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003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

DAS. 215 DATKILIAE. Bengal like the Kochhs, who become Vaishnavas with a view to be considered Hindus ; a title of the Osw£l Baniyas ; a sept of Tharus; a section of Utkal or Orissa Brahmans and Karans ; a title of Kaibarttas and Sunris in Bengal. Das -Limbu, a synonym for Limbu, referring to the ten divi sions of the tribe. Dasnami, the collective name of ten classes of Saivite religious mendicants, followers of Sankara Acharya, each of which bears a peculiar name, as Tirtha, Asrama, Saraswati, Vana, Bharati, Aranya, Giri or Gir, Parvata, Puri, and Sagara which is added to the proper names of the members. According to Professor H. H. Wilson only the first three, and part of Bharati, are now consid ered pure Dandis or bearers of the mendicant staff ; the others are of a more secular character, and are usually called Atits. Dasa, an endogamous sub-caste of Agarwcils,Mahesrisand Oswals. Dasabigha, a section of Pans in Chota Nagpur. Dasaonth, a section of Barhis in Behar. Dasarath Ghataki, a mel or hypergamous sub-group of R£rhi Brahmans in Bengal. Dasasai, a sub-caste of Suk lis in Midnapur. Daspara, Dasparia, a sub caste of Kumhars and Telis in Bengal. Dasaundhi, a title of Bhats or genealogists. They also call themselves Raj bhat. Daspuria, a section of Ghasis in Chota Nagpur. Dasbiha, a sept of Pans, in Chota Nagpur. Dasta-dar, an honorary title of Kayasths in Bengal. Das-gharia, a group of the Bar-gohri sub-caste of Khandaits in Saranda of Singbhum. Dastarband or Pagriband, a turban-maker, a purely Mahom edan trade, never engaged in by Hindus. Das-Gurung or Char Gotra, a sub-tribe of Gurungs in Dar jiling. Dast-farosh , anold-clothesman, collecting old clothes and rags, which he sells to the naichaband to make hookah snakes ; to the masalchi for torches ; and to the jildgar for binding books. Ddsi, a maid-servant. Dasika, a dugu or section ofthe Kochh-Mandai in Dacca. The name indicates the original hab itat of the group, probably a hill or village in Assam, and at the present day has no bearing upon marriage. Daswani, a title of Bhats in Behar. Dasya, a section of Bagdis in Bengal. Dasil, a mul or section of the Goria sub-caste of Goalas in Behar. Datiyan, a section of Mag haya Kandus in Behar. Daskaria, wild fowl, a totem istic sept of Pans in Chota Nagpur. Datkiliar, a section of the Amashta Kayasths in Behar.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

216 DATT. DEJONG LHOEL Datt, a thar or sept of Man gars in Darjiling. and Subarnabaniks in Bengal. Intermarriage is prohibited within the title. Datta, a family title of Sadhya Baidyas, Kayasths, Mayaras, Sankharis, Tambulis ; of Baruis, of the Aut sub-caste of Gandha baniks, Tantis, Sutradhars, and of Subarnabaniks in Bengal. In termarriage is prohibited within the title. Dedsi, a synonym for Loh&r Manjhi, q.v. Deb, a family title of Sadhya Baidyas and of Bangaja and Barendra Kayasths in Bengal. Debangs i , a title of up-country and Uriya Brahmans. Datta ke raut, a section of the Biyahut and Kharidaha Kal wars in Behar. Debansi, a sub-tribe of Raj puts in Chota Nagpur, to which the Rcijas of Bishanpur, in Ban kura, profess to belong. Dattamanjhi, a title of Kai barttas in Bengal. Debansi, a class of Tiyars who are fishermen. Daturia, a sub-caste of Sutra dhars in Noakhali. Debkuliar, a pur or section of Sakadwipi Brahmans in Behar. Daubarik, messenger or senti nel, a title of Khandaits in Orissa. Debrishi, a section of Maya reis in Bengal. Daulbandh, a sub-tribe of Kharwars in Palamau. Dedhgawe, a section of Kay asths in Behar. Daulta ke raut, a section of the Biy&hut and Kharidaha Kal wars in Behar. Dehadbenaras, a mul or sec tion of the Chhaniulia Madhesia sub-caste of Halwais in Behar. Dauru, a sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Dehati, a mel or hypergamous sub-group of Rarhi Brahmans in Bengal. Dauwa, a sept of Dhim&ls in the Darjiling Terai. Deh&ti Baidya, village doctor, a title of Baidyas used by out siders. Dawari, a thar ofthe Basishtba gotra of Nepali Brahmans. Dawin, a sept of Chakmds in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong. Dehlasariar, a pur or section of Sakadwipi Brahmans in Behar. Dayi, a gain of the Sdbarna gotra of Rarhi Brahmans in Bengal. Dehri, a section of Koranch Kandus in Behar. Daymia, a group of the Sa nadhya sub-caste of Gaura Brah mans. Dehriti, priests, a sept of Mal Paharias in the Santcil Parganas. Dehuri, a title of Sudhas in Orissa. De, a family name of Kayasths in Bengal; ofthe Aut sub-caste of Gandhabaniks ; of Kam&rs, Mayaras, Tambulis, Tantis, Telis, Dejong Lhori, Dejcngpa (people of the fruit-district or

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

DEJONG LHOEI. 217 DEVAPATHI. Sikkim) ; Lhop& Bhotia (Tibetans of the south;, the common desig nation of the Tibetans who are settled in Sikkim. A list of their sub-tribes and septs will be found in Appendix I. a group of the Rajbansi sub caste of Kochhs in Northern Bengal ; of Goalas in the North- Western Provinces ; a sub-caste of Bhandaris in Orissa, and of Bhumijs in Chota Nagpur. Demta, red tree-ant, a totem istic sept of Goalas, Kharias, Lohars, Mundas, Pans, and Kharwars in Chota Nagpur. Desja, a thar or section of Nepali Brahmans. Desla, a sub-caste of Telis in Bengal. Denrgamia, a section of Awa dhia Hajams in Behar. Desoar, a section of Ghasis in Chota Nagpur. Deo, a title of Baruis in Ben gal. Deswal, a section of Go&las in the North- Western Provinces and Behar. Deobansi, a sub-caste of Mauliks in Chota Nagpur. Deswal i, a sub-tribe of Santals in the south of Manbhum who employ Brahmans and have adopted portions of the Hindu ritual. Deodhiar, a, pur or section of Sakadwipi Brahmans in Behar. Deoghat, a mul or section of the Chhamulia Madhesia sub caste of Halwais in Behar. Deswal i, Deswari, a title of natives of Upper India who settle in Bengal. Deohar, a title of inoculators for small-pox, now applied to vaccinators in Behar. Deswar, a sub-caste of Kal wars in Behar and of Mais in the Santal Parganas ; a section of the Sakhina and Turi Doms in Behar who perform their domestic wor ship outside of the angan or courtyard of their houses. Deorahir, a pur or section of Sakadwipi Brahmans in Behar. Deori, a title of Sunris in Bengal. Deradar, a title of Kewats in Behar. Deswari-Kharwar, a sub tribe of Kharwars in Chota Nagpur. Derhgaon, a mul or section of the Ayodhia sub-caste of Hajjams in Behar. Deuli, a gain of the Bitsya gotra of Barendra Brahmans in Bengal. Desa-Asram, a sub-caste of Gandhabaniks in Bengal. Desauri, a title of Kandhs in Orissa. Deuri, a title of Kumhars in Behar. Deseriet, a mul or section of the Satmulia or Kishnaut sub caste of Goalas in Behar. Devakotya, a thar or section of Nepali Brahmans. Devapathi, a section of Ka mis and a thar or sept of Mangars in Darjiling. Desi, a sub-caste of Kumhars, Telis, and of Kaibarttas in Behar ;

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

218 DHAMNA SAP, DEVA-SAEMA. Deva-Sarmd, a synonym for Brahman. Dhakaren, a thar or sept of Gurungs in Darjiling. Dewan, a section of the Yakha caste; originally a title conferred by the Nepal Raj. Dhakawal, a sub-caste of Kamars in Murshedabad. Dhaki, a beater of the dhak or large drum; a title of the Baiti and Muchi, the only castes which use this kind of drum. Dewan ke asami, a section of the Banodhia and Jaiswar Kal wars in Behar. Dewark, a pur or section of Sakadwipi Brahmans in Behar. Dhali, an honorary title of Kayasths and Goalas in Bengal ; of Kawalis in Eastern Bengal. Dhabal, a title of Telis in Bengal. Dhalia, a sub-caste of Mais in Bankura. Dhabalrishi, a section of Chasadhobas in Bengal. Dhalo, a sub-caste of Koras in Western Bengal. Dhabhinchhwar, Dabhauch war, a section of Babhans. Dhalua, a sub-caste of Karan g&s. Dhcii, Ddi, a nurse, wet-nurse, or midwife. See g&t. D hamal a, a thar or sept of Mangars in Darjiling. Dhaia, a section of Godlds in the North-Western Provinces. Dhaman, a mul or section of the Naomuha or Majraut sub caste of Goalas in Behar. Dhain, a gain or sub-section of Saptasati Brahmans in Bengal. Dhaman iet, a class of profes sional beggars in Chota Nagpur who eat dead animals and snakes. Dhakaes, a mul or section of the Tinmuli& and Chhamulia Madhesia and Bhojpuria sub castes of Halw&is in Behar. Dhamdi, a section of Kai barttas in Orissa. Dhakai, a sub-caste of Kdm&rs in Eastern Bengal. Dhami, a section of the Goria sub-caste of Goalas in Behar whose title is Mandar. Dhakaich, a section of the Biyahut and Kharidaha Kalwars in Behar. gh&ttUtt, Dhami, a low, prob ably non- Aryan, caste in Dar bhanga, who make fans or brushes (morchhal) of peacock's feathers. In Gya the Dh&mins officiate as priests to pilgrims in the cere monies performed for the benefit of ancestors on the Ramsila and Pretsila hills, immediately above the town. They pretend to be a sort of Brahmans, but their socialposition is low, and ortho dox Hindus will not take water from their hands. Dhakaich ha, a seotion of Son&rs in Behar. Dhakais, a mul or section of the Naomulia or Goria sub-caste of Goalas in Behar. Dhakait, a section of Bab hans and of Madhesia Halwais in Behar. Dhakai, a thar of the Upa manya gotra of Nep&li Brah mans. Dhakania, a seotion of Kanaujia Lohars in Behar. Dhamna Sap, a seotion of Gh&sis in Chota Nagpur.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

219 DHANJATA. DHAN. Dhan, paddy or rice soup, a totemistic sept of Chiks, Korwas, Lohars, and Oraons ; a sept of Mundas who are forbidden to take rice and rice soup, and eat only gondli; a section of Kharias ; a sept of Rajputs in Behar. amongst several tribes of the Southern Tributary Mahdls the terms Dhdngar and Dhdngarin mean the youth of the two sexes both in highland and lowland villages, and it cannot be con- sidered as the national designa- tion of any particular tribe." So Mr. Oldham says in a note on Some Historical and Ethical As- pects of the Burdwin district that the Male Paharias call their men of fighting age Dhangar or Dhan- garia. The Male are cognates of the Oraons, the typical Dhangar labourers of Chota Nagpur, so that on this showing the word may well be nothing more than the Oraon for an adult. According to another interpretation, the name has reference to the fact that persons working as dhangars receive the bulk of their wages in dhdn, or unhusked rice. Rabi or cold weather crops are not largely grown in Chota Nagpur Proper ; and during the slack season, from December to the end of March, large numbers of Dhan- gars leave their own country in search of agricultural work in the central and eastern districts of Bengal, where the harvesting of the winter rice creates a great demand for labour. The dhdn gar system of payment is so general in Chota Nagpur that the term is virtually synonymous with labourer, and these nomadic labourers describe themselves, and are known throughout Bengal, as 'Dhangars.' When they settle, as they frequently do, they acquire the name of Buna, which is sometimes prefixed to their tribal name, thus Buna-Oraon, Buna-Munda. Dhanai Mandal, a family name of the Grihasth group of Jugis in Bengal. Dhanauta, a mul or section of the Tinmulia Madhesia sub-caste of Halwais in Behar. Dhandh, plum bushes, a totemistic sept of Chiks in Chota Nagpur. Dhandhabe, a section of the Bahannajati sub-caste of Khatris in Bengal. Dhanej, a mul or section of the Chhamulia Madhesia sub caste of Halwais in Behar. Dhanesri, a section of Pods in Bengal. Dhaneswar, a mul or section of the Tinmulia. Madhesia sub caste of Halwais in Behar. Dhangar, in Chota Nagpur Proper an agricultural labourer, usually non-Aryan, engaged by the year, who receives, if hired by a native, alump. sum varyingfrom Rs. 4 to Rs. 6, at the time of hiring, besides monthly wages in grain and a cloth at the end of the year. Labourers of this class are also largely employed by Euro- pean tea-planters on the Lohar- dagci plateau. In this case they get Rs. 9 on engagement, and Rs. 9 more in three instalments, besides a blanket and an um- brella. On the origin of the term there has been some discussion. " It is," writes Colonel Dalton, " a word that from its apparent deri vation {dang or dhdng, ' a bill ') may mean any hillman ; but Dhanichhwar, a section of Babhans in Behar. Dhanjaya, a gotra or section of Nepah Brahmans.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

220 DHANEAI. DHANTJE. Dhankai, Dhankoi, a mul or section of the Naiya caste in Behar. Dhanu, a title of Dakshin- Rarhi and Bangaja Kayasths ; a section of Kishnaut Goalas in Behar. Dhanka-Oraon, a sub-tribe of Oraons in Chota Nagpur. Dhanuar, a section of Kharias in Chota Nagpur. Dhankharia, a section of the Biyahut and Kharidaha Kalwars in Behar. Dhanuk, one of the seven sub divisions of the Kurmis, who are supposed to have been archers, but are now employed in person al service and agriculture. Dhanki, a sept of Nageswars in Chota Nagpur. Dhanroar, a sub-caste of Goalas in Behar. Jlh&ttuk, a cultivating caste of Behar, many of whom are employed as personal servants in the households Traditions of origin. rf members of &e higher cagtes^ Their is obscure. Buchanan considered them a " pure agricultural tribe, who, from their name, implying archers, were probably in former times the militia of the country, and are perhaps not essentially different from the Kurmis ; for any Yasawar (Jaiswar) Kurmi who from poverty sells himself or his children is admitted among the Dhanuks. All the Dhcinuks at one time were probably slaves, and many have been purchased to fill up the military ranks — a method of recruiting that has been long prevalent in Asia, the armies of the Parthians having been composed almost entirely of slaves ; and the custom is still, I believe, pretty general among the Turks. A great many of the Dhanuks are still slaves, but some annually procure their liberty by the inability of their masters to maintain them, and by their unwillingness to sell their fellow-creatures." According to the Padma Purana quoted by Sir Henry Elliot, Dhanuks are descended from a Chamar and a female Chandal. Another equally mythical pedigree makes the mother a Chamar and the father an outcast Ahir. Such statements, however slight their historical value, serve to indicate in a general way the social rank held by the Dhanuks at the time when it was first thought necessary to enrol them among the mixed castes. In this point of view the degraded parentage assigned to the caste lends some support to the conjecture that they may be an offshoot from one of the non-Aryan tribes. Dhanuks are divided into the following sub-castes :— Chhilatia or Silhotia, Magahya, Tirhutia or Chiraut, internal structure. Ja|Swar> Kanaujia> Khapariya, Dudhwar or Dojwar, Sunri-Dhanuk, and Kathautia. Sir Henry Elliot, writing of the Dhauuks of the North-West Provinces, gives a slightly different list, which will be found in Appendix I. Buchanan mentions Jaiswar, Magahya, Dojwar, and Chhilatiya. Little is known regarding the origin of any of the sub-castes. Magahya, Tirhutia, Kanaujia, are common territorial names used by many castes to denote sub-castes who reside in, or are supposed to have emigrated from, particular tracts of country. The Dudhwar or Dojwar sub-caste pride themselves upon not castrating bull-calves.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

221 DHANDE. The Sunri-Dhanuk are said to have been separated from the rest of the caste by reason of their taking service with members of the despised Sunri and Teli castes. According to some authorities the Chhilatia sub-caste is also known by the name of Jaiswar- Kurmi, a fact which to some extent bears out Buchanan's sugges tion that there may be some connexion between the Dhanuk and Kurmi — castes. Speculations based upon resemblances of names are, however, apt to be misleading, and I can find no independent evidence to show that the Dhanuks are a branch of the Kurmis, or, which is equally possible, that the Jaiswar sub caste of the Kurmis derive their origin from the Dhanuks. It is curious that the distinction between personal service and cultivation, which has led to the formation of sub-castes among the Gangota, Amat, and Kewat, should not have produced the same effect in the case of the Dhanuks. Throughout Behar, indeed, full expression is given to these differences of occupation in the titles borne by those who follow the one or the other mode of life ; but it is only in Purniah that they form an impassable barrier to intermarriage between the Khawasia sub-caste, who are employed as domestic servants, and the Gharbait and Mandal, who confine themselves to agriculture. The sections of the caste are shown in Appendix I. They are comparatively few in number, and their influence on marriage seems to be gradually dying out, its place being taken by the more modern system of counting prohibited degrees. For this purpose the standard formula mamerd, chacherd, etc., is in use, the prohibition extending to seven generations in the descending line. Both infant and adult-marriage are recognised by the Dhanuk Mam e caste, but the former practice is deemed the more respectable, and all who can afford to do so endeavour to get their daughters married before they attain the age of puberty. The marriage ceremony differs httle from that in vogue among other Behar castes of similar social standing. In the matter of polygamy their custom seems to vary in different parts of the country. In Behar it is usually held that a man may not take a second wife unless the first is barren or suffers from an incurable disease; but in Purniah no such restrictions seem to exist, and a man may have as many wives as he can afford to maintain. A widow may marry again by the sagai or ehumaund form, in which Brahmans take no part ; and the union of the couple is completed by the bridegroom smearing red lead with his left hand on the forehead of the bride. In Purniah the deceased husband's younger brother or cousin, should such a relative exist, is considered to have a preferential claim to marry the widow ; but elsewhere less stress is laid on this condition, and a widow is free to marry whom she pleases, provided that she does not infringe the prohibited decrees. Divorce is not recognised in Behar, but the Dhanuks of the Santal Parganas, followiug apparently the example of the aboriginal races, permit a husband to divorce an unchaste wife by making a formal declaration before the panchayat of his intention to cast her off, and tearing a leaf in two to symbolise and record the separation. The proceedings conclude with a feast to all the relations, the idea of which appears to be that by thus entertaining his family the husband

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

222 DHANUE. frees himself from the stain of having lived with a disreputable woman. Women so divorced may marry again, provided that their favours have been bestowed solely on members of the caste. Indiscre tions outside that circle are punished by immediate expulsion, and cannot be atoned for by any form of penance except in the unusual case of a Dhanuk woman living with a man of notably higher caste. The religion of the Dhanuks presents no features of special . . interest. They worship the regular Hindu eiglon' gods, and employ as their priests Maithil Brahmans, who are received on equal terms by other members of the sacred order. Among their minor gods we find Bandi, Goraiya, Mahabir, Ram Thakur, Gahil, Dharm Raj, and Sokha Sindabas. The last appears to be the spirit of some departed sorcerer. Dhanuks are also much given to the worship of the sun, to whom flowers, rice, betel-leaves, cloves, cardamoms, molasses, together with money and even clothes, are offered on Sundays during the months of Baisakh and Aghan. The offerings are taken by the caste Brahman or the Mali. The dead are burned, and the srdddh ceremony is performed on the thirteenth day after death. In the case of persons who die from snake-bite, their relatives offer milk and fried rice (Idwd) to snakes on the Nagpanchami day in the month of Srawan. Notwithstanding the degraded parentage assigned to them by tradition, and the probability that they are PationalstatU3and °CCU" really of non- Aryan descent, the social posi- tion of Dhanuks at the present day is quite respectable. They rank with Kurmis and Koiris, and Brahmans will take water from their hands. They themselves will eat cooked food, drink and smoke with the Kurmi, Amat, and Kewat ; and Bahiot Dhanuks will eat the leavings of Brahmans, Rajputs, and Kayasths in whose houses they are employed. Personal service, including palan quin-bearing and agriculture, are their chief occupations, and in some parts of the country they are engaged in the cultivation of hemp and the manufacture of string, whence they derive the title Sankatwar. Most of them are occupancy or non-occupancy raiyats, and the poorer members of the caste earn their living as agricultural day-labourers. The following statement shows the number and distribution of Dhdnuks in 1872 and 1881 :— Distbict. 1872. 1881. Distbict. 1872. 1881. Bardwan Bankura Birbhum Midnapur Hughli Howrah 24-Parganas ... Nadiya Murshedabad Dinajpur Rajshahye Rangpur Bogra Pabna Darjiling Jalpigori Kuch Behar ... Faridpur Bakarganj } 150 17 772 26 162 181 308 4.4M7 134 84 2 3 199 19 18 2 181 43 { 18 63 "i',802 111 Maimansinh Chittagong Patna Gya Shahabad Saran Champaran Monghyr Hhagalpur Purniah Maldah Santal Parganas Hazaribagh Lohardagi Manbhum Tributary States 172 25,038 6,847 1,781 } 152,175 16,516 9,906 118,524 98,597 89,262 7,805 12,429 620 2,107 124 18 1 86,530 4,179 1,899 f 180,216 I 62,778 17,868 15,235 119,569 101,505 86,192 5,044 12,388 1,326 1,872 24 1,600 "" 7 2 11 ""ist 213 11 13

