simar, a section of Kamér-
kalla Sonars in Behar.

Simarlésé, a tree, a totemistic
section of Ghasis in Chota Nag-
pur. '

Simarloké, a sub-caste of
Ghésis in Chota Nagpur.

Simbi, a gdin of the Bharad-
waja gotra of Barendra Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Simkhéré, a tkar or section of
Nepali Brahmans.

Simléi, a gdin of the Kasyapa
and Batsya gotms of Rérhi Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Simli, a gdin of the Batsya
gotm of Barendra Brahmans in
Bengal.

Sinégar, a mu! or section of

the Chhamulié. Madhesié. sub-
caste of Halwais in Behar.

 

Sincheuli, a thar or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Sinchiori, a section of Kamis
in Darjiling.
Sindhikurié, a totemistic sept

of Pans in Chota Nagpur Who
cannot touch the horns of a bull.

Sindhurishi, a section of Telis
in Bengal.

Sindhwatié, a section of
Bhats.

Sindur, a totemistic sept of
Mundas in Chota Nagpur who
do not use vermilion in mar-
riages.

Sindurié, Sindurhdr, a class
of Bania Who sell shadow or ver-
milion; also a class of Brahmans
or Kayasths Who formerly prac-
tised as inoculators, but are now
employed as vaccinators; a sub-
oaste of Mala in the Santél
Parganas.

Sindurié, a red paint, a sec-
tion of Binjhias; a sept of
Rajputs.

Sing, a title of Khambus and
Mangars in Darjiling.

Singé-ore, a section of Kamis
in Darjiling.

Singar, a section of Murmis
in Darjiling; a sept of Kaurs in
Chota Nagpur.

Singauri, a tkar or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Singden, a section of Mur-
mis in Darjiling.

Singdiér, a gdin of the Sébar-
na gotm of Barendra. Brahmans
in Bengal.

SIN GDYAN Gr.

Singdyang, a sept of Lep-
chas in Darjiling.

Singh, a title of Oswél Ban-
yas, Babhans, Goalas, Ksha-
triyas, Kurmis, and Rajputs in
Behar; a title of Subarnabaniks
in Manbhum. Intermarriage is
prohibited within the title. A
section and a title of Kayasths in
Behar; a section of Rajwars; a
sept of Mundas and Pans in
Chota Nagpur whose totem is
horn; a title of Tambulis in
Bengal.

Singhal, a gotm or section of
the Agarwals in Behar.

Singhéras, a section
Madhesia Halwéis in Behar.

of

Singhazéri, a sub-caste of
Sunris and Telis in Western
Bengal.

Singhi, ﬁsh, a sept of Péns
in Chota Nagpur; a section of
Oswals.

Singh-rési, a section of Malos
in Eastern Bengal.

Singhror, a section of Goria
Goalas in Behar.

Singi, horn, a totemistic sept
of Ohiks in Chota Nagpur.

Singjangkuk. a sept of Lim-
bus in Darjiling.

Singjuk, a sept of Limbus
in Darjiling.

Singogpa, a sept of the Phe-
dab sub-tribe of Limbus in Dar-
jiling.

Singpurié, a sept of Birhors
in Chota Nagpur.

Singyél, a ﬂaw or section of
Nepali Brahmans.

Sing-yangma, a sept of the
Phagu sub-tribe of Yakhas in
Darjiling.

253

 

 

SIRKIA’.

Sinha, lion, a. title of Khan-
daits in Orissa; of Kayasths and
Subarnabaniks in Bengal; of
Rajus in Midnapur.

Sinhi, a section of Kumhars
in Siughhum.

Sinhinié, a sept of Rajputs
in Behar.

Sinjali, a than- or sept of Man-
gars in Darjiling.

Sinjhikharié, a sept of Pans
in Chota Nagpur.

Sinjikuria, a sept of Chiks in
Chota Nagpur.

Sinkoi, a sept of Hos in Sing-
bhum.

Sipéhi, a title of Rajputs in
Behar.

Sipahiyé, a section of Bans-
phor Doms in Western Behar.

Sir, arrow, at totemistic sept of
Goalés in Chota Nagpur.

Siré, a section of Maghayé.
Kandus in Behar.

Sirasinthi, a gdz'n of the Bha-
radwaj a gotm of the Uttar-
Barendra Brahmans in Bengal.

Sirasthén, a
Kumhars in Pabna.

Siriér, a section of Babhans
in Behar.

sub-caste of

Sirkar, a section of the Bans-
phor sub-caste of Dome in Behar.

Sirkié, ‘the dweller in a. sirki
hut,’ a designation of Nats,
Bediyas, and other wandering
castes of the gipsy type, derived
from the materials of the tem-
porary huts which they build.

SIRMAUR.

Sirmaur, a sept of Rajputs in
Behar. ‘

Sirmauriér, a pm or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Sirnéit, asept of the Suraj-
bansi division of Rajputs in
Behar.

Sirnet, a sept of Réjputs in
Behar.

S i rn i 6, “a sept of the Surajbansi
division of Rajputs in Behar.

Siroté, a sub-caste of Dha-
nuks in Behar.

Sirpur, a section of the Tir-
hutiya sub-caste of Doms in
Behar.

Sirsait, a section of Babhans
in Behar.

Siruar, 13. sept of Birhors in
Chota Nagpur.

Sirwér, a section of the
Dhapra and Pachainya sub-castes
of Doms in Behar.

Sisab, a section of Karan
Kayasths in Behar.

Sisaundié, a section of Sonars
in Behar.

Sisaurié, a mul or section of
the Ayodhiébasi sub-caste of
Sonars in Behar.

Sisingi, a river ﬁsh with two
thorns on its head, a totemistic
sept. of Kumhars in Chota N ag-
pur.

Sisodhié, asept of Surajbansi
Rajputs in Behar.

Sisodié. a section of Goalas in
the North-Western Provinces and
Behar.

Sisonié, a sept of Rajputs in
Behar.

254

 

 

SKANDHA SURA.

Siso’tér, a mul or section of
the Chhamulia Madhesié. sub-
caste of Halwais in Behar.

Sisungi, ﬁsh, a sept of Mun-
das in Chota Nagpur.

Sisutbansi Loharia, a sub-caste
of the Lohar caste (iron-smith);
also called Lohondia.

Sit, a title of Telis in Bengal.

Sitali, a grim of the Sébarna
gotm of Barendra Brahmans in
Bengal.

Sitér-Dhobé, a sub-caste of
Dhobas in Eastern Bengal.

Sithung, a ﬂaw or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Siuli or Seu‘li, a sub-caste of
Héris in Bengal; 3. title of Chan-
dals, Doms, Haris andsimilar
lower castes, as well as Maho-
medans who extract juice from
date-trees for the manufacture
of gm‘, molasses, or toddy.

Siva, a section of the Mah-
mudébéz sub-caste of Népits; of
J ugis and Kapalis; of Rautias.

Siva-bansi, Siva/ml, a sync-
nym for, and a title of, Kochh or
Réjbansi, probably a vague term
for worshippers of Siva, in use
among natives of Kuch Behar,
many of whom claim to be
Sivabansi, descended from Siva.

Simdrdim‘, a worshipper of
Siva and Néréyan, a class of
religious sectarians who live a
secular life.

Siwarwér, a
Numés in Behar.

sub-caste of

Siyér, a section of the Par-
gah caste in Behar.

Skandhasum, a synonym for
Kandh.

SMA’R.

255 SONA’KA’NT.

Smér, Swar, a title of Sokhait, a sept of the Rautér
Dakshin-Rarhi and Bangaj a sub-tribe of Thérus in Behar.

Kay asths. Sokhwé, a sub-caste of Barais

Smatti, a sept of Pators in
Chota Nagpur.

Smritiratna, a literary title of
Brahmans.

Soa, a kind of vegetable, a
totemistic sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Soai, a bird, a totemistic sept
of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Sodsz‘, a synonym for Pain.

Sobarnarekhé, a sept of Mun-
das in Chota Nagpur.

Soberi, a ﬂaw of the Kausika
gotm of N epali Brahmans.

Sobhédih, a mu! or section
of the Naomulia or Majraut sub-
caste of Groélés in Behar.

Sobhni Tajpur, a mul or sec-
tion of the Naomulia or Majraut
sub-caste of Groélés in Behar.

Sochari, a section of Bais
Sonars in Behar.

Sodemba, the spy, a sept of
the Phedéb sub-tribe of Limbus
in Darjiling.

Soeka, a bush, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Chota Nag-
pur.

Sogani, a section of Saraogis
in Behar.

Sohagrémi, a gdz'n of the
Kasyapa gotm of Barendra Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Sohanpur, a section of the
Biyahut and Kharidaha Kalwars
in Behar

Sohek, a kind of ﬁsh. a totem-
istic sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

Sohidamochi, a
Chamérs or Muchis.

Soi, spring, a totemistic sept
of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

title of

 

in Behar.

Sokirié, a sub-caste of Sunris
in Behar.

Sokoe, a kind of fruit, 9.
totemistic sept of Mundas.

Sokulkéré, a sub-caste of
Rajwars in Chota Nagpur.

Solai, ﬁsh, a totemistic sept of
Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Soma, a family title of Kashta
Baidyas and Kayasths in Bengal.
_ Soméj, a hypergamous divi-
s1on of the Paschim Kuliyé.
Sadgops.
Somal, deer, a sub-sept of the
Kisku sept of Santals.

Sombansi, a sept 0f Rajputs
in Behar.

Somnidih Sagun Méhta
Purukh, a mu! or section of the
Naomulia or Majraut sub-caste
of Goélés in Behar.

Somrishi, a section of Maya-
rés in Bengal.

Somwér, a sept of the Suraj-
bansi division of Réjputs in
Behar.

Son, a title of Bangaja Kay-
asths ; a sub-sept of the Besré. sept
of Santals.

Soné, gold, a totemistic sec-
tion of Kurmis in Chota Nagpur
and Orissa; a totemistic sept of
Goalas in Chota Nagpur who
cannot wear gold.

Sonéchain, a section of the
Chain sub-caste of Nuniés in
Behar.

Sonai ba r, a section of B5 bhans
in Behar.

Sonéként, a section of the
Biyahut and Kharidahé Kal~
Wars in Behar.

SON AMAN . 256 SON AR.

.. Sonaman, a section of Kanau- Sonaome, a. sept of Lohars in
115. Lohars in Behar. ‘ ‘ Chota Nagpur.
- , Sonépur Sakarwér a mat or
am t . . ’ .
in Dirdta lilalgplfir sept 0f Pans sectlon of the satmulia or Kish-
' naut sub-caste of Goalas in Behar.

Sonémdih, a mall or section Sonar, goldsmith, a sept of
of the Naomulia or MaJraut sub- Bairagis and Kharwars in Chota
caste of Goalas in Behar. Nagpur who do not wear gold.

$011313 Kain, Kaz’nyd, Zargar, the goldsmith caste of Behar;
Tr d'tions of ori '11 also engaged to some eXtent in money'lending
a 1 g1 ' and general trade. Concerning the origin of
the caste little is known, and it appears to be an occupational group
consisting of the members of respectable middle-class castes who
adopted the business of working in the precious metals. Sonars are
not rich in traditions, and the few they have are of the ordinary
mythological type, and throw no light on the antecedents of the
caste. A common story is that in the beginning of time, when the
oddess Devi was busy with the construction of mankind, a giant
called Sonwa-Dwaitya, whose body consisted entirely of gold,
devoured her creations as fast as she made them. To bafﬂe this
monster the goddess created a goldsmith, furnished him with the
tools of his art, and instructed him how to proceed. When the
giant proposed to eat him, the goldsmith suggested to him that if his
body were polished his appearance would be vastly improved, and
asked to be allowed to undertake the job. With the characteristic
stupidity of his tribe, the giant fell into the trap, and having had
one ﬁnger polished was so pleased with the result that he agreed to
be polished all over. For this purpose, like (Eetes in the Greek
legend of Medea, he had to be melted down, and the goldsmith,
who was to get the body as his perquisite, giving the. head only to
Devi, took care not to put himtogether again. The goldsmith,
however, over-reached himself. Not content with his legitimate
earnings, he must needs steal a part of the head, and being
detected in this by Devi, he and his descendants were condemned to
be for ever poor.
The internal structure of the caste is shown at length in
Appendix I. Both sub-castes and sections
Internal Strucmre' belong to the local or territorial type, and their
names do not help us to trace a connexion between the Sonars and
other similar groups. The system of exogamy followed is Very
complete. A man may not marry a woman belonging to the same
section as (1) himself, (2) his mother, (3) his paternal grandmother,
(4) his maternal grandmother, (5) his father’s paternal grandmother,
(6) his father’s maternal grandmother. In applying this set of
prohibitions to any particular case, the sections of both parties are
taken into account ; so that if the proposed bride’s mother belonged
to the same section as the proposed bridegroom’s maternal grand-
mother, no marriage would be possible, although the parties them-
selves both belonged to different sections. The standard formula for

257 SON A’R.

calculating prohibited degrees is also taken into consideration down
to the seventh generation in the descending line.

All Sonars who can afford to do so marry their daughters as
infants; and when a girl’s marriage is delayed
after the age of puberty, poverty is usually the
sole cause. The marriage ceremony corresponds in all essential
particulars to that observed by the higher castes in Behar. In rich
families it is considered right for the bridegroom to go on horseback
to fetch the bride. Polygamy is permitted, but is rarely resorted to
except when the ﬁrst wife is childless. In the Kanaujia, Ajodhia-
puri, Mair, and Kamarkalla sub-castes widow-marriage is prohibited.
The other sub-castes allow a widow to marry again, and ordinarily
deem it incumbent on her to marry her late husband’s younger
brother. Among the Sonars of Chota Nagpur the custom of
widow-marriage is recognized in the devolution of property, which
proceeds per stirpes, the shares being so divided that the sons of
asagm' wife get six-sixteenths and those of a bihaz' wife ten-sixteenths
between them. In Behar the ordinary law of inheritance is followed
by the caste, but a daughter’s son is excluded from succession by the
nearest male of the same [ml or section. The sub-castes which
permit widow-marriage also allow divorce, which is effected with the
sanction of the panchayat when a woman is suspected of unchastity.

The religion of the Sonar caste differs little from that of other
orthodox Hindus of about the same standing in
society. Some Vaishnavas are found among
them; but most Sonars belong to the Sakta sect, and pay especial
reverence to Devi. The popular minor gods of Behar are also
worshipped. For the service of the (ii majores of the standard
Hindu Pantheon. Maithil or Tirhutié. Brahmans serve them as
priests, and are received on equal terms by other members of the
sacred order. In the cult of the minor gods, on the other hand,
traces of a more primitive state of things may perhaps be discerned.
Thus the offerings made to Goraia are the perquisite of the Dosadhs,
which looks as if the priests of the deity were at one time chosen
from that caste ; while the pakwdns or cakes given to Bandi are eaten
by the members of the family. Some Sonars worship a Mahomedan
7m, Shah Sharf—ud-din; and all oifer up silver images of Bandi
at marriages.

The dead are burned, and the standard ceremony of srdddh is
performed on the thirteenth day after death.
Libations for the beneﬁt of ancestors in general
are also presented in the ﬁrst fortnight of A'sin every year.

The social standing of the caste is respectable, and their practice

3 , in the matter of diet does not differ materially
patfffl Status and °°°u' from that of other orthodox Hindus in Behar.
Brahmans take water and sweetmeats from

the caste; while Sonérs themselves are on similar terms with Kewats,
Dhanuks, and Goalas. In former days, it is said, they wore
the sacred thread and abstained from spirituous drinks; but these
marks of distinction have now fallen into disuse. Their chief
occupations are working in metal, mostly in gold and silver,

7‘

Marriage.

Religion.

Disposal of the dead.

SONA’R. 258

money-changing (sardﬁ), and_kkickri-faroski or dealing in food-grains.
In parts of the country where rent is paid in kind on the bkdolz'
system, Kanaujia Sonars usually act as weighmen, and receive an
allowance of a quarter or half a seer to every maund weighed. A
few Sonérs. are landholders or cultivators themselves, but as a rule
the connexmn of the caste with agriculture is only the indirect one
of lendmg money to the raiyat. .

It 1s fair to add that the Sonar does not bear a high reputation
for honesty. As a goldsmith he is susPected of substituting base
metal for the gold or, silver supplied to him in order to be made up
1nto ornaments; as a money-lender he is charged with numberless
devices for extorting money from his clients. A fair idea of the
opinion held of the caste by the agricultural classes may be derived
from the following verses :—

Kainyd dub dubiyd
Suﬂwm le gai ngo Hedi

E/c Suthan memm'nud, Ice dehu
Sal) Sutkan mangd le/zu.

“ As he crossed the ford the Kainya was drowned,
The Babhan stole his gold mohars away:
Give one to the Judge, and if justice be found,
You will get all the others within the day.”

The story is that once upon a time a Sonar and a Bébhan went
forth from the same village to seek their fortunes. Both returned at
the same time and met on the road—~the Babhan almost penniless
and the Sonar with a bag full of gold mohars. As they were cross—
ing a river, the Babhan decided to drown the Sonar and steal his
money. The latter gave himself up to his fate, only asking his
murderer to repeat the foregoing verses as his last message to his
kinsfolk. The stupid Babhan did so, and thus himself furnished the
clue which led to the detection of the crime. The story aﬁords
a curious illustration of the popular estimate of the comparative
intellectual capacity of the castes concerned. A somewhat similar
tale, in which a Kayasth plays the part here assigned to the Sonar,
is quoted in the article on Gltiasi.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Sonérs in 1872 and 1881. In certain cases the ﬁgures of Sekrés
and Subarnabaniks seem to have been included in the Census
Reports.

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. l 1881. h DISTRICT. l 1872. i 1881.
Birbhum . .. ...... 715 Monghyr 13,348 18,167
Nadiya ...... 1 Bhagalpur 9,646 16,917
Dinajpur ...... 186 Purniah 9,419 8,000
Rangpur ...... 1 Maldah ...... 14
Pabna ... 20 Santal Parganas 3,758 4,281
Darjiling' ...... 505 Outtack 13,987
Kuch Behar ...... 16 Puri .. 5,990 832
Chittagong Hill Tracts ...... 7 Balasore . 4 297 671
Patna. 21,101 23,278 Tributary States 4,670 457
Gya 16,258 15,809 Hazaribagh 4,352 6.822.
Shahab'adM mﬁ 141,997 18,139 Lohardaga 3,302 4.495

- i ozu erpur 23,899 Singbhum 76 251
Tlrhut {Darbhanga i’ 34'7” i 16,988 Manbhum 1,812 2,553
Saran 20,157 21,472 Tributary States 1.290 1,304
Cnamparan 11,288 15,037

 

 

SON A'R.
Sondr, a synonyn for Sama-
kar or goldsmiths.

Sondrbam'ai,

Subarnabanik.

Sonérekhé, a sub-caste of
Korés in Chota Nagpur.

a synonym for

Sonarwa, a bird, a totem-
istic sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

Sonarwar, gold, a sept of
Kharwars in Chota Nagpur.

Sonaul, a mu! or section of
Kasarwani Baniyés in Behar.

Sonbesra, a bird, a totemistic
sept of Lohars in Chota Nagpur.

Sonbhadrié, a section of
Babhans in Behar, so named
after the village Sonbhadra; or
Who live on the banks of the
Son river.

Soncheri, a section of Kanau-
31a Sonars in Behar.

Sone, a totemistic sept of
Mundas in Chota Nagpur who
cannot wear gold.

Sonechaurupekedéndi, a mul
or sectlon of Kasarwani Baniyas
in Behar.

Sonerupekhibhri, a. mu] or
section of Kasarwani Baniyas in

Behar.

Sonewér, a [ml or section of
Babhans in Behar.

Son gbangph e, the new settler,
a sept of the Panthar and Phedab
sub-tribes of Limbus in Dar-
jiling.

Songden, a section of Mur-
mis in Darjiling.

Songyokpa, a sept of the

Phagu sub-tribe of Yakhas in
Darjiling.

259

 

SON PURYK.

Sonhar, a mu! or section of
the Chhamulia Madhesla. sub-
caste of Halwais and of Biyahut

g and Kharidaha Kalwars in Behar.

Soni, a section of the Bara-
jati sub-caste of Khatris in
Bengal; a section of Oswals and
Saraogis in Behar.

Soniyér. a pm or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in. Behar.

Sonkhare, a section of Kay-
asths in Behar.

Sonkharihan, a place of
worship before cutting grain, a.
totemistic sept of Mundas in
Ohota Nagpur.

Sonkhariké, a sept of Pans
in Chota Nagpur.

Sonkoka, a sept of Pans in
Chota Nagpur.

Son Maghaia, a sept of L0-
hars and Mundas in Chota. Nag-
pur.

Sonmain, a section of Ma-
ghaiyé. Kumhérs in Behar.’

Sonmanik, a sept of Chiks in
Chota Nagpur.

Sonoér, gold, a sept of Aga-
riés in Chota Nagpur.

Sonoéti, a sub-caste of Ghasis
in Chota Nagpur.

Sonpur, a section of the Tir-
hutiya sub-caste of Doms in
Behar.

Sonpuri, a sub-sect of Vaish-
navas.

Sonpurié, a section of Lohars
and Sonars in Behar.

Sonpursa, a section of the
Dhusié sub-caste of Chamzirs 1n
Behar.

Sonpurya, a section of the
Pachainya sub-caste of Doms 1n

Behar.
9' 2

 

SON TIRKi.

Son Tirki. a sept of'Lehars
and a sectlon of Goraits in Chota
Nagpur.

_ Sonwam a section of Ghasis
1n Chota Nagpur.

Sonwani, a totemistic sept of
Goalés, Nagesars, Who cannot
wear gold; a section of Cheros in
Chota Nagpur.

Sonwdr, a synonym for Sunu-
war.

Sonwasi, a sept of Chiks in
Chota Nagpur.

Sonyokpa, the guardian of
the new fort, a sept of Chaibisa
sub-tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.

So-onkobu, a resident of
So-onko, a sept of the Phedab
sub-tribe of Limbus in Darjil-
ing.

Sombm'yd, a
Surahiya.

Soraiyé, a section of Kanaujié
Brahmans.

Soranié, a section of Cheros
in Palamau.

Sorawér, a section of Babhans
in Behar.

Soriyér, a pm or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

synonym for

8080 bheloa, afruit-, a totem-
istic sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

Sote, Srotriya, a hypergam-
ous group of Maithil Brahmans

in Behar.

Sothéngeh, a thar or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.

Sothiwér, a section of Lohars
in Behar.

Sothung, name of a Village,
a sept of the Phedab sub-tribe of
Limbus in Darjiling.

Soti, a than“ or section of
Nepali Brahmans.

260

 

SRIKRISHN A.

Sotri. a title of Bébhans in
Behar.

SOWéni, a section of Mahesris
in Behar. ,

Sparshan, a title of Muchis in
Bengal.

Spashta Déya a, a sect of
Vaishnavas, said to have been
founded by one Rup Riam Kabi-
raj , a disciple of Krishna Chandra
Chakravartti of Saidabéd.

Srdvak, literally, a bearer; (i)
a lay member of the Jain religion ;
(ii) a Hinduised branch of J ains
in Manbhum who appear to have
lost their religion and become
an ordinary caste.

, Srévaka, a synonym for Sarak.
Srdu‘ak, a synonym for Sérék.
Sreshta-Khandait, a sub-

caste of Khandaits in the Orissa
Tributary States.

Srestikaran, (i) a title of
traders generally ; (ii) a title of
the Madhyasreni Brahmans of
Midnapur.

Sri, a sub-caste of Sutradhars
in Noakhali.

Sriangabhatti, a me! or hyper-
gamous sub-group of Rarhi
Brahmans in bengal.

Sribakarié, a section of Gonds
in Chota Nagpur.

Sribarddhani, a mel orhyper-
gamous sub-group of Barbi
Brahmans in Bengal.

Sribastab or Bdstar, a sub-
caste of Hajjams and Kayasths
in Behar.

Sribitié, a section of Madhesié
Kandus in Behar.

Sri-Gaura, a
Gaura Brahmans.

Srikrishna, a sub-caste of
Sutradhars in Noakhali.

sub-caste of

SRIMAL.
Srimal, a section of Oswals
in Behar.

Srimaurhé, a section of the
Banodhia and Jaiswar Kalwérs
in Behar.

Sringa, a ga’z‘n of the Bharad-
waja gotm of Bareudra Brahmans
, in Bengal.

Sringi. a gdm of the Sabarna
gotm of Barendra Brahmans in
Bengal.

Sripéli, a tlzar or sept of Man-
gars in Darjiling.

261

SUBARNABANIK.

Srutabati, a grim of the
Batsya gotm of Barendra Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Ssahoden, born in famine
time, a sept of the Tambrkhola
sub-tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.

Sser—Gomba, a mi or sept of
Sherpa Bhotias of Nepal.

Sser—Lungchan, a rm‘ or sept
of Sherpa Bhotias of Nepal.

Sserpa, a rm‘ or sept of Sherpa
Bhotias of Nepal.

Sser—Phen-Zangna, a mi or

Srisampad, a title of Brah- sept of Sherpa Bhotias of Nepal.
mans.

Srishlti-Karan, Bhatuntara,
a sub-caste of Karans in Orissa.

Srisrimal, a section of Oswals
in Behar.

Srotriya. a ‘hypergamous
division of the Rarhi and
Barendra Brahmans in Bengal.

Srotriya or Sésani, a sub-

Sué, a section of Goalas in
Behar.

Suar. hog, a totemistic sept of
Oraons; a section of Kahars.

Suarait, a section of Bhats.

Suargane, a section of Ba-
bhans in Behar.

Subansi, a sept of Chandra-

caste of Utkal Brahmans in Orissa. loansi Raj puts in Behar.
Srotriya, Sote, a hypergam- Subarna, a gm of the
one class of Maithil Brahmans Séndilya got-m of Barendra

in Behar. Brahmans in Bengal.

$Hh3tﬂ3hﬁﬂik, Bam'a', Bani/t, Samabani/c, Sondrbamki, a
mercantile caste of Bengal Proper, who claim
to be the modern representatives of the ancient
Vaisya. In spite of the wealth and inﬂuence of the Subarnabanik,
their high-bred appearance, and the notorious beauty of the women
of the caste, their claim to this distinguished ancestry has failed to
obtain general recognition. They are excluded from the ranks of
the Nabasakha, or nine clean Sudra castes, and none but Va1d1k
Brahmans will take water from their hands. To account for the
comparatively low status assigned to them the Subarnabanlks
narrate a variety of traditions, some of which, however unsupported
by historical evidence, deserve to be brieﬂy mentloned here as
illustrations of the kind of stories which would tend to grow up
wherever the business talents and practical ability of a particular
community advance it in the eyes of the world consplcuously
beyond its rank in the theoretical order of castes. The Subar-
nabaniks say that their ancestors came to Bengal from Oudh
during the reign of Adisura, who was struck by them ﬁnanclal
ability and conferred on them the title of Subarnabanlk, or trader
in gold, as a mark of his favour. They then wore the Brahmamcal

 

Traditions of origin.

SUBARNABANIK. 262

thread, studied the Vedas, and were generally recognized as Vaisyas
of high rank. The stories cf their degradation all centre round the
name of Ballal Sen, king of Bengal in 1070 (AD) His intrigue
With a beautiful Patni girl is said to have been ridiculed on the stage
by some young men of the caste, while the Subarnabaniks in a
body refused to be present at the penance whereby the king
affected to purify himself from the sin of intercourse with a
maiden of low caste. Another cause of offence is said to have been
the refusal of a leading Subarnabanik to lend Ballal large sums of
money to carry on a war with Manipur. Authorities differ con-
cerning the method by which the king obtained his revenge.
Some say that in the course of the penance already referred to a
number of small golden calves had been distributed to the attend-
ant Brahmans. One of these Brahmans was suborned by Ballél
Sen to ﬁll the hollow inside of a calf with lac-dye, and to take
the ﬁgure to a Subarnabanik for sale. In testing the gold the
Subarnabanik let out the lac-dye, which was at once pronounced
to be blood. Having thus fastened upon the caste the inexpiable
guilt of killing a cow, Ballal Sen publicly declared them and
their Brahmans to be degraded, deprived them of the right to wear
the sacred thread, and threatened with similar degradation any
one who should eat or associate with them. Up to this time
Subarnagram, near Dacca, had been the head-quarters of the caste
in Bengal. Many had settled at Puri, in Orissa, beyond the
jurisdiction of Ballal Sen, while others went to Grour in attendance
on Lakhsman Sen.

In default of independent testimony to the accuracy of this
tradition I do not see how it can be regarded as a narrative of
historical events. It is no doubt conceivable that a despotic
monarch might order the social degradation of a particular class of
his subjects provided that it were not too numerous or too inﬂuential ;
and it is generally believed that Ballal Sen did effect some changes
of this kind in the relative status of certain families of Brahmans.
Notwithstanding this, the story of the depression of an entire caste
from a very high to a comparatively low rank in the social system
makes a very large demand on our belief, and inclines one to suspect
that it may have been evolved in recent times to account for the
position actually occupied by the caste being lower than that to which
their riches and ability would entitle them to lay claim. From this
point of view, Dr. Wise’s conjecture that the Subarnabaniks are
Hindustani Baniyas who lost rank by residing in Bengal seems to
deserve some consideration.

According to Dr. Wise the Subarnabaniks of Eastern Bengal

I t 1 t t recognize four sub-castes—Banga, Dak'hm-

n em“ 1"“ “re' Rarhl’, Uttar—Rérhl’, and Saptagréml or
Nadiyé. The Banga “claim to be descendants of Sonars resident
in Bengal during the reign of Ballél Sen, and are undoubtedly the
oldest branch of the family. Two Srenis are met with, Kulina and
Varendra, or Maulika, inferior, which never intermarry. Every
Maulika,‘ however, asserts that he is a Kulina, and village Sonars,
by assuming similar claims, cause endless squabbles and feuds.

263 SUBARNABANIK.

Ward distinguishes between the Sauvarna-kar and the Sauvarnabanik ;
the former being goldsmiths, the latter money-changers. It
is remarkable that members of the Banga engaging in the caste
profession of goldsmiths are styled Sankara, or mixed, baniks, and
excommunicated from the society of their brethren. In the city of
Dacca about forty families reside, twenty-ﬁve of Whom belong to the
pure town stock and ﬁfteen to the (Swami, or rural. These two
branches are still further sundered by having two distinct dals, or
unions.

The Bangas have three gotras—Kasyapa, Gautama, and Vyésa.
The “ Padavi,” or titles, are—

Sena. Boral. Pal.
Dhar. Maulika. Sinha.
Datta. Laha. Addi.
Dé. Chanda.

The marriage ceremonies are copied from those observed at the
wedding of Sri Ramaehandra and Sita, while in Western Bengal
the marriage service is that of Mahadeva and Pérvati. At the
former the bridal pair, seated on stools, are carried round the court;
at the latter the bridegroom stands while the bride is borne round
him. The bride wears a red dress, as well as a lofty diadem
(mu/cute) with a red turban, from which tinsel pendants hang.
The bridal attire becomes the perquisite of the barber; the dress
Worn on the second day falls to the Ghataka.

The “ Pradhan,” or president of the caste assembly, is always
a Kulina. The Kulina sometimes marries a Maulika girl when her
dowry is large, but this alliance does not exalt her family.

The Banga Sonars are jewellers, but as a rule do not manu-
facture ornaments. They are often bankers, traders, and shop-keepers.
The poorer class accept employment as writers, but would sooner
starve than cultivate the soil. The large majority are Vaishnavas,
but a few follow the Tantric ritual.

In the city of Dacca reside about seventy families of the
Dakhin-Rarhi sub-caste, who originally sought shelter in Eastern
Bengal, along with the Uttar-Rarhi and Nadiya Sonérs, from the
Marhatta invasion of 1741. Among them rage interminable disputes
about precedence, and the confusion is increased by the Padavis
being the same as those of the Banga.

The houses of Nilémbara Datta and Potiraj Dé are reckoned the
ﬁrst of Kulinas, and next, but at a great interval, are the children of
two brothers, Chanda and Madhu, who are Sils, and reside at
Balgonah, in Burdwan. Families with the titles of Boral, Laha,
Chand, and Addi are deemed more aristocratic than the Maulika.

The gotras of this division are—

Madhu Kulyé. sandilya.
Kasyapa. Savarna.
Gautama. Bharadwéj a.

As a general rule the Dakhin-Rarhi do not intermarry with the
Uttar-Rarhi, but take m’m‘, or cake, from them, andleven cooked
food, if on friendly terms. The daughter of a Kulina marrying

SUBARNABANIK. 264

a Maulika bridegroom sinks to his level, but the daughter of a Maulika
marrylng a Kulina is raised to his. Dakhin- Rarhi women dress like
other Hindu females of Eastern Bengal; the Uttar-Rarhi as women
of Bardwan and Hughli.

The Dakhin-Rarhi worship Lakshmi daily, when rice, sugar,
and ﬂowers are offered, and no woman will touch food until this
duty is performed. The “goddess of wealth ” is also worshipped
With especial honour four times every year.

. The members of this subdivision are usually employed as
wrlters.

Many peculiarities of their earlier home in Western Bengal
are retained by the Uttar-ltarhi subdivision. The women still
speak the Burdwan “Bhasha,” or dialect, and their dress is that
of Central Bengal. The gotras are many, and the following are
the most important :—

Madhu Kulyé. ' Kasyapa.
sandilya. Bharadwéj a.
Parésara. Brahma Bishi.
Naga-Bishi. Gautama.
Aliman. Savarna.

The titles are the same as those of other Sonars, but they have
no Maulika. Their president is styled “Mﬁrdhanya,” a Sanskrit
word for highest.

The Uttar-Rarhi still prepares the marriage space, called
Marocha, which has been given up by the Dakhin-Rarhi, and the
bride wears the lofty diadem and appendages of the Banga.

In Dacca there are about seventy families, the men being
employed as clerks, accountants, and bankers. Only four annual
festivals in honour of Lakshmi are kept, that on the Diwali being
omitted. Manasa Devi is propitiated with great ceremony, and
on the Bhagiratha Dashara a branch of “ Sij ” (Euphorb-ia ligulum'a),
sacred to the “ goddess of snakes,” is planted in the courtyard, and
on every Panchami, or ﬁfth lunar day of each fortnight up to the
Dashara of the Durga l’ﬁjah, the Sonars make offerings to it.
On the great day of the feast, the Vijaya Dasami, the plant is
plucked up and thrown into the river.

The b‘aptagrami or Nadiya subdivision constitutes a small body,
numbering some thirty-ﬁve households. Driven from their former
homes by the Marhattas, they crossed the Ganges and settled in
Dacca.

The principal gotras are—-

Madhu Kuliya. Savarna.
Naga-Rishi. $ura-ﬁri.
Sawﬂy a-

The patronymics are Sil, Boral, Pal, Sena, Maulika, Dé, Hari,
Priya Das, and Karana Vari Das.

Being a small community, the Nadiya Sonars intermarry with
the Dakhin and Uttar-Rarhi, and easily obtain wives by giving
a large dowry.

265 SUBARNABANIK.

While the Tak-sal, or Mint, was open at Dacca, the Nadiya
Sonars worked as Son-dimes, gold-washers, or Niyariyas. infusing
and purifying metals, but since its closure they have worked as Son-
dhoas on their own account. The dust and refuse (grid) of gold-
smiths’ shops are bought- for a sum varying from eight annas to ﬁve
rupees a ser, according to the amount or nature of the business.
The refuse being carefully washed, the metallic particles in the
sediment are transferred to shallow earthen pans, and the larger
separated by a skilled workman, or Kdre‘gar. The smaller, mixed
with cow-dung and a calx of lead, form a ball named pindz' 0r perd.
This ball being placed in a hole partially ﬁlled with charcoal, ﬁre is
applied, and as the lead melts it carries with it all gold and silver
ﬁlings, forming a mass called limi. This Zimi is then dissolved in a
crucible, and the gold and silver, being unmelted,are easily separated.”

Dr. Wise’s interesting information regarding the Subarnabaniks
was collected by him nearly twenty years ago from members of
the caste residing in the city of Dacca. Since that time a tendency
towards the amalgamation of sub-castes seems to have set in. The
Subarnabaniks of the present day do not seem to lay much stress
on the distinction between the Uttar-Rarhi and Dakhin-Rarhi
groups, and sometimes include both under the designation Rarhi.
Members of the Rarhi sub-caste may, as is mentioned by Dr. Wise,
marry into the Saptagrami or Nadiya sub-caste, subject only to
the condition that the titles or family names of the parties shall not
be the same.

Subarnabaniks marry their daughters as infants, and observe the
standard marriage ceremony in vogue among
the higher classes of Hindus. Betrothal, ndndi
srdddlza-performed on the forenoon of the day of gift, and the
formal gift of the bride on the same night, are the essential features
of the ceremony. -

The rules regarding the avoidance of marriage within the yotm
or section, and the practice in the matter of prohibited degrees, are
the same as are followed by the higher castes. Polygamy is per-
missible, but is rarely resorted to except in the event of failure of
offspring by the ﬁrst wife. Widow-marriage and divorce are under
no circumstances allowed.

The great majority of the caste belong to the Vaishnava sect
of Hindus. Radha, Krishna, and Chaitanya,
the modern incarnation of the latter, are their
favourite objects of worship. Radha, the favourite mistress of
Krishna, is in their view identical with Lakshmi, and a. grain-
measure (kdtd, lam/oi, or [chum/ii) ﬁlled with paddy and shells, and
daubed with vermilion, is worshipped daily as her emblem by the
females of the family. In Central Bengal the goddess of learning,
Bageswari, is also worshipped on the day following a marriage. For
religious and ceremonial purposes the Subarnabaniks employ Brah-
mans of their own, who are not received on equal terms by other
members of the sacred order. They claim nevertheless to be the
descendants of certain Vaidik Brahmans of the highest learning and
sanctity, who were opposed to the policy of Ballél Sen and elected to

Marriage.

Religion.

S UBALRNABANIK. 266 SUBHA.

follow the fortunes of the Subarnaloaniks even at the cost of sharing
in their degradation. ‘

The caste burn their dead and perform the ceremony of srdddk
in the orthodox fashion on the thirty-ﬁrst day.
The obsequies of persons who die a violent
death are performed on the fourth day.

The social status of the caste, according to the recognized scale
of precedence, is comparatively low. They
pation. rank below the Navasakha, and the Brahmans

who serve the higher castes will not take water
from their hands. There seems nevertheless to be a tolerably
widespread feeling that the standing allotted to them by tradition
is ludicrously incompatible with their wealth and abilities, and
with the aptitude which they have shown of late years for taking
advantage of English education. Trade has always been their chief
function. and it was as successful merchants that the families of
Sil, Mallik, and Laha ﬁrst won for themselves a place among the
leading citizens of Calcutta. In the present generation Subarnabaniks
have come to the front as ofﬁcials, and have attained some literary
distinction. They number among their community a District
Judge, an Inspector of Schools, four Subordinate Judges, ﬁve Deputy
Magistrates, and ﬁfteen Munsifs. The Revd. Lal Behari Dey is
well known in Bengal as the author of the clever genre novel Gom‘ndw
Scimamfa, while Babu Bholanath Chandra’s Travels of a Hindu has
certain quaint merits of its own which seem likely to keep its memory
alive.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Subarnabaniks in 1872 and 1881. In certain districts the ﬁgures of
Sekras and Sonérs seem to have been included in the Census
Report of 1872 :—

Disposal of the dead.

Social status and occu-

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. ’ 1872. l 1881. ‘ DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Bardwan 13,313 4,754 Dacca 4,696 3,965
Bankura 5,259 6,683 Faridpur 2,280 2,843
Birbhum 5,262 3,467 Bakarganj 2,144 1,458
Midnapur 11,499 7,733 Maimansinh 3,106 3,522
Hughli } 8 887 { 5,511 Tipperah . 1,841 2,046
Howrah ’ 2,464 Chittagong . 5,165 4,446
24-Purganas 27,615 2,370 Noakhali 1,190 1,570
Nadiya. 6,628 3,766 Chittagong Hill Tracts 4
Khulna ...... 2,799 Maldah 4.40 196
J essore 6,929 3,073 Santal Parganas 1,541.
Murshedabad 5,342 3,286 Hazaribagh 1,778 73
Dinajpur . 888 27 Lohardaga ... 2,736 2
Rajshahye 869 815 Manbhum 6,486 7,725
Rangpur 414 299 Singbhum 233 ......
Bogra, ... ... 400 150 Cuttack ... 13,987 10,397
Pabna. . . . ... 947 93 Puﬁ . . . . 5,990 4,190
Darjiling 49 . ..... Balasore 4,297 5,209
J alpigori 81 579 Tributary States 4,670 715
Kuch Behar ... . 128

Subarnablsayl, a sub-caste of Suberl, a ﬂaw of the Bharad-
c o , - -
Tells 1n Bengal. waJa gotm of Nepali Brahmans.
I I I '
Subarmé-panchbha, a section Subha or Suffah (chief), a
of Babhans 1n Chota Nagpur. t1tle of lebus in Darthng.

 

SUBHARA’JKHANI. ' 267 SUDHA.

Subharéjkhéni, a me! or Suchait, a section of Oswal
hypergamous sub-group of Rarhi Baniyas.
Brahmans in Bengal. Suchéri, a mu! or section of
Sonars in Behar.

51111113, a small caste of Orissa, who believe their original occu-
pation to have been personal service, but are now for the most part
engaged in cultivation. In the census of 1872 they appear to have
been recorded under the name of Amayat 0r Amat, which is one of
their titles, and which, taken in connexion with their traditions of
occupation, rather goes to suggest some afﬁnity between them and
the Amats of Behar. Sudhas are divided into four sub-castes :—
Bara-Sudha, Séno or Kabatkonia Sudha, Paila-Sudha, and Butka-
Sudha. Concerning their exogamous groups my information is
incomplete. The Bara—Sudha profess to have gotras and to observe
the rule that a man may not marry a woman of his own gotra.
But I have not been able to ascertain the names of the gotras.

The most primitive of the three sub-castes regarding which
tolerably full data are available appears to be the Butka-Sudha.
They are a nomadic race, who believe themselves to have immigrated
into Orissa from Rerakhol in the Central Provinces. They wander
about reclaiming waste lands and tapping date and palm-trees for
their juice. Having found a suitable spot for their operations, they
build small huts of mats, bamboos, and any light materials that are
available and settle down for two or three years, deserting the place
and seeking a fresh locality as soon as the soil shows signs of becom-
ing exhausted. Marriage is adult, and courtship is a recognized
preliminary; but after the parents have given their consent to an
engagement it is not etiquette for the young people to meet until the
marriage is celebrated. The marriage ceremony is simple. The
parties sit side by side before a beach", or elevated platform of earth,
the bridegroom having the bride on his right. The headman
(Behera) of the caste ties their right hands together with a piece of
string, which is afterwards untied or cut by the brother-in-law of
the bridegroom, or the younger sister of the bride, who receives a
piece of cloth from the bridegroom for doing him this service. Then
some old women—not less than three or more than seven—sprinkle
atap rice and turmeric powder over the couple and give them their
blessing. '

Widows may marry again. No regular ceremony is performed.
The headman of the caste and the woman’s relatives take her to her
new husband’s house and make her over to him. A feast is given
to the caste if the bridegroom can aﬁord it. Divorce is permitted
with the sanction of the caste panchayat, and divorced women are
permitted to marry again in the same manner and by the same
form as widows.

The regular Hindu deities seem to be unknown to the caste.
They worship a goddess, called Pancha—Khanda (ﬁve swords), with
offerings of he-goats, fowls and rice, which are partaken of by the
worshippers. The full moon of the month of Aghran is the proper
time for this sacriﬁce. The Beheré. or headman of the caste oﬂiciates

SU DHA’. 268 SUDRA.

as priest at this and all other_acts of public worship. The Butka-
Sudhés have novBrahmans. ‘The dead are burned and the ashes left
on the spot. No sraddh ceremony is performed. The caste abstain
ironli beef, but eat the wild buffalo, the wild boar, and domestic
ow s.

The Bara and Séno-Sudha sub-castes have travelled further
than the Butka on the road towards orthodox Hinduism. The ﬁrst-
mentioned group have entirely adopted infant marriage, while the
Seine, though still permitting adult marriage, regard infant marriage
as the standard to which all respectable people should endeavour to
conform. Widow remarriage, however, still holds its ground. A
number of women headed by the barber’s wife give the widow their
blessing along with some amp rice and duba grass, and a priest
mutters a few mantras. Divorced women may marry again.

For the service of the regular Hindu gods, the celebration of
srddrI/z, and the like, Brahmans are employed, who are received on
equal terms by other members of the sacred order The goddess
Khambeswar, a divinity of a more primitive type, having her chief
seat in the wild country of Bod, is worshipped every year in the
month of Bhadra with sacriﬁces of goats. The goddess is represented
by a wooden peg (ls/zamba) ﬁxed in the ground, and the Brahmans
take no part in her worship, which is conducted by a Dehuri or
tribal priest supposed to be specially acquainted with the way of
the local gods.

Bara-Sudhas believe military or personal service to have been their
original occupation. Some of them hold service-tenures under the
Chiefs of the Orissa Tributary Mahals, and the fact that they bear
the title Péik seems to show that they must have formed part of the
rude militia which once existed in that part of the country. The
Séno-b‘udha believe that their original profession was the cultivation
and management of date and palm-trees, and regard the katdri or
pruning knife as their characteristic implement. The social status
of both groups is considerably higher than‘that of the Butka Sudha,
who can hardly be reckoned as coming within the pale of Hinduism
at all. The higher caste of Orissa Brahmans, Chhatris, Karans and
Goalas take water and sweetmeats from the hands of the Bara and
Séno-Sudhés, but the Bhandaris or barbers alone will receive boiled
rice from them.

$uhrs, the lowest and servile caste in the fourfold grouping
adopted by early Indian writers, and, in theory
at least, more or less recognized by the Natives
of India at the present day. The opinion has been expressed by
Lassen1 and concurred in by Zimmer2 that the name Sudra is
not of Sanskrit origin, but was probably the tribal designation of
one of the chief aboriginal races of Hindustan who adopted the
Aryan faith and were admitted as servile members of the Aryan
polity. Tribes who followed the example of the Sudras were natur-
ally enrolled in the same class, and thus came to be called by the same

1 Incl. All., i, 947.
2 Alt. Ind. Leben, 216.

Origin.

269 SUDRA‘.

name. Weber, on the other hand, thinks that the Sudra caste “ was
composed of various mixed elements, partly, perhaps, of an Aryan
race which had settled earlier in India, partly of the aborigines
themselves, and partly, again, of those among the immigrants, or
their Western kinsmen, who refused adherence to the new Brah-
manical order.” It would be foreign to the purpose of this book to
enter upon a lengthy examination of the position of the Sudra in
relation to the other three castes of the Manavic system, or to
discuss the vexed question how far the precepts of the Manava-
dharma-sastra were at any time in correspondence with the facts of
actual life. The following extract from Mr. E. W. Hopkins’ work
on the subject sums up the main features of the social status of the
Sudra as represented by Mann :~--- '

“ The Sudra, once-born, is to be regarded in two lights—the one,
as general representative of his caste, irrespective of his master, where
he is the abject slave of the twice-born, whose touch is unholy, in
whose presence the Brahman may not remain, contact with whom is
as polluting as with the lowest wretches and outcasts; on the other
hand, as the settled servant of one master in whose house he is
perhaps born, where his position is by no means so ignoble, though
the fact of his slavery and lowness cannot be done away with. The
personal contact with the Brahman is here greatly eased of the strict
abhorrence with which the dwg‘ja is bound in general to regard the
Sudra caste. As a servant his position is not in many respects
different from the, indeed, not comfortable, because dependent and
servile, yet still endurable and not very severe, position of an
American house-slave prior to 1860. It is true that the Sudra has no
mercy to expect on insulting his betters, and torture and death may
be the consequence ; but so long as he retains a respectful demeanour
towards the upper castes, he is tolerably secure from danger. His
master may give him advice, and bestow on him such old furniture
and goods as are no longer ﬁtted for the Brahman himself. He has
his family, and his Wife is as carefully guarded from freedom with
other castes as the wives of the upper orders. His daughter or Wife, if
wronged by the upper castes, have the right of law, and a heavy ﬁne
is visited upon the offender. His master has, indeed, the right of
punishing him, but only, as in the case of son and Wife, for his own
good. The striking is, moreover, limited in kind, and the fact that
he may not be smitten upon the back shows that even he had an
honourable part of the body.1 He may not study, nor hear the
Vedas recited, but he may be present at the small family sacriﬁces and
religious ceremonies, and is indeed even praised for so doing. His
legal privileges are few, but his rights are granted him with the other
castes. He has the right of demanding redress for an injury of
personal character even from the Brahman himself. He is held
separate from the very lowest, the mixed castes, and should hold
himself from their occupations till driven thereto by want. He
represents his master in occasional business matters. As a matter

 

1 In the last two particulars he stood, indeed, upon a higher level than
the Negro l—E. W. H. .

semi. 270

of principle he can have himself no property, as all belongs to his
master, but practically he is a householder and receives a support
suited to his need, and has property returned him if it is stolen. He
is enjoined. not to acquire very much, but evidently often managed
to do so; and if his property in the eye of the law is dependent on
the whim of the Brahman, it is at least in respect to other castes
not regarded as a ﬁction. The rights of the Sudra are generally on
a graded scale in respect to the other castes, and here no distinction
is made between family-slave and general Sudra.l Distinct mention
of Sudra as teacher when others fail, and the possibility of his being
a king, show that he sometimes gained a position superior to the
one he generally occupies.” 2

The modern use of the term Sudra is not easy to deﬁne. - “ In
the present time,” says Mr. Beames,3 “there are no Sudras and no
Vaisyas ; no Kshatriyas except the Rajput: only the Brahman is
recognizable. The lower castes fused more readily than the higher,
and the Sudras probably Were soon absorbed in the mixed classes,
and ceased to have any distinct existence as Sudras.” A Native
Writer‘ dealing with the same subject takes much the same view
as Mr. Beames, admitting that the Kshatriyas are represented by
the Rajputs, while in Bengal, at any rate, the Vaisyas have fallen
to the rank of Sudras. The Sudras, again, he divides into the four
following classes :—

i. Satsudra, including the Kayasths and the Nabasakh.

ii. Jaléch araniya Sudra, being those castes not technically
belonging to the Nabasakh group from whom Brahmans
and members of the higher castes can take water.

iii. dalabyahahérya Sudra, castes from whose hands a
Brahman cannot take water.

iv. Asprishya Sudra, castes whose touch is so impure as to

‘ pollute even Ganges water.

Here it seems to me that in the attempt to reconcile the
existing state of things with the traditional system, and at any cost
to unearth the survivors of the fourth caste, the author quoted has
given to the term Sudra a wider signiﬁcance than is warranted
by popular usage. It may of course be argued that the scheme
propounded by Manu treats all men who are not twee—born as
Sudras, and that the same principle, if applied at the present day,
requires us to include every caste below the Rajput in that category.

 

1 How far the legal arrangements of ﬁnes in personal injuries, etc., con-
tained in Mann were regarded as matters of fact and had a practical working,
and how far they were held as legal ﬁction resulting from a desire to adjust
and systematise the relations of all four castes before the law with arith-
metical exactness, cannot be my purpose to determine. That Yajna-
valkya, however, as a rule follows the arrangement of Mann, and settles such
cases also according to higher or lower rank, so well by stated amounts as by
general determination, shows the relative worth of these laws was as valid With
him as with Manu. ’

2 The Mutual Relations of the Four Castes according to the Manam-
dharma Oatstram. Leipzig, 1881. . .

3 The Races of the North- Western Prompces, volzi, p. 167.

4 Sambandlaanirnaga. By Lal Mohan Vldyamdhl, p. 89 ff.

271 SUDRA.

Still I do not believe that the castes classed as Asprishya would
be spoken of by any Hindu as Sudras at all, though the members of
any particular group might possibly in a vague kind of way claim
that title for themselves. At the other end of the scale the classi-
ﬁcation is equally open to criticism. N 0 place is assigned to the
Baidyas, Khatris, and Bhats; while the Kéyasths, though not tech-
nically twice-born, invariably claim to rank above the Nabasakll,
and by virtue of their wealth and intelligence occupy a position
which fully bears out their claim.

Failing, then, any classical and authoritative deﬁnition, we have
only to consider what is ordinarily understood by the term. Both
in Bengal and Behar I think it is commonly used to denote the
entire group of castes from whose hands a Brahman can take water.
Kayasths, Baidyas, Bhats, and Khatris are not generally spoken of
or regarded as Sudras, though persons of a pedantic turn of mind,
who are bent on ﬁnding survivals of the original fourfold division,
would probably set down both Kayasths and Baidyas as tech-
nically Sudras. In ()rissa the deﬁnition by water offered above seems
to hold good in the main, but the Karan, or writer caste, does not
hold so high a status as the Kayasths of Bengal, and ranks as a
Sudra in popular estimation.

Although in most parts of the country the term Sudra is not
strictly speaking a caste-name at all, but rather
a general designation of a certain number of
castes, there appears to exist in the eastern districts of Bengal 3.

numerous body of pe0ple who call themselves ﬁestas, and are also
known by the names of Ghulém (slave), Kéyasth, Shikdér, and
Bh andéri. They form a distinct caste, and as a rule marry only
among themselves, though in Maimansinh and Sylhet they marry
women of the Sunri caste, and even bestow their own daughters on
Sunri bridegrooms. In the latter case the girl forfeits her caste, but
her family are not held to be degraded. The origin of the Sudras
is obscure, and some say that they are descended from individuals
belonging to the Sat-Sudra group, who sold themselves or were sold
as slaves to Kéyasth masters, and thus, by discharging the same
functions as were assigned to the ancient Sudras, came to be called
by the same name. The following deed of sale, given to Dr. Wise
by Babu Brijo Sundar Mittra, a member of one of the oldest and
most respected Kayasth families of Dacca, is quoted in illustration
of this View :—

“ I, Ram Kisto Pal, son of Tﬁla Ram Rail, and grandson of Ram
Deva Pal, do hereby execute this deed of sale :—

“ Owing to the debts incurred at my marriage, and which I am
unable to pay, I, in my proper mind, and of my own free will, sell
myself to you on my receiving a sum of Prirojonodohomasi1 rupees
twenty~ﬁve, and I and my descendants will serve you as slaves as long
as we are given subsistence allowance and clothing. You, your sons,

Internal structure.

 

1 Mr. J. D. Ward, 0.8., suggests the following reading and interpret-
ation :—P1’1ra (fulll, jana, or gana, déha (ten), masha. .Each rupee was to
value ten full mashas. A “masha” equalled 17% grains, and a rupee ten
mashas.

SUDR-A. 272

and grandsons shall make us work as slaves, and have power to sell or
make a gift of us to others.’ On these conditions I execute this bond.

“ Dated 19th Kartik, 1201 B.S. (November l794l.”

Dr. Wise adds that, although slavery is illegal, and has been
so for many years, the buying and selling of domestic slaves. still
goes on, and it may be safely said that there is hardly a family of
any distinction which has not several Bhandaris on its establishment.
The life of the Nafr, or Shahna, as the slave is called in other parts of
the country, is most congenial to the Bengali. With rare exceptions
he is kindly treated, and in return he regards the welfare and
happiness of each member of the family as inseparable from his own.
Owing to the deaths of their masters many thousands are scattered
throughout Bengal, who are found working at all trades, and in
Chittagong, Noakhali, and Tipperah do not consider themselves
degraded by holding a plough or wielding a mattock. In Bikrampi’ir
they are often boatmen, while in Dacca Sudras are employed as confec-
tioners, coolies, braziers, shop-keepers. and vendors of pin and Indian
hemp. Even at the present day, however, any Sudra who is rich and
provident can raise his family by judicious marriages with pure
Kayasths as high as the Madhalya grade of that caste. Such families
drop the title Sudra, and after a generation or two become absorbed
in the ranks of recognized Kayasths. This circumstance is the more
remarkable as the Sudras are certainly to some extent recruited
from among castes inferior in social standing to the Kayasths. So
far as I am aware, no parallel instance can be quoted within the range
of the modern caste system. Thus, according to Dr. Wise, Brahmans,
Baidyas, Sunris, and Baniyas possess slaves, but none of these castes
have ever permitted their servants to rise in rank or assume an
equality with their masters. It is suggested by the Kayasths that
the Sudras of the present day are the descendants of the tribe
resident in Bengal before the advent of the Kanauj families; but
this conjecture is erroneous, for not only are individuals being added
even now to the servile branch, but admissions such as that of Ram
Kisto Pal, the subject of the deed of sale, who was a Teli by caste,
can be proved by existing documents.

In the case of a girl the Sudras deem infant-marriage indispen-
sable; and it would disgrace a family to have
a daughter unmarried at the age of puberty.
Their sections are the same as those of the Brahmans, and they
observe the same set of prohibited degrees. They have, however, no
hypergamous groups, such as Kulin or Maulik. A bride-price (pan)
is paid to the parents of the bride, and girls seem as a rule to be
rather in demand. This is probably due to the fact that the lower
grades of pure Kayasths take wives from among the Sudras, but do
not give their daughters to men of that class. For this reason there
is a slight surplus of males in the Sudra group, and Sudra men often
marry comparatively late in life, and always have to purchase their
Wives. .

For the rest, Sudras conform on the whole to the customs of the
Kayasth caste. Widows are not allowed to
marry again, and divorce is not recognized.

Marriage.

Social status.

SUDRA. 273

SUKLI.
The status of the caste is respectable, and they rank immediately
below the Nabasakh group. Brahmans take water from their hands,
and will as a rule permit them to eat in the same room with
themselves. Kéyasths', except the very orthodox, will eat cooked
food prepared by a Sudra. In matters of diet Sudras themselves
follow the same rules as Hindus of the higher castes. In former
years they used to eat the leavings of inﬂuential Brahmans, Baidyas,
and Kayasths in whose houses they were employed as servants.

This custom, however, is now dying out.
The following statement shows the number and distribution of

Sudras in 1872 and 188] :—

 

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. ‘ 1872. 1881. H DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Rankin-a 17 Dacca .. ...... 17,392
Midnapur 23 12 Fandpur _ ... 86 15,109
Jessore 131 ...... Bakargaql 8,989 9,573
Murshedabad 31 6 Maimansmh 3,617 13,802
Dinajpur 5 Tipperah . 2,518 9,199
Rajshahye ...... 16 Chittagong 30,338 28,112
Rangpur 6 ...... Noakhali .... 4,292 2,212
Pabna 1 Chittagong H111 Tracts 13

 

Su a parrot, a totemistic sept
of Kgrwas and Mundas 1n Chota

Nagpur.

Sugéin, a gdin or sub-section
of Saptasati Brahmans 1n
Bengal.

Sugardhar, a section of the
Biyahut and Kharidahé Kal-

wars in Behar.

Sugargane-Loém, a mul of
the Parasara section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Suia, a kind of little bird,
3. totemistic sept of. Bedlas,
Kharwars and Lohars 1n Chota

Nagpur.
Sm'r, a synonym for Saver.

Sukalnaki, a sept of_ the
Suryabansi sub-tribe of Réjputs
in Behar.

$111113, a small cultivating

 

Sukalvéla, a group of the
Adi Gaura sub-caste of Gaura.
Brahmans.

Sukarbér, a sept of the
Suryabansi sub-tribe of Réjputs
in Behar.

Sukhar, a group of the Aoghar
sect of Saiva ascetics founded in
Guzerat by a Dasnémi mendicant
named Brahmagiri. See Aoghar.

Sukhong, a sept of Limbus
in Darjiling.

Sukhséré. a pm or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Sukli, a sub-caste of weavers
in Western Bengal ranking
below the Tantis. They use a
wooden shuttle; the Tantis an
iron one. Brahmans will eat
sweetmeats, etc., in a Tanti’s
house, not in a Sukli’s.

caste peculiar to the district of

Midnapur. Suklis claim to be the descendants

Origin.

of a Sulanki Rejput named Bir Singh, who

came to Midnapur about six hundred years ago and built himself

8

SUKLI. 274 SULUNKHI-MAHILI.

a fort at Birsinghpur in pargana Kedarkunda. The remains of the
tort are still visible. It is ﬂanked by two large mounds, called
Mundamarui and Gardamérui, the former of which is said to cover
the heads, and the latter the bodies, of seven hundred Bagdis who
were slain by Bir Singh because they could not pronounce the word
[396%, meaning a mat made of date-leaves. The legend goes on to
say that after atime Bir Singh himself was defeated, and that his
followers then discarded the sacred thread, changed the name
Sulanki to Sukli, and settled down as cultivators. The internal
' structure of the caste throws no light on its
origin. It is divided into three sub-castes—
,Barabhéiyé, Béhattarghari, and Dasésai. The ﬁrst, which is
reckoned the highest in rank, is supposed to be descended from the
twelve grandsons of Bir Singh. Their sections are of the ordinary
Brahmanical type.

Suklis marry their daughters as infants, forbid widows to marry
again, and do not recognize divorce. For
religious and ceremonial purposes they employ
Brahmans, who however are not received on equal terms by other
members of the sacred order. Most of them are Vaishnavas. They
burn their dead and perform the ceremony of smiddh in the orthodox
fashion on the thirty-ﬁrst day after death.

Notwithstanding their conformity with all standard Observances,

_ the social position of Suklis is very low. They
mm?“ Status and 000‘" rank with Pods and Dhobas, and Brahmans

will not take water from their hands. Agri-
culture is their sole occupation. A few hold tenures and small
zamindéries, the bulk of the caste being occupancy raiyats.

In the Census Report of 1872 the Suklis were included with
the Tantis. The following statement, however, shows their number

and distribution in 1881 :—

Internal structure.

Marriage.

Bardwan 20
Birbhum 2
Midnapur 19,886
Sukru, potato, a totemistic

sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Suksdrini, probably a class of
religious mendicants.

Sukul, a title of Kanaujia,
Séraswata and Gaura Brahmans
in Behar.

Sukulbans, a sept of Réjputs
in Behar.

, Sukuliyé, a

Chésas in Orissa.

" Sukwabah, a sept of Limbus
in Darjiling.

sub-caste of

 

Hughli . . . 45
Howrah 1,326
24-Parganas 339

Sukwér, a sub-caste of Gul-
gulias in Grya and Hazaribagh.

Sulankhi, a sub-tribe of Raj-
puts.—T0d’s Rajast/mn, i, p. 74 ;
Slack, i, p. 122; a sept of the
Chandrabansi division of Raj-
puts in Behar; a bird, a tote-
mistic sept of Bedias and Mundas
in Ohota Nagpur.

Sulténpurié, a section of So-
nérs. in Behar.
Sulunkhi-Mahili, a sub-caste

of Mahilis in Manth who are
generally labourers and servants.

SUMAL

Sumai, a kind of ﬁsh, a
totemistic sept of Dhenuars in

Chota Nagpur.

Suman, a title of Bangaja
Kayasths.

Sumat, a totemistic section of
Turis, signifying a deer.
Sumedh iar, a tree, a totemistic

sept of Kharwars in Chota Nag-
pur.

Sunaka, a gotra or section of
Brahmans in Bengal.

Sunam, a tkar or sept of
Damis in Darjiling whose chief
profession is sewing.

Sunéri, a tkar or sept of Man-
gars in Darjiling.
Sunérié, a section of Goalas

in the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Sundar, a section of the

Kishnaut sub-caste of Goalés in
Behar.

Sundas, a tlzar or sept of
Damis in Darjiling whose chief
profession is sewing.

’ Sundi, a synonym for, and a
sub-caste of, Sunris in Bengal; a
section of Goalas in Behar. In
Chota Nagpur, a totemistic sept

275

 

SUNRL

of» Bedias,
ﬂower.

Sundi Baniyé, a sub-caste of
Baniyés in Behar.

Sundi Deogam, a sept of
Hos in Singbhum.

Sundip, a sub-caste of Dhobés
in Noakhéli.

Sundipé, a sub-caste of Jugis
and N apits in N oakhali.

Sundipe, a sub-caste of Kai-
barttas in Noakhali.

Sundriéba, red mushroom, a
totemistic sept of J uangs in
Orissa.

Sung, a sub-sept of the Besré
and Tudu septs of Santals.

Sungaru, a ﬂaw or sept of
Damis in Darjiling, the members
of which are drummers by pro-
fession.

signifying makud

Sunga Sarbbanandi, a me! or
hypergamous sub-group of Rérhi
Brahmans in Bengal.

Sungdele, a ﬂaw or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling. ,

Sungutmung, a sept of Lep-
chas in Darjiling.

Sunkewar, a sept of Raj-
puts in Behar.

$unri, Saundika, Sundaka, Slut/ad, a large and widely-diffused

Traditions of origin.

caste, found in most districts of Bengal and
Behar, whose original profession is believed to
be the manufacture and sale of spirituous liquors.

Many of its

members have now taken to mercantile pursuits, call themselves by
the title Shaha, and disown all connexion with those who still follow
the characteristic occupation of the caste. Their striving for social
advancement has as yet not been entirely successful, and in spite of
their wealth and enterprise ancient associations still hold them down.
The bond of tradition is hard to break. According to Hindu ideas
distillers and sellers of strong drink rank among the most degraded
. castes, and a curious story in the Vaivarta Purana keeps alive the
memory of their degradation. It is said that when Sani, the Hindu
Saturn, failed to adapt an elephant’s head to the mutilated trunk of
Ganesa, who had been accidentally beheaded by Siva, Viswa-Karmé,
the celestial artiﬁcer, was sent for, and by careful dissection and
manipulation he ﬁtted the incongruous paits together and made
a man called Kedara Sena from the slices cut oif in fashioning his

.92

SUN RI. 276

work. This Kedéra Sena .was ordered to fetch a drink of water for
Bhagavati, weary and athirst. Finding on the river’s bank a shell
full of water he presented it to her, without noticing that a few
grains of rice left in it by a parrot had fermented and formed an
intoxicating liquid. Bhagavati, as soon as she had drunk, became
aware of the fact, and in her anger condemned the offender to the
vile and servile occupation of making spirituous liquors for mankind.
Another story traces their origin to a certain Bhaskar or Bhaskar
Muni, who was created by Krishna’s brother, Balaram, to minister
to his desire for strong drink. A different version of the same
legend gives them for ancestor Niranjan, a boy found by Bhaskar
ﬂoating down a river in a pot full of country liquor, and brought
up by him as a distiller. Others, again, following the traditional
method of accounting for the formation of castes, believe that Sunris
are descended from a Vaisya man and a Tiyar woman.

Putting these fables aside, we may, I think, ﬁnd in the internal
structure of the Sunri caste, and most of all
in the number and diversity of its endogamous
and exogamous divisions, some ground for believing that it probably
comprises several independent groups, which have arisen in diﬁerent
parts of the country to supply the wants of the community in the
matter of strong drink. In Manbhum, for example, eight sub-castes
are said to be known: Ariyér, Biéhut, Maghaiyé, Lakargarhé,
Holongwér, Paripél, Sikhariyé, Chaturt'hén. The ﬁrst three -
admit intermarriage and have practically become amalgamated into
a single endogamous group. These Sunris have totemistic sections,
permit the adult-marriage of girls and the remarriage of widows,
allow divorce by the tearing of a sail leaf, and generally show the
characteristics of non-Aryan races who are beginning to come under
the inﬂuence of Hinduism. In Behar, as a reference to Appendix
I will show, the sub-castes and sections are very numerous; but the
latter are mostly titular, and I cannot ﬁnd that any totemistic usages
are connected with the two (Hdt/u' and Bitch/22¢) which appear to bear
animal names. In Bhagalpur the KuI-Sunri sub-caste is further sub-
divided into groups called chair/it's (mats, hence those who sit together
on the same piece of matting), the members of which may not inter-
marry. So far as I am aware, the c/mtdz's have no distinctive names.

In Central and Western Bengal four sub-castes are found-—
Rérhl', Bérendra, Bangé, and Magi. In Eastern Bengal, according
to Dr. Wise, the caste is subdivided into two sections, or Sreni
Barbi and Barendra. The former are distillers, called Sﬁnri; the
latter traders, who have assumed the title of Setha’. or merchant,
which is said to be a corruption of Sadhu, ‘ perfect, honest.’ Séhas
usually object to being called Si’inris, and affect to belong to a
distinct caste from the latter. By some authorities, however, they
are held to be descended from a ﬁﬁdra father and a Sfmri mother.
My own enquiries go to show that the sub-castes are now more
numerous than they were in Dr. Wise’s time.

The Magi or Maghaiya sub-caste of Central and Western Bengal
seems to derive its name from some real or supposed connexion
with Behar, and may possibly be composed mainly of immigrants
from that province. In various parts of Eastern Bengal a Magi

Internal structure.

277 SUN RI.

Sreni, distinct from the Rarhi or Barendra, and accounted fallen
and outcaste, is to be met with. It is stated that in old days the
Mags made marauding expeditions into this part of Bengal and
outraged some Sﬁnri women, whose offspring, deﬁled by the doubt
as to their paternity, became the nucleus of a new sub-caste. The
Slinri barber and washerman work for them, but they always have
purohits of their own.

Séha or Shaha’. is the common title of the caste, but on becoming
rich a merchant often adopts Das as a surname by way of conceal-
ing the fact that he is a Sunri. Dr. Wise also mentions a case
in which a well-known Saha trader of Dacca selected Raf
Chaudhari as his family name. In the Maimansinh district a
colony of Séhas have taken the title of Pénjha, but can give no
reason for doing so. They are chieﬂy talukdars, writers, and shop-
keepers, who eat and intermarry with Séhas in other parts of Bengal.

In Bengal Proper the sections are comparatively few, and the
rule of exogamy seems to be gradually falling
into disuse and giving way to the less archaic
system of reckoning prohibited degrees from a common ancestor.
The Sunris of Chota Nagpur observe the simple rule that a man
may not marry a woman of his own section, and supplement this by
a rather meagre table of prohibited degrees. In Behar marriage
within the section denoted by the title is usually forbidden, but it
sometimes happens that the group included under one title has split
into two by reason of a quarrel or in consequence of the number of
families in the group having increased so as to render the prohibition
of marriage wi thin the group unnecessary or inconvenient. In such
cases one would primé facie expect the newly-formed groups to
adopt new titles or to qualify the original titles so as to indicate
the change; but I am unable to quote instances where this has
taken place. For reckoning prohibited degrees on the mother’s side
the standard formula in use is calculated to seven generations in
the descending line. On the father’s side the rule is said to be
that a man may not marry any of his Kes-Kdtd female relatives,
that is to say, any of the women whose male relations would have
to shave their heads if a death occurred in the family of the
person Whose marriage is in question.

The Sunris of Bengal marry their daughters as infants, and
strictly prohibit widow-marriage and divorce.
In Behar and Chota Nagpur adult-marriages
occasionally take place when the parents of the girl are too poor to
arrange for her marriage before the age of puberty. When both
parties are children, the question of age is not minutely enquired
into, and the essential point is that the bridegroom should be taller
than the bride. This fact is ascertained by actual measurement—
a method which commends itself to illiterate people, who keep no
record of their children’s ages. In the negotiations which precede
the marriage, height of the parties is stated in gimhs, and it is said
to be the right thing for a girl to be married when she is from
12 to 14 gird/as high and a boy when he is from 12 to 16 (/z'rahs. It
is unusual for a girl to be unmarried at 16 giralzs or a boy at 17.

Exogamy.

Marriage .

SUNRI. 273

When a girl is considered marriageable, one of her relatives or
a professional marriage-broker is deputed to look out for a suitable
bridegroom and to conduct the preliminary bargaining with his
family. If the broker’s overtures are favourably received, the bride-
groom’s father, accompanied by some of his relations, visits the
bride’s house and puts a garland of ﬂowers (lair) on her neck. This
ceremonial visit is returned by the bride’s father, who also sends
a present (tile/c) of money, clothes, etc., to the bridegroom. Accord-
ing to the custom of the caste, the ﬂick must not exceed Rs. 101
or be less than Re. 1 or a pair of dhotz's. When the tilak has
been presented, a Brahman astrologer is called in to ﬁx a lucky
day for the wedding. This takes place in the bride’s house.
The ceremony is of the orthodox type, and sindmddn, or the
smearing of vermilion on the bride’s forehead and the parting of
her hair, is believed to be its binding portion.

Polygamy is permitted, but it is unusual for a man to have
more than two Wives, and a second wife is usually only taken
when the ﬁrst wife is found to be barren. By all sub-castes except
the Biyahut, a widow is allowed to marry again by the sagaz‘
or chumaund ritual. As a rule this consists merely of sindur-
ddn, but sometimes, when the parties are rich, the ceremony is
ampliﬁed by introducing some of the forms used at the marriage
of a virgin bride. In Chota Nagpur divorce is eﬂected, With
the sanction of the panchayat, by tearing a sa’l leaf in two as a. .
symbol of separation. Divorced wives may marry again within the
caste. In Behar divorce is not recognized, and a woman taken 1n
adultery is simply turned out of the caste, and probably ends-by
joining some of the less reputable religious sects or becoming
a prostitute. The Bengal Sunris follow the same rule, but also
hold that the husband is polluted by the sin of the wife. They
therefore require him to perform an expiatory ceremony (pra'yaS-
0mm), which consists, according to tradition, of giving from three
to eleven (kdkans) of cowries to a Brahman. At the present day,
however, one four-anna bit is given for each kdkan. - _

According to Dr. Wise almost every member of the caste 18
a folIOWer of Chaitanya, and the rich are
celebrated for the ostentatious observance of
the Sankirttana chants in honour of Krishna after the decease of
any relative. The chief rites observed in Eastern Bengal are the
worship of Ganesa on the 1st of Baisakh (April—May) and the 1st
of Aghan (November—December); of Gandheswari on the 10th of
A'sin (September—October) ; of Durga at the time of the Durga PﬁJa
in October; and of Ganga whenever their boats are starting on a
trading voyage. The majority being Vaishnavas, animals are rarely
offered to any deity, but when this is done the victim is afterwards
‘ released. Shéhas are very fond of pigeons, and in the courtyard of
almost every house a dovecot is ﬁxed, as they believe that the air
fanned by .pigeons’ Wings wafts them luck. They are also devoted
worshippers of Kartikeya, the Hindu god of war, constructing
annually in November a life-size eﬂﬁgy of the god, and keeplng 11:
within the female enclosure for a year. Other Hindu castes throw

Religion.