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

DHANUKI. 223 DHAEMAPANDIT. Dhanuki, a sub-caste of Doms in Eastern Bengal who use bows and arrows to kill game ; a thar or sept of Mangars in Darjiling. Dharani, a section of Babhans in Western Bengal. D hard har, a gain or sub- section of Saptasati Brahmans in Bengal. Dhanuta, a section of Madhe sia Kandus in Behar. Dharen, a thar or sept of Gurungs in Darjiling. Dhanwantari, a gotra or section of the Baidya caste in Bengal. Dharh, a sub-caste of Cha mars in Behar. Dhciri, Ddri, a class of Ma homedan musicians, generally women, who play, sing, and dance, and are regarded by connoisseurs in such matters as superior to the Mirasan. The men do no work, and live on their wives' earnings. This, however, is perhaps a recent development resulting from their conversion to Islam, for when Buchanan wrote he found the Dhari in Behar employed in dig ging tanks and ditches, and col lecting firewood. They ate pork and worshipped Bandi and Rim Thakur. Dhaona, a sept of Chakm&s in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong. Dhapra, a sub-caste of sweeper Doms in Behar who reverence one Syam Singh, an ancestral hero in process of conversion into a god. Dhar, a family title of Sadhya Baidyas; of the Aut sub-caste of Gandhabaniks ; of Sankharis; of Dakshin-Rarhi and Barendra Kayasths ; and of Subarnabaniks in Bengal. Intermarriage is pro hibited within the title. Dhar, a sub-caste of Koiris in Behar. Dhariwar, a section of Oswals in Behar. Dhar or Dhdri, a sub-caste of Dosadhs in Behar. Dharkar, a sub-caste of Doms in Behar who make cane baskets, winnowing-fans, etc., and keep and sell pigs. Dhara, a title of Bagdis in Bengal. Dharkia, a section of Bhoj puria Halwais in Behar. Dharadhari, a mel or hyper gamous sub-group of Rarhi Brahmans in Bengal. Dharkiliar, a section of the Amashta Kayasths in Behar. Dharamdasi, a sub-caste of Khatiks in Behar. Dharmaghare, a religious group of Jugis in Bengal. Dharampuria, a mul or sec tion of the Naomulia or Majraut sub-caste of Goalas in Behar. Dharmahu, a section of Awa dhia Hajams in Behar. Dharmapand it, a title of Telis, Jugis, and Doms in Bengal, who officiate as priests in the religious ceremonies of their caste and of the rural god Dharma, who is Dharan, a section of Babhans in Behar. Dharani, a title of Dakshin Rarhi aud BaDgaja Kayasths.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

224 DHILEI-EHAEIA. DHAEMAPANDIT- Dhek, a section of the Ban war sub-caste of Baniyas in Behar. said, in a Bengali Purdna dedi cated to him, to be an avatar of Vishnu, Dharma, represented by a square stone with human features roughly carved upon it, is particularly worshipped by women: and is believed to cause and cure skin diseases. Brahmans will not worship him. Dhekh£, a sept of Rajputs in Behar. Dhelakata, a tree, at totemis tic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Dharm-eisram or Dharm-Sut, a sub-caste of Mayaras in Central Bengal. Dhelki, a section of Kharias in Chota Nagpur. Dhelphor, ' clod-breaker,' a title of Koiris in Behar which is supposed to have reference to their skill and thoroughness in cultivation. Dharoa, Dhdrud, a sub-caste of Gonds, usually employed in washing gold from the sands of the rivers in Chota Nagpur. Dhema, a mul or section of the Chhamulia Madhesia sub- caste of Halwais in Behar. Dharta-Kausik, a gotra or sec tion of Nepali Brahmans. Dharwar, a kui or section of Babhans in Behar. Dhemdl, a synonym for Dhi- mal. Dhaul, a sept of Rajputs in Dhengar, a sub-caste of Gareris in Behar. Behar. Dhaundria, a section of Sonars in Behar. Dhenu, a section of Goria Goalas in Behar. Dhaurani, a section of Bab hans in Behar. gltCttUSr, a small Dravidian caste of Chota Nagpur, whose totemistic sections seem to indi cate a possible kinship with the Mundas. Very little is known of their customs, and their numbers are scanty. Dhausani, a section of Bab* hans in Behar. Dh awa, a class of Mahomedan palanquin-bearers and fish mongers in Bengal. Dhesia Dhd k\ or Tapaspurid, a sub-caste of Doms in Bengal who remove dead bodies, eto. Dhawan, a section of the Chhajati sub-caste of Khatris in Bengal. Dhibar, a sub-caste of Kewats in Western Bengal, and a syno nym for Kaibartha. Dhayat, a title of Kanaujia Brahmans. Dhil.' i, a section of Mahilis in Chota Nagpur. Dhechua, a black bird, a totemistic sept of Bedias, Oraons and Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Dhilki-Kharia, a sub-caste of Kharias in Chota Nagpur.

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

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225 DHIMAL Pftmt&I, Dhemdl, Maulik, a non-Aryan tribe of the Darjiling . . and Nepal Terai, classed by Fr. Miiller as Lohitic. They belong to the same main stock as the Kochh, whom they resemble closely in features and com plexion ; and, like them, are rapidly losing their tribal identity by absorption into the large and heterogeneous Rajbansi caste. Rajbansis, who pretend to be Kshatriyas, strenuously deny that any such process is going on, but a shrewd observer1 of social changes assures me that " any Dhimal can become a Rajbansi at any time if he is only prosperous enough," and instances are known in which a fee of Rs. 600 has been paid for this privilege. Formal promotions of this sort are, however, exceptional, and the average Dhimal who aspires to social elevation transforms himself into a Rajbansi by simply assuming that title. To this movement rather than to any lack of vitality in the race we may attribute the fact that, while in 1847 Hodgson2 estimated the number of the Dhimals at 15,000, no recent census3 shows any approach to this figure, and they seem likely to disappear altogether as a separate tribe within the next generation. Already, indeed, they affect a dislike for the tribal name Dhimal, which is now used only by outsiders, and prefer to call themselves by the modern title of Maulik. They have no traditions of their own, and look upon themselves as the original inhabitants of the tract of country where they are now settled. The scanty legends ourrent among other races regarding their origin are noticed in the article on the Mech tribe, with whom the Dhimal are associated by the Nepalese dwellers in the Terai. The Dhimal are divided into three classes — Agni a, Later, and Dungia — the members of wbich are not Internal structure. iij.ii** _i ___ • __ • _,s i absolutely debarred from intermarriage, though the Agnia Dhimals deem themselves superior to the other two classes, and as a rule marry within their own group. Marriages also occasionally take place between Dhimals and Rajbansis of either sex, but in such cases the Rajbansis usually have to abandon their own caste and enrol themselves in the Dhimal community, giving a feast to the panchayat by way of entrance-fee. There are four exogamous septs — Chonga, Dauwa, Kauwa, and Ranga. Prohibited degrees are reckoned by the standard formula down to seven generations on the male and three on the female side. Infant-marriage is almost unknown among the Dhimals, and . is practised only by the few well-to-do families, who strive to imitate the customs of high-caste Hindus. Among the main body of the tribe youths between the ages of sixteen and twenty marry girls from twelve to sixteen. Courtship is unrestricted, and the young people usually settle their own love affairs without the intervention of parents or guardians. It occasionally happens that a match affecting the pro prietary interests of two families is arranged by the fathers of the 1 Mr. W. B. Oldham, Bengal Civil Service, late Deputy Commissioner of Darjiling. 2 Essays, i, 115. 3 They numbered 873 in 1872 and 662 in 1881. F

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

226 DHIMAL, couple concerned, but as a rule the first step taken in the direction of marriage is for the girl to go off one evening with the man of her choice and quietly establish herself in his house. At this stage her parents come forward and demand a settlement of the bride-price (ehumna), which formerly stood at Rs. 11, but now ranges from Rs. 20 to Rs. 80, according to the attractions of the girl and the value which her parents set upon her lover. The amount, however, is not paid, or even finally settled at once ; the bride must first pass through a period of probation, extending often to a year or more, during which time her capabilities as a housewife are supposed to be tested. If she gives satisfaction, the bride-price is determined and paid, and the marriage formally celebrated. If she is rejected, the man with whom she eloped is bound to maintain her and her children ; but instances of this very rarely occur. The procedure, however, is by no means uuiform in all cases. Very commonly the marriage takes place a month or so after the elopement, while the question of bride-price stands over until the young woman's true value has been ascertained by the working test of domestic life. Dhimals seem, however, to regard marriage as a form of minor importance. I know of a young Dhimal who took a girl to his house some three years ago. The two live happily together, and she has borne him a child, but the marriage ceremony has not yet been performed, owing probably to the parents being unable to agree about the bride-price. No social stigma attaches to the girl's position, and the women of the village receive her on equal terms ; but she is not entitled to serve boiled rice to guests invited on any ceremonial occasion. From this curious laxity in ordering the relations of the sexes it follows of course that intercourse previous to elopement or marriage is tacitly recognised. But if a girl becomes pregnant while still in her parent's house, she is expected to disclose the name of her lover, and to prevail upon him to marry her or at least to take her to live with him. The marriage ceremony has evidently been borrowed from the Hindus. Its essential portions are the standard rites of sdtpdk or carrying the bride seven times round the bridegroom and smearing vermilion on her head (sindurddn). The village barber attends to shave the front half of the bridegroom's head ; the caste guru, usually a Rajbansi, mutters gibberish which passes muster as sacred texts, and the proceedings are completed by the assembled guests showering paddy, dub grass, sandal powder, and water on the heads of the married couple. Polygamy is permitted up to a supposed maximum limit of three wives, but the tribe is a poor one, and very few Dhimals can afford themelves the luxury of more than one wife. A widow may marry again, and is in no way restricted in her choice, except that the second marriage must take place from her parent's house and the prohibited degrees binding on her before her marriage may not be infringed. Sindurddn and the resumption of the massive shell bracelet, usually three or four inches wide, which distinguishes a married woman, are the essential portions of the ceremony in use. Traces of Hindu influence may be discerned in the tendenoy to think

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

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227 DHIMAL. less highly of a remarried widow than of a woman, whether married or not, who is cohabiting with a man for the first time, and is therefore eligible for marriage by the full form. Divorce is permitted on the ground of unchastity with the sanction of the caste panchayat, and divorced wives may marry again under the conditions applicable to widows. A man who seduces a married woman is supposed to be liable to repay to the injured husband the bride-price given for her when a virgin, and the panchayat may be called upon to enforce this obligation by the various forms of social punishment which they have at their command. The tribe knows nothing of the Hindu systems of law, and the devolution of property is regulated by a tribal custom of their own, administered by the village council or panchayat. Sons inherit by equal shares; failing sons the uterine brethren divide the property ; next in order comes the wife, then the daughters ; and next to them the cousins of the deceased. In the forty years which have passed since Hodgson published . his Essay on the Kochh, Bodo, and Dhimdl Tribes, the Dhimals have made a marked advance in the direction of Hinduism. They now insist upon describing themselves as orthodox Hindus, and among their favourite objects of worship are Chhaw&l Thakur or Gopdl Thakur (a form of Krishna), Chaitan, and Nitai (Chaitanya and Nityananda, the great teachers of Vaishnavism), the Salagram or fossil ammonite, and the tulsi-plant (Ocymum sanctum). In the Darjiling Terai Dhimal temples may be seen in which Krishna is the central figure, having Chaitanya on his right hand and Nityananda on bis left; while the sacred tulsi is planted in front of the bamboo hut which contains these images. No better illustration could be given of the distance which separates the Dhimal religion of to-day from the simple Nature-worship described by Hodgson, to which temples and images were alike unknown. The river-deities of forty years ago seem entirely to have lost their hold on the people, who no longer mention them among the regular gods, though it is possible that they may still drag on an obscure existence as patrons of the village or the household. From the precincts of the recognised tribal pantheon they have been expelled beyond hope of recall by Kali, Bisahari, Manasa, Bura Thakur, Mahamai, and other celestial personages borrowed from the Hindu system. These adopted gods, however, are worshipped on just the same principle as the spirits of flood and field, whom they have displaced. None of the esoteric doctrines of Hinduism have accompanied the new divinities, who are propitiated for the avoidance of physical ills by much the same offerings as were presented to their predecessors. Thus, to Chhawal Thakur and Chaitanya plantains, milk, and parched rice are offered ; to Kali, buffaloes, goats, and pigeons ; to Bisahari, goats, pigeons, and ducks. In this melange of Vaishnavism and Saivism the functions of priest are usually discharged by selected members of the Rajbansi caste, called Banians, to distinguish them from the degraded Brahmans who are occasionally called in to assist in a specially important act of worship. These men, though belonging to the class of Barna Brahmans and serving the lowest castes of Hindus, would p 2

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228 DHIMAE. DHIMAL. not deign to attach themselves regularly to the Dhimal tribe, and it seems likely enough that the whole of the Dhimals may be absorbed in the Rajbansi caste without ever reaohing the dignity of having Brahmans of their own. Among the Dhimals of the present day the Hindu practice of cremation, unknown at the time when Hodgson Funeral. wrote, is fast displacing the more primitive usage of burial. The Agnia Dhimals, indeed, who rank above the other sub-castes, are said to owe their name to their adoption of the custom of burning the dead. When burial is resorted to, the corpse is laid in the grave face upwards with the head pointing towards the north. A meagre imitation of the Hindu ceremony of sraddh is performed, usually on the tenth day after death ; but the practice in this matter is by no means uniform, and some prefer the third day, some the seventh, aud others again the thirteenth. A feast is always given to the relatives and friends of the deceased. Offerings for the benefit of ancestors in general are made in the month of Kartik (October-November) . Standing as the Dhimals do outside the regular caste system, their social status cannot be very precisely ational StatUS aDd °00U* defined- They abstain from beef, snakes, rats, and similar vermin and the leavings of other people, but eat fowls, pork, lizards, and all kinds of fish. Rajbansis will take water from them and smoke in the same hookah, but all other castes regard them as unclean. Dhimals in their turn profess not to take water from the Mech tribe, from Mahomedans, and from the large group of semi-Nepalese castes, vaguely termed Paharias. Cooked food they will take from a Rajbansi or from a member of any higher caste. Agricul ture, fishing, and pasturing cattle are their chief occupations, and a few work as coolies in the tea gardens of the Terai or carry on a petty trade in the commoner sorts of food-grain. In former years the}7 were greatly addicted to the jhum system of cultivation, but the limits within which this is possible have been greatly curtailed by the development of forest conservancy, and Dhimals residing in British territory have for the most part taken to regular plough cultivation. In the Darjiling Terai a few of them are jotddrs under a ten years' settlement, the bulk of the tribe being ordinary raiyats or landless day-labourers. They still retain the nomadic habits noticed by Hodgson, and large numbers of them will at times desert their villages in order to settle in some locality better suited to their peculiar mode of life. Dhi mar, a sub-caste of Kah&rs in Behar who say that they im migrated from the west. They carry palanquins and work as doniestio servants, while some of them parch grain and keep petty shops. Socially they rank some what below the Rawani Kahars, and Brahmans will not take water from their hands. They practise widow-marriage, and have a re markable ceremony for divorce on the ground of adultery, the con cluding act of which is to pour a gharrdh of water over the wife's head and turn her adrift.

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Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

229 DHOBA. DHIMIEE. Dho&r, a sub-caste of Gonrhis in Behar. Dhimi re, a thar of the Kasyap gotra of Nepali Brahmans. §hflb&, the washerman caste of Bengal and Orissa, who claim descent from Neta Muni or Netu Dhopani, who washed the clothes of Brahma. According to another story, Neta was the son of a devotee called Dhoba Muni, who washed his loin cloth (kopin) in a river, and thereby so fatigued himself that he could not fetch flowers for the daily worship. For this neglect his fellow-devotees cursed him, and he and his posterity were condemned to follow the profession of washing dirty clothes. The Skanda Purana quoted in the Jati Kaumudi makes the Dhobas the offspring of a Dhibar father and a Tibar mother— a statement quite unsupported by evidence, which is only mentioned here in illustration of the common tendency to insist on referring every caste now existing to some mode of mixed parentage. Owing to the universal custom which forbids a Hindu to wash his own clothes, the Dhoba caste is very -widely Internal structure. i- ■ .*■ , . _, , • t> it> ■__. distributed, and has in Bengal Proper been broken up into an unusually large number of sub-castes. Eighteen of these are shown in Appendix I, but I am by no means certain that the enumeration is exhaustive. In Eastern Bengal two great divisions are recognised— Ramer Dhoba and Sitar Dhoba; the former claiming descent from the washermen of Rama, and the latter from those of Sita. Members of these two groups eat and drink together, but never intermarry. The story is that originally Rama's washermen worked only for men and Sita's only for women. The latter received a special payment of nine pans (720) of golden cowries for washing Sita's menstrual cloths, and this made Rama's washermen covetous, so that one day they stole those garments and washed them themselves. From that time it is said each branch of the caste took to washing indifferently for either sex. In Central Bengal we find four sub-castes — Satisa, Athisd, Hajara Samaj, and Nitisina. The first two are said to have reference to the number of families originally comprised in each group ; the third is supposed to consist of a thousand persons degraded for some breach of social rules ; the fourth are day-labourers as well as washer men. The distinctions between the first three are said to be less strictly maintained of late years. The Hughli Dhobas have four sub castes — Bara Samaj, Chhota Samaj, Dhoba Samaj, and Rarhiya Samaj, the members of which do not intermarry and cannot eat cooked rice together. In Noakhali we find three endogamous groups bearing the names of parganas Bhulua, Jugidia, and Sundip. In Orissa there appear to be no sub-castes. The Manbhum series, Bangal i, Goria, Maghaya, and Khotta, seems at first sight akin to the Behar set of sub-castes, in that it recognises Bangali and Maghaya as distinct geographical groups. I have, however, placed the Manbhum Dhobas in the Bengal division of the caste, because they speak Bengali themselves and are on the whole more subject to Bengal than to Behar influences.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

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230 DHOBA, The sections of the Bengal Dhobas present no points of special interest. All of them have been borrowed from the Brahmanical system, and are not taken into account in arranging marriages. There is, indeed, usually only one gotra current in each local com- munity, and that seems to be retained mainly from the force of custom and as a badge of social distinction. The prohibited degrees are the same as in other castes of about the same position in society. Bengal Dhobas, including the Manbhum members of the caste, marry their daughters as infants, at the age Ma^e in Bengah of from seven to nine years. Boys are usually married between eleven and fifteen, but the sons of poor men, who cannot afford to pay the bride-price (pan), often remain unmar- ried till five-and-twenty, by which time a man has probably earned enough to secure a wife for himself. The marriage ceremony is the same as is observed by most of the lower castes. The carrying of the bride seven times round the bridegroom is regarded as its binding portion. Polygamy is fully recognised in the case of well-to-do men whose first wives are barren ; for others it is allowed, but is not considered quite respectable. Widows may not marry a second time. Divorce is not allowed, but when a husband casts off his wife for adultery a reference is usually made to the panchayat and a purificatory ceremony (prdyaschitta), such as is described in the article on Chasadhoba, is gone through by the husband. Women thus cast off cannot marry again. Among the Dhobas of Eastern Bengal some curious usages prevail in respect of marriage. Every samdj or local assemblage of the Ramer-Dhoba sub-caste is headed by three officials, known in order of rank as the Naik, the Paramanik, and the Barik. The rest of the assemblage or community are known by the general name Samaj ik. For marriages between equals, that is between persons both of whom belong to the same class, whether official or Samajik, the bride-price is fixed at Rs. 50. But where the parties do not belong to the same class, the bride-price varies above or below this sum in relation to the rank of the bride and bridegroom. Thus a Samajik marrying the daughter of a Barik, Paramanik, or Naik will pay Rs. 51, Rs. 52, or Rs. 53, as the case may be ; while a Naik marrying in the classes below him pays Rs. 49, Rs. 48, or Rs. 47, according to the rank of the bride. A somewhat less elaborate system exists in the Sitar-Dhoba sub-caste. There the headman of the Samaj is called Pradhan, and the second Paramanik, but there is no third official. The amount oipan varies with the rank of the bride, but neither the normal amount nor the scale of variation is fixed by custom. In Murshedabad and other districts of Central Bengal the Samaj of the Dhoba caste is presided over by three officials — Para- manik, Barik, and Mandal, who are consulted when a marriage is under consideration, and who decide any questions regarding affinity which may arise. The Dhobas of Orissa differ in several important particulars . from the Dhobas of Bengal. In the first place in Orissaf6 &n 3 ru° ure they have among their gotras the distinctly totemistio group N&gasa, the members of which

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

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231 DHOBA, revere the snake as their common progenitor, and observe the primitive rule of exogamy, which forbids a man to marry a woman who bears the same totem as himself. Prohibited degrees of course are recognised, but the form in which they are stated shows them to be later amplifications of a more archaic method of preventing marriages between persons of near kin. Again, adult as well as ins ant-marriages are sanctioned, and there are no limits to polygamy. A man may take as many wives as he likes or can afford to maintain. Widows may marry again under much the same conditions as are recognised by the non- Aryan races of Chota Nagpur. The ritual observed is sanga. When such a marriage is under consideration, the widow appears before a caste council and solemnly cuts an areca nut (supari) into two pieces. This is supposed to symbolize her complete severance from the family of her late husband. The actual ceremony gone through on the day of the sangd is of the simplest character. The bridegroom decks the bride with new ornaments, denoting that she has put off the unadorned state of widowhood, and a feast is given to the members of the caste, their presence at which is deemed to ratify the marriage. While permitting widows to remarry, the Orissa Dhobas do not extend this privilege to divorced women. In dealing with women taken in adultery, the main point is whether the paramour is a member of the caste or not. If he is, I gather that the moral sense of the community is satisfied hy the imposition of some slight penance, and that the husband by no means invariably insists on getting rid of his wife. A liaison with an outsider, however, admits of no atonement, and the offending woman is simply turned out of the caste. The religion of the Dhoba. caste, whether in Bengal or in Orissa, exhibits no points of special interest. Most Dhobas belong to the Vaishnava sect, and a few only are Saktas. Like many other serving castes, they pay especial reverence to Viswakarma. They employ Brahmans for religious and ceremonial purposes, but the Dhoba Brahman, as he is usually called, ranks very low, and is looked down upon by those members of the priestly order who serve the higher castes. In the disposal of the dead and the subsequent propitiatory ceremonies they follow the standard customs of lower class Hindus. It deserves notice that the Dhobas of Orissa bury children up to five years of age face downwards — a practice which in Upper India is confined to members of the sweeper caste. The necessities of Hindu society give rise to a very steady demand for the services of the Dhoba, and for ecupa ion. reagon a comparatively small proportion of the caste have abandoned their distinctive occupation in favour of agriculture. The village Dhoba, however, besides receiving customary presents at all village festivals, often holds chdkardn land in recognition of the services rendered by him to the community. In Eastern Bengal, according to Dr. Wise, the presence of the Dhoba is deemed indispensable at the marriages of the higher classes, as on the bridal morn he sprinkles the bride and bridegroom with water collected in the palms of his hands from the grooves

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Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

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232 DHOBA. of his washing-board (pat), and after the bride has been daubed with turmeric the Dhoba must touch her to signify that she is purified. In Dacca, says the same accurate observer, the washerman is hard-working, regular in his hours of labour, and generally one of the first workmen seen in the early morning, making use of a small native bullock, as the donkey does not thrive in Bengal, for carrying his bundles of clothes to the outskirts of the town. He cannot, however, be said to be a careful washerman, as he treats fine and coarse garments with equal roughness ; but for generations the Dacca Dhobas have been famous for their skill, when they choose to exert it, and early in this century it was no uncommon thing for native gentlemen to forward valued articles of apparel from Calcutta to be washed and restored by them. At the present day Dhobas from Kochh Behar and other distant places are sometimes sent while young to learn the trade at Dacca. For washing muslins and other cotton garments, well or spring „ , , , water is alone used ; but if the articles are the Mode of washing. , » , property ot a poor man, or are commonplace, the water of the nearest tank or river is accounted sufficiently good. The following is their mode of washing. The cloth is first cleansed with soap or fuller's earth, then steamed, steeped in earthen vessels filled with soap suds, beaten on a board, and finally rinsed in cold water. Indigo is in as general use as in England for removing the yellowish tinge and whitening the material. The water of the wells and springs bordering on the red laterite formation met with on tho north of the city has been for centuries celebrated, and the old bleaching fields of the European factories were all situated in this neighbourhood. Dhobas use rice starch before ironing and folding clothes, for which reason no Brahman can perform his devotions or enter a temple without first of all rinsing in water the garment he has got back from the washerman. Various plants are used by Dhobas to clarify water, such as the nir-mali (Strychnos potatorum), pui (Basella), nagphani (Cactus Jndicus), and several plants of the mallow family. Alum, though not much valued, is sometimes used. The Dhoba often gives up his caste trade and follows the profession of a writer, messenger, or collector of rent (tahsildar), and it is an old native tradition that a Bengali Dhoba was the first inter preter the EngUsh factory of Calcutta had, while it is further stated that our early commercial transactions were solely earned on through the agency of low-caste natives. The Dhoba, however,will never engage himself as an indoor servant in the house of a European. Among the natives of Bengal the washerman, like the barber, is proverbially considered untrustworthy, and when the former says the clothes are almost ready he is not to be believed. The Bengali Dhoba is not so dissipated as his Hindustani namesake, whose drink ing propensities are notorious, but he is said to indulge frequently in 0ri«/«-smoking. The Dhoba is reckoned as unclean because he washes the puer- Sociai status. peral garments-an occupation which, according to Hindu ideas, is reserved for outcaste and

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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233 DHOBI DHOBA, abandoned races. His social rank therefore is low, and we find him classed with Chandals, Jugis, Mais, and the like. Notwithstanding this he assumes many airs, and lays down a fanciful standard of rank to suit his pleasure. Thus in Bikrampur, in Dacca, he declines to wash for the Patuni, Rishi, Bhuinmali, and Chandal, but works for the Sunri, because the Napit does so, and for all classes of fisher men. He also refuses to attend at the marriages of any Hindus but those belonging to the Nava-Sakha, and under no circumstances will he wash the clothes worn at funeral ceremonies. The following statement shows the number and distribution of Dhobas in Bengal, Orissa, and Manbhum in 1872 and 1881 : — Jlhobi, the washerman caste of Behar, entirely distinct from . . the Dhobas of Bengal and Orissa. Except the vague story that they are descended from Gari Bhuiya, one of the minor gods of Behar, Dhobis have no tradition respecting their origin, and the internal structure of the caste throws no light upon the sources from which it has been formed. Mr. Nesfield holds that the " washerman represents an impure caste, but are many degrees higher than that of the Bhangi, from whom he has sprung. Both are descended from the Dom, ' whose sole wealth,' according to Manu, ' must be dogs and asses.'1 The Indian washer man has always been associated with the indigenous ass, which carries the soiled clothes down to the bank of the river or tank and takes them back clean to the house. No Hindu of any caste, even the lowest, will wash his own clothes, and so the Dhobi has been formed into a caste which shall bear the impurities of all." It seems to me open to question whether this ingenious hypothesis is borne out by the very scanty evidence that is available. Dhobis and Doms, as I understand the argument, are alleged to be cognate races, because both are associated with the donkey. Now in the first place the use of donkeys by the Dhobi caste is so far from being the 1 Manu, x, 52, speaks thus of the Chandals, not of the Doms. There is nothing primd facie improbable in the view that both are derived from a common stock, but I doubt whether the evidence justifies the assumption of their identity. Distbict. 1872. 1881. Distbict. 1872. 1881. Bardwan Bankura Birbhum Midnapur Hughli Howrah 24-Parganas ... Nadiya Xhulna Jessore Murshedabad Dinajpur Rajshabye ... Rangpur Bogra Pabna 7,162 2,7)43 2,131 34,896 } 12,152 39,591 4,815 4,904 4,405 3,209 41,607 f 7.988 I 9,312 13,968 6,834 2.276 9,866 6,900 2,071 1,695 898 651 2,225 Darjiling Jalpigon Kuch Behar Dacca Faridpur Bakarganj Maimansinh Chittagong Noakhali Tipperah Hill Tracts Cuttack Puri Balasore Tributary States Manbhum 85 166 9,615 4,132 27,395 12,587 11,136 13,243 16,197 7 27,560 12,247 16,475 16,975 7,816 830 979 310 11,028 9,815 21,628 17,419 11,446 15,151 16,592 38 86,189 14,529 21,350 15,645 9,404 7,624 5,295 2,177 1,743 805 827 1,376

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Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

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234 DHOBI universal that it has given rise to the formation of a slightly inferior sub-caste called Gadhaya. Secondly, beyond the highly conjectural identification of the Doms with the Chandals spoken of by Manu, there is nothing to show that Doms have the faintest partiality for the donkey. On the contrary, the Magahya Doms of Behar, as is explained in the article on that caste, will not touch a donkey, and regard the Dhobi with very special aversion, in explanation of which they tell a curious story. So far as my knowledge extends, neither the physical characteristics nor the exogamous divisions of the Dhobi caste suggest any conclusion at all regarding the origin of the group ; and for the present at any rate all that can be said is that it is probably a functional group evolved under the pressure of social requirements from whatever elements happened to be at hand in any particular locality. The tendency, no doubt, would be to relegate the ceremonially objectionable work of a washerman to the non- Aryan races ; and in Orissa, as has been pointed out in the article on Dhoba, some evidence has survived to show that this has actually taken place. But it would be hopeless to attempt by any mode of analysis to trace the various elements which may have been combined in a large functional caste. The Dhobis of Behar are divided into the following sub-castes : — ■ Kanaujia, Maghaya, Belwar, Awadhiya, Internal structure. D.., ,„ _r>. > A il. a /i j *, \ Batham, Gorsar, Gadhaya (keep donkeys), and Bangla (immigrants from Bengal). There is also a class of Mahomedan Dhobis known as Turkia. Magahya Dhobis have exogamous sections (muls) of the territorial type. The other sub- castes appear to have no sections, and to regulate their marriages solely by the standard Behar formula regarding prohibited degrees. The usual practice among Dhobis is to marry their daughters as „ . infants at ages ranging from five to twelve Marriage. . . , ° °,P .,., years ; but cases sometimes occur in which a girl is married after puberty owing to her parents being too poor to arrange for her marriage before. The preliminary negotia tions are conducted by a match-maker (agud), who may or may not be a relative of the bride. A small customary price (tilak) is usually paid to the parents of the bridegroom. The ceremony is of the ordinary type. Polygamy is supposed to be prohibited, but a man may have two wives without incurring censure; and as a rule no one is rich enough to be able to keep more. A widow may marry again by the sagai form, in which the ritual consists of smearing vermilion on the parting of the bride's hair with the bridegroom's left hand, and presenting to her a lac armlet. If her late husband has left a younger brother or younger cousin, it is considered the right thing for the widow to marry him some four or five months after her husband's death. A divorce may be obtained with the assent of the caste panchayat when a woman is taken in adultery with a member of the caste or for incompatibility of temper. Sexual intercourse with an outsider belonging to a lower caste would involve expulsion ; but I infer from the case oited below that a woman would incur no social penalty by becoming the

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235 DHOBI mistress of a man of high caste. A divorced woman may many again by sagai. The man whom she marries is expected to give a feast to the members of the caste. It is a singular fact that the Dhobis of Behar, like the Bauris and Bagdis of Bengal, admit into their community men of higher castes who have been expelled from their own group. In such cases the head of the new member is shaved, and he is bathed in any sacred stream that may be available. He must also worship Sat Narayan, and give money and a feast to the Brahmans of the caste. A case of this kind occurred recently iu Champaran. A Bhuinhar (Babhan) of Khartari, thana Dhaka, having been expelled from his own caste for eating and drinking with a Dhobi woman who was his mistress, was formally received into the Dhobi caste by the ceremony described above. In all that concerns the worship of the greater gods the religion of the Dhobis differs little from that of other castes of about the same social position. Siva, Vishnu, Kartikeya, or the Saktis are selected for worship, very much as the personal tastes of the worshipper may dictate. Maithil and Sakadwipi Brahmans are employed as priests, but these suffer in social estimation by serving so low a caste, and are distinguished by the opprobrious name of Dhobi Brahman. Besides these profes- sional purohits, a Dhobi who turns Bairagi may find employment as guru or spiritual adviser among the members of his caste. In addition to the minor gods common to them and other low castes of Behar, Dhobis pay especial respect to Gari, Bhui a, whom they worship on the 5th of Sravan with offerings of he-goats, betel- leaves, flowers of the urhdl tree, cakes of flour, rice boiled in milk, ganja with a chikon ready for smoking, a dhoti, and a few coins. These offerings, with the exception of the ganja, are afterwards consumed by the members of the family. The dhoti and the money are given to Brahmans. In the Monghyr district Barham Ghasi appears to occupy much the same position as Gari Bhuia does further north. On the last day of Asharh, Ghosi Pachain is propitiated in very similar fashion. Some Dhobis are said to worship their flat iron (istiri), but I have been unable to find out the precise form of ritual appointed for such occasions. Jhunki Gosain and Ram Thakur are also reckoned among their gods. In point of social standing Dhobis hold but a low place among the castes of Behar, being classed with Beldars, ati°oCial StatUS and °CCU" Mu8a*****ars-* Chamars, and the like. Brahmans of course cannot take water from their hands. They are not very particular about their food, and in some districts they are known to eat field-rats— a fact which suggests non-Aryan affinities. Most of them adhere to their traditional occupation of washing clothes, and only a few have taken to agriculture as non occupancy raiyats. Some, however, work as cartmen, and others have taken to selling milk. In North-West Shahabad, says Mr. Grierson,1 the village Dhobi receives as his perquisite ten sers 1 Behar Peasant Life, s.v. Dhobi.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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DHOBI 236 DHOLI of grain for every plough in the village. This is called jaurd. In the same part of the country he also receives an armful of crop, known as kharwan or kerd, according as it is large or small. In the North-Western Provinces, and probably also in Behar, the Dhobi gets a special fee in cash or kind at child-birth and on the day when the mother first leaves her room. According to the same high authority1 : — " The honesty of the washerman and his tenderness for the clothes committed to his care are not considered of much account in Behar, and there are numerous proverbs coined at his expense, e.g., dhobi par dhobi base, tab kapra par sdbun pare, — no soap ever touches clothes unless many washermen live together (when owing to com petition they wash well). Again, dhobik bap ker kichhu nahihphdt, — nothing belonging to a washerman's father is ever torn by him (i.e., those are the only clothes about which he is careful). It is also a wise precaution, which according to Behar ideas should universally be adopted, to disbelieve a washerman when he says the clothes are ' nearly ' ready. A washerman's donkey is a bye- word, as in the proverb gadha ken na dosar gosainydn, dhobiya ken na do-iar parohan, — an ass has only one master (a washerman) . and the washerman has only one steed (a donkey). Again, dhobi, nail, darjii linu algarji, — there are three careless people, the washerman, the barber, and the tailor." The following statement shows the number and distribution of the Dhobi caste in Behar and Chota Nagpur during 1872 and 1881 :— Dhobaha, a section of the Biyahut and Kharidaha Kalwars iu Behar. Dhoba-Samaj, a sub-caste of Dhobas in Hughli. Dhobdhar, a sept of Bairagis in Chota Nagpur who cannot wash their clothes when perform ing ceremonies for the birth of a child. Dhobi, a sept of Kharwars in Chota Nagpur who cannot touch a washerman. Dhokar-Gond or Mangan- Gond, a sub-tribe of Gonds in Chota Nagpur. Dhokasan, a section of Goalas in Behar. Dhokra, a sub-caste of Ka mars or blacksmiths in Western Bengal who make brass idols. Dhol, Dhole, a title of Baren dra Brahmans and Bangaja Kayasths in Bengal. Dhola, a sub-caste of Doms in Bengal who are supposed to come from Dhalbhum. Dholi, Dhuli, Dholid, Dhulid, a beater of the dhol or small drum; a title of the Bditi, Hari, Kora, Muchi, and other low castes ; a section of the Dhaprii 1 Behar Peasant Life, s.v. Dhobi. USTBICT. USTBICT. '2. II. Patna 12,459 13,534 I Bhaealpur Gya 17,954 16,7.33 ! Purniah Shahahad 14,564 18,750 I Maldah mi.)...* f Darbhanga ... ) .„.„, ( 21,075 I Santal Parganas T,rhut iMozufferpur ... i 45'197 I 28,433 j Hazaribagh ... Saran 15,122 20,804 I Lohardaga Champaran 16,911 17,969 , Singbhum Monghyr 15,772 20,061 i Tributary States 16,414 10,775 8,507 10,497 7,530 8,612 2,096 2,592 23,491 18,616 8,893 7,905 11,872 11,397 2,626 3,863

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Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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237 DHOLI DIGHA sub-caste of Doms in Behar ; a title of Goalas. Dhundhuri, a gain of the Sabarna gotra of Barendra Brahmans in Bengal. Dholo, a sub-caste of Sunris in Western Bengal. Dhungial, a tharoi the Agasti gotra of Nepali Brahmans. Dhondh, a water-snake, a sept of Pans in Chota Nagpur. Dhunia, a cotton-carder, an occupation followed by Mahom edans. Dhongan, a thar or section of Nepali Brahmans. Dhunkor, a section of Pans in Chota Nagpur. Dhor, a sept of Rajputs in Behar. Dhora, a sub-tribe of Bhui yas in Chota Nagpur. Dhurari, a thar or section of Nepali Brahmans. Dhurfanda, a section of the Biyahut and Kharidaha Kalwars in Behar. Dhoran, a section of Goalas in the North- Western Provinces and Behar. Dhuria, a sub-caste of Kandus and Kahars in Behar. Dhosali, a gain of the Batsya gotra of Barendra Brahmans in Bengal. Dhurjhar, a mul or section of the Ghosin sub-caste of Goalas in Behar. Dhramar, a title of Maithil Brahmans in Behar. Dhruba, a gotra or section of the Baidya caste in Bengal. Dhurjya, a sept of Chakmas in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong. Dhukankora, a sub-caste of Sunris in Behar. Dhurungia, a section of Ghasis in Chota Nagpur. Dhukursani, a sub-caste of Kotals in Bengal. Dhusia, Dhusiya, a totemistic sept of Chamars aud Doms in Chota Nagpur ; a sub-caste of Chamars in Behar. Dhuli , a thar or sept of DAmis in Darjiling, the members of which are drummers by profession. Dia, a section of Goalas in the North- Western Provinces. Dhulia or Dhulo, a sub-caste of Bauris in Western Bengal. Diali, a seotion of Kamis in Darjiling. Dhum, a title of Bangaja Kay asths in Bengal. Dian, a kind offish, a totem istic sept of Bedias in Chota Nagpur. Dhunakata, a sub-caste of Mais in Midnapur and Man bhum. Dichhit or Dikshit, a title of Kanaujia Brahmans, Babhans, and Rajputs in Behar. Dhundhia, a section of Godlds in the North- Western Provinces. Dhundhia, a section of Go&las in the North- Western Prov inces. Digha, a title of Bauris in Western Bengal.

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Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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238 DOAI. DIGHAL. Dighal, a gain of the Batsya gotra of Rarhi Brahmaus in Bengal. Dihparsar, a local section of the Maghaya sub-caste of Koiris in Behar. Dighbait, Dighwait, a kui or section of Babhans in Behar. Dihwar, a pur or section of Sakadwipi Brahmans in Behar. Dighwara, a mul or section of the Tinmulia Madhesia sub- caste of Halwais in Behar. Diller, a sept of Goalas in Chota Nagpur. Dilpali, a thar or sept of Khambus in Darjiling. Dighwe-Tipri, a mul of the Sandil section of Maithil Brah mans and of Babhans in Behar. Dingsain, a gain of the Bha radwaja gotra of Rarhi Brahmans in Bengal. Dighwe-Nagar, a mul of the Sandil section of Maithil Brah mans in Behar. Dip, a sept of Chiks in Chota Nagpur who may not eat after twilight. Dighwe-Kankaura, a mul of the Sandil section of Maithil Brahmans in Behar. Dipar, a section of Babhans in Behar. Dighwe-Sannahpur, a mul of the Sandil section of Maithil Brahmans in Behar. Dirghati, a gain of the Sandi lya gotra oi Rarhi Brahmans in Bengal. Dighwe-Sakarpura, a mul of the Sandil section of Maithil Brahmans in Behar. Dirra, a kind of eel, a totemis tic sept of Oraons in Chota Nagpur. Dihbans, a sept of Chiks in Chota Nagpur. Dirwar, a jungle fruit, a totem istic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Dih-korwa, a sub-tribe of Korwas in Chota Nagpur. Dot, Chalanta, Baidya, Lakhiputra, Patia Das, a low cul tivating caste of Eastern Bengal, especially numerous along the banks of the Lakhya river in Dacca. The Doai are probably allied to the Hajang, a Mongrel Garo tribe of Maimansinh and Silhet, bordering on the Garo Hills, who under Brahmanical influence have broken off from the hillmen. A division of the Kochh Mandai, however, bears the name Doi, and the Danyi are described by Buchanan as the most depraved of the Kochh tribe, and the most impure of the Rajbansi. The Doafs of Rungpiir, according to Mr. Damant, have no Brahmans, but employ members of their own caste as Purohits, and any stray Bairagi as Guru, the sraddha being held on the eleventh day after decease. They eat pork and drink spirits, while their principal occupation is carrying palankins and fishing. The Doai of Dacca a.re described by Dr. Wise as short, squat men, with an Indo-Chinese type of features ; others are tall and muscukar with large blaok eyes, acquiline noses, and a profusion of hair on the face, while thoir complexion ia of a light brown. At the present day

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

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239 DOAI. DOH-EAHB-PA. the Doais have become so thoroughly Hinduised, and have so com pletely lost their original language and customs, that very little information can be got from them. They have Patit Brahmans of their own, who confess to having been their priests for three genera tions only. The weddings and funerals are the same as those of other low-caste Hindus, the sraddha being likewise celebrated on the thirtieth day. The Doai will drink from the vessels of the lowest Sudras, but even the Bhuinmali is disgraced if he drinks from theirs. They disavow the use of pork and spirits, although their neighbours affirm that indulgence in both is universal. They all belong to one gotra, the Aliman, and their sole title is Das. Disputes are settled by a headman, Pradhan, whose office is not hereditary. Their religious festivals are Hindu, the majority being Vaish navas, while a Gosain or Bairagi is the Guru. Before felling a Gujali or Sal-tree, offerings are made to Chandi, or Durga, the Brahman officiating ; while according to their own account no religious rite is ever celebrated without the guidance of the family priest. Living as they always do on |the edge of the forest, they cut firewood for the market, and make matting (pat), whence the name Patia Das, but do not catch fish for sale or engage themselves as boatmen. They have lost their ancestral language, and some of them occasionally learn to read and write Bengali, being employed as Tahsildars, or rent-collectors by landlords ; while the illiterate become watchmen and messengers, Doalak, a mul or section of the Naomulia or Majraut sub-caste of Goalas in Behar. Dodrai, a kind of bird, a to temistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Doen, a mul or section of the Chhanmlia Madhesia sub-caste of Halwais in Behar. Doalband, he who bears a sword, a soldier ; one of the two main divisions of Kharwars, the other being Patband. Doeri, Dwdri, Darwdn, a door keeper. The term is reserved for the door-keepers of the houses of considerable landholders in the mofussil. Doasli, Dofasli, a designa tion of the illegitimate offspring of parents of different castes. §Ogla, a mixed caste in Behar descended from fathers of the higher classes by women of the low castes. They are chiefly employed as writers. Dobar, a section of Sunris in Behar. Dobe, see Dube. Dobhait, a mul or section of the Maghaya sub-caste of Barhis in Behar. Dohal, a thar of the Bachh gotra of Nepah Brahmans. Dohan, a section of Goalas in the North- Western Provinces. Dobhasia, Dubash, 'a man of two languages,' an interpreter ; a title of the Rajbansi sub-caste of Kochhs in Northern Bengal. Dohar, a sub-caste of Chamars in Behar. Doh-rahb-pa, one dwelling under the feet, a rui or sept of Dejong Lhoris, the members of Dobongwar, a sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