279 SUN RE.

the image into the river immediately after the Kartik Puja, but the
Shahés allege that their special veneration of the god. is often rewarded,
the barren rejoicing and the husband becoming the joyful father of
children. It is easy to understand in what way this ﬁgure gives rise
to scandalous stories among Bengalis, and how the Séha becomes
a butt for the wit and sarcasm of his neighbours.

The Behar Sunris follow the average Hinduism of that part of
the country, and worship most of the regular gods as occasion offers.
Their minor gods are very numerous—Dharam Raj, Bandi, Goraiya,‘
Govindji, Hanuman, Kari Panjiar, J oti Panjiar, Apurba Panjiarin,
Mira, Saiyad, J alpa, Sokha, Hasankhan, and the Panch Pir. Rice
cooked in milk and sugar (khz'r), cakes of ghi (puri), and various kinds
of fruit, are offered to them and afterwards eaten by the worshippers.
Kids are sacriﬁced to Bandi. On Sundays milk and ﬂowers are offered-
to the sun. In Bengal, says Dr. Wise, the Brahman, peculiar to the'
caste, boasts that he never accepts alms from any one not a Slinri,
but it is quite certain that none of the clean castes would present
him with charity. These Brahmans, who assume the bombastic
titles of Vidyasagar, Vidyalankar, Chakravartti, and Pathak,
like the purohits of other low castes, read the funeral service at the
burning ghat, and are looked down upon by other members of the,
sacred order. The Sﬁnris of Behar are served by a low class of
Maithil Brahmans, who also minister to the religious necessities
of the Teli caste. No other Brahmans will eat and drink with
these men, who are known by the contemptuous epithet of Telia
Babhan. In Chota Nagpur the Brahmans who serve the Sﬁnris,
call themselves Kanaujias, but they have no right to the name,
and no other Brahmans will have anything to do with them.

Sﬁnris burn their dead and perform the regular srddd/a cere-
mony in Bengal on the thirtieth, and in Behar
on the thirteenth day after death. The usual
periodical oblations for the beneﬁt of departed ancestors are poured
forth on the new moon of Kartik (October-November).

Dr. Wise gives the following account of the
social status of Slinris in Eastern Bengal :—

“ The Slinri is a very degraded individual, indulging freely in
intoxicating liquors. A Brahman may not utter his name before
noon. The majority of the workmen in the'Government Abkari,
or Excise Department, are Sﬁnris, and most of the ganja shops
are owned by them. The Hindustani distiller (Kalar, Kalwar) has
nothing in common with the Sunri , as he only manufactures spirit,
and will not vend it—an occupation carried on by Kurmis, or
Baniyas.

“ The Saha, again, is perhaps the most enterprising and prosper-
ous community in Bengal, comprising a large number of the cloth
merchants, salt-traders, wood-dealers, and bankers. They are
usually known as Ama’a-wdlzi, or traders who import goods wholesale
and sell them to petty dealers by retail. Mahéjan, Goladar, and
Arhatdar, or broker, are also common designations. Notwith-
standing their improved position of late years, they are still utterly
abandoned in the eyes of the Hindus. Even the Bhiiinméli, who,

Disposal of the dead.

Social status in Bengal.

SUN RI. 280

works for them, will not touch their food, and a Chandal loses caste -
if he lays his hand on the' stool on which one of them is sitting.
There is a saying among Bengalis that if a Slidra be walking
down a narrow lane with only Sﬁnri houses on each side, and an
elephant approaches, he ought to allow the elephant to trample
him under foot rather than take refuge in a house of the accursed.
The Dhobé. and Napit are members of the Slinri caste, the Sﬁdra
washerman and barber declining to work for them. Although the
Sﬁdra Napit occasionally shaves the Séhas, he will not attend at any
of their religious ceremonies. When a member of the caste has to be
employed. A Sﬁnri will not cultivate the soil, although he does
so in Central Bengal, nor will he ply as a boatman unless the boat
belongs to his caste and is entirely manned by Sﬁnris. He is
also prohibited from becoming a ﬁsherman and from selling ﬁsh in
the market.” Some of the lower classes of Sﬁnris have taken to
working as carpenters and thatchers of houses.

In Behar the Darchﬁa Sunris, Who manufacture, and the
Granj war, Dhakankora, Sikharia, and Chaurthan
Sunris, who deal in country liquor, are consi-
dered lower in point of social standing than KuI-Sunri, Sagahut,
and Biahut sub-castes, the members of which are usually shop-keepers
or dealers in grain. The entire caste, however, occupies a low
position in the Hindu social system, and Telis are the highest caste
which will take water from their hands. As a rule they affect to
observe the restrictions in matters of diet which are characteristic of
the Vaishnava sect, but the Kul-Sunris of Bhagalpur admit that they
eat mutton, goat ﬂesh, all kinds of ﬁsh, and even ﬁeld-rats. Most of
them indulge pretty freely in strong drink. Many Sunris have taken
to cultivation, but comparatively few appear to have risen above the

ade of tenure-holder or raiyat with occupancy rights.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Sunris in .1872 and 1881. In the former year the ﬁgures of the districts
in Behar and Chota Nagpur include those of Kalwérs and Kaléls.

In Behar.

 

 

Brenner. 1872. 1881. DISETICT. 1872. 1881.
Bardwan 22.259 19,688 Chittagong 1,742 2.152
Bankura .. ... 12,657 21,155 Noakhali 5,895 5,981
Birbhum 21,l78 15.841 Patna. 16,666 . 7.899
Midnapur 8.081 7,666 Gya. 9,216 6,643
Hughli } 6 509 { 8,560 Shahabad 20,595 4,409
Howrah ’ 1,771 Tirh t { Mozufferpur } 94189 22,656
a4-Parganas 13.272 5,270 ‘1 Darbhanga ’ 25,440
Nadiya 10,188 9,495 Saran 23,533 1,163
Khulna ...... 9,998 Cham aran 32,566 422
Murshedabad 16,111 13,039 Mong yr 26,703 8,982
Jessore 34.146 17,170 Bhagalpnr 36,851 12,102
Dmajpur 6,685 4,498 Purniah 18,724 14.139
Rajshahye 8,228 6,871 Maldah 4,792 7,233
Rangpur ... 7,692 4,939 Santal Purganas 18,242 20,302
Bozra 6,683 5,775 Cuttack 3,246 4,261
Pabna 29,728 25,319 Puri 1,976 1,769
Darjiling 466 81 Balasore 1,757 1,588
Jalpigori ... 1,116 1,447 Tributary States 8,465 9,383
Kuch Behar ...... 667 Hazaribugh 13.277 17.576
D2008: ... 63,511 58,299 Lohardagé. 9,984 9,312
Faridpur . 26,677 34,491 Singhhum 8,274 2,611
Bakargan] ... . .. 26,160 16,845 Manbhum ... 19.080 18.346
Marmansmh 35,982 41,308 Tributary States ... 1,358 2.834
Tipperah 35,323 32,749

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SUN RI DHA’NUK. 281 SUNUWA’R.

Sunri Dhénuk, a sub-caste of Dhénuks in Behar. -'-'

Sunriet. a mul or section of the Ghosin sub-caste of Goalie
in Behar.

Sunriwér—Solhni, a. mm! of the Parésara section of Maithil Brah
mans in Behar. ,

Summer, Sonu‘dr, a cultivating tribe of Nepal, forming with the
_ . Mangar Gurung and Khas the class known as
ongm' Mukhya or chief. Although in theory the
Sunuwars are a strictly endogamous group, intermarriage With
Mangers and Gurungs is tacitly recognized. The ceremony cannot
be performed in public, but such unions are admitted to be valid, and
the children are counted in all respects as Sunuwars, except that
during the ﬁrst generation Sunuwars of the whole blood may not take
rice or dd! from their hands. In the second generation this disability
ceases to have effect. Sunuwars say that they came originally from
Simungarh near Bara Chhatri in Western Nepal, and that wandering
east they came to Chuplu on the Likhukhola river and took possession
of it. Makwani Raj a was then ruler of Eastern Nepal. Likhukhola
and Khuntikhola are now the main settlements of the tribe.

The internal structure of the tribe is shown in Appendix I. There
are no sub-tribes. All the names of the septs
end in c/m, which is conjectured by Babu Sarat
Chandra Dés, C.I.E., to be a corruption of the Sanskrit ja, born of.
Presumably, therefore, they have reference to descent, and further
analysis may show that they preserve the names or nicknames of the
ﬁrst founders of the septs. For the following derivations and
explanations I am indebted to Babu Sarat Chandra Das :—Jespucha
means ‘born of the Jespu,’ a tree, called Kairal by the Khas of
Nepal Proper, the ﬂowers of which are eaten by the hill people.
Katicha-Kati is the name of a place. Jirel is supposed to be a
mixed sept arising from a cross with some tribe not belonging to
the Mukhya group. Although it is reckoned as a sept or thaw, pure
Sunuwars do not intermarry with its members, nor will they eat
ddl or rice cooked by them. For all that the J irel have not become
endogamous, but marry with half-bred Sunuwars and other tribes
of the Mukhya and Kiranti groups. In Nepal tribal distinctions
are not so sharply drawn as in India, and the offspring of mixed
marriages ﬁnd plenty of people in much the same position as
themselves. The Wéngdecha sept is considered in some sense inferior
to the rest. Although they are admitted to marry with the other
septs, ddl and rice are not taken from their hands. Wandeh is
said to be a Tibetan word, and it may be that this sept immigrated
from Tibet after the others had become familiar with Hindu ideas.
Kyahbohcha means ‘born from a Kyahboh’ (Tibetan Kyahpo), a rope
ladder used by the hillmen for descending the face of a cliff to get
wild honey, of which they are very fond. The fact that the two
septa, Leokicha and J espucha, are both called Preticha or earth-born,
and may not intermarry, does not suggest any inference as to the
afﬁnities of the tribe.

In most cases girls are married after they are grown up to men
of their own choice, and sexual intercourse
before marriage is tacitly recognized on the

Internal structure.

Marriage.

SUNUWA’R. 282

understanding that in the event of the girl becoming pregnant she
w1ll be marrled without delay. Infant-marriage, however, is some-
tlmes resorted to by well-to-do families which have been infected by
Hindu ideas. Polygamy is allowed, but is not largely resorted to.
If a man’s ﬁrst wife has no children, he is held to be justiﬁed in
takmg a second, and the matter is often arranged by his marrying
his ﬁrst w1fe’s younger sister—an arrangement which is naturally
more conducive to domestic peace than the selection of an outsider.
The marriage ceremony consists for the most part of ritual borrowed
from the Hindus, and sindurddn, or the smearing of vermilion on
the bride’s forehead and the parting of her hair, is the essential and
blndlpg portion. In addition to the standard forms, we ﬁnd the
pecullar usage that the bride’s parents wash her feet when they give
her to_the bridegroom and splash the water over their own heads.
By d01ng this they believe that they wash from her, and as it were
take back, the quality of membership of her original sent, and
transfer her to the sept of the bridegroom. On the next morning
the bride washes the bridegroom’s feet, and drinks the water, saying
at the time that she does this as a sign that she has entered his sept
and is truly his wife. After this has been done, she is considered
competent to cook rice and dd! for her husband and the members of
his sept. The Nepalese regard it as characteristic of the Mukhya
group that they treat the son-in-law as a very important personage
and in a way worship him ; while the Kirantis look upon him rather
in the light of a servant. By Kirénti custom, if a young man runs
away with a girl and is unable to pay the ﬁne which is appointed for
such cases, his children by her are regarded and may be claimed as
slaves by her parents. It is curious to ﬁnd that the girl’s maternal
uncle is deemed the proper person to demand payment of the ﬁne.
The explanation of the difference of the Mukhya and Kiranti points
of view is probably to be found in the fact that the former have
been more aﬂected than the latter by Hindu ideas, which tend
always to exaggerate the value of men and t0 depreciate women.

A widow may not marry again by the standard ritual ordained
for the marriage of a spinster, but she may live with a man without
going through any ceremony at all, and in such cases public opinion
recognizes her as his wife. Her children are deemed legitimate, and
their status is in no way inferior to that of children born from a
woman married by the full ceremony. If the deceased husband
leaves a younger brother, married or unmarried, he is held to have
a prior claim on the person of the widow, and she may not take up
with another man until he has decided not to exercise his rights.
Divorce is permitted on the ground of the adultery or misconduct of
the wife. Divorced women may marry again in the same manner
as widows, and their children by second husbands are deemed legiti-
mate. Usually the ﬁrst husband keeps his own children, but if the
divorced wife is allowed to take them with her, as sometimes happens,
they are treated as the children of her second husband.

In point of religion the Sunuwars may be described as

R 1. i undeveloped Hindus, still retaining many traces
91g on' of an earlier animistic faith. They offer rice,
ﬂowers, sandal wood and vermilion to Siva, and sacriﬁce goats to

SUN UWAIR. 283 SURAHIYK.

Kali, when sickness or domestic trouble afﬂicts them. Bhim Sen,
the second of the Pandava brethren, is worshipped with sacriﬁces of
he-goats, buffaloes, ducks, fowls and pigeons; but buffaloes are
offered only on rare occasions, and the minor victims are usually
thought sufﬁcient. Tuesdays and Saturdays are the auspicious days.
Offerings of rice, ﬂowers and sitalvpattz' leaves are also made to the
rivers and mountain torrents and to the main peaks of the Himalayas
visible from Nepal. Upadhya Brahmans serve them as priests and
are received on equal terms by other members of the sacred order in
Nepal. Among the minor religious Observances of the tribe may be
mentioned their solemn worship of the cow under the name of
Lakshmi on the new moon of the month of Kartik, and their practice
of marrying banyan and the pipul when found growing side by side.
Most b‘unuwérs bury their dead and observe the same funeral
ceremonies as the Mangars; but some well-to-do
people have of late years taken to the Hindu
practice of cremation, and perform a regular srddd/z on the tenth or
twelfth day after death.
The tribe believe hunting to have been their original occu-
_ pation, and many of them are still strongly
0mm“- addicted to the chase. The bulk of the tribe,
however, live by agriculture and pastoral pursuits.
Supéhé, a section of Kanau- Syphar, a section of Kase-
jia Lohars in Behar. rats in Behar.
Supahran, a mu! or section of u oli a . 1
the Kanaujia sub-caste of Sonars maskepsup, ’ : tégggﬁostilfk “(£132

in Behar. separating the chaff from the
Supé-Parghé. a sub-caste of grain.

Parghas in Behar. S t'tl f D k h' R’ h'
,, unaieo as1n-ar1
SUpara. a sub-caste 0f D oms and Bangaja Kayasths and of

Disposal of the dead.

 

1n Behar. sankharis and Sadgops in Bengal.
Supat, a section of the Chha-

jati sub-caste of Khatris 1n Surabani, a section of Kum-

Bengal. . heirs in Singbhum.

$urshiyat, Smm'yci, Soralzm'ya’, Kalwat-MaZZd/z, a boating, ﬁshing,

__ cultivating, and labouring caste of Behar.

0’15"“ According to Dr. Wise their origin, like that

of other boatmen, is traced to the fabulous hero Nikhad. There is

a shadowy connexion between the Surahiya and Chain. The former

use the water vessels and hookahs of the latter; but the Chain,

assuming a higher rank, will smoke, but will neither eat nor

intermarry with Surahiya. The Surahiyas have no traditions of

their own, except the common one that their ancestors came ‘from
the“ west.’

Both infant and adult-marriage are in vogue, but the former is
deemed more respectable. The marriage cere-
mony is the same as is used by most of the
lower castes, sindm'ddn being the binding portion. Polygamy is

M arriage.

SURAHIYA. 284 “ SURAI.

allowed, but is not practised on a large scale. A widow may marry
a second time. It is thought right for her to marry her late hus-
band’s younger brother if there is one, but she is not positively
obliged to do so. Divorce is not recognized.

In matters of religion the Surahiyas profess to be orthodox
Hindus, and employ Maithil Brahmans for
religious and ceremonial purposes. In practice,
however, the greater gods of the Hindu Pantheon receive only
occasional worship, and the working religion of the caste is concerned
rather with the mysterious group known as the Panch Piur, Koil
Baba, the boatman’s deity, and Amar Singh, a canonised Surahiya,
who seems to be their special patron. In his honour a part of the
house is daubed with cow-dung on stated days in every month
of the year except Paus (December—January) and Chait (March—
April), and goats, rice, sweetmeats. ghi, etc, oﬁered, and incense
burned, the worshippers afterwards partaking of the oﬁerings
themselves.

In point of social standing the Surahiyas rank immediately
below the group of castes from whose hands
Brahmans will take water. Thus Koiris,
Barais, Grangotés, who belong to that group,
will accept sweetmeats from Surahiyas, but will not eat boiled rice
in their houses. The characteristic occupation of the caste is beating
and ﬁshing. Dr. Wise describes them as enterprising and hardy
sailors often met with in Eastern Bengal during the cold season in
large trading vessels laden with grain, pulse, or fuller’s earth,
which is sold to malaajj'ans and a cargo of rice shipped for the
return voyage. They are very muscular and large-boned, and
their physique oﬁers a striking contrast to that of the average
Bengali boatmen. Some Surahiyas have taken to cultivation,
and hold land as occupancy and non-occupancy raiyats. Their
number, however, is comparatively small, and there are at
present no signs of their developing into a sub-caste: in fact,
even cultivating Surahiyas are ready to engage themselves as
boatmen. .

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Surahiyas in 1881. The ﬁgures of 1872 were returned among those of
‘ others ’ of the Boating and Fishing castes.

Religion.

Social status and occu-
pation.

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1881. DISTRICT. 1881.
Birhhum 105 Darbhanga 43
24-Parganas 24: Mozuﬁerpur 4A
Murshedabad 390 Champaran 3
Diuajpur 973 Monghyr 2,363
Rajshahye 163 Bhagalpur 2,199
Rangpur 3 Purniah 493
Maimansinh ... 4 Maldah 586
Patna 19 Santa] Parganas 139
Shahabad ... 1,844 Singbhum 16

 

 

 

Suréi, a mel or hypergamous sub-group of Rarhi Brahmans in
Bengal.

SURAIYA’. 285 SURAJ-BANSI.

Sumiyd, a synonym for tribe in Northern Bengal; a divi-
Surahiya. sion of Réjputs; a sub-caste of

Surajbansi, Surjabansi, a Groalés in the North-Western
sub-caste of Tiyars ; a synonym Provinces and Behar. See
for Raj war; a title of the Kochh Suryabansi.

ﬁuraj-hansi. This title, properly denoting one of the twomain
stocks of Réjputs, has been assumed within comparatively recent
times by a hybrid Mongoloid caste claiming to be the aborigines of
Kamrup and now inhabiting the jungly tracts of Bhowal in Eastern
Bengal. According to Dr. Wise, from whose notes this article is con-
densed, the Sﬁraj-ban sis were formerly regarded as akin to the Kochh-
mandai, but the Brahmans. taking advantage of their credulity and
ignorance, led them to believe that they were descendants of the
Chhatri who, by throwing away their sacred thread, escaped the axe
of Parasuréma. Accordingly, in 1871, a body of representative
Suraj-bansis went to the house of their zamindér, Kali Néréyana
Rai, Rai Bahadur, a Srotriyé Brahman, and requested him to
reinvest them with the sacred cord. An offer of ﬁve hundred rupees
was made, but declined. Disappointed at this unexpected rebuff,
they retired to consult, and afterwards raised their offer to two thousand.
This sum allayed the scruples of the Brahman, the sacred cord was
with due solemnity presented, and ever since the Suraj-bansi have
assumed the high rank of Chhatri, to the great disgust of the
Hindus of those parts.

The Kochh-mandai, who reside in the same jungle, assert that
a few years ago the Suraj-bansi were known as Kochh-mandai, and
even at present Bansi is their ordinary appellation. The Suraj-bansi
are peculiar to Bhowal, and are not met with beyond the limits of
the Dacca district. They are certainly allied to the Kochh-mandai,
but have modiﬁed the Mongoloid type by marrying with low Bengali
castes. Their original language, probably a dialect of Garo, has
been forgotten, and Bengali is universally spoken. The Suraj-bansi
is generally a darker and taller, but less muscular man, than the
Kochh-mandéi. Certain of them still retain the peculiar Mongoloid
cast of features, with oblique eyelids and scanty growth of hair; but
the majority have the common Bengali countenance, with bushy
moustaches and voluminous cues, for they have adopted the Vaish-
nava fashion of wearing the hair. They already call themselves
worshippers of Vishnu, and have engaged the services of a Patit-
Brahman as purohit. Twice a year, in Phalgun and Baisakh, they
worship under a soil tree Kamakha Devi, the tutelary goddess of
Kamrup. Durga, Manasa Devi, and Bura-Buri are invoked in
seasons of sickness and domestic trouble, and especial honour is paid
to the sun as the reputed ancestor and eponym of the caste. They
have borrowed three gotras, Kasyapa, Aliman, and Madhu-Kuliya,
and marriages into the same gotm are strictly forbidden. Widow.
marriage has been abandoned; divorce is prohibited, and the Hindu
system of marrying girls before puberty adopted. Furthermore,
having assumed the sacred thread of the Chhatris, they imitate them
in observing the srdddka on the nineteenth day after death.

SURAJ-BANSI.‘ 286 SURYABAN SI.

By Hindus they are not admitted to belong to a clean caste, but
the Sﬁdra servants are beginning to work for them, and in a few
years they will doubtless have secured an established position. The
Koohh-mandai afﬁrm that the Suraj-bansi secretly indulge in the
forbidden luxury of pork, although to curious strangers the fact is
stoutly denied. It is a familiar experience that this taste survives
111 many tribes long after they have adopted the external Observances
of Hinduism. Almost all Suraj-bansis are cultivators, growing rice,
pulse, tobacco, mustard and cotton on clearings in the jungle. Fish-
ing is deemed dishonourable. A few who have acquired a slight
knowledge of Bengali are employed as traders or servants to land-

holders.

Surajdhaj, a sub-caste of
Kayasths in Behar.

Suran, a section of Rautias in
Chota Nagpur.

Suranié, a section of Kharias
in Chota Nagpur.

Surat, a section of the Ghosin
sub-caste of Goalas in Behar.

Suratwalé, ‘ a good looking
man,’ a synonym for Barnasankar.
In Gyé. an ironical designation of
the illegitimate descendants of
Gyawals by women of the Rajput,
Babhan, and Bhat castes, but not
of lower castes.

Surévé, a sub-caste of Mallahs
in Behar.

Suren, a section of Turis in
Chota Nagpur.

Sure8wari, a gotra or section
of Subarnabaniks in Bengal.

Suret, a mu! or section of the
Kanaujia sub-caste of Sonérs in
Behar.

Surgane, a mul of the Parasara
section of Maithil Brahmans in
Behar.

Surgrié, a section of Babhans
in Behar.

Surhi, a wild cow, a totemis-
tic sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

 

Suri, ﬂy, a totemistic sept of
Mundas in Chota Nagpur; a
section of the Bahannajati sub-
caste of Khatris in Bengal; a.
synonym for Sunri.

Surijhabu, a sept of Chiks in
Chota Nagpur.

Suril, a totemistic sept of
Mundas who do not propitiate
the ‘ Churin Deota.’

Surin, a sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Surinwér, a section of Turis
in Chota Nagpur.

Surjéhé, a section of the
Biyahut and Kharidaha Kal-
wars in Behar.

Surkhi, a sept of the Surya-
bansi sub-tribe of Rajputs in
Behar. ‘

Surnair, a sept of Rajputs in
Behar.

Suruan, a sept of Pans in
Chota Nagpur.

Surunia, neck ornament, a
sept of Kharwars in Chota
Nagpur.

Surwér, a sept of the Surya-
bansi Rajputs in Behar.

SUryabansi, Surjz', ‘descend-
ant of the sun,’ an honoriﬁc
title assumed by many castes,

SURYABAN SI.

particularly the Réjputs, and
castes which, like the Dravidian
Rajbansi Kochh of ‘Northern
Bengal, attempt to afﬁliate them-
selves to the Rajputs; a sub-tribe
of Rajputs in Behar; a titer or

287

SUTRADHAR.

servants of the Hajjam or Kahar
caste, whose duty was to superin-
tend their master’s stores of pro-
vision and edibles.

Suta, a sub-caste of Aguris in

sept of Mangers in Darjiling. Western Bengal.

Sutkrd Saki, Sutmsdkz', certain
sect of mendicants said to be
worshippers of Nirgun—God,
void of qualities. They attract
notice when soliciting alms by
beating two sticks together.

Suryabansi Lama, a Mar or
sept of Gurungs in Darjiling.

Surya-dwija, a sub-caste of
Tambulis in Behar.

Susan, 8. sept of Mundas in

Chota Nagpur. gutihm‘, a 10W caste who
SUSWér, Suswdm‘, a title BPlIl cotton thread.
given by the former Rajas of Sutihdr, a synonym for

 

Ramgarh to of their Barhi in Behar.

gutrahhar, Chkutdr, the carpenter caste of Bengal, named
thread-holder, from the Sanskrit sz’m‘a, the
thread, with which the course of the saw is
marked. Sﬁtradhars claim descent from Viswakarma, or, according
to others, from Karna. son of Kunti by the sun-god before her
marriage to Pandu. Karna, as is stated in the Mahabharata, was
exposed by his mother on the banks of the Jumna, where he
was found by Adhiratha, the charioteer of Dhritarashtra. The
Sﬁtradhars seem to have adroitly taken advantage of the resemblance
between the words saw, a charioteer, and c/z/mtdr or sutdr, a
carpenter, to equip themselves with a mythological pedigree of
undoubted respectability. Their ingenuity, however, has availed
them little. That shrewd observer Dr. Wise describes them as a
very low caste, recruited from one of the aboriginal races of Eastern
Bengal, and largely employed in boat-building. He also quotes the
story that in the time of Ballal Sen the Si’itradhars lodged a
complaint against the Brahmans for not performing religious cere-
monies for them until all other castes had been served, whereupon
the king, to prevent all further controversy, enrolled them among
the Maﬁa or low castes, and gave them a special Brahman of their
own. Another legend says that they were degraded for delay in
supplying the wood required by the Brahmans for certain sacriﬁces.

The internal structure is rather intricate, and they furnish a
good instance of the tendency to multiply
sub-castes, which has already been noticed as
characteristic of the lower social groups in the Hindu system. N 0
less than twenty-ﬁve sub-castes are shown in Appendix I, and
though the materials at my disposal were fairly ample, I am by no
means conﬁdent that the enumeration is exhaustive. Of these groups
some are local, others occupational, while for many of the names no
explanation at all is forthcoming. Thus the Western Bengal sub-
castes are based on distinctions of locality, except the GoéIé-Bhuiyé,

some

Traditions of origin.

Internal structure.

SUTRADHAR. 288

a group of uncertain origin. In Dacca the Chhutér sub-caste make
boats, household furniture‘,'beams, wheels, and ploughs; the Chﬁré—
Kutf parch and husk rice, make wooden necklaces, and burn shells
for lime; the Kéthurié make ploughs, tubs, platters, and wooden
agricultural implements.

The Chhutars claim, and are admitted to have, precedence of
the other two divisions. They are all included in one gotm, the
Alamyan, and invariably belong to the Vaishnava creed. The caste
has a panchayat, but no union (dal), and their headman, styled
Pardmdm'k, settles disputes between members. It is derogatory
for a Chhutar to fell a tree, which is done by a class of Chandals
called Kardté, from the Sanskrit Kara-patra, a saw. Turning
(kund-kdri), however, is the legitimate occupation of a carpenter,
and he is permitted to make moulds used by confectioners for
preparing fancy sweetmeats, and by plasterers for ornamenting
cornices and roofs. Chhutérs never. cultivate the soil, but frequently
carry on business as mahajans or wholesale traders. Muhamadan
carpenters, unknown in Dacca, are common in Chittagong, where
they are employed as Shipwrights.

The members of the Churakuti sub-caste are gradually
relinquishing their ancestral trade, and of late years have taken
Muhamadan servants to husk rice, While they themselves act
as grocers, selling pulse, grain, and oils, or as writers, servants,
and shop-keepers. The only wooden article now made by them is _
the sandal wood necklace worn by all Hindus. The Purohit is
distinct from the family priest of the other subdivisions. The
headman is styled Pradhan, and the only gotra is Alamyan. The
Churakuti are all Vaishnavas in creed, the guru being the
Faridabad Grosain. Their principal festivities are the Gandheswari
on the 10th Aswin (September), and New Year’s day, on the 1st of
Baisékh.

The Kathuria subdivision, scattered throughout the Dacca
district, is engaged in cultivating the soil, building boats, and
manufacturing lime with the fresh water shells dredged from the
extensive les, or marshes, in the interior of Bikrampur, being for
this reason often confounded with the Baiti or Chunari caste, a
perfectly distinct community. The Brahman of this sub-caste is
an Acharji, who performs the same religious ceremonies as the
priest of the other two. The headman is known as Sardar.

Similar distinctions appear under different names in the
Santal Parganas, where the Ket Chhutér are ordinary carpenters
Working only in wood and making household furniture, palanquins,
and the like; the Péturé are stone-cutters; the Nagare practise
turning; and the Bhar-Chhutér parch and pound rice into chum.

The sections have been borrowed from the Brahmanical system,

and give no clue to the origin of the caste.

Emg‘m‘y and hyper' They are not invariably exogamous, and the
gamy' tendency seems to be for the Sutradhars of
Eastern Bengal to regard the gotm as a sort of titular distinction
and to regulate their marriages by the more modern .system of
counting prohibited degrees. This at least is the case With two out

289 SUTRADHAR.

of the three sub-castes found in Dacca, while in Noakhali the caste
is stated to have no sections at all. In Western Bengal, on the other
hand, the sections are still intact, and three of them—Alamrishi, Ban-
rishi, and Kasyapa—appear in that district to be clearly totemistic.
The Alamrishi will not eat, and even pay some sort of reverence to
the eel (diud), while members of the Banrishi and Kasyapa sections
observe a similar taboo in respect of the brim. ﬁsh and the water-
tortoise. This curious survival of primitive usage lends important
conﬁrmation to Dr. Wise’s opinion that the caste is really of non—
Aryan descent. N0 regular system of hypergamy has yet been
developed among them, but the beginnings of one may perhaps be
discerned in the fact that families bearing the title of Paramanik
are held in special esteem, and are usually spoken of as Kulins.
Such families have not as yet reached the point of refusing to give
their daughters in marriage to persons who are not Kulins, but a higher
bride-price is paid for Parémanik girls, and members of Paramanik
families are treated with special consideration at wedding and
funeral feasts. In Dacca the Sﬁtradhars of Bikrampur affect a high
degree of ceremonial purity, and demand a Special bride-price on
giving their daughters in marriage to Sﬁtradhars coming from other

laces. In the Bishanpur estate in Bankura the superior families
of Sutradhar pay a small fee to the Raja of Bishanpur for the
privilege of calling themselves Kulins, and the Raj a is supposed to
have the power of punishing a breach of caste custom by depriving
the offender of this coveted distinction. No instance has come to
my notice of this power being exercised in recent times, and the fee
still paid is doubtless a survival from days when the Bishanpur
family possessed considerable authority in Western Bengal.

Slitradhars marry their daughters as infants by the standard
Hindu ceremony, of which sdtpdlc. or the
carrying of the bride seven times round the
bridegroom, is deemed to be the binding portion. A bride-price is
paid, which varies with the rank of the families concerned. Poly-
gamy is permitted, and there appear to be no theoretical objections
to a man having as many Wives as he can afford to maintain.
Widows are not allowed to marry again, nor is divorce recognized.
Sexual indiscretions are usually hushed up within the circle of the
family in which they occur; but a woman Whose inﬁdelity gives rise
to public scandal is summarily turned out of the caste, and ceases
thenceforth to be a member of respectable society.

The great majority of the caste belong to the Vaishnava sect,
but worshippers of the Saktis are also found
among them. Viswakarma is regarded as their
patron deity, and sacriﬁces are offered to him on the last day of
Bhadra and in Magh l’ancharni. Images of the god are sometimes
made in the likeness of a white man with three eyes, wearing a
crown, and bearing a club in his right hand; but usually he is
represented by the tools which the worshipper uses in his trade.
These are set up inside the house and decorated with ﬂowers, and
offerings are placed before them, while the god is besought to faVour
his votaries on their profession during the ensuing year. b‘utradhars

t

Marriage.

Religion.

SUTRADHAR. 290 SWIRI.

employ Brahmans for religious and ceremonial purposes, but these
Brahmans belong to the Bama class, and are not received on equal
terms by other members of the sacred order. The dead are burned,
and the ordinary srdddk ceremony is performed on the thirty-ﬁrst
, day after death.
The social rank of the Sﬁtradhar is low. Brahmans will not
take water from their hands, and they. may
be said to occupy much the same positlon as
the J ugi, Sunri, and Dhoba. In Western Bengal the village
barber has no objection to shaving them, but he marks his sense
of their inferior status by declining to cut their toe nails or
touch their feet. Carpentry is believed t0 be
their original and characteristic profession, but
besides the occupations already enumerated, Sﬁtradhars are employed
in cutting conch shells into bracelets, in making images of the gods
and in painting religious pictures. In Murshedabad, indeed, thls
last occupation seems likely to form the basis of a new sub-caste, for
I am informed that painters (Chitrakar) do not intermarry with the
members of the caste who work as carpenters and shell-cutters. In
Noakhéli some Sﬁtradhars work as goldsmiths. Cultivating Sutra-
dhars are usually occupancy or non-occupancy raiyats. None of
them appear to have risen to be zamindars or tenure-holders: on the
other hand, very few have sunk to the position of landless day-
labourers. . '
The following statement shows the number and distribution
of Sﬁtradhars in 1872 and 1881 :—

Social status.

Occupation.

 

 

 

DISTRICT. l 1872. I 1881. H DISTRICT. I 1872. ‘ 1881.
Bardwan 15,973 10,131 J a] pigori ... 73 831
Bankura 4,610 6,471 Kuch Behur 132
Birbhum .. 7,747 8,900 Dam-a 15,907 15,295
Midnapur 10,585 14,784 Faridpur 5,086 5.200
Hughll 5 108 4,667 Bakarganj 2,08] 1,151
Howrah ’ 1,794 Maimansinh 21,479 27,488
24-Parganas 8,274 1,467 'l‘ipperah 11,804 1,526
Nadiya 9,126 9,420 Chittagong 1,328 2,454
Khulna ...... 1,632 Noakhali 2,768 3.554
JeSSOI‘e ..- 10,644 12,071 Maldah ... 2,189 2,757
Mnrshedabad 10,070 9,673 Siugbhum 342 381
Dinajpur (378 1,019 Manbhum 2,027 1,927
Emshahye 4,558 1,066 Tributary States 112 39
Rankpur 2,326 2,220 Out-tack ...... 210
Bogra 1,569 1,567 Balasore ...... l9
Pabna 10.282 12,714 Tributary States ...... 1
Darjiling . l 159 106

 

 

 

 

 

Sutraséhi, aclass of Baniyas in Swarna-kausik, a section of
Behar. See Sutkrd Salli. the Uttar-Bérendra Brahmans in

. Bengal.
SUWah on , the mendlcant, a , .
sept of the gYangorup sub-tribe Swartha, self-absorbed, a t1tle
of Limbus in Darjiling. of Brahmans and Vaishnavas.

, Swarupsing, a group of the
Su_yal, 8.7;}:sz 01' sept Of Man- Fatehsing Telis in Murshedabad.

gars 1n Darphng. ’ Swetbhadra, a pm or section of
Swéin, a title of Chésés in Sakadvvipi Brahmans 1n Behar.

Orissa. Swim, a synonym for Savar.

 

TABKA‘HILA.

T

Tabkéhila, a section of the
Biyahut and Kharidaha Kalwars
in Behar.

Tabkar. a section of the Dha-
pra sub-caste of Doms in Behar.

Tébria, a section of Mahesris
in Behar.

Tag-tog-pé, tag or brag, a
rock—a dweller on cliffs, a sub-
sept of the Nah-pa sept of
Sherpa Bhotias.

Tahalkié, a setion of Goalas
in the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Taié, a sept of Rajputs in
Behar.

Taijaung, a sept of Limbus
in Darjiling.

Tailakdr, a synonym for Teli.

Tailangi or Andhra, a terri-
torial division of the Pancha
Dravira Brahmans who live in

the south of the Vindhya range, a
country of the Telugu language.

Tam, a synonym for Teli.

Taingchait, a sept of Maghs
in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Taipdl, a synonym for Teli.

Tairan, a gotm or section of
Agarwals.

Taitia, a sept of Nageswars
in Chota Nagpur.

Taitum, a sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Taiyé, a title of Hindu J 01a-
hés in Behar.

Tajna, name of a river, a
totemistic sept of Chiks in Chota
Nagpur.

Takware-Ankusi, a mu! of
the Batsya section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

291

 

TA’MBRAKHOLA.

Takware-Nimé, a mu! of the
Batsa section of Maithil Brah-
mans in Behar.

Talabéti, a gdz’n of the Kasya-
pa. gotm of Rarhi Brahmans in
Bengal.

Talahadéba,
totemistic
Orissa.

Téléiboné. a sub-caste of

Doms in Bengal who make palm-
leaf mats.

palm-tree, a
sept of Juangs in

Talépétra, bottom of a pot,
a title of Barendra Brahmans in
Bengal.

Télké’té, a sub-caste of Haris
in Bengal who extract the juice
from tdl trees.

Télu, a thar or sept of Man-
gars in Darjiling.

Tamég, a tkar or sept of
Murmis in Darjiling. The term
is sometimes used to denote the
whole caste.

Tamagandiyé, a section of
Turis in Behar.

Témér, a sept of Rajputs in
Behar.

Tamériya, Murd, or Main/ci-
Mm‘d, a sub-tribe of Bhumijs
originally settled in pargané.
Tamar of Lohardaga.

Témbé, copper, a sept of
Kharwars and Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

Témberé, a. sub-caste of
Kaserés, braziers in Behar.

Témboli, a group of the Sri-
Graura. sub-caste of Gaura Brah-
mans. .

Témbrakhola, a sub-tribe of
Limbus in Darjiling.

t 2

TAMBULI. 292

ﬁamhuh, Tdmulz', Trimlz', a respectable trading caste of Bengal,
Behar, and Orissa, whose original occupation
' is supposed to have been the selling of betel-
leaf, Sanskrit ltdmbz’t/a. Tradition represents them as the descend-
ants of a Vaisya father and a Brahman mother, but this legend
clearly throws no light upon the true origin. It is possible that
they may be an offshoot from one of the trading castes, Whose usages
have been transformed by contact with Brahmanical inﬂuences.
The Tambulis of Behar have no sections, and regulate their marriages
by the standard formula for reckoning prohibited degrees calculated
to s1x generations in the descending line for dkz'amd relations and
fourteen for deddz'. In Bengal and Orissa the Brahmanical gotras
are in .use, Vyasa being included among them. Instead, however, of
followmg the ordinary law of exogamy, the Tamhuli have a peculiar
system of their own, which depends partly on the gotm and partly on
the famlly name. Persons who belong to the same gotm are allowed
to marry provided they do not bear the same family name, and
persons of the same family name may marry if they belong to
different gotms. Where, however, both family name and gotm are
the same, the prohibition on intermarriage is absolute. Marriage
between sapindas and samdnoda/ms is also forbidden.

The Témbulis of Bengal are divided into ﬁve sub-castes or tkdks
——Saptagrami or Kusadaye, Ashtagrémi or
Kataki, Chauddagrémi, Biyéllisgrémi, and
Bardhaméni. The ﬁrst-named say that they came from Northern
India, and that their chief settlement was at Baptagram or Sétgaon,
where they numbered about 1,400 families. An outrage committed
on one of their maidens by the Mahomedan Governor of the place
induced them to leave Sétgaon in a body and settle at Kusadaha,
in the 24-Parganas, which they now regard as their head-
quarters in Bengal. A similar origin is claimed for the Biyallis-
grami, the largest of the ﬁve sub-castes, who are supposed to have
entered Bengal at a still earlier date. The Chauddagrami, which
is now reckoned the highest in rank, is said to owe its origin to
one Sashthibar Singh, a member of the Biyallisgrami group, who
being turned out of his father’s house for marrying the daughter
of Srimanta Pal, a Tamuli of the Bardhaméni sub-caste, took
refuge with his father-in-law at Bainchi, in Hughli, and headed
a faction of his own. Being a man of wealth and inﬂuence, he gained
over to his side several leading families, and thus formed the
nucleus of a new sub-caste, which comprised the Tamulis of fourteen
villages (chaud/tayrdm). Some clue to the time when this took place
is given by the inscription on a temple at Bainchi, which shows 1t‘to
have been built by Gokul, the son of Sashthibar, in the Saka year
1504 = AD. 1582. We may place the formation of the Chaudda-
grémi sub-caste some ﬁfty years earlier. The Bardhamani sub-caste
are supposed to have had their earliest settlement in the B¢rdwan
district, but they are now most numerous in Birbhum. The Ashta-
grami profess to have come from Upper India at the same tlme as
the Saptagrami, but residence in Orissa has cut them off from the
rest of the caste, and their social rank is now comparatively low. The

Origin.

Internal structure.

293 "' TA’MBULI.

Behar sub-castes are shown in Appendix I, and demand no special
notice here. '
Tambulis marry their daughters as infants. The Asura form of
, marriage is in vogue, and the parents of the
Mamage' bridegroom pay a bride-price, which varies
according to the status of the bride’s family. Kusandz’kd forms
part of the ritual. but the essential and binding portion is believed
to be the formal gift of the bride and acceptance of her by the
bridegroom. Yellow silk is the proper bridal dress, but should
the family be poor a girl may be married in cotton dyed with
turmeric. Polygamy is permitted, and in theory a man may have as
many wives as he can afford to maintain. Such indulgence, how-
ever, is rare, and I understand that few Tambulis have more than one
Wife. A man may marry two sisters, but he must follow the order of
age, and may not marry his wife’s elder sister. Divorce is not recog-
nized, and on the rare occasions when a public scandal occurs within
the caste the offending wife is turned out to shift for herself.
Widows are forbidden to marry again, and the custom of the caste
compels them to lead a more strictly ascetic life than is usual among
the other castes of the Navasakha. They are allowed Only one meal
a day, of which neither ﬂesh nor ﬁsh may form part, and they must
fast entirely twice a month. A Tamuli widow indeed is subject to
as severe ordinances of self-denial as a Brahman widow. These
ascetic doctrines, however, hold good only in Bengal and Orissa. In
Behar a widow may marry again, and is tied down by no special
restrictions in her choice of a second husband, although it is deemed
right and proper for her to marry her deceased husband’s younger
brother should such a relative exist. It deserves notice that among
the Behar Tamulis the ceremony used at the marriage of a widow,
though called sagai, does not differ materially from that which is
performed when a virgin is married. In most cases where widow-
marriage is permitted, the ritual is extremely meagre, and usually
consists of little more than the smearing of red lead on the bride’s
forehead. Divorce is effected with the sanction of the panchayat,
but divorced wives may not marry again. ‘
The religion of the Tambulis presents no features of special
Reﬁ .on interest. Most members of the caste are
g1 ' Vaishnavas, and comparatively few worship-
pers of the Saktis are found among them. They employ Brahmans
for religious and ceremonial purposes, who are received on equal
terms by other members of the sacred order. Among the minor
gods recognized by the caste in Bengal may be mentioned the
sun and moon, to whom rice, plantains, etc., are offered occasion-
ally; Chandi, Lakshmi, Sashthi, and Manasa. In Behar Bandi
and Nar Singh are the favourite deities. The offerings presented
to them are Wheaten cakes, sweet-meats, curds, and plantains, which
are afterwards eaten by the members of the household. On the
Pumimé or full moon of Baisakh some Tambulis set up inside
their houses a vessel of lime, some betel-leaves, and areca nut, with
the scissors (katdri and jdnti) used for cutting the leaf and nut, and
worship these as the emblems of their trade. The dead are burned,

TA’MBULI. 294

and the ddya or principalpsrdddhd performed on the thirty-ﬁrst day
after death. Those who are well off make a point of taking some of
the ashes to the Ganges, but the poor merely throw them into
the nearest stream or tank.

To prepare and sell betel-leaf, which they buy from the culti-
‘ vators, is believed to be the original occupation
of the caste, which they still adhere to in
Behar .and Upper India, often adding thereto the business of a
pans-rim or druggist. In Bengal, however, the Témbulis have long
Since abandoned this special business, and taken to dealing in grain
and petty shop-keeping. Some sell lime, others are employed as
gomdshtus in large shops, a certain number hold land, and a few
are Government servants, pleaders, mukhtidrs, doctors, clerks in
merchants’ ofﬁces, and. schoolmasters. No Tambuli will hold the
plough himself, and those members of the caste who have taken to
agrlculture are zamindérs, tenure-holders, and occupancy raiyats
cultivating their lands by means of hired labour.

The social rank of the caste is respectable. They are usually
classed among the Nabasakha, and in most
districts of Bengal Brahmans will take water
from their hands. On this point, however, there seems to be some
conﬂict both of ancient authority and of modern usage. The
couplet of Parésara, which is usually cited as the locus classicus
deﬁning the Nabasakh or Nava-Sayaka group, makes no mention '
of the Tambuli; and although it is alleged that the caste is included
under the Teli, who also are descended from a Vaisya father and
a Brahman mother, this seems rather a forced interpretation. 0n
the other hand the Brahma Vaivarta Purana omits the Teli and
gives the Tambuli a prominent place among the Sat-Sudras. So
the Brahmans of Bengal, while usually according to the Tambuli
a place among the Navasakha, do not invariably allow them the
privileges attaching to this position; and a Témbuli gentleman,1
to whom I am indebted for an excellent series of notes on the
caste, informs me that neither Brahmans nor Rajputs will take water
from their hands. Tambulis will partake of cooked food with none
but members of their own sub.caste. Thus a Chauddagrémi will eat
boiled rice only with a Chauddagrémi. and so on. Some, howevert
will eat the leavings of Brahmans. Their own rules regarding die,
are the same as are followed by most orthodox Hindus. Among
lawful animal food they admit goat’s ﬂesh, venison, and all kinds of
ﬁsh ordinarily sold except the scaleless varieties known as pdngds,
gorcha', and etd. Some also drink wine, but those who abstain from
both animal food and strong drink are deemed to follow a more
excellent path. In Behar, where less attention seems to be paid to
the dicta of writers of the Pauranic age, the Tambuli rank with the
Koiri, and no question has arisen as to the propriety of Brahmans
taking water from their hands. . _

The following statement shows the number and distrlbution of
Tanibulis in Bengal Proper in 1872' and 1881. The ﬁgures for

‘ Babu Shambu Chandra Dé, of Hughli, a member of the Chaudda-
grami sub-caste.

Occupation.

Social status.

 

TA’MBULI. 295 TA’N TI.
' Behar, Orissa, and Chota Nagpur are included in the table on

Barais.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Bardwan 14,428 6,311 Rangpur 319 378
Bankura 12,034 16,097 Bogra 399 37
Bil‘bhum 2,962 3,554 Pabna. 290 130
Midnapur . 9,869 11,582 Darjiling 181 7
Hughli 5 325 8,457 Jalpigori 1 242
Howrah } ' 1,896 Dacca ... 200 323
24- Parganas 6,043 1.651 Faridpur 235 2
N adiya .. 1,68 3 1,802 Bakargan j . . . 68 611
J essore .. 136 44.4, Maimansinh... 33 251
Khulna ...... 281 Chittagong .. 1,116 180
Murshedabad... 1,172 732 Noakhali 2 I
Dina'pur 13 648 Tipperah 322 l
Rajs hye 410 201

1

 

Témgéin, a section of the Tandan. a SGCtiOII 0f the

Biyahut and Kharidahé. Kalwars
in Behar.

Tamgarihar, a 'sept
Mundas in Ohota Nagpur.

Tamgh uria, a sept of Mundas
in Chota Nagpur.

of

Tami, a synonym for Dami.

Tdmlz‘, a synonym for Tam-
buli.

Témré, a sub-caste of Kamars
1n Mldnapur.

Tdmulz', a synonym for Tam-
buli.

 

Barajati sub-caste of Khatris in
Bengal.

Téngbuéh, a Mar or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.

Téngi, axe, a totemistic section
of Rantias in Chota Nagpur.

Tankol, a mu! or section of
the Naomulia or Gorié sub-caste-
of Goalés in Behar.

Tannahpuréi-Solhni, a mu!
of the Kasyap section of Maithil
Brahmans in Behar.

Tannén, a sept of Rajputs in
Behar.

($51111. Tantraba’ya, Tantubdya, Tatwd, Tantwd, the weaver caste

Origin.

of Bengal and Behar, probably a functional
group developed under the pressure of the

natural demand for woven cloth. A common tradition represents
them as descended from Siva Dés or Gham Das, who was born from
the sweat (ghdm) that fell from Siva while he was dancing, and his
wife Kusbati, who was created by Siva from a blade of kusa grass.
Siva Dés had four sons—Balaram, Uddhab, Purandar, and Madhukar,
who were the ancestors of the four sub-castes bearing those names.
Another story recounted in the J ati Kaumudi makes the caste the
oﬁspring of a Manibandha father and a Manikar mother; while
a third supposes that the Téntis, in common with all the artisan
castes, were begotten on a Sudra woman by the celestial artiﬁcer
Viswakarma.

The internal divisions of the caste are shown in a tabular form
in Appendix I, and need only a brief notice
here. In Western Bengal the A’swini or
A’san-Témti claim to be the original stock, from

Internal structure.

Bengal.

 

TA’NTI. 296

which the other sub-casteshave diverged. The women of this group
do not wear nose-rings, and this is regarded as a badge of social
distinction. The Aswini sub-caste is very numerous, and has broken
up into ﬁve subordinate endogamous groups, which appear to derive
their names from particular localities. In the city of Dacca, says
Dr. Wise, the Tantis have separated into two srem’ or sub-castes, called
Baré-bhagiyé or dhémpaniya, from the jiza'mpdn or sedan chair
in which the bridegroom sits when going to fetch the bride, and
Chhoté—bhagiyé, consisting of Kayasths who on becoming weavers
were expelled from their caste. The former are about ten times as
numerous. They assume the title Basak, which was originally taken
by rich persons who had given up weaving and become cloth
merchants. A few titles inherited from their forefathers, who were
employed as weavers in the East India Company’s factory (aurang),
are still preserved. Among these Uéchandar, appraiser; Muhkim,
supervisor; Dalél, broker; and Sardér, head of a gang of
workmen, are the most common. Family nicknames are believed ‘
to be commoner among the Tantis than in any other caste, and
certain households are called Mesha, sheep, and Chhagri, goat.
The popular explanation of the names is that the ancestors of the
families accidentally killed these animals; but it seems at least
equally likely that they are totems, which have survived as family
titles. This view derives some support from the fact that among the
Téntis of the Santal Pargauas the titles Lu, Chandra, Pél, Sil,
Dés, Datta, Nandi, Bit, and De, serve to denote exogamous groups.
In Mag Bazar, a suburb of Dacca, there reside a peculiar subdivision
of outcaste Tantis belonging to a Magi Sreni Who, though excom-
municated for the same reasons as the Magi Kumhars, conform to
all the customs of the Sﬁdra Tanti.

According to Dr. Wise, the Chhoté-bhagiya, or Kayath-
Tantis, formerly goldsmiths, took to weaving as a more proﬁtable
trade, and now eat with and visit the Baséks, although the latter
do not reciprocate the politeness. The richer families, having always
adopted the prerogatives of the Kayasths, have been recognized, and
if wealthy receive wives from them. At present only from twenty
to twenty-ﬁve houses in Dacca are occupied by them, and several
households work as goldsmiths. bankers, and engravers (Naqqash).

Dr. Wise mentions another class of Tantis, called Bangé—Téntis,
settled in Eastern Bengal. These are quite distinct from the city
weavers, and claim to be the descendants of the original Tantis of
Bengal, who supplied the people with cotton fabrics for ages before
the reign of J ahangir. Although the superiority which they claim
over the Basaks is not conceded, there can be little doubt that these
Banga Tantis were earlier settlers in Bengal than their rivals. The
Bangé. Tantis are chieﬂy settled at Dhamrai, an old town about
twenty miles north of Dacca, where they occupy about two hundred
and ﬁfty houses. Their bridal dresses are white, and not of red
or other coloured silk, as is the case with the Dacca weavers. They
manufacture the native sa’m' and ckadar, as well as doriyd and
new-bani muslins, which are sent to Dacca to be embroidered. At
Dhamréi the famous female spinners (Kdtané), who used to wind the

297 TA’N TI.

ﬁne native thread, were still to be found in 1873; but in 1885,
when Dr. Wise revisited Dacca, the art had died out. In illustration
of the delicate touch of these spinners, the storyis told that one
of them wound eighty-eight yards of thread on a reel which only
weighed one ratz’ or two grains. Now-a-days a mtz’ of the ﬁnest
thread equals seventy yards, which proves that either a coarser
cotton is grown, or that the women have lost their delicate sensibility
of touch.

The 'Behar sub-castes of Tatwas, as the caste is generally called

Behar in that province, need little comment. We
' ﬁnd among them the common territorial groups
Kanaujié and Tirhutia. The names Baiswéré and Uttarhé.
seem also to have reference to locality. Banaudhié occurs amon
some of the Baniyé. castes ; uaiswér is a common sub-caste of the
Kurmis, while the names Chamér-Téntf and Kahér—Téntf suggest,
what is in itself by no means improbable, that some members of
the Chamar and Kahar castes may have taken to the profession of
weaving, and thus formed new endogamous groups loosely afﬁliated
to the Tantis. In Orissa there appear to be three sub-castes. The
Métibans-Ténti weave coarse cloth from thread of English or
native manufacture. Many of them have deserted their charac-
teristic profession and become teachers in village schools, assumin
therewith the titles Abadhén and Khetiputra. The Gélé-Ténti
weave ﬁne cloth, and the Hansi-Tanti make coloured cloth of
various patterns.

Dr. Wise has the following remarks on the Behar Tantis
settled in Dacca :—

“ The Hindustani, or Mungirya, weavers are very common in
Dacca, Where they comprehend a large proportion of the ‘ Mothias,’
or coolies, street porters, pankha-pullers, gardeners, and packers of
jute; while at home they_are weavers and cultivators. Two divisions
are met with—the Kanaujiya and Tirhutiya ; the former, the more
numerous, being of higher rank than the latter, who are despised
and shut out from all social intercourse. The Tirhutiyé, degraded
by carrying palanquins and by acting as musicians at their homes,
collect in Dacca during the jute season, and are remarkable for their
squalor and stupidity. They also Work as syces, gardeners, boatmen,
and musicians.”

The exogamous sections of the Tantis are comparatively few
in number, and throw no light upon the origin of the caste. In
Bengal the Brahmanical gotms have been ad0pted; While in Behar
only three sections are known, and those do not appear to be
necessarily exogamous. In Western Bengal prohibited degrees are
reckoned by the standard formula to three generations in the
descending line except where bhayddi, or mutual recognition of family
events, is kept up. In that case the prohibition extends to seven
generations.

Except in Behar, where adult-marriage is still practised by the

poorer members of the caste, Tantis marry
their daughters before they have attained the
age of puberty. The bride-price usually demanded for a girl does

Marriage.

TA’N TI. 298

not exceed from Rs. 50 toRs. 60, but it is deemed more respectable
for a man to give his daughter free of price. The marriage ceremony
is of the ordinary type. Polygamy is recognized to the extent that
a man may take a second wife if the ﬁrst proves barren. Tantis
are usually too poor to regard plurality of wives as a luxury.
Widow-marriage and divorce are forbidden in Bengal, While in
Behar widows may certainly marry again without any restrictions
being imposed on their choice, and the balance of authority seems on
the whole to incline to [the opinion that divorced wives may marry
again by the sagaz' form, which is used at the second marriage of
a widow. Others, again, saythat divorce is not recognized : if a woman
goes wrong with an outsider, she is turned out of the caste; but if
she has an intrigue with a Tanti, her fault is condoned by the
headmen and her husband is compelled to take her back. If the
bridegroom—elect of a Widow has not been married before, he must
perform the ceremony of mat/comm; in his own house, and must
smear vermilion on a sword or a piece of iron before going to take
his bride.

It should be mentioned here that instances are said to have
occurred of women belonging to lower castes, such as Teli, Turha,
and Gonrhi, being formally admitted into the Tanti caste. These
women had become the mistresses of Tanti men, and the latter,
having been excommunicated on account of this discreditable
liaison, had afterwards prevailed on the panchdyat of the caste to
admit them and their mistresses to social rights on the condition
that a feast was given to the caste and substantial presents offered
to the members of the panchayat. Men of other castes can on no
account be received in this fashion. In matters of inheritance, a
daughter’s son is excluded by the nearest male relative of the
same law.

The Tantis of Eastern Bengal are, says Dr. Wise—

“ With few exceptions, Vaishnavas, being probably the most

Rel’ . obsequious disciples of the Khardah Gosains.

lgmn’ They have no panchdz’t and no headman, but

the rich guide and instruct their poorer brethren, while the trade

interests "of the caste are secured by the supervision of powerful Dals,
or guilds, presided over by a Ualpati, or director.

“The Dacca Tantis have always been celebrated for the magni-
ﬁcent procession which parades the streets of the city on the J an-
mashtami, or birthday of their god Krishna, in Bhadra (August-
September). As long as a Nawéb lived at Dacca, his troopers and
band led the pageant, and at the present day, though divested of
many of its attractions, it is still the most popular exhibition in
Eastern Bengal. For many generations the Dacca weavers have
resided in two quarters of the city, Tanti Bazar and Nawabpﬁr, and
on the day following the birthday of Krishna a procession issues
from each of these quarters and perambulates the streets. In 1853
the processions met, and a faction ﬁght ensued. In 1855 the
Government ordered that for the future they should never be
permitted to come out on the same day, and each quarter, therefore,
takes precedence on alternate years, the peace of the city havmg

299 TA’N TI

been so far assured. Krishna is worshipped by the Tanti Bazér
section under the form of Murali Mohan ; by the Nawabpﬁr as the
Séligram, or Lakshi Narayana. At the present day the processions
are preceded by a string of elephants, and a “ Panj a,” or model of
a hand, presented by a former Nawab, is borne aloft, as at the
Muharram pageant. The peculiar part of the cavalcade, however,
are the “Misls,” or raised platforms, carried on men’s shoulders. '
On these are placed images of Hindu gods, ﬁgures, and often
caricatures of local celebrities. On others are Nach girls and
buﬁoons reciting comic songs and bandying chaff with the crowd.
In fact, the anniversary and the show have come to be regarded
as the occasion of a holiday, when thousands of villagers throng the
city bent on pleasure and amusement, which are more considered
than the deity in whose honour it is held.

“ The Banga Tantis observe with especial pomp the Kamadeva
Pﬁja, or worship of the Indian Cupid, which, though generally
neglected in Bengal and entirely omitted by the J hampaniya
Tantis, is still kept up in Bhowal, Kamrlip, and the districts bordering
on that country. It is undoubtedly a worship of earlier origin than
that of Krishna. On the Madana Chaturdasi, or fourteenth day of
the waxing moon of Chait (March—April), the festival is held, but it
does not last for seven days as formerly. The purohit oﬂiciates, no
victims being sacriﬁced. The Banga Tantis, moreover, celebrate the
J anmashtami, but in a different way from the Basak. Two boys
gorgeously dressed, representing Krishna and his foster-father,
Nanda Gopa, are carried about in great state and with much
discordant noise. The Visvakarma worship is observed on the usual
day, and, as with the Basaks, the loom, shuttle, and other imple-
ments of weaving are adored.”

In Western Bengal Vaishnavism is the characteristic belief of
the caste, Lakshinarayan-Chakra and Radha Krishna Bigraha
seem to be the commonest objects of worship. Beverence is also paid
to Durga and Siva, but no sacriﬁces involving the taking of animal
life are offered to them. Viswakarma is looked upon as the
tutelary deity of the caste, and is worshipped twice a year with
offerings of ﬂowers, rice, molasses, etc, under the supervision of a
purokit, who recites appropriate texts. Images are sometimes made,
but more commonly the weaver’s loom or some of the tools of the craft
is regarded as the dwelling place or symbol of the god. In the
Santa] Parganas Rangadhari and J aikha are mentioned among the
minor gods of the caste, but I have been unable to ascertain their
precise functions.

Among the Tatwas of Behar Vaishnavism appears to have made
but little way, and the majority of the caste are addicted to the
grosser cult of the Saktis, or female forms of the great gods. Thus
the Kanaujia sub-caste worship Maha-maya, or Durga, and those
settled in Bengal keep the ninth and tenth days of the Durga
Pﬁj ah as holidays consecrated to her. On a certain date in Kartik
they proceed to an open plain and sacriﬁce a male goat to Kali,
a khasi, or castrated goat, to Madhu Kunwar, who, they say, was
a Tanti. On the sixth day after abirth the clzlmtln' is held, and on

TA’N’I‘L 300

the twelfth the mother goes to the well, smears red lead on the edge
in the name of Kamala (Lakshmi), then draws water and carries it
within doors, when she is pronounced clean. -

Kali, Durgé, and Mahadeva are worshipped by the Tirhutia
sub-caste, but the majority follow the teaching of one Buddh Ram,
a Mochi of Tirhut, who founded a sect, differing in some slight
respects from that of Nanak Shah. They observe few caste usages,
but many superstitious rites, such as burning glad in a lamp and adding
resin, in execution of vows. Besides the regular minor gods of
Behar—Bandi Goraiya, Dharamraj, and the rest—Tatwas worship
, Sa isyér and Kéruchar, departed members of the caste, with sacriﬁces
of sheep and goats on Wednesdays and Saturdays in the month of
Srawan. Brahmans do not preside at these animisitic rites, which
are performed by the male members of the household, with the object
of protecting themselves, their families, and cattle against the ill-
will of powerful spirits. »

The Tantis of Bengal are served in religious and ceremonial
matters by the Brahmans, who minister to the
spiritual wants of the Nava-Sakha group.
These Brahmans occupy at the present day a highly respectable
position, and although some of the most select Brahmans affect to
look down upon them as Sudmy‘djak, high caste Kulins are willin
to marry their daughters; and it may be afﬁrmed on the whole that
they are received on equal terms by other members of the sacred
order. .

In Behar a very different state of things prevails, which seems
to indicate that the caste may have been developed locally at a
comparatively later date, and may be composed to a great extent of
non-Aryan elements. In many places Tatwas have no Brahmans at
all, and their place- is supplied either by members of the caste who
have joined some religious order, or by the sister’s son (b/aa’njd) of the
person at whose instance, or for whose beneﬁt, a particular religious
ofﬁce is performed. In either case, notwithstanding the ignorance of
the person selected as priest, the title of Brahman is conferred upon
him, and he is treated with extreme deference. These primitive
methods of satisfying the religious needs of the caste seem, however,
to be tending to die out, and Tatwas, like other low castes, are
beginning to set up Brahmans of their own, usually low Kanaujias
or Maithils, who are not looked upon as a credit to the priestly order.
Both in Bengal and Behar the caste burn their dead and perform
a funeral ceremony modelled more or less on the Observances of the
higher castes. But by the Tatwas of Behar this ceremony is
performed on the thirteenth day after death, while the Bengal Tantis,
following orthodox Sudra usage, observe the thirty-ﬁrst day.

Although the caste holds a degraded position in Behar, and

, Brahmans will not take water from their hands,
8°Cla13tatus' the Tantis have had sufﬁcient inﬂuence in
Bengal to raise themselves to the grade of clean Sﬁdras, and take
undisputed rank in the Nava-sékha group. The purity of a Tanti
depends on the quality of the starch used in weaving. The Sﬁdra
weaver prepares starch from parched rice boiled in water, or his,

Priests.

301 TANTI.

which is not, according to Hindu ideas, 67.an or, as it is called in
Behar, j/nttkd, leavings. Impure weavers, as the J ugis, make starch
(ma’r) by merely boiling rice—a process which is considered utterly
abominable. The rules observed in matters of diet bear, as is usual,
some relation to the social status of the caste. The Bengal Tautis
abstain, or affect to abstain, from ﬂesh and strong drink, and claim to
be superior in these respects to other Nava-sakha castes. In Behar
ﬂesh and wine are deemed lawful for Tatwas, and whenever spirits
are drunk a few drops are poured forth as an offering to Mahadeva.
Tatwas, again, take both kac/zln' and pak/ci articles of food from the
Gangota, the Barai, and generally the entire group of castes from
whose hands a Brahman can take water.

Although Tantis admit weaving to be their immemorial profes-
sion, many of them have of late years been
driven by the inﬂux of cheap machine-made
goods to betake themselves to agriculture. These cultivating Tantis
are for the most part occupancy raiyats, or small tenure-holders, but
in the Murshedabad district a member of the caste owns the zamin-
dari right in a large property. It is difﬁcult or impossible to say
with any approach to accuracy What proportion of the caste have
abandoned their original craft in favour of trade or agriculture. The
Uttarkul Tantis of Western Bengal have on the whole adhered to
weaving, and it is popularly believed that their comparative poverty
is mainly due to their attachment to the traditional occupation of the
caste. Among the Aswini and Mariali about one-thirdlare supposed
to have given up weaving and settled down as regular cultivators.
Some minor differences among weaving Tantis deserve a passing
notice. The Uttarkul sub-caste weave only cotton cloth, and the
Mariali only silk, While the Aswini make either cotton or silk goods.

According to Dr. Wise, ﬁve different sorts of cloth were
manufactured by the Dacca Tantis in their palmy days, but
the art of making the ﬁner qualities has been lost. The ﬁve
varieties were—-

1. Malmal. Muslims of the ﬁrst quality included the
Abrawdn,1 Tcmzib, and Mat/ma! made of Desi (country)
cotton or Kapés ; of the second quality were the Shabnam,
Khasah, J/zz’ma, Sarkdr ’Ali, Ganga Jul, and Termdam ;2
of the third were the coarser muslins, collectively called
Béﬁta/z, comprising Hammdm, Dimté (.9 Dz’mydtz’), San,
Jangal Kkasa/z, and Gum-band.

2. Doriyd, striped and ribbed muslin, such as Raj-kot,
Dakhan, Pédshahi-dar, Kunti-dar, Kaghazi, and Kelapat.

Occupation.

 

1 Abrawén, literally running water, was solely made for the Delhi zané-
nah, and the following stories regarding its gossamer-like texture are still told
by the natives. A daughter of Aurangzib, one day on entering the room, was
rebuked for wearing immodest drapery, but justiﬁed her conduct on the plea
that she was wearing seven suits (Jama). Again, in the reign of ’Ali Vardi
Khan (1742—56), a. Dacca Tanti was ﬂogged and banished from the city for not
preventing his new from eating up a web of Abrawan which had been laid out
to bleach on the grass.

2 Probably from Arabic tamh, ‘mode,’ and Persian anddm, ‘ ﬁgure.’

.TA’ N TI. 302

3. Char-Khaaah, checkered muslins, such as Nandanskdké,
Andr-ddna, Kabatar-kkopé, Sci-Kathi, Backhd-ddr, and
Kunté-ddr.

4. Jdmddné, by the early European traders called Nam-
.sa/cali,l or embroidered muslins. The different sorts
are distinguished by the coloured ﬂowers, sprigs, bz’ztz’,
or network pattern on them. The commonest are
Shd/zbarga-bz’ctz’, Chawal, Mel, Ti'rchka’, and Dubléja'l.

5. Kasszda, or Chilean, muslins embroidered with Mﬁga, or
Tasar silk ,generally dyed red, blue, or yellow. The
commoner ones are: Kama-Ram, Naabattl or Naabaﬁ,
Yakadz’, Azizallak, and Samaadar Lahar.

The common Dhoti, Ohadar, and Orhni, or wrapper with a
coloured or embroidered end, were always regarded as distinct from
the foregoing, being woven at their homes by weavers of various
castes.

On glancing over the preceding list one is struck by the predom-
inance of Arabic, Persian, and Hindi words, and the rarity of
Sanskrit and Bengali. That weaving, like other Native arts, was
known in Hindustan prior to the foundation of the Bengal king-
dom is beyOnd a doubt,2 and that the earlier settlers brought it with
them into the Delta is likely; but it would seem that either the
names given by the dominant Muhamadans displaced the native
ones, or that the liberal Mussulman rulers stimulated—it may be
developed—the manufacture of the ﬁner sorts of muslins. That the
inhabitants of Bengal at an early period made cotton cloth of
wondrous ﬁneness is undoubted, for the two Muhamadan travel-
lers of the ninth century mention that in an Indian country called
Rahmi3 were woven cotton garments “so ﬁne that they may be
drawn through a ring of middling size.” Unfortunately we possess
no further evidence until AD. 1506, three hundred years after
the Muhamadan conquest. when the Roman Vartomannus4 visited
the fabled city of Bengalla, where the ﬁnest cotton and silk in all
the world were produced, and whence yearly sailed ﬁfty ships
laden with cotton and silk goods. The earliest traveller, however,
who gives us the names of the ﬁne cotton fabrics of Bengal is
the Arab author of the “ Muhit,” written in 1554.5 He mentions
among the goods exported from Chittagong by his countrymen a ﬁne
cloth (Chautdr), muslin sashes called Malmal, the ﬁnest being known
as Malmali Shahi, terms which are Hindi and Persian. Furthermore,
when Caesar Frederick visited Chittagong (1563—81), “ bombast cloth
of every sort” was exported thence. After his day the authorities

 

‘ N ayana-sukha, pleasing to the eye.

2It is referred to in the Rig and Atharva Vedas. See Zimmer Altind.
Leben, p. 254.—H. H. R.

3 Rahmi, however, may not be Bengal, but as it was the country of ele-
phants, of a shell currency, and of the “ Karkandan,” or unicorn (rhinoceros),
the assumption is not altogether groundless—Elliot’s History of India, vol. i,
361.

4 Ludovici Vartomanni Navigable, p. 259.

5 Journal A. S. of Bengal, vol. v, 467.

303 TKNTI.

are numerous, and names identical with those in use in the present
day are cited.

The conjecture that the Muhamadans merely developed an
already ﬂourishing trade is strengthened by the fact that the terms
in use by the Dacca weavers for the warp, woof, shuttle, and loom
generally are Sanskrit, while later improvements, such as the shéna
or reed, the charkhé. or spinning wheel, and the dafti or reed frame,
are Persian.

The decline of the cotton trade of Eastern Bengal has been
sketched by a former resident of Dacca, Mr. James Taylor,I While
much curious information is contained in Mr. Bolts’ Consider-
ations and in the works of Edmund Burke. Under the Mughal
Government, and even as late as the Nawabship of ’ Ali Vardi Khan
(1742—56), the weavers manufactured in perfect liberty, and the
enterprising among them advanced money to promote the trade,
but with Siraj-ud-daulah (1756-7) the decadence began, and during
his eventful reign seven hundred families of weavers left their
homes at Jangalbari, in Maimansinh, owing to oppression, and
emigrated to other districts. Before 1765, when the English obtained
the Diwéni of Bengal, bullion was regularly imported from Europe
to meet the requirements of the traders, but after that day advances
were made from the provincial treasuries to buy the annual stock or
“investment.” This gave a new and unprecedented stimulus to
weaving, and in 1787, the most prosperous year on record, the
estimated prime cost of the cloths entered at the custom house
of Dacca amounted to ﬁfty lakhs of rupees, or 625,000]. This pros-
perity, however, was very deceptive, being founded on injustice and
intolerable oppression. The ﬁrst decline may be traced to the rapacity
of the “ banyans ” and gomastas, who arbitrarily decided the quantity
of goods each weaver was to deliver, the prices he was to receive,
while his name being entered on a register, he was not permitted to
work for any one but his own gomasta. When the annual supply
was ready the gomasta held a bazar, at which the jachandér, or
appraiser, ﬁxed the price of the goods, but the rascality, Mr. Bolts
says,g was beyond imagination, and the prices were often ﬁfteen
per cent, often forty, below the market rate.

The deplorable condition of the weavers in 1773 is depicted in
the following extract from a letter written by Mr. Rouse, the Chief
of Dacca5 : —“ The weavers are in general a timid, helpless people,
many of them poor to the utmost degree of wretchedness, incapable
of keeping accounts, industrious as it were by instinct, unable to
defend themselves if oppressed, and satisﬁed if with continual labour
they derive from the fair dealing and humanity of their employer
3. moderate subsistence for their families.”

The following incident that occurred in 1767 gives a vivid idea
of the state of matters in Dacca at that period. Mr. Thomas Kelsall,

 

1 A Descriptive and Historical Account of the Cotton Manufacture of
Dacca, in Bengal. By A Former Resident of Decca. London. 1851.

2 Considerations, part i, 193.

3 Burke’s Works, Bohn’s edition, iv, 73.

TA’N TI. 304 TAPAER.

Chief of Dacca, being informed that a certain weaver, Krishna Pal
Kumar, was suspected of ~ selling muslins to the French factory,
ordered him to be seized, but he found shelter with the French.
His relatives, however, were imprisoned and beaten, and their
houses pillaged. Upon this the weaver gave himself up to the
Diwan, Bhikam Lal Thakur, who ordered him to be ﬂogged, after
which he was conﬁned in the factory for eleven days, during which
time the peons ﬂeeced him of forty-nine rupees and two pieces of
cloth. By Mr. Kelsall’s order his head was shaved, his face black-
ened “with lime and ink,” and being mounted on an ox, he was
paraded through Nawabpﬁr, where the brokers and Baikars lived.
After three more days the accused was forwarded to the N awab for
trial, who, ﬁnding no fault, discharged him.

This hateful system was at last swept away, and the weavers for
a short time enjoyed comparative freedom of trade and unusual pros-
perity; but in 1769 Arkwright obtained his patent, in 1779 Crompton
invented the mule, and the cotton manufactures of Lancashire have
gradually driven the ﬁner and less durable fabrics of the Bengali
weavers out of the market, and all but annihilated the trade.”

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Téntis in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Bardwan 46,617 20,913 Chittagong 2,799 4,894
Bankura 16,510 29,301 Noakhali 1,273 1,326
Birbhum 16,761 15,962 Patna 12,958 18,802
Midnapur 106,317 97,720 Gya 6,8941 5,7441
Hughli } 39 079 { 29,647 Shahabnd 8,156 10,388
Howrah ’ 14,250 Tirhut {Mozaffarpur 1 824-96 { 56,656
24-Parganas 19,576 8,129 Darbhanga 5 ' 90,913
Nadiya 9,418 6,806 Saran 4,800 10,826
Khulna ...... 2,5941 Champaran 11.496 21,186
Jessore 10,760 10,349 Monghyr 86,202 87,268
Murshedabad 17,409 19,814 Bhagalpur 63,037 59,884
Dinajpur 12,800 9,093 Purniah 35,307 29,273
Rajshahye 82-3 1,515 Maldah 16.360 6,503
Rangpur 3,235 4,553 Santal Parganas 4,656 10,949
Bogra 1,801 1,660 Outtack 37,822 38,790
Pabna. 4,059 4,110 Puri 14,154. 14,215
Darjiling 6441 428 Balasore 38,460 410,046
Jalpigori ... 4,031: 5,453 Tributary States 13,706 19,947
Kuch Behar ...... 1,437 Hazaribagh 54.1 854,
Dacca 8,906 10,587 Lohardaga ... 5,837 11,340
Faridpur ... 3.4110 3,304 Singbhum 20,758 21,260
Bakarganj 1,875 1,327 Manbhum 13,961 12,243
Maimansinh 7,392 8,430 Tributary States ...... 5,121
Tipperah 1,792 1,540

Tdmfi, a synonym for Jolhé Tantraba’ya, a synonym for
and Pan. . Tanti.
Ténti-Mahili, a sub-caste of Tantubdya, a. synonym for
Mahilis 1n Manbhum who carry Tanti.
alan uins. - ..
P q Ténurl, a gam of the Bétsya
Téntlé, a section of Goalés 1n gotm of Barendra Brahmans 1n
the North-Western Provmces Bengal.
and Behar. . ‘ . .
Tapaer, a section of Mahihs
Tantraba’i, a synonym for Ténti. 1n Ohota Nagpur.

TAPASPATI.

Tapaspati, “Master of Pen~
ance,” a title of religiousmen-
dloants.

@srah, Terri, an up-country
caste.

Tarat, a sub-section of the
Bharadwéja section of Utkal
Brahmans.

Téri, a mu! or section of the
Chhamulia’. Madhesia sub-caste of
Halwais in Behar.

Tériél, a gdz‘n of the Batsya
gotm of Bérendra Brahmans in
Bengal.

Tariyé, a section of Saraogis
in Behar.

Tarkanyark, a pm‘ or section
of Sékadwipi Brahmans in
Behar.

Téroélé Bisi, a grim of the
Séndilya gotra of Barendra Brah-
mans in Bengal.

Térsi, a mul or section of
Kasarwani Bamyés 1n Behar.

Térsuriya, a sub-caste of

Pasis in Behar.

Tartar ke khirpuri, a section
of the Biyahut and Kharidaha
Kalwars in Behar.

Tarwér, a sept of the Sur-
yabansi sub-tribe of Réjputs in
Behar; a totemistic sept of
Mundas in Ohota Nagpur who
cannot touch a sword.

Térzukmung, a sept of Lep-
chas in Darjiling.

Tatia, a kind of bird, a totem-
istic sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

305

 

TELI.

Tatoér, a gdin of the Sébarna
gotm of Barendra Brahmans in
Bengal.

Tatwd, a synonym for J olhé
and Tanti.

(Emma, a weaving caste in
Behar, who apply caterpillars to
trees for cocoons from which tasar
silk is made. See Tdntz'.

Tamika, a synonym for Teli.

Taulo, earthen-pot, a. title of
Bérendra Brahmans in Bengal.

Taunr. a sept of Réjputs in
Behar.

Taw, a sept of the Patar sub-
tribe of Mahilis in Chota Nagpur.

Téyal, a gotm or section of
Agarwals.

Tej, a title of Dakshin-Rérhi
and Bangaj a Kayasths.

Tejanié, a section of Sonérs
in Behar.

Tek Béré, a sub-caste of Gaura
Brahmans.

Tekhé, a sept of the Chan-
drahansi division of Rajputs in
Behar.

Tela, a section of Mahesris in
Behar.

Telgé, a section of Kharias in
Chota Nagpur.

Telhé. a sept of Binjhiés in
Chota Nagpur who use oil at
marriage.

Telhari, a group of Maghaiya.
Telis in Behar.

CEBU, Tailr’, Tali/ca, Tailakdr, Tailpal, Kala, a large oil-press.
ing and trading caste of Bengal, Behar, and Urlssa. lheir original
profession was probably oil-pressing, and the caste may be regarded

u

TELL 306

as a functional group recruited from the respectable middle class of
Hindu society. Oil is used by all Hindus for domestic and cere-
monial purposes, and its manufacture could only be carried on by
men whose social purity was beyond dispute.

The Telis of Bengal have a variety of traditions, mostly of the
mythological type, which are interesting for
their attempt to account for the origin and
comparative status of some of the main divisions of the caste.
The creation of the ﬁrst Teli is ascribed to the god Siva, who,
being of a mind to rub himself after bathing with oil instead
of with the wood ashes, which be generally used, made from the
sweat of his arm a man named Rupnarayan ’l‘eli or Manohar Pal,
and inspired him with the idea of an oil-mill (glzdm'). Some say
that the original oil-mill was turned by two bullocks without
blinkers, and that the Kalus were degraded for using one bullock only
and blinding its eyes with blinkers. Another legend bearing on
the same point is the following :—In the beginning of time the
goddess Bhagavati made two men out of turmeric paste and ordered
them to bring her oil. One came back very soon with a pot of oil;
the other took much longer. then the goddess asked the reason of
the delay, the latter explained that he had to soak up the oil with
a bit of rag and squeeze it into a pot, while the former had stolen
a march on him by using a mill with a hole at the bottom, through
which the oil trickled out. On hearing this the goddess was much ,
oﬁended at the idea that she had used oil procured by a process
resembling one of the baser functions of the human body, and
condemned the more inventive of the two oilmen to pay the penalty
of his ingenuity by being degraded to a lower caste. It would be
quite in keeping with other cases of the growth of sub-Castes that the
Kalus should have been separated from the parent caste by reason of
their having introduced an improvement in the primitive oil—mill ;
and the myth of Bhagavati’s anger may well have arisen to account
for their separation and for the lower social status assigned to them.
There are, for example, two outcaste classes of oilmen in Eastern
Bengal, who have been excommunicated because they manufacture
oil in a novel manner: the ﬁrst, or GéChhué Teli, express the oil
by crushing the seed between wooden rollers; the second, or BhL’mja
Teli, parch the seed and then extract the oil. I do not know
whether these groups have as yet started myths connecting their
degradation with the displeasure of a god; but it is reasonable to
expect that some such legend should in course of time be evolved.

Concerning the origin of the sub—castes which bear the curious
names of Ekédas and Dwédas Teli an in-
teresting legend is current. The father of all
the Telis, it is said, was Manohar Pal, a beopdm‘ or hawker who
travelled about selling various wares. He had two wives. While
he was away on a journey, a rumour reached his home that he
was dead. Thereupon the elder wife broke her ornaments and
performed the rites appointed for a widow, but the younger wife
disbelieved the tale. In fact Manohar Pal was not dead, and
returned home after a few days. From 'the two wives sprang the

Traditions of origin.

Internal structure.

307 TELI.

two sub-castes in question. The Ekadas Teli are the descendants of
the elder wife, and the Dwadas ’l‘eli of the younger. In memory of
the elder wife breaking her ornaments on hearing of her husband’s
death, the Ekadas women do not wear nose-rings and do not tattoo
their foreheads and arms. Each group claims precedence over the
other. The Ekédas are of course the elder branch, and it is alleged
that they represent the original stock of the Teli caste, which is stated
in the list given in the Brahma~Vaivartta Purana to be derived from
a Kumhar (potter) father and a mother of the builder caste, Kotak or
Gharami. It stands eleventh on the list, and this is the reason for
the name Ekadas. The Dwadas Teli in their turn, while admitting
the descent of the Ekadas from the elder wife of the founder of the
caste, alleged that they have forfeited the precedence they might
otherwise claim by submitting to be governed by Paramaniks in all
matters relating to caste, and by sending women of the bride’s family
to accompany her on her ﬁrst visit after marriage to her husband’s
house. Another queer custom of the Ekadas group forbids them
to wear moustaches, but English education is said to be breaking
this down.

The Ghana, Ghéni, or Géchhué Telis work an oil-mill of
primitive pattern. This machine has no hole for the removal of the
oil, which has to be soaked up with a bit of rag tied on to a stick
The Kalu, as has been explained above, use a mill with a hole to let
out the oil. The status of the latter is very low, and their separa-
tion from the main body of the Telis is so complete that many
regard them as a separate caste.

In Eastern Bengal, according to Dr. Wise, there are two
great subdivisions of this caste: the Tail—pal, or Man char Pal, and
the Teli, the former being the richer and more numerous. The
Tail-pal arefrequently distinguished by the epithet Do-patti, from
having adopted the Sﬁdra marriage custom of carrying the bride and
bridegroom on stools. The Teli, again, are known as Ekgachhi,
from their planting a champa—tree, on which the bridegroom sits
while the bride is carried round him several times, as is the custom
with the Gandhabaniks.

Originally, it is said there were no divisions, and all oilmen
belonged to one caste, but in course of time, as wealth accumulated
in their hands, the richer families, ashamed of their ancestral occu-
pation, have adopted a new name to conceal their parentage. Thus
in the district of Central Bengal Telis who have grown rich call
themselves Tilis, and affect to be of a higher lineage than the Telis,
although they still retain the old family titles. Wealth and pros-
perity have made them give up the manufacture of oil, and led them
to become Amdawalah, or traders buying goods Wholesale and sell-
ing them by retail. Some go the length of saying that Tili is
a caste wholly distinct from 'l‘eli, but I doubt whether the process
of separation has as yet gone so far as this.

In the northern parts of the Dacca district, beyond the limits of
the country aﬁected by the reforms of Ballal Sen, the oilman caste
has hypergamous divisions, which are said to vary in almost every
pargana. In Raipi’ira, for example, there are four classes of this sort-—

u‘Z

TELI. 308

the Satrah, or seventeen families; the Bais, or twenty-two; the
Uhaubis, or twenty-four; and the Chair, or four—each taking rank
in the order named. These differ from the standard Kulin group-
ing in that the competition is for wives, not husbands. Girls may
marry in a class below their own, and large dowries are given by the
three lower groups for wives belonging to the ﬁrst class.

In Dacca city at the time of Dr. Wise’s researches the Tail-pals
and Telis used to intermarry, and were regard-
ed as clean Sﬁdras. The gotras common to both
were Aliman, Sandilya, and Kasyapa. In addition to the well-
known Padavis, or family surnames, of P511, Nandi, Dé, and Kﬁndu,
Chaudhari, and Shikdar, honorary titles bestowed by the native
government were common among them, while the headman was styled
Mandel. In former days their unions (dais) were notorious for
the faction ﬁghts which broke out whenever differences of opinion
were expressed. No dal existed in Dr. Wise’s time, but the Manda]
used to summon a panchayat when required.

The marriage arrangements of the Telis of Bengal are cast
in the orthodox mould, and the attempt is to approach as closely
as possible to the example furnished by the higher castes. The
sections which regulate marriage are of the eponymous type;
infant-marriage is fully established, and the marriage ceremony
is in general conformity with the ritual prescribed in the Hindu
scriptures. Widows may not marry again, and divorce is not _
recognized.

In other parts of the country the inﬂuence of orthodox tradition
has been less powerful, and the aspirations of the caste are more
modest. In Behar their sections belong to the titular or territorial
types, while among the Tells of Chota Nagpur and Orissa totems
are still held in reverence and regulate the intermarriage of members
of the caste. Infant-marriage, though more usual than adult-
marriage, is not reckoned absolutely essential; widow—marriage is
permitted, the widow being usually expected to marry her deceased
husband’s younger brother. Divorce is recognized, and divorced,
women are permitted to marry again.

In Bengal almost all 'l‘elis are Vaishnavas. Their principal
festivals are those in honour of Lakshmi,
Saraswati, and Gandheswari, the last being
celebrated at the Dasahara in stin (September—October) and not
on the full moon of Baisakh (April—May), as is the custom of the
Gandhabanik caste. They employ as their priests Rarhi Brahmans,
who are received on terms of equality by the Brahmans who minister
to the spiritual wants of the higher castes. The Brahmans who serve
the Kalus, on the other hand, are generally looked down upon, and
occupy a position hardly higher than that of the degraded Brahmans
who are the priests of the Kaibartta caste. _

In Behar the worship of Vishnu does not appear to be a special
characteristic of the 'l‘elis, and the worship of the minor deities
seems to hold a more prominent position than is the case in Bengal.
Among these the Kanaujia Telis pay especial reverence to the. Panch
Pir and Goraya, While the Magahiyé. sub-caste is more addicted to

Marriage.

Religion.

309 TELL

the cult of Kalihandi, J alpait, and Dharam Raj. To these rural
divinities the former offer k/nfrpur-i sweetmeats and bread made
of seven kinds of grain on Wednesdays during the light half of the
month of Asin, while the latter observe a similar ritual on the
same day during the light half of Séwan and Magh. If a vow is
made or a special boon solicited from the god. a more sumptuous
offering is needed, and in such cases the Maghaya Telis usually
sacriﬁce a goat. On Tuesdays during the light half of Sawan, the
Kanaujia Telis offer a sucking pig t0 Goraya. After the blood
of the victim has been poured forth on the ground before the
lump of dried mud which symbolises the presence of the god,
the body is either buried under ground or given to a Dosadh, whose
religious scruples do not deter him from a savoury meal. The
practice may also be accounted for by the supposition, in itself by no
means improbable, that the Dosadhs, like the Layas and Bhuiyas
in Western Bengal, were generally recognized as the hereditary
priests of the more primitive deities, and in that capacity were
entitled to claim the offerings as their legitimate perquisite. An
inferior class of Brahmans, spoken of contemptuously as “ Tel-
Babhan,” serve the 'l‘eli as priests.

In Eastern Bengal, according to Dr. Wise, the pure Telis only
extract til oil from the sesamum seed, and caste is forfeited if any
other oil be manufactured. The ghdm’, 0r oil-mill driven by
bullocks, is never used, the oil being prepared in the following
manner: The seeds are boiled and given to the Muhamadan Kﬁti
to husk. After being sifted, the 'l‘eli puts them into large vats
(jdld), boiling water being poured in, and the seeds allowed to soak
for twelve hours. In the morning the liquid is beaten with bamb00
paddles (ghotmi) and left to settle, when the oil ﬂoating on the surface
is skimmed off and stored, no attempts to purify it being made.
The refuse (It/(alt) is given to cattle.

The social standing of the Telis differs in different parts of the
country and for different sub-castes. In
Bengal, for example, the higher sub-castes
of Telis, who have abandoned the oil trade and become bankers,
money-lenders, cloth-dealers, and shop-keepers, take rank among the
Nava-Sékha, or nine castes (now in fact fourteen) from whose hands
a Brahman may take water, while the Kalus, or working oilvmen,
are included in a lower group along with the Sutradhar, the Sundi,
and the Kapali. In Behar the entire caste seems to stand on this
lower level, and no Brahman will take water from their hands.

Dr. Wise mentions that Krishna Kanta N andi, better known as
Kauta Babu, the banyan of Warren Hastings, was a Teli by
caste, and did much to raise its position among the Hindus. On
visiting J agganath he offered to provide an atka or assignment of
land for the maintenance of the poor, but the Panda', or presiding
priest, refused to accept it from the hands of such an unworthy
person. Against this decision Kanta Babu successfully appealed to
the Pandits 0f Nadiya and. Hughli, who held that the Teli, by using
the balance Tula in his trade, must necessarily belong to the Bank's,
a clean Sﬁdra caste. Kanta Babu died in 1780. He is said to have

Social status.

TELI.

'310

TENSHA’BA.

introduced the nath, or nose-ring, among the females of his caste,
an ornament previously Worn only by Brahmans and the higher

Sﬁdras.

The present representative of his family, Maharéni

Sarnamayi of Kasimbazar, is renowned for her munitioent support
of public and private charities, and her zealous eﬂorts to further
the intellectual advance of her countrymen and countrywomen. ‘

The following statement shows the number and distribution of

Telis in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Bardwan ... 123,275 51,199 Noakhali 2,954 4,489
Bankura. 54,386 95.435 Tipperah 4,914 6,698
Birhhum 30,867 27,926 Chittagong Hill Tracts ...... 8
Midnapur 75,240 77,339 Patna. ... 47,509 52,880
Hughli } 39 956 { 47,038 Gya 50,701 57,379
Howrah . . ' 15,492 Shahabad 41,440 47,836
24-Parganas .. 32,902 29,896 Mozaﬁ’arpur ... 136 208 { 82,856
Nadiya 30,119 32,335 Darbhanga ... ' 79,444
Jessore 21,443 14,280 Saran 55,138 63,087
Khulna ...... 7,742 Champaran ... 42,916 52,842
Murshedabad 39,189 20,730 Monghyr 52,765 56,632
Dinujpur 6,955 6,044 Bhasalpur . 64,103 66,946
Rajshahye 8,060 6,929 Puruiah ... 38,701 38,136
Rangpur ... 3,262 3,379 Maldah . 17,949 11,374
Boers. 1,946 2,740 Santzil Parganas 27,954 35,915
Pabna .. 10,604 10,272 Cuttack 52,173 58,559
Darjiling 412 903 Fun 36,839 38,916
Jalpigorl 2,728 2,471 Balasore 37,749 43,200
Kuch Behar ...... 504 Tributary States 42,476 50,283
Dacca. . 13,711 16,201 Hazanbagh 29,876 42,319
Faridpur 7,818 14,490 Lphardagé 24.427 32,835
Bakarganj 12,184 7,280 Slngbhum .. . 3,904 4,110
Maimansinh ... ... ... 7,8I4 9,713 Manbhum ... 33,072 32,382
Chittagong 4,063 4,031 Trlbutary States 3,026 6,227

 

 

 

 

 

 

Telia, a tree, a totemistic sept
of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Telié-Nagasié, a sub-tribe of
Nageswars who use oil instead of
sindur at marriage.

Teli Baniyé, a sub-caste of
Baniyés in Behar.

Teligémia, a. group of the
Mihtar sub-caste of Telis in
Behar.

Teliha, a section of Kamar-
kolla Sonars in Behar.

Teling, the worker in cane, a
sept of the Chhothar sub-tribe of
Limbus in Darjiling.

ﬁrlinga, a small caste found
in Bankura and believed to be

 

the descendants of certain sepoys
imported from Madras in the last
century by one of the Rajas of
Bishenpur. Curiously enough,
they have adopted the totemistic
sections used by the Bagdis and
Bauris of Western Bengal.

Temdih, a mu! or section of
the Naomalia or Majraut sub-
caste of Goalés in Behar.

Temrakoti, a ﬂaw or section
of Nepali Brahmans.

Tendun, a sept of Rajputs in
Behar.

Tengré, a section of Binjhias
in Chota Nagpur.

1"enshéba, a bird, a totemis-
tic sept of J uéngs in Orissa.

TEN TULIA’.

Tentulié, a section of Patnis
in Behar.

Tentulia, Tetula', a sub-caste of
Bagdis in Bengal, named after
the tamarind tree, and apparently
totemistic.

Teor, a sub-caste of Bégdis in
Bengal and of Kaibarttas who still
serve as ﬁshermen and boatmen.

Tera-Hazér or Birbandhi, a
sub-caste of Cheros in Palamau.

Terahgharié, a sub-caste of
Kurmis in Behar.

Tesé, a sept of Bhumijs in
Chcta Nagpur.

T980229, a synonym for
Limbu.

Teswér, a section of Doms in
Behar.

Tetenga, bloodsucker, a totem-
istic sept of Parhaiyas.

Teteteyin or Bagidr, a section .

of Kharias in Chota Nagpur.

Tetié, a sept of the Chandra-
bansi division of Rajputs in
Behar.

Tetihé, a [ml or section of
Bébhans in Behar.

Tetong, a ﬂaw or sept of
Murmis in Darjiling.

Teva Pénya, a them or section
of Nepali Brahmans.

Tewan Raja, a kind of bird,
a totemistic sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Tewéri, Tiwéri, a title of
Kamars in Bengal; of Brahmans

311

 

THA’PA’NGI.

and Babhan‘s in Behar; a section
of Sribastab Kayasths and of
Magahiya Doms in Behar.

Théda, a thaw or sept of
Mangers in Darjiling.

Thahréit, a section of the
Kamar sub-caste of Dosédhs in
Behar.

(@ltail‘ti, a small labouring
caste of Nepal.

Thékur, a synonym for Brah-
man; a section of the Sribastab
sub-caste of Kayasths in Behar ;
a hypergamous division of the
Maghaya sub-caste of Barhis;
a title of Kanaujia Lohars,
Babhans, Brahmans, Rajputs,
Kamars, and of Hajjams or
barbers in Behar; a title of a
respectable class of Tipperahs in
Hill Tipperah.

Thakurmai rar, a pm or section
of Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Thékurta, an honorary title
of Kayasths in Bengal.

Th ambden, the stay-at-home,
a sept of the Phedab sub-tribe of
Limbus in Darjiling.

Thampéi-Mech, a sub-tribe of
Meches in the Darjiling Terai.

Thamsong, a sub-sept of the
Thekim sept of Limbus in Dar
j iling. .

Théndér, a title of Haris and

Chandals in Bengal who serve as
a village watch.

Thépa, a title of Mangars in
Darjiling.

Thépéngi, a section of Kamis
'in Darjiling. '

THARAIT. 312 THA’RU.

Tharait, a section of Maghaya Telis in Behar. The system of

Kumhars in Behar. ' » exogamy among this sub-caste of

Telis seems, however, either to be

Thériéme-T’hériém, amal of dying out or to be of recent

the Kasyapa section of Maithil introduction, for some of the

Brahmans in Behar. Maghayas say they have no

(ti/1,8, but merely prohibit marriage

Tharméit, a (fill or local sec- within nine pirate or degrees of
tion of the Maghaya sub-caste of relationship.

(@héru, a non-Aryan tribe of Behar and Upper India, whose
scattered settlements are met with all along the Himalayan terai,
from the Kosi river in Purniah to the Serda between Kumaon and.
Nepal. In an exhaustive account of the tribe published in the
Calcutta Review,1 Mr. Nesﬁeld has the following remarks on their
name :-—

“Absurd etymologies have been given for the name deru,
some deriving it from ta/zre, “ they halted ” (after their alleged ﬂight
into the forest), others from tar baa, “wet,” in allusion to the
swampy nature of the tract they live in. One writer derives it from
dtkwdru, ‘ an eighth-day serf.’2 But this implies what is not true.
The Tharus are remarkable for their indolence, aversion to service,
and incapacity for sustained ﬁeld labour; and they have never been
in the position of serfs to any landlords. Had this been the case,
they would have sunk long ago into the ranks of Arakhs, Pasis,
Chamars, Koris, and other Hindu castes of the lowest rank, who
serve as ﬁeld labourers or bond slaves to landlords in the open plain,
and have lost the free life of the forest, which Tharus still enjoy.
Another etymology suggested is from thdr, which in the colloquial
dialect of the lowest classes, but not in the language of books, signi-
ﬁes forest; and thus tlzaru would mean ‘ man of the forest,’ a name
which correctly describes the status of the tribe. On the Whole,
however, it is safer not to seek for any Hindi etymology, but to
consider the name as sprung from the language of the tribe itself,
which is now for the most part obsolete. An aboriginal name,
underived from any Sanskrit or nee-Sanskrit s0urce, is the ﬁt appel-
lative to an aboriginal, casteless, and un-Brahmanised tribe, whose
customs have been only slightly modiﬁed by contact with those of
the Aryan invader.”

The origin of the Tharus has formed the subject of much
controversy. The Rautar sub-tribe claim to be
the descendants of certain Réjputs of Chittor,
who quarrelled with their chief after his defeat by the Mahomedans,
divested themselves of the sacred thread, and took to agricultural

1 Description of the Manners, Industries, and Religion. of the Thdru and
Bogslza Tribes of Upper India. By John C. Nesﬁeld, M.A., Oxon. January
1885.

3 The ﬁrst etymology is alluded to in 0nd]; Gazetteer, 1877, Vol. ii, p. 126 ;
the second, in North- West Census Report, 1867, vol. i, p. 61; the third (the
author of which is Raja Siva Prasad, 0.8.1.), in North-West Provinces
Gazetteer, 1881, vol. vi, p. 358.

Traditions of origin.

 

313 TH ARU.

pursuits. Mr. Nesﬁeld, however, points out tha “Some Tharus
know nothing about this tradition, and those who do are not able
to tell you whether it was the sack by Alaudin (AD. 1303), or that
by Bahadur Shah (AD. 1533), or that by Akbar (A.D. 1567).
The story is absurd on the face of it. Not the slightest allusion to
Tharus in connection with any of these events is made by the
Mahommedan historians. The ﬁction of having come from Rajputana
was invented by some of the clans merely to raise themselves in
their own and their neighbours’ estimation. There is scarcely any
hunting tribe or caste in Upper India which has not set up a similar
claim.”

Putting aside the hypothesis of Raj put descent as wholly unten-
able, we may, I think, conclude from the physical appearance of the
tribe that they are simply an aboriginal race, whose ancestors bore rule
at one time in the valley of the Ganges. and were gradually driven
up into the sub-Himalayan forests by the expansion of the Aryan
community. Thus within the last two or three centuries they have
been brought into contact with the Nepalese, and their physiognomy
“ has acquired in some instances a slightly Mongolian cast, which
shows itself chieﬂy, but not to a striking degree, in slanting eyes and
high cheek-bones. In other respects their physical characteristics are
of the strictly Indian type. They have long, wavy hair; a dark,
almost a black, complexion; and as much hair on the face and body as
is usual with other natives of India.1 In stature, build, and gait they
are distinctly Indian, and not Mongolian ; nor have they any tradi-
tions whatever which connect their origin with Nepal. A century’s
intercourse with the people of the hills is more than sufﬁcient to
account for the slight Mongolian cast which some members of the
tribe have acquired.” They belong, in fact, to’ the large group of
aboriginal races who are classed as Dravidian or Kolarian, according
to the character of the language which they speak. The Tharus
having lost their language cannot be afﬁliated to one or other of these
linguistic families; but Mr. Nesﬁeld’s description of their appearance,
which agrees substantially with the accounts given by other observers,
leaves little room for doubting their non-Aryan descent. The relations
said to have sprung up in comparatively recent times between the
Thérus and the Nepalese ﬁnd a tolerably complete parallel in the
intermixture which has taken place between the Dhimals of the
Darjiling Terai and some of the lower castes of Nepal.

The internal structure of the tribe, so far as I have been able to
work it out, is shown in Appendix I. My own
researches, however, extend only to Behar, and
the enumeration of sub-tribes and septs is probably not complete even
for that province. The nomadic habits of the Tharus, and the great
extent of forest-clad area over Which their settlements are scattered,
must in the long run tend to promote the formation of sub-castes,
and at the same time to make it difﬁcult for the most careful

Internal structure.

. 1 A Native correspondent, to Whom I am indebted for some interesting notes
on the Tharus of Champaran, remarks on the scantiness of their beards and

moustaﬁhes, but this peculiarity may have been due to crossing with Nepalese
or Mec .

THARU. 314

inquirer to give an absolutely correct account of the internal
divisions of the community, which in all likelihood are liable to
continual variations.

In Gorakpur, according to Mr. Nesﬁeld, the Tharus divide them-
selves into two classes,—-the Purabi or eastern, and the Pachhami or
western, the latter of Whom call themselves Chattris, and refuse to
eat with members of the eastern branch. The western Tharus again
are broken up into an upper (barks) and lower (Oh/zot/m) division.
Further west, in the Gonda district of Oudh, we ﬁnd the Dangaria
sub-tribe, who eat pork, and the Kathérié, who affect to abstain from
it. In Behar the Rautér rank the highest, owing possibly to the
belief, which their name may have helped to encourage, that they
are somehow connected with the Réjputs. Rautars will not eat food
cooked by members of the other sub-castes. Chitwanié or Chitaunié
Thérus follow the profession of weavers, and say that their ancestors
were J oléhas, who gave water to the Raja of Chittor when he was
out shooting, and obtained from him the boon that good Hindus
should ever afterwards take water from their hands. This sub-tribe
is more common in Nepal than in British territory. Its members
have certain peculiar usages, the reasons for which I cannot ascertain.
They perform no srddd/z after a death, nor do their women go through
any puriﬁcatory ceremony after child-birth. The bridal procession
(bardt) is limited to four or ﬁve persons, who go on their way in
silence and employ no musicians to proclaim their errand. Among
their minor deities they worship the Raja of Chittor, to whom they
owe their promotion from the comparatively low status of J olaha.

The septs appear to be either titular or territorial, and throw no
light upon the early afﬁnities. The rule of exogamy followed is the
simple one that a man may not marry a woman belonging to the
same sept (bdn) as himself. The standard formula for reckoning
prohibited degrees is also observed to four generations in the descend-
ing line on either side.

Both infant and adult-marriage are in force, and sexual inter-

. course before marriage is said to be tolerated

Marriage' by the Chitwania Thérus. The traditional
amount of the bride-price is supposed to be Rs. 9, but this is liable to
vary according to the circumstances of the family. The marriage
ceremony is modelled on the ritual in vogue among the lower Hindu
castes. Slight traces of the form of capture may perhaps be discerned
in it, but these are not very marked among the Tharus of Behar.
Brahmans oﬂiciate as priests, and the brother-in-law (ganjua’) of
the bride usually takes a prominent part. in the proceedings. In
the Mardania and Chitwania sub-tribes the bridegroom’s party,
instead of being entertained by the bride’s people, are expected to
feast the latter for three days before the bride is produced. No
second ceremony (gazmd) is performed when the bride goes ﬁnally to
live with her husband. When she is married as an adult, she goes to
her husband at once, and in all cases I understand it is deemed
proper for her to spend one night at her husband’s house 1mmed1ately
after marriage. On the occasion of this visit she and the relations
who accompany her are entertained at a feast called dul/n bizatawan,

315 THARU.

‘ giving rice to the bride,’ which celebrates her formal admission into
the sept to which her husband belongs. If she is still an infant, she
is taken back next day to her parent’s house by her brother-in-law,
and remains there until she has attained sexual maturity.

Polygamy is permitted, and there appears to be no deﬁnite rule
limiting the number of wives a man may have. Widows may
marry again, and are subject to no special restrictions in their
selection of a second husband. Divorce is allowed, and appears to be
extremely common. The bond of wedlock is held in light esteem
among the Tharus, who countenance a degree of sexual laxity
analogous to that which prevails among many of the Nepalese castes,
and generally among the sub-Himalayan races. Divorced women
may marry again by the same ceremony as widows, and both classes
are distinguished by the designation umm‘, or ‘ selected,’ from women
who were married as virgins by the full ritual. The social status of
an wart wife is respectable, though slightly inferior to that of a bydhi
wife. Even this position, however, is not accorded to her unless
she is married with the consent of the relatives of her second
husband, which is signiﬁed by the ceremony of blmtdmi, or formally
admitting her to the jus cibz‘ of the household. Unless this is done
she is called a sumitm, or concubine, and her husband cannot take
water or cooked food from her hands without endangering his
own standing in the family. B/mta’na’ is also necessary when any one
has been debarred from social intercourse for an offence against the
customs of the tribe. There seems to be some diﬁerence of practice
among the Tharu sub-tribes in respect of the admission of women
from a diﬁz‘erent sub-tribe. Some groups receive women from any
other group, others only from certain speciﬁed groups, while Rautars
decline to admit any outsiders to the privilege of bizatdnd, although
they allow awoman of another sub-tribe to be kept by a Rautar man
as a sumitm. Such women, however, have no rights as members of
the family, and their children belong to their mother’s sub-tribe.

The religion of the Thérus is a compound of the mingled
animism and Nature-worship characteristic of
the aboriginal races and of elements borrowed
from popular Hinduism. A prominent place in their pantheon is
taken by the hero Rikheswar, whom I suspect to be identical with
the Rikhmun of the Musahar-Bhuiyas. According to the legend in
vogue among the Tharus of Kheri, this deiﬁed founder was a son of
the renowned aboriginal King Raja Ben, whose fame is still rife in
many of the oldest cities of Upper India and Behar as one who
held the rank and title of Chalcmcartz', or universal emperor, in the
olden time. Rikheshwar or Raksha was banished, it is said, from
his father’s court, and ordered with his band of male followers to
seek for a new home in the north, from which they were never to
return. Setting out on their wanderings, they took as wives any
women whom they could steal or capture on the road, and in this
way the Tharu tribe was founded. It was not till they had reached.
the! sub-Himalayan forest in which they still dwell that they decided
to rest and settle. The soul of Raksha is still believed to hover
among the people of his tribe. Just as in ancient days he led them

Religion.

THARU. 3l6

safely through the wide wilderness into a' new and distant settle-
ment, so in the present» day he is said to be the guardian and guide
of men travelling on a distant journey. No Tharu ever sets out
from his village for such a purpose without ﬁrst propitiating him
with gifts and promising him a sumptuous feast of ﬂesh, milk, and
wine on his return. His presence is represented by a mound of
mud, with a stone ﬁxed in the middle; and he delights in seeing the
head of a live capon dashed against this stone, and to feel its
blood trickling down the side. One peculiarity of this god is that he
is deaf,——an emblem of his antiquity; and hence vows and prayers
are addressed to him in a stentorian tone of voice. The title gamut,
which is generally preﬁxed to his name, implies that during his
residence on earth he was famous as a wizard or medicine-man, and
acquired through this means the kingship or leadership of his tribe.

The animistic element in the Théru faith being represented by
Rikheswar, we may perhaps trace a mangled survival of Nature-
worship in two other deities of some importance, to whom Tharus
address their vows. One is Madadeo, the god of intoxicating liquor,
especially of the rice-wine made by themselves; the other is Dhar-
chandi, the patroness of cattle, though her name would imply that
she was at ﬁrst intended to impersonate the earth. Her shrine,
like those of the other deities already named, is a mound of clay.
The mound dedicated to Dharchandi is studded with short wooden
crosses, on which rice, pulse, and other produce of the ﬁelds are-
offered, and always on plates of leaf. Her shrine is so placed that
all the cattle of the village, together with the swine, sheep, and
goats, pass it on going out to graze, and repass it on their return.
When the cattle sicken or die, larger and more valuable offerings are
made. Neither of these deities is known or worshipped by other
natives of Upper India.

Fowls are offered to Dharchandi; he-goats to Mari, the patron
goddess of Kanjars and, according to Mr. Nesﬁeld, identical with
Kali. This, however, seems not to be the case in Behar. In Cham-
paran KUA is worshipped as a village deity by casting sweetmeats
down a well (lead) and smearing vermilion on its rim. All these
primitive deities, however, are rapidly losing ground in the estimation
of the people, and giving way to the more popular worship of Siva
and his consort Kali. It is likely enough that both of these are
themselves merely elaborated forms of aboriginal objects of Worship,
which may well have been familiar to an earlier generation of Tharus.
But Siva and Kali, as now revered by the tribe, have clearly been
borrowed at quite a recent date from the Hindus, and cannot be
regarded as indigenous deities.

The goddess who presides over life and death, and whom the
Tharus believe to be the supreme power in the universe, is Kalika,
——one of the numerous forms of Devi, Durga, or Kali, at whose
name all India trembles, especially the low castes and the casteless
tribes, amongst whom she originally sprung. Medicine-men look
to Kalika as the special patroness of’ their art. To the fair sex she
is the goddess of parturition, and her aid is especially invoked
by women who have had no children. All classes combine to

317 THARU.

give her a periodical ovation, accompanied with much dancing,
banqueting, and drinking of wine at about the middle of October.
Tharus also take part in the huge animal sacriﬁce performed at her
celebrated altar in Devi Patan (Gouda district). Such is her thirst
for blood, that at this time 20 buffaloes, 250 goats, and 250 pigs are
slaughtered daily for ten days continuously. The sacriﬁce is vica-
rious, the blood of buffaloes, etc., being intended as a substitute for
that of human victims. This loathsome festival is thronged with
visitors from the plains of India and from the hills of Nepal,
Sikkim, and Bhotan.

“ Another deity revered by Tharus, and, like Kalika, of indigen-
ous or non-Aryan origin, is her consort Siva, known chieﬂy
amongst Tharus by the name of Bhairava, the Terrible, or Thakur,
the Lord, and amongst Hindus by that of Mahadev, the great god.
He, like his spouse, is a god of destruction, and thirsts for blood;
but he is chieﬂy worshipped by Tharus as the author of reproduc-
tion, of which a stone lingam, as amongst Hindus, is sometimes
made the symbol. It is more usual, however, for a Tharu to erect
a mud mound in front of his house and ﬁx an upright pole in its
centre to represent the presence of this phallic divinity.”

Although modern Hinduism is fast displacing the earlier gods
of the Tharu religion, it seems probable that the principles of their
primitive belief will long survive in the strong fear of evil spirits
which continually haunts the tribe.’ It is to the action of these
spirits that fever, ague, cough, dysentery, fainting, headache, mad-
ness, bad dreams, and pain of all kinds are ascribed. In fact, the
Thérus have no conception of natural disease, and no belief in
natural death, except what is faintly conceived to be the result of
natural decay. Their state, therefore, would be one of utter helpless-
ness were it not for the reputed skill of medicine-men or sorcerers,
who profess to have the power to control the spirits of the air or to
interpret their grievances and wants. In the Tharu language these
men are called bammr ; but the titles of Guru, Gurua, Bhagat,
Nyotya, thait, all of which are borrowed from Hindi, are now in
common use, though even of these the last two are probably of
aboriginal or non-Sanskrit origin. The power of the medicine-man
is tremendous. He has a hostof liege spirits at his command. Not
only can he expel a ﬁend from the body of the sufferer, but he can
produce suffering or death by driving a malignant spirit into the
body of his foe. In order to exorcise an evil spirit, he holds in his
left hand some ashes of cowdung, or grains of mustard seed, or wild
nuts, and after breathing some mystical virtue into them by the
utterance of a spell, he causes the patient to eat them, or has them
attached to his arm. One of the spells uttered at such times is as
follows. It is addressed to Kalika, the Tharu goddess of death and
patroness of the magical art :—

G’ur hai gur sair Gm- tcmtra mantra G'M‘ : Lair/2m} niranjan ; toka
sohai p/zullm b/idr; Ham/ca so/un' gun m'dyd km’ b/zdr: Yakdn lam}
mdyd ”akin, Kamm Kdm kai Ma’yd. Jaise vidyd Kamru Kdm Icaz' ldgai,
waise vidyd ldgai mor.

TH ARU. 318

The language is that of bad and scarcely intelligible Hindi, and
might be rendered thus :—

“The Guru (Kﬁlika) is great, she is everything, she is tantra
“ (magic by deeds), she is mantra (magic by words). She points out
“ the way to relief. Thou (oh Kﬁlika) deservest to be heaped with
“ ﬂowers. I too deserve to be heaped with secret wisdom,—the wisdom
“ of Kamru Kﬁm, not the wisdom of this country. Whatever
“ effects the knowledge of Kamru Kam produces, such effects let my
“ knowledge produce also.” "

“ The burial rites of Tharus are of various kinds. Sepulture or
earth-burial seems to have been the original
custom; but- the Hindu rite of cremation has
now become common in many clans, except in the case of persons
who have died of cholera or small-pox; and these are invariably
buried in the earth. After cremation the ashes are scattered on the
nearest river. Before, however, the corpse has been disposed of by
either rite, it is usual to paint it with vermilion and expose it for
one night on a mound outside the house. ' From this mound, as from
a. stronghold, the spirit of the dead is supposed to scare away wild
animals from the corpse. Whether the body is buried or burnt, the
ceremony is always performed on the southern side of the village——
a notion probably borrowed from Hindus, who consider that the
north is the region commonly frequented by divine spirits, and the
south by human souls. The man who puts the ﬁrst ﬁre to the _
funeral pyre is considered to be unclean, from having brought
himself within dangerous reach of the contagion of death. He is
therefore kept at a distance for ten days after cremation, and
compelled to live entirely alone.” ..... “ On the expiry of the tenth
day (or the thirteenth, as some Tharus relate), the friends of the
deceased meet at the house where he died, and after undergoing the
ceremony of shaving they hold ‘ a feast of the dead.’ The banquet
prepared for this purpose consists of cooked ﬂesh and wine, the
scent and smoke of which are intended to refresh the departed soul :
the solid parts—that is, the ﬂesh and wine themselves—are consumed
by the living.” .

“ In certain rare cases the burial rite is performed 1n a manner
distinct from either of those already described. A man noted above
his fellows for wisdom in counsel, bravery in the chase, or knowledge
of the magical and medicinal arts, is buried under the ﬂoor of the
house in which he was living before his spirit departed. The house
thenceforth becomes a temple, and ceases to be used as a dwelling
place for man. The soul of the dead becomes its occupant, and it
lives there to bless those whom it has left behind. At periods of
three or six months after the death, the friends and neighbours of the
deceased assemble around his grave or temple and make an efﬁgy 1n
clay, parts of which are painted in various colours, intended to repro-
duce the appearance of resuscitated life. His worshippers fall down
weeping and wailing before the image, and place offerings of cooked
ﬂesh and wine at its feet. Presently, at a given signal, as soon as
the soul of the dead is believed to have been propitiated by the scent
of roast meat and the fumes of wine, they commence to dance and

Disposal of the dead.

319 THKRU.

sing with every demonstration of joy; and the proceedings of the day
are closed with consuming the solid parts of the offerings.”

The Tharus stand wholly outside of the Hindu caste organiza-
tion, and their social status cannot be deﬁned by
any of the ordinary standards. No orthodox
Hindu will eat with a Tharu or take water from his hands, and
by the higher castes his more touch would be deemed pollution.
This comparatively degraded position is, however, due in great
measure to the nomadic habits of the tribe, and to the fact that they
come very little into contact with settled Hindu communities.
Tharus follow the forest ; their typical village is a line of huts in the
middle of a clearing, and their favourite mode of husbandry was
until lately the ﬂaw; method of burning the jungle and planting
a crop in the ashes. The scanty crops obtained in this fashion are
eked out by hunting and ﬁshing, by gathering forest fruits and
vegetables, and by grazing cows and buffaloes. Avoiding the larger
villages of the plains, they live their own life on the outskirts of
Hindu civilization, and no place has as yet been allotted in the
Hindu social system. “Every little village,” says Mr. Nesﬁeld,
“is a self-governing community. Disputes are decided by a council
of elders; and this is sometimes presided over by a headman, who
in the Tharu language was formerly called barwaik, but who is now
dubbed even by themselves with the ordinary Hindi title of clum-
dlwm‘. The ofﬁce of headman is not hereditary. The man selected
is one whose age, experience, and knowledge of the magical and ‘
medicinal arts entitle him to more respect than the rest; and he
acquires the status of headman by tacit consent, and not by formal
election. The decisions of the council or the headman are obeyed
unreservedly, and there is no such thing known as a Tharu taking
a fellow tribesman before a tribunal outside his own community.
Litigation between Tharus and Hindus is equally unknown. Among
themselves the Tharus are for the most part a peaceful and good-
natured race, following Without question, as if by a law of nature,
the customs and maxims of their ancestors.” Notwithstanding their
comparative isolation,their customs show many signs of the inﬂuence
of Hindu example. Their religious Observances tend unmistakeably
towards Sivaism; their marriage ceremony is framed on a Hindu
model; they revere the cow, and scrupulously abstain from eating
beef. Their ultimate reception into the standard social system seems
therefore merely to be a question of time. In other respects their
practice in matters of food falls short of the orthodox standard.
They eat pigs and fowls, and make no distinction between the clean
and unclean species of ﬁsh. Field-rats they will cook when pressed
for food, and the porcupine (sci/ii) is thought a delicacy, because
his ﬂesh resembles that of the pig. Mr. Nesﬁeld mentions that
when their stock of meat becomes larger than they can consume
at once, they preserve it by cutting it into strips and drying it
in the sun.

As agriculturists they are still for the most part in the
migratory stage, cultivating the land on which
they have put up their temporary houses till it

Social status.

Occupation.

TH ARU. 320

has given proof of exhaustion, and then moving off to fresh grounds
to make a new clearance” Formerly it was their custom not to crop
the same land for more than two years together. But this is now
no longer the case. The Government conservancy laws, which have
come into force of late, have interfered very seriously with their
freedom in the selection of new sites; and hence the present
tendency of the tribe is either to move up into Nepal territory or to
remain below for a longer period in the same place. The crop in
which Tharus chieﬂy delight is rice—«the grain best suited to the
swampy nature of their ﬁelds and to the heavy rainfall of the
months between June and October. The coarse red rice called
sa’t/zi is the quality preferred. In the rainless months they chieﬂy
grow peas, a small black grain called kodo, and the pulse called
arkar. Such crops require occasional irrigation ; and this is effected,
not by drawing water from wells or from tanks and marshes and
conveying it into the ﬁelds through artiﬁcial channels, as is the
custom of Hindu cultivators, but by the rough-and—ready process of
damming up the nearest rivulet and thus inundating the crop.

The women do the largest share of the sowing, weeding, and
harvesting, while the men engage in hunting, ﬁshing, etc., which
they consider the proper calling of their sex. Such has been the
invariable instinct of savage tribes both in India and elsewhere. The
men have an intense repugnance to regular manual labour, and
nothing will induce them to hire themselves out as labourers to
Hindu landlords. The only kind of service which a Tharu will
undertake is that of elephant-driver to some neighbouring princelet
or raja. Their skill as elephant-drivers is admitted everywhere ; and
latterly they have acquired the art of catching wild elephants
from the forest and taming them for the prince Who employs
them.

The only kinds of art or manufacture which Tharus can be
said to possess are the manipulation of leaves, reeds. and ﬁbres,
and a rude kind of carpentry. The latter is exempliﬁed in making
the Wooden part of the plough, in shaping the handles of tools,
dove-tailing the corners of wells, and in ﬁxing up the sides and
roofs and ﬂoors of their houses. The former is an accomplishment
common to backward races in every part of the world, wherever
the materials exist; and here in India it is practised by all the
low castes of Hindus (Bhars, Pasis, Bhangis, Baris, Dharkars, etc.)
whose stage of culture is scarcely, if at all, raised above that of
the casteless tribes. The Tharus make strong and durable mats
out of the ﬁne bankas grass, which they gather in large quantities
from the lower ranges of the hills in the ﬁrst quarter of the year.
Excellent twine and rope are made from the same material; and
such twine is used for the manufacture of ﬁshing nets, nooses,
and snares, for drawing water from the well, for tethering cattle,
and many other purposes. Not less skilled are they in making
the funnel-shaped baskets in which ﬁsh are caught, or in thatching
the roofs of their houses. They have even invented a kind of
umbrella made of cane and mat work; so great is their aversion
to the sun and to the open plains. For plates and drinking cups

TH ARU. ‘321 TH HOLA‘CHA'.

they skewer large leaves together to the shape required for either
purpose; and for drawing and keeping water they use a hollowed
gourd or tomri. Some who are better oﬂ than others use vessels
made of clay or brass ; but these can only be obtained from Kumhérs
(potters) and Thateras (braziers), both of whom are Hindu castes;
for there is no such thing as home-made pottery or brass work
amongst the Tharu tribe. _ . -

The following statement shows the number and distributlon
of Tharus in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. ‘ DISTRICT. 1 1872. ‘ 1881.
Dar'iling 118 Champaran 2|,4950 18,395
Dar hangs. 320 9|5 Bhagalpur 48 112
Saran ... ... ... ...... 2 Purniah . 45 1,510

 

 

 

Thather or leaﬂwm, a sub- Thekim, he who works in
caste of Kandus in Behar; a sec. wicker, including the sub-septa
tion of the Banodhia and J aiswar (a) Meongba, (b) Thamsong, (c)
Halwais in Behar. Chobegu, (d) Petehhimba, (e)
Angbu, the forest-dweller, (f)

@hatltera’t, Thatkerz', a bra- Yakten, formerly doctors—a. sept
zier; in Shahabad also called 0f the Panthar sub-tribe 0f
Kaseré, which properly means Limbus in Darjiling.

a brass founder. See Kasera. Thekra, a section of Binjhias

Théthung, a ﬂaw or sept of in Chota Nagpur.

Gurungs in Darjiling. Themjéni, a tkar or sept of

Thawaz’, a synonym for raj mis- Gurungs in D arjiling '
tirz' or mason, in use in Saran Thengéit, a section of the
and South Champaran. Dhusia sub-caste of Chamars in

Thazcepé, a mi or sept of the Behar.
Ruichhung sub-tribe of Dejong Thenglahbo, the native of
Lhorls or Bhotias of the south. Thenglah, a sept of the Ahtharai

b-t‘b fL' -D .
Theguba, the son of the cliff, su r1 e 0 lmbus 1n 311111113

a sept of the Phedéb sub-tribe 0f Theni, a section of Utkal or
Limbus in Darjiling. Orissa Brahmans.

Thehbeh, a sept of the Yan- Thero, Thelma, a sub-tribe 0f
gorup sub—tribe of Limbug. Santals in the 8011th Of Man-
'l‘his is an eponymous t/mr named bhum W110 employ Brahmans and
after Thehbeh, son of Srijanga, have adopted POTtIODS 0f the
the powerful Obie; of 1llshe tribe, Hindu ritual.
since deiﬁed, who on t a ainst , .
Prithi Narayan, thegfcunger of Theya’ a sept 0f Qhakmas 1n
the present ruling dynasty of the H111 Tracts of Chlttagong.

Nepal. Thholéc'né, a thar or sept of
Their, a synonym for Chakmé. ‘ Sunuwars in Darjilmg.

 

(I:

THING.

Thing, a section of Murmis in
Darjiling. ' ‘

Thingal, a gotm or section of
Agarwéls.

Th ith i0, a bird with long legs,

a. totemistic sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

_Thobukya, he who has skin
disease, a sept of the Phedab sub-
tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.

Thogleng, the suicide, a sept
of the Chhothar sub-tribe of
Limbus in Darjiling.

Thogphelagu, he who wears ‘

the rhododendron ﬂower, a sept
of the Charkhola sub-tribe of
Limbus in Darjiling.

Thokar, a section of Murmis
in Darjiling.

Thokchéki, a tkar or sept of
Mangers in Darjiling.

Thollong, the ragged one, a
sept of the Miékhola sub-tribe of
Limbus in Darjiling.

Tholoché, a ﬂim- or sept of
Sunuwars in Darjiling.

Tkmm', a synonym for Mangar.

Th ongtha, T/zongcka, or Jumz'd
Magk, a sub-tribe of Maghs in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Thorelié, a section of the Ba-
nodhia and J aiswér Kalwérs in
Behar.

Thukrén, a section of Goalas

in the North-Western Provinces
and Behar.

Thulung, a thar or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling.

Thumuché, a thar or sept of
Sunuwérs in Darjiling.

Thungong-hep’ra, a sept of
the Phégu sub-tribe of Yakhas
in Darjiling.

322

 

TILACHHWAR.

Thupra, a sept of the Phégu
sub-tribe of Yakhas in Darjiling.

Thupuku, a sept of the Yan-
gorup sub-tribe of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Thup-yumah, name of a place,
a sept of the Tambrkhola sub-
tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.

Tiar, a synonym for Tiyar
a. sub-caste of Kewats in Orissa.

Tiér, a sept of Réjputs in
Behar.

Tiar, Tear, a sub-caste of Mal-
lahs in Behar.

Tiar or Dalai, a group of the
Rajbansi sub-caste of Kochhs in
Northern Bengal.

Tig, a monkey, which is the
totem of a section of Oraon-
Dhéngars settled for several-
generations in North Bhagal-
pur.

Tihu, a sept of Hos in Sing-
bhum.

ifm, a synonym for Mirshi-

kar

Tikaur, a sub-caste of Brah-
mans in Behar.

Tikké, a sub-sept of the
Murmu sept of Santéls.

@iklihér, Triiattd, or May-
haz‘ya Brahman, a caste employed
in making tz'klis, the spangles,
wafers, or glass patches worn upon
the forehead by women. They
permit widow-marriage and rank
socially among the serving castes,
such as Kahars. In Patna the
term tiklz‘lzdr denotes merely the
occupation described above, which
is followed by Mahomedans.

Tilachhwar, a section of Bath-
bans in Behar.

TILA’IWAR.

Tiléiwér. a mu! of the Sendil
section of Maithil Brahmans in
Behar.

Tilakchandi, asept of Réjputs bh

in Behar.

Tilak Dés, a sub-caste of
Tiyars in Eastern Bengal; a sect
of Vaishnavs who follow the
tenets of Tilak-das.

Tilatwér, a mad or section of
the Naomulia or Majraut sub-
caste of Goalas in Behar.

Tilauté, a sept of the Surya-
bansi sub-tribe of Réjputs in
Behar.

Tilding, a sept of Limbus in
Darjiling.

@ili, a worker in til (sesamum
orientale), a synonym for rlfeli.

Tilia, a section of the Baran-
war sub-caste ' of Baniyas in

Behar.

323

 

TIPPE RAH.

Timilsiné, a tlaar of the Maut-
kaha gotra of N epali Brahmans.

Tin! a sept of Hos in Sing-
um.

Tinai Prabarai, a ﬂair of
the Basishtha gotm of Nepali
Brahmans.

Tindiha, a section of Ban-
taria Kéndus in Behar.

Tingal, a gotm or section of
Agarwéls.

Tingilmung, a sept of Lep-
chas in Darjiling.

Tinmulié Madhesia, a sub-
caste of Halwais in Behar.

Tinriér, a section of the
Amashta sub-caste of Kayasths
in Behar.

Tior, a synonym for Tiyar.

@ipperah, Trams, Mrung, a wandering tribe of Hill Tipperah
and the Chittagong Hill Tracts, who live by
the jhzim cultivation described in the article on
the Magh tribe. Lewin identiﬁes them with the Mrungs of Arrakan,
who, according to Colonel Phayre, believe themselves to be the
descendants of persons carried away from Tipperah by the Arrakan
kings. The Maghs speak of the entire tribe by the name Mrung,
and do not use the Bengali word Tipperah. Members of the
Tipperah tribe have no general name for their race, and when
speaking his own language a man describes himself by mentioning
the sept to which he belongs. When speaking Bengali, however,
he would say he was a Tipperah. It seems to follow from this that
the term Tipperah is not a genuine tribal name, but a designation
conferred by outsiders by reason of the tribe being specially
numerous in Hill Tipperah. Whether this was their original habitat
or not is uncertain, and some have supposed that they came from
Manipur. To attempt to trace the earliest home of a wandering
tribe who live by j/zzim cultivation and have neither written records
nor deﬁnite oral traditions must always be a somewhat hopeless task,
and the most reasonable view of the matter seems to be that taken
by Friedrich Miiller and other German ethnologists, who class
all the wild tribes of the Chittagong and Tipperah Hills under the
head Lohitic, a word which denotes some sort of connexion with the
Brahmaputra river, and describe them in general terms as standing
in the same ethnic relation to the Burmese as the Himalayan

x2

Origin.

TIPPERAH. 324

races do to the Tibetans.1 The classiﬁcation into Toungtha and
Khyoungtha, hill-people; and river-people, adopted by Captain
Lewin, however convenient for local use, fails, as Professor Virchow‘2
has; observed, to bring out the true racial afﬁnities of the various
r1 es.
The Tipperahs are described in a survey report by Mr. H. J.
Internal structure Reynolds as having strongly-marked Mongolian
' features, with ﬂat faces and thick lips. They
are of much the same stature as Bengalis, but their frames are far
more muscular and strongly made. Many of them have fair com-
plexions, scarcely darker than a swarthy European. The tribe is
divided into a number of septs, which are shown in the Appendix.
They appear to be exogamous, but on this point there is some
difference of opinion. I have only been able to discover the meaning
of one sept name, Kakulu, a kind of gourd, and with regard to this
no one could tell me whether the members of the Kakulu sept were
forbidden to eat this gourd or were subject to any kind of taboo in
respect of it. The point seems to demand further inquiry in the
Hill Tracts by some one thoroughly acquainted with the language of
the tribe. The Riang sept serve as palanquin-bearers, and are said
to be looked down upon by the others; but it does not appear that
they have on this account been excluded from the right of inter-
marriage with other septs. The Maharajas of Hill Tipperah, who
now put forward an untenable claim to be Rajputs, are believed to -
belong to the Afang and Jumatya septs, the members of which
frequently call themselves Réjbansi by way of recalling their
relationship to the royal family. The Kali sept furnish the guards
of the chief.
Tipperahs admit into their tribe Lushais, Maghs,'and Hindus.
Intermmia e ‘ The ceremony of admission consists simply of
g ' a feast given by the new member, at which
a pig is served up and a huge quantity of drink consumed. The
proselyte declares himself to have entered the tribe, and is treated
thenceforth as if he had been a Tipperah by birth. The liquors
drunk on these and similar occasions are lc/zzmg (ferment from rice),
sz'pd (fermented from bimi), and arrack (distilled from rice).
Adult-marriage is the universal rule, and “great freedom of
intercourse is allowed between the sexes, but a
Tipperah girl is never known to go astray out
of her own clan. An illegitimate birth, also, is hardly known
among them, for the simple reason that should a girl become eucz'ente
her lover has to marry her. The girls are totally free from the
prudery that distinguishes Mahomedan and Hindu women, and they
have an open, frank manner, combined With a womanly modesty
that is attractive. At a marriage there is no particular ceremony,
but a great deal of drinking and dancing. A pig is killed as a.
sacriﬁce to the deities of the wood and stream, the crowning point
of the affair being this: the girl’s mother pours out a glass of

Marriage.

 

 

1 F. llliiller, All‘r/emeine Ethnographic. p. 405
’ Riebeck’s Okittagong Hill-Tribes, Anthropological Remarks.

325 TIPPERAH.

liquor and gives it to her daughter, who goes and sits on her lover’s
knee, drinks half, and gives him the other half; they afterwards
crook together their little ﬁngers. If a match be made with the
c'onsent of the parents, the young man has to serve three years in his
father-in-law’s house before he obtains his wife or is formally
married. During the period of probation his sweetheart is to all
intents and purposes a wife to him. On the wedding night, however,
the bridegroom has to sleep with his wife surreptitiously, entering
the house by stealth and leaving it before dawn. He then absents
himself for four days, during which time he makes a round of visits
among all his friends. On the fourth day he is escorted back with
great ceremony, and has to give another feast to his corte’ge. A
Tipperah widow may remarry if it so seems good to her. Every
lad before marriage has his sweetheart, and he oohabits with her
whenever opportunity serves. This, however, is without the know-
ledge of the elders.

“Divorce,” says Major Lewin, “can be obtained among the
Tipperahs, as among all the hill tribes, on the adjudication of a jury
of village elders. One such case I remember to have seen. The
divorce was sued for by the wife on the grounds of habitual cruelty.
The jury deliberated and found that the cruelty was proved, and
that the divorce should be granted. Some check, however, they
determined, must be put upon the woman, or otherwise every wife
would complain if her husband raised his little ﬁnger at her.
Accordingly they gave sentence that the divorce was granted, but
that as the woman was wrong to insist upon abandoning her lawful
husband, she should give up all her silver ornaments to him, pay
a ﬁne of thirty rupees, and provide a pig with trimmings, in the
shape of ardent spirits,,to be discussed by the jury.”

The religion of the Tipperahs is a debased form of Hinduism.
They offer to Kali black goats, rice, plantains,
sweetmeats, areca nut, curds, red lead, etc.
The goddess has no image, but is represented for sacriﬁcial purposes
by a round lump of clay, the edges of which are drawn out into four
points or legs, so that the whole, seen from above, bears a rough
resemblance to sea-urchin with four arms. Satya-Narayan is also
worshipped, but in his case the offerings consist only of fruits or
ﬂowers. The tribe do not employ Brahmans, but have priests, or
rather exorcists, of their own, called Auchai, whose ofﬁce is
hereditary. .

“When a Tipperah dies, his body is immediately removed from
within the house to the open air. A fowl is
killed and placed with some rice at the dead
man’s feet. The body is burnt at the water side. At the spot where
the body was ﬁrst laid out, the deceased’ s relatives kill a cock every
morning for seven days, and leave it there with some rice as an
offering to the manes of the dead. A month after death a like
offering is made at the place of cremation, and this is occasionally
repeated for a year. The ashes are deposited on a hill in a small
but built for the purpose, in which are also placed the dead man’s
weapons,-—-a spear, ddos of two sorts (one his ﬁghting da’o, the other

Religion.

Disposal of the dead.

TIPPERAH. 326

his every-day bread-winner), arrow heads, his metal-stemmed pipe,
earrings, and ornaments. The place is held sacred.”

In connection with the beliefs of the Tipperahs regarding the
spirits of the dead, Major Lewin speaks of a curious practice. He
says :-—“ We were travelling once through the jungles, and the path
led across a small streamlet. Here I observed a white thread
stretched from one side to the other, bridging the stream. On
inquiring the reason of this it appeared that a man had died away
from his home in a distant village; his friends had gone thither and
performed his obsequies, after which it was supposed that the dead
man’s spirit would accompany them back to his former abode.
Without assistance, however, spirits are unable to cross running
water; therefore the stream here had been bridged in the manner
aforesaid.” ‘

Another use of the white thread mentioned by Lewin as practised
by the Tipperahs and most of the hill races seems to be a survival
of the primitive animistic belief which attributes all disease to the
action of malevolent spirits, who nevertheless can be propitiated by
the exorcist who knows the proper means of turning away their wrath.
When an epidemic breaks out in a village, the Tipperahs and many
other hill tribes call in an Auchai to appease the demon of sickness
by a sacriﬁce. The entire village is encircled with anewly-spun white
thread, and the blood of the animal sacriﬁced is freely sprinkled
about. This is followed by careful sweeping and cleansing, and the
houses and gates are decorated with green boughs. For three days
afterwards the thread is maintained unbroken, and no one is allowed
to enter or leave the village. The theory seems to be that if the
demon who presides over the malady can be kept at bay for that time,
he will go away disappointed, while a breach of the quarantine or
Many would lead to a renewal of the outbreak.

“The dress of the Tipperahs,” says Lewin, “is of the simplest
description. Among the men a thick turban
- is worn, and a narrow piece of home-spun
cloth, with a fringed end hanging down in front and rear, passes
once round the waist and between the legs. In the cold season they
wear a rudely-sewn jacket. The males wear silver earrings, crescent-
shaped, with little silver pendants on the outer edge. The dress of
the women is equally unornate. The petticoat is short, reaching
a little below the knee, and made of very coarse cotton stuff of their
own manufacture. It is striped in colours of red and blue. If the
Woman be married, this petticoat will form her whole costume; but
the unmarried girls cover the breast with a gaily-dyed cloth with
fringed ends. The women never cover their heads; they wear
earrings like the men ; but in addition to this ornament they distend
the lobe of the ear to the size of half a crown by the insertion of
a concave-edged ring of silver. placed, not through, but in, the
lobe. Both sexes have long, black, abundant hair, which is worn
in a knot at the back of the head. The use of false hair is
common among them, especially the women. The meshes of false

hair are woven in among the back hair to make the knot look
larger.”

Dress.

TIPPERAH.

327

TIRUHAR.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
the Tipperah tribe in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

 

 

 

Drsrmcr. 1872. 1881. l Drsrmcr. 1872. 1881. _

Kuch Behar ...... 1,126 Chittagong 45 225
Dacca. 38 47 Npakhali 232 16
Faridpur ...... 101 'l‘lppemh 3,004: 1,895
Bakarganj 217 45 Hill Tracts 11,800 15,054.
Tipperah-Suryabansi, also and Nageswars in Chota Nagpur

called Rajbansi—a mixed class
of Bengalis and Tipperahs.

Tipriati, a section of the
Maghayé sub-caste of Barhis in
Behar.

Tirango, a wild bird, 3. totem-
istic sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

Tirhutié, a sub-caste of bar-
bers; of Hindu J oléhés (Tatwa
or Tanti); and of Kumhars in
Behar, who say they can inter-
marry with the Maghayé. and
Desi sub-castes. The Maghayas,
however, allege that all the sub-
castes are strictly endogamous;
a sub-caste of Thathera or brass-
chaser and of Laheris, Telis, and
Témbulis in Behar.

Tirhutié or Olliraut, a sub-
caste of Dhanuks, Doms, and
Hajj aims in Behar.

Tirhutié or Ma‘ithil, a terri-
torial division of Brahmans in
Behar.

Tirkar, a maker of bows and
arrows; a title of Doms; a title
of Byédhs who originally killed
birds and beasts and lived on
meat obtained by chase, at present

most of them have taken to agri- A

Culture.

Tirki, bull, a totemistic sept of
Goalas, Asuras, Chamérs, Khar-
Wars, Lohars, Mundas, Oraons,

who cannot touch any cattle after
eyes open; a section of Ghasis
and Goraits; a totemistic section
of Doms and Turis implying a
mouse. ,

Tirkiar, tree-mice, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Tirkoér, a section of Khariés
in Ohota Nagpur.

Tirkuar, fruit, a totemistic
sept of Oraons and Turis in
Chota Nagpur.

Tiro, a small bird, a totemis-
tic sept of Mundas in Chota.
Nagpur.

Tirsulié, a sub-caste of Pasis
in Behar.

Tirtha, a sect of Dasnami
Sannyésis.

Tirtkjdm', a pilgrim.

Tirtia, a bird, 3. totemistic

sept of Mundas and Oraons in
Uhota Nagpur.

Tiru, a kind of bird or ﬁsh, a
totemistic sept of Mundas and
Oraons in Chota Nagpur.

Tirua, a section of Kiwis in
Dargihng.

Tiruar, arrow, a sept of Khar-
wars in Ohota Nagpur; a section
of Kurmis in Behar.

Tiruhar, a bird, 3. totemistic

 

sept of M undas in Chota Nagpur

TIRUS IA’.

Tirusié, a mu! or section of
Kasarwéni Ban1yés in Behar.

Tisbaryé. or Teswdr, a section
of the Paehainya sub-caste of
Dome in Behar.

Tisor, a section of the Satmu-

lié. Maghayé. sub-caste of Kandus
in Behar.

TiSwar, a mul or section of
the Maghaya sub-caste of Koiris
in Behar.

328

TIYAR.

Titié Bémbér, a mul or sec-
tion of the Naomulia or Majraut
sub-caste of Goalas in Behar.

Titipi, a totemistic sept of
Bedias in Chota Nagpur, signi-

ifyinig a night bird.

Tititihu, a section of Kharias
in Ohota Nagpur.

Tittal, a gotra or section of

Agarwals. ‘
Titehié, a section of Babhans

in Behar. Titung, a section of Murmis

in Darjiling.
Tithi, a bird, a totemistic sept
of Oraons in Chota Nagpur.

 

'Tiwéri, see Tewéri.

‘Eipar, Tier, Tior, Réjbansz‘, Mack/zud, a Dravidian boating
and ﬁshing caste of Bengal and Behar, whom
Mr. Beames seems disposed to identify with
the Dhimar, a sub-caste of the Kahars. It may be doubted,
however, whether this opinion rests upon any surer basis than
similarity of name and occupation; and the names appear to be
distinct, Tiyar being a corruption of the Sanskrit tivara, ‘ a hunter,’
while Dhimar is derived from Sanskrit dlzivam, ‘ a ﬁsherman.’ The
two groups, moreover, show marked diﬁerences of complexion and
physical type. The Dhimar have a light-brown skin and fairly
well-cut features, and are not noticeably below the average stature
of Hindus of the middle class. The Tiyars, on the other hand,
according to Dr. Wise, who had special opportunities of observing
them, are short and muscular, with prominent cheek-bones, dark-
brown—almost black—complexions, thick and generally projecting
lips, and long coarse hair, worn in a cue, which has often a reddish
tinge towards the tip—a peculiarity common to them and other low
castes, which, although in the ﬁrst instance produced by exposure, is
now, if not hereditary, at least characteristic. In Eastern Bengal,
where no subdivisions exist, the Tiyars call themselves Raj-bansi,
or sometimes, as in Maimansinh, Tilak Dés,
while those living on the Ganges lay claim to
the title of Suraj-bansi. According to Buchanan, the Tiyars of
Bhagalpur are divided into Béman-jagya, who are cultivators and
clean Sudras, and Govarfya, who ﬁsh, eat pork, drink spirits, and
are outcastes. Wherever they are regarded as pure, a. Dasnami
ascetic acts as guru and a Maithil Brahman as purohit; when
impure, a Gosain of Bengal is guru, and a Patit or degraded
Brahman is purohit.

The sections of the Tiyars shown in the Appendix throw no
light on the origin of the caste. It is indeed doubtful Whether the
section-names are in general use for the purpose of enforcing the
practice of exogamy; and I believe that practice, at least in its
primitive form, to have been abandoned in favour of the more modern

Origin.

Internal structure.

“ 329 TIYAR.

system of simply specifying the relations whom a man or woman
may not marry. For this purpose they make use of the standard
formula mamerd, ckackerd, etc., calculated to ﬁve generations in the
descending line on the male side and three generations on the female.

Girls are usually married as infants, but cases sometimes occur
in which, owing to the poverty of her parents,
a girl’s marriage is deferred until she has
passed the age of puberty. Polygamy is permitted, and in theory
at least there are no restrictions on the number of wives a man
may have. In Behar a widow may marry a second time. She is not
obliged to marry her late husband’s younger brother, if such a
relative exist, but it is considered a very proper thing for her to do
so; and the fact that he has a right to the custody of the children by
the ﬁrst husband tends as a rule to induce the widow to agree to the
arrangement. In Bengal widows never marry, but earn a livelihood
,by selling ﬁsh, by manufacturing string, and such like petty
industries. Those who ﬁnd such an existence too monotonous, and
desire a change of life and scene, usually join one of the mendicant
orders of the Vaishnava sect. In the matter of divorce the practice
of the caste seems to vary. Bengal Tiyars do not recognize it at all,
while in Behar it is permitted only with the sanction of the caste
panchayat, a well-organized body presided over by a headman
(mam'kcm), whose jurisdiction is supposed to comprise the traditional
number of twenty-two villages. Each manj/mn has under him a
clzkam‘ddr or stick-bearer, whose business it is to procure the attend-
ance of persons summoned to appear before the panchayat, and
generally to carry out the orders of the mam/um.

Among the Tiyars of Bengal three hypergamous groups are
recognized, the highest being the Pradhén, or chief families; next
the Paréméniks; while the rest go to form the Gana, or lower
orders. The last can only intermarry with the higher by paying
a large sum of money, the father receiving in all cases money for his
daughter, so that female children are more valued than among the
true Hindus. Widows never marry, but either earn a livelihood by
selling ﬁsh, by manufacturing string, or, if desirous of change of
life and scene, by becoming Boistubis (Vaishnavis).

Tiyars are almost to a man Vaishnava in creed, their religious
ceremonies being always held beneath trees.
The seorha (Traplzz's aspem), a very common
scrubby plant, is held in especial veneration by them, and its shade
is usually selected as the scene of their worship; but should this tree
be not at hand, the nim, bel, or gujali (Shores robusta) forms an
efﬁcient substitute. Hindustani Tiyars sacriﬁce a goat t0 Kali on
the Diwali, but the animal. instead of being decapitated in the
orthodox Hindu way, is stabbed with a sharp-pointed piece of wood
—a practice universal among the aboriginal races of India, after
which, as with the Dosadhs, the ﬂesh is eaten by the worshippers.
Bengali Tiyars, on the other hand, sacriﬁce a swine to Bura-Buri on
the Pans (December-January) Sankré-nti, slaughtering it in the same
way as their Hindustani brethren. They do not, however, eat the
ﬂesh. At the Ganga festival in Jeth (May) they offer a white kid,

Marriage.

Religion.

TIYAR. 330

pigeOn and milk to the spirit of the river, and adore with great
solemnity Manasa’. Devi in the month of Sravan (J uly—August).

As was natural, the Tiyars have peopled the waters and
streams with beneﬁcent and wicked spirits, whose friendship is to
be secured, and enmity averted, by various religious rites. Along
the banks of the river Lakhya they worship Pir Badr, Khwajah
Khizr, and, in fulﬁlment of vows, offer through any Musalman a
goat to Madar, whom they regard as a water god, but who may be
identiﬁed with Shah Madar Badi’uddin. In stormy weather and
in bad ﬁshing seasons they invoke Khala-Kumari, a naiad, to
whom the ﬁrst fruits are presented, in the same way as Hindus do to
Lakshmi. In Behar Mangal Chandi, Jai Singh, and Lal are their
chief minor gods.

In Purniah Tiyars worship a peculiar deity called Prem Raja
or Pamiréj, who, they say, belonged to their tribe and was acelebrated
brigand residing at Bahuragar, in Tirhut. Having been on many
occasions favoured by the deity, he was translated (Aprakasa), and
disappeared along with his boat. In 1864 one Baijua Tiyar gave
out that Pamiraj had appeared to him in a vision and ordained that
the Tiyars should cease to be ﬁshermen and devote themselves-
instead to certain religious rites, which would procure general pros-
perity. Great excitement ensued, and in February 1865 about
four thousand Tiyars from Ghézipﬁr, Benares, and the adjoining
districts assembled at Gogra, in Purniah, and after offering holy
water to a private idol belonging to Baijua, which he said came to
him out of a bamboo post, 3,000 goats were sacriﬁced. Shortly
afterwards another meeting of the tribe was held in the Benares
district, at which a murder was committed. This movement was
a repetition of a precisely similar one among the Dosadhs of Behar
in 1863, and, like it, was short—lived and unsuccessful.

As is done by all Bengali ﬁshermen, the J a1 Palani, on the
“ Tilwa ” Sankrénti in Magh (January—February), when the sun
enters Capricorn, is observed by the Tiyars. The close time lasts
from two to ﬁfteen days, but the demand for ﬁsh being steady, they
catch on the eve of the festival an extra supply and keep them alive
for purposes of sale, there being no offence in selling, although there
is in catching, ﬁsh at that period, when prices being high proﬁts
are unusually good.

In Behar and Bengal generally Tiyarsvare reckoned impure,

_ and along the northern bank of the Ganges

iﬁalsmus and occu‘ Tiyars employed in manufacturing mats of
pa ' the nu! reed, and known as Nal Tiyars, are
considered so utterly vile that the ﬁsher Tiyars repudiate any fellow-
ship with them. ' ’ . .

In Dacca the Tiyars occupy an uncertain pos1t10n, 1n one part
of the district being pure and Pancha-varta, having the ﬁve Sudra
servants working for them, while in another, being unclean, these
servants are members of their own caste. Tiyars in Eastern
Bengal are usually ﬁshermen, but where the ﬁshery has become
unproductive, or the river has silted up, they are found cultivating
the soil, keeping shops, and acting as boatmen. They manufacture

TIYAR.