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240 DOH-BAHB-PA. DOM. Dojwar, see Dudhwar. which form the lowest class of Bhotias. Dokane-Mali, a sub-caste of Malis in Bengal. Doh-zepa, living in rough and craggy rocks, a rui or sept of Dejong Lhoris, the members of which form the lowest class of Bhotias. Dokhangpa, a rui or sept of the Bed tshan-gye sub-tribe of Dejong Lhoris or Bhotias of the south. Doi, a synonym for Doai; a section of the Kochh-Mandai in Dacca. Doi bandh i, a sept of Kharwars in Chota Nagpur. Doingnak, a sub-tribe of Chakmas in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong. Dom, a sub-caste of Turis in Chota Nagpur. W^OYtl, Domrd, sometimes called Chandal by outsiders, a Dravi- dian menial caste of Bengal, Behar, and Traditions of origin. North_Western provinces, regarding whose origin much has been said. Dr. Caldwell1 considers the " Doms and other Chandalas of Northern India and the Pareiyas and other low tribes of the Peninsula" to be the surviving representatives of an older, ruder, and blacker race, who preceded the Dravidians in India. Some of these were driven by the Dravidian invasion to take refuge in mountain fastnesses and pestilential jungles, while others were reduced to perpetual servitude like the Doms of Kumaon, whom Mr. Atkinson" describes as for ages the slaves of the Khasiyas — thought less of than the cattle, and, like them, changing hands from master to master. Sir Henry Elliot3 says they " seem to be one of the aboriginal tribes of India. Tradition fixes their residence to the north of the Gogra, touching the Bhars on the east, in the vicinity of Rohini. Several old forts testify to their former impor tance, and still retain the names of their founders ; as, for instance, Domdiha and Domangarh.4 Ramgarh and Sahankot on the Rohini are also Dom forts." Mr. Carnegy5 observes that the fort of Domangarh was the stronghold of the Domar, a degenerate clan of Rajputs, and suggests in a note that these Domar or Don war may themselves have been a family of Doms who had risen to power locally and got themselves enrolled in "the conveniently elastic fraternity of Rajputs." In support of this theory he refers to the case of Ali Baksh Dom, who became Governor of Ramlabad, one of the districts of Oudh, and mentions that it was not uncommon for men of this class to rise to high office under kings by whom they were employed as musicians. 1 Gram-mar of the Dravidian Languages, p. 546. - North- Western Provinces Gazetteer, vol. xi, p. 370. 3 Paces of the North-Western Provinces, i, N4. 4 Buchanan, Eastern India, ii, p. 353, calls this the " Domingar or the castle of the Dom lady." It should be noted that Sir Henry Elliot misunder stands Buchanan, who nowhere gives it as his own opinion that the Doms are tho same as the Domkatar section of the Babhan caste, though he mentions (ii, 471) without comment a popular tradition to that effect. 6 Notes on the Races of Avadh (Oudh), p. 24.

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241 DOM Out of this somewhat profitless discussion there seems to emerge a general consensus of opinion that the Doms belong to one of the races whom, for convenience of expression, we may call the aborigines of India. Their personal appearance bears out this opinion. Mr. Beames describes the Magahiyd Doms of Champaran as " small and dark, with long tresses of unkempt hair, and the peculiar §rsoss;/ eye of the non- Aryan autochthon ;"] and Mr. Sherring remarks that "dark complexioned, low of stature, and somewhat repulsive in appearance, they are readily distinguishable from all the better castes of Hindus."1 The type, however, as is the case with most widely-diffused castes, seems to display appreciable variations. In Eastern Bengal, according to Dr. Wise, the Dom's hair is long, black, and coarse, while his complexion is oftener of a brown rather than a black hue; and among the Magahiya Doms whom I have seen in Behar only a small proportion struck me as showing any marked resemblances to the aborigines of Chota Nagpur, who are, I suppose, among the purest specimens of the non-Aryan races of India. On the whole, however, the prevalent type of physique and complexion seems to mark the caste as not of Aryan descent, although evidence is wanting to conuect it with any compact aboriginal tribe of the present day. The fact that for centuries past they have been condemned to the most menial duties, and have served as the helots of the entire Hindu community, would of itself be sufficient to break down what- ever tribal spirit they may once have possessed, and to obliterate all structural traces of their true origin. The Dom community is a iarge one, and the intricacy of its internal organization is doubtless due for the endogamy. structure : most part to the large area over which the caste is distributed. The sub-castes and sections are given in a tabular form in Appendix I. About most of these there is very little to be said. Enquiry into the origin of sub-castes is usually a difficult and unfruitful process, and it is attended with peculiar difficulties in the case of a caste regarded by all Hindus with extreme repulsion, and destitute of the social pride which delights to recall the reasons for minute internal divisions. The Maga hiya Doms of Behar have a legend that once upon a time Mahadeva and Parvati invited all the castes to a feast. Supat Bhakat, the ancestor of the Doms, came late, and being very hungry, mixed up and ate the food which the others had left. His behaviour was deemed so scandalous that he and his descendants were straightway degraded and condemned to eat the leavings of all other castes. Even at the present day if a Dom who comes to beg is asked to what caste he belongs, the answer will invariably be " Jhutd-khdi," or eater of leavings. This myth is unknown to the Doms of Central and Western Bengal, who trace their origin to a common ancestor called Kalubir, the son of a Chandal woman by her Let3 husband. From his four sons, Pranbir, Manbir, Bhanbir, and Shanbir, the sub-castes A'nkuria, Bisdelia, Bajunia, and Magahiya are said to 1 Races of the North-Western Provinces, p. 85. 3 Hindu Tribes and Castes, i, 401. 3 Let is a sub-caste of the Bagdis in Murshedabad. Q

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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242 DOM. be descended. The two elder sons, Pranbir and Manbir, were, it is said, sent out to gather flowers for a sacrifice. Pranbir, who was lazily inclined, tore the flowers from the trees with a bamboo hook (dnkuli) and picked them up as they fell on the ground ; while Manbir climbed the trees and gathered flowers carefully from branch to branch. The flowers brought in by Manbir were accepted, and he received the title of Bisdelia (bis, ' twenty,' and ddl, ' a branch '), because he had climbed twenty branches in the service of the gods. The elder brother's offering was rejected as unclean, and he and his descendants were named Ankuria in reference to the hook. On hearing this decision the third brother was greatly pleased, and drummed on his stomach in token of satisfaction. He and his offspring therefore were entitled Bajunia, or musician Doms. The Dhakai Dhesia or Tapaspuria Doms, who remove dead bodies and dig the cross trench which forms the base of the funeral pyre, also claim descent from Kalubir. One of his sons, they say, was sent by Mahadeva to fetch water from the Ganges. At the river bank he found a dead body waiting to be burned, and was tempted by offers of money from the friends of the deceased to dig the necessary trench. On his return to Mahadeva the god cursed him and his descendants to minister to the dead for all time. No special legend is given to account for the name Magahiya, which doubtless originally denoted the Doms of South Behar. The Dai sub-caste owe their name to the circumstance that their women act as midwives in parts of the country where Chamains are not numerous enough to perform this function. The men are day-labourers. The Bansphor or ' bamboo-splitter ' sub-caste derive their name from the material out of which they make baskets ; while the Chapariya seem to be so called from building the bamboo frame- work by which a roof (chapar) is supported. The Uttariya Doms of South Behar work in sirki, and regard this as an important distinction between themselves and the Magahiya, who in that part of the country till the soil and make mats and baskets of bamboo. The exogamous sections of the caste are very numerous. In Behar they seem to be territorial or titular; exogamy^ S ructure : while in Bankura the names are totemistic, and the members of particular sections refrain from injuring the animals after which they are called. In Central Bengal traces of totemism may perhaps be found, but the tendency is to borrow the Brahmanical gotras, while in the eastern districts all exogamous groups seem to have disappeared, and marriages are regulated by the more modern system of counting prohibited degrees down to and including the fifth generation in descent from a common ancestor. The Magahiya Doms of Behar affect to observe a very elaborate method of working the rule of exogamy. They lay down that a man may not marry a woman belonging to the same section as his own (1) father, (2) paternal grandmother, (3) paternal great-grandmothers, (4) paternal great-great-grand mothers, (5) mother, (6) maternal grandmother, (7) maternal great grandmothers. In applying the rule to a particular case, all the sections on both sides are taken into account in the manner described

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

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243 DOM in the article on Bais, so that a marriage would be barred if one of the great-grandmothers of the proposed bride happened to have belonged to the same section as one of the great-great-grand mothers of the proposed bridegroom, even though the parties them selves belonged to different muls. This mode of calculation appears to be confined to Behar ; and in Bengal wherever sections exist, the only rule observed is that a man may not marry a woman of the same section as himself. The standard formula for reckoning prohibited degrees is in general use. Iu Bankura it is ordinarily calculated to three generations in the descending liue ; but where bhaiddi, or mutual recognition of relationship, has been kept up between two families, the prohibition extends to five generations. The Doms of the 24-Parganas affect to prohibit marriage between sapindas, but this is a palpable imitation of the customs of the higher castes. Members of other castes may be received into the Dom commuuity by paying a fee to the pancbaVyat and giving a feast to the Doms of the neighbourhood. At this feast the proselyte is required to wait upon his new associates and to eat with them. He must also have his head shaved and undergo a sort of baptism with water at the hands of the caste panchayat in token of his adoption of the Dom religion. Instances of men of other castes thus joining themselves to the Doms are very rare, and occur only when a man has been ejected from his own caste for living with a Dom woman. Some say, however, that in these cases the proselyte, though ordinarily spoken of as a Dom, is not admitted to complete equality with the original members of the caste. His children, however, will be Doms of the same sub-caste as their mother. In Central and Eastern Bengal Doms, following the example of . the higher castes, nearly always marry their daughters as infants, and regard it as wrong for a girl over ten years of age to remain unmarried in her father's house. A small bride-price (pan), varying from Rs. 5 to Rs. 10, is paid to the parents of the girl. In Behar and Western Bengal adult-marriage still holds its ground for those who cannot afford the more fashionable practice, and sexual intercourse before marriage is said to be tolerated. Among the Doms of the Dacca district the marriage service is peculiar. The guests being assembled on a propitious day fixed by a Brahman, the bridegroom's father takes his son on his knee, aud, sitting down in the centre of the " Marocha " opposite the bride's father, who is holding his daughter in a similar posture, repeats the names of his ancestors for seven generations, while the bride's father runs over his for three. They then call God to witness the ceremony, and the bridegroom's father addressing the other asks him, " Have you lost your daughter?" The answer being in the affirmative, a similar interrogation and reply from the opposite party terminates the service. The boy-bridegroom then advances, smears the bride's forehead with sindur or red lead — the symbol of married life — takes her upon his knee, and finally carries her within doors. Like all aboriginal races, Doms are very fond of gaudy colours ; the bridal dress consisting of yellow or red garments for the female, and a yellow cloth with a red turban for the male. a 2

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244 DOM In the 24-Parganas a more Hinduised ritual is in vogue. The marriage takes place on a raised earthen platform (bedi), to which a branch of a banian-tree is fixed. An earthen vessel full of Gauges water is placed in the centre. On this vessel the bride and bride- groom lay their hands, one above the other, and the ceremony is completed by exchanging garlands of flowers. The Dom priest, Dharma -Pandit, presides and mutters words which purport to be sacred texts, and the actual marriage service is preceded by offerings to ancestors and the worship of Surya, Ganesa, Durga, Mahadeva, and Anti Kuldevata. Further west again, in the districts of Bankura and Manbhum, the ritual appears to differ little from that already described in the article on the Bagdi caste. There is, how- ever, no marriage with a tree and no symbolic capture of the bride, as in the case of the Bagdis ; while in the joining of the hands which precedes sindurddn, the bride presents her right hand if she is given away by a male, and her left if by a female relative. On the night before the wedding the ceremony of adhibds is performed in the houses of both parties by anointing the body with turmeric and oil aud tying a thread soaked in this mixture and knotted with a few blades of durvd grass on the right wrist of the bridegroom and the left wrist of the bride. The ritual followed in Behar is of the simplest character, consisting mainly of sindurddn, which is often performed in tbe open air under a tree. The wealthier Doms, however, erect a wedding canopy (marwa), and generally copy the Hindu ceremony with more or less accuracy of detail. Polygamy is everywhere permitted, and poverty forms the only restriction on the number of wives a man may have. The standard of living however is low, and it is unusual to find a Dom with more than two wives, and most men content themselves with one. A widow may marry again, and in Behar it is deemed right for her to marry her late husband's younger brother; but in Bengal this idea does not seem to prevail, and a widow may marry any one she pleases provided that she does not infringe the prohibited degrees binding on her before her first marriage. The ritual (sanga or sagai) observed at the marriage of a widow consists mainly of sindurddn and the present of a new cloth. A pan is rarely paid, and never exceeds a rupee or two. In Murshedabad there is no sindurddn, and a formal declaration of consent before representatives of the caste is all that is required. Considerable license of divorce is admitted, and in some districts at any rate the right can be exercised by either husband or wife ; so that a woman, by divesting herself of the iron bracelet given to her at marriage, can rid herself of a husband who ill-treats her or is too poor to maintain her properly. Dom women have a reputation for being rather masterful, and many of them are conspicuous for their powerful physique. It may be by virtue of their characteristics that they have established a right very rarely conceded to women in Bengal. A husband, on the other hand, can divorce his wife for infidelity or persistent ill-temper. In either case the action of the individual requires the confirmation of the panchayat, which however is usually given as a matter of course, aud is expressed in Bhagalpur by solemnly pronouncing the pithy

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

245 DOM. monosyllable jdo. In North Bhagalpur the husband takes in his hand a bundle of rice straw and cuts it in half before the assemblage as a symbol of separation. Divorced wives may marry again by the same ritual as widows. Their children remain in the charge of their first husband. In Monghyr the second husband must give the panchayat a pig to form the basis of a feast, and if convicted of having seduced the woman away from her first husband must pay the latter Rs. 9 as compensation. A husband, again, who divorces his wife has to pay a fee of 10 annas to the panchayat for their trouble in deciding the case. Most of the sub-castes seem to have a fairly complete organiza tion for deciding social questions. The system of panchayats is every where in full force, and in Behar these are presided over by here ditary headmen, variously called sarddr, pradhdn, manjhan, marar, gorait, or kabirdj, each of whom bears rule in a definite local juris diction, and has under him a chharidar or rod-bearer to call together the panchayat and to see that its orders are carried out. The religion of the Doms varies greatly in different parts of the country, and may be described generally as a chaotic mixture of survivals from the elemental or animistic cults characteristic of the aboriginal races, and of observances borrowed in a haphazard fashion from whatever Hindu sect happens to be dominant in a particular locality. The composite and chaotic nature of their belief is due partly to the great ignorance of the caste, but mainly to the fact that as a rule they have no Brahmans, and thus are without any central authority or standard which would tend to mould their religious usages into conformity with a uniform standard. In Behar, for instance, the son of a deceased man's sister or of his female cousin officiates as priest at his funeral and recites appropriate mantras, receiving a fee for his services when the inheritance comes to be divided. Some Doms, indeed, assured me that the sister's son used formerly to get a share of the property, and that this rule had only recently fallen into disuse ; but their statements did not seem to be definite enough to carry entire conviction, and I have met with no corroborative evidence bearing on the point. So also in marriage the sister's sou, or occasionally the sister (xawdsin), repeats -mantras, and acts generally as priest. Failing either of these, the head of the household officiates. The possible significance of these facts in relation to the early history of the caste need not be elaborated here. No other indica tions of an extinct custom of female kinship are now traceable, and the fact that in Western Bengal the eldest son gets an extra share (jeth-angs) on the division of an inheritance seems to show that kinship by males must have been in force for a very long time past. In Bengal the sister's son exercises no priestly functions, these being usually discharged by a special class of Dom, known in Bankura as Degharia, and in other districts as Dharma-Pandit. Their office is hereditary, and they wear copper rings on their fingers as a mark of distinction. In Murshedabad, on the other hand, most Doms, with the exception of the Banukia sub-caste and some of the Ankurias, have the services of low Brahmans, who may perhaps be rauked as

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Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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246 DOM, Barna- Brahmans. The same state of things appears to prevail in the north of Manbhum. In the Santal Parganas barbers minister to the spiritual wants of the caste. With such a motley array of amateur and professional priests, it is clearly out of the question to look for any unity of religious organization among the Doms. In Bankura and Western Bengal generally they seem on he whole to lean towards Vaishnavism, but in addition to Radha and Krishna they worship Dharam or Dharma-raj in form of a man with a fish's tail on the last day of Jaishtha with offerings of rice, molasses, plantain, and sugar, the object of which is said to be to obtain the blessing of the sun on the crops of the season. Every year in the month of Baisakh the members of the caste go into the jungle to offer sacrifices of goats, fruits, and sweetmeats to their ancestral deity Kalubir ; and at the appointed season they join in the worship of the goddess Bhadu, described in the article on the Bagdi caste. At the time of the Durga Puja, Bajunia Doms worship the drum, which they regard as the symbol of their craft. This usage has clearly been borrowed from the artisan castes among the Hindus. In Central Bengal Kali appears to be their favourite goddess ; and in Eastern Bengal many Doms follow the Panth, or path of Supat, Siipan, or Sobbana Bhagat, who is there regarded as a guru rather than as the progenitor of the caste. Others, again, call themselves Haris Chandis, from Raja Haris Chandra, who was so generous that he gave away all his wealth in charity, and was reduced to such straits that he took service with a Dom, who treated him kindly. In return the Raja converted the whole tribe to his religion, which they have faithfully followed ever since. 1 The principal festival of the Doms in Eastern Bengal is the Sravannia Puja, observed in the month of that name, corresponding to July and August, when a pig is sacrificed and its blood caught, in a cup. This cup of blood, along with one of milk and three of spirits, are offered to Narayan. Again, on a dark night of Bhadra (August) they offer a pot of milk, four of spirits, a fresh cocoanut, a pipe of tobacco, and a httle Indian hemp to Hari Ram, after which swine are slaughtered and a feast celebrated. A curious custom followed by all castes throughout Bengal is associated with 1 This is the form of the legend current among the Doms of Dacca. It will be observed that the Chandala of the Markandeya Purana has been turned into a Dom, and the pious king into a religious reformer. According to Dr. Wise, Haris Chandra is a well-known figure in the popular mythology of Bengal, and it is of him that natives tell the following story, strangely like that narrated in the xviiith chapter of the Koran regarding Moses and Joshua. He and his Rani, wandering in the forest, almost starved, caught a fish and boiled it on a wood fire. She took it to the river to wash off the ashes, but on touching the water the fish revived and swam away. At the present day a fish called kalbosa (Labeo calbasu), of black colour and yellow flesh, is identified with the historical one, and no low-caste Hindu will touch it. In Hindustan the following couplet is quoted concerning a similar disaster which befell the gambler Nala, the moral being the same as that of the English proverb — " Misfortunes never come singly" : — " Raja Nai par bihat pare, Bhiine machhle jai men tire.

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Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

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247 DOM the Dom, and may perhaps be a survival from timeB when that caste were the recognised priests of the elemental deities worshipped by the non-Aryan races. Whenever an eclipse of the sun or moon occurs, every Hindu householder places at his door a few copper coins, which, though now claimed by the Acharji Brahman, were until recently regarded as the exclusive perquisite of the Dom. Similar confusion prevails in Behar under the r4gime of the sister's son, only with this difference, that the advance in the direction of Hinduism seems to be on the whole less conspicuous than in Bengal. Mahadeva, Kali, and the river Ganges receive, it is true, sparing and infrequent homage, but the working deities of the caste are Syam Singh, whom some hold to be the deified ancestor of all Doms, Rakat Mala, Ghihal or Gohil, Goraiya, Bandi, Lakeswar, Dihwar, Dak, and other ill-defined and primitive shapes, which have not yet gained admis sion into the orthodox pantheon. At Deodha, in Darbhanga, Syam Singh has been honoured with a special temple; but usually both he and the other gods mentioned above are represented by lumps of dried clay, set up in a round space smeared with cow-dung inside the house, under a tree or at the village boundary. Before these lumps, formless as the creed of the worshipper who has moulded them, pigs are sacrificed and strong drink offered up at festivals, marriages, and when disease threatens the family or its live-stock. The circle of these god-lings, as Mr. Ibbetson has excellently called them, is by no means an exclusive one, and a common custom shows how simply and readily their number may be added to. If a man dies of snake-bite, say the Magahiya Doms of the Gya district, we worship his spirit as a Sdmperiyd, lest he should come back and give us bad dreams ; we also worship the snake who bit him, lest the snake-god should serve us in like fashion. Any man therefore conspicuous enough by his doings in life or for the manner of his death to stand a chance of being dreamed of among a tolerably large circle is likely in course of time to take rank as a god. Judging, indeed, from the antecedents of the caste, Syam Singh himself may well have been nothing more than a successful dacoit, whose career on earth ended in 6ome sudden or tragic fashion, and who lived in the dreams of his brethren long enough to gain a place in their rather disreputable pantheon. Systematic robbery is so far a recognised mode of life among the Magahiya Doms that it has impressed itself on their religion, and a distinct ritual is ordained for observance by those who go forth to commit a burglary. The object of veneration on these occasions is Sansari Mai, whom some hold to be a form of Kali, but who seems rather to be the earth-mother known to most primitive religions. No image, not even the usual lump of clay, is set up to represent the goddess : a circle one span and lour fingers in diameter is drawn on the ground and smeared smooth with cowdung. Squatting in front of this the worshipper gashes his left arm with the curved Dom knife (katdri), and daubs five streaks of blood with his finger in the centre of the circle, praying in a low voice that a dark night may aid his

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

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248 DOM. designs ; that his booty may be ample ; and that he and his gang may escape detection. * " Labra movet metuens andiri : pulchra Laverna, Da mini fallere, da justo sanctoque videri, Noctem peccatis et fraudibus objice nubem."2 According to Dr. Wise it is universally believed in Bengal that Doms do not bury or burn their dead, but dismember the corpse at night, like the inhabit ants of Tibet, placing the pieces in a pot and sinking them in the nearest river or reservoir. This horrid idea probably originated from the old Hindu law which compelled the Doms to bury their dead at night. The Doms of Dacca say that the dead are cast into a river, while the bodies of the rich or influential are buried. When the funeral is ended each man bathes, and successively touches a piece of iron, a stone, and a lump of dry cowdung, after wards making offerings of rice and spirits to the manes of the deceased, while the relatives abstain from flesh and fish for nine days. On the tenth day a swine is slaughtered, and its flesh cooked and eaten, after which quantities of raw spirits are drunk until everybody is intoxicated. In Western Bengal and Behar the usual practice is to burn the dead and present offerings to the spirit of the deceased on the eleventh day, or, as some say, on the thirteenth. Before going to the place of cremation the Behar Doms worship Masan, a demon who is supposed to torment the dead if not duly propitiated. Burial is occasionally resorted to, but is not common, except in the case of persons who die of cholera or small-pox and children under three years of age. In these cases the body is laid in the grave face downward with the head pointing to the north. " By all classes of Hindus," says Dr. Wise, " the Dom is regarded with both disgust and fear, not only on account Habits and customs. i ■_ • , ■_ -i. t • ii l it • *li ot his habits being abhorrent and abominable, but also because he is believed to have no humane or kindly feelings. To those, however, who view him as a human being, the Dom appears as an improvident and dissolute man, addicted to sensuality and intemperance, but often an affectionate husband and indulgent father. As no Hindu can approach a Dom, his peculiar customs are unknown, and are therefore said to be wicked and accursed. A tradition survives among the Dacca Doms, that in the days of the Nawabs their ancestors were brought from Patna for employment as executioners (jallad) and disposers of the dead — hateful duties, which they perform at the present day. On the paid establish ment of each magistracy a Dom hangman is borne, who officiates whenever sentence of death is carried out. On these occasions he is assisted by his relatives, and as the bolt is drawn shouts of ' Dohai 1 The whole of this business was acted before me in the Buxar Central Jail by a number of Magahiya Doms undergoing sentence there. Several of them had their left arms scarred from the shoulder to the wrist by assiduous worship of the tribal Laverna. ' Horace, Epist. i. 16, 60.

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Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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249 DOM Maharani ! ' or ' Dohai Judge Sahib ' are raised to exonerate them from all blame." The peculiar functions which the caste performs at all Hindu funerals may be observed by all visitors to Benares, and are described by Mr. Sherring as follows: — "On the arrival of the dead body at the place of cremation, which in Benares is at the base of one of the steep stairs or ghats, called the Burning Ghat, leading down from the streets above to the bed of the river Ganges, the Dom supplies five logs of wood, which he lays in order upon the ground, the rest of the w<>od being given by the family of the deceased. When the pile is ready for burning, a handful of lighted straw is brought by the Dom, and is taken from him and applied by one of the chief members of the family to the wood. The Dom is the only person who can furnish the light for the purpose ; and if from any circumstance the services of one cannot be obtained, great delay and inconvenience are apt to arise. Tbe Dom exacts his fee for three things, namely, first, for the five logs ; secondly, for the bunch of 6traw; and thirdly, for the light." It should be added that the amount of the fee is not fixed, but depends upon the rank and circumstances of the deceased. In Eastern Bengal, according to Dr. Wise, the services of the Dom at the funeral pyre are not now absolutely essential. Of late years, at any rate in Dacca, household servants carry the corpse to the burn ing ghat, where the pyre constructed by them is lighted by the nearest relative. The degraded position forced upon all Doms by reason of the functions which some of them perform is on the whole acquiesced in by the entire caste, most of whom, however, follow the comparatively cleanly occupation of making baskets and mats. Taking food as the test of social status, it will be seen that Doms eat beef,1 pork, horse-flesh, fowls, ducks, field-rats, and the flesh of animals which have died a natural death. All of them, moreover, except the Bansphor and Chapariya sub- castes, will eat the leavings of men of other castes. To this last point one exception must be noted. No Dom will touch the leavings of a Dhobi,2 nor will he take water, sweetmeats, or any sort of food or drink from a man of that caste. The aversion with which the Dhobi is regarded is so pronounced that Doms of Behar have assured me that they would not take food from a Muham- madan who had his water fetched for him by a washerman of his own religion. The reason is obscure. Some people say the Dhobi is deemed impure because he washes women's clothes after childbirth ; but this fact, though conclusive enough for the average Hindu, would not, I imagine, count for much with a Dom. Moreover, the Doms themselves say nothing of the kind, but tell a very singular story to account for their hatred of the Dhobis. Once upon a time, 1 In Murshedabad and Eastern Bengal they profess to abstain from beef anH hold themselves superior to Muchis and Bauris for so doing. la Assam buffalo meat is also forbidden. 2 Some Doms say they will not eat the leavings of Dosadhs and Chamars, but this refinement is not general.

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Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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250 DOM they say, Supat Bhakat, the ancestor of the Doms, was returning tired and hungry from a iong journey. On his way he met a Dhobi going along with a donkey carrying a bundle of clothes, and asked him for food and drink. The Dhobi would give him nothing and abused him into the bargain, whereupon Supat Bhakat fell upon the Dhobi, drove him away with blows, killed his donkey, and cooked and ate it on the spot. After he had eaten he repented of what he had done, and seeing that it was all the Dhobi's fault declared him and his caste to be accursed for the Doms for ever, so that a Dom should never take food from a Dhobi or eat in his house. The legend may perhaps be a distorted version of the breach of some primitive taboo in which Dhobis and donkeys somehow played a part. Doms will not touch a donkey, but the animal is not regarded by the caste in the light of a totem. In this connexion I may mention the curious fact that the Ankuria and Bisdelia Doms of Birbhum will not hold a horse or kill a dog, nor will they use a ddo with a wooden handle, explaining that their ancestors always worked with handleless ddos, and that they are bound to adhere to the ancient custom. The prejudice against killing a dog seems at first sight to suggest some connexion with the Bauris ; but it may equally arise from the fact that one of the duties of scavenging Doms in towns is to kill ownerless dogs. Doms believe their original profession to be the making of baskets and mats, and even the menial and Occupation. • *i . ,, ,, ,. scavenging sub-castes follow these occupations to some extent. About half of the caste are believed to have taken to agriculture, but none of these have risen above the rank of occupancy raiyats, and a large proportion are nomadic cultivators and landless day-labourers. In the south of Manbhum a small number of rent free tenures, bearing the name sibottar, and supposed to be set apart for the worship of the god Siva, are now in the possession of Doms — a fact of which I can suggest no explanation. The Bajunia sub oaste are employed to make highly discordant music at marriages and festivals. His women-folk, however, only perform as musicians at the wedding of their own people, it being considered highly derogatory for them to do so for outsiders. At home the Domni manufactures baskets and rattles for children. A single wander ing branch of the Magahiya sub-caste has earned for itself a reputation which has extended to the whole of that group. " The Magahiya Doms of Champaran, " says Mr. Beames, " are a race of professional thieves. They extend their operations into the contiguous districts of Nepal. They are rather dainty in their operations, and object to commit burglary by digging through the walls of houses : they always enter a house by the door ; and if it is dark, they carry a light. Of course all this is merely done by way of bravado. Magahiyas" never live long in one place. They move about constantly, pitching their ragged little reed tents or sirkis outside a village or on a grassy patch by the roadside, like our gipsies, till they have done all the plundering that offers itself in the neighbourhood, when they move off again." The popular belief that all Magahiya Doms are habitual criminals is, however, a mistake.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

DOM 251 DON Burglary is followed as a profession only by the wandering members of that sub-caste. The Magahiyas of Gya are peaceable basket makers and cultivators, who regard thieving with as much horror as their neighbours, and know nothing of the Laverna cult of Sansari Mcii, whom they identify with Jagadamba, the small-pox goddess, one of a group of seven sisters presiding over various diseases. There seems, indeed, reason to believe that the predatory habits of the gipsy Magahiyas of Champaran are due rather to force of circumstances than to an inborn criminal instinct ; and the success of the measures introduced for their reclamation hy Mr. E. R. Henry while Magistrate of Champaran affords grounds for the hope that they may in course of time settle down as peaceable cultivators. The following statement shows the number and distribution of Doms in 1872 and 1881 :— Domkatar, asection of Babhans in Western Bengal and Behar to whom the members of other sections will not give their daughters in marriage, though they will marry Domkatar wo men. It perhaps deserves notice that katdr or katdri is the name of the peculiar curved knife used by the basket-making Doms. Domra, a sub-caste of Turis in Chota Nagpur ; a synonym for Dom. Domtakarai, a mul of the Bharadwaj section of Maithil Brahmans in Behar. Domtashi, a title of those Doms whose only profession is to sell bamboo articles, originally immigrants from Upper India. Dom Kha kha, a raven, a totemistic sept of Oraons in Chota Nagpur. Domtikar, a kui or section of Babhans in Behar. Don, a mul or section of the Chhamulia Madhesia sub-caste of Halwais in Behar. Dom-Patni, Machhwa or Naqarchi, a sub-caste of Patnis in Bengal. Distbict. 1872. 1881. Bardwan Bankura Birbhum Midnapur Hughli Howrah 24-Parganas ... Nadiya Khulna Jessore Murshedabad Dinajpur Rajshahye Rangpur Bogra Pabna Darjiling Jalpigori Kuch Behar ... Dacca Faridpur Bakarganj Maimansinh ... 52,327 7,193 34,897 18,610 } 10,715 6,478 2,937 38,856 17,601 85,238 16,27)5 5 10,729 I 2,950 3,159 2,247 49 2,054 7,677 3,494 405 1,736 327 1,231 166 952 281 270 292 853 1,112 1,078 10,490 1,243 582 3,096 171 1,566 88 73 641 689 1,083 3,717 Distbict. 1872. 1S81. Chttt:agong Noakhali Tipperah Patna, Gya Shahabad Saran Champaran Monghyr Bhagalnur Purniah Maldah Santal Parganas ... Cuttack Puri Balasore Tributary States ... Hazaribagh Lohardaga. Singhhum Manbhum Tributary States ... 15,491 793 1,91)5 6,116 7,627 4,675 \ 11,557 7,466 4,211 10,769 14,(161 3,267 1,227 29,465 2.252 2,113 1,397 4.853 7.566 6,395 2,054 17,342 836 9,117 880 8"4 6,694 6,773 5,812 f 10,618 t 10,042 9,955 8,612 12,910 17,279 6,852 1,377 85.634 1,785 2,233 1,582 8,929 7,962 6,673 2,214 18,610 2,211

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

252 DOSADH. DONDCHATEA. Dorihar-jogi, a section of Rajw&rs in Chota Nagpur. Dondchatra, a section of Pans in Chota Nagpur. Dong-ba, a rui or sept of Sherpa Bhotias of Nepal. Doroa-Gond or Naik, a sub tribe of Gonds in Chota Nagpur. Dongwar, a title of those who use canoes, generally Gond, Malla, or Oraon. Dorompa, a rui or sept of the Ruichhung sub-tribe of Dejong Lhoris or Bhotias of the south. Donwar, a kui or section of Babhans and a sept of Rajputs in Behar; a sept of the Rautar sub- tribe of Tharus. Dorowar, a sept of Rajputs in Behar. Dopatia, a sub-caste of Maya as in Eastern Bengal. Dorra, a sub-tribe of Bhuiyas in Western Bengal. JPslSabh, a degraded Aryan or refined Dravidian cultivating caste of Behar and Chota Nagpur, the members of which are largely employed as village watchmen and messengers, and bear a very evil reputation as habitual criminals. Dosadhs claim to be descended from the soldiers of the Pandava prince Bhima or Bhim Sen, and to be allied to the Cheros, who are supposed at one time to have ruled in Behar. Buchanan thought there was "some reason to suspect" that the Dosadhs might be the same tribe as the Chandals of Bengal, basing this conjecture on the statement that " the two castes follow nearly the same professions and bear the same rank, while the Chandals pretend to be descended of Rahu, and, I am told, worship that monster." In fact, however, the Chandals do not worship Rahu or trace their origin to him, and the Dosadhs revere a host of deified heroes, a form of worsbip entirely unknown to the Chandal. The young men of the caste are often rather good-looking, and many of them have a yellowish brown oomplexion with wide, expanded nostrils and the tip of the nose slightly turned up. Tbe complexion, however, and the shape of the nose show a range of variations which seems to indicate considerable mixture of blood. Professor Mantegazza, following Dalton, describes them as " Aryans of a very low type ;" and it seems about equally likely that the original stock may have been a branch of the Aryans degraded and coarsened by crossing with lower races, or a non-Aryan tribe refined in feature and raised in stature by intermixture with semi- Aryan castes. In Northern Behar there has probably been some infusion of Mongolian blood ; and in all parts of the country some allowance must be made for the faot that members of any Hindu caste except the Dom, Dhobi, aud Chamar may gaiu admission into the Dosadh community by giving a feast to the heads of the caste and eating pork and drinking liquor in token of their adoption of Doscidh usage. This privilege, no doubt, is not eagerly sought for, and most of those who join themselves to tbe Dosadhs after this fashion have probably got into trouble with their own people for keeping a Dosadh mistress or doing something disreputable. Still

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

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DOSADH. 253 the existence of a regular procedure for enrolling recruits from other castes shows that such cases are not unknown, and they must tend in some measure to modify the physical type of the caste- The caste is divided into eight sub-castes: — Kanauj *a> Magah i ya, Bhojpuria, Pailwar, Kamar or Kanwar, Internal structure. KuH Qr Dhkrh] Qr Dh^ Silhotia Or Sirotia, Bahalia. The members of nearly all these groups will eat cooked food together, but do not intermarry. The Dharhi, however, who pretend to be descended from a Goala, who accidentally killed a cow, and disclaim all connexion with the Dosadhs, are excluded from this privilege ; and the Kamar have only recently cleared themselves from the suspicion of eating beef and been admitted to social intercourse with the other sub-castes. Concerning the Bahalia there is some question whether they are Dosadhs at all, and it has been maintained that they are a distinct caste of gypsy like habits, and possibly akin to the Bediyas. Most Bahalias, however, insist on their title to be considered Dosadhs, and in Bengal at any rate the Bahalia and Dosadh eat and smoke together, and, though they do not intermarry, behave generally as if they were branches of the same stock. The sections (dih, mul, pdrich, or pangat), which are very numerous, are shown in Appendix I. In applying the rule of exogamy to a particular case the caste profess to exclude the sections of (1) the father, (2) the paternal grandmother, (3) the paternal great- grand- mothers, (4) the paternal great-great grandmothers, (5) the mother, (6) the maternal grandmother, (7) the maternal great-grandmothers, and to follow the double method of reckoning explained in the article on Bais. So that if the proposed bridegroom's maternal grandmother should happen to have belonged to the same section as one of the proposed bride's paternal great great-grandmothers, the marriage would be disallowed notwithstand ing that the parties themselves belong to different sections. It is obvious, however, that entire conformity with so complicated and far-reaching a scheme of prohibitions requires that genealogies shall be cares ully kept up and infringements of the rules jealously watched for by the headmen and panchayats, who in the first instance determine tbe question whether a particular couple may marry or not. There are indeed officials called panjidrs or genealogists, who are supposed to act as referees in such matters, but the caste as a whole is on a very low educational level, and it is very doubtful whether the strict letter of these rules is invariably complied with. It will be seen that nearly all the sections of the Magahiya and Pailwar sub-castes are titular, while most of the other sub-castes have local or territorial sections. The Bahalia have no sections, and regulate their marriages by the standard formula for reckoning pro hibited degrees calculated to seven generations in the descending line. This formula is also used by the other sub-castes as supple mentary to their system of exogamy. Dosadhs marry their daughters whenever they can afford to do so, but they do not hold the strict view of the spiritual necessity of infant-marriage which is current among the higher castes, and the fact of a girl's marriage

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

254 DOSADH. being deferred until she has passed the age of puberty is not deemed to put any special slur on the family to which she belongs. Some Dosadhs, however, hold that an adult bride is not entitled to the full marriage service (biydh), but must be married by the sagai form used at the remarriage of a widow. The marriage ceremony is a somewhat meagre copy of the ritual in vogue among middle class Hindus. Well-to-do Dosadhs employ Brahmans to officiate as priests ; but this practice is not general, and most members of the caste content themselves with getting a Brahman to fix an auspicious day for the event, and to mutter certain formulse (mantras) over the vermilion, the smearing of which on the bride's forehead constitutes the binding portion of tbe rite. An infant bride is kept in her parent's house until she reaches puberty, at the age of twelve or fourteen, when the gaund ceremony is performed, her nails are cut and stained red, and her husband takes her to his own house. Consum mation does not take place until after the gaund ceremony. Polygamy is permitted to a limited extent. A man may in no case have more thaD two wives, and he is not supposed to take a second wife at all unless the first is childless or suffers from au incurable disease. In the Santal Parganas, however, three wives are allowed, and the tendency is to follow the aboriginal usage of unlimited polygamy. A widow may marry again by the sagai form, and it is deemed right, on grounds of domestic convenience, for her to marry her late husband's younger brother if such a relative survives him. In the event of her marrying an outsider she takes no share in her late husband's property, and any children she may have had by him remain in the charge of his family. Divorce is permitted by all sub-castes except the Kamar, with the sanction of the panchayat, for adultery and persistent disobedience or ill-temper on the part of the wife. In the Santal Parganas and Palamau a sal leaf is torn in two or a stick broken to symbolise the separation of the couple. Divorced women may marry again by the sagai rite, but they must first give a feast to the members of the caste by way of atonement for their previous misconduct. MostDosddhs, if questioned about their religion, will persistently . aver that they are orthodox Hindus, and in proof of this allegation will refer to the fact that they employ Brahmans and worship the regular gods. In most districts, indeed, degraded Kanaujia or Maithil Brahmans serve the caste as priests in a somewhat irregular and intermittent fashion, being paid in cash for specifio acts of worship and for attendance at marriages. Many Dosadhs, again, belong to the Sri Narayani sect, and some follow the panth, or doctrine of Kabir, Tulsi Das, Gorakhnath, or Nanak. This enthusiasm for religion, however, like the Satnami movement among the Chamars of the Central Provinces, appears to be a comparatively recent development, induced in the main by the desire of social advancement and existing side by side with peculiar religious observances, survivals from an earlier animistic form of belief, traces of which may perhaps The odKShu discerned *n current Hindu mythology. Their tribal deity Rahu has been transformed

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

255 DOSADH. by the Brahmans into a Daitya or Titan, who is supposed to cause eclipses by swallowing the sun and moon. Though placed in the orthodox pantheon as the son of the Danava Viprachitti and Sinhika, Rahu has held his ground as the chief deity of the Dosadhs. To avert diseases, and in fulfilment of vows, sacrifices of animals and the fruits of the earth are offered to him, at which a Dosadh Bhakat or Chatiya usually presides. On special occasions a stranger form of worship is resorted to, parallels to which may be found in the rustic cult of the Roman villagers and the votaries of the Phœnician deities. A ladder, made with sides of green bamboos and rungs of sword blades, is raised in the midst of a pile of burning mango wood, through which the Bhakat walks barefooted and ascends the ladder without injury. Swine of all ages, a ram, wheaten flour, and rice milk (khir), are offered up: after which the worshippers partake of a feast and drink enormous quantities of ardent spirits. Another form of this worship has been described to me by Dosadhs of Darbhanga and North Bhagalpur. On the fourth, the ninth, or the day before the full-moon of the months Aghan, Magh, Phalgun, or Baisakh, the Dosadh who has bound himself by a vow to offer the fire sacrifice to Rahu must build within the day a thatched hut (gahbar) measuring five cubits by four and having the doorway facing east. Here the priest or Bhakat, himself a Dosadh, who is to officiate at the next day's ordeal must spend that night, sleeping on the kusa grass with which the floor is strewn. In front of the door of the hut is a bamboo platform about three feet from the ground, and beyond that again is dug a trench six cubits long, a span and a quarter wide, and of the same depth, running east and west. Fire-places are built to the north of the trench, at the point marked d in the plan below. On the next day, being the fifth, the tenth, or the full-moon day of the months mentioned above, the trench is filled with mango wood soaked in ghee, and two earthen vessels of boiling milk are placed close to the platform. The Bhakat bathes himself on the north side of the trench and puts on a new cloth dyed for the occasion with turmeric. He mutters a number of mystic formulae and worships Rahu on both sides of the trench. The fire is then kindled, and the Bhakat solemnly walks three timos round the trench, keeping his right hand always towards it. The end of the third round brings him to the east end of the trench, where he takes by the hand a Brahman retained for this purpose with a fee of two new wrappers (dhotis), and calls upon him to lead the way through the fire. The Brahman then walks along the trench from east to west, followed by the Bhakat. Both are supposed to tread with bare feet on the fire, but I imagine this is for the most part an optical illusion. By the time they start the actual flames have subsided, and the trench is so narrow that very little dexterity would enable a man to walk with his feet on either edge, so as not to touch the smouldering ashes at the bottom. On reaching the west end of the trench the Brahman stirs the milk with his hand to see that it has been properly boiled. Here his part in the ceremony comes to an end. By passing through the fire the Bhakat is believed