331

TOPPO.

the“ OWD 11618, but their long narrow boats, called“Ja1ka,” are

made by Chandéls.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of

Tiyars 1n 1872 and 1881: —

 

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. DISTRICT. 1872. 1881.
Bardwan 8,631 3,369 Tipperah 379 98
Bankura 62 866 Chittagong 1,128 ......
Birbhum 307 1,775 Noakhali 190 ......
Midnapur 16,304 14,099 Patna 1,185 1,036
Hughli 23 051 6,687 162 ......
2Hogarth & ’ 15,633 ShahabadM ...ﬂ__ 242 16

41- argan s 49,709 37,1 1 oza arpur 130
Nadiya. 12,423 2,362 “”1““ {harbhanga 873 190
Khulna. ..... 3,823 Saran .. 1,513 2,608
Jessore 4,565 239 Champaran 10 4341
Murshedabad: 12,033 7,735 Monghyr . 18,014 19,163
Dinajpur 17,364. 2,224 Bhagalpur 6,678 4,296
Rajshahye 2,249 2,016 Purniah 18,203 16,040
Rangpur 141,213 92,790 Malda h 13,717 15,736
Bogra. 5,530 298 Santal Parganas 2,837 2,381
Pabna 2,736 1,253 Cunt tack 541 889
Darj iling . .1. Puri . 907 876
Jalpigori ,,,,,, 85,896 Balasore .. 682 688
Kuch Behar ,,,,,, 54,152 Tributary States 1,613 1,615
DECOR 7,988 6,6541 Hazaribagh.. ,, 77 96
Faridpur 866 1,374 Lohardaga . 761 120
Bakargani 696 68 Smgbhum 123
Maimansinh 141,451 15,069 Manbhum 255 493

Tributary States ...... 153

 

 

 

 

Tiyar, a sub-caste of Mallahs
in Behar.

Toeba, ﬂower of yards tree,
a totemistio sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Toewa, a kind of bird, 8.
totemistio sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Toinya, a sept of Chakmas 1n
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Toipé, a mi or sept of Dejong
Lhoris Whose ancestor had emi-
grated from South Bhotan.

T oktiham, a sept of the Pan-
thar sub-tribe of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Toléngi, a tkar or sept of
Gurungs in Darjiling.

Tolwar, a section of the
Chhajati sub-caste of Khatris in
Bengal.

Tongar, a sept of Surajbansi
Réjputs in Behar.

Tongbéngboha, a sept of

Limbus in Darj iling.

Tongdu-Ruishi, the most res-
pectable sub-tribe of Dej 011g
Lhoris or Bhotias of the south.

Tongsi, a bird, :1 totemistio
sept of Mundas in Chota Nag-

pur.

Tono, a big tree-ant, a totem-
istio sept of Mundas in Chota.
Nagpur.

Topna, a tree, a totemistio
sept'of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

Topo, a sept of Asuras; a.
section of Kharias in Chota.
Nagpur.

Topoar, a bird with a long tail,
body mottled black and White,

 

a totemistio sept of Mundas,
Oraons. and Lohars and a section
of Goraits in Chota Nagpur.

Toppo, a totemistio section of

Turis in Chota Nagpur denoting
, a. bird.

TORJL.

Tpril, a section of the sat-
muhé Maghayé sub-caste of
Kéndus in Behar.

Toringtapé, a thar or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Tormeg, a thar or sept of
Murmis in Darjiling.

Totébari, a section of Pans in
Chota Nagpur.

Totaka, a Min of the Séndil—
ya gotm of Barendra Brahmans
in Bengal.

Tow, a kind of bird, a totem-
istic sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

Trayodés, a sub-caste of Bag-
dis found in the 24-Par-
ganas, said to have come from
Bankura.

Tribedi, a title of Kanaujié
Brahmans in Behar.

Trikonié, a title of low castes
of the North-Western Provinces
and Panjab.

Trilokpuria, a section of the
Banodhia and J aiswar Kalwars
in Behar.

Tripé’chi, a title of the Dakshi-
natya Baidik Brahmans in
Bengal.

Tripéti, a section of Utkal
or Orissa Brahmans.

Tm'prd, a. synonym for Tip-
perah.

Tsak, a synonym for Chakma.

Tsakma, a synonym for Chak-
ma.

Tsegkhim-pé, tseg, ‘ a wall,’
and kl! im, ‘ a house ’—a dweller in
a stone or walled house, a sub-sept
of the Nah-pa. sept of Sherpa
Bhotias.

332

 

 

TUMBANGPHE.

Tshe—gyu-thah, the family
which sprang from the Buddha
of life, a rm’ or sept of the Tongdu
sub-tribe of Dejong Lhoris or
Bhotias of the south.

Tshendangkya, he who lives
apart, a sept of the Ahtharai sub-
tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.

Tsonbang, he who listens and
proﬁts, a sept of the Miékhola
sub-tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.

T song, a synonym for Limbu.

Tsong-zubo, a wt or sept of
Dejong Lhoris, the members of
which are the decendants of emi-
grants from Bhotan and Nepal.

Tubké, a section of the Tir- '
hutiyé sub-caste of Doms 1n
Behar.

Tudi, Tudu, a sept of Hos
and Santals.

Tuduar, hen, a totemistic sept
of Kharwars in Chota Nagpur.

Tukipité. dumurié, dumm' ﬁg,
a totemistic section of Kurmis in
Chota Nagpur and Orissa.

Tulatié, a sub-caste of Telis
in Orissa.

Tulsi, a group of Maghaiya
Telis in Behar.

Tulsiar. a kind of ﬂower, a
totemistic sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Tumalié, a section of Kum-
hérs in Singbhum.

Tumérun g, a totemistic sept of
the Bhumij tribe in Manbhum.

Tumbangphe, the earth-born
or ma‘p/zutd, a sept of the Phedab
sub—tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.
This thar claim to be term: filz'z',
and’point out a huge rock whlch
covers the spot where their
founder sprang from the earth.

TUMBAPO.

Tumbapo, the eldest, a sept'

of the Panthar sub-tribe of
Limbus in Darjiling.

Tumbli, a red ﬂying ant, a
totemistic sept of Mundas and
Kumhars in Chota. Nagpur.

Tumbli, Berni. a. section of
Kumhars in Lohardaga.

Tumbrok, born of a step-
mother, a sept of the Panthar
sub-tribe of Limbus in Darjil-
ing.

Tumkohong, a sept of Lim-
bus in Darjiling.

Tumling, a sept of the Yan-
gorup sub-tribe of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Tundak, a section of Groalas in

the North-Western Provinces and
Behar.

Tundal, a gotm or section of
Agarwals.

Tunduér, a tree, a totemistie
sept of Kharwars and Mundas;
a section of Kurmis and Mahilis
in Chota Nagpur and Orissa.

Tungé, a sub-caste of Karangas
and of Mals in Midnapur and
Manbhum.

Tungbai, a sept of Tipperahs
in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

333

 

TURI.

Tungjainya, a sub-tribe of
Chakmas in the Hill Tracts of
Chittagong.

Tungoh ong, the discontented,
a sept of the Chhothar sub-tribe
of Limbus in Darjiling.

Tunru, a totemistic section of
Mahilis in Manbhum, the mem-
bers of which will not touch or
cut the grass which the name
denotes.

Tuntié. Kaibartta, a sub-caste
of Kaibarttas in Bengal who
cultivate mulberry and rear silk
cocoons, and produce all sorts of
vegetables which their women
sell in the market.

Tura, a sept of Bairagis in
Chota Nagpur.

‘Q'Lurr’rha, a low caste who blow
horns and play on ﬂutes.

Turéhé, Turkd, a sub-caste of
Kahars who carry palanquins, sell
ﬁsh and fresh fruit and cultivate;
a sub-caste of Nunias.

Turania, 21. sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Tar/ad, players on the wind
instrument called turhz'.

@nri, a non-Aryan caste of cultivatnrs, workers in bamboo,

Internal structure.

and basket-makers in Chota Nagpur.

The

physical type of the Turis, their language, and

their religion, place it beyond doubt that they are a Hinduised
oﬁshoot of the Mundas. In Lohardaga, where the caste is most
numerous, it is divided into four sub-castes—Turi or Kisén-Turi,
Or, Dom, and Domré—distinguished by the particular modes of
basket and bamboo-work which they practise. Thus the Turi or
Kisén-Turi, who are also cultivators and hold bkuinkdri land, make
the sup, a winnowing sieve made of sirkz’, the upper joint of
Sacc/mrum proccrum ; the tolm' or tokig/d, a large open basket of split
bamboo twigs woven up with the ﬁbre of the leaves of the tdl
almythe sair and nadud, used for catching ﬁsh. The Ors are
said to take their name from the orig/d basket used by the sewer,
and made of split bamboo sometimes helped out with tdl ﬁbre. They

TURI. 334

also make umbrellas, and the ck/zot/ca ddli or ddld, a ﬂat basket with
vertical sides used .for Handling grain in small quantities. Doms
make the bar/m and scale-pans (tardju). Domras make the paid
and fans. Turis frequently reckon in as a ﬁfth sub-caste the Birhors.
who cut bamboos and make the si/cds used for carrying loads slung
on a shoulder-yoke (balmngi), and a kind of basket called pkanda.
Doms and Domras speak Hindi; Turis, Ors, and Birhors use among
themselves a dialect of Mundari. All these sub-castes profess to be
strictly endogamous; but a Turi can marry the daughter of an Or
provided that she is formally admitted into the Turi sub-caste. This
is effected by her lover giving a feast to the leading men of the local
caste community. Members of other castes who have taken to them-
selves Turi women and have been ejected from their own group
may be admitted on similar terms. ‘

The sections of the Turis shown in Appendix are for the most
part totemistic, and correspond closely with
those in force among the Mundas. The rule of
exogamy extends only to a man’s own section, and is supplemented
by the standard table of prohibited degrees. Except in Hinduised
and comparatively wealthy families, whose tendency is to affect
infant-marriage, girls usually marry as adults. Free courtship is
recognized, and sexual license before marriage tolerated. Both
y0uths and maidens are said, however, to lead purer lives than
the Oraons, owing, it is suggested, to the fact that they do not .
frequent the dancing ground (die/am), and are thus less exposed to the
temptations of the ﬂesh. Before a marriage can be celebrated the
consent of the heads of the Médalwar and Surinwar sections, who are
known respectively as Raja and Thakur, is obtained, and a bride-
price of Rs. 2-8 is paid. The village pd/um attends, and the head of
the Charchégiya section oﬁiciates as priest. Sindurda’n is the binding
portion of the ceremony. Polygamy is permitted, the only limit to
the number of wives a man may have being his ability to maintain
them. A widow may marry again by the sngaz‘ form, and it is usual
~for her to marry her husband’s younger brother if there is one.
Sinclair is not used in the sagm' ceremony as practised by the Turis.
The essential points are the consent of the chief relatives and the
presentation to the bride of a new cloth and a lac armlet. Divorce
'is allowed, and divorced women may marry again.

The original religion of the Turis is beyond doubt closely akin
to the form of animism current among the
Mundas and described at length in the article
on that tribe. In many villages, indeed, they hold the ofﬁce of pct-ham.
Baranda Bhut and Bura- Buri are held in special reverence. Of late
.years large numbers of Turis have embraced the tenets of the deistic
sect, known to its members as Sri-Narayani, from the name of God,
and to outsiders as Siva-Narayani, from the name of its founder,
a Rajput of Ghazipur, who lived early in the eighteenth century.
These, however, who call themselves Sri—Narayan Panthis, have by
no means broken with the animistic faith of their ancestors, and in
cases of illness have recourse to the regular aboriginal methods on
propitiating the spirit who is believed to be afﬂicting them.

Marriage.

Religion.

TURI.

335

TUTIEAR .

Turis will eat cooked food with Mundés and Oraons, take

Social status.

sweetmeats from Ahirs and Telis, and water
from the Or sub-caste.
with members of their own sub-caste.
in matters of diet as the Mundas and Oraons.

They will smoke only
For the rest they are as lax
Sri-Narayanis

abstain from beef, from the ﬂesh of animals which have died a.
natural death, and from spirituous liquors.
The following statement shows the number and distribution of

Turis in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. DISTRICT. - 1872. 1881
Bardwan ... 47 44 Rangpur ...... 91
Birbhum 65 - 3 Bogra ...... 171
Midnapur ... 44 ...... Pabna 4:07 125
Hughli } 46 , 2 Faridpur . ...... 4
Howrah ... { 51 Maimansinh 33 84
24-Parganas 92 1,854 Chittagong ...... 4
Nadiya . . 336 447 Hazaribagh 11,136 17,529
Jessore 86 78 Loharduga . 4,778 6,530
Murshedabad... 472 17 Sinwbhum ... 251 255
Dinajpur _.. 66 492 Manbhum ...... 75
Rajshahye ...... 4.3 Tributary States 1,330 1,465

Turl or Daklzma, a sub-caste Turman, a sectlon of the

of Doms in Behar.

Turiar, a sept of Agarias in
Chota Nagpur.

Turk-Bh at, a
Bhats.

Turkia. a sub-caste of Telis in
Behar, who are Mahomedans.

sub-caste of

Turkié or Shekh,a sub-caste
of Mahomedan Dhobis in Behar.

Turk-Kumhér, a class of
Mahomedan Kumhérs in Behar.

Turk-Nauwé, a class of Ma-
homedan barbers in Behar.

Turk Pési, a sub-caste of
‘Pésis in Behar who are Mahom-
edan by religion.

Turku, a sub-sept of the Saren
sept of Santals.

 

 

Chhajati sub-caste of Khatris in
Bengal.

Tursia, a sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Turu, squirrel, a totemistic
sept of Mundas and Bediés
in Chota Nagpur; a section of
Mahilis.

Turuar, pdkar fruit, 3. totemis-
tic sept of Kharwars and Mundas
in Chota Nagpur.

Turuwar, a section of Cheros
in Palamau.

Tuti, a bird, a totemistic sept
of Bhumijs, Mundas, and Khar-
wars in Chota Nagpur; a section
of Kharias.

Tutiear, a section of Mahilis
in Chota Nagpur.

UBER.‘

Uber, a mu! or section of the
Maghaya sub-caste of Kandus in
Behar.

Ubhar, a mu! or section of the
Chhamulia Madhesia subscaste of
Halwais in Behar.

Uchchharakhi, a grim of the
Bharadwaja gotm of Barendra
Brahmans in Bengal.

Uchring, an insect, a totem-
istic sept of Mundas in Ohota
Nagpur.

Udadhi, a section of Males in
Eastern Bengal.

Udaniyér, a pm or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Udési, Uddsm, a religious
mendieant; a title of Brahmans
and Sannyasis; an indifferent
person; a stranger. In Census

apers may either be a variant for

désin, or may merely mean that
the persons enumerated under
this title described themselves as
strangers (udasin), and the word
was taken to be a caste desig-
nation. -

Udbaru, a tree, a totemistic
sept of Mundas in Chota Nag-
pur.

Uddhabi, a
Tantis in Bengal.

sub-caste of

Udhmatié, a section of Ka-
naujia Lohars in Behar.

waar, water cat, a totemistic
sept of Lohars in Chota Nag-
pur.

336

 

‘ ULA’RK.

Uengsa, a sept of Maghs in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Ugahar, a mu! or section of
the Chhamulizi Madhesié. sub-
caste of Halwais in Behar.

U grout/2mm; a synonym for
Aguri.
‘ Uh, a sub sept of the Hemrom
sept of Santals.

Ujéinu a sept of the Suraj-
bansi division of Rajputs in
Behar.

Ujalé, a gm or sub-section of
Saptasati Brahmans in Bengal.

Ujhé or Ojlzd, a sub-caste of
Bégdis in Western Bengal, pro-
bably descended from the priests
of the tribal gods, who would
naturally tend to form themselves
into a sub-caste.

Ujhé, thé, or Jha’a, a title of
Maithil Brahmans in Behar.

Ujini, a group of the Fateh-
sing Telis in Murshedabad.

we, a synonym for Dhobi in
Behar.

Ukhar, a group of the Aoghér
sect of Saiva ascetics founded in
Guzerat by a Dasnami mendi-
cant named Brahmagiri. For a
fuller account of the sect. see
Aoghar.

Ukniyél, a thar or section of
Nepali .Brahmans.

Uksarri, a sept of Chakmas
in the Hill Tracts of Chitta-
gong-

Ulérk, a par or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

ULIT.

Ulit. a sept of Réjputs in
Behar.

Ulluk, a gdin or sub-section of
Saptasati Brahmans in Bengal.

Ulwér, a mu! or section of the
Naomulié or Majraut sub-caste
of Goélés in Behar.

Umatwér, a section of Bab-
bans in Behan

Umethwér, a mu! or section
of the Naomulié or Majraut sub-
caste of Goélés in Behur.

Unain, a mad or section of the
Ayodhié sub-caste of Haj jams in
Behar.

Undhil, a section of Goalés in
Behar.

Undhuri, a grim of the saber-
na gotm of Barendra Brahmans
in Bengal.

Upédhyéya, a. sub-caste of
Utkal Brahmans in Orissa; an
endogamous division of Nepali
Brahmans; a title of Kanaujié.
and Saraswat Brahmans and of
Bébhans in Behar.

Upamanya, a. section of Brah-
mans.

- Uphaltopi, a tkar or section of
Nepali Brahmans.

Urcmga, ? Umun, a synonym
for Green.

Urdégainhi, a. section of the
Bi'yahut and Kharidéha Kalwérs
in Behar.

Urdwar, a sept of Mundas in
Chota Nagpur.

Uriar, a sept of‘Kharwars in
Chota Nagpur.

337

 

UTKULI.

Uring, a wild bird, a totemis-
tic sept of Mundas in Chota
Nagpur.

Uriyé, a sub-caste of Pods.

Uriyé Dhobé, a sub-caste of
Dhobas in Orissa.

Uw‘yd-Kdet, a synonym for
Karan.

Urmakhori, a sept of Pans
in Chota Nagpur.

Urmakuli, a section of Pains in
Chota Nagpur.

Urmi, a wave; a title of

J éliyas in Bengal.

Urunté, a thaw or sept of
Gurungs in Darjiling who burn
their dead on a hill top and then
throw the ashes in the air.

Urwér, a pm or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Usahiyérk, a pm or section of
Sékadwipi Brahmans in Behar.

Usauth, a section of the Karan
sub-caste of Kéyasths in Behar.

Usrém. a mul or section of the
Naomulia or Majraut sub-caste
of Goalés in Behar.

Utamapur, a section of the
Karan Kéyasths in Behar.

Utardéhé, a mad or section of
the Maghaya sub-caste of Kain-
dus in Behar.

Utkal, a territorial division of
the Pancha Gaura Brahmans,
deriving its name from the Pro-
vince of Utkala or Odra'(0rissa).

Utkuli, a thar or section of
Nepali Brahmans.

3/

UTTARA-SRENI.

Uttara—Sreni, a territorial
group of Brahmans in Orissa.

Uttar-Bérendra, an endogam-
ous division of the Bérendra
Brahmans in Bengal.

Uttardéhé, a section of the
Sétmulié, Maghay‘é sub-caste of
Kéndus in Behar.

. Uttarhé, a sub-caste of Ta’mtis
in Behar.

Uttariyé. a sub-caste of Dome
in South Behar who work in
sirkz‘, and regard this as an

338

 

 

UTTAR-RARHI.

important distinction between
themselves and the Maghayé
Doms who work with bamboos.

Uttar—Kabé’c, north gate, a
title of Khandéits in Orissa.

Uttarkul, a group of the
Aswini Téntis in Bengal.

Uttar-Rérhi, a sub-caste of
Kéyasths in Bengal ; of Kémérs
in the 24-Parganés ; of Chase-
dhobés and Népits; a. group of
the Hole Kaibarttas and of Bare-
bhégiya’. Muchis in Bengal.

VAIDIKA. 339 VAISHNAVA.

V

Vaidika, one of the ﬁve main a group of the Srotriya sub-caste
sub-castes of Bengal Brahmans; of Utkal Brahmans in Orissa.

iﬁsishnsns, Baisktab, Bairdgi, a religious sect based upon the
worship of Vishnu under the incarnations of Rama and Krishna.
Founded as a popular religion by Ramanuja in Madras, and
developed in Northern India by Ramanand and Kabir, Vaishnavism
owes its wide acceptance in Bengal to the teaching of Chaitanya,
a Vaidik Brahman of N adiya at the beginning of the 16th century.
The contemplative devotion inculcated by this teacher as the ideal of
the religious life was transformed by Vallabha-Swami into
emotional longings of a more sensuous type. The sects now included
under the general name Vaishnava are the following :—

(1) Réménuja, comprising three grades of disciples: the Brah-
macharya, or novice; Upa Kurvvana, who lives
as an udasi in the house of his guru; and the
Naisthika, who practises a life-long asceticism. When undergoing
the initiatory rite (tapta-mudra), the disciple is marked with the
gem/chat or conch-shell of Vishnu on the left shoulder and the chakm
or wheel on the right, the stamp used being made of eight metals
(ashta-dhétu), gold, silver, copper, brass, tin, lead, iron, and zinc.
Ramanuj as are most punctilious about the privacy of their meals, and
should any one see or speak to them while they are eating, the food
is either thrown away or buried. Silken or woollen garments, not
cotton, must be worn at meals, and no one may taste food without
permission of the guru. Bamanujas will only eat food cooked by
a Brahman of their own sect, but they do not reject articles prepared
with gﬁz' by a Ramavat. They will not touch food cooked by
a Kulin Brahman of Bengal, nor will they take water from the
hands of a man of that caste.

(2) Réméval‘, a Hindustani sect, recruited mainly from among
Kanaujiya Brahmans, though persons of other
castes are occasionally received on the under-
standing that it is open to any member of the sect to decline to eat
with them. Vishnu or Rama-Chandra is the patron god of the com-
munity, but in some cases his worship has been supplanted by that of
Hari, who is identiﬁed with Krishna. Brindaban is the head-quarters
of those who revere the latter, and Ajodhya of those who adhere to
the worship of Rama. Their sacred books are the Ramayana, the
Sri Bhagavat, and the Bhagavat-Gita. Most of them, however, are
very illiterate, and of those who can blunder through a Nagari book,
few understand what they read. Pilgrimage is believed to be the chief
duty of the sect. The Tapasi or penitential order of Rémévats,
erroneously styled Jogis, a term properly reserved for Saiva ascetics,
wander through India almost naked, smeared over with ashes
and stupeﬁed with ganja, living on alms, but lodging with no
one and taking shelter under trees, in ruins, or among tombs

3/2

Ramanuja.

Ramavat.

VAISHN AVA. 340

in preference to entering a human habitation. A rope round the
waist and a scanty cloth' round the loins form their sole attire.
A few shave the head and beard, but most allow their hair to grow,
and twist their matted locks round the head like a turban, or roll
them into coils terminating in a large knot or chignon over theleft
car. They wear necklaces of rudraksha wood (Elmo/Imus gianitms)
containing seventeen, nineteen, twenty-one, ﬁfty-four or a hundred
and eight beads, and when indulging in long ﬁts of abstraction,
they support themselves with a bamboo crutch. At initiation a
new convert is enrolled in a so-called ‘ gotra,’ bearing the name
Aichittra ; but as all Ramavats belong to this, and in theory celibacy
is strictly enjoined, the procedure is a mere form, and has no bearing
on marriage or the relations of the sexes. Ramavat Sédhus are
notorious for their dissolute and licentious character, and for their
excessive indulgence in ganja, a drug which they smoke systemati-
cally in order to induce the dreamy sensual reverie regarded by them
as the highest manifestation of religious sentiment. All forms of
worship, except the unceasing repetition of the name Rama or Hari,
are deemed useless, but in every ékhara or monastery of the sect
an idol is tended at regular hours to the sound of saw/ck shells and
gongs, while offerings of ﬂowers and fruit are presented by the laity.
A ta/si plant in the courtyard and a Salagram in the shrine com-
plete the religious furniture of the establishment.

(3) Nimavat, recruited from among Hindustani Brahmans or
members of those castes from whose hands
a Brahman can take water. The mark of a
Nimavat is a circular black patch on the forehead between two
parallel yellow streaks. Mathura and Jaipur are their most sacred
places of pilgrimage, and the Bhagavat-Gita is their chief religious
book. The chief duty of the Biraktas or monastic members of the
sect is to prepare and offer to the idols kept in the akhara May or
food consisting of rice and pulse boiled together. Four times a day
this compound is laid before the god, and is then eaten by the mahant
and his disciples. The idols usually worshipped by Nimavats are
Jagannath, Madan-Gopal, ltadha-Krishna, Balaram, and Subhadra,
the sister of Krishna.

(4) Vaishnava, colloquially Baishtam, of Bengal, a class not
very easy to deﬁne precisely, as the name Vaish-
nava includes (a) ordinary Hindus who, with
out deserting their original caste, worship Vishnu in preference to
other gods, (1)) ascetic members of the Vaishnava sect, commonly
called Bairégi, (c) J ét-Baishtam, Samyogi, or Bantasi, an endogamous
group formed by the conversion to Vaishnavism of members of
many different castes. It will be convenient here to treat ﬁrst of
the last-mentioned group. The Baishtam caste includes members
of several Vaishnava sects, and in theory intermarriage between
these sects is prohibited. But if a man of one sect wishes to marry
a woman of another sect, he has only to convert her by a simple
ritual to his own sect, and the Obstaclesrto their union are removed.
Baishtams have no gotras, but they are divided into Iﬁfteen
sections (pariba’r), supposed to be descended from the pnncipal

N imavat.

Baishtam.

341 VAISHNAVA.

disciples of Chaitanya, such as Adwaita-Paribar, Nityananda-Paribar,
Acharya-Paribér, b‘yam Chand, J agadish Pandit, (J‘radadhar Pandit,
Bakkeswar Pandit, Adhirém Gopal, etc. Although these groups
are supposed to stand to the Baishtams in the place of gotras,
marriage between persons belonging to the same paribdr is not
forbidden, and the grouping has no more efEect on marriage than
the quasi-endogamous division into sects referred to above. Outsiders
are freely admitted into the community, however low their caste
may be, provided only that they are Hindus. Chaitanya is said
to have extended this privilege even to Mahomedans, but since
his time the tendency has been rather to contract the limits of
the society, and no guru or mathdhari (superintendent of a
monastery) would now venture on such an act. The ceremony of initia-
tion is simple. The guru or mathdhari, known on this occasion
by the title of Bhek-gosain, ‘ the ascetic of alms,’ after worshipping
Chaitanya, gives to the convert a string (down), a piece of cloth (kaupz‘n)
just sufﬁcient to .cover his nakedness, and a bd/zirbdsh, a larger
cloth, to wear round his loins over the [camp/n. At the same time
he Whispers in his ear the mantm or sacred word, usually a mono-
syllable, indicating a name or attribute of a god or goddess, which
is to guide him through life and must never be divulged to any one.
The novice then bows down, and a small necklace of wooden beads is
11qu round his neck. and a karanga or cocoanut shell given him
for the purpose of collecting alms.

Baistams profess to marry their daughters as infants, and this
may be taken to be the rule of the caste,
although in many instances it is departed from,
as might be expected in a community comprising so many hetero-
geneous elements. Sexual intercourse before marriage is not visited
by any social penalties, nor are girls Who have led an immoral lite
turned out of the caste. Only beiore they can be formally married,
they must again pass through the ceremony of initiation described
above. The standard Hindu ritual is not observed in marriage. A
guru or gosain presents to Chaitanya ﬂowers and sandal wood paste,
and lays before him offerings of mdkdbhog, a compound of rice, fruits
and other articles. Hymns (sun/cirtan) in honour of Krishna and
Chaitanya are then sung to an accompaniment of the mridanga, an
elongated drum, tapering towards the ends, and the kartdl or brass
cymbal. The guardian of the girl takes her right hand in his and
gives it to the bridegroom, and the couple exchange small garlands
of ﬂowers and necklaces of beads. Sankirtan is sung once more,
and the ceremony is over. Its essential and binding portion is
the exchange of ﬂowers or beads, technically known as kauthi-badal.
Widows may marry again (sangd), and are in no way restricted
in the selection of their second husband, except that they may not
marry within the prohitited degrees originally forbidden to them.
The ritual is the same as that described above, except that no one
gives away the bride. For a widow, as for a virgin, Irrmtici-badal
is held to be the binding portion of the ceremony. Divorce is
permitted at the option of either party, and divorced persons
of either sex may marry again

Marriage.

VAISHN AVA. 342

Krishna is the tutelary deity of the caste, and most Baishtams
worship him exclusively and disregard the
other gods of the Hindu system. They also
worship Chaitanya as the latest incarnation of Vishnu. Nityananda
as Balaram, and Adwaita as an incarnation of Siva. The following
gurus rank as patron saints z—Swarup Groswami, Sanatan, Bhatta
Raghunath, Srijiba, Gopal Bhatta, and Das Raghunath. To them
are presented ﬂowers of any colour but red, paste of sandal wood,
tulsi leaves, mdlsdbizog, parched rice, curds, sugar, cakes and sweet-
meats of various kinds. Boiled rice and vegetable curry are some-
times offered. Bauls oﬁ'er ﬁsh, and members of the Nera-neri sect
masur ddl seasoned with onion. The twelfth day of every month
and janmashtamz', the birthday of Krishna, are the proper times for
such oﬁerings. The Karta Bhajas, however, hold Friday to be
especially sacred. After being laid before the god, the offerings
are distributed among the worshippers present on the occasion.
Although Baishtams do not consider it necessary to employ Brah-
mans for religious or ceremonial purposes, the gurus and goswémis
who look after the religion of the caste are in fact usually members
of the sacred order. But as their spiritual disciples come from low
castes, and they themselves eat in their disciples’ houses and take
water from their hands, it follows that Baishtam Brahmans are not
received on equal terms by the Brahmans Who serve the higher castes,
and the latter would as a rule decline to eat cooked food which
had been touched by a Baishtam Brahman. .

‘ Baishtams bury their dead in a sitting posture. Each of the
several sects included in the caste is supposed
to have a separate burial ground of its own;
but it is not an uncommon practice to bury the dead within the
precincts of the homestead. No regular srddd/z is performed;
Chaitanya is worshipped, and desdb/wg is offered seven or eight days
after death, and the relations of the deceased then indulge in a feast
to show that the time of mourning is over.

Baishtams eat cooked food only with people of their own caste ;
but they take water and sweetmeats from, and
smoke out of the same hookah with, men of
almost all castes except Muchis and sweepers. Their social standing
is low, as the caste is recruited from among all classes of society, and
large numbers of prostitutes and people who have got into trouble in
consequence of sexual irregularities are found among their ranks.
They have no characteristic occupation, and follow all professions
deemed respectable by middle class Hindus.

In the district of Midnapore the organization of the Baishtam
caste seems to differ- in some points from that described above. Two
endogamous classes are recognized—(l) Jati-Baishnab, consisting
of those whose conversion to Vaishnavism dates back beyond living
memory, and (2) ordinary Baishnabs, called also Bhekdhari or
‘ wearers of the garb,’ who are supposed to have adopted Vaishnavism
at a recent date. The former are men of substance, who have con-
formed to ordinary Hinduism to such an extent that they are now
Baishnabs in little more than name. In the matter of marriage they

Religion.

Burial.

Social status.

343 VAISHNAVA.

follow the usages of the Nabasakha ; they burn their dead ; mourn
for thirty days; celebrate the srdddlz, and employ high caste Brahmans
to oiﬁciate for them for religious and ceremonial purposes. They do
not intermarry or eat with the Baishnabs who have been recently
couverted. The latter are described to me by a correspondent, as
“the scum of the population. Those who are guilty of adultery or
incest, and in consequence ﬁnd it inconvenient to live as members
of the castes to which they belong, embrace Vaishnavism, ﬁrst, because
they can by so doing place themselves beyond the pale of the inﬂuence
of the headmen of their castes, and secondly, because their conversion
removes all obstacles to the continuance of the illicit or incestuous
connexions which they have formed.”

With this attempt to deﬁne the extent to which Vaishnavism
has developed into a caste, we may pass on to
notice the more purely religious aspects of the
Vaishnava community. Tradition has it that when Chaitanya died,
his most zealous disciples formed a society consisting of six Grosains;I
eight Kabirajs, and sixty-four Mahants to organize the new teach-
ing and to make proselytes throughout Bengal. In course of time
there arose three great centres of the faith—Khardaha, between
Calcutta and Barrackpur, the home of the Gosains or religious
mendicants who traced their descent from Nityananda, a devoted
disciple of Chaitanya; Santipur, on the river Bhagirathi in Nadiya,
Where Adwaitananda or Adwaita, another zealous disciple, had
settled ; and Saidabad, in Murshedabad, the residence of Birbhadra,
the son of Nityananda. The Gosains or “ Grentoo bishops,” as
they were called by Mr. Holwell, have now become the hereditary
leaders of the sect. Most of them are prosperous traders and
money-lenders, enriched by the gifts of the laity and by the in-
heritance of all prOperty left by Bairégis. They marry the daughters
of Srotriya and Bansaja Brahmans, and give their daughters to
Kulins, who, however, deem it a dishonour to marry one of their
girls to a Gosain. As a rule, they are tall and well-made men, of
light complexion, fair specimens of the Aryan type as found in
Bengal. The Adwaitananda Grosains admit to the Vaishnava commu-
nity only Brahmans, Baidyas, and members of those castes from whose
hands a Brahman may take water. The Nityananda, on the other
hand, maintain that any such limitation is opposed to the teaching of
Chaitanya, and open the door of fellowship to all sorts and conditions
of men, be they Brahmans or Chandals, high caste widows or common
prostitutes. The Nityananda are very popular among the lower castes,
and hold a leading position among Vaishnavas. A pan/alt or silver
hand is the badge of the family. The Grosains themselves worship
Durga, but their disciples do not follow them in this. They observe
the birthday of Chaitanya on the 13th Phalgun, the Grovardhan Pujzi
on the ﬁrst day of the new moon in Kartik, and the Diwali on the
night of the Kali Puja. The Adwaitananda Gosains are highly
esteemed by the upper classes of Bengal, and it is very unusual for
a Brahman or Baidya to enrol himself in the ranks of the other
branch. They are said to be more sincere and more open to religious
motives than the Nityananda, and they avoid much scandal by
refusing to initiate women.

Gosains.

VAISHNAVA. 344

For the purpose of making proselytes and governing the
Vaishnava church, Bengal is divided into circles, each circle having
its own Gosain with whose jurisdiction no other Gosain is supposed
to interfere. Under the Gosain is the aid/217mm or superintendent, who
acts as deputy, initiates disciples within a certain area, and collects
fees. Under him again is the fazg'ddr, called also Mauro or uncle (the
Gosain being the father), whose business it is to beat up proselytes,
and whose activity is stimulated by a percentage of the fees. Lastly
comes the ckhariddr, or usher of the rod, who is merely the messen-
ger of the faujddr. Persons who join the Vaishnava communion
pay a fee of twenty annas, sixteen of which go to the Gosain
and four to the faujddr.

The mendicant members of the Vaishnava community, as dis-
tinguished from the J at-Baishnabs or Grihi-
Baishnabs on the one hand and the governing
body of Gosains on the other, are, says Dr. Wise, “ of evil repute,
their ranks being recruited by those who have no relatives, by widows,
by individuals too idle or depraved to lead a steady working life, and
by prostitutes. Vaishnavi, or Baishtabi according to the vulgar
pronunciation, has come to mean a courtesan. A few undoubtedly
join’from sincere and worthy motives, but their numbers are too
small to produce any appreciable effect on the behaviour of their
comrades. The habits of these beggars are very unsettled. They
wander from village to village, and from one ékhara to another,
ﬂeecing the frugal and industrious peasantry on the plea of religion,
and singing songs in praise of Hari beneath the village tree, or
shrine. Mendicants of both sexes smoke Indian hemp (ganja’), and
although living as brothers and sisters, are notorious for licentious-
ness. There is every reason for suspecting that infanticide is
common, as children are never seen. In the course of their wander-
ings they entice away unmarried girls, widows, and even married
women, on the pretext of visiting Sri Kshetra (J agannath), Brinda-
ban, or Benares, for which reason they are shunned by all respect-
able natives, who gladly give charity to be rid of them.

The following account of an annual religious gathering in Bengal
discloses the true character of these disreputable mendicants. Amid
the ruins of ancient Gaur are large reservoirs of water, called Rupa and
Sanétan, after the two distinguished Mahomedans converted by
Chaitanya, on the banks of which the ‘ Rats Mela,’ or ‘ Prem talé,’
5.9., real love, festival is held in the month of June. Crowds of
Bairégis and Bairagins resort to this fair from all parts of Bengal,
the latter being seated in long rows with their faces covered.
Should a Bairagi be in search of a companion, he pays the customary
fee to the fauja’dr and a selection is made. He leads the female
aside, raises her veil, and if satisﬁed takes her away, otherwise he
refuses to allow another choice, unless the twenty~annas fee is again
paid. It is a law with these licentious Bairégis that a man cannot
put away the woman selected, even for adultery, until the next
year’s gathering comes round ” . _

(5) Béyén-Kéuptna, a sect of Valshnavas, so called because,
contrary to the usual custom, they wear the
Iraupm or loin cloth fastened on the left side »

Mendicant Vaishnavas.

Bayan -Kauptna.

345 VAI SHN AVA.

instead of on the right. The story goes that a guru while
initiating a disciple tied the [empire on the left side by mistake.
He was about to change it when the novice insisted that Krishna
himself must have pre-ordained the error, refused to have it corrected,
and, going forth as he was, fpunded the Bayan-Kaupini sect. The
members worship Radha-Krishna, but they are said to abstain from
the immoral practices usually laid to the charge of those who worship
this union of the male and female principles. Bayan-Kaupinas
abstain from ﬂesh, ﬁsh and intoxicants, and only women of moral
character are allowed to be initiated.

(6) Kisori-Bhajana, ‘ maiden-worshippers,’ or Séhuja, a sect of
Vaishnavas concerning whose beliefs and ritual
it is difﬁcult to get any very precise inform-
ation. The members seem to be aware that. the equivocal name of
their community lays them open to the suspicion of sexual immora-
lity, and they are said to ward off curious inquiries by placing
a book or an article of common use in a conspicuous part of the
house and worshipping it as a symbol of their faith. The sect is
supposed to be an offshoot of the Radha-Ballabhi, or, according
to another account, of the Spashta-Dayaka. The latter view is
improbable. A Spashta-Dayaka will not look upon a woman or
take food from her; while the Kisori-Bhajana makes woman the
chief object of worship. The sect is peculiar in having no Udasi
or mendicant class. The guru or pradhan initiates neophytes and
conducts all religious services. The cult is said to be popular,
especially with women and with the Sunri caste, and to have a large
number of adherents. No distinctions of rank are recognized, and
all converts, whether Brahmans or Chandals, enter upon a footing
of entire equality.

According to Dr. Wise, “at the initiation of a disciple a mantra,
consisting of the word tHang-sha,’ is whispered into his ear, and is
believed to possess a certain mystical meaning, the ﬁrst syllable
typifying the air breathed, the latter the air expired. An indecent
scene, in which a naked woman sits on the knee of the neophyte, is
then rehearsed, as a crucial test of his having mortiﬁed the ﬂesh and
its lusts, and of his having become a worthy candidate for admission.

“The chief ceremony resembling the Rasmandalis of the
Mahéréjas of Bombay, which they have styled ‘ carnal love
meetings,’ is celebrated in a suitable room, where a long strip of
white cloth is spread on the ﬂoor with plantain leaves laden with
ﬁsh and rice, while ﬂesh and spirits never appear.

“ The feast being over, songs in honour of Radha-Krishna are
chanted with the eﬁect of often causing extravagant and violent
excitement, terminating in hysterical weeping and convulsions. The
pradhan then selects a woman, possibly the prettiest; the pair are
dusted with sandal wood powder, crowned with ﬂowers, and the
company make adoration to them as the personations of Rédha and
her lover Krishna. Each man present then decorates himself
with garlands, perfect silence being observed, and is presumed to
fall into a dreamy sensuous condition, with mind abstracted and
absorbed in the contemplation of the semblance of Rédha at his
side.”

Kisori-Bhajana.

VAISHNAVA. 316

(7) Jagat-Mohani, an obscure sect founded about two centuries
ago 'by one J agat-Mohan of Mashulia in Silhet.
The morals of its members are said to be
exemplary. Women are not allowed to live in the monasteries, and
the men are expelled on second conviction of immorality. As in
most Vaishnava sects, there are two classes of votaries—the Grihi
and Bairagi, the former being house-holders, and the latter wander-
ing about the country as beggars. The latter may not eat ﬁsh or
ﬂesh, and may not smoke ganja or tobacco or drink spirits. Corpses
are usually thrown into a river, not burned, and burial is only
resorted to at the express wish of a dying mahant. In such cases
the patient is lowered into the grave before he actually dies, as it is
considered lucky for him to die in situ.

(8) Spashta Déyaka, said to have been founded by one Rup
Ram Kabiraj, a disciple of Krishna Chandra
Chakravartti of Saidabad. Although Rédhé
Krishna is the principal object of worship, the members of the sect
affect a high standard of morality, and decline to take 'food that has
been cooked by a woman. Women are admitted to the mantra, but
not to the blzeic. All castes including Chandals are enrolled, but
a preference is shown for the pure Sudras, from whose hands a Brah-
man may take water. The Spashta Dayaka take alms from any
Hindus, and even from Mahomedans, but reject the offerings of
prostitutes and of Chamars. They may not touch ﬂesh or ﬁsh, or eat
with any one not a member of their communion. They will not eat
with Bairagi Vaishnavas, but in this case the objections are said to be
mutual. Their sectarian mark is a smear of ochre (Gopt' Chanda”)
on the nose with two narrow lines drawn upwards to the roots of the
hair. The sacred name of Bari is stamped on the temples, arms,
chest, and shoulders. The dead are buried in a sitting posture, with
a cloth (ndmd-bali) stamped with the name Hari wrapped round the
head : the arms are folded across the chest, a necklace is hung round
the neck, and a cocoanut shell (karanka), a wallet and a staff (danda)
are placed by the side. If the dead man has had inﬂuence in the
sect, and has left behind him many disciples, an akhara is built over
his grave, religious rites are performed at his tomb, and his spirit is
invoked for aid on occasions of trOuble.

(9) Kavi-lndra Paribar, a small Vaishnava sect, claiming to be
the Paribar or attendants of Vishnu Das Kavi
Indra, one of the original sixty-four mahants
who went out into the world to teach the doctrines of Chaitanya.
The story is that this Vishnu Das affected great humility and made
a point of eating the leavings of Chaitanya’s food. One day the
teacher left nothing on his plate, and the disciple seeking to abase
himself had to make the best of a grain of rice which Chaitanya had
spat out. This he swallowed without noticing that it was tinged
with blood. A rival observed this, and seeing his opportunity put
to Chaitanya the question what should be done to a disciple who
tasted the blood of his guru. Chaitanya unwarily answered that he
should be excommunicated, and as the judgment could not be
recalled, Vishnu Das had to leave the original community and set

J agat-Mohani.

Spashta Dayaka.

Ravi-Indra Paribar.

347 VAISHNAVA~

up a. dissenting society of his own. The doctrines of the Kavi Indra
are much the same as those of the Vaishnavas. The ofﬁce of mahant,
however, is elective, not hereditary, and can only be held by a Sudra.
There is no Bairégi or Udési grade, and all the members are famlly
men. All castes are admitted into the sect, and even Srotriya
Brahmans are said to be occasionally enrolled as members.

(10) Béola (Sansk. Véyula, crazed or inspired), a generic
term including a number of disreputable men-
dicant orders which have separated from the
main body of Vaishnavas, and are recruited mainly from among
the lower castes. They call themselves Nitya, Chaitanya, and Hari
Das Baolas, after the great Vaishnava teachers. Differing from each
other in minute points'of ceremonial and social observance, the Baola
sects agree in regarding pilgrimage to Vaishnava shrines as a sacred
duty, and reverence the Gosains as their spiritual leaders. Flesh
and strong drink are forbidden, but ﬁsh is deemed lawful food, and
ganja is freely indulged in. Baolas never shave or cut their hair,
and ﬁlthiness of person ranks as a virtue among them. Ladu-Gopal,
or the child Krishna, is the favourite object of worship; but in
most ékharas the charan or wooden pattens of the founder are also
worshipped. Baolas as a class are believed to be grossly immoral,
and are held in very low estimation by respectable Hindus.

(11) Darwesh—Faqir, a recent and corrupt Vaishnava sect,
founded in 1850 by Udaya Chand Karmakar
of Dacca. They worship Krishna, and dis-
tinguish their creed by the term Brahmadharma, When a novice is
admitted, he receives a kaupm or loin cloth, a klu‘rlca or gown reaching
to the ankles, and a coeoanut shell (/cishtz’) in which he is to collect
alms. Like the Aghoris and some of the Baola sects, he is required
to taste various disgusting substances in order to show his superiority
to ordinary prejudices. Darwesh-Faqirs never out their hair or
shave, and instead of washing with water, smear themselves and
their clothes With mustard oil. Celibacy is professed, but not
practised, and every akhara or community of ascetics has several
women attached to it, ostensibly to keep the place in order and cook
the food. Nevertheless theyaffect great austerity and pretend to
be the strictest of the Vaishnava sects. Animal life is never taken,
and it is deemed sinful to break off the branches or even the leaves
of a tree. Before the tombs of the founders, and on receiving a
present, a very elaborate obeisance is made by kneeling, touching the
ground with the forehead, and smearing the chest and face with dust.

(12) Kartabhaja, an obscure sect believed to have been founded
early in the eighteenth century by one Aul
Chand, who was considered by his followers to
be an incarnation of Chaitanya. Aul Chand observed no distinction
of caste, and taught the worship of one god and certain moral
precepts of a negative type. As Karté or spiritual head of the
caste, Aul Chand was succeeded by Ram Smaran Pal of Ghoshpara
in Nadiyé, and the ofﬁce is still held by members of the Pal family.
Next in rank to the Kartd are the Mahdsays or Deputies, of whom
one acts as leader to every village congregration, his duty being to

136.013..

Darwesh-Faqir.

Kartabhaja.

VAISH NAVA. 348 VAISYA.

collect the dues for the support of the Karta, and to transmit or
account for all amounts ‘so received at stated dates. The religious
ceremonies of the sect are kept secret and performed in private.

The following statement shows the number and distribution of
Vaishnavas in 1872 and 1881 :—

 

 

 

 

 

 

DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. Brenner. 1872. 1881.
Bardwan ... 37,362 28,652 Noakhali 2,131 2,983
Bankura ... 10,250 20,325 'l‘ip erah 5,847 6,164
Birbhnm 23,213 21,411 Hill Tracts of Chittagong ...... 5
gidrﬁpur 96,178 81,858 gatna . 2,082 717

113' i 12,107 ya 1.3% 2,7
Howrah 20373 { 15,284 Shahabad 1,070 1 52;
24-Parganas 36,563 33,788 Mozatfarpur... . 4:744
Nadiya 16,883 21.330 Darbhanga 6”26 1,917
Jessore 13,039 14,861 Snmn 3,777 2,320
Khulna ...... 12,939 Champaran 2,666 2,345
Murshedabad 21.464 25,034 Monghyr 3,184 2,759
Dinajpur 16,710 19,349 Bhagalpur 18,196 2,763
Rajshahye ... 14.268 17,081 Purniah 1,809 3,012
Rangpur 24.541 26,974 Maldah 6,050 9,569
Bogra ... 8,013 11,111 Santal Pavrganas 6,400 6,346
Pabna 8,726 13,157 Cuttack .. 24,330 29,514
Darjiling 222 567 Puri ‘... 6,770 7,273
Jalpigori ... 1,877 3,420 Balasorc 18,651 23 057
Kuch Behar ...... 1,210 Tributary States 5,410 7’681
Dacca 11.886 17,239 Hazarihagh 799 ’441
Faridpnr .. 5,204 7,655 Lohardaga 4,459 2 579
Bakarganj 5,799 5,149 Sinubhum 2,733 2:868
Maimansinh 11,991 18,028 Manhhum 12,262 11 943
Chittagong 894 2,035 Trlbutary States cos 1:040

 

 

 

 

 

 

$31592, a caste of Eastern Bengal claiming to be the modern
representatives of the Vaisyas of classical tradition. According to
Dr. Wise, upon whose notes this article is based, they are most numer-
ous in the Bhowal pargana of Dacca, and at J ahangirpur in Maiman-
sinh. They can give no account of themselves, nor do they possess
any traditions of their original home. They deny that Ballal Sen
ruled over or reorganized them, and boast that no honorary titles
inherited from ancestors serving the Muhamadan Government
survive. For these reasons they regard themselves as exceptionally
pure, having lived uncontaminated amid the changes of the country.
The Vaisyas are generally short and squat, some having ﬁne aquiline
noses and prominent superciliary ridges, while others have broad
cheek-bones, badly formed chins and lower jaws. Their physiog-
nomy suggests cunning combined wit-h intelligence, but many exhibit
the inanimate vacant expression so common among Bengali low
castes. The Vaisyas have relinquished many of the peculiar duties
enjoined by Mann, though still wearing the sacred cord, composed
of three strands knotted together, and another disconnected one of
three threads, called Utari. The ceremony of tonsure, Chara Karan,
is observed before the thirteenth year, not postponed to the twenty-
fourth, and on this occasion the youth is invested with the Brahman-
ical cord. Vaisyas profess to repeat the whole of the Grayatri,
but the Brahmans assert that at the present day few know more
than three-fourths of it, and not having full permission to bestow
a blessing on the Sﬁdras, they twist the Pm’td round the right thumb,
and holding the right hand on a. level with the navel confer the

VAISYA. 349 VYASOKTA.

usual benediction. Vaisyas are permitted to read one of the four
Vedas, and that always followed is the Yajur-veda. Each household
celebrates by itself the Séligram, Chakra, and Vishnu Pﬁjas,
although Brahmans dispute their right to do so Without requiring
the services of the guru, or purohit, who are Srotriya Brahmans. In
creed the caste is a Vaishnava one, yet a few Sakta worshippers are
met with. The Vaisyas formerly committed the sin of marrying in
their own gotra, or exogamous group, but of late years, in order to
stay the scandal, new gotrns have been formed.

They have no peculiar titles, but Gupta is often adde to their
names, while individuals employed as assistants to merchants fre-
quently assume the surname of Biswas, literally a holder of one-
fourth share. _Manu says that the ﬁrst part of a Vaisya name
should indicate wealth, the second prosperity ; but the Bengali
Vaisyas have ceased conforming to this rule, and the names ordinarily
met with are Ram Kamér, Dev Narayana, Sitala Chandra, or Ram
Gopala, to which the surname Vaisya is always appended. Baidyas
and Kayasths residing within the Ballali country refuse to touch
food prepared by the Vaisyas, but those living beyond those limits
readily do so.

The Vaisya is generally a tolerable Bengali scholar, but few learn
English, as it entails expense and delays the young from starting
in life. In Maimansinh a few enter Government employ, but the
majority are pleaders, mukhtars, rent collectors and land surveyors.
Formerly. the cultivation of the soil was general, but now-a-days
holding a plough is considered dishonourable, while managing a
harrow is admissible. When a Vaisya meets a Brahman he does
not, like other Hindus, make the salutation Pranéma, as the Brahman
bestows his benediction without it. Among Vaisyas the period of
impurity after a death is ﬁfteen days. All the Hindu festivals are
observed by them, but the favourite one is that in honour of Lakhsmi,
the goddess of wealth.

Vat/cat, a variant of Bhakat. Vish nuswémi, a sect of Vaish-
Vasta Géin, a ﬂier or section navs.
of Nepéli Brahmans. ViSWél, a title of Chases in
Orissa.

Vétsa, see Bé’tsya.
Vedanta, he who knows the Vumik, avariant for Bhaumik,

Vedas, a title of Brahmans. a title 0f Kaibarttas.
Veni, a variant of Beni, a Vyésa, asection of Kaibarttas,
synonym for Banlyé. Tambulis, Subarnabaniks, and

Vidyadhara,atit1eofKawa- gangs 1“.B§n§a1; 0f Gama
lis in Eastern Bengal. ra mans in e ar.

Vyésokta, a title of those
Rérhi Brahmans who perform

Vishnumési, a section .of religious ofﬁces for the Kai-
Béruis in Bengal. barttas.

Vishnu, see Bishnu.

 

WADSUESA. ' 350 WINIH.

W

Wadsyesa, a sept of Maghs Wangdehcha, a thar or sept
in the H111 Tracts of Chittagong. of Sunuwérs in Darjiling.

Wahe, a section of the Panch- Warggu, a sept of Chakmas .

Ezhggilb-casm Of Khatris in in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong.

Wéhsali a ﬂmr or sept of Weh-ba, .a rm‘ or sept of
Khambus in Darjiling. Sherpa Bhot1as of Nepal.

Waientsa, a sept of Maghs in Winih, a section of Barhis in
the Hill Tracts of Chittagong. Behar.

YAHIA'N.

Yahién, a section of Naiyas.

Bakhé, a small agricultural
caste of Nepal belonging to the
Kiranti group.

Yak-kyukpa, a sept of the
Phagu sub-tribe of Yakhas in
Darjiling.

Yakpangden, the dweller on
the pass, a sept of the Yan-
gorup sub-tribe of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Ya kshoma, the guardian of
the fort, a sept ot' the Ahtharai
sub-tribe of Limbus in Darjiling.

Yak’caché, a tkar or sept of
Sunuwars in Darjiling.

Yakten, formerly doctors, a
sub-sept of the Thekim sept of
Limbus in Darjiling.

Yakﬂmmba, a synonym for
Limbu.

Yamphu, a sub-tribe of
Yakhés in Darj ilin g.

Yangdenba, he who paid his
footing, a sept of the Panthar
sub-tribe of Limbus in Darjiling,
said to be descended from a
Mech, who got admission into the
Limbu tribe by bribing the heads
of the t/mm—tkum.

Yéngdi, a ﬂaw or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Yéngmi, a t/zar or sept of
Mangars in Darjiling.

Yangorup, a sub-tribe of Lim-
bus in Darjiling.

Yangsoba or Namlagpa, the
chief of the tribe, a sept of the

Panthar sub-tribe of Limbus in
Darjiling.

351

 

YURUMBANG.

Y

Yeti, a ﬁlm or sept of
Sunuwars in Darjiling.

Yijém, the wanderer or eater,
a sept of the Yangorup sub-tribe
of Limbus in Darjiling.

Yithingu, the huntsman, a
sept of the Yangorup sub-tribe
of Limbus in Darjiling.

Yo—chang, a sub-sept of the
Pon-po sept of Dejong Lhoris or
Bhotias of the south.

Yoksuma, a sept of the Phagu
sub-tribe of Yakhas in Darjiling.

Yong-tong—ba, a mi or sept of
Dejong Lhoris, the members of
Which are the descendants of
emigrants from Bhotan and
Nepal.

Yongyah, a sept of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Yongyahang, the son of a
chief, a sept of the Yangorup
and Charkhola sub-tribes of
Limbus in Darjiling.

Yulsahb. a mi or sept of
Dejong Lhoris, the members of
which are the descendants of

emigrants from Bhotan and
Nepal.

Yul—then-bo, a mi or sept of
the Tongdu sub-tribe of Dejong
Lhoris whose ancestor was
turned out of his fatherland.

Yungmé, the idler, a sept of
the Yangorup sub-tribe of Lim-
bus in Darjiling.

Yurumbang, they of the
central village, a sept of the

Phedéb sub-tribe of Limbus in
Darjiling.

Z

Zen-gar, Zardozz’, a. maker of
cloth of gold.

Zatti, a titlé~of Kewats and
Mallas in Behar.

 

;

» \

ETHNOGRAPEIG GLOSSARY. ,

VOL. II;

,
o

 

 

APPENDIX I.

List of castes and tribes with their titles, sub-castes, sub-tribes,
sections and septs . . . . . . .

APPENDIX II.

Proceedings of Conference on Ethnography of N orthérn India,
held at Lahore .

Suggestions regarding some doubtful .points of Ethnographic
nomenclature

Ethnographic questions—

General series
Spec1a1 serles

APPENDIX III.

Mr. Denzil Ibbetson s Memorandum on ethnological inquiry
in the Panjab . .

APPENDIX IV.

List of Correspondents selected to take Ipart 1n the ethnographic
survey of Bengal.

PAGE.

1—141

143—44
144—45

146—48
1418—- -7 3

175—88

189—93

 

APPENDIX 1.

 

LIST OF TRIBES AND CASTES WITH THEIR TITLES, SUB-
CASTES AND SUB-TRIBES, SECTIONS AN D SEPTS.

gigariﬁ.

Titles :—Dhéngar, Parja.

Sub-tribes.

Pahéria-Agaria.
Brijia-Agaria.
Assur-Agaria.
Lohar-Agaria.

Septs.

Baheroar, a jungle fruit.
Mahatoar, a title.
Samduar.

Sonoar, gold.

Turiar.

3 garmél, A’garwd [(2.

Sub-castes.

Pachhainya.

Purbiya.

Dasé.

Bisa 0r Birédari Réjé.

 

 

Sections.
r— 4“ "\
Airan. Mangal.
Bétsil. Mittal.
Bhaddal. Singhal.
Garg. Tairan.
Géwél. Téyal.
Gobhil. Thingal.
Goil. Tingal.
Goin. Tittal.
Késil. Tundal.

3guri, Ugm Kshatw‘.

Titles z-Kesh, Pai, Pél, Sémanta, Syém.

Sub-castes.

Béghé.

Bardwéniyé.
Chégnéya or Chénga.
Jana.

Késipurié.

Sétsaikiyé.

Suta.

Sections.

Bharadwéja.
Gautam.
KéSyapa.
Sénd i lya.

N out—In order to facilitate reference to these lists, the names of‘endo-

gamous groups are printed in red ink.

l

2 AMKT.

W gimzit.
Titles :—Ghibihér, Khawés, Saghér.

Sub~castes. Sections.
Gharbéit or Raut. LarWér.
Bahiot. Narh an.

Parabwér.
Pataiwar.

35mm, Agona, Lolnd.
Titles :—Méjhi, Parjé.

Sub-tribes. , Septs.
Agarié. Aind, an eel.
Birjié. Baroa, a wild cat.
Kolh-Asur. Basriér, bamboo.
Lohra-Asur. Beliér, bel fruit.
Pahérié-Asur. Kachua, a tortoise.

Kaithéwar, lead/ad or chicln'nga
fruit.

Kerketa, a bird.
Mukruér, spider.
Nég, a snake.
Rote, frog.

Siar, jackal.
Tirki, a bird.
Topo, a bird.

ﬁéhhan.

Synonyms :—Ajtlyya/c B2dlmzan,B/Iuinlzd7, Clmulhryi, Grilaast/I
Bm/mzyan, Mag/zagd Bidlzmaiz, Packlzzmd Brit/mum, Zamz’ndai, Zamm-
da) Bialumm.

Titles :—Arépe, Bharsi- Misr, Chaube, ChaudriJ'i, Dikshit,
Dube, Mawér, M iSl“, tha, Panchobe, Pande,
Pét‘nak. Réi. Singh, Sotri, Thékur, Tiwari.

Upadhiyé.
SECTIONS.
(a) Territorial.
Abkéhon. Anarai. Aswarié.
Aggechal. Anwér. Atrab.
Agnidhaut. Araich. Auigh baid.
Ailwér. Arait. , Badonié.
Ajaitia. Arewar. Badramié.

Ambarié. Arnwait. Bagauchié.

BA’BHAN.’

Bagri.
Balaiér.
Bandihé.
Banrié.
Barhambié.
Barhampu rié.
Barnait.
Basmait.
Baswait.
Baurihé.
Begampurié.
Belkuér.
Belonché.
Bemwér.
Bhadsuhié.
Bhaju Chakwar.
Bhalrait.
Bhatan.
B‘nelorié.
Bhomépoli.
Bhunasware.
Bigahié.
Bijalpurié.
Bilkhari.
Chaksiér.
Chakwér.
Chandréwat.
Chasiwar.
Chauriér.
Chausé.
Chesié.
Chiksoria.
Chi limér.
Chiwér.
Dabhinchhwér,
bhauchwar.
Dalihare, Dulliharé.
Darihare.
Dhakéit.
Dhanichhwér.
Dharan.
Dharwér.
Dhauréni.
Dighwa it.
Dig'nwe.
Dipér.
Domkatér.
Donwér.
Dudhnait.

Da

(a) Territorial—concluded.

Dumréit.
Dundwar.
Gambharié.
Gangtiait.
Garhié.
Gaur.
Ghatait.
Goait.
Hararié, foundling.
Hariambé.
Hartakia.
Hastgame.
lndrawar.
daitharia.
déji.
uajim.
damraién.
danwér.
desiwéx.
Jethuliar.
Kadarai.
Kalemnié.
Kanchanbhér.
Karmué.
Karnautié.
Karnéyati.
Kestwér.
Kataunié.
Katewar.
Katiéin.
Kathautié.
Kathwait.
Katthawa.
Kausonjhié.
— Kinwér.
Korache.
Korénch.
Kulhé.
Kumedwér.
Kunjalwér.
Ladilé.
Lamgorié.
Larwarié.
Mahbarié.
Mahuari.
Mairié.
Malikaulié.
Malitwér.
Manaria.

Manchia.
Mandra.
Mangrauni.
Maniksharié.
Nanjoré.
Naradwér.
Niktawér.
Nonaitwér.
Okinwér.
Onwér.
Pachbhajué.
Pachgotya.
Panchobe.
Parhape.
Parsaria.
Pilchwar.
Piliksawér.
Pilkhait.
Raini.
Ramayé.
Rampai.
Ransadiyé.
Sahasnanghié.
Sahdaulia.
Sakarwér.
Sakhwait.
Sakmait.
Salhariyé.
Sandalié.
Sapdohé.
Sarwe.
Saubarnié.
Semraién.
Sihogié.
Sihorié.
Sihujié.
Siriér.
Sirsait.
Sonbhadrié, living
on the banks of
the 80116.
Sonewér.
Sorawés'.
Suargane.
Surgrié.
Tetihé.
Tetihia.
Tilachhwar.
Umatwér.

1a

4 BKBHAN.
.(b) Ii'nnctz'onal or Personal.

Bhusbaré’t, husk- Eksarié, born of one Kodérié, worker with

gatherer. 4 brother. the spade.
Chaubhaié, born of dalewér, holder of Panchbhaié, born of
four brothers. ﬁsihng nets. ﬁve brothers.

(0) Brahmanz'cal.

Agn‘ihotra. Ga utam. Parésar.
Atharb. Hérit. Sébarna.
Bas i sht. Késyapa. Sénd i I.
Bharadwéj. Kaundin. Vétsa.
Garg. Kausik.

gagni, Bdgtit.

Titles :—Bégh, Dharé, Khan, Ménjhi, Masélchi, Mudi, Palan-
khéi, Parémanik, Pherké, Puilé, Réi, Séntré.
Sardér.

Sub-castes.

. Béjéndérié, found in J essore.

. Dandaménjhi.

. Darétié. found in Nuddea.

. Dulié, a palanquin-bearing sub-caste.

. Guliménjhi.

. Kasai kulié. said to live along the banks of the Kasai river in
Manbhum and Midnapur.

. Kusmetia, Kusmatié, orKUSputra, said to be named after the
Icnsd grass, and apparently totemistio.

. Let. found in Murshedabad.

. Méchhué, Mechhué. or MechO, a ﬁshing sub-caste.

10. Malla metié, Mélié. or Matiél. ﬁshermen and earth-workers.

11. NOdé. found in the 24-Parganés, said to have come from

\I (nascent-

$00

Bankura.

12. Tentulié, named after the tamarind tree, and apparently
totemistic.

l3. Trayodés, found in the 24-Parganés, said to have come from
Bankura.

l4. Ujha or tha. probably descended from the priests of the
tribal gods, who would naturally tend to form themselves
into a sub-caste. For a. parallel case, see Mallik.

BKGDI.

 

SECTIONS.

(a) Toternistic— (b) Eponymous—
Ardl, ﬁsh. Alamyén.
Béghrishi, the tiger. Késyapa.
Kachchép, the tortoise.

Késbak, heron. (o) Uncertain—
Pékbasanta. bird. Bégri.
Pétrishi, the bean. Désya.
Ponkrishi, jungle cock. , Gadibhérat.
Sélrishi or Sélmachh, the Kél.

sdl ﬁsh. Réncho.

ﬁaihpa, Vaidya, Ambasl/m, B/iisalc, C'lu'lrz'lsak.

x4

Sub-castes (Endogamous). Sections (Exogamous).
Rérhi. A’dya.
Banga, Bangqja. Alamalaka.
Barendra. Varcndra. Angira.
Panchakoti. Atreya.
Baisvénara.
Basishtha.
Hypei‘gamons groups. Bétsya.
Kuli n. lBstrn‘aradwéga'.
Bangsaja. anvantarl.
Maulik. DhrUba-
Gautama.
Ghritakausika.
Family titles (padabis). Hingu.
KéSyapa.
Dés Chandra] Kausika.
Gupta }Siddha. Kundu Krishnétreya.
Sen Nég Madhukuliya.
Datta Nandi >Kashta. Mérkandeya.
Deb Raja Maudgal a.
Dhar Sédhya' Rakshit saloarna.y
Kar Soma Saktri.
Salankayana.
Séndilya.
Vishnu.

Titles or popular designations of Baidyas practising medicine.

Used by themselves. Baidya-nidhi.
Kabi-ballabh.
Kabi-bhushan.
Kabi-indra.
Kabiréj.
Kabira‘njan.
Kabi—ratna.

BAIDYA.

Used by outsiders. Atai Baidya, doctor who defrauds the ignorant.

Chésé’ Baidya, plough doctor.

Dehéti Baidya, village doctor.

Haturié Baidya, a doctor who attends market,
or, according to Wise, 3. quack, a meddlesome
fellow.

Néri-tepé, pulse-feeler.

@airﬁgi, J 092', Gosdin.

Sub-tribes. Septs in Chota Nagpur.
Nil. Ach ut.
Anaet.
AnCh it, tiger.
Barandia.
Bishnu.

Dhobdhar, can’t wash their clothes in
child’s birth ceremonies.

Gobans, cow.

ldri', a jungle fruit.

Kansi, a kind of grass.

Karanjea, an oil-seed.

Nég, cobra.

Ramgharia, a place.

Sonar, can’t wear gold.

Tura.

@éiﬁ, Ba'oti, Clzzmdri, Clumz'g/d, Barnak-Tdmuh’.
Titles z—Bh uiyé, Réi, Sen.

Sub-castes. Sections.
1. Béiti of Dacoa and Central Bengal. Aliman.
2. Magi of Féridpur. Béghrishi.
Kasyapa.
Tilalochan.

@arhi, Barkae’.

Titles :—Manjhan, Maraiya, Mistri, Réi, Sétun, Thékur.

Sub-castes. Sections.
1. Kanaujié (Work only in (a) Territorial:
2. Kokés } wood.) ,Bachbere'lt.
3. Maghayé. (Work in wood Balbheralt.

and iron.) Bénsd ih.

BARH‘I.

Sub-castes.

4. Lohar. (Found in Bhégal-
pur. Work only

in iron.)
5. Kamér-Kallé.
6. Mathurié.

Sections.
(a) Territorial—concluded.

Barnéit.
Balhétt.

Bharéii.
Charwa.

Barhioth.

Chaudhréna.
Daséonth.

Dobhéit.
Gritéri .
Héth ién.
Képri.
Kharéit.
Lakwér.

Muk und.

Parus.
Pipriéti.

Sikalgar.

Winih.

(b) Epong/mous—
Biskarma.
Sénd i l ya.
Késyapa.

Hypergamous divisions of the Mag/myd sub-caste.

Thékur.
Réi.
’ Kuar.

IN BENGAL.

ﬁérui, Barai, Barajz', Bdrajz'bz', Latd-baidya.

Titles :——Ai n,

Ash,

Bawél,

Bhadra. Bhaumik, Bhawal,

Biswés, Chénd, Chaudhri, Dém, Dés, Deo, Datta,

Dhar, Guha,

Héldér, Hor,

Kar, Khén, Khor,

Kundu, Léhé, Majumdér, Mallik, Mandal, Mantrini,
Ménné, Mérik, Mitra, Néha, Nég, Nandan, Nandi,
Pél, Rakhit, Rudra, Sarkér, Sen.

Sub-castes.

l. Rérhi. .
2. Bérendra.
3. Néthén.

é. Koté.

 

Sections.
( ’ A ﬂ
Al iman. Kanwamaharsi.
Batsya. Késyapa.
Bharadwéj. Madhukuliya.
Chandramaharsi. Séndilya.
Gautama. Vishnumaharsi.
daimini. Vyésa.

9?“.“1‘

wmwewewwH

Sub~castes.
Maghaya.
d a iswér.

. Chaurasié.

Semerya.
Sokhwé.

BARAI.

IN BEHAB.

gﬁarai, Jhbhi.

Title 2—Réut.

Sections.
Késyapa.
Nég.

gauti, Buno.

Titles :—Digha, Mandal, Manjhi, Maulavi, Parémanik.

Sub-castes.

. Dhulié or Dhulo.
. dhétié or dhetié.

Kéthurié.
Mallabhumié.

Malué or Mélué.

Mola.

. Panchakoti.

Péturia.

Sub-tribes.
N i 1.

Sections.

Aliman.
KéSyapa.
Madhukulya.
Méjhi.

. Sikharié' or Gobarié.

ﬁrhié, Beded, Bejed-
Title z—Mahto.

Septs.

Bar, the ba‘nyan tree.

Biha or Binjhé, a ﬁsh.
Chidra or Cherré. squirrel.
Dhech ua, a. black bird.

Dian, a. kind of ﬁsh.

Kach ua or Kachch h, tortoise.
Khopché, an owl.
Mahanadi, name of a river.
Mahua, bassia latg'folz‘a.
Mahukal, a bird with long tail.
Maina, a bird.

Nég, a. cobra.

Parewé, a. pigeon.

Peché, an owl.

Suié, a bird.

Sulankhi, a bird.

Sundi. mahua. ﬂower.

Titipi. a night bird.

Turu, a. bird.

BELDA’R.

gamer.
Titles z—Gadahya, Marér, Réut.
Sub-castes. Section.
Bhojpurié. Kasyapa.
Chauhén.

Kathautié or Kathéwé.

ghanhéri, Ndpit, qu'jdm.

Titles :-——Bérik. Kshuri.
Sub-castes.

Bangéli.
Dakhini.
Desi.
Kharié.
Khurdé.
Gola.
Hatué.

Section.

Cﬁlm.
Title :——-Réné.

Sub-castes. Sections.

(a) Totemz'stc'c—

Bénsrishi, bamboo.
Bel. be! fruit. .
Kachhap, tortoise.
Mayur, peacock.

l. Bangéli. '
2. Maghayé.

(b) Eponymous—

Agni.
Brahmarishi.
Rish i.

10

13kt“.

Titles :—Bhé.rata, Dasaundhi, Kabiji, Réi.

Sub-castes.

Baram-Bhét.
Réj -Bhét.
Turk-Bhét (Mahomedan).

Sections.

Anal.
Antahrié.
Balbandh ié.
Bharadwéja.
Gaighatié.
Kai I ié.
Késyapa.
Kunwar.
Lakhsarié.
Lohérkoriyé.
Mah rajié.
Menwér.
Sahar.
Séndilya.
Sanhakié.
Sindhwatié.
Suarait.

 

Atselé, Barué, Bhatara, Chaurési, Chﬁngele, Dasaundhi, Gujriwélé.
J angira, Kailié, M ahépétra, N agauri, Sikatpﬁrea, are mentioned by Sir Henry
Elliot as subdivisions of Bhéts, but it is not stated Whether these names
denote sub-castes, sections, or merely titles.

glutinméli, Bhuszmdm', Sz'ddlzz'-putra, Hdri.

Sub-castes. Sections.
1. Bara-bhégiyé. Parésara.
2. Mitra Seni Beharé. Aliman.
3. Chhota-bhégiyé.
4. Amarébédi Found in Noakhali,
5. Sérélié and. apparently '
6. Hatié peculiar to that
7. Bhulué district.

BHUIYK.

11

ghuiyé, .Blmz‘nya’, ma'ydn, Bhuz'nlzdr, Bhumig/d, Musalzar, Ndik
Khanddyat, Khanddyat-Pdik, Glmtwdl, Ghatwdr, Ti/céyat, Rajwdr,
Rdi-Bhuiyd, Ber-Bhuiyd, Sardér, Puran.

Titles:—-Bhogta, Chharidér, Kopét, Mahton, Ménjhi, Néik,
Réi Singh, Thékur, Tikéyat.

Sub-tribes.

In Lohardagé—
Bichwér.
Deswéli.
Dundwér.
J unwér.
Khandait.
Maghaiyé.
Mahtwér.
Marherié.
Rajwér.

R i kh iésan.
Tirwér.

In Keonjlmr—

M61 or DeshBhuiyé.

Dandsena.
Kh atti .
Réj kul i.

In Manbimm—
Dhoré.
Kétrés.
Musaha‘r.

In Hazaribayh—

Ghétwér.
Tikéyat.

Septs.

Asura.
Bagéli.
Baliar.
Banini.
Banka.
Bankiar.
Banui.
Champiar.
Chirra or Rikhiasan, squirrel.
Golari.
dagda.
dagorari.
Kach, tortoise.
Kaliar.
Kandni.
Kanrui.
Kenduari.
Keruri.
Kihar.
Kussum, a tree.
Kutar.
Lota.
Nég.
Naragi.
Narari.
Noah.
Pachoar.
Pansi.
Réi.
Ranangi.
Sani.
Satadi.
Sinhi.

12 ' BHUMIJ.

@hmuij.
Titlesz—Ménki,‘ Matkum,“ Mura,3 Sardérﬁ
Sub-tribes. Septs.
Desi. . Baddé Kurkutié, akind of
Tamarié, Muré, or Ménki-Mura.5 worm.
Slkharlyé or Meno.“ Bérdé.
Pétkumié 7 Bhuiyé, ﬁsh.
Shelo, iron-smelters. Chandil.
Barabhumié, zamindar Bhumij.8 Gulgu, ﬁsh.

Hénsdé, wild goose.
Hemrong, betel palm.
déru, a bird.

Késyab, tortoise.
Leng, mushroom.
Nég, snake.
Obérsériv, a bird.
Pilé.

Ségmé.

Sélrishi, sal ﬁsh.
Séndilya, a bird.
Séolé.

Tesé, bird.
Tumérung, pumpkin.
Tuti, a sort of vegetable.

 

1 This title is common among the Mundas.

“‘ Applied to the Bhumij of Dhalbhum.