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

256 DOSADH. to have been inspired with the spirit of Rahu, who has become incar nated in him. Filled with the divine or demoniao afflatus, and also, it may be surmised, excited by drink and ganja, he mounts the bamboo platform, chants mystic hymns, and distributes to the crowd tulsi leaves, which heal diseases otherwise incurable, and flowers which have the virtue of causing barren women to conceive. The proceed ings end with a feast, and religious excitement soon passes into drunken revelry lasting long into the night. a. Bhakat's hut (gahbar). b. Platform (machdn), c. Trench full of fire. d. Fire-places. e. Vessels of milk. /. Point from which Brahman and Bhakat pass through the fire. Next in importance to the worship of R&hu is that of various deified heroes, in honour of whom huts are erected in different parts of the country. At Sherpur, near Patna, is the shrine of Gauraid or Goraiya, a Dosadh bandit chief, to which members of all castes resort ; the clean making offerings of meal, the unclean sacrificing a swine or several young pigs and pouring out libations of spirit on the ground. Throughout Behar, Salesh or Salais, said to have been the porter of Bhim Sen, but afterwards a formidable robber in the Morang or Nepal Terai, is invoked ; a pig being killed, and rice, ghi, sweatmeats, and spirits offered. In other districts Choar Mal is held in reverence, and a ram sacrificed. In Mirzapur the favoured deity is Bindhachal, the spirit of the Vindhya mountains. In Patna it is either Bandi, Moti Ram, Karii or Karwa Bir, Miran, the Panch Pir, Bhairav, Jagda Ma, Kali, Devi, Patanesvari, or Ketii, the descending node in Hindu astronomy, sometimes represented as the tail of the eclipse-dragon, and credited with causing lunar eclipses ; while Rahu, the ascending node, represented by the head of the dragon, produces a similar phenomenon in the sun. In none of these shrines are there any idols, and the officiating priests are always Dosadhs, who minister to the Sudra castes frequenting them. The offerings usually go to the priest or the head of the Dosadh household perform ing the worship ; but fowls sacrified to Miran and the Panch Pir are given to local Muhammadans. In Eastern Bengal, says Dr. Wise, S&kadvipi Brahmans act as the hereditary purohits of the Dosadhs, and fix a favourable day for weddings and the naming of children. To the great indignation of other tribes, these Brahmans assume the aristocratic title of Misra, which properly belongs to the Kanaujia order. The guru, called Gosain, Faqir, Vaishnava, or simply Sadhu, abstains from all manual labour and from intoxicating drugs. His text-book is the Gyan sagar, or Sea of Knowledge, believed to have been written by Vishnu himself in his form of Chatur-bhuja, or the four-armed. It inoulcates

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

257 DOSADH. the immaterial nature of god (Nirakara), which is regarded by the Brahmans as a most pernicious heresy. In the Santal Parganas Dhobis and barbers serve the Dosadhs as priests. Dosadhs usually burn, but occasionaUy bury, their dead and perform a srdddh, more or less of the orthodox pattern, on the eleventh day after death. The female Dosadh is unclean for six days after child-birth. On the seventh day she bathes, but is not permitted to touch the household utensils till the twelfth day, when a feast (bdrahi) is given and she becomes ceremonially clean. The social rank of Dosadhs is very low. No respectable caste will eat with them, while they themselves, Patk>nalstatu3a,ldocou' Asides eating pork, tortoises, fowls, and field-rats, and indulging freely in strong drink, will take food from any class of Hindus except the Dhobi and the specially unclean castes of Dom and Chamar. Some of them even keep pigs and cure pork. Their characteristic occupation is to serve as watchmen (chaukidars), and in this capacity they afford an excellent illustration of the Platonic doctrine otov tis dpa Bet,vb<; cjivXai;, toi'itov koI (f>wp Beivos,1 for they rank among the most persistent criminals known to the Indian police. We find them also as village mes sengers (gorait), grooms, elephant-drivers, grass and wood-cutters, pankha coolies, and porters. They bear a high character as carriers, and are popularly believed to repress their criminal instincts when formally entrusted with goods in that capacity. In South Bhagalpur the occupation of a groom is considered degrading, and a Dosadh who takes service in that capacity is expelled from the caste. This seems to be a purely local practice. In Western Bengal and Behar Dosadhs occasionally work as cooks and grooms for Europeans. Some of the chaukidars and goraits hold small allotments of land rent-free in lieu of the services rendered by them to the village,2 but generally speaking Dosadhs hold a low place in the agricultural system. Their improvidence and their dissolute habits hinder them from rising above the grade of occupancy raiyat, and a very large proportion of them are merely tenants-at-will or landless day labourers. During the Muhammadan rule in Bengal, says Dr. Wise, Dosadhs and Bahalias served in the army, and when Ali Vardi Khan was Nawab Nazim the native historian stigmatises their licentious conduct as a disgrace to the Government. From the days of William Hamilton it has been generally believed that in the early period of our military history " Bengali sepoys almost exclusively filled several of our battalions, and distinguished themselves as brave and active soldiers ;" but, as is pointed out by Mr. Shore, for years before the battle of Plassey the troops in Bengal were chiefly composed of recruits enlisted in Hindustan. According to Mr. Reade, most of the sepoys who served under Lord Clive were Dosadhs, who of course cannot be regarded as Bengalis in the ordinary sense of the word. It must be remembered, however, that a few generations ago the 1 Plato. Rep. i, 334. : Buchanan, ii, 235, says that in Bhagalpur tbe Dosadh receives from two to ten bighas of land rent-free, with part, or a quarter of a seer per maund, of the rent in grain, all these charges being paid by the landlord. R

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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003109315

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

258 DOSADH. DUDHNAIT word Bengal was used in a more extended and less accurate sense than is now the case, and it is quite likely that when Hamilton wrote of Bengali sepoys he merely meant to distinguish Natives of Hin dustan from the Madras sepoys (see article Tel i nga), who were largely employed in our early campaigns in Bengal. The following statement Bhows the number and distribution of Dosadhs in 1872 and 1881 :— Dosi, a title of Oswal Bani yas. Doside, a sub-group of the Hele Kaibarttas in Central Bengal. Dotiyil, a thar or section of Nepali Brahmans. Dowalbandhi, a section of Ghasis in Chota Nagpur. Drabiri, Draviri, a territorial division of the Pancha Dravira Brahmans who live in the south of the Yindhya range, a country of the Dravidian or Tamil lan guage. Duarbandha, a sub-caste of Sunris in Maldah. Duarseni, a sub-caste of G basis in Chota Nagpur. Dubaithia, a section of Sonars in Behar. Dube or Dobe, a title of Gaura, Saraswat, and Kanaujia Brah manB, and of Babhans in Behar ; a title of the Brahmans who officiate as priests for lower castes in Bengal. DubhiSr, Dobihar, a mul or section of the Kanaujia sub-caste of Sonars in Behar. Dub Sag, a grass, a totem istic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Dudhaila or Maghaya, a sub caste of Dhanuks in Behar. Dudhia, a section of Mauliks in Western Beugal. Dudhkatora, a mul or section of the Ajodhiabasi sub-caste of Son&rs in Behar. Dudh-Kaur, a sub-tribe of Kaurs in Chota Nagpur. Dudhli&, a section of Go&Ms in the North-Western Provinces. Dudhnait, a kui or section of Babhans in Behar. >ISTBICT. 3ardwan 3ankura Birbhum Vlidnapur iughli iowrah ... 74-Parganas ... Nadiya Ihulna sessore ilurshedabad ... Dinajpur iajshahye iangpur 3ogra ... 'abna Darjiling alpigori tuch Behar ... Dacca } 695 19 144 96 479 5,666 1,357 23 2,435 1,100 195 201 46 25 68 142 600 24 1,414 133 1 254 I 1,172 1,304 309 15 29 1,886 6,692 626 268 80 314 1,230 6 50 4 100 117 394 Distbict. 1872. 1881. Bakarganj Maimansinh Tipperah Chittagong Patna Gya Shahabad Tirhnt sDarbhanga lirhut ( jjojufferpu,. ... Saran Champaran Monttbyr Bhagalpur Purniah Maldah Santal Parganas Hazaribagh Lohardaga Singbhum Manbhum Tributary States 14 36 9 3 85,086 95,601 77,974 1 296,186 73,098 70,600 99,892 67,127 27,374 2,393 8,307 16,553 25,238 244 903 4,030 ""l59 8 100,631 108,284 90,845 f 189,051 I 179,768 79,600 82,73117 111,331 72,412 31,083 2,842 11,033 26,779 84,998 240 1,674 2,786

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

259 DUDHPUEIET. DUEANG. Dumrahar, a section of B£is Sonars in Behar. Dudhpuriet, a mul or section of the Naomulia or Majraut sub-caste of Goalas in Behar. Dumrait, a section of Bab hans in Behar. Dudhraj, a section of Kamis in Darjiling. Dumri, a mul or section of the Tinmulia Madhesia sub-caste of Halwais in Behar. Dudhwar or Dojwar, a sub caste of Dhanuks in Behar who are said never to castrate calves. Dumria, Dumurid, Dungridr, Dungri, a totemistic section or sept of Kurmis, Lohars, Mundas, and Mahilis in Chota Nagpur, the members of which will not eat the wild fig (dumur). Dud-Kharia, a sub-caste of Kharias in Chota Nagpur. Dudul, a kind of bird, a totem istic sept of Kharwars in Chota Nagpur. Dumriaba, a totemistic sept of Juangs in the Tributary States of Orissa, probably a variant of Dumria, and having reference to the wild fig. Dugar, a sect of Dasnami Sannyasis. Dugra, a variant for Dogla or Dogra, q.v. Dundoar, an owl, a totemistio sept of Chiks in Chota Nagpur. Dugriar, a section of Kurmis in Chota Nagpur and Orissa. Dundu, a kind of eel, a sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Dukhchaki, a thar or sept of Mangars in Darjiling. Dundwar, a section of Bab hans in Behar. D ula 1 1 a thar or section of Nepali Brahmans. Dungdung, a river-fish, a sept of Muudas and Kharias in Chota Nagpur. Dulia, a sub-caste of Bagdis in Bengal, who are fisher men, palki-bearers, and general labourers. Dung i a, a sub-tribe of Dhi mals in the Darjiling Terai. Dumala Goara, a sub-caste of Goalas in Orissa. Dungmali, a sept of Khambus in Darjiling. Duman, a sub-caste of Sutra dhais in Noakhali. Duntakarieh, a mul of the Bharadwaj a section of Maithil Brahmans in Behar. Durmania, a section of Goalas in the North- Western Provinces and Behar. Dunya, a sept of the Tung jainya sub-tribe of Chakmas in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong. Dumar- a section of Goalas in Behar. Dumariar, a pur or section of Sakadwipi Brahmans in Behar. Dura, a fruit, a totemistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Dumdolia, a section of Goalas in the North- Western Provinces and Behar. Dura I, a section of Kamis in Darjiling. Dumjan, a section of Murmis in Darjiling. Durang, a section of Kharias in Chota Nagpur. k 2

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

DUEBICHA. 260 DWIJATI. Durbich&, a thar or sept of Sunuwars in Darjiling. Dusre, a group of the Sri bastab sub-caste of Kayasths in Behar. Durgbansi, a sept of Raj puts in Behar. Dut, a title of Bangaja Kay- asths. Durgu, a section of the Kochh- Mandai in Dacca. Dwadas, a sub-caste of Telis in Bengal. Durihar, a string-maker in Hazaribagh. Some of them bear the title of Gosain. Dwija, a synonym for Brah man. Durihar, a religious group of Jugis. Dwijati, Dijdti, " twice-born," a title of Brahmans, Kshatriyas, and Vaisyas in the scheme of castes attributed to the mythical Manu. In the Census papers the term seems to have been used pedantically by Brahmans or Rajputs who wished to glorify Durjea, see Darjea. Duryodhan, a title of Sunris in Bengal. Dusad, a section of Goalas in the North- Western Provinces and Behar. themselves.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

ECHAGHATD. 261 EEGO. E Ekah re-Tome, a mul of the Bharadwaj section of Maithil Brahmans in Behar. Echaghatu, a sept of Hos in Singbhum. Eh-Ar, a sept of the Chandra bansi Rajputs in Behar. Ekka, tortoise, a totemistio sept of Oraons in Chota Nagpur. Ekadas, a sub-caste of Telis in Bengal and Orissa ; a section of the Rauniyar sub-caste of Baniyas in Behar. Ekpatia, a sub-caste of Maya ras in Eastern Bengal. Ekadasi, a functional group of Jugis in Bengal. Eksaria, a kui or section of Babhans in Behar. Ekauna, a section of the Biya hut and Kharidaha Kalwars aud of Awadhia Hajams in Behar. E kside, a sub-group of the Hele Kaibarttas in Central Bengal. Ekahre-Ora, a mul of the Bharadwaj section of Maithil Brahmans in Behar. Emboro, a sept of Hos in Singbhum. Ekahre-Ruchaul, a mul of the Bharadwaj section of Maithil Brahmans in Behar. Erenga-Kharia, a sub-caste of Kharias in Chota Nagpur. Ergat, a kind of mouse, sup posed to live in plum bushes, a totemistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Ekahre-Kanhauli, a mul of the Bharadwaj section of Maithil Brahmans in Behar. Ekahre-Sagram, a mul of the Bharadwaj section of Maithil Brahmans in Behar. Ergo, rat, a totemistic sept of Oraons in Chota Nagpur.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

262 FEEINGI FADTJNG. F Fadung, a sept of Tipperahs in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong. ka fakiran, who dress in white. There are other distinctions ; and at the Muharram a number of the lower classes assume the character and garb of fakirs, of different ridiculous personations, for the amusement of the popu lace and the collection of contri butions." Fakir, a title of the Harita section of Utkal Brahmans in Orissa. Fakir, an Arabic word, pro perly denoting a Mahomedan religious mendicant, but vaguely used to denote beggars of all kinds. Of fakirs in the strict sense of the word, the following classes are enumerated by Wilson : " 1. The Kadaria or Banawa, who profess to be the spiritual descendants of Saiad Abdul-Kadir Faluda-wala, a maker of sher bets and syrups. In Behar the Faluda-wala often opens a tea shop during the cold weather. Faniga, grasshopper, a totem istic sept of Parhaiyas in Chota Nagpur. Jilani, of Bagdad. 2. TheChish- tid, followers of Banda-nawaz, whose shrine is at Kalbarga ; they are usually Shias. 3. Shu- tarid, descendants of Abdul-shu- tar-i-nak. 4. Tabkdtia, or Ma- daria, followers of Shah Madar ; many of these are jugglers, and bear or monkey-leaders. 5. Ma- lang, descended from Jaman J ati, one of Shah Madar's disciples. 6. Rafdi, or Gurz-mar, descended from Saiad Ahmed Kabir Rafdi, who appear to beat, cut, and wound themselves without suffer- ing inconvenience, and who, in the belief of the faithful, can cut off their own heads and put them on again. 7. Jaldlid, fol- lowers of Saiad Jalal-ud-din Bokhdri. 8. Sohdgia, from Musa Sohdg, who dress like women, wear female ornaments, play upon musical instruments, and sing and dance. 9. Naksh-bandia, followers of Baha-ud-din, of Nakshband, distinguished by begging at night and carrying a lighted lamp. 10. Bawd pidri Farakhabadi, a sub-caste of Gareris in Behar. Fariansa, a sept of the Tungjainya sub-tribe of Chak mas in the Hill Tracts of Chitta gong. Farrash, Fardsh, a servant whose business it is to spread and sweep mats, carpets, etc. Fatehpuri, a section of Sonars in Behar. Fatehsing, a sub-caste of Telis in Murshedabad. Faujdar, a title conferred by the local Rajas of Western Ben gal on certain families who were engaged in police duties. The word also denotes the proselytiz ing officials of the Vaishava sects. Fenga, a seotion of Mais in Bankura. Feringi, a title of the Harita section of Utkal Brahmans in Orissa.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

GABAG. 263 GAHAEBAEI. G Gabag, a section of Murmis in Darjiling. Gadheyid, a section of the Biyahut and Kharidaha Kalwars in Behar. G&cha, a thar or sept of Man gars in Darjiling. Gadhojiai a section of Goalas in the North- Western Provinces and Behar. Gachai, a sept of Parhaiyas in Chota Nagpur. Gadhuwal, a section of the Jat sub-caste of Goalas in Behar whose titles are Chaudhri, Singh, and Marar. Gachhua or Ghana, a sub-caste of Telis in Bengal from Gachhu, a designation of persons who own gdchh or oil mills and sugarcane mills. Gadibharat, a section of Bag dis in Western Bengal. Gdchkdtd, a wood-cutter, a title of Seulis who cut down date-trees for their juice. Gadraha, a pur or section of Sdkadwipi Brahmans in Behar. Gadahia, a sub-caste of Doms in Behar who are breeders of donkeys ; a section of the Ba nodhia and Jaiswar Kalwars in Behar. Gaegoal, a sept of Goalas in Chota Nagpur, who are forbid den to eat pdkar fruit. Gaek, a sept of Gonds in Chota Nagpur. Gadahpurna, a pur or section of Sdkadwipi Brahmans in Behar. Gager, a section of the Satmu lia Maghaya sub-caste of Kandus in Behar. Gadaili, Gadal, a section of Kamis ; a thar or sept of Mangars in Darjiling. Gaghraba, paddy, a totemis tic sept of Juangs in the Tribu tary States of Orissa. Gadaiya, a section of Saraogis in Behar. Gad-ariyd, a synonym for Gareri. Gagria, a sept of Hos in Singbhum. Gadasari, a sub-caste of Kur mis in Orissa. Gagrish, a section of Sunris in the Santal Parganas. Gaddi, a class of Mahomedan herdsmen in Behar. Gahala, a section of Goalas in the North- Western Provinces and Behar. Gaddi, Ghcsi, or Ghosin, a sub-caste of Goalas in Behar. Gahalaot, a sept of the Suryabans sub-tribe of Rajputs in Behar. Gadharia, a section of Goalas in the North- Western Provinces and Behar. Gadhaya, a sub-caste of Dhobis in Behar who keep donkeys ; a title of Beldars. Gaharbari, a sept of the Rautar sub-tribe of Tharus in Behar.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

264 GANDA. GAHAEWAE. ancestors were given villages by Rdja Adisura when they were brought from Kanauj to perform ceremonies at his request. Gaharwar, a sept of Suraj bansi Rajputs and of the Rautar sub-tribe of Tharus in Behar. Gahatraj, a section of Kamis in Dar j ibn g. Gaintwar, a sept of Lohars in Chota Nagpur Gari laut, a sept of the Chan drabansi division of Rajputs in Behar. Gairaha Pipli, a thar or sec tion of Nepali Brahmans. Gaithaha, a section of Bhoj puria Halwais in Behar. Gah-oh, a rui or sept of Dejong Lhoris, whose ancestor had emi grated from Bhotan and the members of which now work as blacksmiths. Gaithaula, a thar or section of Nepdli Brahmans. Gajamer, a thar or sept of Mangars in Darjiling. dj&httt a small caste of Hindu traders found in Hazaribagh. Gajbania, a section of Pans in Chota Nagpur. Gahun&gaona, a mul or sec tion of the Chhamulia Madhesia sub-caste of Halwais in Behar. Gajkesar, a sept of Rajputs in Behar. Gai, cow, a totemistic sept of Kharwars in Chota Nagpur. Gajmer, a section of Kamis in Dar j ding. Gaibing, a sept of Tipperahs in the Hill Tracts of Chitta gong. Gajniyal, a thar or section of Nepali Brahmans. Gaiduha, a sub-caste of Pasis in Behar. Galan, a section of Murmis in Darjiling. Gaighatia, a section of Bhats in Behar. Gala-Tanti, a sub-caste of Tdntis in Orissa. Gaigwar, a sept of Rajputs in Gamaiya, Pargana Kharakpur, a dih or local section of the Maghaiyd sub-caste of Koiris in Bhagalpur. Behar. Gaim, a section of Maghaiyd Kumhars in Behar. Gambharia, a kui or section of Babhans in Behar. Gciim, a group of Maghaiyd Telis in Behar. Gamel, a section of the Biyd hut and Kharidaha Kalwars in Behar. Gain, a sept of Rajputs and a pangat or section of Bansphor Doms and of Sunris in Behar ; a class of Mahomedan singers; a low Nepali caste of musicians. Gan, a title of Dakshin-Rdrhi and Bangaja Kayasths in Bengal. Gana, a hypergamous divi sion of Tiyars in Behar. Gain or Gramin, literally 'be longing to a village,' a term signi fying a title of Rarhi and Bdren dra Brahmans in Bengal, whose Ganda, a sub-oaste of Pans in Chota Nagpur.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

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GANDA. 265 GANDHABANIK. Gandark, a pur or section of Sakadwipi Brahmans in Behar. Ganda, Gandak, a title of Dakshin-Rarhi and Bangaja Kayasths in Bengal. Gandha, flying bug, a totemis tic sept of Chiks in Chota Nagpur. Gandar, Ganda, a title of Godlas in Behar. ■©•(Jltbhabatttk, Gandhabanid, Putuli, the spice-selling, druggist, m . . and grocer caste of Bengal Proper. They Traditions of origin. i • j. *i_ i_ L. £ All A TT- claim to be a branch of the Aryan Vaisyas, and trace their descent from Chandra Bhava, commonly called Chand Saudagar, " an accomplished man, the son of Kotis-Vara, the lord of crores," and Saha Raja of Ujjain, mentioned in the Padma Purana. Although this ancient lineage is assumed, the caste no longer wear the Brahmanical thread ; their marriage ritual does not include Kusandikd ; and, instead of mourning like the Agarwala Baniyas for thirteen days, they mourn, like pure Sudras, for thirty. A modern compiler of caste genealogies gives them a Baidya father and a Rajput mother, a pratilomaj pedigree wholly fatal to their claim to be Vaisyas. Another story of their origin is current. Kubja, the hunch-backed slave girl of Raja Kansa, was carrying home spices and sandal wood when Krishna first met her. The son born of their subsequent liaison was naturally the first spice-seller and the father of all Gandhabaniks. A third tradition tells how Siva, being in need of spices for his marriage with Durga, created the first of the Desa Gandhabanik from his forehead, the Sankha from his arm-pit, the Aut from his navel, and the Chhatris from his foot, and sent them out to the four quarters of the globe to fetoh what he required. The Chhatris, who went to the east, got back first. All four were then appointed to sell spices to men. The Gandhabaniks are divided into four sub-castes — Aut-Asram, Chhatris-A'sram, Desa-Asram, Sankha- Internal structure. ., T t\ __!•■__. t\ -m- Asram. In Dacca, according to Dr. Wise, the three last intermarry and eat together, but this appears not to be the case in Central Bengal. The sections shown in Appendix I are Brahmanical, with the single exception of the one called Ras- rishi, which I am unable to trace or account for. The prohibited degrees are the same as among the Kayasths. Gandhabaniks marry their daughters as infants, and receive a . bride-price (pan) varying according to the social status of the two families concerned. Thus the Gandhabaniks of Bikrampur in Dacca receive a higher price for their daughters and pay a lower price for their wives than members of families whose reputation stands less high for purity of lineage and propriety of ceremonial observances. The marriage ceremony is of the orthodox type. In Dacca city, says Dr. Wise, the Gandhabanik caste has six powerful dais, or unions; the Dalpatis, or headmen, being persons of great respectability. In one of the dais a curious marriage custom, said to have been observed by their forefathers when they first entered Bengal, is still preserved. The bridegroom climbs a champa-tree (Michelia champaca) and sits there while the bride is

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

266 GANDHABANIK. carried round on a stool seven times. Should no tree be available, a champa log, placed beneath a canopy or a platform made of champa wood planks, is substituted and ornamented with gilt flowers resem bling the real champa blossoms. The other dais, who follow the usual Sudra ritual, associate with this one in private, but not in public. In all cases the bridal dress is made of yellow silk (cheli) with a red striped border, and the bride wears hers for ten days after marriage. Polygamy is permitted to the extent that a man may take a second wife if he has no children by the first. Widows are not allowed to marry again, nor is divorce recognised. A woman convicted of unchastity is simply turned out of the caste and ceases to be a member of respectable Hindu society. Her husband burns her in effigy, and performs for her a mimic srdddh as if she were actually dead. In matters of religion the Gandhabaniks conform entirely to . . the orthodox forms of Hinduism prevalent in Bengal Proper. The large majority of them are Vaishnavas, a few Saktas, and still fewer Saivas. Their patron goddess is Gandheswari, ' our lady of perfume,' a form of Durga, in whose honour they hold a special service on the full moon of Baisakh (April-May), arranging in a pyramidal form their weights, scales, drugs, and account-books, and placing in front a goblet daubed over with red lead. Flowers, fruit, rice, sweetmeats, and perfumery, are offered, and the caste Brahman repeats several invocations soliciting the favour of the goddess during the ensuing year. These Brahmans, it may be mentioned, are treated on terms of equality by other members of the sacred order, except those who decline to officiate as priests for even the most respectable Sudras. According to Dr. Wise, the Gandhabanik is a spice-seller, or „ . , , "spicier," as well as a druggist. He will Social status. r -,, . , ,1 ,__. ; • -, not sell rice, vegetables, salt, oil, or spirits, but he keeps almost every other grocery in stock. He is often called by the Hindi term Pansari, which signifies a dealer in groceries, spices, and herbs. The comparatively high position of Gandhabaniks among Sudra castes is owing to the circumstance that the sandal- wood and spices, essential for Hindu religious rites, can only be procured at their shops. It may be surmised, however, that their admission into the ranks of the Nava-Sakha is of comparatively recent date, as their name does not appear in the passage of Parasara usually quoted as the standard authority for the composition of that group. The Gandhabanik, says Dr. Wise, obtains his drugs and spices direct from Calcutta, or from the place where Occupation. ,, , , ', , . . f . . . . " they are produced, and buys quinine, iodide of potassium, and sarsaparilla from English druggists. He also sells tin, lead, pewter, copper, and iron, and retails, if licensed, saltpetre, sulphur, and gunpowder, as well as chemicals used by pyrotechnists, and dispenses medicines ordered by Kabirajs. Although Gandha baniks possess no pharmacopœia, and are ignorant of chemistry, they display wonderful sharpness in distinguishing salts and minerals. Every Gandhabanik has the reputation of being a doctor,

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

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267 GANDUEA. GANDHABANIK. and. like the druggists of Europe, he is often consulted and pre scribes for trifling ailments. Drugs at the present day are sold by apothecary's weight, other articles by the bazar weight of eighty sicca rupees to a ser. Kabirajs, however, still use the old Hindu weights — pala, rail, mdshd, and Jau. Boys able to read and write Bengali are apprenticed to a Gandhabanik, who make them familiar with the appearance, names, and prices of drugs, of which, it is said, a genuine Pansari's shop may contain three hundred and sixty kinds. Most of these go to form the different kinds of pat, or alterative medicine, greatly relied on in Hindu therapeutics. The Gandha banik is expected to know the proper ingredients in each pat, as well as the proper quantity of each. In the preparation of pills goat's milk, or lime-juice and water, are used, but by some druggists the juice of the Ghi-Kuwar (Aloe perfoliata) is preferred. The Gandhabanik retails charas, bhang, opium, and ganja, but some have scruples about selling the last, and employ a Mahom edan servant to do so. Many shops for the sale of ganja, however, are leased by members of this caste, who pay a Sunri, or a Mahomedan, to manage them. The following statement shows the number and distribution of Gandhabaniks in Bengal in 1872 and 1881 : — Gandhabaniyd, a synonym for Gandhabanik. Gandhauria, a sept of Raj puts in Behar. ■Satlbhat, a small caste said by some to be connected with Mallas, who sing and play on musical instruments. Gandhi, a sept of Chiks in Chota Nagpur. Gandhi, Gandhari, a perfumer or dealer in scent, an occupation followed by both Hindus and Mahomedans. Gandharma, a thar or sept of Mangars in Darjiling. (iattu hatp, Gandharb, the caste which supplies Hindu dancing-girls, singers, and pros titutes. Mr. Nesfield classes them with the Kanchan. Gandura, a big bird, a to temistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. District. 1872. 1881. Distbict. 1872. 1881. Bardwan Bankura Birbhum Midnapur Hughli Howrah ... 24-Parganas ... Nadiya Khulna Jessore Murshedabad ... Dinajpur Rajshahye Rangpur ... Bogra Pabna Darjiling Jalpigon Kuch Behar ... 82,106 6,626 10,165 10,140 ] 6,985 6,053 8,010 "i','511 11,016 1,331 898 758 619 2,315 17 899 24,160 18,730 13,587 10,590 f 7,897 ( 3,642 3,400 10,931 2,199 7,211 9,871 1,797 1,421 1,178 902 2,831 72 299 161 Dacca Faridpur Bakarganj Maimansinh Chittagong Noakhali Tipperah Hill Tracts Maldah Santal Parganas ... Cuttack Puri Balasore Tributary States ... Hazaribagh Lohardaga. Singbhum Manbhum 6,634 3,038 3,290 2,238 1,364 1,316 4,176 ""649 4,365 6,468 2,865 6,458 8,162 1,676 4,669 1 2,817 1,434 6,406 8,690 4,822 6,404 " "606 942 3,905 5,036 695 7,140 1,126 9,228

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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003109315

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

268 GANESH. GANGOTÆ. Ganesh, a subdivision of the Jugi caste, cniefly employed in agriculture, a title of potters in Nepal. Gangajali, a sub-caste of Gareris in Behar. Gangajhi, a section of Gan gotas in Behar. Ganes i a, a section of Ayodhia basi Sondrs in Behar. Gangapali, a mul or section of the Chhamulia Madhesia sub caste of Halwais in Behar. Ganesrishi, a section of May ards in Bengal. Gangaputra, " son of the Ganges," a sub-caste of Doms who prepare the funeral pile for cremation ; also a class of Brah mans who attend pilgrims at bathing ghats on the Ganges; a title of Patnis. Ganet, a section of Sondrs in Behar. Ganga, a sept of Gonds in Chota Nagpur. Gangabandhu, a kind of reli gious mendicant, occasionally met with in Behar and the North western Provinces. Ganga r, a section of Mag haya Kandus in Behar. Gangaulih, a mul or section of the Tinmulia Madhesia sub caste of Halwais in Behar. Gangabasi, ' dwellers on the Ganges,' a title of those Doms who take clothes and ornaments from dead bodies and usually live close to the funeral places. They are also called Murda farash. Gangaure, a mul of the Sandil section of Maithil Brahmans in Behar. Gangautd, a synonym for Gangota. Gangabisaiyi, a sub-caste of Telis in Bengal. Gangdahia, a section of the Biyahut and Kharidaha Kalwars in Behar. Gangagrami, a gain of the Kdsyapa gotra of Bdrendra Brah mans in Bengal. Gangoli, a title of Brahmans in Bengal. (UatTOOta, Gangautd, a cultivating, landholding, and labouring caste of Behar. Many of them live on the strSre banks °f the Ganges- and tili8 1S said to be the origin of the name. Their customs give no clue to their descent, unless we may infer non-Aryan affinities from the fact that in some parts of the country they are known to eat pork and field-rats. Gangotas are divided into two sub-castes — Jethkar and Maghaya — and have two sections — Gangajhi and Jahnavi. A man may not marry a woman of his own seotion, nor a woman who comes within the formula chachera, mamera, etc., calculated to four generations in the descending line. He may not marry two sisters at the same time, but may marry his deceased wife's younger sister. Gangotas profess to marry their daughters as infants, but adult- marriage is by no means unknown among the poorer classes The ceremony is a meagre version of the standard ritual, sindurddn being deemed the essential and binding portion. Polygamy is permitted in the sense that a man may take a second wife with the consent of his first wife if

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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Calcutta

269 GANGOTA. GANJHU BAISWAE. the latter is barren or suffers from an incurable disease. A widow may marry again, but she is expected to marry her deceased husband's younger brother if there is one. Divorce is not recognised. The religion of the caste presents no features of special interest. The small-pox goddess, Jagadambd, is worshipped twice or three times a month with offerings of husked rice and incense. At weddings and on occasions of sickness Bhagavati is propitiated with kids, rice, ghee, tulsi leaves, and vermilion. The eatable portions of the sacrifice are consumed by the members of the household. Brahmans who serve the Gangotas are said to incur no degradation by doing so. Gangotas rank with Kurmis and Koiris, and Brahmans will take water from their hands. In Bhagalpur they status and oocu- p0rk> bu(. af. the samQ g^ profeg3 to abstain from fermented and spirituous liquors. In Monghyr, on the other hand, their practice in the matter of diet is reported to be the same as that of respectable Hindus of similar social position. Agriculture is their sole occupation. A few have risen to be small zamindars, but the bulk of the caste are occu pancy or non-occupancy raiyats and landless day-labourers paid in cash or kind. The following statement shows the number and distribution of Gangotas in 1872 and 1881 :— Gangotri, a sub-caste of Brahmans in Behar. Gangye-pa, a hill, a rui or Lhoris, the m dwelling behind or sept of Dejong members of which Gangthaiya, a mul or section of the Naomulia or Majraut sub caste of Goalas in Behar. form the lowest class of Bhotias. Ganhwaria, a sept of Rajputs in Behar. Gangtiait, a kui or section of Babhans in Behar. Ganjhu, Gaunjhu or Gonjhu, a sub-caste of Sunris in Behar; a title of Binjhias, Gonds, Khanddits Kharwars, Musahars, Rajwars, Rautias, and Parhaiyas in Chota Nagpur. Ganguli, a gain of the Sabarna gotra of Rarhi Brahmans in Bengal. Gangulwar-Sakuri, a mul of the Sandil section of Maithil Brahmans in Behar. Gangulwar-Dumra, a mul of the Sandil section of Maithil Brahmans in Behar. Ganjhu Baiswar, members of the Kharwar caste who are wor shippers of Vishnu. Distbict. 1872. 1881. District. 1872. 1881. Kuch Behar ... Gya Shahabad Tirhut Saran Champaran ... Monghyr 46 272 5 74 66 8,757 1 "" 5 8,118 Bhagalpur Purneah Maldah Santal Parganas ... Hazaribagh Lohardaga Tributary States ... 29,910 36,762 4 49,226 12,702 440 21 369 338 20

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

270 GANEAE. GANJWAE. G&nr, fort-builder, a sub-sept of the Murmu sept of San tals. Ganjwar, a sub-caste of Sun ris in Behar who deal in liquor. (Hatttat a boating, fishing and trading caste of Eastern Bengal, identified by M. Vivien de St. Martin with the Gangaridæ of Pliny and Ptolemy. They claim to be descended from Madhesia Kandus, whose ancestors were brought to Dacca five generations ago by the Muhammadan Government from Surya-garhi in Bhagal pur to act as rowers on board the imperial dispatch boats. The caste is most numerous in Dacca, but they are also met with in Silhet, Tipperah, and Maimansinh, working as cultivators. Bucha nan mentions that the Ganrar of Rangpur originally came from Dacca, two hundred families being in his time domiciled along the banks of the Brahmaputra. In former times the Ganrar had the reputation of being the bravest of all boatmen, and the river dakdits never dared to attack boats manned by them. Now-a-days they are great traders, carrying in their large cargo-boats, called Palwdr, rice, cotton, and Hnseed to Calcutta, Bhagwangolah, and other centres of trade. They generally do business on their own account, and being honest and straightforward, obtain advances of money on favourable terms from the bankers. Ganrars use the three-pronged harpoon (tenta) with great dexter ity to kill alligators and Gangetic porpoises, a float being attached to the weapon with a rope. Porpoise oil is in great repute for burning, and as an embrocation for rheumatism. It usually sells for three to five rupees a man. Turtles are frequently harpooned for food, and turtle eggs are deemed a great delicacy. Ganrars work at almost any trade, but in Dacca they will not take to cultivating the soil. The women are principally employed in parching grain and selling it in bazars. They all belong to one gotra, the Aliman, and the purohit is a Patit Brdhman. By religion the caste is mainly Vaishnava, but deities unknown to the Brahmanical Pantheon are also worshipped. Like most of the low castes, the Ganrdr set afloat the Berd in honour of Khwdjah Khizr, and pay special adoration to Sat Nardyana. On the last day of Srdvan they sacrifice a turtle to Manasd Devi, the goddess of snakes, and make offerings in the month of Paus to Bura-Buri. The Ganrdrs of Dacca, through Brahmanical influence, have relinquished the worship of Khala-Kumari, who is regarded by the Ganrars of Rangpur as the Naiad of the river. This worship, probably like that of Bura-Buri, a survival of an earlier animistic faith, is only found in outlying districts, where Hinduism has imperfectly established its sway. Ganrars rarely eat flesh, but they freely indulge in spirits, and often in ganja. At the present day they marry their daughters as infants, and, unlike the Kandus, from whom they profess to be descended, forbid widows to marry again. Divorce is not recognised.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

GANEOL. 271 GAEEEI Ganrol, a section of the Sat mulia Maghayd sub-caste of Kandus in Behar. Garai, a section of Binjhias in Chota Nagpur. Garai or Gorai, atitleof Kalus or Telis in Western Bengal, gen erally adopted by wealthy Kulin members of the caste. Ganthen, a section of Murmis in Darjiliug. Ganicdr (abbreviation of gdon icar), a villager, as opposed to an inhabitant of a town : hence, an illiterate and stupid person. Garain, a section of Kurmis and Sunris in Behar. Gaontia, headman of a gaon or village; a title of Bhuiya feu datories in Gangpur and Bonai. Garai, a low sub-caste of Chandals who prepare chird or parched rice. Gaprai, a section of the Am ashta Kayasths in Behar. Garaur, a sept of Goalas in Chota Nagpur. Gara, a section of Sunris in Behar. Garbaria, a section of Lohars in Behar. Garabing, a big river-snake, a totemistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Gar beta, a sub-caste of Kai barttas in Behar. Garaet, a section of the Jathot division of the Parbatti-Kurin sub-caste of Gonrhis in Behar. Garbhait, Gorwdit, or Sdghdr, a sub-caste of Kewats in Behar. Gare, a sub-caste of Sunris in Garahia, a section of Sonars in Behar. Behar. ■Sar£tt, Gadariya, Bhenrihar, the shepherd, goatherd, and . . blanket-weaver caste of Behar. Gareris appear to have no traditions, and cannot give any account of their origin beyond the vague statement that they came " from the west.' It is possible that they may be an offshoot from the Goalas, differentiated by keeping sheep and taking to the com paratively degraded occupation of weaving, but I can offer no evidence in support of this conjecture, except the rather remarkable fact that Gareris will take both boiled rice (kachi) and sweetmeats, etc. (pakkt) , from members of the Goala caste. The Gareris of Behar are divided into four sub-castes — Dhengar, , L Farakhabadi, Gangajali, and Nik har— of Internal structure. v , , -p., ," ,, wbom tbe Dhengar bave the exogamous sections shown in the Appendix. The other sub-castes appear to regulate their marriages by the standard formula mamerd, chacherd, etc. calculated to six generations in the descending line. The practice of infant-marriage is firmly established among the . Gareris. Tdak, consisting of a loin-cloth (dhoti), some chupattis, and two or three rupees,

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

272 GAEEEI is paid to the bridegroom on an auspicious day by the parents of the bride. The marriage ceremony is of the standard type. Polygamy is permitted to the extent that a man may marry a second wife if his first wife is barren. A widow may marry again by the sagai form. It is considered right for her to marry her late husband's younger brother if there is one, but she is not positively obliged to do so. Some say that divorce is not recog nised. If a woman has an intrigue with a man of another caste, she is excommunicated and turned adrift, but indiscretions within the brotherhood admit of being atoned for by various modes of penalty awarded by the headman (manjan) and panchdyat, and chiefly by a feast to the members of the caste. Others hold that divorce may be had on the oath of the husband, and that a divorced woman may marry again by sagai. In respect of religious and ceremonial observances the Gareris generally conform to the usages of the lglon" Vaishnava sect, and comparatively few Saivas are found among them. Many are followers of Darya Dds, a Gareri, who founded a corrupt Vaishnava sect distinguished by abstinence from fish, flesh, and spirits. His disciples do not worship him as a deity, but simply regard him as their guru or spiritual guide. The purohits of the caste are Kanaujia, or sometimes Jyoshi Brahmans ; while Bairdgi or Dasnami ascetics serve them as gurus. Their household worship, in which priests take no part, is addressed to Bandi, Goraiya, Dharam Raj, Narsingh, the Panch Pir, and Kali, to whom the males of the family offer cakes, rice boiled in milk, sweetmeats, and plantains on the 30th Srawan. The offer ings are eaten afterwards by the members of the family and the deori relations who can claim to participate in domestic worship. When a flock of sheep is sold, the Gareri keeps back a ram ; and having assembled his brethren, sacrifices it to Ban j ari, after which its flesh is eaten by those who follow the Saiva ritual. The large majority of the caste find employment as shepherds, goatherds, or blanket-weavers, and compara- ccupa ion. tively few have taken to cultivation. Mr. Hoey1 gives the following account of the manner in which their characteristic occupation is carried on in the neighbourhood of Lucknow : — " One Gareri will attend a flock of 100 sheep and goats, and is at no expense for fodder. He drives them out to graze on wild pasture. Goats and sheep drop young twice a year, and as many as four kids or lambs at a birth are not unusual. In a flock of one hundred sheep and goats let there be 60 sheep. It is the custom to cut the wool three times in the year, — after the cold weather, the 1 Monograph on Trade and Manufactures in Northern India, by W. Hoey, Bencal Civil Service, p. 106. This valuable work is based on notes collected by Mr. Hoey while engaged in revising the assessments of license-tax in Lucknow city during 1879 and 1880 — a fact which accounts for the minute attention paid to the profits of particular trades.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