3 Mura is the common form of Munda in Manbhum.

4 Possibly borrowed from the ghatwali system, the leading executive unit
of which is the sarddr or head of the subordinate ghatwals (tabidars) of a,
village.
5 The two latter appellations clearly suggest Munda descent.
0 This group is supposed to come from Manbhum.
7 The Patkumié and Tamarié sub-tribes occasionally intermarry.
3 Probably descended from members of the Barabhum zamindari family.

397mb.
Titles :—Chaudhri, Mahto, Mukhié, Réut.
Sub-castes. Sections.

Khariét (a) Territorial—
Awadhiyé Jarhuéit.
Lodhiyé In Bella" Jhauéit.
Gondh Odanié.
dutaut Bind '

Nun Bind In Eastern Bengal. (6) Epongmous—
Bin Késyapa.

BINJHIK. 13
giujhig, Rigid, Bryan, Bay/War.

Titles z—Baréik, Dandié, Gaunjhu, Kérji, Ménjhi, Mirdéhé,
Néik, Néth, Parja, Pradhén. ‘ ‘

Sub-tribes. _ Septs.
Pahériya-Binjhié. Bair, zz'zyplzus jujuba.
Band—Binjhié. Bansetti, don’t touch bamboo at
Agaria-Binjhié. a wedding.

Bhair.

Cheruka, ﬁsh.

Chidra, squirrel.

Chingri, a river-ﬁsh.

Chorka, a pond-ﬁsh.

Chutia. rat.

Dédul, bull-frog.

Garai, a river-ﬁsh.

Huru, paddy-bird.

Kachua, tortoise.

Kési, a. kind of grass (sacc/aarum
spontaneum).

Kuns, grass.

Mangar, crocodile.

Murgi, hen.

Nég, serpent.

Pusway, a river-ﬁsh.

Sinduria, use sindur, a. red paint,
at marriage.

Telha, use oil at marriage.

‘ Tengra, a river-ﬁsh.
Thekra, a river-ﬁsh.

' girlwr.
Title :—Birhor.

Sub -tribes. Septs.

Nil. Hemrom, a kind of ﬁsh.

Jagsaria.

Liluai.

Mahli.

Nég, cobra.

Nagpuria.

Singpuria.

Siruar.

14 BRA’HMAN.

gréhmzm, Bdmzm, Bipra, Dwifa, Thdkur, Sarmd, Deva-Sarmd,
Blmdeva, Bhusur, Agraja, Malidrdjji, Bdbaji, Gosdinji.

Main divisions. Territorial divisions.

Pancha. Gauriya—Séraswat, Kényakubja, Gaura. utkal,
Maithil.

Pancha Drévira—Karnéti. Tailangi or Andhra, Gujréti
or Gurjjara. Dréviri, Mahéréshtriya.

Miscellaneous—Nepali, Vyésokta, Sékadwipi, Kraunch-
dwipi (including dausi. Jotkhi or
dyotshi, Dékantié, Bhadarié or Bhareri.
dadwé. Sagunié, Sanicheré). Mégadha,
Bandijan or Suta, Atharva, Méthur,
Mahé. Bréhman otherwise called Mahé-
pétra or Kantéha. Lakhauria, Belontié.
Kathak. Kaléwat, Tikaur. Sakuntalé,
Sawélékhi, Kashmiri. Kémrupi.

Tirtha. Purohits, Debal or Pandéz—Gayéwél, Prayég-
wal, Gangaputra, Dhémin, etc. -

Séraswat.
Sub-castes. ‘ , Sections.

In the Panjdb.

Four local divisions,

. .. High 50 The gotms are
divided into high, 18td‘““°“{L

ow 172 common to all

middle and low High 12 Bréhmans.
’ 2nd ,, ‘

endogamous groups. LOW . . . 23
3 (1 High 9
r ” Low 48
High 11
4th ,, { Middle... 20
Low 124

Total 469

_——

In Behar they have the following titles, which are endogam-
ousz-Misra, Sukul, Dube or Dobe, Tiwéri, Péthak, Pénde,
Upédhyéya, Chaube or Ch obe, Béjapeyi, Pandlt.

Kénya Kubja, Kanaujié.

Titles (in Behar) :—Misr or Misra, Sﬂkul. Tiwér‘i, Dube or Dobe,
Péthak, Pénre. Upédhyéya, Chaube or Chobe, Dichhit or
Dikshit, Lakhnau or Béjapeyi, Sarwariyé or Saryupéri.

_ BRKHMAN. 15

Titles (in Bengal) z—Bhaﬁéchérji, Ghatak, Chakrabartti,‘ Ba’ndya.
Chatta, Mu khati, Réi, Munshi, Chaudhri, Sarkér, Majumdém
Héldér. Bidyératna, Bidyébégis, Smritiratna.

 

 

Sub-castes. Sections or gotras common to all Bréhmans.
In Bengal.
Rérhi. . Abya. Kanwa or Kémna.
P i rél i. Agastya. KéSyapa.
Bérendra. A'lamyén. Kétyéyan. .
Uttar Bérendra. Anébrikéksha. Kaundilya.
Pénchurié. A'ngirasa. Kausika.
Madhyasreni or A'treya. Kaustav.
Madyadoshi. Atri. Krishnétreya.
Barna or Patita Baijéhmapadya. Kusal.
Bréhman. Baiyéghrapadya. Maudgalya.
Agradéni. Basishtha. Maunas.
A’chérji, Daibajna. Bésuki. Parésara.
Ganaka. BétSya. Paulastya.
Bhat or Bhatta. Bharadwéja. Rikhab.
Maruiporé. Bhérgava. Roh ita.
Saptasati or Sé’tsati. Bishnu. Sébarna.
Vaidik. Biswémitra. Saktri.
Péschétya. Briddha. ~ Séndilya.
Dékshinétya. Brihaspati. Sénkriti.
Garga. Saukélin.
Gautama. Saupéyan.
Ghritakausika. Sunaka.
Gotama. Upamanya.
débéli. g g, 352% rSwarnaKausik.
daimini. 5:55; Rajata-Kausik.
déjnabalkya. §§i§§;J Ghrita-Kausik.
démadagnya. §§§§§ S Kaungilya-Kausik.
Kalvisha. 58 {5,33 LKaUSIka.
Kénchan. {5e (Saunaka.
342:5 JKénwéyan.
3%: Rathitara.
e e s: I
:4 ° kAgnibesma.

 

1. The Rérhi and Bérendra sub-castes have the following ﬁve gotras :—'
Késyapa, Séndilya, Sébarna, Bétsya, and Bharadwéja.

2. The Sétsatis have some of the gutras or exogamous sections in use
among Baidik Brahmans. ‘

3. There can be no intermarriage amongst persons of the following ﬁve
gotras :——Jé.madagnya, Bétsya, Sébarna, Maudgalya, Saupéyana, which are
supposed to be of common ancestry and are therefore reckoned as one
exogamous section.

4. The Madhyasreni or Madyadoshi Bréhmans of Western Bengal
have the following Iqotras :-—Séndilya, Bétsyaba, Késyapa, Bharadwéja,
Sébarnya, Parésara, Gautma, Ghrita-Kausika.

5. The Bhéts or Bhattas have the following gotras 2—Késyapa, Bharad-
wéja, Séndilya, Ghrita-Kausika, Aurbba Rishi, Bétsya, Alimyén.

6. Each gotra has its jar-awards, i.e., a group of from three to ﬁve Rishis
belonging.y to the same gotra. Intermarriage between persons having the same
pravaras is in theory prohibited, but this rule is not now strictly observed.

l6

BRKHMAN.

Géin or Grémin (56 or 59) of the Rarhi sub- caste under
the ﬁve got: as: -

Bandya.
Gargari.
Kesarkuni.

Kusumk ali.

Périhél.
Kulabhi.

Gur.
Ambuli.
Bhuri.
Talabéti.

Pitamundi.

Chatta.

Génguli.
Kun dalél.
Siddhal .
Déyi.

Mahinté.
Ghoshél.
Simléi.
Bépuli.

Mukhaiti.
Din gséin.

:S'dndz'lya Gotra (16).

Ghoshli.
Sej aga.
Méschatak.
Baral.
Basuz’tri.

deyapa Gdra (16).

Palséi.
Har.
Poréri.
Péladhi.
Koéri.

Kadél.

Kuséri.

Kulisé or Kulkuli.
K ké s.

Dirghéti.

Pékrési.

Simléi.

Pushali, Pushilél.
Bhatta.

Mul.

Blzamdwdja Gotra (4).

Sa’barna Gotra (12).

N andi.
Béli.
Siérik.
Pungsika.

Séharik.
Réyi.

Séteswari.
Périél.
Ghanteswari.
Néyéri.

Bdtsya Gotra (8 or 11).

Pippaléi.

Putitunda.

Purbba.
Kan j i] ail.

Kénj iéri.
Chautkhandi.
Dighail.

BRAHMAN. ‘ 17

The Gains whom Réja Ballal Sen made—Kuhn, Gmma Kuhn,
and Slohzya: —

Kuhn (8).

Bandya. Ghoshal. Kanjilal.
Chatta. Putitunda. Kundalél.
Mukhaiti. Ganguli. ‘

Gamma Kulin (14).

Réyi. ’ Pippalai. Parihal.
Gur. Gargari. Har.
Mahinta. Ghanteswari. Pitamundi.
Kulabhi. Kesarkuni. Dirghéti.
Chautkhandi. Dingsai.

The remaining 34 or 37 are Srotriyas.

Those Ghataks who reckon 56 Gains, include Porari among
Gauna Kulins and exclude Dighal, Chautkhandi, and Purbba. Those
who reckon 59, exclude Porari, Dighal, and Purbba from Gauna
Kulin, and show 34 Srotriyas.

Hypergamous groups bluifla and sub-groups me! of Rarhis
formed by the famous social refermer Devibar Ghatak :—

 

Groups. Mels or sub-groups, mostly endogamous.
Kul i n . Phulia. Sriharddhani.
Bhanga Kulin. Khardaha. Saténandkhéni.
Suddha. Ballabhi. Chhayi.
Sr‘otriya Sédhya. Sarbbanandi. Achambita.
. Kashta. Panditratni. Dasarath Ghataki.
Bansaja. Bangél. , Subharajkhani.
Suréi. Mélédharkhani.
Acharjya Sekhari. Raghab Ghoshali.
Gropalghataki. Debati.
Chatta Raghabi. Nariya.
Bijayapanditi. Kékusthi.
Madhai. Dharadhari.
, Bidyadhari. Rayi.
Parihal. Bhairab Ghataki.
Sriangabhatti. Parmananda Misra.
Pramodni. Sunga Sarbbanandi.
Bali. Bari M ajumde’tri.

Chandrapati. . Chandai.
. 2

18

BRAKHMaAN.

Gain or Gldﬂliﬂ (100) of the Bérendra sub-caste under the

ﬁve got? as: —

Maitra.
Bhaduri.
Karanj a.
Balayashthi.

Modhagrami.
Balihéri.

Rudrabégchhi.
Léheri.
Sédhubé guhhi.
Champati.
Nand anébési.

Sannj) 'al.
Bhimkali.
Bhattasé 1i.
Kémkéli .
Kurmuri.
Bhériél.
Laksha.

J émrukhi.

Bhédar.
Léruli.

J hémél, J hampati.

A't-urthi .

Raﬁ.
Ratnébali.
Uchchharakhi.
Gochchhési.

Singdiér.
Pékari.
Dadhi.

Srin gi.
Medari.
Undhuri.
Dhundhuri.

deyapa gotra (18).

Moéli.
Kiral.
Bijkunja.
Sargrémi.
Sahagrémi.
Katigré. mi.

Sdndz'lya gotm (14).

Kémendra.
Sihari.
Téroélé. Bisi.
Matasyési.
Champa.

Bdtsya gotm (24).

Simli.
Dhoséli.
Ténuri.
Batsagrémi.
Deuli.
Nidréli.
Kukkuti.
Borhgrémi.

Madhyagrémi.
Mathgrémi.
Gangégrémi.
Belgrémi.
Chamagrémi.
Asrukoti.

Subarna.
Totaka.
Pushéna.
Beluri.

Srutabati.
Akshagrémi.
Séhari.
Kéligré mi.
Kélihéi.
Paundrakéli.
Kailindi.
Chaturéban di.‘

Bkaradwdja gotm (24) .

Béla.

Sékati.

Simbi.

Bahél.
SariyaCI.
Kshetragrémi.
Dadhiyél.
Puti.

Sdbarna gotra (20).

Tétoér.
Setu.
Naigrémi.
N edhuri.
Kapéli.
Tuttari.
Panchabati.

Kéchhati. «
Nandigrémi.
Gogrémi.
Nikhati.
Pippali.
Sringa.
Khorjér.
Groswailambi.

Kh andabati.
Nikari.
Samudra.
Ketugrémi.
Jasogrémi.
Sitali.

BRAHMAN. 19

Géin of Uttar-Barendras {recording to “ Gaure Brahman ” :—

Séndilya. Késyapa. ‘ Bétsya.
Champati. Bhéduri. Kéléyi.
Bégehhi. Karanjé. Grihasodhani.
Lébar. Simbi. , Madhugrémi.
Naudanébési. '

Sihari.
Bharadwéja. Sébarna.
Réi. Annésani.
Gropurbba.
Sirasinthi.
J hémél.
Kulms made by Ballél Sen :-
Léheri. Maitra. Kélihéi.
Ba’xgehhi. Sannyél. Bhédar.
Bhéduri. Misra.

Srotriyas divided by Réjé Kansa. Néréyan :—
(a) Sidd/m Srotriya.

Karanja. Laruli. A’ turthi.
Nandanébési. Champati. Kélihéi.
Bhattaséli. J hampati.

(b) Sa‘dhya Srotriya.
Uchchharakhi. Sihari. Bisi. I
J émrukhi. Réi. Karj j uri.
Ratnébali. Goswélambi.

(c) The rest are Kaskta Srotrz'yas.

Hypergamous groups b/vdba and sub-groups pat/25 of Bérendras
formed by the learned social reformer Udayanéchérya Bhéduriz—

Groups. » Subgroups.
Kulin. Jonéli.
Siddha. Nirébil.
Srotriya Sédhya. Bhushné.
Kashta. Rohilé. .
Képa, Chhagharié.’ Kutabkhéni.
Aliékhéni.
Bhabénipuri.
Beui.
Bérendra titles :—
Bégh, tiger. Pénjé, heap of bricks.
Bheré, sheep. Péthé, goat.
Dhol, drum. Prachanda, furious.
Gappi, tell-tale. Talépétra, bottom of a pot.
Gonj, peg. . Taulo, earthen pot.

2a

20 BRAHMAN.
Gréin of Saptasa’tis :--A’rath, Béguri, Bélthubi, Bhégéi, Dhéin,
Dhardhar, Hélui, Héturi, Jabagrémi, Jagéi, Kélui, Kéndare,
Kéntharé, Kanyé, Kétédi, Kéténi, Kéturi, Kusalé, Mulukjuri,
Nélsi, Nénakséi, Pétéri, Pharphar, Pithéri, Ségéin, Séin, Sugéin,
Ujalzi, Ulluk, etc.

Vaidik.
Sub-castes. giggggf Groups, samdj.
Péschétxa Jonéri. (A'kharé.
Vaidi . Konéri. Séndilya ”.4 Madhyabhég.
LPénkunda.
( doéri.
. Gauréli.
Basnshtha Alédhi.
‘ Dadhichi.

Séntaru.
Sébarna { Brahmapur.
Marichi Grém.
(Chandradwip.
Bharadwéja ...{ Navadwip.
LKotél ipé ré.

Saunaka Sémantasér.

Local groups— Purbbasthéli.
Bishnupur.
Bhétpéré.

Purbba Banga.

Bréhmans of the following gotms came later on (1102 Sak or
1180 A.D.) and mixed up with the Péschétya Vaidiks :——Krishné—
treya, Gautama, Rathitara, Késyapa, Bétsya, Sunak; and still later
on (1403 Sak or 1481 A.D.) came Bréhmans of the Ghrita-Kausika,
Kausika, A'treya, Sankarshan, Parésara, Agnibesma, Maudgalya,
Hérita, and Upamanyu gotras.

Hypergamous
groups.
Dékshlnatya Vaidlk. KéSyapa. Kulin.

Gautama. Bansaja.
BétSya. Maulik.
Kénwéyan.
Kausika. Local grogps or
Ghrita-Kausika. WW]-
u’étukarna. Majilpur.
Sébarna. Réjpur.

The Dékshineitya Vaidiks have’the following titles :—
Tripéthi, Misra, Péthak, Chakrabartti.

BRA’HMAN. ‘21 ‘

Qaura.
Sub-castes. Titles.

Kevala Gaura. Sukul.

Sukalvéla. ‘ Pénde.
A'di Gaura {JoshL Mlsra.

thé. Joshi.

Chingala. D_ube. .
Sanédhya {Déymim leérl.

Khandelvéla. Chaube.
Hariyéna. Vyésa.

Témbol i.
Adi Sri-Gaura.

Gurjar Ga ura.
Tek Béré.
Chamér Gaura.
Kritanay.

Sri-Gaura

Maithil or Tirhutié.

Titles:——Majhrote, Misir or Misra including Chaudhari,
Réya, Pari'nasta, Khéna and Kuméra, thé, Ujha
or dhé, Péthu. Pura including Bakriyér and
Charviyér, Thékur, Pédri.

Sections.

A
r

IIg/pm'gmnous groups. Goim. D”; or Mu]. '

Srotriya or Srotri. . Karmahe—Majhauré.
. Karmahe-Tarauni.

. Karmahe—Naruéi.

. Karmahe—Behat.

. Karmahe—Majhiém.
Karmahe-Alanpur.

. Karmahe-Baghét.

. Karmahe-Uraré.

(ch—i

dog.
Panjibaddh.
Négar.

. , Bétsa
dalwar.

K..____J\———ﬁ

Séndil . Karmahe-Ahpur.

o ©.oo\1.caomkoo

. Belaunche-Kéko.

. Belaunche-Ojnaul.
. Belaunche-Sudai.
. Belaunche-Ratpér.
. Belaunche-Garh.

. Belaunche-Dih.

Hh—lH

Bnaradwéja

Fﬂ—A—n—ﬁ
H I---I r-d
0! PP CH {0 P—

22

me.

Bétsa

Bétsa

Bétsa

Séndil

Késyap

Bétsa

ﬂ M r—._+——A_—ﬁ

r 16.
17.
18.

L 20.

21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.

31.
32.
33.
34.

35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.

43.
44.
45.
46.
47.
48.
¥ 49

f 2?:

 

A
cm
$0

...| 53'

L 54.

55.
' 56.
57.
58.

27.
28.
29.
30.

41.
. Saudarpuréi-Digaun.

BRAHMAN.

D272 or Mal.
Hariéme—Rakhwéri.
Hariéme-Sibé.
Hariéme-Bal iréjpur.

. Hariéme—Katmé.

Hariéme-Ahil.

Paliwér—Mangrauni.
Paliwér—Mahesi.
Pal iwér-Di bra.
Paliwér-Sakuri.
Paliwér—Haripur.
Pal iwér—Samaul.
Pal iwér—Kachhra.
Paliwér—Phuldéha.
PaliWér-Mahendra.
Paliwér-darhatyé.

Budhwére-Mah esi.
Budhwére-Sakuri.
Budhwére—Dumré.
Budhwére—Balha.

Saudarpuréi-Mahié.
Saudarpuréi-Katka.
Saudarpuréi-dagau r.
Saudarpuréi-Sarso.
Saudarpurai-Suket.
Saudarpuréi-Hansauli.
Saudarpuréi—Khoir.

Saudarpuréi -Kanhau l i.
Saudarpuréi -Ménik.
Saudarpuréi-Rohér.
Saudarpuréi Sundar.
Saudarpuréi-Dhaul.
Saudarpuréi-Baghét.
Saudarpuréi-Gaul.

Darihare-Dih.
Darihare-Réjanpuré.
Darihare—Bargamié.
Darihare-Ratauli.
Darihare—Sahasrém.

Anrai war-Anrai.
Anraiwér-Usrauli.
Anraiwér—Jaué.
Anraiwér-Baingni.

BRXHMAN.

Gotra.

KéSyap .. .

Késyap
Bétsa

Késyap
Késyap .
Kétyéyan .
Sémdil

Késyap .

Séndil

‘ Késyap

Sémdil

__./\_.__ w

6L
< 62.
63.
64.

67.
68.

70.

82.

87.
88.
89.

90.
91.
92.

93.
94.
95.
96.
. Marare—Adauri.
98.
99.
L100.
(101.
102.
4 103.

 

"'|104.
L105.

69.

71.
72.
73.
74.
75.
76.
77.

23

D272 or Mu].

. Baliése-Narsam.
60.

Bal iése-Balha.
Baliése-A’si.

Bal iése-Sakuri.
Baliése-Dharauré.
Bal iése-Suket.

. Baliése-Baghént.
66.

Tannahpuréi-Solhni.

Ta kwére-Ankusi.

Ta kware-N ima.
Khowére-Nah és.
Khowére-Mahué.
Khowére-Mahnauré.
Kh owére-Kokrahi.
Khowére-Khari.

Kh owére-Muréjpur.
Satlakh e-Sataur.
Satlakhe-Satlakha.

Kunjilwér-Malangié.

. Kunjilwér-Sater.
79.
' 80.
81.

Kunj i Iwér-Uilu.
Kunjilwér-Bhakhren.
Kunjilwér-Digaun.
Kunj i Iwér-Bhakhrauli.

. Khanraure-Bhaur.

L
1’
cc )
r
i
. <
l
I
L
83
g 84.
" 85.
86.

Khanraure-Khutti.
Khanraure-Gurd i.
Khanraure-E kmé.

Sakariwér-Harari.
Sakariwér-Tatail.
Sakariwér-Chhému.
Pagulwér-Barhiém.
Pagulwér—Tarél oh i.
Pagulwér—Dhen.

Marére—Sihol.
Marare-dagaul.
Marare-Ukki.
Marare-Barh ampu r.

Marare-M israul i.
Marare-Rajauré.
Marare-J agatpur.
Dighwe-Tipri.

Digh we-Nagar.

Di ghwe-Kan kauré.
Di gh we-Sannahpu r.
D igh we-Sakarpuré.

24

Gofm.

Bétsa
KéSyap
Bharadwéj
Sénd iI
Késyap
SéndH

Bétsa

Bétsa

Késyap
Késyap

Gautama

KéSyap
Séndil

Sébarna

Bétsa

Séndil

106.
$107.

I 108.
x 109.

g 110.

111.

(112.
1 113.
4 114.
| 115.
L116.

117.

118.
(119.
I120-

" 4 121.

['122.
L123.

124.
125.

126.

127.
128.
129.
' 130.
131.

133.

134.
{135.
.136.
{137.

138.
1 139.

. 4 140.

1 141.
I 142.
L143.
144.
145.
146.

\ 147.

148.
149.
150.
151.

132.

BRXHMAN.

PM or Mal.

Bah i ra rwér—Parh at.
Bah irarwé r- Puhéch .
Bahirarwér-Pérkhand.
Bah i rarwér-Kasiém.
BisaiWér—Nanhpur.
Bisaiwér-Bisph i.
Ekahre-Oré.

Ekah re—Ruchau I.
Ekah re-Kanhaul i.
Ekahre-Sagrém.
Ekahre-Torne.

Gangulwér-Sakuri.
Gangulwér-Dumré.

Kataiwér-Andhré.
Kataiwér-Phet.
Kataiwér-Malangia.
Kataiwér-Loém.
Kataiwér-Maréch i.

Sariswe~Khangon
Sariswe-Sakuri.

Ghusaute-Nagwér.

Ba bhanyéme—Katma.
Babhanyéme-Karrain.
Kusmére-Sa bés.
Kusmére-Dhanauli.
Narwére—Rémpur.
Barhampuréi—Barham—
pur.
Purue-Mahend ra.
Andaréi-Nehra.
Andaréi-Lagunié.
Andaréi-Pirépur.
Panchaubhe-Khajuli.
Panchaubhe-u' haué.
Panchaubhe-Birpur.
Panchaubhe-Barhmaul.
Panchaubhe-Bhithi.
Panchaubhe-Dadri.
Panchaubhe-Kariaun.

dalaiwér—dale.

da ia iwér-Maranch i.
ualaiwér-Ganraul.
dalaiwér-Méli.
dajwére-Bharém.
dajwére-Udanpur.
dajware-uamuni.
dajwére-Pachah i.

BR A'HMAN.

Gotra.

KéSyap 152.
K53yap 153.
Késyap 154.
Séndil 155.
Séndil 156.
Séndil 157.
Parésar 158.
Parésar 159.
Kausika 160.
Séndil 161.
Séndil 162.
, . 163.
Sandll 164.
Bétsa 165.
Késyap 166.
Bharadwéj 167.
Bharadwéj 168.
KéSyap 169.
Késyap 170.
Gar-g 171.
Parésar 172.
Parésar 173'
174.

Séndil .. 175.
Séndil 176.
Krishnén 177.

Utkal.

Dik or .Mul.

Pakarée-Mahesi.
Budhaure.

Bharhe.

Géngaure.

Bhatore.
Sakarghore;
Surganai.
Sugarganai-Loém.
Nekutwér-Barahi.
Nonaitwér.
Talaiwér.
Sihésme-Khor.
Sihésme-Sihésam.
Kaiére.

Ainwér.
Domtakaréi.
Kanigéme Kanigém.
Bhandwﬁl.
Thariéme-Thariam.
Basahe.
Sunriwér-Solhni.
Naraune Teghré.
Naraune Saktérépur.
Chhatimane-Chhatman.
Kodarie.

Bhusware.

Titles :—Nanda, Pate, Kara, A'c'nérya, Satpathi, Bedi, Senépati,
Panigrahi, Nisank, Bainipa’ti, Pandé, Padahéri, Murhié
0r Sebaka, Ghétiyé, Déja, Paya, Baghi, Muosi, Devaté,
Dandapat, Mahanti, Dharsarmékar, Tripéti, Mahépétra,
Misra, Rath, DéS, Sarangi, Sémégrahi. Hoté, Néth,
Cheni, Pétra, Léik, Bahali, Pati, Pédhé Sélu, Péthak,
Péni, Fakir, Feringi, Lau, Malo, Ghési, Ladu, Basu,
Pakharpaila, Kantaru, Gorea, Tarat, dayi, Karpur,
Kandarpa, Parha’tié, Phunknali.

Sub-castes.

Srotriya 0r Sésani—

Sémanta.

Gotra or sections.

Batsas.

Kausika.
A’treya.
Késyapa.

Bhatta Misra.

Kautsasa.

Bharadwéja.
Atreya.
Dattétreya.
Krishné’treya.

96 BRA’HMAN.

Sub-castes. Gotra or sections.

Vaidika. ' » A’treya.
Kautsasa.
Hérita.
Kausi ka.
Katyéyana.
Maudgal.
Sénd il.
Kaund inya.
Gautam.
Késyapa.
Bharadwéja.
Kapinja’a.
Sébarni ka.
détukarna.
Parésara.

Upédhyéya. Germs are all the same as in
Sésani, except Batsas and
. Kausika.
Asrotriya—
Sarua Pandé=Bardhusika or Bharadwéja.
Paniér. Gotrus as of Vaidiks.
Murhia Pandé or Debalaka. Ditto.
Grém déchaka. Balarém or Balabhadrié.
Mahasthén, Mastén, Sarai-
balié or Hélié.
dhérua.
Dakshiné Uriyé or Dékhinétya.
déjpurié or Uttar—Sreni.
Raghunéthié.
daié or Purbiyé.
Besides those mentioned above, the following gotrns or sections
are found among Utkal Bréhmans :—-
A'ngirasa.
Autathya.
Baikhéyana.
Basishtha.
Biswémitra.
Garga.
Jaimini.
démadagna.
Kaphalya.
Kémakayan.
Kauc‘nha.
Paithinasa.
Pautimanna.
Sénkriti.
Saunaka.
Taittiriya.
Uddalaka.
Upamanna.

~ BRA'HMAN. 27

Mr. John Beames gives the following scheme of the subdivisions
of the Brahman caste in Northern Orissa,-—ﬁrst, according to the
Veda, whose ritual they profess to observe, and secondly into gotras
or families :—

I.—Dékhinétya Sreni or Southern Line.
1. Rz'g- Veda.

Gotra or Sections.

Upddln' or Titles.

Basishtha. Sérangi.
,, Mahépétra.
2. Sdma- Veda.
Késyapa. Nanda.
Dh aragautama. Tripéth i.
Gautama. Udgété, eulgo Uté.
Parésara. Dibedi. vulgo Dube.
Kaundinya. Tripéthi, vulgo Tihari.
3. Yajur- Veda.
Bharadwéja—
a. Bharadwéja. Sérangi.
b. Sambhukar. Misra.
c. Léndi. Nanda.
Atreya—
a. Datté’creya. Ratha.
b. Krishnétreya. ,,
Haritasa. Mahépétra.
,, Désa.
Kéuchhasa. ,,
Ghritakauchhasa. ,,
Mudgala. Satpathi, vulgo Pathi, also
Satpasti.
Batsasa. Désa, A'chérya, Misra.
Kétyéyana. Sérangi.
Kapinjala. Désa.

II.-—Uttara Sreni or Northern Line.

1. Rig- Veda.
Not represented.

28 BRAHMAN.
2. Ynjur- Veda.

Gotm or Sections. Updd/zyi or Titles.

Kétye‘iyana. Pandé.

Séndllya. n

Krishnétreya. ,, and Désa.

Bharadwéja. n

Barshagana. - Misra.

Kaphalya. ,,

Gautama. Kara.

3. Atlmrva- Veda.

A’ngirasa. Upadhyéya, mlgo Upadhya.
Of lower branches, and considered inferior to the above, are—-

Sénkh‘yéyana. Mahahti.

Négasa. Dasa, Mahanti.

Sékadwipi, Bhojyak, B/mist.

Pur or sections.
A

 

r“ 1
Their gotms are the Adriér. Deorahiér.

Deh Iésariér.
Deodh iér.

same as in the other Ahilésariér. Dewérk.

sub-castes of Bréhmans. Aiyér. Dihwér.
A’wadhiér. Dumariér.
Baghwér. Gadahpurné.
Bariswér. Gadrahé.
Barséi. Gandark.
Barwér. Gochhpurié.
Batsauriark. Gorhérk.
Batwakariyér. Gunsaiyé.
Bhalauniér. Hadauriér.
Bhedbakérér. Hemriérk.
Bherépékri. damuér.
Bh olérk. d urhé..
Binsaiyé. duthibariér.
Budhwérk. Karaiérk.
Chadchék. Kausikérak.
Chandratiér. Khajurék.
Chandrorh. Khandarp.
Chhariyér. Khantwér.
Chhathwark. Kha’tsopérk.
Chhatrawér. Konérk.
Ghitauriér. Korankérk.
Chonchwér. Kukurbandhé.
Dadhpuriérk. Kundérk.
Dakréhi. Kuréi.
Debkuliér. Lokérk.

Madhubanié.
Madhurasiérk.

BRAHMAN.

Endogamous dlvisions.

Upédh yéya.
Kamiya.
Purabi.

'29

PM or sections.

r_
Mahdauriér.
Maheswar.
Mahrasié.
Makhaiwér.
Mékhpawér.
Malauriér.
Mérkandérk.
Mauriyér.
Nandark.
Osiér.
Pachhwér.
Panch batiar.
Panchhai.
Panchkanthi.
Pandiér.
Paﬂéh
Pathaiér.
Patiyér.
Pawaiyér.

A

ﬂ
Pundérk.
Punrakh ié.
Rah dauriér.
Sabhaiyér.
Saphérk.

Send uriér.
Sikauriér.
Sirmauriér.
Soniyér.
Soriyér.
Sukhséré.
Swetbhadra.
Tarkanyark.
Thakurmairar.
Udaniyér.
Ulérk.

Urwér.

Usah iyérk.

Nepéli Brah mans.

Gotm or sections.

Bésishta

Dha’mjaya
A’tréi
Kausika

Kaundin

Dharté Kausik ..

T/zar or sub-sections.

{Bhatta Réi.
Dawéri.
Chélisa, Chelisya.
Bharéri.

<1 Bisishta Sakti.

PéréSWar.
Tinai Prabaréi.
LBrahmimé Dhém.

(Rijél.

.. éGura Géin.

Homya Gain.-

{ Parel, Pondyél.

Arjel.

Regmi.
S oberi.

Péréjuli.
Neopéni, Nivipénya.

{ A’charjya.

Barél.
Khodél or Khandyeil.

{ Nepali'yé.

3O

Endogamous divisions.

Gutm or sections.

Bharadwéja

Bachh

Atri

Késyap
KaSya
Agasti
Mautkah a
Upamanya
Kannié.

Gargya

BRAHMAN.

Thar or sub-sections.
Suberi.
uémér Katyél.
Bagalya.
Dohél.
Langsél or Lamsél.

(Gautam.
| Khatiwéra.

...< Misra.

| Champégéin.

LArchnani.
Dhimire.
Adhikéri.
Dhungiél.
Timilsiné.
Kainréla.

Dhaka].
Sapankotyé.

Murtel.
” ' { Pyakarel or Pokhar-

yél.

In addition to the above, Hodgson’s list contains the following

thars :—

Khanél.
Nirola.
Mahéréshtra.
Pakonyal.
Sattyal.
Rimél.
Devakotya.
Parbatya.
Kaikyal.
Rupakheti.
Desjé.
Rnkéi.
Saival.
Laiyél.
Dotiyél.
Danjél.
Sin gyél.
Bikrél.
Ukniyél.
Bh attvé l.
Gaj ni y él.

Chavala Gain.
Vasta. Géin.
Banj éra.
Déj i.

Soti.

Osti.
Utkuli.
Kandari a.
Ghartmel.
Ghartyél.
Temrakoti.
Uphaltopi.

Périj ai Kavala.

Pandit.
Teva Pénya.
Kaphal ya.
Gaithaula.

Gairaha Pipli.

Ghimirya.
Simkhéré.
Phuuvél.

Chémkasaini.
Purésaini.
D huré ri .
Bhurtyél.
Paneru.
Loityal.
Sidhyél.
Gotan ya.
Ghorasaine.
Risyél.
Dhongén.
Dulél.

Baj gain.
Satola.
Ghurcholz'.
Kelatoni.
Gilal.
Lahoni.
Muthbé ri.

BUN K.

31

2911113, Banzai, Buno.

Sub-castes.

N 2'].

@lléim Bare/mm.

Sections.

Bharadwéji.
Charanbansi.
Késyapa.
Séndi l.

Gilmltmé, Tsa/tmd, Tsak, lek(Burm)o

Sub-tribes.

Chakmé.
Doingnak.
Tungjainya.

93.10!"

Septs of the Chakmé
sub-tribe.

 

I

Septs.

Amu.

Bému, named after rivers.

Barbora.

Baruwa.

Batalya, a chisel.

Boga.

Borsege.

Bung.

Bungza.

Darjea.

Dawin.

Dhaona, he of the mended cloth.
Dhurjya, the wearer of bhz’mrdj feathers.
Durjea.

Ichapocha, the eater of rotten shrimps.
Kalé, a plantain tree.

Kengragati,1 the giver of the big crab.
Khambe.

Khiongje.

Kuré, named after rivers.

Kurjya, the idle one.

Kutua.

Larma.

Leba.

Loskra.

Molima, named after rivers.

 

1 The progenitor of this section is said to have presented to the head of
the tribe a crab so large that a plg could cross the river Kanguli on its back.

32

Sub-tribes.

Septs of the Chakmé
sub-tribe-coucludcd.

A

 

UH AKM A .

Septs.

' 'Mol ima-Sege.

Phaksa.

Phe-dang-sirri.

Phedungsa.

Phema.

Pirabhanga, the fat man who broke the
stool.

Poa.

Poma.

Rangyacelunya, the lover of shells or
mother-of—pearl.

Ranyin.

Sadonga.

Sege.

Sekowa. -

Shoélyié, the jester.

Theya. .

Toinya.

Uksarri.

'v Warggu, name of a river.

Septs of the Tuug- <'
j ain ya sub-tribe,

Aruyéi, the man as thin as a skeleton.

Bédél, a chisel.

Bangél, descended from a Bengali father.

Bhumar, he of high back ribs.

Bola, he whose family was as numerous as
the wasps.

Dunyé. ’

Fariansa, he who excelled in wickedness.

Gochalya, the strong man.

Iché, he who was too fond of shrimps.

Kachui, they who built their houses in
a row.

Karué.

Lambacha. _

Lulang,1 the devil.

Millong.

Monglé.

lVlo-u.

Ongyo.

Puma.

‘A girl became pregnant, but would not name her lover. She was
severely beaten, and was rescued by a. devil, who was supposed to be the

father of the child.

CHAMKR. 33

ahamér, Olzdmdr, Charmalcdr, Rabi-Dds.

Titles :—Beér, Bohit, Chunipéré, Képri, Mahaldér, Maharé,
Marar, Mehtarié, Néik, Panarha, Pradhén, Réut.

Sub-castes. Sections. ‘
Chamér-Ténti. Honolagié.
322a. ongergmsia ma
Dohar. 8“ "c“ 9‘ Sonpursa.
Goria. Thengéit.
Jaiswara.
Janakpuri.
Jaunpuri.
Khéti-Maharé.
Korér.
Larkor.
Magahia.
Pachhién.
Septs in Chota Nagpur.
Azghalla.
Dhusié.

Harbans, cannot wear
bones in any shape.

Kach ué, tortoise.

Karwa.

Kerketa, a bird.

Mah ué, bassia lattfo/a'a;

Mus, rat.

Nég, cobra.

Réot.

Séndh, bull.

Saur, a. ﬁsh.

Tirki.

daiswara, servants.
Mangatiwa, frofesslonal beggars.

Dhusia or husia, shoe-makers and harness-

makers.
Katua, leather-cutters. \ Sub-castes enumerated
Kori. weavers, grooms, ﬁeld-labourers. by Mr. Sherring.

Kuril, workers in leather.

Ran giya. leather-dyers.

datua, labourers.

Tantua. maker of leather strings. 4

Aharwar, Azimgarhia or Birheria, Dakshinia, Dohar. Garaiya, Jaiswara,
Jatlot, datua. Kaiyan, Kanaujia, Kuril, Kori or Korchamra, are mentioned by

Sir Henry Elliot and Mr. Beames.
3

34 ‘ CHANDAL.

@hanhél, Nama-Sudm, Nama, Change, Olzdnrdl, Ko‘tdlor Kotwdl,
Prat/mm-bdkya, Swapacha, Nz'slzdd, Antebdsz‘.

Titles:—Bégh. tiger, Bhéla, BiswéS, Dés, Déuk, bird, Dhéli, Dule,
Héit, Hajré, Héldér, Héthi, elephant, Héuikar. Khan,
Laskar, Maharé, Majumdér, Mandal, Ménjhi, Mirdada.
Mistri, Namadhéni, Padhwén or Pradhén, Pandit,

_ Paréménik. Pétra, Phaliyé, ﬁsh, Réi. Séntré, Sena,
Seuli, Shumardar, Singh, Tengré, ﬁsh.

Sub-castes. Sections.

r Halwah.
I Ghési.
Kandho or Beharé.
Karrél, Keral.
Bari. Késyapa.
In Eastern Berué.
Bengal. , Pod.
BaqqéL
I Sarélya.
Amarébédi.
I Béchhér.
LSandwipé.

{DhénL

I délié.
In Central | diéni, Jiunl.
Bengal. ‘ Kérél.
LNunié.
Siéli.

{ChésL
Helo.
delo.
Kesarkalo.
In Western Kotél.

Mé"| .
Bengal. i Na‘llcljl

Nunié.
Pénphule.
Sara.

L Siule.

Bharadwéja.
Lomasa.
Sénd i I ya.

 

CHASK. 35
‘ magazi- -.

Titles :—Lenké, Puhér, Muduli, Swéin, Paridé, Padhén,
Vi3wél, Néik, Raut, Jené, Sémal, Mahanti.

Sub-castes. Sections.
Orhchésé. or Mundi-chésé.
Benétiyé. Késyapa.
Chukuligé. Sél-rishi.
Sukuliy .

QIhziséhhuhzi, Uﬁdsddlzopd.

Titles z—Réi, Péik, Haladhar, Ballava, Sén, Samaddar,
Bi8wés, Héldér, Hézaré, Mistri, Réj-Mistri.

Hypergamous Groups.
Kulin. l Maulik.

Sub-castes. Sections.
Uttar-Rérhi. Alimén.
Dakhin-Rérhi. A'tulrishi.
Bérendra. Béghrishi.

Brihatbat.
Dhabalrishi.
KéSyapa.
Séndilya.
theru.
Titles :—Bébuén, Kanwér, Manjhi, Manér, Rautié,Se’1nwét.
Sub-castes. Sections.
Béra-Hazér. (a) Totemz’stic~—-

Tera-Hazér or Birbandhi. Besré, hawk.
‘ Kachchhué. tortoise.
Kunwardér.
Mahto.
Mailwér.
Sonwani.
Soranié.‘
Turuwér.
(b) Bi'alzmmzical—

Késyapa, etc.

36

Sub-tribes.

CHIK.

QIhilt. See 333:1.
Titles :—-Baraik, Mahato.

Septs.
Aujana.
Baghai l, tiger.
Bagti.
Bajarpuriji.
Bakura, paddy-bird.
Balbandhiya, are bound to tie up their
hair.
Banichar.
Bar, Ficus Indica.
Bara.
Barabhaia, ship.
Bati.
Bhengraj, kingcrow.
Bhojraj, a kind of medicine.
Bichwar, a centipede.
Boré, a kind of snake.
Chachet, a small bird.
Chaenchair, a bird.
Chand, moon.
Chikanjari.
Darké, born Out of a crack in the earth.
Dhan, paddy or rice soup.
Dhandh, plum bushes.
Dih bans. -
Dip, may not eat after lights have been
lit.
Dundoar, an owl.

‘Gandha, ﬂying bug.

Gandhi.

Ghatoar.

Goherwar.

Hanuman, monkey.
Harin, deer.

lnduar, a kind of eel.
danamkiar.

Kach ua, tortoise.
Kaita, curry vegetable.
Kansi, ﬁeld grass.
Kara.

Karhar, a fruit.

Katri, subject to ﬁts.
Kechengia.

Keora, a ﬂower.
Khambha', fork of a. tree.
Khukri.

Korla, ﬁg.

CHIK.

Sub-tribe.

37

Septs.

Kotri, a small deer.

Kowriar.

Kulhai, a tiger.

Kumharia, a tribe.

Kusumni, a. tree or its fruit.

Loharbans, iron.

Loyna.

Maghi. ,

Mahabaar, may not kill or chase the
wild boar.

Mahanadi, name of a. river.

Mahtoar, a. title.

Malta.

Maria.

Malua.

Mawar, peacock.

Munjaniar, a fruit from which oil is
extracted.

Mus, ﬁeld-rat.

Nég, cobra.

Newra, mongoose.

Nikharbans.

Nimuani.

Phul, ﬂower.

Phungune.

Rikhiasan, may not eat beef or pork.

Ség, vegetable.

Samjhar.

Saur, a. ﬁsh.

Singi, horn.

Sinjikuria.

Sonmanik.

Sonwasi.

Surijhabu.

Tajna, name of a river.

@ﬁmi, Dam-ye} Tdmz‘, Kotwdl, ngarchz‘, Darjz'.

Than or Septs.

 

Ehusuwal.
Burdewé.

Damma Parriwér.
Darnal.

Dhu li.

Kala Khéti. Panchkuti.‘
Kurki Dholiar. Shewa.
Kurno Beheri. Sunam.
Mohara. Sundas.
Mutai. Sungaru.

38 DEJ ON Gr LHORI.

glejung Ehnri (Dejong Sikhim), leopa Bhotz'a or Tibetans

- of the south.
Sub-tribes. Rut, Thar or septs.
l5 rGuru Téshi, the blessed mi, of
.2 which Guru Pema was guide.
9% Shang—dah-bo, ancestor born at
Tongdu Rui shi. :5 a5 his maternal uncle’s when some
Bed (d silent) or Beh '30": < tutelary deities were being pro-
tshan-gye. 8 3 pitiated. -
Ruichhung. E" 53 Tshe—gyu-thah, the family which
3 sprang from the Buddha of life.
*3 Yui-then-bo, ancestor turned out
8 K of his fatherland.
rBangrongpé.
Bhadpé.
Dokhangpé.
Ghingpé.

Gnyambipé.
Gyon-sah-pé, he of the new
monastery.
Khyung-toipé.
Lagdingpé.
Of the Bed tshan gye sub-tribe< Lin-dseh-bo.
Nam-tsang-koba.
(Chhungpé.
Lhasung, domestic
priest of all the ru-z's.
PM” <. Nah—dik.
| Nambon.
LYo-chang.
Pu-tsh o-b0, a mixed progeny of
L Lepcha mother and Tibetan father.
(Assampé. .-
| Chungyepé.
Mixed septs of low origin1 ...< Kah-tsho-bo.
| Mang—beh—pé.
LNamang—po.
(Doh-rt’xhb—pn, one dwelling under
' the feet.

< Doh-zepé, living in rough and
craggy rocks.

Gangye-pa, dwelling behind a hill.
LShyag—tsangpé. _ ‘
(Chhumbipé.

l Hah-po.

< Koyungpo.

" | Shyah-pé.
LToipé,

1These groups of septs form in each case endogamous aggregates, the
members of which do not intermarry With the other sub-tribes.

 

Lowest septs of Bhotias1

Septs which emigrated from
Tibet and North Bhotan1 .

 

DEJONG LHORI.

Sub-tribes.

Septs which emigrated from
Bhotan and Nepal1

0f the Ruichhung sub-tribe

...<

39

Red, Thar or septs.

(Bendah.

Bindumbo.

Gah-oh, blacksmiths.

Gurumbo, Gyu-rumbo.

Ling-tamba.

Ongdéh ba.

Parubo.

Phensa—pé.

Pu-tsibo.

Pyo-chhembo.

Sang-behbo.

Shyag—chom-bo.

Tsong—zubo.

Yong-tong—ba.

LYulsahb, of new country.

”Dorompé.

Khol.

Lah-ogpé, dwelling below la or
mountain-top or pass.

< Mang—tshang—wa.

Nahmah-pé.

Shyag—ding-pé or Sh yag-tsh ang-
pa.

 

\Thazoepé.

 

1 These groups of septs form in each case endogalnous aggregates, the
members of which do not intermarry W1th the other sub—tubes.

ghémtk.

Titles :—Mandar, Raut, R

ai, Mahato, Kémati, Khawés,

Ghibihér, Saghér, Bahia, Bahiot, Sankatwér.

Sub-castes.1

Chhilatié or Silhotié.

Magahyé.

Banodhié.

Tirhutié or Chiraut.

daiswér.

Kanaujia.

Kahpariyé.

Dudhwér or Dojwér.

Sunri-Dhénuk.

Kathautié.

Khawésié

Mandal

Gharbeta or
Gharbait.

Sections.
Késyapa.
N ég.

In Purniah.

 

‘ Longbasta, Mathurié, Katharia, J aiswér,_ Magahyé, Dojwér, and Chhila-
tiya are given by Sir H. Elliot ; Yasawar (J answer), Magahl, Dojwar, Chhila-

tiyé. are mentioned by Buchanan.

40

DI-IENUAR.
glimmer.

Subotribes. ‘ Septs.

Nﬂ- Baiga, a tribe.
Bard.
Karwar, a tribe.
Sanuahi, can’t wear gold.
Sumai, a. kind of ﬁsh.

thmél, Dhem‘dl, Mauli/c.

Sub-tribes.i Septs.
Agnié. , Chongé.
Later. Dauwé.
Dungié. - Kauwé.

‘ Réngé.

 

1 It is convenient to describe these groups as sub- tribes. They are not,

however, strictly endogamous, as has been mentioned in the article on Dhimal.

I—II—n—aI—II—II—II—II-I
mumOIIIzoawI-I

. Rémer Dhobé
. Sité; Dhobé

. Chhota-Saméj
. Dhobé-Saméj
. Rérhiya—Saméj
. Bangali

. Gorié

. Maghayé

I—I
owmﬁesewwH

. Jugidié
. Sundip
. Uriyé Dhobé Orissa.

. Bhulué }

IN BENGAL AND ORISSA.
glwhé, Dhopa, Dlmpi, DIIa’vaka.
Title 2—Dés, Mistri, Rajak, Sabhé-Sundar, Sékalya.

Sub-castes. Sections.

} Eastern (a) Totemz'stz’c—
Sétnsé Bengal Négasa (Crissa).
Athisé Central (6) Eponymous—
Héjaré- SaméJ Bengal Alamyén.

N iti Siné. Késyapa. I
Bara-Samaj Sénd i I ya.

Khotté.

‘ DHOBI. ' 41

mweaewwH

IN BEHAR AND CHOTA NAGPUR, EXCEPT MANBHUM.
ghobi, Uj“, Baithé. sar.

Titles z—Gozar, Mahto, Raut.

Sub-castes. Section. '

. Kanauj ié. Késyapa.
. Maghaya.

Belwér.

. Awad h i yé.

Bétham.
Gorsér.

. Gadhayé. keep donkeys.
. Banglé. immigrants from

Bengal.
Turkia or Shekh. Mahom-
edan.

ﬂoat, Doi, Okalanta, Baidya, Laklu'putra, 'Pdtz'a Dds.

gout, Domrd, sometimes called Chanddl by outsiders.

Titles:-Malik, Marar, Mehalo, Mihtér, Marik, Mirdéhé, Raut.

Sub-castes.

I n Bellw—

Bénsphor or Bénsbakuré. basket-makers: have nothing to
do with funerals, and do not eat beef.

Chapariyc’l. make baskets and build the bamboo framework
which supports the thatched roof of a house. ,

Dakhiné Turi Angwér.

or Deswér.

Dhépra. sweepers.

Dharkér, workers in cane.

Gadahié. breeders of donkeys.

Héri or Bangali. probably immigrants from Bengal.

Harkér. scavengers.

Larhoré or Purbél-Mihtér, scavengers and basket-makers.

Magahiyé, in North Behar cultivators and thieves; in Gya
basket-makers. '

Pachainya.
Bhojpurié
Raut-Mihtar Ghar-Raut } sweepers.
Ghézipurié
Supéré.
Tlrhutiyé.

Uttariyé, workers in sir/ti basket and mat-makers.

42 ' DOM.

Sub-castes.
I n Bengal— ,

Ankurié or Ankhuti, basket-makers.
Béjunié, musicians.
Bénukié, breed silkworms and work in silk ﬁlatures in Mur-
shedabad and Rajshahye.
Bisdelié, make baskets and palm-leaf mats.
Dai-Dom. the men are day-labourers and the women serve
as midwives. _
Dhesié Dhékél or Tapaspurié, remove dead bodies, etc.
Dholé, supposed to come from Dhalbhum.
Ghaseré, cut grass for sale.
Kélindi, cultivators and basket-makers.
Kauré. breed pigs and act as scavengers.
Magahiyé, musicians and basket-makers.
Méndéroné. .
Murdafarésh, remove dead bodies.
Sénchi.
Téléiboné, make palm-leaf mats.
Sections.
In Be/mr— - Baithé.
' ' - Chiranjié.
Dégri.
Darbe.
Géin.
Hét.
lsar.
Kotwal.
Of the Bansphor or Bansbakura < Lakrihér.
sub-caste. Ménjh i.
Mara r.
Marik.
Masrakhiyé.
Nauriyé.
Sakréit.
Saunt.
Sikrar.
L Sipahiyé.

 

Angwér.
Deswér.
Héri.
Mukarié.
Of the Dhépré sub-caste Parwarié.
Pusaité.
Rosréit.
Kéibtér.
Ménjhi.
Of the Dharkér sub-caste Mehtar.
Réut.
Sarin.

Of the Dakhiné or Turi sub-caste

DOM. ' 43

Sub-castes. Sections.

In b’e/zar— , Barbatté.
Belsandi.
Chanauli.
Hénsé.
Hér.
Maggah.
Mahwé.
M urwé.
P usad ih.
Sirpur.
Sonpur.
Teswér.
Tubké.

Of the Tirhutiyé sub-caste Ba
Akhauri.
Belsandi.
Chaudhri.
Chauhén.

, Hénsé.
“ Jédu.
Ménjhi.
Mirdaha.
Réjé.
Réné.
Santari.
Séwant.
Teswér.
Tewari.

Adhérpur.
Barabatié.
Bargaméet.
Belsandi.
Bhojpuri.
Bikrampur.
Chahraité.
Chandaulyér.
I Dholi.
EHénsé.
.Hansoté.

- ' Kanauli.
Of the Pachamya sub-caste Kolandh.
Mohbaita.
Murba.
Pahasrait.
Pohobait.
Pusé.
Puseté.
Sanséit.
Sirwér.
Sonpuryé.
Tabkar.
Tibaryé or Teswar.

Of the Magahiyé sub-caste

 

44

Sub-castes.

In South Manblmm—

Aturé.
Molé.
Sikharié.

Sub-castes.

Magahiyé.
Bhojpurié.
Kanaujié.
Pailwér.

Kémar or Kénwar.

DOM.
Septs.
Azghala.
Dh usia.
Harbans,bones can’t wear in any
shape.
Kach ua, tortoise.
Karwa.

Kerketa, a bird.

Mah ua, a tree; wine is made
from its ﬂower.

Mus, rat.

Né‘lg, cobra.

Raot.

Sé‘mdh, bull.

Saur, a ﬁsh.

Tirki.

goséhh, Dusadh.

Titles z—Chaukidér, Gorait, Héjaré or Hézaré, Méhato, Ménjhi,
Pésbén, Réi, Ram.

Kurin, Kuri, or Kurmé.

Dhér or Dhérhi.
Silhotia or Sirotié.

Béh al ié.

Of the Magahiyé sub-caste.

 

 

 

 

Sections.
M/
A i éri. -

r Bgrﬁéik. ,2 s {=3 Bédshéhi.
Bérik. “,5 $ Béra Kharak.
Beér. S p“: g Panjiar.
Bhadéiyé. "’

Bh unsi Kurtho. / Aghréit.
Darbe. Amam.
Fotadér. Amol.

Hét. _ Assiswar.
Hazéri. .3 Bhabéniswar.
lsar. § Busgarait.
Khankaréré. ,5 Kamléit.
Kotwél. 5 Kariont.
Kumarsan Bakri. *5 Lab Nagarié.
Mahréna- Kg Madhupurié.
Mahton. M Mahabbat.
Mélti. o Mahesbaréit.
Mandar. 5 Mainkisrér.
Ménjhi. ‘5 Nabanépurié.
Marik. Purukhinu Na-
Mirdahé. réin.
Parbe. Réjéisur.
Patwe. \ Thah ra it.
Réi.

Réna.

Réut.

 

\Sanda.

GANDHABANIK. 45

Qﬁanhhahanih, Gandlmbaniyd, Bamyd, Putula‘.

Titles :—Of the Desé sub-caste—Séhé, Sédhu, Léhé, Khén; of the

A’ut sub~caste—Datta, Dé, Dhar, Dhér, Kar, Nég,

Sub-castes. Sections. ’
Aut-Asram. A’lamyén.
Chhatris-Nsram. Bharadwéja.
Desé-Aisram. KéSyapa.
Sankha-Nsram. Krish nétreya.

Modgalya.
Nrisingh a.
Ras-rish i.
Sébarna.
Sénd ilya.

2.

ﬁangom, Gangautd.

Title z—Mandar.

Sub-castes. Sections.
. dethkan Gangéjhi.
. Maghaya. déhnavi.

QEanrér.
Sub-castes. Section.
Nil. Aliman.
Qﬁmri, Gadariya, Bkenrz'lzar.
Titles z-Kamblié, Kammali, Marar, Raut.

Sub-castes. Sections.
. Dhengar. Chandel.

Farakhébédi. r 0%:th Chaudhurié.
. Gangéjali. sub-cagste KéSyapa.
. Nikhar. ' Nénkar.

Chak, Chikwé (Mahomedan).

46

Sub-castes.

Héri.
S imarloké.
Sonaéti.

.‘V

@hési. . <

GHXSI.

Sections.

Ahir, a tribe.

Air, a kind of ﬁsh.

Badhiria, bats.

Bagh, tiger.

Bhat, a; tribe. Degraded.

Bhuana, a tribe. Bhuiya.

Bhuinkora, hog.

Bhurungia, a kind of
tree.

Bunduar, a tribe.

Chahubar.

Chinear.

Daspuria.

Desoar, a tribe.

Dhamna sap, a red
snake, poisonless snake.

Dowalbandhi.

Golvar.

Kachua, tortoise.

Kalhia, Lohar.

Kasiér, corruption of
Késyapa?

Kewat.

Loharbans, iron-worker.

Malar, a tribe.

Mohdiar, honey-bee.

Mukhi, Mukhi is a
person, one of ﬁve, who
can reinstate outcastes
by eating ﬁrst with
them. Mukhi can lose
his own jat. Mukhi
only wear pagri.

Pandki, dove.

Phansia.

Rajbandh.

Rajput, atribe.

Sakri.

Sanukra, shell.

Sanwasi, cobra.

Simarlésé, gum.

Simarloka, a. tree.

Sonwan, cannot wear
gold.

Tirki.

Uraon. a. tribe.

GOAL/X. 47

056313, God], Godr, Gopa, Gapdl, Pallab-Gopa, Ain'r, A'blu'r.
Titles :-—In Bengal—Bérik, Chomar, Dhéli, Ghosh, ' Jana,
Mandal, Paréménik.

In Behar—Bharari, BhOg'ca, Chaudhfi, Ghoraila,
Khirahé, Mahato, Mandar, Ménjhi, Marik,
Panjiara, Réi, Rést, Saonra,Singh.

Sub-castes. Sections.
In Bengal—-
Pallabor Ballabh. Almasi or Alamyén.
Gaura or Go—baidya. Bharadwéja.
Gop or Ghosh Goélé. Gautama.
Karanjé. Késyapa.
Kajol. Madrisi or Madhukulya.
Bégre or Ujaini. Séndilya.
Madhu Goélé.
Rérhi.
Gumia.

Ahir or Mahishé Goélé.
Magai or Mégadhi.
' Pallal.
Léheri.
Bérendra Mula.
Géwé.
gigénié.
Bhoga ‘ LéféGEéolg‘é Hypergamous.

In Orissa—

Dumala dadupuria Goéré.

Gaura or Gopopuria.

Magadha Goéré.

Mathuréor Mathurébési.
In Belmr—

Goriéor Dahiéra. Bhadréj.
Bhétésan.
Chalasinghi.
Chalasan.
Dasi I.
Dhenu .
Gaudhal.
daiiésinghi.
dethautié.
Kélésan.
Léhégo’t.
Mahraul.
Négésan.
Négréj.
Pakra.
Sakraul.
Singh ror.
Tanokl.

48

Sub-castes.

Majraut or Naomulié.

GO ALA.

Sections. ' ‘

A'bhepur.
Aganpurié.
Anrh réhi.
Aunrié.
Béergoé.

Baini (Mhédes).
Béj itpur.
Bélégéchhpokrém.
Bélgéch.
Barsém.
Béséithi.
Basérh.
Béstiburh oné.
Baurém.
Belwér.
Bhéonroé.
Bheludih.

Bh otieth.
Chémuér.
Chémuk-Shéhpur.
Chénchar.
Chéndkatoré.
Chaumukhdih.
Oh i kséri.

Dabh rait.

Dah iet.
Dhéman.
Dharampuria.
Doélak.
Dudhpuriet.
Géngthaié.

Gh iuédhér.
Gobargérh é.
Golrém.
Gotsobhni.
Guébéri.
Habibpur-Ph upidih.
Hansi.
Jagatpur.

J ailok.

Jhéj.

Kabéi.
Kailwér.
Kémrém.
Kénhéiwér.
Kétaiyé.
Kéthédularpur.
Khéjuri.
Khénrsimérié.
Kherh o.
Khuthé-Bhagwénpur.

GOALK.

Sub-castes.

49

Sections.
Kirtol ié.
Kotsobhni.
Labnagar-Kumet.
Légmeté.
Lakshanpurié.
Léwépur.
Lepuriet.

Barar.

Levétié Chhalor.

Dému.
Loh ér.
Madhepuriet.
Mahéréno.
Mah isirupjén.
Mailidhurlak.
Mai lwér.
Ménickhak-dudhpurié.
Meghal bariérpur.
Mehd ipu r.
Mehménpur.
Mith orié.
Mogalkéché.
Niméchandpuré.
Pachh ipargané.
Pétori.
P ipret.
Régh opurdih.
Raghunathpurdiér.
Réjépékur.
Réjépatischhni.
Rasékmérhe.
Sahasradih.
Sah rwér.
Sakarpuriet.
Sél kh i ni.
Samastipur.
Sankarpur.
Sénréri (Jaideb).
Sarespargané-Dédédih.
Séth iet.
Si l othéer.
Sobhédi h.
Sobhni-Téjpur.
Somnidih.
Soném.
Temdih.
Ti latwér.
Titiébémbér.
Ulwér.
Umethwér.
Usrém.

Sub-castes.

Kanaujié.

Kish naut or Sétmulié.

Bargowér.
Dhanroér.
Chauénié.
Chauthé.

Goit.

Kantitéhé.

Puhoé.

Sepéri.

Banpar.

Gujiér or Godéga.

GOALA.

Section 5.

Chaudhri.
Gopa.
Kaksa.
Késyapa.
Kh irahé.
Mandar.
Raksa.
Raut.

A’lakjaridérh ué.
Banikarnauti.
Bharduér.
Chalasinghi.

. Dadhraut.

Deseriet.
Dhanu.
deseriet.
Kachésimar.
Kétkiphulberié.
Kheléut.
Laungijarh ué.
Maghéchewér.
Méjhéliér.

Mél karnauti.
Mélkié.

Négré.

Pél i.
Réjépéker.
Saudébéek.
Sonépur-Sakarwér.
Sundar.

In general—

Aindwér.
Baghwér.
Barhadagié.
Bella.
Bhainsu.
Bhant.
Cher.
Dhokasan.
Dumar.
Hét.
Kachhué.
Kési.
Khanduér.
Kurji.
Kutér.
Laurié.
Lukhasan.

GOKLK.

Sub-castes,

Géddi. Ghosi or Ghosin.

dét.

In Chota Nagpur—-
Bhogta.
Chauénié.
Goro.
Kishnaut.
Lari. .

51

Sections.

In general—

Mahar.
Mahtwér.
Mongar.
Muntri.
Nég.
Nagar.
Pur.
Sah bar.
Sanuér.
Séu.
Saur.
Sué.
Sundi.
Tirki.
Undh i l.

Argarié.
Banrait.
Barbarié.
Bhédiswér.
Bh indwér.
Bhuskulié.
Biréji.
Dérkhurié.
Dhurjhér.
Goit.
Kéiwér.
Kusieth .
Loh utié.
Médowén.
Méh étmé.
Marik.
Mukh ié.
Négh.
Parselé.
Sédhak.
Santu-Kuséet.
Sunreit.
Surat.

Ch itosié.
Gadhuél.

Septs.

Aind, a kind of eel.
Am, mango.
Bacha, calf.

Bég, tiger.

Bar. Ficus Indicus.

4a

52

In Ohcta Nagpur—concld.

In the North- Western

Sub-castes.

Majhwat.
Séonré.
Sabor.

Procinces—
Sub-castes.

Desi.
Nandbansi.
dadubansi.
Suraj bansi.
Goélbansi.
A’har.
Katha.

GOALA.

Septs.

Chownia, ﬁeld-rat.

Demta, red tree-ant.

Diller.

Gaegoal, pakar fruit forbidden.

Garaur.

Hasa, earth.

Kachua, tortoise.

Kaita, curry. vegetable.

Kamal, lotus.

Kanojia, a. tribe.

Karam, a tree.

Karsal.

Karthia, a kind of grain or ddl.

Kasail, deer.

Kasi, a grass.

Maina, bird.

Markam.

Morpachi.

Mus, rat.

Nég, cobra.

Phulwar.

Rajhans, swan.

Sir, arrow.

Sona, can’t wear gold.

Sonwani.

Tirki, can’t touch any cattle after eyes
open.

 

Sections.
Apharié. Bhénsrié.
Bachés. Chabd ié.
Bachhwalié. Charkh ié.
Badgar. Ch ikané.
Badhwadié. Ch itosié.
Bégh ié. Ch oré.
Bélwém. Dégar.
Bémborié. Dahmé.
Bén. Démborié.
Béthotié. Deswél.
Bhéklun. Dhaié.
Bhélkié. Dhorén.
Bhémbasré. Dhundhié.
Bhéngar. Dhundhlé.

GbXLK.

Sub-castes.

In the Nort/a- Wresz‘em

Provz'nces—coucld.

 

.53

Sections.
Dié. Kharsén.
Dohén. Khé’tédié.
Dudhlié. Kheswé.
Duménié. Kh odié.
Dumdolié. Kh osé.
Duséd. Kidat.
Gadhérié. Koslié.
Gadhojié. Lahanié.
Gahalé. Lémbé.
Garwél. Lohch ab.
Ghumlé. Luniwél.
Gidad. Méhakarié.
Gigénié. Mahalé.
Gothwél. Mahté.
Gumi. Makadé.
Guréh. Méndhayé.
Hédé. Molén.
Hadkwél. Moldhié.
Hardé. Motlié.
Hudinwél. Nadhié.
Jédu. Nahadié.
dadwél. Nénié.
dénjdié. Nigénié.
dhédadié. Nikum.
dhagdolié. Nirbén.
Kadayén. Pacherié.
Kadién. Padhénié.
Kékas. Parhar.
Kakrolié. Puhénié.
Kalélié. Rébad.
Kalganié. Rérié.
Kalinwél. Séhjéwén.
Kaiot. Sélangié.
Kalwadié. Sélodié.
Kariré. Sémp.
Kétha. Sétorié.
Kétnié. Sigadié.
Keswél. Sikhwéd.
Khadolié. Simalwél.
Khadotié. Sisodié.
Khadumié. Sunérié.
KhairWél. Tahalkié.
Khalhad. 'If'éntlé.
Khémté. Thukrén.
Kharnié. Tundak-

54

GON D.

Title :——Gaunjh u.

Sub-tribes.

Gond.

Raj-Gond.
Dhokar-Gond.1
Doroé-Gond or Néik.’
dhoré.

Septs.

Bégh, tiger.

Baghel, tiger.

Besré, hawk.
Bhainsé, buffalo.
Bod, a. big river-ﬁsh.
Gaek, a. kind of ﬁsh.
Ganga, sea.

Gh ora, horse.

Goh.

Hansa, geese.

Honti, a. kind of ﬁsh.
dagaha, buffalo.
dagat.

Jaipuria, name of a. city.
Kachhué, tortoise.
Kéné Machhri, ﬁsh. ~
Karma, a tree.
Koput..

Kusro.

Loha, iron.
Mahanadia, name of a river.
Marai.

Moti, a. bead.

Nég, snake.

Naitam, tortoise.
Pachia.

Phaguahi.

Poia.

Poiti.

Porri, a kind of hawk.
Sawani.

Sribakaria.

 

1 Also called Méngan-Gond from their begging habits.
3 Colonel Dalton suggests that these may be the same as the Néik

or Dhurwe Gonds of the Central Provinces.

GON RH I.

55

(59:1th Malléh, Machhué.

Titlesz—Ghaudhhri, Jethman, Mandar, Mukhiéx.

Sub-castes.

Banpar.

Chéb or Chébi.
Dhoér.

Khunaut or Khulaut.
Kolh.

Kurin.
Parbatti-Kurin.
Seméri.

Nékhudé, Sahni.

Sections.

Bént.
Goréit.
dath of.
Késyapa.
Mandar.
Marar.
Mukhiyﬁ.
Pandit.
Pénre.
Parihér.
Réut.

@orﬁt, Korciz‘t, Baikar.

Sub-caste.

Nil.

Sections.

Ad ra.

A'indowér.

Bagh, tiger.

Baghuér.

Bar, Ficus Indicus.

Baroér.

lnduar, a kind of eel.

Kéchhué.

Kerketé.

Khalkho, a ﬁsh.

Kujri, a fruit, makes oil.

Kujur.

Nonoér.

Pithoér.

Séndh, bullock.

Sontirki, gold.

Tirki, cannot eat birds born
blind, nor deep-setting eggs.

Topoar, a kind of bird.

56

 

GULGULIA.
‘ @ulgulié. ,

Sub-castes. Section.
Bantari. Nil.
Pachpanié.

Sukwér.
('Eummg, Gm-zmz, Gummgd, Gummgdh.

Sub-tribes. Thurs or septs.

DaS-Qurung or Bagélya. Khan?

Char-Gotra. Baréhi. Khulél.
Bérah~Gurung. Bhumjan. Koki.

Bulung. Léma.
Byépri. Lémi Chhanya.
Chandu. Leh Léma.
Chérki. Lopéte.
Dah Léma. Lothéng.
Dhakaren. Madém.
Dhéren. Meghi.
Ghérti. Mengi.
Ghundéne. Paindi.
Gohori. Palémi.
Goléngya. Pengi.
Gonduk. Shakya Léma.
Gosti. Siddh.
Gothi. Suryabansi Léma.
Guéburi. Théthung.
d imel. Themjéni.
Karémati. Toléngi.
Khangbha. Urunté.
Khaptari. a; 1
(Chheni-Iama. Jr‘s:
Ghaleh. 2*: I Buthuja.
Ghoneh. 55's - Ghybrim.
Kohli. a, :0 fdhagreb.
Koréngi. 5 g I Satal.
Lamsani Ton- 5 3 J Segmang.

gl.
Lhebo Lamsani.
Poinju-lama.
Fungi-lama.
Réhul.

Bané Lamsani.,_

 

Of the Das-Gurun g sub-tribe.
A

HAJJKM.

57

Qinjjﬁm. Na'z', Nan, Nami.

Titles :—Naheri, Osté, Thékur.

Sub-castes.

Awadhié.

Bangéli.

Kanaujié 0r Biéhut.
Magahiyé.

Sribéstab or Béstar.
Tirhutié.

Musalménié or Turk-Naué.

Sections.

0f Awadlzid Ila/ﬂims—

Amra ut.
Barthoér.
Beauran.
Beraut.
Bilsar.
Chausar.
Denrgamié.
Dharméh u.
Ekaunié.
Gaya.
Hargamié.
d ainagarié.
d aipur.
danégadhié.
d érdér.
J aru.
d aum.
d urvaunt.
Kaisab.
Kalaen.
Kant.
Kapur.
Karaf.
Kara unti.
Katur.
Khavur.
Kopinyar.
Korénch.
Kujharié.
Kumai r.
Kundi.
Kurnat.
Mahrat.
Manerar.
Paithén.
Paruré.
Pauriér.
P uréin.
Rat.
Samaiyar.
Sansihar.
Sisah.
Telér.

58

Sub-castes.

. HAJJKM.

Sections.

0] Awadkid Haﬂdms—concld.

Unri.
Urkiser.
Utraunié.

0f Kanaujid Hajjdms—
Baksar-Chausé.
Kharpéi k.
Maura.
N i parié.
Satarwér.

galmzﬁ, mange:

'1‘it1es:-Chaudhri, Dés, Modi, Séhu.

Sub-castes.

Kanaujié.

Magahiyé.

Bantiria’t or Balamtirié.
Pachhainyall Madesié.
F’urbiyét2 Madesié.
Bhojpurié.

Koranch.

Maltarié.

caste.

Sections of the
Bhojpurié sub-<
caste.

Sections.

(Kachué.
Sections of the | Kusmaulié.
Kanaujié sub-< Laskorié.
| Lukéthié.
LSantop Palwér.

rA’khandhémri.
A'mghét.
Bésérié.
Bésdebpur.
Bharsahar.
Bijaibanéras.
Dhakais.
Dhark ié.
Gaul i.

Ga uthéhé.
débél ié.
Kandwér.
Kéro.

Kotsé.
Naorakh ié.
Nérauni.
Pachéttar.
Pachopét.
Pétor.

 

Section of the
Korénch sub-
caste.

‘ Also called Tinmulié Madesié.

ESékarwér.

Pindwél.

2 Also called Chhaumulié Madesié.

HALWAI. 59

Sections of the Purbiyé. Madesié sub-caste.
JL

 

r 1
A' 'ner. Dariépér. Kérkédo. Naknesé.
A’ hanbéri. Dehédbanéras. Kérni. Ninghiém.
A'mi. Deoghét. Késiéon. Pachauta.
Anar. Dhékais. Kétéri. Pachottar.
A'nokonwér. Dhékait. Kéthej. Paiharwére.
Nnrué. Dhanej. Kesaur. Phuli.
A'sérméllé. Dhemé. Khonté. Raksise.
Bédébasti. Doem. Kotsé or Korsé. Sahuri.
Bijéi. Don. Kurisér. Sakarwér.
Baksér. Gahunégéoné. Kusarpékri. Sakin.
Bakuléri. Gangépéli. Lakhansarié. Sakrol.
Bénebanéras. Hétser. Larauni. Sarauli.
Baniépéthar. lndri. Lolutra. Sidhpur.
Bansahar. Jewel. Méhepuré. Sikié.
Bétor. d irébasti. Méil. Sinhagarh.
Chénwér. Kédé. Manimanéras. Sinharas.
Chausé. Kalasdih. Mérar. Sisotar.
Chilhér. Kéndér. Marué. Sonhar.
Dédukli. Kéngkol. Mohér. Téri.
Déhérak. Kéra. Négeswar. Ubhar.
Karar. Nagneswar. Ughar.

Sections of the Pachhainyé Madesié. sub-caste.
A

 

r \
A'khanbéri. Dighwéré. Kachwér. Kausér.
Bésérié. Dumri. Kéhinwér. Khirkatoré.
Bharaul i. Gangaul ié. Kéndeil. Khoprihé.
Bijaibanéras. Gauéngahunér. Kénpékar. Maruéhé.
Chauberié. Gureni. Kérédhénauta. Nérauni.
Dhékéis. Hénriéot. Kérérihé. Péc'n ottar.
Dhénauté. dawélié. Kéru. Panthpékar.
Dhane8war.

Eé‘ci, Miktar, Harsantdn.

Sub-castes. Section.

Baré-Bhégiya or Kéoré—péik. Nil.
Madhya-bhégiyéor Madhaukul.

Khoreor Khoriyé.

Siuli.

Mihtar.

Bangéli.

Maghaya.

Karaiyé.

Purandwér.

60

SubJribes.
None.

30, Larlm Kalb.

HO.

 

Septs.
F JL \
Alru. démulu.
Angarié. danku Samrai.
Babangé. Kalundié.
Bandi. Kisku.l
Bansa. Koré.
Barpai. Kuntié.
Birué. Lagori.
Bodru. Lamamaka.
Buriali Kélundié. Marli.1
Buri Sémat. Munduia.
Chéki Dukri. Murmu.1
Champié Tubir. - Nagurié.
Chatra Tuiu. Parayé.
Choréi.1 Pata Sayé.
Echaghatu. Pingué.
Emboro. Podoro.
Gagrié. Purthi.
Gatsoré. Sauié.
Haiboru Léngi. Sinkoi.
He’lnsda.1 Sundi Deogam.
Hembaran. Tihu.
Hesé. Tin.
Hone-hogé. Tudi.1

 

‘ These septs are common to the Hos and the Sautals.

géliyé, Jelz'd, Jele, Ja’lo, Jalud, Maw, Mdlo, Dlzz'bar,

Mashhad, Malzyuroslz.

Titles :—A’rash, Bég, Barddhan, Bérik, Beré, Bidyz’mto, Bisoi,

Léhé, Mandal, Ménjhi,

Sub-castes.

In N oak/zalz' -

Chétgéon.
Bhulué.
dhél o.

Kaibartta.

Biswés, Borél, Chaudhri. Dés, Gal Gurié, Héldair, Kundq,
Mauna, Pakre, Példe, Pérau,

Paitra, Pradhén. Rojé, Séntré, Sarkér, Sasmal, Sem.

Sections.

A'liman.

J OLHA.

61

35011121, Joldlui, Juldhd, Nomi”, Tdntz', Tailed.

Titles z—Lauki, Mahrano. Mahton, Mandar, Mandari, Manjhi,
Marik, Mehter, Nuri, Pandit. Sanahié. Taiyé.

Sub-castes. Sections.
Tirhutié. Kachué.
Kanaujia. Parazsatr.
Chapota, Chanpadda. ManJhI.
Khatwe. Of the Chapota .Marar.

sub-caste. Parimanik.
Purbe.
_ ginéng.
Sub-tribes. Septs.
N il. Mamba, hailstones.

Baitpiriba, buﬂalo.
Bélimba, mosquito.
Bénaiba, bear.
Bérétaba, boar.
Dumriéba, a kind of tree.
Géghraba, paddy.
Hétisalaba, elephant.
darigémba, jam' tree.
Kélimba, tobacco ﬂower.
Kénchaba, dog.
Kelobo, bee.
Kerélaba, pumpkin.
Kotébéndab.
Lihimba, dove.
Mundiba, maizua tree.
Munduéb, small mushroom.
Odhalaba, fox.
Rangataba, a kind of yellow-coloured bird.
Résamba, mushrooms that grow on ant.
hills.
Séramba, tigress.
Sundriéba, red mushroom.
Talahadéba, palm tree.
Tenshéba, a bird.

62 JUGI.
gum, Jugzgz', Jogi or Yogi, thh;

Titles:—Adhikéri, Biswés, Dalél. Goswémi, déchandér.
Mahanta, Majumdér, Néthji, Pandit, Réi, Sarkér.

Sub-castes. Sections.
Rérhi. Késyapa.
Bérendra. Siva.
Baidik. Adi. *
Bangaja. Alarishi (Allamyén ?).
Khelenda. Anédi.
Bhulué. Batuk.
Sundipé. Birbhairab.

Goraksha.
* Matsendra, king of ﬁsh.
Min, ﬁsh.
Satya. truth.
Functional groups.
Hélwa.
Kambule.
Manihéri.
Rangroz.
Dhgnéi Mandal.
. dn nbar.
Gr'has’m Bhagan Bhéjan.
Paban.
Ekédasi.
MéSya.
Religious groups.
Bréhman.
Sannyési or Kénphét.
Dandi.
Dharmaghare. v
déth.
Kélipé.
Durihér.
Aghorpanthi.
Bhatrihari.

Sérangihér.

Hypergamous groups.

Raghu.
. Médhab.
Ku' '“ Niméi.
Pégmal.
Madhyalé.

Béngél.

KA'DAR. 63

when; ma'g/u'.

 

Sub-castes. Sections.

r‘ A ﬂ

Kédar. Bére. 1 Ménjh i .

Naiyé. Bélr'ik.2 Maraié.
Darbe.3 Marik.5
Hazéri. Mirdéha. ‘5
Kampti.4 ‘ Naiyé.’
Képari. Raut.
Mandar. Rikhiésan.
Mandri.

 

‘ Will marry only with Mirdéha, Kampti, and Rant.

9 Will not marry with Mandar, Mirdéha, Rant, and Bére.

3 Will not marry with Marik and Bére.

‘ Will marry only with Bérik, Képari, Marik, Darbe, Ménjhi, and Bére.
5 Will only marry with Bérik, Képari, Ménjhi, Mandar, and N aiyé.

'3 Will marry only with Darbe, Ménjhi, Kampti, and Bére.

7 Will not marry With Marik, Hazéri, N aiyé, Kampti, and Bére.

EMMY.

Titles :—Beharé, Bhandéri, Kamkar, Mahara, Mahato,
Réut, Sardér.

Sub-castes. Sections.
Rawéni or Raméni. Alimén.
Dhurié. Bando, a small wild cat.
Dhimar‘. Kanda, sweet potato.
Kharwéré. Kansi, a kind of grass.
Turhé. Késyapa.
daswér. Nég.
Garhuk or GaraUWé. Rawanpur.
Bisarié. Suar, a pig.
Magahiyé.

iimhartta, Kaibartta-Da’s, Chm—ms, IMlz‘d-Da’s, Para’sar-Da’s,
.D/u'vm'a, Elly/(in.

Titles:-In Bengal—A'daki, A'rash, Bég,Bardhan, Bérik, Beré-
Bi3wés, Borél, Chaudhri, Dés, Gharui, Giri, Haladhar'
Héldér, déné, Kundu, Léhé, Méiti, Mallik, Mandal, Ménji.
Ma’mné. Mete, Naskar, Pare, Patnéik, Pétra, Pradhén.
Rojé, Sarkér, Sen, Séntré, Sasmal.

In Orissa—Beharé, Bhuié, Daléi, Dés, Malhé. Métiél, Néik.

Séhu.
Sub-castes. Sections.
In Mum/zedabad—
Pénchsata Bahéttarghar. A'lédasi.
Chauddapéra Rérhibindus. A'Imisi.
Rérhi. A’Iamyén.
Bégri. Késyapa.
Bérendra. Majlisi (Maudgalya).

Dakshini.

‘ 64 KAIBARTTA.

Sub-castes. Sections.
In Mz’dnapur— ' -
Uttar-Rérh i.

He‘e'Ka'ba'tta Dakshin-Rérhi. Lél-ChétéiJleél.
Ekside. Késtu-Rishi.
l Doside. Késyapa.
Mékunda. Madhukulya.

Séndilya.
In Hug/Ili— Vyés.
Uttar-Rérhi.
{Dakhin-Rérhi or Marwar.
Tutiya.
deliya, Mélé 0r daliyé.
In Jessore—
Mélo 01‘ Mélé. . Amrita-Rési.
Réjbansi. Késyap—Rési.
Mesh-Rési.

Mecho Padma-Rési.

Helo }Hypergamous.
In 245-Potrgama’sh
Kaibartta.
Dés.
In Central Bengal—

Chésé. or Halwéha Kaibartta.
Tutiyé. Kaibartta.

In Maldah—
Hélik.
délik.

In Natl/chali—

Bhuluéi.
Sundipe.
Karaléi.
Déntréi. Késyapa.
Pétué.

- Phirti.

In Dacca—
Dés, dalwah Kaibartta.

I n Bakarganj—

HéliéDés,Parésar DéS. Kélé Réy _ Mamyén.
or Chési Kaibartta. Hélié. Béléi g Bharadvaj.
Jédab Réy g Ghrita-Kausik.
Bhuban Kuri go Késyap.
Ménji , 3 Parésar.
Samaddér E:
Charmanéi Réy :3

Majumdér Béngél

KAIBARTTA.

In Bakarganj—

Sub-castes.

Kaibartta. Chandradwip.

Béra-Hazéri.

In. Orissa—
O rh.
Rérh i .

In Balzar—

dethaut.
Garbeté.
Desi.

Seméri.
Bangél i.

65

Sections.
Kéwér j
Mandal
Manjhi Hypergamous.
Péthar J
Sikdér
Béngél.
Dhamdi.
Khaunié.
Ghani.
Gundi.
Niéli.
ﬁalmér.

Titlesz—A'bkér, Bhakat, Bhatthidér, Chaudhri, Goldér,
Léla, Modi, Séhu.

Sections of the Banodhia and
J aiswér sub-castes.

Subcastes.

Banodhié.

Biyéhut or Bhojpuri.

Deswér.

daiswér or Ajodhié—
bési.

dasér.

Khélsé.

Kharidéhé.

Rénki or Kalél
(Mahomedan).

Arddhélakhié.
Bachhraién.
Baniyé.
Bardarhé.
Barpaseré.
Behnéhén.
Bhaiskayéri.
Chailéha.
Chamraul ié.
Chaubhaié.
Chaurahé.

Dewén ke asémi.

Gadahié.
Gaudanhé.
Ghorcharhé.
Harchanpurié.
Hosainpurié.
Karaiéchor.
Khalrihé.

Kumharié.
Lakhnaué.
Mahétmé.
Maurhié.
Modi.
Motrihé.
Nagarié.
Nikthé.
Rémj dhémi ke
asaml.
Rémpurié.
Sadébarti.
Senpurié.
Seth.
Siérahé.
Srimaurhé.
Théther.
Thorelié.
Trllokpurié.

5

'66

KALW AR.

Sections of the Biyéhut and Kharidéhé sub-castes. ‘
JL

 

( —‘
A’bkahilé. Gbnr. Masére ke raut.
Ami. Hardwér. Mujnié. '
Bakat pénre ke Harnétar. Mulmahéli.
pénre. , Hazéri pénre. Nalakhié.
Baksarié. dagmanré. Nunéon.
Banérasié. daintpur. Nuneswar.
Banréhé. uamuéon. Nunhar.
Béréha ke Méhto. Kaithar. Nunkh’arié.
Barharié ke pénre. Kélémué. Oséi.
Baruér. Kamalsar. Otonié.

Bésundér.
Bath uéke Méhto.
Bathuéke Réut.
Battisi.

eruke kisén.
Beruke Méhto.
Beruke pénre.
Bhédwarié.
Bhojpurié.
Bhutéme.
Bihié.
Chénre ke raut.
Chaugéin.
Chaugéinke pénre.
Chausé.
Datta ke réut.
Daulté ke réut.
Dhékéich.
Dhankharié.
Dhobéhé.
Dhurfandé.
Ekauné.
Gédheyié.
Gémel.
Géngdahié.
Gareyié.
Gharikérak.
Goé. -

Kémsar ke Méhto.
Kéndh pékar.
Kaneil.

Kante ke rakmal.
Kante ke ras.
Karjéhé.
Kasarbéni.
Kasmal.

Kates.

Kateswar.
Kathérié.
Katheré.
Katsarwé.

Khan. .
Khépréhé.
Kharknéke ke ra ut.
Khataié.

Khereswarke pénre.

Krishém.
Laksham Serié.
Lakshneswar.
Lamgarié.
Méharé.
Mahuéri.
Méjhauré.
Mallik.
Manerié.
Méngaf.

Pébai ke kisan.
Péchhnarié.
Pailéhé.
Pénihé chaur.
Pénkharayé.
Pénre ke Pénre.
Panthpékar.
Pariharbéri.
Parlak Pénre.
Prési. ,
Rémkisén.
Rangpiér.
Sahadar.
Séhél.

Séhan.

Sanhé.
Sanichré.
Sérgétié.
Sohanpur.
Sonéként.
Sonhar.
Sugardhar.
Surjéhé.
Tabkéhila.
Témgéin.
Tértar ke khir puri.
Urdégéinhi.

35111313 Kdma'r, Karmakdr (Bengal), Lolzdr (Behar),

Bhindlu'm' (Singbhum).

Titles :—-In Bengal—Ari, Dés, De, Tewéri: in Behar—Karuné,
Mistri, Thékur.

Sub-castes. Sections.

In Bardwan— I n Belmr—
Belési. Bath uait.
Méhmudpurié. Darsurié}.
Kémlé-Kémér‘. Garbarla.

KKMXR.
Sub~castes.

In Midnapw—

Lohér—Kémér
P ituIe-Kémér
Kénsari .
Sarna-Kémér.
Ghatra-Kémér.
Chénd-Kémér.
Dhok ré.
Tamra.

These two inter-
marry.

In 24-Pm‘gand8—
Uttar-Rérh i.

Dakhin-Rérhi.
Anarpuri.

In Eastern Bengal—
Bh usnépati.
Dhékéi.

Pasch imé.

In Mursﬁeda bad-—

Rérhi.
Bérend ra.
Dhékéwél.
Khotté.

In Pabna—

Rérhi or Dés-Saméj.
Bérendra or Panch-Saméj.

I n Natl/chali—

déti-Karmakér.
Shikhu-Karmakér.

In Manblmm—
Magahiyé.
Dhokré.

Lohsé.
Bésuné.

In Santa’l Pan/amis—

Ashtalai.
Belélai.
Churélal.
Sankhalai.

67
Sections.

In Bekar—concld.

Godhanpuré.
Harsarié.
Hasanpurié.
Jakhalpurié.
Jarangait.
dasiém.
Kalait.
Katosié.
Marturié.
Pokharmié.
Ratwarié.
Ségi.
Sonpurié.
Sothiwér.

In Bengal—

Alamyén.
Bharadwéj.
Késyapa.
Maudgalya.
Séndilya.

In Singb/mm and the Santa'l
Pargands—

A'lam-ris‘ni.
Bégh-rishi.
Bémunié.
Kachhué.
Kh ujirié.
Manjari.
Nég.
Netrié.
Poté.
Puralié.

68

éaréi I i.
Darnél.

mm, Kama.

Sections.
A

Devépéth i.

Diél i.
Dudhréj.
Durél.
Gadéili.
Gadél.
Gahatréj.
Gajmér.

Ghém-ghotlé.
Gharti-ghauré.

Ghaténi.

dér-Kémi.

Kai rélé.

Kati-chioré.
Kharkébéyu.

Khéti.
Lémgédé.

KAMI.

1
Lohégun.
Lohér.
Lokéndri.
Mangréti.
Parbaté.
Pokhrel.
Portel.
Rahapél.
Rém udén.
Raséil i.
R ijél.
Rujél.
Sépkoté.
Sésankhar.
Setu-Suruél.
Sin-chiori.
Singé-oré.
Thépéngi.
Tirué.

Zianblt, Kand, Kona’k, Kleond, Kai-[01rd, Kai-emu, Skandlzasura.

Titles z—Abbaye, Desauri, Jhankai or dani, Méji, Mélik, Muthé.

Sub-castes.
Malua or Arria

Gochi or septs.

Kandh.
Orh or Uriya
Kaﬁd’fg. h
n'a - and . . .
gti|ah-Kandh. 1‘ Besrmgla
Nikitia-Kandh.
Sauntia-Kandh.
2. Bhetumendi.
3. Rasimendi.
4. Sagormendi.
5. Bankamendi.
6. Bidumendi.
7. Baloskuppa.
8. Grandimendi.
9. Gumalmendi.,
10. Dutimendi.
11. Sandumendi.

)x
r——-
p—a

Klambu or sub-septa.

( . Besera.
I

MI—i

Masara.
Boboto.
Binjarra.
Suna.
Motaro.
Mallika.
Murkuri.
Moku.

. Dokeri'.

OPWN9999

KAN DH.

Sub-castes. ' "

Gochi or septa.

12. Tuniamendi.
13. Bhetimendi.
l4. Sidupari.
l5. Delapari.
l6. Kaliapari.
17. Rakodmoska.
18. Pundilkia.
19. Bogalkia.
20. Teridikia.
21. Koskirabi.
22. Domsing.
23. Kalabag.

24. Kutrengia

25. dehilingia.
26. Petingia.
27. Kerlingia.
28. Bakolmendi.
29. Dopsingia.
30. Sehelengia.
31. Dangnikia.

32. Adgirkia

33. Lotpongia.
34. Danikia.
35. Robingia.
36. Mutungia.
37. Ganingia.
38. Behingia.
39. Dubosingia.
40. Dondikia.
41. Bhusangia.
42. Koinjabari.
43. Suramendi.

44. Bh ursamendi.

45. Ponmgla.
46. Gopingia.
47. Saitingia.
48. Pheringia.
49. dorapongia.
50. Bobdengia.

__.J\___._‘

69

Klamlfu or subsepts.

r1. Kotringa.
2. Bisunga.

J 3. Damlunga.
4. Somanga.
5. Mongalka.

. Koskigan.

. Panjurika.

. Surumanega.
. Pandega.

. Sarenga.
Neringa.

. Damanga.

r.
qgm$wuH

70 KA’NDU.
mm, Edna, Bizqrbhunjd, Bhunjé, Bhujdrz‘, Bhum‘z’.

Title z—Séh u.

 

 

Sections of Sections of
Sub-castes. the Madhesié the Magahiyé.
sub-caste. sub-caste.
_. A .—
Madhesié. Baniépéthar. A’kén. Khédhnu.
Magahiyé. Bijaibanéras. Akhgéon. Kokras.
Bantarié or Dhanuté. A’nkuri. Mahuli.
Bharbhunjé. Héthsukhé. Nrép. Méldhié.
Kanauj ié. Koté. Béghékol. Maner.
Gonr. Pachtar. Barhi. Mésaur.
Korénch. Sribitié. Bere. Mehaus.
Dhurié. 7 Bhérath. Murti.
Rawéni. . Bhéter. Nenijor.
Béllamtirié. Bireri. _ Nepré.
Théther or Chhitni. Péli.
Thatheré. Datiyén. Parsautié.

Geiger. P H ich.
Génrol. Réjgiri.
Héthiékén. Raunié.
Ichbarié. Saréihét.
d iérwér. Sa ursam-

Kénép. bér.
Kéneil. Siré.
Kérién. Tisor.

Késiam. Toril.
Kéteér. Uttardéhé.

Sections of the Tindiha.
Bantarié sub-caste. Chaudihé.
(Chési.
I Dehri.
Sections of the - {1 Héthié Kan.
Korénch sub-caste. I dhé.
Koriér.
Muthé.

Eapﬁli.

Titles z—Bhuiya, Rai, Héldér, Mélé, Mandal, Ménjhi,
Mutabar (headman of panc/zdyat), Shikdér.

Sub-caste. , Sections.

N z'l. Késyapa.
Siva.

K ARAN.

71‘

Ziarzm, Kathi-met, Uriyd-Kdet.

Titleez—Dés. Mahanti, Mahépétra.

Sub-castes.
Karan, Nauli-Karan.
Srishti-Karan, Bhatuntara.

Hypergamous groups.

Kharé.
Puré.
Chaién.
Ku‘lina.

Sections.
A'treya.
Bharadwéja.
Kantsasa.
KéSyapa.
Mudgul.
Négésa.
Parésara.
Sankha.

.‘iﬁamngé, Mistri.

Titles z—Bishoi, Dalui, Kaur. Khén.

Sub-castes.
Dhalué.
Mélué.
Sikharié.
Tungé.

Sections.
Sélméch.
Kachcnhap.

$352133 Kanserd, Tamlzerd, Thatlzerd.

Sub-caste.
None. 1

Sectlons.
Banaudhiyé.
Basaiyé.
Chauarsé.
Chaugharé.
Hariharno.
Lakar-Mahauliyé.
Machhué.
Mahauliyé.
Mauhariyé.
Suariya.
Suppar.

 

er. .Sherring enumerates seven sub-castes—I’urbiyé, Pachhawén,
Gorakhpurl, Tank ’l‘énchara, Bhariyé, Golar—none of which appear to be

known in Behar.

72

Eistha.

KKSTHA.

Sub-castes. Sections.
Madhyasreni-Kéyastha. Same as of Kayasths.
Kastha.

£21m.
Sub-tribes. Septs.

Chénti. Bambai, a. kind of eel.
Cherwa. Banjar.
Dudh-Kaur. Bhainsa, buﬂalo.
Paikaré. Chalenga, a. kind of vegetable.
Rathiyé. Kariar.

Kolkatéri.

Motiomén.

Pakar, a. fruit.
Pharsédhenti.

Rankankar.
Sanwéni.
Sarjél.
Singar.
ﬁamzﬂi.
Titles :- Dhéli, Héldér, Méla, Ménjhi, Vidyédhara.
Sub-caste. Section.
Nil. Aliman.
Qéyasth, Kdet, Ldld.
Titles :——Dés, Lél, Réi, Singh.
Sub-castes. Sections.
Aithéna. 'Kés apa.
Amashta. Ded gawe.
Bélmik. Kableér.
Bhatnégar. Katariyér.
Gaur. Kathéutiér.
Karan. Lakhauriér.
Kulsreshta. In general ...< Nandkiriér.
Méthur. Narhatiér.
Nigam. Nimandih.
Saksené. Nuniyér.
. , Khare. Samaiér.
Srlbastab { Dusre. Saraiyér.
Surajdhwaj. LSonkhare.

 

KA' YASTH.

Sub-castes.

Of the Amashta
subwaste.

0f the Karan

sub-caste.

0f the Sribéstab

sub-caste.

73

Sebtions.

‘ 'Baidséin.

Bardiér.
Bilwér.
Birnéwar.
Datki | iér.
Dharkiliér.
Gaprai.
Gyéséin.
Hargambai.
< daipuria.
damuér.
Kachgawai.
Karpatne.
Mahtha.
Mandi lwér.
Pansain.
Rukh iér.
Sandhawér.
KTinriétr.
rAjaidépél.
Ambahlé.
Atari.
Badisémé.
Bakholé.
Baléin.
Barhari.
Battikbél.
Benk.
Garhbiwar.

 

< Ikahan.

Kachhré.
Kénchanpur.
Koth ipél.
Munga.
Narangbali.
Oari.
Pakli.
Sisab.
Usauth.
kU’camapur.
Kés apa.
rAkhéuri.
Bakshi.
Misir.
' Pénde.

 

<, Réi.

Sahuﬁan
Singh.
Tewéri.

LThékur.

 

74

 

KAYASTHA.
Eﬁgasﬂga, Kdet, Kait, Kdyatk.

Sub-castes. Sections.
Uttar-Rérhi. ﬁghibeSya. Kalvisa. —‘
Dakshin-Rérhi. A'lambyén. KaSyapa.
Bangaja. A'ri. Kausika.
Bérendra. A'treya. Krishnatreya.
Madhya-sreni. Baiyégrahapadya. Kusik.

Basishtha. Maudgalya.
Basuki. Parésara.
BatSya. Roh ita.
Bharadwéja. Sébarna.
Biswémitra. Séndilya.
Gautama. Saukélin.
Ghrita-kausik. Saupayan.
damadagnya.

Titles arranged in Hypergamous Groups.

Dakshin Rérhi.

Kuh‘n.—Basu, Ghosh, Mitra.
Sidd/m Mauli/c.—~Dés, Datta, De, Guha, Kar, Pélit, Sen,

Sinha.

Stid/lya-Maulﬂc or Bakdfture.—A’ditya, A'ich, Ankur, Arnab,

A’s, Baittash, Bal, Ban, Bandhur, Barddhan,
Barma, Bhadra, Bhanja, Bhui, Bhut, Bid,
Bindu, Bishnu, Brahma, Chandra, Dahé,
Dana, Dhanu, Dhar, Dharani, Gan, Ganda,
Ghar, Guha, Gui, Guna, Gupta, Guta, Hem,
Hes, Hor, Hui, Indra. das, Khil, Kirtti,
Kshém,Kshem, Kshom,Kunda, Lodh, Mama,
Nag, Nandi, Néth, Om, Pal, Pil, Rahé.
Réhut, Réja,Rakshit, Rana, Ranga, Rudra,
Séin, Sakti, Sal, Sém, Séna, Sarma, Sil,
Som, Sur, Swar, Tej, Upamém.

Bangaja.

Edna—Basu, Ghosh, Guha, Mitra.
Mad/zya/ya.——Datta, Nég, Nath.
Ma/zdpdtra.-—Adhya, Ankur, Bhadra, Bishnu, Chandra, Dés,

Deb, Dhar, Kar, Kundu, Nandan, Nandi,
Pal, Palit, Réhé, Rakshit, Sen, Smha,
Som.

KKYASTHA.

75

Achal.—Abasakti, A'ditya, A'ich, 'A‘payArnab, Baitosh, Bal.

Ban, Bandhu, Barddhan, Barmé, Bed, Bhanja,
Bhuin, Bhumik, Bhut, Bindu, Brahma.‘ Chain,
Chaki, Déhé, Dém, Dana, Dénri, Dhanu, Dha-
rani, Dhol, Dhum, Dut. Gan, Gandak, Ghanié,
Ghér, Guna, GUpta, Hathi, Hem, Hes, Hom,
Hor, Hui, Indra, das, Kachu, Karéiyé, Khil,
Kirtti, Kshém, Kshem, Kshom, Lodh, Maguri,
Mén, Mana, Néd, Néhé, Nalu, Pai, Pil, Pipi,
Puin, Réhut, Réja, Rana, Ranga, Riti, Roi,
Rudra. Séin. Sanga. Sarmé, Sil, Smar, Son,
Suman, Sur, Syém, Tej.

Uttar—Rarh i.

Kulin.—Ghosh, Sinha.
Sanmaulik.—Dé.s, Datta, Mitra.
Sdma’nya Maulik.—Dés,1 Ghosh, Kar,1 Sinha.

Barendra.2

Sidd/za.—Ché.ki, Dés, Nandi.
delzya.—Datta, Deb, Nég. Sinha.
Haj—Dam, Dhar, Gun. Kar.

Honorary titlesz—Bakshi, Bhéndéri, BiSWés, Chaudhri,

Dasta-dér, DhaliI Kénungo, Mahalla-
navis, Majumdér, Mallik, Munsif,
Mushrif, MUStauﬁ, Neogi, Pattadér,
Réi, Sarkér, Shikdér, Thékurta.

 

1These two families are considered a quarter each, so the Uttar-Rarhis
reckon 7 é— out of 9 families.

2Originally the Barendras had seven families, but now they count 7l
by adding the descendants of one Saramé, a Napit, as a half family, beside:
many immigrant families from other parts of the country which go to swell the

Hej group.

Titles : -—In

32mm, Iﬁ'ot, Kaibartz‘a.
Bekar—Bhandéri, Chéudhri, Deradér, déndér,

Kéma’c, Képar, Khawas, Mahto, Mandar, Marar.

Sub-castes. Sections.
In Behar—

Bahiéwak, Bahiot, or Ghibihér. Bhadaurié.

Garbhait, Gorwéit, or Séghér. Biswas.

Ajudhiébési. Hézaré.

Jéthot. Itwér.

Machhué. Képar.

Mahédanda. Késyapa.
Maharné.
Marar.

Mukhié.

76‘

KHAMBU.

Ehamhu, Nam-Idle}: Iﬂmmbu.
Titlesz—Dhan, dimdér, Kiréti, Mandal, Mukhié, Réi, Sing.

Thars or septs.

 

Bébhaunchhé.
Béngdel.

Earl 03.
Bokhime.
Bonthérua.
Boyong.

Bumékémchhé.

Butepéchhé.
Chamlingeh.
Chaurési.
Chuiréchhé.
Dilpéli.
Dungméli.
Haidibuthé.
Hatuwéli.

Homodimchhé.
Horongpéchhé.

d ubhingeh.
Kési.

Khéling.
Kheresanchhé.
Kuésanchhé.
Kulung.
Léphaunchhé.
Maiduchhé.
Maikam.

Male Kumchhé.

Mayéhéng.
Mukéranchhé.

\

Wlukuas.
Némbochhé.
Némdung.
Nardauchhé.
Nechéhli.
Nimémbaunchhé.
Ninauchhé.
Nomahang.
Paderéchhé.
Phluméchhé.
Phulehli.
Phurkeli.
Plembochhé.
Rabchhéli.
Rajabin.
Rékhéli.
Rénauchhé.
Répungchhé.
Regélaunchhé.
Rimching.
Rochingéchhé
Séngpéng.
Silongchhé.
Sothéngeh.
Sungdele.
Téngbuéh.
Thulung.
Wéhsali.

ﬁhnnhéit, K/zandae't-sz‘k, K/mnddyat, Bkuiyd-sz‘k.

Titles :

In Chem Nagpm'1-Améut, Arhé, Baréik, Beharé, Gaunjhu,
Kotwér, Mahépétra, Ménjhi, Mirdéhé, Néik, Ohdér, Pétra,

Pradhén, Réut.

Bégh é, tiger.

In Orb-3a. _

Mangaréj.

Béhubalendra, like the god Indra Néik, leader.

in strength of arm.

Dakhin-Kabé’c, south gate.
Daubérik, messenger or sentinel.

Garh-Néik or Sinha, leader or ,
lieu of the fort.

Héti, elephant.
dené.

Paschim-Kabét, west gate.

Praharéj.

Ranasinha or Samar-
sinha, lion of the ﬁght.

Raut, horseman.

' Rui.

Sémanta, oﬂicer.

Maharath or Mahérathi, great Senépati, general.

charioteer.

Malla, wrestlers.

Sinha, lion.
Uttar-Kabét, north gate.

KHAN DAIT. 77

Bar-gohri.

Sub-castes. Sections.

(a) Totcmz'stz'c—

fDas-gharié, in Saranda of Singbhum. Kachhué, tortoise.
| Pachés-gharié, in Chota Nagpur. Kadam, nauclea
4 Pénchsau-gharié, in Gréngpur. ‘ grandz'folz'w. ‘
| Pandrasau-gharié, in Gangpur, Bonai, Mor, peacock.
L Bémré, and Sambalpur. Nég. snake.
Chhot—gohri, in Chota Nagpur. Sél, ﬁsh.
(12) Eponymous—
Bharadwéja.
Kaundilya.

Négasé, etc.

Chésé or Orh-Khandait

Mahénéik or Sresta- Khandait} In Balasore and Cuttack.
Bhanja- -Khandait I P

Harichandan Khandait ’1 “ri'

groisltgflgiféigit 3 In the OrissaTributaryStates.
Eitariﬁ.
Titles z—Dhe’mgar, Kisén, Kol, Parja.
Sub-castes. Sections.
Berga-Kharié. Bage, a bird.
Dhilki-Kharié. Bar, Eons Indica.
Dud-Kharié. Bérlé.
Erenga-Kharié. Baroa, an animal.
Munda-Kharié. Bilung, Nun, 0r Noné. Mailé,
Ora‘on-Kharié. salt.
Demta, red ant.
Dhan. paddy.
Dhanuar, can’t eat rice soup.
Dhelki, a. bird.

Dungdung, Aind, or indu, eel.
Durang, a ﬁsh.

Hathi, elephant.

Kasi.

Kerketa, abird of that name.
Kiro or Bégh, tiger.

Kulu or Kachchhué, tortoise.
Mailwar.

Murgear.

78

Sub-castes.

KHARIA’.

Sections.

Nég, cobra.
Naik.
Naniér.
Pardhan.
Pathal.
Purti.
SéhuL
Samdié.
Saur, ﬁsh.
Suranié, a rock.
Telga.
Teteteyin or Bagia’ir, a bird of

that name.
Tirkoér.
.Tititihu, a bird.
Topo, a. bird.
Tuti, vegetable.

The above groups are found among the settled Khariés. I
have been unable to ascertain whether the wild Khariés, com-
monly known as Ban-Ménush, ‘ men of the woods,’ have any similar

divisions.

Emmett, K/ierwdr.

Titles:-—Bhakat, Bhogta, Dés, Gaunju, Kapri, Mahto, Mandar,
Manjhi, Ohdér, Panjiéré, Pradhén.

Sub-tribes.

In Palamau—
Pétbandh.
Daulbandh.
Khairi.

In Southern L0/tardagd——-

Deswéri-Kharwér.
Bhogté.

Raut.

Manjh ié.

Septs.

Aind, a kind of eel.
Bég, tiger.

Bahera, a jungle fruit.
Baherwar, a tree.
Bail, a. fruit.

Bair, plum.

Bamnia, salt.

Bandh ia.

Bania, a caste.

Bar, Ficus Indica.
Bhogta.

Binjoar.

Biserwar.

Bisra, a. hawk.
Chardiar, pineapple.
Chirra, squirrel.
Chorant, a grass.

Ch undiar, a. top-knot.
Chuniar, lime.
Demta, red tree-ant.
Dhobi, can’t touch washerman.

KH ARWAR.
Sub-tribes.

79

Septs.
Dolbandhi.
Dudul, a. kind of bird.
Gai, cow.
Ghansi, a. pond ﬁsh.
Hans, swan.
Hansarwar, duck.
Hasdajié, a duck.
Hathi, elephant.
Hemremina.
Kachua, tortoise.
Kans, a. grass.
Kanwad, a. jungle fruit.
Karhar, a jungle fruit like ‘ bel.
Kerketa, a bird.
Kesargia.
Khapu, a bird.
Khichengia, a. fruit.
Kowriar.
Kuardar.
Kurdur.
Kussum, a fruit.
Maderwar.
Mahukal, a bird.
Mai Iwar.
Manjar.
Manjhi, a title.
Munga, coral.
Murgi, hen.
Murmurwar.
Mus, rat.
Nég, cobra.
Pétmurmuréré.
Radhar.
Rikhiasan.
Sai Sonarwar.
Samudwar.
Saras, a. water-fowl.
Sheor, a. ﬁsh.
Sonar, goldsmith.
Sonarwar, gold.
Suia, a. kind of little bird.
Sumedhiar, a. tree.
Surunia, neck ornament.
Tamba, copper.
Tirki, a. bird.
Tiruar, Tirkuér, an arrow.
Tuduar, hen.
Tunduar.
Turuar, a fruit (palcur).
Tuti, a. kind of bird.
Uriar.

80 KHARWA R.

Sub-tribes. Septs.
Behroér.
Kaunsiér.
Septs of the Kauriér.
Daulbandh< Ménriér.
sub-tribe. Pét-murmu.

Réj-murmu.
LSon oroér.
gilmtik.
Sub-castes. Section.
Khatik. KéSyapa.

Dharamdési.

Eilmtri, Purbigci K/mlri.
Titles :--Barman, Lél, Méhété, Séhu.

Sub-castes. Sections.
Chér'é’ci. _ _ Képur.
Panchjéti. Of the ChérJétl sub- Khénné.
Chhajéti. caste. Meheré.
Bérajéti. Set or Set-télwér.

Bahénnajéti. Beri.
' al. . .
P'ww Of the Panchjétisub- Egg-a,
caSte' Sarwél.
Wahe.

Bhale.

Of the Chhajéti sub- 33??"-
caste. p '

Tolwar.
Turman.

Chaupre.
Ghai. -
Of the Bérajéti sub- Kakkar.
caste. Meheden.
Soni.
Tandan.

 

1The Chérjéti sub-caste is again divided into A'rhéi-‘ghar and Chéri-ghar,
apparently hypergarnous groups, the former of which Is deemed superior to
the latter. It seems probable that the ﬁrst ﬁve sub-castes were originally
hypergamous divisions, the order of precedence being that glven above. Inter-
marriage between members of dlﬁerent sub-castes 1s notnmknown at the
present day, but it is considered right for a man to marry In his own group,
and the sub-castes are practically endogamous. The Plruwél sub-caste has
always been endogamous for the reasons explained in the text.

KHATRI. 81

Sub-castesx ‘ Sections.

Behal.
Chal-agge.
Dhandhébe.
Gayalpure.
Handi.
Of the Bahénnajéti Keoli.
sub-caste. Khosle.
' Kuchal.
Marwéhe.
Néiér.
‘ Néndi.
Suri.

Brakmam’cal Golrasw-

Angirasa.
Bétsya.
Bharadwéja.
Hangsarishi.
KéSyapa.
Kausalya.
Lomasé.

Elmtmz.
Title :uMandar.

Sub-castes. Section.
Késyapa.
Bahio.
Goro.

@1133“ or Enlita.

sub-castes, Sections.

Nil. Alad ish.
Alamyén.
Agni batsya.
Kénséri.
Kasyapa.
Kauchan rish i.
Madhuku lya.
Mugrish.

6

82 KOCHH.

EOEMI, Raﬁ/'bamz‘, Sivabansi, Suryabansi, Mdnddi, Bhanga-Kskatri,
Kshatri-Sankoch, Patita-Es/mm, Palz'yd, Desi.

Titles:—-BhaUMik. Chaudhri, Dés. Mahat, Méjhi, Ténti.
Béns-éré. Sagun-ure.

Sub-castes. Sections.
' In Northern Bengal—
Paliyé. Késyapé.
Sédhu.

Bébu, Byébahéri.
Réjbansi.

Kéntéi.

Desi.

Tiar 0r Dalai.

Modésr.

Dobhésir.

délué 0r dhélué.
Bodo.

Dugu or Sections.

In Dacea— , M ﬂ
Koch h,MéndéL Mekhun. Darang—Chiachi.

Désik. Darang-Saudana.

Senel. Darang-Dambuk.

Ch isim. Darang—Dakal.

Néphék. Shaini.

Darang. Doi.

Richil! Durgu.

Parak. Lori.

 

gniri, Murcia.

Titles :——Mahto, Muréo (green-grocer), Marar,
Dhelphor (clad-breaker).

Sub-castes. Sections of the Banéphar sub-caste.
Barki-Déngi. ‘
Chhotki-Déngl. , Bagwe.
Banéphar, Banapar. Darbe.
Jaruhér. Kéno:
Kanaujié. Képfl._
M'agahiyé. ”ﬁn £1! .
Tlrhutlé. ar.r.
Chirmait. Mar-IF.
Kuméré. PanJ Iéré.
gag: } In Champaran.
Reutié
Paurié .
Barékar In Chota Nagpur

Palmohé

KOIBI. 83

Sub~castes. ‘ Sections of the Magahiyé. sub-caste.

Amrot. ‘
Gamafyé Parg‘ané Kharakpur.
Kargaha.
Maiketéri beguné bégh.
Mél.
Sais.
Késyap.

In Chota Nagpur { Nég.
Mujni.

30M, Kaoré, Khaira, ﬂag/rd, Hdri (used inaccurately by
outsiders only).

Titles z—Mudi, Réi.

' Sub-castes.

Dhalo.
Molo.
Sikharié.
Bédém ié.
Sonérekhé.
dhetié.
Guri-Béwé.

Sub-tribes.
Agaria-Korwa.
Dand-Korwa.
Dih Korwa.

Paharia-Korwa.

Sections.
A’lu.
Bérdé.
Butku, pig.
Hansdé, Wild goose.
Késyab, tortoise.
Késibak, heron.
Sémé.
$5! or Saulé, ﬁsh.
Sénpu, bull.

Burma.
Title :——Majh i.

Septs.

Ainduar, a kind of eel.
Amba, mango. ~
Asotoar.

Bagher, tiger.

Dhan, unhusked rice.

Ginmuar.

Ginuar, a. kind of eel.

Har, plough.

Harra, myrabolam.

Hasda, wild goose.

Huruj.

Kerketta, a. bird.

Mujaniar.

Muri, ancestors made a Maid of
four skulls and cooked their
dinner.

Pakh ua.

Samat, pestle.

Samp, snake.

Sarai, a jungle fruit.

Silli, a. kind of ﬁsh.

Suga, parrot.

6 a

84' , KOSHTIK-

' $051116, Mei/mm.
‘ Title z—Dés.

Sections.
Baghél, tiger.
Bagutia.

Bhét, rice.
Bhatpéhéri.
Chaudhri. ‘
Chaur. yak’s tail.
Gohi.

Khanda, sword. ‘
Kurm, tortoise.

Ménik, gem.
Nég. snake.
Son.

£01241, Kama].

Title :—-—Pradhén.

Sub-castes. Sections.
Atpéré. Nil.
Dhukurséni.

Kutabpur.

Manoharséhi.

Elmthér,fﬁtmdr, Kumati, Kumbhakdr, Kuldl, Ghataka’r,
Gleatalca'rpur, Prajdpati, Rudrabans, Rudmpa’l, Pundit.

Titles :—-Behéré.. Biswés, Dés, Deuri, Kunkél, Méhato.
Méjhi, Marar, Marik, Mehréna, Pal, Réné.

Sub-castes. Sections.

In J essore—

Belgéchi. Aladoshi.

Déspéré. Alamyén.

Nautana. Hansa.

Bhushné. Kanaka.
Késyapa.
Rishi.
Séndilya.

In Murskedabad and Hugkli—

Rérhi.

Barendra.

Déspéri.

Chaurési.

KUMHKR.

Sub~castes.
In Fabric;—

Sirasthén.
Méjhasthén.
Chandan-séra.
Chaurési.

Daspéré {

In Bacca—
Bara-bh égi yé

Préménik.
Pénpétra.
Mujgarni.

Lél.

Chhota-bhégiyé Said-a.

Kh atya.
Réjmahélia.
Magi.

In Nozzle/tali—

Bhuléiyé.
Sarél ié.
Chétgéinyé.
Sandwipé.

In Belmr and Chota Nagpur—-

Maghaiyé.
Kanaujié.
Tirh utié.
Desi, Deswér.
Bardhié.
Biéh ut.
Ajodhyébési.
Ardhauti.
Godah iyé.
Chépué.
Banaudhié.
Masawér.

Bangéll or Rérhi.

Turk-Kumhér.

Of the Magahiyé
sub-caste.

85

Sections.

rAsmait.
Baid.

Bérik.
Biswés.
Chaudhrién.
Géim.
deruhet.
Képar.
Késyapa, Kaisab.
Kathalmalet.
Kheri.
Madhust.
Mahéthé. '

4 Mahétman.

Maheswar.
Mehtar.
Mukh .
Nég.

Pach mait.
Panjiér.
Parrarit.
Pharkiet.

' Réut.

Réworh.
Senépat.
Sonmain.

 

yTharait.

86 KUMHAR‘.

Sub «natal. - Sections.

(Ghana.

Kharué.

Maher.

Mandap.

Sections found in 2 Natanya. _
Singbhum. Ranubéd.

Sikéri.

Sinhi.

Surabani.

LTumalié.

’Béilhor.

Ké8yab.

In Manbhum -< Min, ﬁsh.

Nég, snake.

. Séndil. ,

f Bar, Ficus Indian.

Garhatia.

Hathi, elephant.

In Lohardagé ﬂ gzpisﬁaﬁgrass.

Sisingi, a. river-ﬁsh, has
two thorns on its head.

LTumbli, Berni.

In the Santél Kéchim, tortoise.
Parganés. Nég. serpent.

 

I n Orissa—

Jagannéthi or Uriya-Kumhér. Bhad-bhadrié, sparrow.
Goru, cow.
Kaundinya, tiger.
Kurma, tortoise.
Mudir, frog.
Neul, weasel.
Sarpa, snake.

Khatya-Kumhér. Késyapa.
Emmi, szbz‘, Kurambi, Kurum, Kurumdnik.

Titles:~—Chaudhri, Mahanta, Mahéréi, Mahato, Mandal, Marér,
Mukhya, Paréménik, Raut, Sarkér, Singh.

Sub-castes. Sections.
(a) In Behar— (a) In Be/mr—

Ayodhiyé or Awadhiyé. Garain.

Chandel or Chandan. Késyapa.

Chanaur. ~

Ghamela.

Ghorcharhé.

KURMI.

Sub-castes.

(a) In Behar—coneld.
daiswér.
Kachaisé.
Katriér.
Kharchwér.
Rémaiyé.
Sainthwér.
Sanswér.
S‘auchénd.
Ter‘ahgharié

(b) In Ohota Nagpur-

Adh-Kurmi or Madhyam-
Kurmi.
Bagsarié or Bégsarié.
Khorié.
Kurum.
Magahié.
Nich-Kurmi.
Sikharié or
Kurmi.

(c) In Orissa—
Bagsari .
Gédésari.
Géysari.
Maisésari.

Chhota-

87

Sections.

(1)) In Chow Nagpur and Orc'ssa—

Andhachébér.

Andhachipé panarié.

Béghbanuér, tiger.

Baghwér, tiger.

Bagsarié, tiger.

Baherwér. a. fruit.

Béns, bamboo.

Bénsriér, will not play the
bdnsi or bamboo ﬂute.

Banuér, hunter.

Bendiér.

Bhokwér.

Bilér, cat.

Chhonch Mutruér, spider.l

Chilbindhé panarié.

Chilbinuér, kite.

Chiluér, kite.

Chorharué.

Dugriér.

Dumurié, dumur, ﬁg.

Goriér.

Hénsdé.

Hésdagié, wild goose.

Hastowér, tortoise.

Hemramié, betel palm.

Henduér.

Homwér.

délbanuér. net.

dhépébasriér.

dhétideké.

duruér.

duthasankhwér.

Kéchiéri.

Kéchimér.

Kaiobanuér.

Kairawér, illegitimate issues.

Kénbindhé, pierced ears.

Kérékété Karwér, buffalo.

Katiér. will not Wear silk
cloth.

Kesarié, Kesar. grass.

Kheché Kesria.

Kundiér.

 

‘ In Midnapur Kurmis say that once u on a time Water being needed to clear

a. place for some religious ceremony, a

urmi there present made use of his

urine for the purpOse, and his descendants were therefore called Chhonch-

mutruér.

88

Sub-castes.

Sub-castes.
Dakhinhé.
Tirhutié.
Nuri.

Sub-tribes.‘

Rong.
Khamba.

KURMI.

Sections.

Mangar, crocodile.

Mantrawér.

Mathrwér.

Murmu, nilgao.

Mus, rat.

Nég, snake.

Négbasriér.

Nang'tOyér, give children their
ﬁrst rice naked.

Nauékhuri.

Punriér.

Réjmor.

Rimrimié.

Sélbanwér, sdl jungle.

Sankhawér, will not wear
shell ornaments. '

Siér, jackal.

Sona, gold.

Tiruér.

Tukipité dumurié, dumur,
ﬁgs

Tunduér.

liaheri, Laherd.
Title z—Sah u.

Sections.
Kési .
Mah urié.

33mins, Mon.

Septs.

Barphungpuso.
Adinpuso.2
Singdyang.
Tingi lmung.
Rangomung.
Térzukmung.
Sungutmung.
Némzingmung.
Lu ksom.
Sangmi.

 

‘ As stated in the text, these groups are not’now endogamous.
9 As stated in the text, Adinpuso is the only one of these groups which is

DOW' exogamous.

LIMBU.

89

Eimhu, Dds Limlm, Yaktkdmba, Tsong, Chang.

Title z—Subha or Suffah (chief).

Sub-tribes (tkum or thum-tkum).

>—~v

Chhothar
Ahtharai

Chaibisé

. Maikhola

omePWPWNH

5—:

Of the Pénthar
sub-tribe. ,

. Péntharit‘tﬁc" L,“ ...‘l

Yangorup . .

Miékhola or Terothar
Charkhola ,,

4

 

Classed as Kaisi-gotra, supposed to
have immigrated into Nepal from
Benares.

Classed as Lhésé-gotra, supposed to

. Phedéb or Buliuiphuta IZJ have come from Lhasa.
. Tambrkhola

Septs (thaw).

(Angdenba, lord of the forest.

Chehmjom, a. native of Chehm. themes,“

Chikchébé. 3

Ch obegu.

Hangsnemba.

lngmaba, he who kept fowls.

Kerungma.

Kokenamba, he who rises with the sun.

Laoti, he who was obeyed.

Luhé.

Manglagpa,l the dancer.

Mephagpa, the butcher, literally, pig-roaster.

Phej om, the kukri—bearer, including (a) Nem-
bong, (b) Sardak-peapi.

Pheodan, the water-carrier.

Phyagpa, the knife-grinder.

Serma, rent-collector.

Songbangphe, the new settler.

Thekim, he who works in wicker, including
the following sub-septs z—(a) Meongba, (b)
Thamsong, (c) Uhobegu, (d) Petehhimba, (e)
Angbu, the forest-dweller, (f) Yakten, for-
merly doctors.

Toktiham.

Tumbapo, the eldest.

Tumbrok, born of a step-mother.

Yangdenba,2 he who paid his footing.

LYangsoba or Namlagpa, the chief of the tribe.

 

‘ The ancestor of this thar was ridden (possessed?) by a god, and danced.
3 Descended from a Mech Who got admission into the Limbu tribe by
bribing the heads of the tlmm-tlmm.

90 LIMBU.

'Bargharri, the twelve brethren.
Khema} a pheasant. Apparently totemistic.
-Khojom, he who ate his earnings.
Kurumbhong,2 the divider of the village.
0f the Chhothar Legma, the worker in mud.

sub-tribe. Maden, the son of his mother.
Sangma,3 a buffalo. Apparently totemistio.
Teling, the worker in cane.
Th ogleng, the suicide.
LTungohong, the discontented.

FAngbohang, king of the ﬁr wood.
lnglamphe, the liar.
- Kondongwa, the vagabond.
Of Hie t Abhtha'mls Pomo, the large family.
5“ ‘ m 9' Thenglahbo, the native of Thenglah.
Tshendangkya, he who lives apart.
kYakshoma, the guardian of the fort.

r Ingyaromba.

Khebangba, the native of Khebang.

Khingba, branch of the same sept may not
intermarry.

Lech enche, the dissolute one.

Lekh ogma, he with swollen testes.

thnkicdh'in Admitted from the Lepchas.

Mahbho, branch of the same sept may not
intermarry.

Of the Yangop Mangmu.
rup sub-tribe. Menyangbo, the unsuccessful one.

Mongtupo.

Phawahong, the name of a village.

Pondha, the wanderer.

Puktebu.

Serling, the thief.

Suwah ong, the mendicant.

Theh beh.‘

Th upuku.

Tumling.

LYakpangden, the dweller on the pass.

 

 

‘ This thaw will not eat apheasant or fowl or any bird of that class.
The story is that the founder went out to shoot pheasants m a. ﬁr copse, but
found none, and vowed never to eat a pheasant again. ' .

3 The founder of this thar is said, for reasons not stated, to have dwided
his village into two parts by drawing a line down the .middle.

3 The buffalo is taboo to this thar: the legend 18 the same as that of the
KheIAnaAhthonymous Mar, named after Thehb’eh. son pf Srijanga, theyowerful
chief of the Limbus, since deiﬁed, who fought against Pmthl N arayan, the
founder of the present ruling dynasty of Nepal.

LIMBU- 91

Yijém. the wanderer, or eater.
0f the Yango Yithingu. the huntsman. .
rup sub-tribe YOngyahang, the son of a chief.
—cnncluded. Yungmé, the idler.

( Lhoringten,1 the chief of Morrung. ‘
. . Memophagpa.
0f the chaﬁng“ Papson, the adopted one.
sub-tribe. Pichagma,2 the son of the monkey.
LSonyokpa, the guardian of the new fort.

(Hangam, the king’s ofﬁcer.
0f the Miakhola | Libang, the archer.
or Terothar< Nahlibo,3 he who chased his wife.
sub-tribe. | Th oilong, the ragged one.
LTsonbang, he who listens and proﬁts.

rAktenhang, name of a domestic demi-god.
Lingdam, admitted from the Lepehas.
Mahbu,‘ the physician.

Of the Charkhola< Nembang, the swollen one.
sub-tribe. Ph otro.
Thogphelagu, he who wears the rhododendron
ﬂower.

“Yongyahung, the aristocrat.

rChikkophung, he who planted the bra‘katiﬁ

Hupach ongbang, he who was blessed and pros-
pered.

lsbo, name of a village.

Khamapong, the dweller under the bar (Ficus
religiosa) tree.

Lokmahung.
0f the Phedéb Lumph ongma, those who shared the land.
sub-tribe. < Maden.

Musuhang, the lowland chief.
Ninglehku, one who cuts poisonous plants.

Obung—gyakpa, the dweller above the fountain.
Phehim, the singer.

Pho-omphu, the hangman.
Phungthag, he who stole to order.

Pongyangu, he who carries his goods on his back.
LSenihang, sons of the snow-chief.

 

 

1 This thar was formerly under the M orrung Raja.

3 This ﬂaw is said to have formerly worshipped the monkey.

3 The story is that the wife of the founder of the tﬁar ran away from him,
but he caught her and brought her back, and afterwards had a large family by
her.

4 Literally a shaker; one who being ridden by ghosts or devils shakes
himself free: ence a physician.

° A thorny plant with a bitter berry used for medical purposes.

92

Of the Phedéb
sub - t r i b e— <
concld.

LIMBU.

’Singogpa.

Sodemba, the spy.

Songbangphe, the dweller in the valley.
So-onkobu, a. resident of So-onko.
Sothung, name of a. village.

Thambden, the stay-at-home.

Theguba, the son of the cliﬁ.

Th obukya, he who has skin disease.
Tumba.ngphe,1 the earth-born or Bkmjpkuta.
LYurumbang, they of the central village.

 

 

rLegbahang.
Lingkhim.

Of the Tam- On-chhombo, the horse-seller.
brkhola. sub-< Phendué,2 the hammerer of iron.
tribe. Sahmbahang.

Ssahoden, born in famine time.
kTh up-yumah, name of a place.
Septs.

h A m
Angléh. Nagen.
Anlébéng. Nerméh.
Baidohang. Nogo.
Békhim. Pélu.
Chempajong. Pérkhari.
Ch ungbéng. Patélang.
Hemphé. Pekhé.
Hukpéh. Petungbah.
Ichommah. Phalechhuah.
lkteh. Pheyak.
llémhéng. Ponthék.
lmsong. Samwah.
lth inku. Séngbah.
Kémbéhéng. Sanjokmah.
Kémbéng. Sétling.
Keph uk. Seduah.
Khémthék. Sekwahdeng.
Khobaipong. Sene.
Kh uadang. Singjangkuk.
Kunbéhong. Singjuk.
Laktoméhéng. Sukhong.
Lingdenbeh. Sukwabah.
Linglémphen. Taijaung.
Lugumah. Tilding.
Mangoyak. Tongbéngboh a.
Mangyong. Tumkoh ong.
Muromah. Yongyah.

 

1 This thar claims to be terreﬁlii, and point out a huge rock which covers

the spot Where their
‘2 This thar was

founder sprang from the earth.
formerly the ulacksmiths of the tribe.

LOHAR.

93

Eﬂhﬁl‘, Kamdr.

Titles :—Mistri, Réut, Thékur.

Sub-castes.

In Bekar—

Kanaujié.

Kokés.

Maghaya.

Kamér Kallé.

Mahur or Mahuliyé.

Mathuriyé.

Kamié. immigrants from
Nepal.

In Santdl Pargands—
Bi rbh umié.
Gov indpurié.
Shergarhié.

In Lokardagd—
ManjhaI-Turi yé.
Munda-Lohér.
Sad-Lohér.
Sisutbansi

d ia.

Loharia.

In Bankura—a
Angarié.
Gobré.
dhetié.
Pénsil i.

0f the Kanaujié sub-caste.
A

Lohon-

Sections.

(Asesmeghrém.
Baswarié.
Begsarié.
Bermén.
Bhékur.
Biskarmé.
Bunichhor.
Chauséhé.
Damdarié.
Dhakanié.
Gungambhir.
Kamtarié.
Kantithié.
Késyapa.
Kathér.
Kathautié.
Kissaurié.
Kukurjhampar.
Kultharé Mallik
Pahlampuri.
Pénre.

Réne.

Sabri.

Sémil Thékur.
Sangiri Thékur.
Sarwat.
Sonaman.
Supéhé.
Udhmatié.

 

KSéIrishi, sdl ﬁsh.

94

[Sub-castes.

In Manblmm—

Lohér-Ménjh i.
Danda—Ménjhi.
Bégd i-Lohér.

Subotribes.

LOHAR.

Sections.

Totemistic septs in Chota Nagpur.

Bagh, tiger.

Bén, a kind of eel.

Bando, wild cat, makes a loud noise
at night.

Béns, bamboo.

Baroha.

Beloar, fruit.

Basra, a hawk.

Bhengraj, kingcrow.

Bhutkuar.

Bodra.

Bukru.

Chouria.

Churuar.

Demta, red tree-ant.

Dhan, rice soup forbidden.

Dumria, ﬁg.

Gaintwar.

Goloar, sweet potato.

Gunj, a kind of fruit.

Hardi, turmeric.

Hastuar.

Hatti, elephant.

Hemrom.

lnduar, a. kind of eel.

dalwar, net.

Kach ua, tortoise.

Kaethoar, a. curry vegetable.

Kaisale.

Kamal, lotus.

Kanda. sweet potato.

Kanojia, a tribe.

Karhar. a. jungle fruit.

Karkosa, cow.

Karkusa, a bird.

Kaua, crow.-

Kerketta, a bird.

LOHKR. .

Sub-tribes.

Sub-castes

Biswés-Madak.
dati-Madak.
Madhu-Madak.
Reléti-Madak.

95

Totemistic septs in Chota Nagpur.

Kisnot, a tribe.
Koeé, a wild beast.
Kons, grass.
Kusuar, a river-ﬁsh.
Lalihar, a bird.
Lumria, a. fox.
Maelwar.
Maghaia, a place.
Maghnia.
Mahili Munda, a tribe.
Mahili, a tribe.
Mormu, deer.
Mutriar.
Nég, cobra.
Pénru, a snake.
Phutka, vegetable.
Purti.
Retha, fruit.
Runda, a. wild cat.
San, heron.
Séndh, bullock.
Sangalwar.
Saur, a. ﬁsh.
Semanohangiar.
Sonaome.
Sonbesra, a bird.
Son Maghia.
Son Tirki.
Suia, a. small bird.
Tirki, can’t touch any animals
after their eyes open.
Topoar, a. bird.
waar, 9. water-cat.

mzthhuuépit, Madak.

Sections.

Alamyén.
Bharadwéja.
Késyapa.
Maudgalya.
Parésara.
Sénd ilya.

96

313%, May.

Sub-tribes. ' *

Thongjcha, Thongcha or dumié Magh. Cherengtsa.
Marma, Myammé. or Roéng Magh.

Maramagri,
Bhuiyé Magh.

Sub-caste.
Dasa.

Sub-castes.
Bansphor-Mahili.
Mahil i-Mundé.
Patar-Mahil i.
Sulunkhi-Mahili.
Ténti-Mahili.

Réjbansi,

Barué 0r

mahwri.

Sabu.
Mundra.
Rauti.
Sowéni.
Mélpéni.
Lakhotia.
Palaur.
Janwér.

MAGH.

Septs.

Ch ingrisa.
Hroimajusa.
Kaukdaintsa.
Keophasa.
Kogdengsa.
Kolasa.

Krong Khyungtsa.
Kwinjusa.
Kyaukmatsa.
Kyaukpiatsa.
Mahlaingtsa.
Marotsa.

Oré.
Palainggritsa.
Palaingtsa.
Palésa.
Phrangroatsa.
R i gretsa.
Saboktsa.
Taingchait.
Uengsa.
Wadsuesa.
Waientsa.

Sections.

Millak.
Sadra.
Gaténi.
Tela.
Loyé.
Tébria.
Murkia.
Kalléni.

Kébra.
Baoti.

(ﬁlahili, Makalz’.

Titles :—Ménjhi, Mahoto.
' Sections.

Chardhagia.
Ch ardh iér.
Charhar, a tree.

Dhilki.

Dumriér or Dungri, wild ﬁg.

MAHILI.

Subcastes.

Sections of the Mahili-
Mundé. sub-caste.

9.7

Sections.

Goondli, a kind of grain, forbidden.
Hénsdé or Hasdagiér, wild goose.
Hemron.

Induar, a kind of eel.

Kantuér or Kénti, ear.1
Karkusé.

Khangar.

Khariér.

Kathargéch, jack fruit tree.
Kerketa, a. kind of bird.
Kundiar.

Mahukal, abird; its long tail.
Mandriér.

Marri.2

Murmuér, nilgéo.

Patariar.

Pilua, a caterpillar.

Rondiar.

Sarihin.

Silli.

Tapaer, a bird.

Taw.

Tirki, bull.

Tunduar.

Turu, grass, cotton, fruit or seed.
Tutiear.

Bhuktuér.
{ Léng Chenre.
Séngé.

1 Members of the Kantnér section may not eat the ear of any animal.
2 Members of the Marri section do not allow their married daughters to

enter their houses.

é’clél.

Titles :—Héldér, Khémid, Machhué, Ménjhi.

Sub-castes. Sections.

Dhalié Fenga, a bird.
Gobré. Garur, adjutant.
Kheré In Bankura. Ghétu, a bird.
Réj bansi Kachhap, tortoise.
Sénégénthé Nég, snake.
Dhunakété
Réibans‘ . Pétrishi, bird
Sapugyé °r InMNeﬂ‘l‘l‘fllﬁr and PenkéI-méchh, ﬁsh.

Eneal'ya— ' Sél-machh, ﬁsh.

Tungé

98

MAL.

Sub-castes. » ‘ Sections.
Kh uturié.
Maiiik } In Birbhum.
Réjbansi}
Deswér
Magahiyé
Rajbansi or In the Santél Par-
Réjé-Mél. ganas.
Rarhi-Mél
Sinduré

($115113, Samarid-Mcilé, Saum'd, Savar Pakdrz'd, Sémil Pakdrid,
. Asa! Palodm'd, Sangz‘.

gash, Mdldkdr, P/mlméh'.
Title :—Réut (in Behar) .

Sub-castes. Sections.
(a) In Bengal— (a) In Bengal—-
1. Rérh i. Alamyén.
Phulkété—Méli { 2. Bérendra. Késyapa.
3- Athgharié. M’audgalya.
Dokéne—Méli. Sandllya.
(b) In Bekar— (b) In Bekar—
None. Bhandéri.
Mallik.
Calais, Ma’lo-Pdtm’.
Titles z—Bepéri, déliyé, Jélo, Jalwé, Ménjhi, Pétra.
Sub-caste. Sections.
None. Alimén.

Bénarési.
Béngas-rési.
Bharan-rési.
Khonré-rési.
Kértik-rési.
Kul in-rési.
Mesh-rési.
Padma-rési.
Puyi—rési.

, Singh-rési.
Sib-rési.
Udadh i.

MAL PAHARIK. . ‘ 99:
£161 13mm.
Titles z—Ménjhi, Néik, Sardér.

Sub-tribes. Septs. 1
Kumér or Komar-Bhég. Ahriti, hunters.
Mél Pahérié proper. Dehriti, priests.

Grihi, householders.
Ménjh i, village headman.
Pétra.

Pujhor, priests.

Sikdér.

1The names of the septs are said to denote the original occupations
of their members at the time When exogamy was introduced. The Male
tribe, of which, according to Buchanan. the Mail Pahériés are an offshoot, have
no exogamous divisions.

 

ﬁangar, Hagar, Thomz'.
Titles z—Réné, Sing, Thépa.

 

Sub-tribes. Thurs or septs.

Athéréh Panth. hchamm Ghatani.

Buréthoki. Agri. Ghatréj. ‘

Gharti. Aleh, Allié..1 Gonda.

Sakhali. Arghaunle ('2). Grénjé.
Bareya. Gurméchhan.
Bhujél. Gyéngmi.
Braili. . _ _-‘ Haio.
Brangplagi.1 ‘ dhéngdi.
Byéngnési. dhéri ('2).
Charmi,Chermi (’3). Kairélé.
Chitaurié (?). Kalalohér.
Chumi. Keli.
Darnal. Khépangi.
Darré Lémi. Khaptari.
Datt. Khati.
Devapéti. Khuléln
Dhamala. Krubchhégi.1
Dhanuki. , Kyétgchhétgi.l

..Dukhché.ki.l Lahakpé.

Gécha. Lakéndri.
Gadail i. Lamgadeh.
Gadél. Lémichanya.
Gajamer. Lamjél.
Gandharma ('5‘). Lha—yo.1
Gele’mg. _ Lohégun.
Ghéli. Lungyeli.l ‘

 

l These seven thm‘s, besides one not known, are called the Béra Manger, and h01d the
title of Thépa.
7 a

100

Sub-tribes.

 

MANGAR.

T/zars or septs.
f— , _ A ﬂ
Magrathi.1 Sadésankar.
Marsyéngdi. Sarémgi.
Méski. Séru.
Meng. Setisurwél.
Namjéli. Sheo.
Pachéin ('2). Sijapati (‘2’).
Pénthi. Sincheuli.
Parbateh. Singauri.
Phyuyéli. Sinjali.
Pithékoteh.1 Sithung.
Pongwax.1 Sripéli. .
Puléimi.l Sunéri.
Pun. Surya Vansi.
Pung. Suyél.
Pusél. Télu.
Rahapél. Théda.
Rakhél. Thokchéki.
Rasaili. Toringrapé.
Rijal. Yéngdi.
Sabkota. Yz’mgmi.

 

1 These four tkars, besides one not known, are called the Béra Mangar, and hold the

title of Thépa.

Sub-caste.

N 2'].

Sub-castes.

Chandana.

Wt, Mdlwe Réjput. ‘

Sections.

Aind, eel.
Gandharb.
Kési.
Paras.

gamma, La'ya', ng6.
Title :-—Bhumphor, peculiar to the Mail sub-caste.

Hariyén or Jehariyé.

Mél or Mér.

Sauriyé.
Réj bansi Call themselves
Deobansi Hindus.

Sections.

Belawahari, tree-rat.

Boro Sémp, rock-snake.

Dudhié, snake.

Rikhiésan or Pétrisi,
described as a small red
bird with a. long tail.

M AYARK.

101

gﬁtapm, Modak, Maird, Kari.

Titles :—A’sh, Chandra, Datta, Barét, De, Dén, Gui. lndi,
Léhé, Nég, Nandi, Rakhit, Réj.

Sub-castes.
I H 067mm Bengal —

Rérh-ésram.
Mayur-ésram.
Ajé-ésram.
Dharm-ésram or
Dharm-Sut.

In Dacca—

Ekpétié.
Dopétié.

Sub-tribes.

(a) In Bax/ﬂing—
Agnié—Mech.
déti-Mech.

(b) In Assam—

Agnié-Mech.
Assam-Mech.
Kach ré—Mech.

Thampéi-Mech.

£12211, Mechi.

Septs of the Agnié sub-tribe.

Sections.

A’Iamyén.
Bharadwéja.
Chandrarishi
Debrishi.
Madhurishi.
Kasyapa.
Gautam.
Majurrishi.
Ganesrishi.
Négrishi.
Séndilya.
Somrishi.

Bamodé.
Bosméthé.
Chhongphthéng.
Chongph rén.
Isére.
Kuktéiére.
Mochh-ére.
Narjenére.
Nobéiére.
Phédém.
Sabéiére.
Sibingére.

MUCHI.

(mush; Riski, Riskiputra, Nisln‘.

Titles z-Darshan, Muchiram Dés, Patradés, Ruidés, Sparshan.

Sub-castes.

Baré-bhégiyé
Chhota«bhégiyé.

Uttar-rérhi.
Dakhin-rérhi.

Sections.‘

Késyapa.
Séndilya.

Chésé—Kurur or Chésé-Kolai.

Betué.

J ugi-Muchi or Koré.

Baitél.
Kurur.
Mélabh umié.
Sabarkéra.
Sénki.

 

1 These are not exogamous, and no sub-caste appears to have more than

one section, Késyapa or Séndilya, as the case may be.

éﬁlmhﬁ, Mum, Hora-hon.
Titles :—Bhuinhar, Dhangar, Kol, Konkpat, Mahato,

Sub-tribes.

Bhuinhér-Munda.
Ka rangé—Munda.
Khangar—Munda.
Kharié—Munda.
KoI-Munda.
Konkpét~Munda.
Mahali-Munda.
Ménki-Munda.
Munda-Ménjhi.
Négbansi-Munda.
Oraon-Munda.
Sad-Munda.

Sav ar-Munda.

Manki, Nagbansi.

Septs.

Aind, a kind of eel.
Amba, mango.

‘ Ambras, a. fruit.

Area, a kind of ﬁsh.

Aru, yam.

Arul.

Ash ér, a month—June.

Asur Lohara. '

Aura, fruit.

Baba, rice.

Bage, anything forbidden.

Bagear, tiger.

Baghela, quail.

Baghtuar, a devotee.

Bahera, a fruit.

Bahomar.

Balamdér, spearman.

Balmus, akind of insect which is found
in the sand. of rivers.

MUN DA.

Sub-tribes.

103

Septs.

Balum, salt.

Baman, may not touch or be touched by
a member of the Brahman caste.

Banda, a kind of leaf.

Bando, small jackal.

Bar, Ficus Indz‘ca.

Barabhaié, the twelve brothers’ sept.

Barha, hog.

Bari, ﬂower.

Barjo, name of an ancestor’s village
some miles south of Ranchi.

Barjoki, ﬁg tree root.

Barla, a fruit.

Barukandal, the kussum tree.

Barunda, a big frog.

Ba rupendil, kussum tree.

Barwa, small cocoon.

Basar‘oar, a kind of small hawk.

Batkuar, a bird.

Beng, frog.

Besra, small hawk.

Bhaji Ség, vegetable.

Bhaonra, a large black bee or hornet.

Bhengra, a horse.

Bhingraj, kingcrow.

Bhinjo, a yellow bird.

Bhuina.

Bhutkuar.

Bihan, seed.

Binha.

Binjuar, a kind of eel.

Bisrot.

Bisru, a kind of bird.

Bocho, a bird.

Bodra, the ancestors of this sept did not
wash their mouths after eating.

Bojra, a kind of grass.

Budh or Budhwar, Wednesday.

Buim, a worm.

Bukru, a kind of bird.

Chadil, place of worship of a. head-
man.

Chadu, a kind of bird.

Chali, rice soup.

Champia, a bird.

Chata, umbrella.

Chauria, rats.

Chelekchela, a small bird.

Chilhia, kite.

Chirko, mushroom.

104 ,

Sub-tribes.

MUN DA.

Septs.

" Chitti, a kind of snake.

Chocha, a bird.

Chota, a kind of bird.

Chutia, a small rat.

Déng, a big stick.

Dahanga, torch-bearer.

Dangarwar.

Dauru.

Demta, red tree-ant.

Dhan, paddy. To this sept rice and
rice soup are forbidden; they eat only
gondh‘ or millet.

Dhech ua, a kind of black bird.

Dhelakata, a kind of tree.

Dirwar‘, a wood fruit.

Dobongwar.

Dodrai, a kind of bird.

Dub Sag, vegetable.

Dumrl’ar, ﬁgs.

Dundu, a kind of eel.

Dungdung, a river—ﬁsh.

Dura, a fruit.

Ergat, a kind of mouse which lives in '
plum bushes.

Gandura, a big bird.

Garabing, a big river-snake.

Gari, a. monkey.

Garria, a kind of bird.

Ghager, ﬁeld bird.

Ghi, clariﬁed butter.

Ghunri, a kind of fruit.

Gidh, a vulture.

Gobolachan, may not eat beef.

Gondli, a kind of grain.

Goria, red earth.

Gua, areca nut.

Gundki, a kind of wood.

Gundri, a bird.

Gurni, a kind of vegetable.

Guru, may not eat beef.

Habin, a tree.

Hadung, big black tree-ant.

Hajeri, a kind of tree or bush.

Haluman, monkey.

Han, nest of ants.

Hanjait, a wild fruit.

Hanre, a bird.

Hansa, swan.

Hanthi, elephant.

Hardwar.

MUNDA.

Sub-tribes.

Septs.

Hargurra, bone.

Hari, ancestors did not wash their
mouths after eating.

Harin, deer.

Hasada.

Hasaré.

Hassa ara, a kind of vegetable.

Hausakar.

Heding, a bird.

Hemb0war, ancestor.

Hemram, a kind of ﬁsh.

Hemromi, ashes.

Heride, a bird.

Herung, a kind of bird.

Hoduar, a bird.

Homjah.

Hong, a kind of bird with a long tail.

Horia, a wood bush.

Horo, a red ant on tree.

H ularbaha, a ﬂower used to ﬂavour
curry.

Hundar, wolf.

Huni, mouse.

Hutar.

Imli, tamarind.

Indur katea, house-rat.

Ingaria, moonlight.

dagdan

dago, tamarind.

damtuti, a kind of grain or vegetable.

dangatras, the bone of a cow.

datrama.

datria.

dhuri, dried bushes.

d ia, a river-ﬁsh.

dirhul, a ﬂower, used for curry.

ditiapipar, a kind of fruit.

donk Haper, leech.

Kachhué, tortoise.

Kakin, aunt.

Kamal, lotus.

Kanda, a kind of sweet potato.

Kandir, a bird.

Kandru, ﬁsh.

Kandurua, a fruit.

Karania, a kussum tree.

Karma, a tree.

Katea, a ﬁeld-mouse.

Kaua, crow. '

Kawnria, a water-snake.

106

Sub-tribes.

MUN DA.

Septs.

_ ‘ Kera, plantain.

Kerketa, a bird.

Khandania.

Khondua.

Khoyea, a wild dog with a long tail.
Khukri, a kind of mushroom.
Kiri, rice weevil.

Kissi.

Koé, cocoon.

Kodoség, a kind of water vegetable.
Kongaddi, crow.

Kotah kaisi, a small vulture.
Kujri, a fruit from which oil is made.
Kukur, dog.

Kukura.

Kundula.

Kurkuti, red ant.

Kursi, fruit.

Kusumbaha, kussum ﬂower.
Lang, a kind of bird.

Lépung, a small bird.

Larapa, monkey-eater
Larsunar.

Lenda, earthworm.

Lilla, a wild cow.

Lipo, a tree.

Litiya, a bird.

Logna. Kotra, small deer.

Logo, a kind of animal.

Loh rakhukhri, a kind of mushroom.
Longa, a bird with a long tail.
Lugniar, rabbit.

Lugum, a tree.

Lugun, a tree.

Lugunki.

Lupu, paddy husks.

Luti, small black ﬂy.

Machli, ﬁsh.

Madhuras, honey.

Mahukal, a bird.

Maina, a bird.

Mar, new rice soup.

Marmu.

Matha Ség, a kind of vegetable.
Mathia, brass bracelet.

Maugh, ﬁsh.

Mind.

Minjur, peacock.

MOwl.

Muduk.

MUNDA.

Sub-tribes.

107

Septs.

Mundoraj, a. tree.
Mundri, quail.

Munga Ség, a. kind of vegetable.
Munri, fried rice.
Murum, stag.

Muri, a. Wild fowl.

Musa or Musu, mouse.
Mutri.

Nadi Samp, a. river-snake.
Nég, cobra.

Nagduar, a water-insect.
Nagrua, a. kind of mud.
N imak, salt.

Nois.

Oaria, verandah.

Orea, basket-maker.
Pakhora.

Pamia, a tree.

Pandar, a. tree.
Panduchone.

Panduki, dove.

Pankhi, a bird.

Panr, a. tribe.

Pardhiel kokaw.
Parsi, a tree.

Parsu, a. bush.

Peo, a bird.

Peroan, pigeon.

Phurti.

Phuti, a. rainbow.
Pikord, a bird.

Porti, crocodile.

Pussi, cat.

Putam, dove.

Raja, a. bird.
Ramgharia.

Rani Poka, a red worm.
Ra ut, the Rautia caste.
Rugri, a kind of mushroom.
Rukhi, squirrel.

Runda, leopard.

Ruté, a. tree.

Sadom, horse.

Sailum, porcupine.
Saisarunduar.

Sal, a. big pond-ﬁsh.
Salkar, a kind of potato.
Salu, a root in pond.
Samal or Samar, deer.
Samdoar.

108

Sub-tribes.

MUN DA.

Septs.

Sandi, plough.

Sandi guria, black monkey.

Sandil, full moon.

Sandipurti, cock.

Sandi Sarin, fowl.

Sanga, sweet potato.

Sang Chiria, a kind of bird.

Sangoar, sweet potato.

Sankura, kingcrow.

Sanpuri, a resident of Sanpur.

Sarai, a tree.

Samar, a curry vegetable.

Semarkanda, root.

Sengra, horse.

Seornia.

Serhar, a kind of bird.

Setampa, dog-eater.

Sewar, moss.

Siar Tuyio, jackal.

Sikcharo, a bird. '

Sikra, hawk.

Sindur, vermilion.

Singh, horn.

Sisungi, a kind of ﬁsh.

Soa, a kind of vegetable.

Soai, a bird.

Sobarnarekha, name of a river three
miles east from Ranchi.

Soeka, a wood bush.

Sohek, a kind of ﬁsh.

Soi, spring.

Sokoe, a kind of fruit.

Solai, ﬁsh.

Sonarwa, a bird.

Sone, may not wear gold.

Sonkharihan, a place where they
worship before cutting grain.

Son Maghia.

Soso bheloa, a fruit.

Suga, parrot.

Sukru, potato.

Sulankhi, a kind of bird.

Surhi, a wood-cow.

Suri, ﬂy.

Suril, do not propitiate the Churin
Deota.

Surin.

Susan.

Taitum.

Témbé, copper.

MUNDA.

Sub-tribes.

Sub-caste.

Nil.

109

Septs.

Tamgarihar.

Tamghuria.

Tarwar, may not touch a sword.

Tatia, a. kind of bird.

Telia, a tree.

Tewan raja, a kind of bird.

Thithio, a bird with long legs.

Tirango, a. wood-bird.

Tirki, a. bird.

Tirkiar, tree-mice.

Tiro, a small bird.

Tirtia, a bird.

Tiru, a kind of bird.

Tiruhar, a kind of bird.

Toeba, ﬂower of jar/mix tree.

Toewa, a kind of bird.

Tongsi, a bird.

Tono, a. big tree-ant.

Topna, tree.

Topoar, a bird.

Tow, a kind of bird.

Tulsiar, a kind of ﬂower.

Tumbli, a. red ﬂying-ant.

Tunduar, a tree.

Turania.

Tursia.

Turu, squirrel.

Turuar, a fruit—kussum.

Tuti, a kind of vegetable.

Uchring, an insect.

Udbarn, a. tree, the oil of which is not
used by members of the sept.

Urdwar.

Uring, a wild bird.

éﬂurmi, Tamang, Isluing, Sam.

 

 

Sections.

r“- *—" ﬂ
Béibé. Gébag.
Baju. Galan.
Bal. Génthen.
Baltong. Ghale.
Bomjan. Ghising.
Bulun. _ Gole.
Chapen Khor. Gomdan.
Ch umi. Gongbé.

Dumjan. Goth ar.

110

Sub-caste.

Sub-castes.

Bahtawér.
Chanrwér.
Ch iksaurié.
Dhér.
Kanaujié.
Maghaiyé or
Deswar.
Nath ué.
Pachhmé.
Suraj ié.
Tirhutié.

 

MURMI.
Sections.
f A
Grandan. Neki.
Hopthen. Nesur.
dimbé. Pakhrin.
dongan. Rumbé.
Khéni Khor. Séngbé.
Kitung. Séngdan.
Khungbé. Sherbé Khor.
Kulden. Singar.
Lémé Khor. Singden.
Lo. Songden.
Lopchan. Thing.
Mérmunba. Thokar.
Mekchan. Titung.
Moktén. Tubah.
Nérbé. .
ﬁnsﬁhar, Mushar, Blmiyd.
Titles 2—- Ménjhi, Sédé.
Sections.
Of the Chanr- Ghurmutné.
war sub-caste.
(Giéri.
Kanghatté.
. Kosilwér.
Ofrgssbazzzzw
' Patwéri.
Phulwér.
LSonwahi.
fBélakmuni.
Daitinié.
" Gohlaut.
0f the Magahiyé< Pail.
sub-caste. Rikh-mun, Rishi-
muni.
LTisbarié.
'Bénsghét Pahadi-
nagar.
._ . Dhanhérié.
Of t‘lge CEnhutm< Sarpurkhé—
5“ '0‘“ 9° Chakbarié.
' Kasmeté.
L Mértarié.

 

MUSKHAR.

Sub-castes.

ﬁégar.

111

Sections.
Baiyér.
Balgachhié.
Batwar or Batwéri.
Bhachhuér.
Bhakhiésin.
Bhuiyér.
Churihér.
Dhangpatié.
Diér.

Dodhuér or Dodwér.
Géurié.
Gendué.
Gibhéri.
Késyap.
Khatdhér.
Mehériyé.
Mandwér.
Sandhoé.
Sondhuér.
Suruar.

Tikait Bhogté.
Ulaurié.
Upwariyé.

Titles z—Biswés, Chaudhri, Langi, Mahéréné, Panjiér, Panch-
némé-Mandar, Réut.

Sub-castes.

Jethaut.
Pulauns.
Négbansi.
Kéthautié.
Bhétnégar.

Section.

Késyapa.

gﬁag 25:11:, ngasz'a’, Ii'z'sdn.
Title z—Ban-Ganjhu.

Sub-tribes.

Septs.

Sendara-Nagasia, use sindur at Amba, mango.

marriage.
Telia-Nagasia, use 011 instead of
eindur at marriages.

Barla, Ficus Indian.
Dhanki.

lnduar, a kind of eel.
Mahto, a kind of eel.
Manjhi, a title.

Nég, cobra.

Sonwani, can’t wear gold.

Taitia.
Tirki, a bull.

112

NAIYK.

gﬁaiyﬁ.

' Title :——-P ujéhé.

Sub-caste.

’1'].

Sections.

Bhulé.
Chilkhor.
Dhankoi.
Kulkhwér.
Yahién.

(ﬂipﬁ, Na’z‘ Naud.

Titles :—B.§irik, Bhandéri,Baidya,' Chandra-baidya,’ Dés,
Khyaurakér, Khan, Nara-Sundar, Nandi, Paréménik,

Sil, Biswés, Mazumdér,

Shikdér, u‘érdér.
Sub-castes.

A'narpuria. 2
Bémanbane.
Bérendra.
Uttar-rérhi.
Dakshin-rérhi.
Paschim-rérhi.
Mahmudébéz- "
Saptagrém.
Sétgharié.
PhuI-Népit.

I n N oak/cali—

Bhulué—Népit.
Sundipé-Népit.

In the 24-Pargamis—

Héldar-Paréménik.
Kola-Paréménik.
Hansadéhé-Paréménik.
Mujganji-Paréménik.
Khotté. "

Mandal, Shéhé, Sarkér,

Sections.

Alamyén.
Gargrishi.
Késyapa.
Madhukuliya.
Maudgalya.
Sémdilya.
. (Bhagabén.
Daibaki.
dédab-Médhab.
Kénéi-Madan.
4 Mahémandé.
Rém.
Réghab.
Réjib.
LSiva.

u

 

\

\

 

Sections of the Mah-
mudabaz sub-caste

 

1 These titles are borne onlyiby N apits who practise medicine.
‘~‘ A few cases have oceurredpf marriages between members of these
groups. but the breach of rule had In each Instance to be expiated by giving

a feast to the community.

3 A designation of up-country barbers who have settled in Bengal. Such
persons practically form a separate sub-caste, as Bengali barbers will not
intermarry with them, and they are regarded as impure by the barbers of
Upper India and Behar by reason of their having taken up their residence in

Bengal.

NUNIX. 113

ﬂunié, Lum’a’, Nom'ydn, Nz'mgolia’.‘

Titles z—Beldér, Chéimarér, 'Chaudhri, Jamadér, Mahétmé,
Mahton, Mandar, Marér, Mihtar, Réut.

Sub-castes. Sections.
1. Awadhie’} or Ayodhiébési. (a) Totemz'stz'c—
2. BhOjRUrlé. Andhigot.
3. Kharaont. damgot.
4:. Maghayé. Nég.
'3- Orh. , , , Pechgot.
6. Pachamya or Chauhan. Phulgot.
7. Semarwér.
(b) Eponymous—
Bachgot. ‘
Béghgot.
Kéchhgot.
Késyapa.
Q)ruon, Iﬁtrmzkh.
Titles z—Dhangar, Kol, Parjé.
Sub-tribal. Septs.
Berga-Oraon. Amri, rice soup.
Dhanka—Oraon. Bagh, tiger.
Kharia-Oraon. Bandh.
Khendro—Oraon. Bando, a. wild cat which barks at night.
Munda~0 raon. Bakula, paddy-bird.

Bar, Ficus Indica.

Barwa, a wild dog.

Basa, a. tree.

Bekh, salt.

Beanh, a. large ﬁsh with thorns on its
back.

Bhakla.

Chigah, a. jackal.

Chirra, a squirrel.

Chouria Musa, ﬁeld-rat.

Dhan, rice soup forbidden.

DheChua, kingcrow.

Dirra, a kind of eel.

Dom Khakha, a'. raven.

Ekka, tortoise.

Ergo, a rat.

Gari, monkey.

Garwe, a. stork.

Gede, a duck.

Gidh i, a vulture.

Gislihi, a bird.

Godo, crocodile.

114

‘Sub-tribes.

ORAON.

Septs.

‘ Golaia.

Gondrari, a tree.

lnduar, a kind of eel.

Kachua, tortoise.

Kaith, curry vegetable.

Kanda, sweet potato.

Kaua, crow.

Kendi, a tree.

Kenu, a ﬁsh.

Keond, a fruit.

Kerketa, a bird which makes a noise
like “ ket ket.”

Khalkhoa, cannot eat ﬁsh caught by
balin g water out of a tank or pool.

Kheksa’, curry vegetable.

Khes, cannot eat plants that grow in
ponds.

Khetta, a cobra.

Khoepa, a Wild dog.

Kinda, a date palm.

Kispotta, pig’s entrails.

Kosuar, a kind of ﬁsh.

Kujur, a fruit used to stain the horns '
of cattle at the Sohrai festival.

Kundri, curry vegetable.

Kusuwa, a ﬁsh.

Lakra, a hyena.

Lila, a kind of ﬁsh.

Linda, an eel.

Loha, iron.

Mahato, a title.

Minji, a kind of eel.

Munjniar, a wild creeper.

Murga, cock.

Nagbans, cobra.

Orgonra, a hawk.

Pusra, fruit of kusum tree.

Putri, a tree.

Rori, a fruit or tree.

Runda, a fox.

S’al, ﬁsh.

Sarno.

Suar, hog.

Tig Hanuman, monkey.

Tirki, young mice.

Tirk uar, fruit.

Tirtia. .

Tiru, a kind of ﬁsh. .

Topoar, a bird with a long tall, and

body mottled black and White.

OSWKL.

115

09511351, Uswdl.
Titles :—Chénd, Dés, Dosi, Léb, Singh.

Sub-castes.

Oswél proper.
Dasé.

Sections.
Baid.
Baidmota.
Chajia.
Chaudalia.
Chopra.
Churéli e.
Dhériw r.
Gelra.
Golchié.
Hinga.
dambar.
Mélkas.
Methi.
Nakat.
Nolka.
Ranka.
Saitiya.
Set or Seth.
Sil.
Singhi.
Soni.
Srimal.
Srisrimal.
Suchait.

13511, Pa'mva, Pa‘m‘, Pub, Pdni/ca, C/n'k, Chik-Bardik, Bardilc,
Illa/mic, Ganda, Sawdsz', Tdnti.

Sub-castes.

In_ Manblzum—
Baréik.

In Lohardagd and Sargzy'a—
Chik or Chik-Baréik.
Sawési or Ténti.
Ganda.

In Grisw—
Orh-Pén or Uriya—Pén.
Buna-Pén.
Betra-Pén or Raj-Pan.
Patradié.

Sections.
Aind, a kind of eel.
Babunhathia.
Ba h .
Bag h el 3 tlger.
Bagti.
Bail.
Bajar.
Balbandhi.
Baleswar or Balasore.
Bando, small wild cat.
Banj or.
Bar, Ficus Indica.
Barabihé.
Bardi.
Bariaro.

116

PAN.

Sections.

Bel, a. fruit.

Beniaro, frog.
Benkuré.

Besré, a small hawk.
Bhaisa, buifalo.
Bhanjor.

Bhata, brinjal..
Birér, a cat.

Bordi.

Buru.

Cherabesari.
Cherchete, a shrub jungle.
Chik, a tribe.

Ch ownr, yak’s tail.
Dandpati.
Désabigha.
Dasbihé.

Daskaria, wild fowl.
Demta, a red tree-ant.
Dh ondh, a water-snake.
Dhunkro.
Dond-Chatra.
Gajbanié.

Ghogor.

Gh orébach.

Goal, cow.

Hekoria, tomato.
Hunjar.

Hurjor.

dia.

Kachua, tortoise.
Kansi, a grass.
Karunj ua, a. big black bird.
Kaua, crow.
Kesarari.

Kesré. ralmr dd].
Khechinjié.
Khutibaran.

Kirki.

Kukuria.

Kulhai.

Kulhasia.
Kunjakuli.
Kunjasiri.

Kurai.

Kusum, a. fruit.
Kutunjié.

Loha, iron.

Lowa.

Machiwar.

PA N.

Sub-castes.

l. Supé-Pargh 2'1.
2. Pal i yér-Parghé.

117

Sections.

Mahénadia, name of a river.
Mahatoar, a title.
Mahua, bassia latz'foh'a.
Malua.

Marai, wood-louse.
Mayur, peacock.
Mechari.

Mongri.

Mudu.

Mul.

Murchulia.

Mus, Musa, rat.

Nég, cobra.

Padowar.
Panchbiha, Panchbhia.
Panchhiah.

Purti.

Réjbansia.

Rajhasia. swan.
Raotia, crab.

Renta.

Saonsia.

Saruan.

Saul, a ﬁsh.

Sikra, hawk.

Silli, a place.
Sindhikuria, bull’s horn.
Sing, horn.

Singhi, ﬁsh.
Sinjhikaria.
Sonamati.
Sonkharika.
Sonkoko.

Totabari.

Urmakh ori.
Urmakuli.

18mg hé, Purify/ad.

 

 

Sections.
f-' A ..
Kumér. Pétar.
Ménjh i. Réi.
Marar. Ra ut.

Marik. Si yar.
thé. .

1‘18 PARHAIYA.

ﬁathaiya.
Titles :—Kberoar, Génj u, Manjh i.
Sub-tribe. Septs.
N 2']. Bég, tiger.
Gachai.

Gidh, vulture.
Fanigé, grasshopper.
Kaué, crow.

Mainé, a bird.

Nag, cobra.
Ophia.
Tetenga, bloodsuoker.
Wei.
Title :——Mahato.
Sub-castes. Section.
1. Byédhé- Kés apa.
2_ Gaiduhé. _ y
3_ Kéméni.
4,. Tirsulié.
Turk (Mahomedan).
ﬁétﬂi, Pdtum', Patamn', Dom-Pdtni.
Titles z—Gangéputra, Ghét-Ménjhi, Ménjhi, Pradhén.
Sub-castes. Sections.

1, Jét-Pét’ni.‘ . (a) Territorial—
2. Ghét:Patnl, Balaml or Bhadraghét.
Ghatwél. Jhinié.

3, Dom-Pétnj, Machhwé 0r Kélégéchi.
Nagémh" Kéliwélé.
4- Bénsphor. Naskarpuré.
5. Dégaré. Paréménik.
Préchir.
Réipur.
Saidébéd.
Sétté.
Tentulié.
(b) Eponymous—h
Alyamén.
Eater.
Title :— Mahto.
Sub-tribe. , Septs.
Nz‘l. Bhengraj, kingcrow.

Charak, a festival.
Kachua, tortoise.
Katun.

Kerwéri, a tribe.

PATOR. 1 I9

Sub-tribe. Septs.

Maitbukru, place where he buries his
bones, being his ancestral birthplace.

Nég, cobra.

Samatti.

Sandilai.

Sarihin.

Silli, place where he buries his bones,
being his ancestral birthplace.

Taw.

ﬁﬂh, Padmardj, Clutsi.

Titles z—Baidya. Biswés, Héldér, Kayél, Laskar, Mandal, '
Mistri, Péik, Pétra, Pundari Kékhya, Sapui, Sarkér.

Sub-castes. Sections.
Bégande. Alamyén.
Banglé; Dhénesri.
Chési-Pod. Késyapa.
Khotté 01' Mauné. Maudgalya or Madhu
Uriyé. Kulya.

Eiéjput, Kshatriya, C/elzatri 01‘ C/ehetri, Bd/ny'a, Bhupdl,
Blmpatz', Blmsur.

Titles :—Bébu. Baraik, Barman, Khén, Malik, Mandal, Réi,
Réut, Sémant, Singh, Sipéhi, Thékur.

 

Sub-tribes. Septs.

In Be/zar— I ﬂ
Suryabansi, Amaithié. Chaubarié.
Surajbansi. Baghail or Baghel. Chaubném.l

Baréhi. Dandwér.
Baraié. Gaharwér.
Bargéir. Gautam.
Beséin.‘ Harihobans.
Bhadarié. dasatbér.
Bharsurié. Kachhwéh.
Birwé. Kékan.
Chandail. Kanwar.

 

1 Beséin, Chaubhén, and Mahraur cannot intermarry, being supposed to
be descended from the same ancestor.

120

Sub-tribes.

Chandrabansi.
Sombansl.

Agnikul.
Bhojpurié.
dadubansi.

In Obota Nagpur—

Septs.

RAJ PUT.

 

K'arnwér.
Khéti.
Kinwér.
Kulchul ié.
Kulharié.
Kurminié.
Maulwar.
Nikumbh.
Nimundih.
Pamér.
Parihar.
Raghubansi.
Réhtaur.
Rakséin.
Réné.

Malwe or Mér-Réjput.

Ranauni?
Séngir.
Sarnié.
Sirnait.
Sirnié.
Sisodhié.
Somwér.
Sukalnaki -
Sukarbér.
Surkh i.
Surwér.
Tarwér.
Tilauté.
Tongar.
Ujain.
Bais.
Banaudhié.
Barnér.
Budhbansi.
Damarwér.
Dangar.
Eh- A’r.
Gah laut.
Kai lwér.
Kapur.
Kausik.
Kusbansi.
Mahraur. 1
Narauni.
Nauthni or Lautni.
Nisan.
Oh-A’r.
Sabarnié.
Sakarwér.
Sengar.
Subansi.
Sulankhi.
Tekha.
Tetié.

Chaudhrié.
Mahto.
M51! 3.

 

 

1 Beséin, Chaubhén, and Mabraur cannot intermarry, being supposed to
be descended from the same ancestor.

RKJ PUT.

Sub-tribes.

In Bardwom Division—-

Bélgori.
Baradéi.
Mulki.

121

Septs.

The following septa are common to all the sub-tribes of Réjputn

in Behar :—

Ah ir-Péik.
Ataié.
Athral.
Béchh i l.
Banémpur.
Banéphar.
Bardh ié.
Bardié.
Barhwatié.
Barnié.
Basbarié.
Bash arié.
Beruér.
Bhadanié.

Bhalesultén.

Bhandéri.

Bharchuihé.

Bhatgéiné.
Bhora.
Bhuthé.

B ich i la.
Bijhunié.
Binrié.
Bisokié.
Bundelé.
Chakwén.
Chalhuk.
Dhén.
Dhaul.
Dhekhé.
Dh or.
Diksh it.
Donwér.
Dorowér.
Durgbansi.
Géigwér.
Géin.
Gajkesar.

Gandhaurié.

Ganhwarié.
Gargbansi.
Garhwér.

Gaudhanié.
Gauléni.
Gaura.
Gehuané.
Héré.
Huddé.
dédan.
dédawér.
Jadubansi.
Kachnarié.
Kakir.
Kélhans.
Kémar.
Kanakwér.
Kandwér.

Karangarh yé.

Karchol ié.
Karjhul ié.
Karmwér.
Karsé.
Khénné.
Kharbah ié.
Khét.
Khechar.
Korwér.
Kuch hainé.
Kuké.
Kukurbans.
Kundai l.
Kusbhabéni.
Lahtaur.
Léhuﬁé.
Lékat.
Lohtamié.
Lu kum.
Madhwél.
Mah uér.
Méndiér.
Maralbai.
Marh wér.
Mariér.
Maunachh .

Maunas.
Meh ré.
Mehri.
Mendru.
Négbansi.
N imri.
Pachhanié.
Pachtarié.
Pai lwér.
Pélki.
Phetié.
PunduL
Puru bansi.
Rachhuéni.
Rai kwér.
Réjkuar.
Rajwér.
Rekhaur.
Raksel.
Rankwér.
Rorah.
Sankarwér.
Segul.
Sihogié.
ilewér.
Sind urié.
Singh inié.
irmaur.
Sirnet.
Sisonié.
Sombansi.
Sukulbans.
Surnair.
Taié.
Témér.
Tannén.
Taunr.
Tend un.
Tiér.
Ti lakchandi.
U I it.

122

RKJPUT.

The Réjputs also use the Brahmanical gotms or sections, of
which the following are generally found in the caste :—

Baiégh rapad.
BétSya.
Bharadwéja.

Sub-castes.

Déiné or Chauén.

Bainé.

Sér.
Béghéi or Béghél.

Sub-castes.

Angrok or Angwér.

Chapwér.
Sikharié.
Sukulkéré.
Bar-Gohri
Majhal-Turiyé
Berré-Rajwér

Title :——Sinha.

@hajlnér, Rdjbamo'.
Title :— Méhato.

} In Lohardagé.

Parésara.
Prasidha.
Sa’mdilya.

Sections.

N :1.

Sections.

Bhogté.
Chépé.
Chirra, squirrel.
Dorihér-jogi.
Karhar, a fruit.
KéSyapa.
Katwér.
Kharakwér.
Lathaur.
Loharétengi.
Majhiya.
Marrik.
Matwéré.

Nag, cobra.
Rikhi.
Sankwé.
Singh.

RAUTIA.

Sub-caste.
l. Bar-Gohri.
2. Chhot-Gohri.

123‘

Eiautia, Rant.
Titles :-Baréik, Gaunjhu, Kotwér.

Sections ( paris or got).

(a) T otemz‘stic—

Aind. the eel.

Karsul.

Késh ib, tortoise.

Kési, a kind of grass (Sacclzarum
spontaneum .9).

Kétoér or Garur, vulture.

Kharak, sword.

Kharié, blade of grass.

Koyé, the wild dog.

Manjar, cat.

Nég, snake.

Rukhi, squirrel.

Sanwani.

Téngi, an axe.

(b) Eponymoue—

Bésudeo.
Chandramani.
Jogi.

Kumér.
Ménjhi.
Séndilya.
Siva.

(c) Territorial—

(d)

Baghel.
Kanthwér.
Kharakwér.

[Dacertm’n—

Chatgohri.
Kabar.
Kherkoa r.
Kum.
Kundil.
Lachh.
Léthaur.
Suran.

124 SADGOP.

533139011, Satgop, Chdsd.
Titles :—Békundi, Biswés. Dés, Ghosh, Konr. Neogy. Pal,

Sarkér, Sur.
Sub-castes. Sections.
(Of Paschim Kuliyé.)
Paschim Kuliyé. Alamyén.
. Ghosh. Késyapa.
Purbba KUI'yé Sarbesia. Maudgalya.
Séndilya.

HYPERGAMOUS DIVISIONS.

(a) Q)" the Pasc/n'm Kuh'yd subecaste.
Kulin (Bhélki, Kénkshe, Praharéj, Siur).
Somaj.
Pratihér (Bangram and Gogrém).
Maulik.

(6) 0f the Purbba Kulig/ci sub-caste in Midnapur.
Kulin (Biswés, Neogi, Sur).
Maulik.

(0) 0f the Purbba Kuliyd sub-caste in Murslzedabad.

Konr-Gop, who take their wives from other Sadgops,
but give their daughters only in their own group.

ﬁéithhéri, Sankhakdr, Sank/Iabanik.

Titles z—Bandhu, Bhadra, Chandra, Das, Datta,Dhar, Kar,
Kundu, Nég, Nandi, Sen, Sur.

Sub-castes. Sections.
Bara-Bhégiya or Bikrampur Alyamén.
Sénkhari. Brahmarishi.
Chota-Bhégiya or Sunargaon Geutama.
Sénkhari. Gargya.
KéSyapa.
Madhukulya.
Mobrishya.
Parésara.

Séndilya.

 

SANTKL.

125

gauhﬂ, Sdonfdr, Kharwdr or Semi-Hm:

Titles:-—Buné.. Mandal, Ménjhi, Pradhén, Sardér.

Sub-tribes z—Deswéli Santél, Kharwér or Safé-Hcr.

Septs.
Béski

Bediyé (sheep ?)

Besré. hawk

Ch onre

Hansda,
goose.

Hemrom, Hembaram, betel <

palm.

Kisku

Hasdak,

Sub-septa.

Nij.
Sédé.
Nil.
'Bundra.
Kahu,crow.
Kéré, buffalo.
< Nij.
Sédé.
Sibala.
Son.
LSung.
Nil.

'Barwér.

Chilbindhé, eagle-slayer.

d ihu, a bird.

wild Kerwar.

Ménjhi-Khil.

Niéki-Khil.

Nij.

Roh-Lutur, ear-pierced.

KSéldéi.

’Déntela, so called from their
breeding pigs with very large
tusks for sacriﬁcial purposes.

Gué, areca nut.

dahun

Kumér.

Laher.

Néiké-Khil.

Nij.

R oh -Lutu r, ear-pierced.

LUh.

rAbar.

Ah.

Kach ué, tortoise.

Lé’c, bake meat in a leaf-platter.
,..4 N63, cobra.

N IJ.
Roh-Lutur.
Sédé.
LSoma I, deer.

 

A

 

126 SANTAL.

Septs. Sub-septa.

’Buru-birit, of the hills.
Kekra, crab.

Laher.

Ménjhi-Khil.

Niaki- Khil.

Nij-

Roht, pdm'mm tree.
LSéd

Mérnd i, grass

A

{Bit/1|.

Boar, ﬁsh.
Chopeér.
Génr, fort.
Héndi, earthen vessel.
Murmu, nilgai ...4 Muro.

Nij.

Sédé.

Sangda.
Sikiyé, a chain.
LTikké.

 

 

Paurié or Paulié Nil.

(Barchi. spearmen.

Hét.

dogi.

“ Lat.

. Mél.

Saren the constellatlon -
- ’ - < Mundu or Badar,adenseJun 1e.
Pleiades. NU g

Sankh, conch shell.

Sidup or Siduk, a bundle of

straw.
LTurku.

"Agarié, charcoal- burners.

Chigi. Chiki, impale.

Dantela, breed pigs with very
large tusks for sacriﬁcial pur-
poses.

Lét, bake meat in a leaf-platter.

Tudu .. < Manjhi-Khil.

Naiki-Khil.

Ni.

Ro‘h- Lutur, ear-pierced.
. Séda.
LSung.

 

SANTAL.

Septs.

Adeb.
Aind, a kind of eel.
Bansdeo.

Sub-septa.

§étéh Srdwak, Srdvaka.

Sub-caste.

Nil.

garaogi.

Sub-caste.

N 2'].

Sections.

Adyeb.
Ananta.

Machli, ﬁsh.

Séndilya.

Sections.

Kastuwél.
Sogani.
Kodar.
Pétni.
Bhainsé.
Chaunré.
Soni.
Gadiyé.
Dosi.
Bakliwél.
Koteri.
Pét’odi.
Péndré.
Séh.
Kélé.
Barjétya.
Bilélé.
Tariyé.
Pépriwél.
Chariwél.
dénjhri.
Pahérié.

128

SARNAKAR.

§amahar, Sekrd, Sarna-Kdmdr.

Titles :—

Sub-castes. Sections.
Bréhmandesi. Bharadwéja.
Dakhin-Rérh i. Késyap.
Khatangi. Sabanta-Rishl.
Uttar-Rérh i. Sénd i lya.

Sarish i.

gahar, Sabar, Saar, Sar, Sayar, Sm'r, Swa'ri.

Sub-tribes.

Bendkar.
dharué.
Palli.
Parira.

Sherpa-ﬁltati

Rui, Thar

Chah-ba.
Dong-ha.
d ing—ba.

Minag—pé.

Nah-Dé ”J

 

Non-pal.
Shyang—ba.

K

Septs.
((1)7 Totemz'stic—

Késibak, heron.
Sélméchh, ﬁsh.

(b) Eponymous—
Ga rgarish i .
Sénd i lya.

a of Nepal, Kkam, Sdlékkd, Nag~0kleang Slacks/mg.

or Septs.

. (Bhinésé, S. Biudsa, destroyed; occupier of a

deserted village.
Goleg—pé, Go, a head, and leg, good ; the peaceful.
Manding, Man, medicine; a practiser of medicine.
Pang-Karmo, Pang, pasture, and Karma, white;
a. dweller on pasture table lands.
Sélék-khé, a merchant carrying on trade.
Taig-tog—pé. Tag or brag, a. rock; a. dweller on
cliffs.
Tsegkhim-pé, Tseg, a wall, and Klu'm, a house ;
a dweller in stone or walled house.

Sser-Gomba.
Sser-Lungchan.

Sserpa.

Sser-Phen-zangné.

Weh-ba.

 

SONAR.

129

$011“, Kdin, Rangdhdrid, Zargar.
Titles :—Chaudhri, Poddér, Séhu.

Sub-castes.

Ajodhyébési.
Aj odh yépurl.
Bais.
Bhojpurié.
Gaur.
Kamarkalla.
Kanauj ié.
Mair.

Orié.

Sections.

 

Ain ié.
Aminépur.
Anri I.
A8waria.
Béguém.
Barmait.
Barni.
Bath ue’c.
Belhé.

Bhaunréjpuri.

Bhekh.
Bibarh ié.
Bihéri.

Bi lar.
Bilaurié.
Borhé.
Chalhaké.
Chauswér.
Ch ithé.
Ch onrhé.
Dénrsurié.

Dhakaichhé.

Dhaundrié.
Dubaith ié.
Dumrahar.
Fatehpuri.
Ganesié.
Ganet.
Garahié.
Gehani.

Gh iohaddé.

Hamdébédi.

Hanumén.
Hardiwél.

dakhalpurié.

damélpuri.

 

Janakpuri.

J osiém.
Karbhaié.
Kastuér.

Kési.

KéSyab.
Katalpuri.
Kokarsé.
Kothédomar.
Loh atié.
Machh i lha.
Mach i.
Makundpuri.
Marich-bhuswa l.
Marj-bh uswal.
M irch wan.
Musamié.

N oinj oré.
Pachpékar.
Parién.
Prohé-Kerauté.
Réjgrih i.
Rémpuri.
Rautar.
Saharwér.
Sakaddi.
Samundar-Kh oré.
Silaich ié.
Simar.
Sisaundié.
Scchari.
Soncheri.
Sonpurié.
Sulténpurié.
Te janié.

Tel ihé.

gnharnabzmik, Bania’, Banika, SarnabamT/c, szafrbam'd.

Barél, Barddhan, Chandra, Dén, Dés,
Datta, De. Dhar, Léhé, Mallik, MandaE, Nandi,
Néth, Pél, Poddér. Réi, Sen, Sil, Sinha.

Titles z—Aldhya,

Sub-castes.
Bangaja.
Dakhin-Rérhi.
Uttar—Rérh i.

Saptagrémi or Nadiyé.

Sections.

Aliman.
Bharadwéja.
Brahma-Rishi.
Gautama.

. 9

130 SUBARNABANIK.

Sub-castes. , . Sections.
J Késyapa.
~ Madhukulya.
Hypergumous groups— . Maudgalya.
Négrishi.
Kulin. - Parésara.
Maul i k. - Sébarna..
Séndilya.
Sureswari. I
V Vyésa.
§uhhé.
Titles :—Amé\yat, Beheré, Dehuri.
Sub-castes. , Sections.
Bara-Sudhé. Nil.
Séno or Kabétkonié Sudhé.
Pailé-Sudhé.
Butké-Sudhé.

ﬁuhm, Ghuldm-Kdyasth.
Titles z—Bhandéri, Shikdér.

Sub-caste. Sections.
‘ None. A'limmén.
Maudgalya.
Vasishtha.
Sukli.

Sub-castes. Sections.
Barabhéiyé. Alyamén.
Béhattarghari. KéSyapa.
Dasasai. Séndilya.

51111131, Hmm', Sm'i, Suﬁdz', Samzdz'lca, Sim/3a, Ohalz'ta-Sau.

Titlesz—In Bengal—Bhakta, Bhuiyé, Chaudhri, Dés, Deori,
Dgryodhan, Kir’ctan, Majumdér, Mandal,
Nlrbhaya, Poddér, Pradhén, Réi.

In Bekar—Bhandéri, Chaudhri, Lél, Mandar, Ménjhi,
Modi, Mohésib, Saho.

Sub-castes. Sections.
In Bankum—
Mandéfane.
Singhazéri. KéSyapa.
d aibele. '

Dh'olo.

 

SUN RI.

Sub-castes.

In Bardwan and Matrs/eedabad—

‘ - Bérendra.
Sau 01‘ Chalnta-Sau Rérhi.
Bich, distillers.

Sundl Palésram.

Chaturésrém or Chaturthan, vegetable-sellers.

Barnakule.

In Maldak -

Mani.
Shirashina.
dogidasi.
Duarbandh a.

In Eastern Bengal-—

Rérhi.
Banga.
Banger Rérhi.
Rérher Rérhi.
(PhuL
' Kul.
Aiché.
Bérendra "'< Panchsaméj.
. Mahendra Khyénl.
LMaughé.
Majlishi.

In ﬂppera/a—
Rarhi, Panch asié.

Athérachuré.
Barendra-o- Chhaphulié.
In Noakkali—
. Mul.
Rérhl Phul.
Mul.
Barendra Phul.
In Santdl Pargcmds—
Bich.
Bérendra.
Chaturthén.
Paripél.
Kulsunri.
In Along/lyr—
Sagéhut.
Biyéhut.
Gaunjhu.

13f

Sections. ' V

A'Iédasi. .

-» -»Bé.mrési. _'

Gégarish.
Séndilya.

Alamyén.

AI iman.
Gautama.
Késyapa.
Maudgalya.

Gégrish. -
Andrish.
Madrish. ‘

I Séndilya.

132

Sub-castes.

In Bhagalpur -

Kulsunri.
Ganjwar.

Dhukankoré.

Barpéré.
Sagéh ut.
Biyéh ut.
B itwér.
Maghaiyé.
Bangié
Darchué.
Purbiya.
Sikh oria.

In Tirhut—
Maghaiya.
Sagahut.

B iyéhut.
Darchué
Kalwér.
Sokirié.
Chaurthén.

In Patna—
B iyéh Ut.
Sagéh ut.
Kh ajkal ié.
Bishtwér.
Bhangeré.

.Manb/mm—
Biyahut.
Lakargarhé.
Alriyar.
Maghaiyé.
Sikhariyé.
Chaturthén.
Sagéhut.
Paripél.
Holongwér.

9}

II

Sections.

Bharwe.
Bichhu.
Biér. ‘
Chaudhri.

. Dobar.

Gain.
Géré.
Garain.
Héth i.
Kapri.
Kérak.
Kasyapa.
Khan.
Khérgé.

SUN BI.

Mahéset.
Mahton.
Mandar.
Marar.
Mehran.
Néik.
Panjiéra.
Pardhén.
Parihér.
Purbe.
Réut.
Sadé.
Satré.

r Kémti.
| Mandar.

Of the Kulsunri sub-caste< Ménjhi.

0f the Paripél

sub-caste.

Kasyapa.

| Mehtar.
LSah u.

(Andrishi, a rope of untanned

Kach, crab.

but

 

hide, with which the yoke 18
fastened to the plough.

Madrish i, honey-bee.

Bandrisi, ﬁsh.

< Nagrishi, snake.

Sandi! or Sanrishi, a bull.
The members of the section do
not castrate their own cattle,

purchase bullocks and

L sell their own bulls.

‘SUNU-WA R. 133

gum-unﬁt, S’onwdr.

Them or septs.

W
Bréhmilché. Pérgéché.
Chhépétiché. Rahpéché.
Durbiché. Rujiché’.
deshkuché. Shushiché.
despuché. Thholéché.
d ijicha. Tholoché. {
direl. Thumuché.
Kétiché. Wangdehché.
Khyongpotiché. Yaktaché.
Kintiché. Yeti.
Kyahbohché.

Liokiché.

Sumhipﬁ, Suraz’yd, Soralzaig/d, Kalwat-Malldk.

Titles:-—dal Chhatri, Marar.

Section.

Kés yapa.

§utrztblmr, C/t/z'uta'r.
Titlesz—Datta, De, Kar, Mistri, Kundu, Pél.

Sub-castes. Sections.
Akrur-Paraménanda ﬁlamrishi.
Chaturan-Khén , lamyén.
Mén-Gaurénga In Murshedabad. Késyapa.
Gopél-Kéri kar ,,. Séndilya.

Bénrishi. .
Kanakrishi.
Madhukulya.

Ket-Chhutér
Paturé-Chhutér In the Santél
Naga re-C hhutér . . . Parganés.
Bhar-Chhutar

.134 SUTRADHAR.

Sub-castes. . .~ ~ _ ' Sections.

Chhutér ”J
Séitgharié
Challisgharié
Sri
Srikrishna fIn Noakhali.1
Séini
Déturié

Béni '
Duman

Ari
Mandaréné
Bardwéniyé2 .. )In Western Bengal.
Kharipéré

Goalabhuiyéz J

Chhutér

Churé-Kuti In Daeca.

Kéturié .

000‘

 

 

‘ The Chhntér appear to be carpenters properly so called, .while the
other eight groups are endogamous subdivisions of the Churé—Kutl sub-caste

found in Dacca. .
2 Of late years these two groups have begun to mtermarry.

‘ﬁiémhuli, Témulz', Tdmli.

Chaudhri, Chail, Datta, De, Khur, Pél, Pénti, Rakshit.
Titles :— Sen, Singh (in Bengal).
Bhakat, Khili-wélé, Négbansi, Paiti (in Belmr).

Sub-castes. _ . Sections.

(a) In Bengal— ' (a) In Bengal-—
Saptagrémi or Kusadéye. Késyapa.
Biyéllisgrémi. Parésara.
.Chauddagrémi. Séndilya.
Bardhaméni. Vyésa.
Ashtagrémi or Kataki.’

(b) In Belaar— (d) In Baker—-
' Magah i yé. None.
Tirhutié.

Bhojpurié.
Kanaujié.
Kurram.
Karan.

Surya-dv 35a.

TA’N TI.

135

($351113, Tantrabdya, Tantubdya, Tatwd.

Titles :-—In Bengal—Barash, BaSak, Bhadya-bau. Bit, Chand.
Chhagri (goat), Dalal (broker), Das, Datta, De, Gui,

Hansi, déchandar (appraiser),

Kar, Lu, Manda],

Mesha (sheep), Muhkim (supervisor), Nandi, Pal,
Pramanik, Sadhu, Sardar, Sarkar, Sil.

In Belmr—Dés, Mahto, Manjhi, Marar, Marik.

Sub-castes.

In Bengal—

(Bardwana.

| Barna-kul.

< Madhyakul.

#2??? | Mandarona.

LUttarkul.

Balarémi.

Banga.
Baré-bhégiyé. 0r

' péniya.

Bérendra.

Chhota-bhégiyé or Kéyath-
Ténti.

Kéture.

Koré.

Kshir.

Madhukari.

Magi.

Mariéli.

Nir.

Péttar.

Purandari.

Purbbakul.

Rérhi.

Uddhabi.

Aswini

IJ hém-

In Behar—

Baiswara.
Banaudhia.
Chamér.
daiswér.
Kahér.
Kanaujié.
Tirhutia.
Uttarhé.

In Orissa—

Mé’tibans-Ténti.
Gélr’I-Ténti.
Hansi-Ténti.

Sections.

A’gastya Rishi.
Aladésh i.
Alamyén.
Attri-rish i.
Bararési.
BétSya.
Bharadwéj.
Biswémitra.
Brahmérishi.
Garga-rish i.
Gautam.
uanarésh i.
KéSyapa.
Kulya RishI.
Madhukulya.

' Parasara.

Sandilya.
Sabarna.

Vyasa.

Chamértai i.
Hindué.
Kasyab.

136

TELL

(Edi, Tili, Cizakrz', Garai, Kala, Rausan, Tailakér, Tailz', Tae'lika,

T ail-Pdl.

Titles :—In Bengal—Chaudhri, De, Dhabal, Kundu, Koleman,

Mandal, Masanta, Nandi, Pél, Paréménik,
Parihara, Sédkhén, Shéhé, Sit.

In Bdrm—Behara, Chaudhri, Dafédér, Gorai, Kapri,

Néik, Poddér, Séhu, Shéhé, Télukdér.

Sub-castes. Sections.
Aliman.
Chandrarishi.
Kéchim.
Kalmi.
Késyap.
. Madhukulya.
In Bengal—
Anwarpuri. Maudgalya.
Bérendra. Bi krampur. Nég.
Chandradwip. N iskalanka.
Gangabisayi. Niyérishi.
Subarnabisayi. Séndilya.
Tulatia.
In Palma—
Barapatti. Sindhurishi.
Chhotapatti.
Déspéré.
Govindpurié.
Bhunjé Teli.
Dwédas. Bérahazéri.
Bardwané.
Chhégulié‘.
Méndarané.
Maureswari.
Singhazéri.
Ekédas. Chinpurié.
Haludboné.
Fatehsing. Manoharshéhi.
Swarupsing.
Géchhué or Ghané Teli.
Kalu. Desle.
Mésle.
Pishle.
Kutabpuri.
Maghad Khandi.
Rérhi.
Saptagrémi.
Senbhumié.

Sikharié or Sindurtopé.

TE LI.

Sub-castes.

I n Orissa—

Abhirém.
Ekédas.
Géudé.
Haldié.
Kalu.
Tulatia.
In Belmr—
Aréiyé.
Barhérié.
Biéh ut.
Desi.
Hermanié.
danakpuri.
daunpuri.
Kanaujié.
Khuskhelia.
Lathaur.
Maghaiyé. Sahu.
Naik.
Kapri.
Géim.
Garain.
lndrabéré.
Mahéseth.
Mihtar.
Malik.
Mandar.
Mahto.
Panjiér.
Sangwe.
Tharmait.
Masnath.
Sarwarié.
Tirhutié.

Turkié.

137

Ba’n or sections.

I n Shahabad—

Demah é.

Dhobahé.

d hagaréhé.
Rath-charh-bagh-marwé.

Boria.

Hérpati, ‘.plough-owner.’
Khargpur.

Musipur.

Telhari.

Tulsi.

Bh usiwar.

Kapri.

Pata-Ratnauli.

Lélgémia.
Mihtar.
Pata—Ratnauli.
Tel igamia.

.138‘

Subwcastes.

In 011 Old N agpnr—

Dakhini.
Haldia.

H iapela.
Kanaujia.
Maghaya.
Mathuria.

Hypergamous groups in Bengal—

Paréménik.
Koleman or Kalu.

TELL

Sections.

In Lokardagd—
Kérak.
Késyapa.
Péndiéin.

In Sing/Mum—

Négasya.
Pakhichété.
Barharoa, a fruit.
Kachué, tortoise.
Kansi, a kind of grass.
Nég, cobra.

Pandki, dove.

rQ'Ehzéru.

Titlesz—Barwéik, Khén, Mahto, Réi.

Sub-tribes.

In Belmr—

Rautér.

Gaurihér.

Marichwér.
Khawésiyé, including—-
Bébhan-Khawésiyé.
Donrehé-Khawésiyé.
Dhotiyé-Khawésiyé.

Khatkalé.

Bantar, including—
Dhelphorwé-Bantar.
Kath Katwé—Bantar.

Bot.

Batewér.

In Nepal—

Chitwanié or Chitaunié.

Belwadhiya.
Kochila.
Iswéjitauni.

Septs.

Chaudhri.
Dahait.
Dés.
Gauro.
Guro.
in general.\ Khojwér.

Mahaut.
Mahto.
Patwéri.

- Réi.

\ Raut.

Bénth.
Of the Rau- Bhénr.
tér sub- Chautarié.
tribe. Chitaunihél.1
Dahait.

 

‘ They are notorious for charms and spells.

TH XRU.

Subtribes.

In Nepal—conoluded.
Naué.
Purbiyé.

139

Septs.

Dangwaria.
Danrehé or Gaunhé.
Donwér.

Gaharbéri.
Gaharwér.

Gauro. - ~
Kachhriyé.“ '

Kéji.Q

Kanphaté.
Katharié.

Of the Rau- Khon.

tér sub-

Koch i lé.

tribe-con— Konhar.

eluded.

1 They are notorious for charms and spells.
2 These groups are said to have recently become endogamous.

Lampochhé.
Mahto. 2
Majhiaur.
Mardanié, barber.
Nawalpurié.‘
thaiyé.
Patwétri.2

Rai.

Senthé.

Sokhait.

 

r

@ipptmh, T riprd, M'ung.

Sub-tribes.
N 17.

Septs.
A'fang.
Aialong.
Fadung.
Gaibing.
Garjang.
Harbang.
Husoi.
dumétya.
Kékulu.
Kéli.
Keoya.
Mising.
Mongbai.
Naith ung.
Nowattia.
Osui.
Puran.
Riéng.
Tungbai.

14o . TIYAR.
‘ﬁIipar, Tier, Tier, Rdjbansz', Machkud.
Titles :—Chaudhri, C‘hharidér, Malléh, Manjhan, Marar,

Mukhfar.

Sub-castes. Sections.
Réjbansi or Tilak Dés. Itbél or Itbér.
Surajbansi. Késyapa.
Nal Tiyar. Jai Singh.

Found by Buchanan in Bizagalpur—
Bémanjagya.
Govariyé.

Hypergamous Divisions—

Pradhén.

Paréménik.

Gana.

@uri, Tori.
Sub-castes. Sections.

Turi or Kisén-Turi. (a) Totemz'stic—
ggin. Bar, Ficus Indz'ca.
Domré. Charhad, tlger.

Hansdé, Wild goose.
Hastaddé, eel.
lnduar, a kind of eel.
Jariér. lizard.
Kabhhué, tortoise.
Kerketa, a kind of bird.
Samp, snake.
Saur, ﬁsh.

‘ Sumat, deer.
Suren, a kind of ﬁsh.
Tirki, mouse.
Toppo, bird.

(6) Uncertain—

Bagehér.
Charchégiya.
Médalwar.
Mal.
Panchbhaia.
Surinwér.
Tamagandiyé.
Tirkuar.

VAISYA. . 141
mmya.

Titles :—Arya, Bhumisprik, Bhumijivi, Dwija, Panik,
Banik, Byanaharta, Uravya, Uruja.

Sub-caste. Sections.
Nil. Aliman.
Kasyapa.
Kétyéyana.
Madhukul iya.
Séndilya.
1981:1111.
Sub-tribes. Septs.
Phégu. {Manem—ma.
Lh orong. Mangthog.
Yamphu. Okrabo.
Sing-yangma.

 

Of the Phégu
‘ . Songyokpa.
sub-tube. 4! Thungong-hehta-

Th upra.
[Ya k-kyukpa.
Yoksuma.

 

APPENDIX II.

 

PROCEEDINGS OF CONFERENCE ON ETHNOGRAPHY OF
NORTHERN INDIA, HELD AT LAHORE ON THE
18TH To 221“) MARCH 1885.

{ﬁtment :-

MR. D. C. J. IBBETSON, .
Director of Public Instruction, Panjdb.

,, J. C. NESFIELD,
Inspector of Schools, O-urilz.

,, H. H. RISLEY,
On Special Duty, Bengal.

THE members of the Conference met at Mr. Ibbetson’s ofﬁce.
Mr. Risley explained that he had come to Lahore, with the
permission of the Government of Bengal, to consult Messrs. Ibbetson
and Nesﬁeld in consequence of certain demi-oﬂicial suggestions
received from Mr. FitzPatrick, Secretary to the Government of
India in the Home Department. He stated that the Government
of Bengal had decided to make an exhaustive enquiry into the
castes and occupation of the people of these provinces, based upon
the statistics recorded in the census of 1881, and had placed him
on special duty for two years for that purpose. He laid before the
meeting (2') a draft note setting forth the objects to be aimed at
in the enquiry and the means to be adopted to obtain those objects,
consistently with giving the minimum of trouble to the regular
administrative staff ; (ii) a set of ethnographic questions framed
so as to facilitate the collection of fresh data in a systematic form
through the agency of district ofﬁcers, and of such private indivi-
duals as might be Willing to give assistance in the matter. He
asked the other members to assist him with such criticism as their
experience of ethnographic enquiries might suggest. Messrs.
Ibbetson and N esﬁeld, while ready and willing to assist to the best
of their ability in discussing the papers in question, felt unable,
without due leisure for consideration, to commit themselves to any
ﬁnal opinion as to the form that would be best suited for adoption
in their respective provinces, should it eventually be decided to set
such an enquiry on foot in those provinces.

In the absence of precise ofﬁcial instructions as to their functions,
it appeared to the officers present that all they could usefully do
was to indicate, with as much completeness as the circumstances
under which they were called together admitted of, the direction
in which, ethnographic enquiries of the kind under description
might best be pursued by any Local Government which might

144

think it desirable to undertake them. With this view the members
of the Conference. prepared a note on certain difﬁcult points of
ethnographlc termlnology, a series of general questions calculated
to elicit the sallent characteristics of the Several castes, and a set
of spe01al questions dealing with caste customs in greater detail
to be used by those whom inclination might lead to pursue the;
subject further. These papers form annexures A, B and O to these
proceedings: It would remain for the Local Governments and
Administrations concerned to determine in what manner the sugges-
tions contained in them should be utilized.

At_ the present stage of the proceedings, and while the data
have still to be collected, the members of the Conference did not
feel prepared to consider the form in which the ﬁnal results should
be arranged and recorded.

DENZIL C. J. IBBETSON.
JOHN G. NESFIELD.

H. H. RISLEY.

A.

Suggestions regarding some doubtful points of Ethnographic
nomenclature.

MUCH confusion is often caused by the indeterminate use of the

various terms applied to the divisions upon which society in India
is based. It seems that some attempt to deﬁne more precisely the
nature of the groups to which these terms should respectively be
applied might usefully be made, and the following is set forth as
a suggestion.
‘ The group organization commonly follows one of two main
types—(1) the caste, (2) the tribe. The former may be deﬁned as
the largest group based upon community of occupation; the latter
as the largest group based upon real or ﬁctitious community of
descent, or upon common occupation of territory.

Within the caste we ﬁnd the sub-caste, and within the sub-caste
the section. The sub-caste may be deﬁned as the smallest endogamous
group, and the section as the largest exogamous group, Within the
caste. No lower unit than the section need be regarded. The limits
of the caste and sub-caste will occasionally be identical, there being
no smaller endogamous groups included under a common caste name
based on occupation.

Within the tribe we ﬁnd many subdivisions. The smallest
endogamous group within the tribe may be called the sub-tribe,
which, as before, will occasionally coincide with the tribe. The
largest exogamous group within the tribe may be called the sept,
and no lower unit than this need be cousidered. Divisions interme-
diate between the sub-tribe and sept may, where they exist, be
termed clans and sub-clans.

145

Some cases will occur in which the two types will run into each
other, the caste based,upon occupation being made up of tribes or
tribal fragments based upon community of descent. In these cases
the terminology of each type will be followed so far as the organiza-
tion stands upon the same basis as the type, and no further.

It might be explained that the Brahmanical gotms have, in
many cases, been adopted by or imposed upon castes and tribes in
addition to their proper caste or tribal divisions. In such cases the
gotms are not what is wanted: what is wanted is the organic divisions
and subdivisions of the caste and tribe, not unusually called got by
the people themselves, as distinguished from gotra in the strict Brah-
manical sense. Occasionally these organic divisions and the gotms
are identical ; but Where the latter are distinct from, and have been
superimposed upon, the former, the gotms run through the divisions,
the same division often, though not always, including several got/us,
while, on the other hand, the same gotm is found in several divisions.
The Brahmanical gotms are chieﬂy used by the ofﬁciating priest at
marriage and the ceremony of arm/calp, and are often unknown to
the people themselves without reference to their priests.

DENZIL C. J. IBBETSON.
JOHN C. NESFIELD.

H. H. RISLEY.

B.
ETHNOGRAPHIC QUESTIONS.
General Series.

1. Write in English and vernacular the name of the
caste with synonyms, if any, noting if any of these are used only by
outsiders.

2. Write in English and vernacular the names of the exogam-
ous subdivisions of the caste, if such subdivisions exist.

N. B.—By the term exogamous subdivision is meant a group
from within which its male members cannot take their wives.

3. Show the endogamous divisions of the caste, if such divisions
exist. If these divisions consist of groups of the subdivisions
mentioned in question 2, show the grouping. If they are distin-
guished by separate names, write the names in English and
vernacular.

N.B.—By the term endogamous division is meant a group
from outside of which its male members cannot take their Wives.

4. State the limits within or beyond which marriage
prohibited, (2.9., that a man must marry within the caste, but must
not marry into his own or certain other subdivisions, or within
certain degrees of relationship, or may not marry two sisters.

10

146

5. Name any prohibitions on inter-marriage based upon (a)
social status, (6) geographical or local position, (a) differences of
religious belief or practice, (0!) diiferences or changes of occupation.

6. State the popular tradition, if any exists, as to the origin
of the caste, naming the common ancestor, if any, the part of the
country from which the caste is supposed to have come, and the
approximate time of its emigration, as marked by the reign of any
particular king, or the occurrence of any historical event, together
with the number of generations supposed to have intervened.

7. Is the habit of the caste settled or wandering ? Have they
any recognized head-quarters in the province? If wandering, over
what tract of country do they wander ? Are their migrations
periodical or irregular, and what are the shape and material of their
dwellings ? -

8. Do they admit outsiders into the caste ? If so, from what
classes, by what forms, and under what conditions ?

9. Is marriage infant or adult? ‘ If the latter, is sexual license
before marriage recognized or tolerated ?

10. Is (a) polygamy, (b) polyandry, permitted; if so, under
what conditions and within what limits ? In the case of polyandry,
must all the husbands be brothers?

11. What form of marriage ceremony is in ordinary use?
Name the forms and state the essential and binding portion of the
ceremony.

12. Is the remarriage of widows permitted? If so, is the
widow obliged or expected to marry her husband’s elder or younger
brother ? If she does not marry a brother, within what limits may
she marry? What form of marriage ceremony is used, and what
is the essential and binding portion of it?

13. Under what circumstances is divorce permitted, and by
what form is it eﬁected? May wives who have been divorced marry

ain ?
ag 14. Do the members of the caste follow the Hindu or Maho-
medan law of inheritance, or a tribal custom of their own?

15. To what religion and to what sect within the religion do
the caste belong? If Hindus, do they by preference worship any
special one of the regular Hindu deities, and are there any reasons
for this preference ?

16. Name any minor gods or patron saints specially wor-
shipped by the caste. State what oﬁerings are made, on what days
of the week, and what class of people receive them ? Is the worship
of any of these gods or saints conﬁned to women and children ?

17. Do the caste employ Brahmans for religious and ceremo-
nial purposes ? If so, are these Brahmans received on terms of
equality by other Brahmans? If they do not employ Brahmans,
what class of people serve them as priests ?

18. Do the caste burn, bury, or expose their dead ? If buried,
in what position ? Where are the bodies or ashes ﬁnally disposed
of ?

19. Are any ceremonies perfbrmed for the propitiation of (a)
ancestors in general, (1)) childless ancestors, (0) men who have died

147

a violent death ; and if so, of what nature and at what seasons? Is
the ceremony of srddd/a performed or not?

20. Is the caste, or any of its subdivisions, named after any
animal, plant, weapon or implement ? Do they show their reverence
for any such object either by special worship, or by abstaining from
killing, eating, cutting, burning, using, or naming it ? ,

21. What do the caste believe to have been their original
occupation or group of occupations ? To what extent have they or
any sections of them departed from it? Describe their present
occupation.

22. If they are agriculturists, state what position they usually
occupy in the agricultural system, 7}.e., are they—

(1) Zamindars;

(2) Tenure-holders, specifying the kind of tenures they
hold;

(3) Occupancy or non-occupancy raiyats, stating whether
they have or claim any privileges in respect of
rent;

(4) Nomadic cultivators, specifying the mode of cultiva-
tion they follow;

(5) Landless day-labourers, stating the manner in which
they are paid ?

23. If their occupation is that of—

(a) Artisans, what is their industry, and in What special
material do they work, or abstain from working;

(6) Hunters, do they catch game or vermin ;

(c) Fishermen, do they catch ﬁsh only or also crocodiles
and tortoises ?

(d) Sweepers, do they remove night-soil or not?

24. Name any implement or mode of working which is charac-
teristic of the caste, and also note whether there is any form or detail
of their main occupation by abstaining from which they believe
themselves to be raised above others of the same craft?

25. Do they habitually prostitute their (1) unmarried, (2)
married women ?

26. Which of the following articles of food do the caste eat or
abstain from eating z—ﬂesh, wine, monkeys, beef, pork, the ﬂesh of
cloven-footed or uncloven-footed animals, fowls, scaly or scaleless
ﬁsh, crocodiles, snakes, lizards, jackals, rats, other vermin, the
leavings of other people P Is there any special article of food their
abstaining from Which tends in their opinion to raise them above
some other caste which does not abstain from it ?

27. Name the lowest well-known caste with which the
caste will—

(a) Eat pakki. (6) Drink.
(6) Eat kachhi. (d) Smoke.

Name the highest well-known caste which will eat, etc. (as
above), with the caste.

10a

148

Sources of information.-—Here should be noted the names, resi-
dence (village and thana), profession, caste, sub-caste, and section of
the persons who answered the question. If any of them are gkatcks,
genealogists, heads of caste pane/zayat, or occupy any hereditary
ofﬁcial position in relation to the caste, the fact should be stated.
If the answers to the questions have been derived from any source
other than personal enquiry addressed to members of the caste
concerns , the source should be stated, and such references given as
may enable the ofﬁcer in charge of the enquiry to test the correctness
of the answers. .

DENZIL C. J. IBBETSON.
JOHN C. NESFIELD.

H. H. RISLEY.

C.

ETHNOGRAPHIC QUESTIONS.
Special Series.
INTRODUCTORY REMARKS.

The following questions have been drawn up in order to suggest
lines of enquiry likely to prove interesting. They do not claim to
be exhaustive, nor is it necessary that all of them should be
answered. Some, for instance, will apply only to Mahomedans, others
only to Hindus, and others again only to aboriginal tribes. In
making use of them various forms of bias. on the part of the
person questioned Will have to be guarded against, such as—

(a) The wish to exalt his own caste or subdivision of his
caste at the expense of other castes.

(b) The tendency to give ideal or book explanations of
facts.

Care must also be taken not to tire the persons questioned by
asking too many questions at a time and to check their statements
occasionally by asking for actual instances of any speclally remark-
able custom. Questions should be put in‘ as concrete a form as
possible, in order to avoid the danger of people assenting out of
laziness in order to save the labour of thinking.

It will be found in the case of many—perhaps of most—castes
that there is a primary division into what may be called sub-castes,
each of which is again divided into sections. Where several of these
sub-castes are present side by side in the locality, their names W111
probably be given. But where all the local representa’uves of the
caste belong to the same sub-caste, there is a danger of the sub-caste
name being taken for granted and only the sections bemgnamed.
Both groupings are required, the sub-castes being, if anything, the
more important of the two.

149
I.—CONSTITUT10N.

1. Origin and internal orgam'zaﬂon.—Write in English and
vernacular the name of the caste, with synonyms, if any, giving
its derivation if knoWn.

2. If the caste has more names than one, explain their meaning
and state which are used by the members of the caste, and which by
other people.

.3. Are any distinctions between the synonyms based upon the
occupations of those to whom they are respectively applied, their
place of origin, habitat, religion. or the like? .

4. Is there any name used only by members of the caste?

5. State in detail any tradition that may exist as to the origin
or foundation of the caste, the place'from which they came, and
their subsequent migrations.

6. Do they believe themselves indigenous in the district or to
have come from elsewhere ? .

7. If from elsewhere, note any king’s reign or historical occur-
rence contemporary with their migration, and how many generations
are believed or ascertained from genealogical lists to have intervened.

8. Is there any place which they consider their head-quarters
in Bengal?

9. Note particularly the name of the place from which they
or their ancestors are believed to have come direct to their present
locality.

10. Are any pilgrimages undertaken by the caste to places
which purport to be their original habitat or serve to suggest its
locality?

11. Is there any place in which the members of the caste are
or should be buried ?

12. Do they draw their priests, barbers, or genealogists rfom
that place ?

13. Do they trace their descent from a ﬁrst ancestor or chief,
and does he appear to have actually existed or to have been an
eponymic personage invented to account for the existence of the
tribe ?

14. If any genealogical tree exists, trace the descent of the
founders of the existing subdivisions from the common ancestor. Is
there a shrine to him in the village or neighbourhood, and is it built
on a brick or stone brought from elsewhere ? If so, from where ?

15. Do they consider any other castes to have branched off
from them, or that they and others have come from the same national
source ?

16. Have they any tradition regarding changes of religion,
introduction of new ceremonies, etc. ?

17. Are there any local legends connecting them with any
monuments, such as old tombs, mounds, forts, sites of villages, etc.
in the district ?

18. Is any light thrown upon the former movements of the
tribe by the names of villages or by the existence of monumental
stones ? For instance, the Mundas of the Chota Nagpur plateau can
be traced to places far distant from their present settlements by these

150

places bearing Mundari names and containing Mundari grave-stones,
which are now worshipped by low-caste Hindus.

19. Write in English and vernacular the names of the
exogamous subdivisions of the caste, if such subdivisions exist.

NB.—— By the term exogamous subdivision is meant a group
from within which its male members cannot take their wives.

20. Write in English and vernacular the names of the endogam-
ous divisions of the caste, if such divisions exist. If these
divisions consist of groups of the subdivisions mentioned in question
19, show the grouping.

N .B.—By the term endogamous subdivision is meant a group
from outside of which its male members cannot take their wives.

21. In the caste of both classes of divisions and sections explain
the meaning of each name, and if the name denotes animals or edible
substances, state whether the members of the subdivision bearing
that name are prohibited from naming, eating, killing, cutting,
burning or otherwise using the animal or substance denoted ?

22. Cases may also occur in which the name of the sub-
division is the name of an instrument which its members are
prohibited from using; or conversely, Where the caste is one of
occupation, of a particular instrument or mode of working to which
the members of the subdivision are hereditarily addicted.

23. Are particular subdivisions bound to observe or refrain
from particular actions, such as the eating or burning of certain
plants, the worshipping of certain trees, etc. ? '

24. Do the names of:-the subdivisions correspond with those
of the subdivisions of any other caste, and if so, how is the corre-
spondence explained?

25. Have, for instance, the members of the lower caste done
service to the higher caste and adopted their subdivisions ?

26. If so, is there any trace of their having had different sub-
divisions of their own, and are there any reasons for supposing that
these were aboriginal and were abandoned in favour of a Brahmani-
cal classiﬁcation ? .

27. Have they any representative assembly or governing body ?

28. What is it called ?

29. How is it constituted?

30. What are its functions ?

31. Who presides at its meetings ?

32. How are its orders enforced ?

33. Is there a permanent president?

34. If so, by what title is he called, and is the ofﬁce here-
ditary ? '

35. If the hereditary president happens to be a minor, by
whom are his duties carried on ?

36. In the case of the trading and artisan castes the functions
of the panchayat of the caste are of special interest and should be
carefully ascertained, most of all where the occupation is followed by
members of distinct castes united in a sort of trades guild, in which
case the connexions and cases of conﬂict between the paneling/alts of
the caste and guild should be investigated

151

37. Rules of Intermam'age.—State the limits within or beyond
which marriage is prohibited, 2.9., that a man must marry within the
caste, but must not marry into his own or certain other subdivisions
or Within certain degrees of relationship, or may not marry two sisters.

38. Give the formula (if any) deﬁning the prohibited degrees
of relationship.

39. Name any prohibitions on intermarriage based upon (a)
social status, (1)) geographical or local position, (a) diiferences of
religious belief or practice, (d) differences or changes of occupation.

40. How far are differences of religion or sect a bar to
marriage ?

41. Can persons of different castes intermarry ?

42. If so, of what castes, and by What form of marriage ?

43. Note cases in which wives will be received from another
subdivision or caste, but daughters will not be given in marriage to
members of that subdivision.

~ 44. Is the distinction referred to in the last question based
mainly on social status or on what?

45. Is there any formal ceremony of admitting the bride into
the husband’s house, village or family by payment, after a mimic
struggle, by eating together, or otherwise ?

46. How many wives are allowed ?

* 47. If more than one, is there any head wife, and what are
her privileges ?

48. Do the wives live together, or do they have separate
dwellings ?

49. Is concubinage permitted?

50. Is polyandry permitted ?

51. If so, how are the husbands selected?

52. Must they all be brothers ?

53. Are the women allowed much freedom before marriage ?

54. Are they prostituted before marriage, or are some prosti-
tuted and others reserved for marriage ?

55. In the case of a girl who has been prostituted, is any pay-
ment made to the parents or the community, or is any special feast
given by the bridegroom ?

56. At what age may marriage take place ?

57. Is an infant marriage voidable, if not actually consum-
mated ?

58. Who arranges the marriage ?

59. Are there professional marriage-brokers ?

60. Whose consent is necessary to the validity of marriage
(1) if both parties are minors, (2) if both are of full age ?

61. Is there any freedom of choice on the part of the persons
marrying ?

62. Is any price paid (a) by the bridegroom’s family for the
bride, (b) by the bride’s family for the bridegroom ?

63. How is such price determined ?

64. Does it or any part of it become the special property of
either bride or bridegroom, and does it devolve by any particular
rule of succession ?

152

65. What physical defects will be sufﬁcient ground for the
annulment of a marriage‘which has actually taken place?

66. State whether idiocy or lunacy, impotence or mutilation
are such sufﬁcient grounds.

67. Is any distinction made if the party seeking'annulment
knew of the defect at the time of the marriage, or if the defect has
arisen after the marriage was consummated ?

68. Under what circumstances is divorce permitted ?

69. What form of divorce is in use ?

70. May wives who have been divorced marry again ?

71. How are the offspring of (1) ﬁrst marriages, (2) marriages
of Widows or divorced persons, (3) illicit connexions between parents
of different tribes, castes, or religions now classed ?

72. Do all inherit on the same terms, or are any excluded ?

73. Do they follow the tribe and caste of the father or of the
mother, or are they known by an entirely new name ?

7 4. Is there any distinction between them and others born
into the tribe or caste in a more usual or legitimate manner ?

75. Are there any cases in which members of one subdivision
cannot marry into another subdivision as being of common origin
with themselves ?

76. Do illicit connexions ever entaﬂa change of caste on either
of the parents ?

77. Are there any caste or subdivisions of castes the origin of
which is ascribed to connexions between members of two different
castes ?

78. Give particulars, and state the evidence on which the
tradition is based.

79. Is it admitted by the members of the caste or subdivision
in question ?

‘ 80. May widows remarry ?

81. If so, by what form of marriage ceremony ?

8'2. Must the Widow of an elder brother marry the younger
brother, and may the widow of a younger brother marry an elder
brother ?

83. May the widow marry outside her husband’s family ?

84. If so, has her husband’s brother a right to the custody of
her children, and does the same rule apply to both male and female
children ?

85. If she marries an outsider, what rights in her husband’s
property accrue to—

(1) The widow,
(2) Her children by her ﬁrst husband,
(3) Her husband’s brother ?
86. If she marries a brother, what rule of succession applies to
her husband’ s property, 99., what right in it accrues to—
(l) The widow,
(2) The brother whom she marries,
(3) Her children by her ﬁrst husband,
(4) Her children by her second husband ?

153

87 . Are children begotten of the widow by the brother of the
deceased considered to be thechildren of her ﬁrst or of her second
husband ?

N.B.—In illustration of the last eight questions, it may be
noted that among the J eswar Kurmis the widow of an elder brother
usually marries a younger brother by the sagai form, but may marry
an outsider. If she marries the younger brother, she gets half of
her deceased husband’s property. If she marries an outsider, she
forfeits all claim not only to her husband’s property, but to the
custody of her children, except in the case of daughters, who stay
with her till of a. marriageable age,lwhen she is bound to bring
them back to be married from her husband’s brother’s house. The
widow of a younger brother cannot marry an elder brother.

88. Adoption.—Is it necessary that the adopter should be
destitute of a son, a son’s son, and a son’s grandson ?

89. Must he obtain the consent of his heirs?

90. Is a daughter’s son a bar to the right of adoption ?

91. May a man adopt who has male issue, if such issue be
disqualiﬁed by any legal impediment (such as loss of caste) from
performing the exequial rites ?

92. Can a man who had already adopted a son adopt another
during the lifetime of the ﬁrst?

93. Can the following persons adopt—-

(1) A bachelor,

(2) A man blind, impotent, or lame,

(3) A widower,

(4) An ascetic who has renounced the world ?

94. Can a woman adopt?

95. State whether it is necessary to the validity of an adoption
by a widow that she should adopt with the permission, written or
verbal, of her deceased husband, or with the consent of his kindred.

96. Can a widow adopt a son as her own without thereby
making him a member of her late husband’s family ?

97. Can she adopt a son as her own in addition to a son
adopted as the representative of her deceased husband P

98. In the event of the death of a son adopted by a widow
with the sanction of her husband, may the widow adopt another
person without permission of her husband to that effect ?

99. May a man give in adoption—-

(1) His only son,
(2) His eldest son,
(3) His brother ?

100. Must the person adopted be less than any speciﬁc age ?

101. If so, up to what age may a person be adopted ?

102. In the case of the higher castes, can a person be adopted
after tonsure or investiture with the sacred cord in his own family ?

103. Can girls be adopted ?

154

e

104. Is there any_rule-by which it is required that the person
adopted should be related to the person adopting ?

105. If so, What relatives may be adopted ?

106. Is any preference required to be shown to particular
relatives ?

107. If so, enumerate them in order of preference.

108. Is it necessary that the adopted son and his adoptive
fatléer should be (1) of the same caste of tribe, (2) of the same
got

109. Is there any rule prohibiting the adoption of the son of
a woman whom the adopter could not have married, such as his
sister’s son or his daughter’s son ?

110. Does an adopted son retain his right to inherit from his
natural father ?

111. Can he inherit from his natural father if the natural
father die without other sons ? A

112. Describe the rights of an adopted son to inherit from his
adoptive father.

113. What is the effect of the subsequent birth of natural
legitimate sons to the adoptive father ?

114. Will the adopted son take equal shares with them ?

115. When ‘a son-in-law leaving his own family takes up his
residence permanently with his father-in-law as glzar jamm’, what
will be the effect on the rights of such son-in-law to inherit (1) from -
his father, (2) from his father-in-law.

116. Succession—If a man die leaving a widow or widows,
a son or sons, a daughter or daughters, brothers, and other relatives,
upon whom will the inheritance devolve ?

117. If there be more sons than one, will they take equal
shares ? '

118. If the sons do not take equal shares, state upon what
principle the shares are regulated.

(1) Is any regard had to uterine descent? Are the shares in
the inheritance distributed according to the number of
mothers ?

(2) Is any regard had to the caste or tribe of the mothers, so
that the sons by a wife of a high caste, or of the same
caste, or tribe with the father take larger shares than
the sons by the wife of a low caste, or of a different
caste or tribe ?

(3) Is any regard had to the age of the sons, so that ( 1) the
eldest son, (2) the youngest son, would take a greater
or less share than his brethren ?

119. Can a father in his lifetime nominate a particular son as
the ﬁt person to take a larger share than his brethren after the
father’s decease ? ’

120. When an estate has been held jointly by a father and
his sons, and is distributed amongst them upon his decease, are
acquisitions made by the sons exempt from distribution; or will
all the sons share in all the joint estate, moveable or immoveable,

155

ancestral or acquired, whether or no any part of such estate have been
acquired by any one or more of the sons, by gift or succession from
a maternal grandfather or father-in-law, or other relative through
a female ? ‘

121. Where there are male descendants who do not all stand
in the same degree of kindred to the deceased, and the persons through
whom the more remote are descended from him are dead, will the
nearer descendants exclude the more remote, or are the more remote
descendants entitled to succeed simultaneously with the nearer
descendants ?

122. If in the case stated in question 121 the more remote
descendants succeed simultaneously with the nearer descendants,
how is the estate to be divided ?

Is it to be divided in equal shares amongst all the heirs ; or is it
to be divided into such a number of equal shares as may correspond
with the number of the male lineal descendants of the deceased, who
either stood in the nearest degree of kindred to him at his decease, or,
having been of the like degree of kindred to him, died before him,
leaving male lineal descendants who survived him ?

123. Where there is no son, but where the male lineal
descendants are all grandsons or all great-grandsons, will the estate
be divided equally amongst all such grandsons or great-grandsons,
as the case may be, or will the shares be allotted to the grandsons
proportionately to the shares which the sons would have taken had
they been living, or to the great-grandsons proportionately to the
shares which the grandsons would have taken had they survived the
deceased ?

124. Do the principles stated in the replies to questions 121 and
122 apply to every case of the distribution of an inheritance; or is
there any distinction when collaterals inherit; that is to say, does
a son or grandson always take the share his father or grandfather
would have taken, if such father or grandfather had survived the
deceased, whether or no the share descend lineally or through a
collateral relative ?

125. Does the inheritance successively devolve upon all male
lineal descendants, how low so ever ; or is there any degree ﬁxed in
the descending line Within which, if there be no male lineal descend-
ants, the inheritance will devolve on other relatives. If so, state
what that degree is ? . '

126. If a man die leaving a widow or WldOWS, and either
a daughter or daughters, or brother or their descendants, or uncles or
their descendants, or great-uncles or their descendants, but no male
lineal descendants, Within three generations, upon whom Will the
inheritance devolve? . .

127. If the estate devolve upon the w1d0W, deﬁne her interest
therein ? ' . .

128. What rights has the w1dow to alienate by sale, gift,
mortgage, or bequest ?

(1) Are there any special circumstances or expenses under,
or on account of, which alienation 1s permissible?
If so, what are these ?

156

(2) Is there any distinction in respect of moveable or im-
moveable, ancestral or acquired property, or in
respect of alienation to the kindred of the deceased

‘ husband?

(3) Supposing alienation to be permissible, whose consent

is necessary to make it valid ?

129. ‘As regards the right of a Mahomedan widow to alienate,
is any distinction taken in respect of her legal share ?

130. If there be several widows, do they take in equal
shares ?

131. Is any distinction made in respect of the rights of widows
who are not of the same family with their deceased husband?

132. Is there any distinction in the rights of widows based
upon the circumstance whether the husband was or was not associated
with his brethren ?

133. What is the effect of unchastity upon the right of a
widow in respect of the estate of her deceased husband ?

134. In the case of widows who are not Hindus, what is the
effect of their remarriage ?

135. Under what circumstances are daughters entitled to
inherit ? Are they excluded by the sons or by the widow, or by the
near male kindred of the deceased? If they are excluded by the
near male kindred, is there any ﬁxed limit of relationship within
which such near kindred must stand towards the deceased in order
to exclude his daughters? If so, how is the limit ascertained ? If
it depends on descent from a common ancestor, state within how
many generations relatively to the deceased such common ancestor
must come.

136. Is there any distinction as to the rights of daughters to
inherit (1) the immoveable or ancestral, (2) the moveable or acquired,
property of their father?

137. (1) Under What circumstances are daughters entitled to
be maintained out of the estate of their deceased
father ?

(2) What is the effect of (a) marriage, (6) residence in
a strange village, upon the right of the daughter
to inherit, or to be maintained ?

(3) If a married daughter with her husband live with
the father up to his decease, can the daughter
inherit?

(4) Can daughters who are married and barren. or
widowed, and without male issue, or mothers of
daughters only, inherit the father’s estate ?

138. What is the nature of the interest taken by a daughter
in the property she inherits ? Deﬁne her rights of alienation, if any,
by sale, gift, mortgage, or bequest.

139. After daughters, do daughters’ sons succeed ? If so, is
the property equally divided amongst all the sons of several daughters,
or arp the shares proportioned to the number of daughters who leave ’
80113 .

157 ‘

140. When a man dies leaving no male lineal descendants, no
widow, and no daughters or daughters’ sons, upon whom will the
inheritance successively devolve ?

141. When the estate devolves upon the mother of the
deceased, what is the nature of the interest she acquires P

142. Deﬁne her powers of alienation.

I43. On the death of the mother, will the property devolve on
the heirs of the son, or on her heirs ?

144. When the property devolves on brethren, What, if any,
regard is paid (1) to uterine descent, (2) to association ‘9 Do uterine
associated brethren exclude all others ? In what order succeed—

( i) Unassociated brethren of the whole blood ?
( 172') Associated brethren of the half-blood ?
(iii) Unassociated brethren of half-blood ?

If a man die leaving a uterine brother separated and a half-
brother associated, how will these two inherit?

145. When a man dies leaving associated brethren and unasso-
ciated brethren, and the property devolves on his brethren, have the
associated brethren any preferential claim to acquired property,
moveable or immoveable property, or to ancestral moveable property ?

146. In default of brethren, does the property devolve upon
their sons ?

147. Does the property ever devolve upon sisters, or upon
sisters’ sons. If upon sisters’ sons, how are their shares computed ?

148. Where a wife dies holding property in her own right, is
the husband entitled to succeed to such property, or any part of it I"

149. Can the son by a former marriage of a woman who
contracts a second marriage inherit from (1) his natural father, (2)
his stepfather ? If from his stepfather, is her share equal to, or less
than that of, his stepfather’s own sons ?

150. Is any distinction taken as regards the stepson (i) if he
be not born till after the second marriage of his mother, (2'2) if the
stepfather in his lifetime assign him a share by deed ?

151. Are stepsons entitled to be maintained by their step-
father ? If so, till What age?

152. Enumerate in the order of their succession the persons
entitled to the estate of a man who dies intestate leaving no relations.

153. If a person voluntarily retires from the world and becomes
a member of a religious order, what is the effect upon (2') his right
to retain his property, (ii) his right to acquire property by inherit-
ance ? Upon whom will devolve property which he would have
inherited if he had not retired from the world ?

154. State any rules recognized by the caste governing the
succession to—

(a) Zamindaries.
(b; ServiCe tenures.
(c) Headships of villages.
155. In the case of tribes practising polyandry, state carefully
the rules of inheritance, e.g., does a man’s property devolve upon his
brother, his sister, or his sister’s son?

158

156.’ System of Relationships—Are any persons considered to
be relations besides those ”who are descended from a. common ances-
tor ? '

157. Are all or any of the kindred of the wife considered to be
the relations of—

(1) the husband,
(2) the husband’s relatives or children ?

158. If so, state the persons who are relatives, with the names
of the relationships.

159. How are generations reckoned ?

160. Give a table of kindred with the local names of the
generations up to the third degree in both the ascending and descend-
in line. ‘

g 161. By how many generations are the following persons said
to be related to the person whose relatives are to be reckoned ?

(1) Brother.

(2) Father.

(3) Uncle.

(4) Cousin-german, i.e., uncle’s son.
(5) Brother’s grandson.

(6) Great~grandson.

(7) Great-grandfather.

162. Fill in the following tables with the local names of the
relations.

A.—Relatz'ons, through the Father, whether of man or woman.

GREAT-GREAT-GBANDFATEEB.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Great-grandfather. Great-grandmother.
E J l E 3
Grandfather's brother. Grandfather. Grandmother.
E II E ] I E 1

Grandfather’s brother’s son. I

E ] I
Fathers' elder brother’s wife.—Father’s elder brother. Father’s younger brother.—-His wife. Father’s sister.—Her husband. Father.——Stepmother.

1 E ] E J E J E ] E J E
Male cousin. Female cousin. self, Stepbrother.
E J E ] E ] E
Male cousin’s sou. Female cousin’s son.

E J E J

691

B.—Relations, through the Mother, whether of man or woman.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Great—grandfather. l ' Great-grandmother.
E J I E J
Grandfather. ’ Grandmother.
E J l E 1
His wife.—— Mother’s brother. Mother’s sister. Her husband. Mother.
L 1 J E J E 1 E ‘
Cousin. Self.
0,—Relations, through the Brother and Sister, whether of man or woman.
. Fatllxer.
E ' ]
His wife. Elder brothi r. Younger brother. ’ His wife. Self. Sister.——i Sister’s husband.
1 E J E ] I E 1 E J E I E
Brother’s daughter. Brother’s son. Sister’s son. Sister’s daughter.
E J E J E J

|
Brother’s grandson.

09E

        
     
            
 
  

- . ~ I

 

‘ ‘ - , D (1).-l§-Relati0ns, ﬂarouyh the 'Wa‘fe‘,‘ of a man. - - ' I‘ ‘ ,
.' Wife’s father. " _ . V Wife-a u— '. . , , L t 2, .,

 

 

.Sel[.———: —.——Wite. Wite's brother. ' Hie We. Wife’s sister.———

 

 

Her husband. ' ‘

    
   
 
    
    

-Wife’s nephew. Wife’s nebhew. . >
. . . _ E J -[ J ‘ ' . I"

D (2).j-Relations, throdgh the Husband, qf a woman.

' Husband’s father. Husband’s mother.

 

 

   

    

 

‘ , , . , .
. ' l 1 _
\

   
  
   
      

; Husband. — His ebb/er wife. Husbend’a elder brother.—7Hi§ wife. Husband’s younger brotherJ—éﬁis wife.- Bushind’a sitter nu

. , x j ,

71*? I » . 1E _ 1:11;,“ , 1.: ,JJE:

E (l).—Rehzttons, through the Son, whether of man or woman.

 

 

 

 

 

Self. Son’s wife’s father. Son’s wife’s mother.
1 E E J ‘ E 1
Son. __ Son’s wife.
E J E 1
His W1fe.-—-—-—--—-—-———-Grandson. Granddaughter. Her husband.
1 E J E J E
Great-grandson. Great-grandson.
E J E ' ]

E (2).—-—Relattons, through the Daughter, whether of math or woman.

 

SGIH- Daughter’s father-iu-law.——-———-——————Daughter’s mother-iu-law.
E ] E J l E

Daughter. Daughter’s husband.
I J E J

 

His wife‘. J 3 [ Daughter’s Ion. C Daughter‘s daughter.

agt

163

163. How is each group spoken of collectively by a man and
by a woman ?

164. Add any relationships not included in these groups for
which there are special names.

165. Is a great-uncle distinguished from a grandfather’s and
a parent’s cousin from a man’s own cousin P

166. Into what classes are relations distributed P

167. Specify each class and the relations included in it.

168. Give the distinctions, if any—

( i) between sapindas, sakulyas, samanodakas, bandhus,
and gotraj as.

(ii ) between personal, paternal, and maternal kindred.

(iii) between legal sharers and residuaries, near and
distant kindred, lineal and collateral relations.

169. State the various modes of addressing and speaking of
particular relatives, 6.9., how do men and women address and speak
of their husbands and wives respectively ?

170. How does a man address and speak of his brother-in-
law ?

17]. Are there any cases in which names originally denoting
particular relationships are used in addressing or speaking of persons
not related in the manner the name denotes ? 6.9., a man sometimes
speaks of another man as his b/mz', when in fact he merely means that
the other is a member of his own caste.

172. Are genealogies carefully kept ?

173. Do they include the names of females ?

174. Note any forms of adoptive relationships based upon
friendship or on land (e.g., plzulbahin and bhumbhai), and state what
consequences and obligations are annexed to them.

II.——D0MEsTIC CEREMONIES.

175. Birth and Pregnancy.-— Describe any ceremonies performed
during pregnancy, and state what eﬁect, if any, they are believed to
have upon the mother or child.

176. What posture is adopted in accouchement ?

177. Who attends on the mother (a) during her conﬁnement,
(b) after the conﬁnement is over ?

178. What ceremonies are performed on the birth of a child?

179. Are the ordinary occupations of the father given up or
interrupted in any way in conscquence of the birth of a child ?

180. What reasons. if any, are assigned for such interruption ?

181. Are there any special customs with reference to twins ?

182. Adoption—Describe the different ceremonies in use for
adoption.

183. Does the validity of the adoption depend upon the
performance of the customary ceremony?

184. Does the status of the person adopted depend upon
the form of ceremony used ?

185. If so, what is the eﬁect of each of the different forms ?

lla

164

186. Puberty or Adolesceme.-—What ceremonies are performed
when (a) a son, ((2) a daughter, attains puberty ?

187. In the case of a son, is there any ceremony purporting to
admit him among the grown men of the caste?

188. Betrothal.—Describe the ceremony of betrothal.

189. What is considered the binding portion of the ceremony ?

190. Is there any distinction between formalities after which
the betrothal is reversible and formalities which are absolutely
binding ?

191. At what age does betrothal take place ?

192. Whose consent is necessary ?

193. If a betrothal be annulled, is there any custom as to the
repayment of the expenses incurred ?

194. Marriage—Describe in detail the various kinds of
marriage ceremonies in use, distinguishing between superior and
inferior kinds ?

195. What is considered to be the essential or binding part of
each kind of ceremony ?

196. In the marriage ceremony is there any pretence of
capturing the bride,or does any part of the ceremony or of the previous
or subsequent proceedings suggest that marriage by capture was
formerly in vogue.

197. In the marriage ceremony is there any symbol of
a previous marriage to any deity, 6.9., is the bride ﬁrst married to
a tree or to any natural object ?

198. Death and Burial.—Do the caste burn, bury, or expose
their dead ?

199. If buried, in what position ?

200. Where are the bodies or ashes ﬁnally disposed of ?

201. Describe the ceremonies performed at the burning or
burying of a corpse ?

202. Are any ceremonies performed for the propitiation of (a)
ancestors in general, (6) childless ancestors, (0) men Who have died
a Violent death; and if so, of what nature and at what seasons ?

203. Describe the ceremony of sradd/r, and state whether the
caste perform it or not?

204. Who oﬁiciates as priest at the funeral ceremonies and
repeats formulae of prayer (mantras, etc.) ?

205. In the case of castes which do not employ Brahmans it
should be enquired Whether the sister’s son or other relative on
the female side otﬁciates in the place of the Brahman.

206, Purzﬁcation.—Are ceremonial puriﬁcations practised P

207. Are any persons at any time impure or unclean and
requiring puriﬁcation, as after child-birth, during menstruation, after
funerals, etc. ?

208. For how long does the ceremonial impurity last?

209. How are they puriﬁed?

III.—RELIG I031.

210. Worship, Priests, and Temples—To what religion, and to
' what sect Within the religion, do the caste belong ?

165

211. If Hindus, do they by preference worship any special one
of the regular Hindu deities, and are there any reasons for this
preference?

212. Have its members always professed that religion, or
were they converted to it en masse, or gradually ?

213. How did their conversion take place, and when—before
their migration to their present abode or after ?

214. Are members of the caste found in the neighbourhood
professing the tenets of different religions or sects ? ‘

215. Do they affect a peculiar saint or shrine ?

216. State the names, origin, and attributes of the minor
village deities and local or patron saints whom they worship,
describing, if possible, the shape and aspect of the shrine, the
ceremonies observed in worship, the nature of the offerings made,
the times, days, or seasons when they are made, the caste and
subdivision of the ofﬁciating priests and of the persons who take
the offerings.

217. Are any of these deities peculiar to women and children ?

218. State any indications of ancestor worship, snake or tree
worship, sun, moon, ﬁre, or devil worship, which the religious
practice of the caste suggests.

219. Is there any special shrine to which pilgrimages are
made, and at what seasons ?

220. Has any great religious teacher arisen in the caste?
Give his name and state his peculiar tenets.

221. Is the caste, thOugh nominally belonging to one of the
main religions, excluded from any of the rites and ceremonies
practised by other castes belonging to the same denomination, and
is any speciﬁc reason assigned for this exclusion ?

222. All cases of left-handed sect and worship of sexual
principles, orgies, etc., should be noted.

223. Have they any ceremony of admission into the religious
body corresponding to baptism or circumcision ? -

224. All cases of Hindus and Mahomedans, or their women
and children, worshipping the same deities or saints, or frequenting
the same shrines. should be carefully noted.

225. Do the caste employ Brahmans for religious and cere-
monial purposes ?

226. If so, to what caste or section of Brahmans do they
belong, and are they received on terms of equality by other
Brahmans?

227. If they do not employ Brahmans, what class of people
serve them as priests ?

228. Are there any family priests who perform ceremonial
functions not connected with any particular deity?

229. Are particular persons or clans set apart as priests ?

230. Is the same person often both priest and chief ?

231. Do they practice austerities, observe chastity, etc. ?

232. Is any special building set apart for worship?

233. Is it built in a particular position, as facing the east,
etc.?

166

234. Has it any special shape, and is it called by a special
name ? . _ -
235. Are idols kept there ?

236. What rites are performed ?

287. Are all the rites public, or are any of the nature of
mysteries or orgies?

238. Sacriﬁce.—Is sacriﬁce offered, to what deities, and of
what animals ?

239. May any one or only priests offer sacriﬁce ?

240. Where is sacriﬁce oﬁered?

241. After sacriﬁce, do the priests or worshippers consume or
remove the objects offered ?

242. Are substitutes used in sacriﬁce, such as part of an
animal, an efﬁgy or imitation ?

243. Do worshippers sacriﬁce parts of themselves, such as
hair, nails, drops of blood, etc. ?

244. Is there any tradition of men, women, or children having
been sacriﬁed in former times to any deity?

245. If so, name the deity, and state all you can learn about
the tradition.

246. Whence and in what manner was the victim obtained ?

247. Enquire Why the custom of human sacriﬁce was discon-
tinued, how long ago, and what was substituted in its place ?
V 248. Festivals—Give a list of the festivals observed, stating
the dates when each is celebrated.

249. What do they consist in—processions, games, dances,
banquets, etc.?

250. Which are at regular periods and which occasional?

251. Are there annual religious festivals marking the months,
seasons, equinoxes, solstices, seed-time, ﬁrst fruits, harvest, etc. ?

252. Is there an annual feast of the dead ?

253. To what extent does the caste observe the great Hindu
festivals ?

254. Is there any great festival observed by the caste, but not
observed by Hindus generally ?

255. Are there festivals at which marriageable youths and
girls mix, and matches are made ?

256. Are any festivals specially connected with sexual rela-
tions ‘9

257. Is drunkenness common on these occasions, and is the
use of any particular intoxicating drink regarded as part of the
festival.

258. Fetickz'sm.-Do spirits or deities enter into or attach
themselves to objects, such as sticks, bones, ornaments, etc. ?

259. Are such objects kept sacred and believed to contain
supernatural power ? .

260. Are blocks of wood, stones, ctc.. believed to be inhabited
by deities, and worshipped accordingly ?

261. Worship of natural spirits, plants, and animals—Are there
spirits especially attached to natural objects, such as rivers, springs
wells, rocks, trees, animals, etc.? ~

167

262. How are they worshipped 9

263. Are ﬁelds believed to be-haunted, and by Whom 9

264. Are groves and woods favourite places of worship or
sacriﬁce .9 ' l

265. If so, explain what gods are worshipped there, and note
if the wood or grove is or is supposed to be part of a large forest
which has been cleared, a portion being left as a refuge for the
forest gods.

266. Are any beasts worshipped as gods. 9 If so, describe
the mode of worship.

267. Ancestor wars/zip—Are the souls of ancestors worshipped
with prayers and sacriﬁces .9

268. Describe brieﬂy the ceremony in vogue .9

269. Is the supposed primitive ancestor of the caste worshipped
under the form of, or in connexion with, some sacred animal, plant
or other object as a totem 0r clan deity?

270. Are animals sacriﬁed at funerals; if so, with what object?

271. Are any funeral offerings given, so that the souls of the
dead may become possessed of objects or their phantoms .9

272. Are food, money, ornaments. etc., placed near the corpse,
burnt or buried with it, or oﬁered periodically at the place of burial?

273. Are the survivors in fear of the ghosts of the dead. 9

274 Do they attribute dreams to theii inﬂuence, and do they
take any means to get rid of them, or keep them oi? 9

275. Do ghosts of the dead haunt houses or burial-places, and
if so in what forms?

276. Does their doing so indicate that their bodies have not
been properly buried .9

277. How are ghosts propitiated 9

278. Are there several kinds of them; if. so, state the names,
characteristics, and attributes of each .9
_ 279. Are any days sacred to ancestors, and what is done on

these days 9

280. Do the caste go to Gya or to any other well- known place
of pilgrimage to perform the .51 add/z of their ancestors. 9

281. Totems. —Is the caste or any of its subdivisions named
after any animal, plant, weapon, or implement. 9

282. Do they show their reverence for any such object either
by special worship or by abstaining from killing, eating, cutting,
burning, using or naming it. 9

283. Are there any cases of the object which the caste reverence
being tattooed or painted on the body, possibly 1n a very convention-
alised form, or of its representation being always carried about on the
person. 9

284. If so, how do the members of the caste explain the
practice. 9

285. Do the women of the caste pay special reverence to certain
trees, by veiling their faces before them as if 1n presence of an elder
relative, or worship them in the hope of getting children in the
belief that the spirit of the ancestor inhabits them. 9

286. Are any trees or plants used or worshipped at weddings
and similar ceremonies, and are children named after them 9

168

IV.-—Surnasrirrons.

287. Omens, eta—Do any superstitionsprevail as to lucky and
unlucky days, numbers, animals, places, houses, points of the com-
pass, roads, physical functions, such as sneezing, spitting, etc., natural
events, or calamities ?

288. Are there any superstitions connected with stars, and may
they?be got over by burying a picture or rude representation of the ,
star

289. Is there any objection to crossing water under certain
conditions? Is meeting a particular animal regarded as ominous,
and does the character of the omen depend upon the direction in
which the animal is seen? Are omens taken from accidents, such as
stumbling, etc. ?

290. Are there any peculiar customs as to wearing or abstaining
from wearing particular kinds of dress, jewels, ornaments, etc. ; as to
using particular kinds of cooking vessels; or as to eating or growing
particular plants or drugs?

291. In the case of plants, notice Whether the name of the
plant aﬂected by the superstition corresponds with the name of a sub-
division of the tribe?

. 292. Are there any superstitions as to the naming of children,
e.g., are two names given, one for every-day purposes and one for
ceremonial use, or is a son whose elder brother has died given an
approbrious name ?

293. Do these practices apply to girls as well as to boys ?

294. Oaths and Malaria—Are any forms of oath in common use,
and are they accompanied by any symbolic forms, such as swearing
on a tiger’s skin?

295. What consequences are supposed to be entailed by break-
ing an oath ?

296. Are any ordeals in use, such as plunging into water, pass-
ing through ﬁre, eating food under special conditions, etc. ?

297. Are they used merely for the decision of personal disputes
or for questions aﬁecting the community, such as the boundaries of
villages, etc. ?

298. Magic and witchcraft—Is the practice of magic arts
conﬁned to special sorcerers, witches, etc. ?

299. Are these priests, etc., connected with religion, or is there
jealousy or hostility between the priest and the sorcerer?

300. What are the functions of sorcerers and witches, and
how are they generally regarded ?

301. Are there any supposed arts by which it can be deter-
mined whether a particular individual is a witch or sorcerer or
not ?

302. Are spirits or demons called upon to give oracles, disclose
secrets, do good or harm? '

303. Is demoniacal possession believed in, and what remedies
are resorted to in order to cure persons supposed to be possessed ?

304. Is such possession regarded as a valuable quality; if so,
how is it acquired; is it conﬁned to particular castes or clans ?

169

305. Are dreams regarded ? Do they give information of the
past and prophecy or omens for the future.

306. Are any special persons called upon to interpret them, and
is there any recognized system of interpretation ?

307. Are they ascribed to visits or communications from spirits,
as, for instance, to persons recently deceased in the family of the
person who has the dream ?

308. Is there any mode of propitiating the spirits of persons '
recently dead so as to prevent them from causing dreams ?

309. Is the effect of the evil eye believed in ?

310. To what is it attributed ?

311. How is it obviated ?

312. Are sorcerers and witches supposed to act on their victims
by objects belonging to them or intimately connected with them, such
as cut hair or nails, or by making efﬁgies or pictures of them and
wounding the pictures in order that the victims may be affected?

313. Is special care therefore taken to destroy cuttings of hair
or nails ?

314:. Is any kind of divination or astrology practised ?

315. Who are its professors ?

316. Describe the modes of divination and exorcism in use,
and state what class of persons are resorted to as exorcisers.

317. Is disease attributed to the inﬂuence of spirits ?

318. How is the particular spirit at work detected and how
appeased ?

Ceremonial Prohibition or Taboo.

319. Is any particular food, animal or vegetable forbidden,
though obtainable and wholesome ?

320. Do the whole caste abstain from it, or only certain
families or individuals, or persons under some special circumstances ?

321. Is the prohibition religious ?

322. Is the animal or plant abstained from regarded as in any
way divine, as a tribe fetish, the incarnation of a local deity, or
personal guardian spirit or the soil of some ancestor ?

323. Is it the animal or plant from which the caste or sub-
divisiOn derives its name ?

324. Give any explanation that may be current of the prohibi-
tion in question.

325. Do any members of the caste object to eating with,
touching, speaking to, looking at, or calling by name other persons ?

326. Do these prohibitions apply to persons of different rank,
occupation, or caste? . .

327. Is any particular caste held in pecullar abhorrence, and
if so, why ? A good instance of what 1s meant 1s afforded by the fact
that the Doms hold the Dhobis in special detestation. It is believed
that other low castes have similar eccentric prejudices.

328. Are women and children specially prohibited from doing
any particular religious acts, entering particular temples, performing
particular acts of worship, etc. ?

170

329. Do similar prohibitions apply between relations? And
specially between relatidns by marriage, 6.9., does the husband’s
father avoid the wife’s relations, etc. ?

330. What appears to be the motive ?

331. Is the person whose name may not be mentioned supposed
to be holier than the other?

332. Is there an idea of magical harm, or is it merely a ques-
tion of social separation ?

333. Are.the names of chiefs, dead persons, etc., avoided in
conversation ?

334. Are any special words or subjects considered improper ?

335. Are there any cases in which gods, persons, or subjects
whose mention by name is prohibited are spoken of under some
honoriﬁc title ?

336. Agricultural Superstitions.—~Menti0n any remarkable
superstitious beliefs connected with, agriculture, such as the days on
which ploughing, sowing, reaping, etc., must be begun, intermitted,
or ﬁnished; the periods within which a shower of rain is specially
lucky or unlucky ; the customary number of times agricultural operar
tions should be performed; the objects set up in the ﬁelds to avert
injury to the crops, to frighten away demons, etc. ? .

2537.. Is any propitiatory or quasi-religious ceremony observed
before the commencement or after the completion of any agricultural
operations, such as the sinking of a well, sowing, reaping, or the
like ? ~

338. What times and seasons are lucky or unlucky for the
commencement or completion of the various agricultural operations ?

339. Are there any gods specially connected with particular
cro s?

P 340. If any of these are peculiar to the caste, the fact should
be noted.

V.—SOCIAL CUSTOMS.

341. Food and drink—Which of the following articles of food
do the caste eat or abstain from eating :—-ﬂesh, wine, monkeys, beef,
pork, the ‘ﬂesh of cloven-footed or uncloven-footed animals, fowls,
scaly or scaleless ﬁsh, crocodiles, snakes, lizards, jackals, rats, other
vermin, the leavings of other people?

342. Are there any seasons during which the use of special
articles of food is forbidden ?

343. Are such restrictions due to the desire to increase the
stock of such article of food or to superstitious or sanitary causes?

344. Is the use of certain articles of food restricted to women
or children, or to chiefs and persons of rank ?

345. Are individuals or families prevented from eating certain
animals and plants for superstitious reasons, such, for instance, as
their being the totems of the individuals or family ?

346. Does all the household eat together, or each person
separately, or is there a distinction of ranks, sexes, or ages ?

347. Do men and women eat together?

p 171

348. Are there any ceremonies used at the commencement of
meals, such as offerings to the divinities, etc, or any religious rites
connected with them ?

349. Are there any marked peculiarities in the mode of eating
and drinking of the caste, and how are these peculiarities
explained ?

350. State what spirituous liquors, drugs, and narcotics are in
ordinary use.

351. Are any of them connected with particular religious
ceremonies or festivals ? '

352. Are any of them supposed to have the effect of keeping
off malaria ?

353. How is the use of spirituous liquors and drugs regarded
by the caste—for instance, is (a) drunkenness, (b) habitual indulgence
in opium or ganja looked upon as disreputable ?

354. Customs of social z'ntercourse.—What customs prevails as
to salutation ?

355. Do they diﬁer according to rank and relationship ?

356. How do members of a family, friends and relations, and
strangers greet one another?

357. What special processes of compliment and rules of prece-
dence are in vogue ?

358. How are guests, women, and aged or inﬁrm persons
treated ? ‘

359. What are the rules of hospitality as recognized between
kinsfolk, neighbours, and strangers?

360. Are peculiar forms of language in use ?

361. Are certain words or forms of address used or avoided in
addressing certain people ?

362. Customs bearing on social stafus.—Name the lowest well-
known caste with which the caste will (a) cat paki, (b) eat
kachhi, (0) drink, (d) smoke.

363. Name the highest well-known caste which will eat, etc.,
as in the last question with the caste.

364. Is there any special article of food their abstaining from
which tends in their opinion to raise them above some other caste
which does not abstain from it ?

365. Mention any remarkable customs of the caste regarding
dress, ornaments, implements of handicrafts, ﬁshing or hunting,
distinguishing marks, cutting of hair and beard, musical instru~
ments, dances, etc. , which aﬁect their social status in relation to their
neighbours. '

VL—OCCUPATIONS.

366. What do the caste believe to have been their original
occupation or group of occupations ? .
367. To what extent have they or any sections of them
departed from it ?
368. Describe their present occupation ?
369. If their occupation is that of—
(a) Artisans—What is their industry and in what special
material do they work, or abstain from working?

172

(b) Hzmters.——Do they catch game or vermin ?

(c) Fishermen—Do they catch ﬁsh only or also cro-
codiles and tortoises ?

(d) Sweepers—Do they remove night-soil or not 1’

370. Name any implement or mode of working which is
characteristic of the caste, and also note whether there is any form or
detail of their main occupation by abstaining from which they
believe themselves to be raised above others of the same craft?

371. Do they habitually prostitute their (1) unmarried, (2)
married women ?

372. Does a change of religion. such as conversion to Maho-
medanism, or a joining a special sect of Hindus, usually involve
a change or modiﬁcation of occupation on the part of the convert ?

373. In cases where an hereditary occupation is abandoned,
do the persons changing their occupation change or modify their
caste name, and are their ties withthose members who adhere to their
original occupation in any way broken or relaxed ?

VII—RELATIONS T0 LAND.

374. To what class of agriculturists do the caste or tribe
usually belong, 9.9., are they——

(1) Zamindars;

(2) Tenure-holders, specifying the kind of tenures they
hold;

(3) Occupancy or non-occupancy raiyats, stating Whether
they have or claim any privileges in respect of
rent;

(4) Nomadic cultivators, specifying the mode of cultiva-
tion they follow ;

(5) Landiess day-labourers, stating the manner in which
they are paid ?

375. Have they any legend or tradition accounting for the
position they occupy ? .

376. Have the caste any priv1leges in respect
of land, e.g., do they—

(a) hold at lower rates of rent than their neighbours;

(b) hold a certain proportion of their holdings rent-free ;

(0) receive a certain proportion of the produce of each
ﬁeld or of particular crops in consideration of
any kind of service ?

377. Do they hold any peculiar kinds of tenures ?

378. If so, have they any tradition accounting for the fact,
such as that they are the descendants of the ﬁrst clearers of the soil,
of a former dominant race, or the like ?

379. Do they claim special privileges in respect of land on the
strength of traditional aﬁinity to, or supposed contact with, the
ancestors of the local zamindars?

380. Have they any hereditary right to perform certain ser-
vices or receive certain fees ? v

173

381. Is it supposed that the ancestors of the local zamindars
were members of the caste or tribe, and do they now
admit this, or deny it 1’

382. Are there any traces among the caste or tribe
of village communities, or of a communal organization embracing
groups of villages ?

383. Give all details that can be ascertained on this subject,
or if the organization has already been described in print, quote the
reference. ,

384. Does the system preserve its vitality, or is it dying out ?

385. If the latter, state from What cause.

386. Are there any traces of the periodical redistribution of
common arable land among the members of sections of the com-
munity ? "

387. If the communal organization has now fallen into disuse,
can any trace of its previous existence be found in the character of
distribution of the tenures now held by the caste or tribe ? an.

388. Are there any restrictions upon the order in which certain .
ﬁelds are to be cultivated or certain crops sown ?

389. Do communal rights of pasturage exist, or are they
asserted over land which is private property ?

390. Among hunting, ﬁshing or wandering tribes does any
apportionment of land or water exist between the divisions of the
tribe, each division conﬁning its operations to the tract allotted to it,
and does the apportionment extend to the individual members of the
division ?

391. Does this custom obtain even where the land or water
apportioned is not the property of the tribe P

Sources of information—Here should be noted the names, resi-
dence (village and thana), profession, caste, sub-caste, and section of
the persons who answered the questions. If any of them are glmtalcs,
genealogists, heads of caste panc/zayat, or occupy any hereditary
ofﬁcial position in relation to the caste, the fact should be stated. If
the answers to the questions have been derived from any source
other than personal enquiry addressed to members of the caste
concerned, the source should be stated, and such references given
as may enable the ofﬁcer in charge of the enquiry to test the correct;-

ness of the answers.

DENZIL C. J. IBBETSON.
JOHN G. NESFIELD.
H. H. RISLEY.

 

APPENDIX 111.

__+__

MR. DENZIL IBBETSON'S MEMORANDUM ON ETHNOLOGICAL
INQUIRY IN THE PANJXB.

1882.
Memorandum for guidance in collecting Ethnologz'cal Notes?“

NB.—Proper names and vernacular words should be very clearly and
correctly written, and in vernacular as well as in English characters, if
possible.

1. Caste or Trz'be— Clan—Locality—Talzsz'l—Dz'stm'ct.—-This
information should always be given at the head of the note regarding
the people from whose statements the note is compiled; and if they
belong to a single village, it should be named in case of further
inquiry being needed.

It is often difﬁcult to decide what should be entered as the caste.
Many clans, for instance, are called J ats in some districts and Rajpi’its
in others. A mere tradition of Rajpﬁt origin, even though admitted
by the Rajpi’its of the neighbourhood, is not enough to warrant their
being entered as Rajpi’its, though the tradition and the fact of its
admission should of course be stated; for a caste will often claim
Rajpﬁt origin, while readily admitting that they have lost the status
which their ancestors enjoyed.

The real question is whether they are, for practical purposes, looked
upon and treated as Rdjpz’us at flee present Iime by admitted Rdjpz’tfs of
the neighbour/mod. The same test applies to claims to be classed as
Pathans, Qoreshis, &c., &o. The claim. however. should always be
noted, together with the considerations which may lead you to hold
that it is inadmissible.

In any case the name by which the people are best known and
most commonly spoken of among their neighbours, generally that of
their clan, should always be prominently noted.

2. Dzstribulion.—It is useful to state whether the particular
caste or clan is numerous in the tahsil; where their lecal head-
quarters are ; and if few, where they are to be found in larger
numbers. rllhe provincial head-quarters, if any, should be named.
The people will often tell you that they hold 27 villages in this and
84 in that tahsil, and so on, giving the old traditional number of
villages rather than the number as they now stand. Such statements
should be recorded.

3. Sal/divisiona—The various grades of tribal subdivision to
which the people belong should always be stated: for instance, they

 

‘ I need hardly say that I am indebted for many of the notes in this memorandum to
the suggestions of friends who have been kind enough to help me in its compilation.

/,/

176

should be described as belonging to the A family of the B clan of the
C tribe of the D race or caste. And especially it will be useful to
give the traditional number of subdivisions of the tribe or clan under
discussion, and to detail the names of as many of them as possible, as
these names often appear in the census papers with nothing to indicate
to what tribe they belong, and in such cases the barest list of names
would be most valuable to me.

A tree showing the local subdivisions of a caste or tribe is always
exceedingly useful, and should be accompanied by a detail of the
vernacular terms used to denote the various degrees of subdivision;
such as zdt, gut, a], fad, pail, mathz’n, tho/c, mom, sz’otcm, kulolevi, mm,
bola/c, tuman, pair-o, phalli, zai, Mel, ($0., 8w.

In the case of menial castes, it should be noted whether the name
of their subdivision is the same as the clan name of the villagers
whom they serve, or of the prevailing agricultural clan in the
neighbourhood, or in the part of the country whence they came.

4. Synonyms— '

(a) If the caste or clan is known by more thano no name, all
should be given; as J/zz‘lzw/tr and Kahdr, Juldha and
Pdoh‘. So, too, if the name varies with the religion ; as
Chukrd for'Hindu, Mew/silt for Musalman; and Mazbi
for Sikh sweepers; Metre for Hindu and Sikh, and
J/zinwar for Musalman Kahdrs ; Ram/er for Musalmén
Raj puts, and so on. It should always be noted Whether -
the synonyms are co-extensive or not; whether, for
instance, the term Rangar is applied to all Musalman
Rajpﬁts, and to them only, or not.

(b) Too great caution cannot be exercised in accepting
synonyms. To the educated and twice-born Native,
every vagrant is a Nat, every outcast a Chathrd or Dz’tm,
and so on. The real test is whether, for instance, the
same individual will call himself leémrar and Kakdr
indiﬁerently; whether a Hindu Olutkrd would be called
on conversion a Masallé ; whether a Juldlm from the
east would, on settling in the west, be recognized as a
Pdolz'; whether the people themselves accept and
recognize the identity. Mere identity of origin is not
suﬁicient. For instance, Panic/ms are said to be
converted Bmzyns ; but no Bang/a could now become a
Puma/2a by conversion ; the caste is closed to outsiders,
and has become separate and distinct.

(0) Names of occupations often give rise to most difﬁcult
questions of this sort. For instance, some say that
Jhéuwar and Mdch/zé are identical; and that all Malia/ls,
Bbatydras, Barbhz’mjas, and Ddg/a’s are Jhénwar by caste,
these words being the names of occupations only, and
not of castes. Taking Malldhs only. the test questions
would be something of this sort. Are there any Malia/as
who never were Jhénwars ; would a Jhénwar, on ﬁrst
taking to work as a. boatman, call himself th'mrar, or

177

Malldh, or both indifferently? What would his son call
himself? What would he call himself if he reverted to
working as a porter or village water-carrier or cook ?
Would he ordinarily marry a Malla’h woman (1) while
still working as a porter, (2) while working as a boat-
man, and vice cersd .3

(d) Where the custom of the neighbourhood forbids marri-
age out of the caste, freedom of intermarriage is the
best possible test of identity. But this is often not
available. As to the general question, see section 21
below. Questions of this sort are the most difﬁcult
which have arisen in the classiﬁcation of census ﬁgures,
and a thorough examination of them is much needed.

5. Origin or foundation of meta—The tradition as to the
origin or foundation of the caste or clan, though often absurd, should
always be given, together with any facts which may seem to bear
upon its probable truth.

6. Place of Origin and course of migration.-The ultimate place
of origin, as stated by the people, should be recorded, together with
such account as they may give of their subsequent stages. But
especially the name of the village or neighbourhood from which their
ancestors came direct to their present locality should always be
stated, as this last can generally be relied upon, and enables us to
trace them back, step by step, in their wanderings. It will often
be found that they still make periodical pilgrimages to a place of
origin, there to worship at a sattz’, or at the shrine (jatlzera) of their
common ancestor.

The place of origin of their Parokits and Ndis will often be
a guide; and it is useful to know where their family genealogists
(Bkdt, Jdga, Clidrcm, Mrdsi) live, and to what caste and religion
they belong. These men should always be got hold of and examined
if possible, as they are the repositories of all the traditions of the
tribe.

The number of generations since immigration is often known, or
can be got from the genealogical tree, and is useful as approximately
ﬁxing the date of arrival.

The people generally have a tradition as to who held the village
or locality before their coming. These traditions often throw light
on past movements of tribes, and should be examined into and
recorded over as wide an area as possible.

7. Religion—

(a) Should be stated; and whether the same caste or clan
is found of more than one religion in the neighbour-
hood. Original Musalmans, who came into India as
such, should be distinguished from those whose ances-
tors have been converted from Hinduism. The latter
can often state who converted them, and when and
where. [It is important to ascertain whether their
conversion took place before or after their settlement
in their present homes]

12.

178

(b) The sect, where it can be discovered, should also be
stated. Whole villages of nominal Hindus or Musal-
mans are sometimes adherents of a sect which practi-
cally eclipses the parent religion. It will often be
found that the people affect a particular gum}. or pz’r
or gurztdwdra, and will be of the sect to which he or it
belongs (see further, section 20 infra); especially
weavers, water-carriers, and other village menials are
often devotees of some saint or shrine, local or distant;
and in such cases the fact should be noted.

(0) It will generally be found that the peasantry worship
minor village deities and local saints far more than the
recognized gods of the Hindu Pantheon. Particulars
regarding worship of this sort are especially valuable.
The names, origin, and attributes of the deity, the
shape and aspect of the shrine, the days of the week or
year consecrated to him or her, the ceremonies observed
in worship, the nature of the offerings made, and the
class of people by whom they are taken, should be given.

(d) It should be especially noted whether any of these
deities are peculiar to any particular sex, age, class,
caste or clan, or their worship specially affected by
them, or in any given locality.

(e) It is not impossible that the minor deities may be dis-
tributable into two classes, Aryan and Aboriginal, the
former being worshipped by all, and the oiferings
made to them being pure and taken by Brahmans,
while the worship of the latter is often largely conﬁned
to women and children, and the offerings consist of
fowls, pigs, ckurmas, and other impure things, and
are taken by J ogis, Faqirs, Chﬁhras, and the like.
The latter class are perhaps more often malevolent
than the former.

( f ) It should also be stated whether Sikhs or Hindus
worship the same deities at the same shrines or not;
and it will often be found that Musalmans still worship
these minor deities of the neighbourhood, especial/y

, their women and children.

(g) Customs forbidden, or not authorized by the nominal
religion, are of special importance, as, for example,
the worship of saints by Musalmans, and of Musalman
saints by Hindus, the circumcision of females, and
the like.

(12) It is particularly important to note the cases where a
caste, though nominally Hindu, Sikh or Musalman, is
not recognized as such, and not admitted to a religious
equality, or to a participation in public rites and ceremo-
nies by others of the same denomination.

(2') Information regarding the, religion and worship of the
outcast and vagrant castes, such as sweepers and the
various kinds of gipsies, is much needed.

179

Snake-worship and tree-worship will be found in full vitality
in many parts of the province, and traces of ﬁre-worship and devil-
worship should be carefully looked for.

8. Fairs, Fasts, and Festivals—These almost always have a
semi-religious signiﬁcance, and are of great sociological interest. The
places at which they are held, and the ﬁxed dates on which they fall,
should be noted; and the name, history, and attributes of the saint
or deity, if any, in whose honour they are instituted given; if none,
the origin and signiﬁcance attached to them by the people. It should
be stated what sex and age, what castes or clans of people, and of
what sect or religion, principally attend or observe them; what is the
nature of the offerings made, and who takes these offerings. A rough
estimate of the numbers usually attending a fair will be useful. Any
tradition connected with the occasion should be narrated, and all
rites and ceremonies observed should be minutely described.

9. Omens and Superstitions—These are often peculiar to a clan
or a locality, and are always interesting for comparison with those
of other races. Divination; sooth-sayers (blacgat sydna, &c.) ; witch-
craft; the evil eye ; the release of animals or scapegoats during
epidemics; [the use and nature of charms, especially against small-
pox and cattle-plague]; the sanctity of certain days, especially in
connection with horned cattle; auspicious and inauspicious days,
numbers, sights and events ; and belief in and propitiations of ghosts
(6122215, paret, c/z/zurel) and fairies (mué s/zd/Ipuri) are some of the points
on which information is needed; as also the worship of ancestors
and the propitiation of those who die by violence (upyat) or childless
(gydl), the custom of building little platforms with cup-marks (Mar/m)
for their worship, the custom of heaping up earth (cf. the cairns of
Europe) in their honour, or in honour of some of the minor deities.

There is a large mass of superstitious custom connected with
agriculture, such as the days on which ploughing, sowing, reaping,
&c., must be begun, intermitted or ﬁnished; the rites observed or
invocations employed at their commencement or completion ; the
ceremonies attending cotton-picking, cane-crushing, winnowing and
division of grain, and commencement and completion of a well; the
customary number of times which weeding should or should not be
performed; the dimensions of wells and well-gear being measured
in so many and three quarter hands, and the like.

The number 5 and its aliquot parts, as 4%, 2%, will be found to
run through many of the superstitious, and even of the religious,
customs of the people.

10. Use of Brd/zmans.—Musulméns often still retain and fee
the family Brahmans, employing them especially at betrothals and
weddings, in casting horoscopes and ﬁxing lucky names and dates,
and the like. This is valuable, as indicating Hindu origin. The
class of Brahman so employed should always be ascertained.

Some of the lower castes have a sort of outcast Brahmans who
minister to them only; and I understand that there are Musalman
Bréhmans (called Huseni) who perform hereditary ofﬁces for their
converted clients. Any special order of priesthood of this sort should
be described. Most of the frontier tribes include Levitical clans, who

12 a

180

have the monopoly of priestly functions, and occupy a position some-
what similar to that of Brahmans among Hindus.

More information is needed about the different classes of Brah-
mans, as the Achdry‘, decmt. Gdjrdtz', 8m, what position they hold in
the sacerdotal ranks, what offerings they accept, what functions they
perform, and what is the origin of the distinction into classes.

11. Totemism.—Signs of reverence for some animal or plant
peculiar to the caste or clan will often be met with. Thus, some clans
will not eat or burn certain plants; the women of others veil their
faces before certain trees, as if in presence of an elder relative, or
worship them in hope of getting children, in the belief that the
spirit of the ancestor inhabits them; others use or worship certain
plants at weddings and similar ceremonies; and some castes call all
their sons after plants. A clandestine marriage round a ﬁre made of
certain wild plants, even though performed without the usual cere-
monial, is sometimes considered to be of a peculiary binding nature.
The clan name is sometimes derived from that of a plant or animal;
and there is often a tradition connecting it with the clan and account-
ing for the reverence shown it. The people’s explanation of the clan
name, though often apparently absurd, should always be given.

12. Social Customs—All social customs are exceedingly useful
in tracing ethnic afﬁnities, as they are marvellously persistent. The
simplest method of recording them probably is to describe minutely
any set of customs or ceremonies as practised by the principal tribe of
the neighbourhood; and, taking that as a standard, to note the points -
in which the practice of other tribes departs from it—

(a) Differential customs, which are special to one tribe,
and differ from the custom of other tribes in the
neighbourhood, are most important of all.

(1)) Birth customs; the giving two names, one for every-day
wear, and one for ceremonial use; the meanings of
names, often intended to deceive or frighten the small-
pox goddess by depreciating or exalting the qualities of
the child; name-jingles or rhymes within the family,
perhaps marking the paternity in polyandrous fami-
lies; the rites connected with the scalplock, puberty,
and cuttings and offerings of hair in general, are all
interesting and often important. The period of ceri-
monial impurity after birth and death (sdtak and pdtak)
should always be given, as they vary with the caste.

(0) Marriage and betrothal customs are especially valuable.
It will often be found that a Musalman tribe .Wlll have
identical marriage ceremonies with those of 1ts Hindu
neighbours, with the single exception of the substitu-
tion of the m'kdh for the pherd, or even the addltlon of
the former to the latter. '

(d) Poiyandry is practised, in a sort of half-recognlzed
manner, far more generally throughout the Pan] ab than
is usually supposed. It may always be suspected Where
the custom is for the eldest only of a famlly of brothers
to marry. Other curious forms of marnage W111 also

181

he found in certain parts, such as the infant son
marrying an adult woman who cohabits with the
nominal father.

(e) It should always be stated whether the people burn or
bury their dead; if the former, where the bones and
ashes are ﬁnally bestowed; if the latter, whether they
are buried lying or sitting, on the face or on the back,
in a graveyard or at home; in both cases, in which
direction graves or shrines face. In the case of
menials, it should be noted whether they have a
distinct custom proper to their caste, or whether they
merely follow the custom of the village to which they
are attached, which will vary with the religion of the
villagers. '

(f) All customs of committing corpses or ashes to local
streams or tanks should be noted, and the origin and
nature of the virtue these possess should be recorded.
This practice is believed to be dying out in favour of
the more orthodox localities.

13. Karma—It is of capital importance to know whether
a tribe practises karewd, or the remarriage of the widow, as the exis-
tence of this custom helps to ﬁx both origin and social status. The
custom exists in two forms, which must be carefully distinguished :—

(1) The Levirate, in which the eldest surviving brother of
the deceased takes the widow: this is either a remnant
of past or a token of existing polyandry.

(2) Where the existing restrictions upon marriage out of the
caste, &c., are relaxed in the case of Widows, a
marriage with almost any widow being permitted.

It should be noted which of these forms is practised ; [and further,
what rule of inheritance is observed, especially under the Levirate :
whether, for instance, the son begotten of the Widow by the younger
brother of the deceased inherits as the son of the elder or of the
younger brother]

14. Inheritance—

(a) Minute details of the rules of inheritance do not gener-
ally bear upon our subject. But it is important to
know whether the tribe follows the strict Islamic law of
succession, or whether their rules, by denying rights of
succession to females, tend to keep property in the
clan.

(b) Primogeniture; equal division between sons ; Pdgbcmd
and Ckztndaband; succession of sons during the father’s
lifetime ; distinctions between whole and half-brothers
on the father’s and mother’s side respectively ; succes-
sion, of daughters; and inheritance by the son-in-law of
a sonless father (gkarjau‘dé), are all points which may
be usefully noticed, more especially when customs are
found to differ on any of them.

182

(c) Any traces of inheritance through the female line, such
as inheritance by brothers or sisters, or by sister’s sons,
should be carefully recorded.

(d) Traces of oesh, or the periodical redistribution by lot of
common arable land among the households or adults of
the community, are interesting.

15. Relations/zip and its incidenta—A table showing the terms
used for the various kinds and degrees of relationship, and the people
who are included under each, will often throw valuable light upon
the ancient constitution of the family. It should be stated what
relations may not be mentioned either by name, or by the term for
the relationship; as for instance, that a woman may not name her
husband, and that a man will not describe his brother-in-law (sdla)
as such.

The admission of strangers to inherit, the manner of and
restrictions upon adoption, the relations arising from and destroyed
by adoption, ghmy'awdz’, and foster kinship, and by the custom of
making bhﬂmb/eai, should all be noted.

Especially the relations which are created by marriage—(l)
between the woman and the members of the family she marries into,
(2) between the two families, are important. In the west of the
Panjab a woman changes her clan (got) by marriage; in the east she
does not. It would be interesting to discover Where the custom
changes, and to note any facts bearing upon it; as, for instance, the .
custom of formal admission of the bride into her husband’s clan.
The functions which custom assigns to sisters’ sons and husbands,
brothers’ wives, sister-in-laws’ mothers and similar relations, in social
ceremonials, such as marriage rites, are exceedingly interesting and
instructive, and need further examination.

Further facts bearing upon the importance of eating together
(conforreatz‘o) in ceremonies where a new relationship is created, are
needed. The custom often takes the form of a distribution of gar
or sweetmeats.

16. Inter-marriage.

(a) It is specially important to discover the limits within or
beyond which marriage is forbidden; for instance,
that a man must marry, in the ﬁrst instance at any
rate, within the caste; but must not marry into his
own, his mother’s or his paternal or maternal grand-
mother’s clan, nor a girl, of whatever clan, who lives
in a village marching with his own, and must not
marry two sisters; or whether the prohibited degrees
of Islam are the only limitations observed. It is
important to know how far differences of religion or
sect are a bar to marriage.

(6) It is also of great importance [as throwing light upon
the possible mixed origin of some of our tribes and
clans] to know how the, offspring of—(l) ﬁrst mar-
riage, (2) karewd marriages, (3) illicit connexions
between parents of diﬁerent tribes, castes or rehglons

183

are now classed; whether they follow the tribe and
clan of the father or of the mother, or are known by
an entirely new name; and what distinction, if any,
is made between them and others who are born into
the tribe and clan in a more usual or legitimate
manner.

(a) Clans often cannot intermarry with certain other clans as
being of common origin with themselves; for instance,
the Des-mil, Mon, and Daldl Jats, the Mandkdr, Kan-
dkdr and Bargztjar Rajputs, and so on. Ties of this
sort should be carefully sought for and recorded.

(d) Castes and clans often refuse to, or are not allowed to,
intermarry with certain others on the score of social
status. In some cases wives will be received, but
daughters will not be given in marriage. It is useful
to give these particulars, as helping to ﬁx the social
standing.

17. Social stoma—This is denoted in three ways :—

(a) by the customs regarding intermarriage just referred to ‘;

(b) by the standing of the castes which will—(1) eat, (2)
drink, (3) smoke with them, the Brahmanical distinc-
tion between pakké rotz’, or dry food cooked in ghi, and
kachhé roté or food not so cooked, being noticed where
it exists. Thus, in some parts of the province a Gaur
Brahman will eat pakké roté from the hands of a Hindu
J at, while he will not eat leach/ti roté even from the
hands of a Sdrsz‘rt Brahman;

(o) by the general custom of the neighbourhood, which con-
demns certain castes to live in separate quarters, drink
from separate wells, and so on.

18. Occupation—The principal local occupations of the caste
should be speciﬁed. It will often be found that change of religion
affects the occupation. Thus a sweeper converted to Islam usually
ceases to remove night-soil, while a Sikh Chamér will often leave
leather work and take to weaving. It is often the case, moreover,
that different clans pursue dilferent branches of the occupation
hereditary to the caste. Thus some Ghosi clans keep cattle and sell ,
milk only; others buy milk and sell butter.

Instances of abandonment of hereditary occupation should be
noticed, and whether in such cases the caste name is abandoned or
altered, and the ties with the original caste broken or relaxed (see
section 21 below).

19. Minor peculiarities.

(a) Customs prohibiting or enjoining the eating or growing
of certain plants, as onions, turnips, indigo, &c., the
eating of ﬂesh, drinking of wine, smoking, and use of
drugs, the use of vessels made of a particular metal or
of earth, or ornamented with stripes or otherwise,
often afford useful indications.

184

(b) It will generally be found that the dress and jewels vary
with the religion, caste, clan and conjugal condition;
especially as to the colour of the clothes, red, blue,
whole or party-coloured; the use of drawers or petti-
coats, dkotls or takmans ; the use of boddices; of nose-
rings, small or large, of gold or of silver; the use of
bracelets of silver or lac; the colour of the wrap and
of the head-dress; and the general method of shaping
and wearing the garments and jewels. Customs regu-
lating personal adornment, such as tattooing, orna-
menting the teeth with gold, compressing the skull,
&c., &c., are always valuable.

(c) Honoriﬁc titles peculiar to castes or clans should be
noted.

(d) Peculiarities of language will often point to place of
origin, and peculiarities of physique betray ethnic
descent; but these two- are very difﬁcult to detect.

(9) Local songs, proverbs, and folk-lore often afford curious
and useful hints about custom, and are always interest-
ing and valuable. They should be taken down exactly
as spoken or sung, and not doctored to “make them
conform with grammatical rule or theory.

19a. Tribal and Village 01‘gam‘zatz‘on.—Traces of tribal organi-
zation will generally be found, even where the tribe is now least
prominent. Some of the points to be noted are—the tract, often
called T tape or Thumb”, held, now or formerly, by the tribe or clan;
the existence and organization of a tribal assembly or panclwlyat ;
how it is convened, and what questions it deals with; whether its
constitution involves any rudimentary idea of representation, either
hereditary or elective; the mode of selection of a tribal chief or
Sarpanch ; Whether he must necessarily belong to the head (till/ca)
village or family ; how that village or family is determined, and the
privileges it enjoys; how far the assembly. or chief represents the
body, so that the latter is bound by its or hls acts, and how 1ts or his
decisions are enforced ; what privileges the chief enjoys ; what dues
he receives; What power he possesses over the land of the tribe, and
what share he owns in it, or whether he is the one tribesman who
has no share at all. The organization within the‘village should be
similarly described. _ .

Relics of a now extinct tribal organization W111 sometlmes be
found in the titles or social privileges accorded to members of a
certain family ; and it is often the case that the organization which
has almost wholly died out among the land-owning communities,
survives in comparative integrity among theirpriests and menials,
whose panchdynts are organized upon the bas1s 0f the land-owmg
tribe to which they are attached, while those who come from the
Mike village enjoy certain rights and privileges.

20. Seals and Ascetlc Orders—Scots are exceedingly numer-
ous. especially among Hindus; and new ones are constantly spnng-
ing into existence. The various orders of faqirs are numbered by
hundreds, while the census papers show many such of which httle

185

or nothing appears to be known. The points most worthy of record
are—the name, date, and life history of the founder of the sect or
order; where its head-quarters are situated; peculiar tenets and
ceremonial practices which distinguish it from other sects or orders;
what deities or saints are specially venerated; peculiarities of dress, if
any ; what castes are admitted, what chieﬂy enter, and whether caste
names, rules, and distinctions are recognized after entry; the rites
used in admission; whether any special occupations, colours, dress,
food, &c., are encouraged, prescribed, prohibited or discountenanced.
In the case of a new sect, the estimated number of followers, where
they most abound, to what classes they belong, and whether it is
spreading or dying out. In the case of an order, whether the faqirs
are celibate or not ; whether they are wholly wandering and indepen-
dent, or are attached to monasteries and have a system of internal
government; what is their general character; and what functions, it
any, they perform in the life of the people.

21. Trade-guilds.—These guilds appear to assume every form
intermediate between castes proper and the European trades-union.
.Even true castes, such as that of the sweepers, where the occupation
is prescribed by birth, are, where they follow a trade, handicraft, or
menial occupation, generally governed by an elaborate panchdyat'
organization. And this is almost always the case Where the guild,
like, for instance, that of tailors, includes men of very different
castes. .

In these cases the nature of the organization should be des-
cribed, the degree of control which it exercises over the members of
the guild, and the method in which it enforces its decisions. Points
worthy of note are—whether they admit men of all castes and
religions, and what castes and religions usually enter the guild;
whether the caste name is abandoned for that of the occupation,
either in the ﬁrst instance or in the second generation, and whether
it is resumed again if the occupation is abandoned; Whether the
different castes Within the guild intermarry with each other, with
their own castes within the guild, or with their own castes outside
the guild; how far the occupation tends to becom hereditary; in
what degree the rules of the guild supersede or override those of
the caste, and what happens when the two conﬂict. The titles of the
heads of the various guilds should always be given, as Malatar, Raj,
Khalifa/z, as they explain the mode of addressing followers of the
trade or occupation.

22. Formation of new castes.—Any facts bearing upon the
origin or growth of new castes should be carefully watched for and
noted. It will sometimes be found that a tribe or family has lately
begun to aifect a religious sanctity or a social exclusiveness beyond
that of its fellows, has changed or abandoned its former occupation
in whole or in part, has adopted or relinquished the custom of widow-
marriage, has excluded from or admitted to matrimonial alliance
clans with which it formerly did or did not intermarry, and so on.
It is believed that instances of a clan or family which, a very few
generations ago, was undoubtedly classed as J at, being now gene-
rally admitted as Rajput, and mice verse, or of the descendants of

186

a J at grandfather having now, by virtue of mere change of occupa-
tion, become Néis or Lohérs, and been admitted to caste privileges
by the other Néis or Lohars of the neighbourhood, are more com-
mon than is generally supposed. Nothing can be more important
than a careful record of the actual facts in such cases; whether the
people in question have risen or fallen in the social scale; how their
position in respect of intermarriage with other sections of the com-
munity has been aﬂected ; whether they have adopted a new or are
still known by the old name, and so on. ,

23. Boundaries.-—lt is important to deﬁne, as far as possible,
the boundary which marks any change in religion, language, custom,
or tribal distribution or nomenclature; such as the line at which
Khatris supersede Banyas or Aroras Khatris, at which Bagri take the
p)lace of Dese Jats, Kutanas and Musallis of Chi’ihras, or Charhoas of

hobis and Chhimpis, at which J ulaha yields to Rich, J at to J at,
Hindi to Panjabi, Hinduism to Sikhism, at which the custom changes
as to marriage within the caste but outside the clan, as to the heredi-
tary nature of occupations, or as to the change of a bride’s clan. The
limits within which dialects are spoken also stand in great need of
deﬁnition, though they are often by no means clearly marked. There
is very generally an intermediate or neutral zone, within which the
distinct dialects, tribes, or customs which prevail on either side of it
are to be found in a state of intermixture or transition. Such zones
should be deﬁned as accurately aspossible.

24. Tracts—It is useful to deﬁne the exact limits of the many
local tracts into which the people themselves have divided the pro-
vince; such as the Bagar, the Nardak, Hariana, Bhattiana, the
Malwa, the Manjha, the Pawad, the Bajwat, the Rohi, the J angal-des,
the Dogar-des, the Daman, the Pachhad, and a hundred others.
These divisions are permanent; and, unlike our artiﬁcially formed
districts and subdivisions, represent natural features, either physical
or ethnographical.

Information is also much needed regarding the limits of the old
parganahs, saw/airs, sztbaks and other ancient administrative divisions
of the country; as in the absence of such information we cannot fully
understand the statements of the old historians which refer to these
divisions. The Sikhs often altered considerably the old units of
Mughal administration; and it should always be stated to which of
these two dynasties the facts given refer. .

25. Bibliography—Much information on the subject of the
divisions of the people will be found in all the various Settlement
Reports; while their religious and social customs are treated of in
Mr. Lyall’s Report on Kangra, paragraphs 66, 72 to 74, 112 to 119,
154, 160 to 169, in Mr. Barnes" Report on Kangra, paragraphs 253 to
294, in Captain Waterﬁeld’s Report on Gujrat, paragraphs 121 to
164, in Mr. Maconachie’s Report on Delhi, paragraphs 143 to 150,
in Mr. Channing’s Report on Gurgaon, pages 34 to 37, and 1n my
Report on Karnal (now passing through the Press), Chapters VI,
VIII, IX, and part of VII. Elliot’s Races of the North-West
Provinces of India, edited by Beames (London, Triibner, 1869, two
vols, 8vo., price 368.), is a storehouse of valuable information; as

187

are a little book on the Domestic Manners and Customs of the
Hindus of Northern India by the Rev. Ishuree Dass (Benares,
Lazarus, and London, Triibner, 1866), Wilson’s Sketch of the Reli-
gious Sects of the Hindus (Calcutta, Bishop’s College Press, 1846,
cost about 53.), and some of Colebrooke’s Miscellaneous Essays
(reprint of 1858, cost 68.)

The constitution of the tribe and family can be studied in pages
ito c of vol. II of Mr. Tupper’s work on Panjab Customary Law;
and in the earlier pages of Mr. Wilson’s Code of Tribal Customs in
the Gurgaon District (reprinted in the volume just mentioned). '

The learner who is anxious to acquaint himself with some of the
published results of sociological research cannot do better than begin
with Sir John Lubbock’s Origin of Civilisation (London, Longman,
1870, one vol., 8vo., price 168.) ; while the following are a few less
elementary works on the same and cognate subjects :-—Tylor’s Early
History of Mankind (London, Murray, 1870, one vol., 8vo., price 123.);
Tyler’s Primitive Culture (London, Murray, 1871, two vols, 8vo., price
248.) ; MacLennan’s Primitive Marriage (London, Quaritch, 1876, one
vol., small 8vo., price 169.) ; Morgan’s Ancient Society (London, Mac-
Millan, 1877, one vol., 8vo., price 168.) ; Maine’s Village Communities
(London, Murray, 1872, one vol., 8vo., price 128.); Maine’s Early His-
tory of Institutions (London, Murray, 1875, one vol., 8vo., price 128;)

26. Finally, I would remind you that no holes can possibly, be
too fragmentary or too trivial to be worth sending me. Incomplete as
this memorandum is, a complete examination of even a single caste
in a single district with regard to all the points noted would be a very
serious undertaking. But it is only meant to suggest lines of inquiry,
some of which will interest one person and some another. Even bare
lists of clans and subdivisions, or a note that a certain single clan
belongs to such a tribe, will be most useful. And all details regarding
the customs of the people, however minute or apparently uninteresting,
possess great ethnological value; and E’S/Jeﬂlally points in which the
customs of one people dgﬂer from those of another. For instance, a state-
ment which I have just seen that the temporary huts which the
Bdwarz’as build for themselves are circular in plan, at once suggests
the inquiry where the pattern was brought from, and invites compa-
rison with the bee-hive shaped tent of the nomad Mongols. It is
, always well to test and conﬁrm any information which has been
collected by inquiries from fresh individuals. But where this cannot
be done, the information will still be of great value; for it can be
tested by comparison or by subsequent inquiry, whiic, if not noted
at once, it is lost. It is as well, however, in sending notes, to state
how far the information has been tested and supported by repeated
inquiry.

The primary distribution of the Panjab peoples among the abori-
ginal inhabitants, and the several great waves of immigration which
have at different times swept into the country, can only be arrived at
by a minute comparison of their various social and religious customs;
and the immense question of the growth and nature of caste can. only
be elucidated by a study of the internal relations and economy of
existing castes. The habits of the vagrant and outcast classes afford

188

an almost untrodden ﬁeld for the one inquiry; the exceedingly
interesting and elaborate caste-organization of the menial castes, and
of those numerous trade-guilds of which it is often so difﬁcult to say
whether they are castes or only occupations, affords equally unexplor-
ed material for the other. Work in either ﬁeld, or indeed in any
cognate direction, will help on the inquiry into the early history of
,1 social institutions which has lately assumed such great interest and
importance. We in India have an inexhaustible store-house of facts
at our very doors, and unequalled facilities for ascertaining and record-
ing them. Every year sees some of the existing material disappear
under the powerful solvent of contact with European thought and the
appliances of civilization. We are probably too near our subject to
generalise with success; but we, and we alone, can obtain the facts
from which generalisations can be made.

APPENDIX IV.

———o—

LIST OF CORRESPONDENTS SELECTED TO TAKE PART IN THE
ETHNOGRAPHIC SURVEY OF BENGAL.

 

 

DIVISION.

District.

Names of correspondents.

 

BABDWAN

PEESIDENCY .

".4

 

'—

.J
i

Midnapur

Bardwan

Hughli

Howrah

Birbhum

Bankura

24-Parganas

Calcutta

 

A

u
0

r""—‘"“‘-ﬁ M H—ﬁ PM M M '—

 

 

Baboo Bisseswar Banerji.
,, Kali Narayan Roy.

The Deputy Inspector of Schools.

K. C. Ghosh, Esq.

Baboo Rajendra Lal Gupta.

The Executive Engineer, Cossye Divi-
mm.

W. B. Oldham, Esq.

Baboo Tara Prosad Chatterji.

The Subdivisional Ofﬁcer, Culna.
Ditto ditto,’ Cutwa.
Ditto ditto, Raniganj.

Baboo J aga Mohan Bhattacharji.

B. N. De, Esq.

Baboo Kedar N ath Dutt.

The Subdivisional Ofﬁcer, Jehanabad.
Baboo Aswini Kumar Bose.

Baboo Bankim Chandra Chatterji.
,, Prasanna Kumar Bose.

Baboo Bhuban Mohan Raha.
N. Warde-J ones, Esq.

Baboo Atul Chandra Chatterji.
,, Guru Das Barman.
The Sub-Registrar of Khattra.
Ditto of Kotalpur.
Baboo Haris Chandra Rai.

Baboo Hem Chandra Kar.
Kumar Gopendra Krishna Deb.
Pandit Hara Prasad Sastri.
Baboo Ranga Lal Mukharji.

Dr. Rajendra Lal Mitra, C.I.E.

J agannath Khanna, Esq.

Baboo Protab Chandra Ghosh.
,, Adya N ath Banerji.

T. N. Mukharji, Esq.

Baboo Protab Chandra Roy.

 

190

 

 

DIVISION.

- District.

Names of correspondents.

 

PBESIDENCY— 4

concluded.

Rusnanu

Dace;

 

h

 

 

N adiya

J essore

Khulna .

Murshedabad

Raj shahye
Dinajpur

Rangpur

Bogra.

Pabna

Jalpigori

Darjiling

Kuch Behar

. Dacca.

P—*-w M F—M'ﬁ M" r-—-*‘-—-\

a

[—— -'-—— ﬂ M 'W.

r—‘—""“—-ﬁ :

M

 

Baboo Tarini Kumar Ghosh.
,, Ishan Chandra Ghosh.

Baboo Krishna Kali Mukharji.
,, Kedar Nath Biswas.
,, Bankim Chandra Chatterji.
,, Chandi Das Ghose.
,, Troylakya N ath Sen.
,, Annada Prasad Sen.
,, Kali Prasanna Sarkar.

Baboo Khagendra N ath Mitter.
,, Bhubaneswar Sing.
,, Narendra N ath Roy Chowdri.

Baboo Bansidhar Roy.
,, Pran Kumar Das.
,, Bipin Bihari Mukerji.
,, Bi joy Krishna Bose.
,, Srinath Gupta.

Baboo Mahendra. N ath Bhattacharji.

Dr.- U. C. Mukerji.
Baboo Sarat Chandra. Chatterji.

Moulvi Abdul Khaleque.

H. E. Ransom, Esq.

J. T. Mackay, Esq.

Baboo Sarada Prasad Chatterji.
,, Kumud Bihari Samanta.

Baboo Bhubaneswar Gupta.

E. F. Growse, Esq.
Baboo Barada Churn Mitter.
,, Puma. Chandra Gupta.

Baboo Priya Nath Mukerji.
H. H. Heard, Esq.
D. Sunder, Esq.

‘ Baboo Parbati Charan Roy.

,, Sarat Chandra. Das, C.I.E.
Raja Tenduk Palgar.
Baboo Mari Das Pradhan.
,, Hathura. N ath Chatterji.
,, Gelong N imsring.

Baboo Calica Das Duth.

Baboo Mati Lal Sarkar.

Rajani N ath Ghosh.

Syam Kishore Bose.

Aswini Kumar Bose.

Aditya Chandra Chakrabarti.
' Ram Chandrathar.

 

191-

 

DIVISION.

District.

Names of correspondents.

 

DACCA—concld. 4

Cnuneoxe -

 

BHAGALPUR 4

 

 

Dacca—concld.

Faridpur

Bakarganj

Maimansinh

Chittagong

N oakhali

Tipperah

Hill Tipperah

Chittagong Hill {

Tracts.

Bhagalpur

Purniah

Monghyr

Maldah

 

Maulvi Mazharal Anwar.

Baboo N alini Nath Mitra.
,, Gropal Chandra Bose.

E. B. Harris, Esq.

Baboo Bagala Prasanna Mazumdar.
,, Raj Kumar Sen.
,, Dina N ath Dhar.

Baboo Khetra Gopal Roy.
,, Girin'dra N ath Chatterji.

Maulvi Syed Obedulla.
Baboo J ogadish Chandra Roy.
,, Umakishore Roy.
,, Sasi Sekhar Dutt.
F. Wilcox, Esq.
Baboo Pitambar Sing.
,, Aswini Kumar Dutt.
,, Parbatti N ath Ghose.

Maulvi Mohamed.
Baboo J ogendra N ath Banerji.
Mr. Ellison (missionary).

Baboo Gaur Mohan Basak.
,, Radha Kishore Chakrabati.

Baboo J ogendra N ath Chakrabati.
,, Satis Chandra Bose.
The District Magistrate.

Dr. J. ﬁrench-Mullen.
Baboo Tarak Chandra Gupta.

Baboo Uma Kanta Das.

Baboo Braja N ath Shaha.
,, Han Pada Ghosh.

A. H. Giles, Esq.
Baboo Ram Narain Banerji.
,, Mathura N ath Mukerji.

Baboo Karunamaya Banerji.
Surji Kumar Agasti, Esq.

Baboo Kastori Lal.

Baboo Debi Prasad.

The Subdivisional Oﬂicer, Beguserai.
Ditto ditto , J amui.

Baboo Shib Chandra Nag.
Maulvi Zakir Hossein.
H. R. Reily, Esq.

 

192

 

DIVISION.

District.

Names of correspondents.

 

BEAGALPUR—
concluded.

Pun

 

r
I

01101.1 N 191111114]
L

' Lohardagé.

 

Santal Parganas

Patna.

Gya

Shahabad

Darbhanga

Mozuﬁerpur

Saran

Champaran

Hazaribagh.

 

Bahoo C. N. Gupta.
N. O. Banerji.
A. ”.W Stark, Esq.
Syed Nejabat Hossein.
Rev. L. O. Skrefsrud.

The District Superintendent of 3901100.
Maulvi Majibar Rahman.
Syed Zahiruddin.
Baboo Bemala Charan Bhattacharji.
,, Sheo N andan Lal Roy.
C. N. Banerji, Esq.
Maulvi Wahed Uddin.

Dr. R. Macleod.
Baboo Rajkishore Narain.
,, Radha Lal.

,, Sarada Prasad Ganguli.

The District Superintendent of Police.
,, Subdivisional Oﬂicer, Buxar.

J. R. Hand, Esq.

The Subdivisional Oﬁicer, Bhabua.

The District Magistrate.
,, Subdivisional Oﬂicer, Tajpur.
,, ditto ditto, Madhubani.
,, Sub-Registrar, ditto.
Maulvi Gowhar Ali.
Baboo Dwarka Prasad.
,, Premath N ath Chaterji.
,, Okhoy Kumar Chaterji.

Baboo Ram Prakas Lal.
H. W. C. Carnduff, Esq.

The DeputyE Inspector of Schools.
A. Tytler,E sq

Baboo Raghunath Sahai.

R F. H. Pughe, Esq.

The Deputy Inspector of Schools.
,, Suh-Inspector of Schools.
,, Canungo at Sudder Station.
W. R. Bright, Esq.

The Sub- Deputy Collector, Bettiah.
,, Canungo at Bettiah.

Baboo Girendra N ath Mitre.~
Rai J adu N ath Mukerji.

Baboo Girindra. Chandra Banerji.
,, Gagan Chandra Banerji.

F. A. Slack, Esq.

Baboo Rakha] Das Holder.

0. A. G. Lillingston, Esq.

The Munsif of Palamow.

 

 

193

 

 

 

Rev. A. Campbell.
The Munsif of Barn. Bazar.

DIVISION. District. Names of correspondents.
{ Baboo Surya. Kumar Guha.
| ,, Paresh N ath Ghosh.
r Manbhum ...{ ,, Atal Bihari Moitra.
I
L

OHO’I'A NAG- ‘ .
PUB—concld. Smgbhum

L Tributary States
f Cuttack
Puri

Oman Balasore

A

 

L Tributary States

 

r——""-“‘ﬁ M

 

The Deputy Commissioner, Singbhum;
The Commissioner of Chota Nagpur.
Baboo Ramakhoy Chatterji.

The Senior Deputy Collector at head-
quarters.

Baboo Rash Behari N aik.
,, Akhoy Kumar Chatterji.
Hon’ble Kumar Baikant N ath De.

The Tehsildar of Khandmals.
,, Manager of N ilgiri.
,, ,, of Dhenkanal.
,, ,, of Mohurbhanj.

Rev. Father Schaﬁ.

Srinath Dutt, Esq.

 

W. J.-Reg. N0. 40441J—120-11-12-91

l3

 

 

 

 

 

OCT - 41996

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