273 GAEEEI hot weather, ancl the rains. The idiom for shearing is pairi karna. The average is a quarter of a seer of wool at each pairi. Thus 60 sheep will yield 1 maund 5 seers of wool in a year. If the wool is sold, it will fetoh about one rupee per 3 seers. But Gareris frequently weave their wool into small blankets (kamli) of li seers each, which sell for one rupee each. But in this case they are at a cost of \ anna per kamli paid to a behna for carding the wool. Thus from 60 sheep the Gareri may have either 45 seers of wool, value Rs. 15, or 30 kamlis, to sell at Rs. 30. In the latter case he pays the behna Re. 1-6-6 and clears Rs. 28-9-6. The latter method, of disposing of the wool is chosen by Gareris who have grown sons and daughters, or wives without children, who weave. " The lowest estimate which any Gareri has given me of the lambs dropped by 60 sheep in one year is 90. These sell as lambs for 8 annas each, as one-year olds for from Re. 1 to Re. 1-8, and as two-year olds for Rs. 2. This is an average computation. " Gareris milk ewes, but draw never more than _\ seer per diem, for they have regard to the value of the lambs. Sheep's milk is sold to Halwais at 1 anna per seer to make khod. There will always be 12 sheep in 60 in milk, and they thus bring 3 annas per diem by milk. " Sheep's manure is sold to Dhobis for washing, and Muraos purchase it as a high-class manure for dqfasli fields. It sells at Re. 1 per 5 maunds. The pen where 60 sheep are kept at night will, when swept in the morning, give 10 seers. " Now take the 40 goats in the mixed flock of 100 sheep and goats. The estimate of kids from these is set at 90 in the year, and their milk 12 seers per diem. Goat's milk sells at 1 anna per seer. Kids are sold in the first year at from 12 annas to Re. 1 each, and in the second year from Rs. 2 to Rs. 3 (if females) and Rs. 4 (if males). Goats when in milk are given bhusd, but 4 annas at most per diem is spent on 40. "Thus a flock of 100 sheep and goats in the proportion taken above is worth Rs. 405 per annum at the lowest computation — the sheep Rs. 157-8, the goats Rs. 247-8— after paying all expenses." According to Dr. Wise, the Gareri is reckoned higher in rank „ . , than the Ahir, and equal to the Majroti and Social status. -17- • 1 s. r\ t *A i *l *l Krishnaut Goalas, with whom, as has been mentioned above, Gareris will eat both kachi and pakki food and will smoke in the same hookah. It is not clear, however, that this intercourse is reciprocal, and that the Goalas will accept food on the same terms from a Gareri, while the fact that Gareris make wethers themselves must necessarily involve some measure of social degradation. In Behar and Bengal this caste is generally reckoned a clean one, from whose members a Brahman can take water ; but in Puraniya, says Buchanan, it is impure. The Gareri is often found working as a domestic servant, refusing, however, to carry bathing-water for his master or to rinse his body clothes after bathing. He cannot, without incurring expulsion, serve as a shepherd with any but Gareri masters. He may, however, take household service with any class, even with Christians. s

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

274 GAEWAL. GAEEEI. The following statement shows the number and distribution of Gareris in 1872 and 1881 :— Gareyia, a section of Biyahut and Kharidaha Kalwars in Behar. Garh-Naik or Singha, leader or lion of the fort, a title of Khanddits in Orissa. Garg, an eponymous section of Agarwals and Babhans in Behar. Garhuk or Garauicd, a sub caste of Kahars in Behar. Garhwar, a sept of Rajputs in Behar. ) Garga, Gargya, a section of Brahmans and of Sankharis in Bengal. Gari, monkey, a totemistic sept of Mundas and Oraons in Chota Nagpur. Gargari, a gain of the San dilya gotra of Rdrhi Brahmans in Bengal. Garia, a sub-caste of Dhobis in Western Bengal. Gargarish i, an eponymous sept of Savars ; a section of Napits and Tantis in Bengal. Garjang, a sept of Tipperahs in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong. Garowa, a sub-caste of Ka hars in Behar. Gargbansi, a sept of Rajputs in Behar. Garral, Garial, a title of Telis. Garhatia, a sept of Kumhars in Chota Nagpur. Garria, a kind of bird, a to temistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Garhbiyar, a section of the Karan sub-caste of Kayasths in Behar. Garur, vulture, a totemistic section of Rautias in Chota Nag pur, and of Mais in Bankura. Garhi, synonym for Gareri, q.v. Garwal, a section of Goalas in the North-Western Provinces Garhi&, a section of Babhans in Behar. and Behar. Distbict. 1872. 1881. District. 1872. 1881. Bardwan Bankura Birbhum Midnapur Hughli Howrah ... 24-Parganas ... Nadiya Murshedabad ... Dinajpur Rangpur Bogra Pabna Darjiling Jalpigori Kuch Behar ... Dacca Faridpur Maimansinh ... } 6 " 1 236 2 60 1 224 116 60 33 1 C 44 217 652 16 10 Patna Gya Shahabad Tirhut sMozufferpur ... lirhut £Darbhanga Saran Champaran Monghyr Bhagalpur Purniah Maldah ; Santal Parganas Cuttack Puri Balasore Hazaribagh Lohardagd .,. ... Singbhum Manbhum Tributary States 10,144 14,381 18,259 } 16,855 7,070 8,759 4,471 4,116 2,850 65 112 S54 9,713 15,633 24,055 f 10,530 I 10,491 9,881 6,805 6,009 7,846 4,872 310 630 103 29 1 1 13 37 11 23 9 ""l2S 935 4,788 287 5 352 1 3 "s,i;24 67 23 ""ioo

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

275 GARWE. GAYALPUEE, Gaura, Gorho, a sub-caste of Goalas in Bengal and Orissa. Garwe, a stork, a totemistic sept of Oraons in Chota Nagpur. Gaurali, a samaj or local group of the Basishtha gotra of Paschatya Baidik Brahmans in Bengal. Garya, a sub-caste of Goalas in Behar. Gatani, a section of Mahesris in Behar. Gaurangi, a class of Vaishnava, followers of Gauranga. Gatpara, Gatpdchha, ' pock puncturer,' a term applied to those who practise inoculation. Gaurihar, a sub-tribe of Tharus in Bebar. Gatsora, a sept of Hos in Singbhum. Gauripur, a dih or local sec tion of the Maghaya sub- caste of Koiris in Bhagalpur. Gauda, a sub-caste of Telis in Orissa. Gaudanha, a section of the Banodhia and Jaiswar Kalwars in Behar. Gauro, a sept of Thdrus in Behar. Gautama, a section of Babhans in Behar. The name denotes the Vedic sage Saradwat, the husband of Ahalya, who was seduced by Indra. It has probably been borrowed from the Brahmanical system in comparatively recent times. Most of the Babhan section-names are territorial. The name also does duty as a sept of the Suryabansi Rajputs in Behar ; a section of Brahmans ; a thar of the Atri gotra of Nepali Brahmans ; a section of Kayasths, Mayaras, Tantis, Baidyas, Goalas, Subarnabaniks, Sunris, and San kharis in Bengal. Gaud hai, a mul or section of the Naomulia or Goria sub- caste of Goalas in Behar. Gaudhaniat a segt of Rajputs in Behar. Gaulani, a sept of Rajputs in Behar. Gauli, a section of Bhojpuria Halwais in Behar. Gaunagahunar, a mul or sec tion of the Tinmulia Madhesia sub-caate of Halwais in Behar. Gauna-Kulin, a hypergamous division of Rarhi Brahmans in Bengal made by Raja Ballal Sen. Gauthaha, a section of Bhoj puria Halwais in Behar. Gawa, a group of tho Baren dra Goalas in BeDgal. Gaura, a sub-caste of Kayasths and Sondrs, a section of Babhans and a sept of Rajputs in Behar. Gawal, a gotra or section of Agarwals. Gaura or Gauriya, a terri torial division of the Pancha Gaura Brahmans, who live in the country of the Lower Ganges, deriving its name from Gaura, the ancient capital of the Hindu dynasty of tho Pal Rajas. Gaya, a section of Awadhia Hajams in Behar. Gayaipure, a section of the Bahannajdti sub-caste of Khatris in Bengal. s 2

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

276 GA.YAN. GHANTESWAEI. ■J Gayan (a singer), a class of Muhammadans believed to have been originally Shandars. They have learned from their teachers the myth that they are descended from Jihad Gdyan, who accom panied Shah Jalal in his conquest of Silhet, and state that they emigrated from that country in covered canoes, differing in build from those used by other Bediyds. The Gdyan is usually a cultivator, and when he is absent from home his wife watches the crops and tends the cattle. Any relation ship with other Bediyas is warmly repudiated, for which reason the Farazi sect sometimes concedes to the Gdydn the rights and privileges of other Mussulmans. This concession has transformed these vag- rants into rigid Puritans. The Gayan women are secluded, and the other Bediyas are reproached for indelicacy in allowing their women to wander about unveiled and unprotected. The Gayan sing Bengali songs in public, to the music of the violins, known as sdrangi and behld. Gayawal, Gaydl, Gaydli, a degraded sub-caste of Debal Brahmans, who act as priests in the Vishnupada temple at Gya. They are remunerated by fees from pilgrims who offer pindas to the names of their ancestors. The name is also incorrectly applied to the touts or recruiters who are sent out from Gya by the Gyawals to collect pilgrims. ascertain whether the name has any definite and uniform relation to caste. Ghale, a section of Gurungs and Murmis in Darjiling. Ghaleh, a thar or sept of the Das-Gurung sub-tribe of Gurungs, so named after a village. The Gurung chief of Ghaleh in former times ruled at a place called Dong-ti in Nepal, and all the Gurungs were under his sway. Gaysari, a sub-caste of Kur mis in Orissa. Ghal i, a thar or sept of Man gars in Darjiling. Gede, duck, a totemistio sept of Oraons in Chota Nagpur. Ghamela, a sub-caste of Kur mis in Behar. Gehani, a section of Kamar kalla Sonars in Behar. Ghamghotle, a section of Kamis in Darjiling. Gehuana, a sept of Rajputs in Behar. Gelang, a thar or sept of Man gars in Darjiling. Ghana or Gachhua, a sub caste of Telis in Bengal. Gelra, a section of Oswals in Behar. Ghani, a section of Kaibarttas in Orissa. Ghager, field-bird, a tote mistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Ghania, a title of Bangaja Kdyasths in Bengal. Ghansi, fish, a totemistic sept of Kharwars in Chota Nagpur. Ghai, a section of the Barajdti sub-caste of Khatris in Bengal. Ghajari, a class of bird catchers occasionally met with in Behar. I have been unable to Ghanteswari, a gain of the Sdbarna gotra of Rarhi Brahmans in Bengal.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

277 GHAE GHASI Ghar, Ghar.a title of Dakshin- Rarhi and Bangaja Kayasths. relations to the Gharti are rather obscure, but I understand that persons, who infringe the law of exogamy by marrying or having intercourse with a woman of their own thars are in Nepal liable to be sold as slaves or Kamaras. (ii) A section of Kamaras. (iii) A sub-tribe of Mangars. Ghardmi, a thatcher, an occu pation followed by members of several different castes. Gharbait or Raut, an endog amous sub-caste of Amats in Behar. Gharti, a thar or sept of Gurungs in Darjiling. Gharbari, a householder, a title of religious sectarians who live a secular life. Gharti-ghaure, a section of Kamis in Darjiling. Gharbari Atit, a class of Atit in Behar which, whatever may have been its original mode of formation, does not now differ materially in manner of life from any ordinary occupational caste. Ghartmel, a thar or section of Nepah Brahmans. Ghartyal, a thar or section of Nepali Brahmans. Gharbeta or Gharbait, a sub-caste of Dhanuks in Behar. Gharu, a mul or section of the Kanaujia sub-caste of Sonars in Behar. Gharikarak, a section of the Biyahut and Kharidaha Kal wars in Chota Nagpur. Gharui, a title of Kaibarttas and of Goalas in Western Ben gal. Ghar Raut, a division (not exogamous) of the Raut Mehtar sub-caste of Doms in Behar. Gharwar, a sept of Rajputs in Behar. Gharruk, a sub-caste of Kahars in Behar. Ghascharai, a title of Goalas who graze cattle. (Hhartt, (i) a caste formed by those members of the Kamara or slave caste in Nepal who have been freed by their masters on payment of their manumission fee. The formation of the Kamara caste and its precise Ghasera, a sub-caste of Doms in Bengal who cut grass for sale. Ghasi, a sub-section of the Kantsasa section of Utkal Brah mans in Orissa. (Skafit, a Dravidian fishing and cultivating caste of Chota Nagpur and Central India, who attend as musicians at weddings and festivals and also perform menial offices of all kinds. Ghasi women act as midwives and nurses, and I have come across a case of a Brahman girl bein° nicknamed Ghasimani in her infancy and made over to a Ghasi woman to bring up in order to avert the malevolent influences supposed to have caused the early death of previous children of the same mother.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

278 GHASI The Ghasis of Chota Nagpur are divided into three sub- castes— Sonaati, Simarloka, and H&ri. They have internal structure. one gectioa probably a corrup- tion of Kasyapa. Ghasis marry their daughters in infancy when they can afford to do so, but adult-marriage is by no means uncommon. Their marriage ceremony is a debased form of that in ordinary use among orthodox Hindus. Polygamy is permitted without any limit being imposed on the number of wives. Widow- marriage and divorce are freely practised, and the women of the caste are credited with living a very loose life. The caste ranks socially with Doms and Musahars. They eat beef and pork, and are greatly addicted to Social status. drink Their origin is obscure. Colonel Dalton regards them as Aryan helots, and says: — " But far viler than the weavers are the extraordinary tribe called Ghasis, foul parasites of the Central Indian hill tribes, and submit- ting to be degraded even by them. If the Chandals of the Purdns, though descended from the union of a Brahmani and a Sudra, are the ' lowest of the low,' the Ghasis are Chandals, and the people who further south are called Pariahs are no doubt of the same distinguished lineage. If, as I surmise, they were Aryan helots, their offices in the household or communities must have been of the lowest and most degrading kinds. It is to be observed that the institution of caste necessitated the organization of a class to whom such offices could be assigned, and when formed, stringent measures would be requisite to keep the servitors in their position. We might thence expect that they would avail themselves of every opportunity to escape, and no safer asylums could be found than the retreats of the forest tribes. Wherever there are Kols there are Ghdsis, and though evidently of an entirely different origin, they have been so long associated that they are a recognised class in the Kol tradition of creation, which appropriately assigns to them a thriftless career, and describes them as living on the leavings or charity of the more industrious members of society. There are not fewer than 50,000 Ghasis in the Kol countries. Their favourite employment is no doubt that of musicians. No ceremony can take place or great man move without the accompaniment of their discordant instruments — drums, kettle-drums, and huge horns — to proclaim the event in a manner most horrifying to civilised ears." The Simarloka sub-caste have a curious aversion for Kayasths, which they account for by the story that once upon a time some Ghasi musicians, who were escorting the marriage procession of a Kayasth bridegroom to the house of his betrothed, were tempted by the valuable ornaments which he wore to murder him and cast his body into_ a well. The youth besought them to let him write a letter to his relatives informing them that he was dying and bidding them perform his funeral obsequies. This the Ghdsis agreed to, after making him swear that he would not disclose the manner of his death. The Kayasth, however, did not think the oath binding, and on the letter being delivered the Ghasis were straightway given up to justice. For this reason, say the Simarlokds, trust not a Kdyasth, for he is faithless even in the hour of death.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

279 GHATAK. GHASI. The following statement shows the number and distribution of Ghasis in 1872 and 1881 :— Ghatak, a title of Brahmans who by profession are match-makers and genealogists. Each sub-caste of Brahmans in Bengal, as well as the Baidya and Kdyasth castes, has its recognised staff of Ghataks, who are responsible for arranging suitable marriages and preserving the social and ceremonial purity of each family belonging to it. The organization of the society of Ghataks, the Herald's College of Ben- gal, is referred to Ballal Sen, who settled the Rarhi Ghataks in Jes- sore, Bakarganj, and Bikrampiir, where, with the exception of a few who have emigrated to Calcutta, they are domiciled at the present day. The Ghatak registers of the Rarhi Brahmans, like those of the Kulin Kdyasths, are said to go back twenty-three generations, or five hundred years, and although any Brahman may become a Ghatak, the highest estimation, and the title PradhaD, or chief, is only bestowed on the individual who can show a long aud unbroken pedigree of Ghatak ancestors. There are three grades of Ghataks. The first can repeat off- hand the names of all the members of the main as well as collateral branches of any family in his particular part of the country ; of the families with which they have married, and of the issue of such marriages. The second grade embraces those Ghataks who can only give the name of the Kui or family into which a Brahman or his relatives have married ; while the third comprises such as can only name the Bans or lineage to which the Brahman belongs. It is not uncommon for one Ghatak to challenge another to display his powers of memory, and public contests are held somewhat after the manner of the logical disputations of the Middle Ages. Ghataks seldom officiate at religious ceremonies, and always employ purohits for their own requirements. According to Dr. Wise, every Kulin Brahman in Eastern Bengal is compelled to employ a Ghatak in negotiating the marriages of his family, otherwise the whole race of Ghataks revolt and ostracise him. The rich Brahman zemin ddrs, who are willing and able to pay a large sum for an unexception able Kulin bride, often try to convince the Ghataks that their families District. 1872. 1881. District. 1872. 1881. Bardwan ... Bankura 24-Parganas ... Nadiya Khulna Jessore Murshedabad ... Bogra Pabna Darjiling Patna Darbhanga ... 2 2 37' 4 47 160 41 14 67 12 90 40 27 Champaran Monghyr Bhagalpur Purniah Santal Parganas ... Cuttack Balasore Tributary States ... Hazaribagh Lohardaga Singbhum Manbhum Tributary States ... 2,014 8,119 15.700 3,976 4,105 6,358 6 360 813 127 230 208 48 2,769 4,290 16,394 2,667 2,100 9,863 Ghasuria, grass- same as Ghasi. natters. The Ghatait, a sei hans in Behar. :tion of Bab-

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

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280 GHOGEO. GHATAK. are of purer and more honourable descent than they actually are. Bribes are often offered to establish the claim, but are rarely accepted. Disputes, however, are common, and the Ghataks who favour a claim that is fallacious, and who attend at an unauthorised marriage, fall in the estimation of those who have questioned its soundness and declined to be present. The scruples of a single Pradhan Ghatak often mar the otherwise perfect satisfaction of a parent on the marriage of his son to a family of higher rank than his own ; and should all the leaders unite in forbidding the marriage, it is impos sible for him to win any permanent promotion beyond that laid down in their registers. Ghatakar, a synonym for Kumhdr. country or hill passes (ghats). Most of them belong to Dra vidian tribes or castes, such as Bhumij, Kharwar, Bauri, etc. Ghatakarpar, "potsherds," the nom-de-plume of a poet at the Court of Vikramaditya who is said to have been a potter : hence, a title of Kumhars. Ghazipuria, a division (not exogamous) of the Raut Mehtar sub-caste of Doms in Behar. Ghatani, a section of Kamis; a thai- or sept of Mangars in Darjiling. Ghi, butter clarified, a to temistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Ghatiya, a sub-caste of Utkal Brahmans in Orissa. Ghibihar, the g^'-eater, a title of the Bahiot sub-caste of Amats and Dhanuks in Behar who are personal servants in the houses of the higher castes. The term also denotes a sub-caste of Kewats in Bhagalpur, who are said to have been outcasted for eating the jhuthd or leavings of their masters. Ghat-manjh i, a title of Patnis in Bengal. Ghatoar, a sept of Chiks in Chota Nagpur. Ghat-Patni, Balami.or Ghdt wcil, a sub-caste of Patnis in Bengal. Ghimirya, a thar or section of Nepali Brahmans. Ghatraj, a thar or sept of Mangars in Darjiling. Ghingpa, a™ or sept of the Bed tshan-gye sub-tribe of Dejong Lhoris or Bhotias of the south. Ghatra-Kamar, a sub-caste of Kdmdrs in Western Bengal. Gh&tu, a section of Mais in Bankura. Gh i oh adda, a section of Sonars in Behar. Ghatwal, (i) in Behar, a title of Mallahs who have charge of ferries and landing-places ; (ii) in Western Bengal and Chota Nagpur a title of the holders of service tenures who act as rural police and are attached in that capacity to certain tracts of Ghising, a section of Murmis in Darjiling. Ghiuadhar, a mul or section of the Naomulia or Majraut sub caste of Goalas in Behar. Ghogro, a section of Pans in Chota Nagpur.

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GIEIAK. GHONEH. 281 Ghuni, a title of Bagdis, so-called from ghuni, a fish-trap. Ghoneh, a thar or sept of the Das-Gurung sub-tribe of Gurungs in Darjiling. Ghunia, a sub-caste of Kewats in Western Bengal and of Mallas or fishermen in Behar. Ghora, horse, a totemistic sept of Gonds in Chota Nagpur. Ghunri, a kind of fruit, a to temistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Ghora bach, a section of Pans in Chota Nagpur. Ghoraila, a title of the Ghosin sub-caste of Goalas in Behar. Ghurchcli, a thar or section of Nepali Brahmans. Ghorasaine, a thar or section of Nepah Brahmans. Ghusaute-Nagwar, a mul of the Batsya section of Maithil Brahmans in Behar. Ghorcharha, a sub-caste of Kurmis in Behar ; a section of the Banodhia and Jaiswar Kal wars in Behar. Ghybrim, a thar or sept of the Barah-Gurung sub-tribe of Gurungs in Darjiling. Giclad, a section of Goalas in the North- Western Provinces and Behar. Ghosh, a group of the Purbba Kuliya Sadgops and a title of Ka yasths and Godlds in Bengal. Gidh or Gidhi, vulture, a to temistic sept of Mundas, Oraons, and Parhaiyas in Chota Nagpur. Ghoshal, a gain of the Batsya gotra of Rarhi Brahmans in Bengal. Gigania, a section of Goalas in the North- Western Provinces and Behar. Ghoshli, again ofthe Sandilya gotra of Rarhi Brahmans in Bengal. Gilal, a thar or section of Nepali Brahmans. Ghosi Bangsi, Ghosi, Ghosin, Gonsia, a sub-caste of Goalas, q.v. Ginmuar, a sept of Korwas in Chota Nagpur. Ghosin, a class of Mahomedan herdsmen in Behar. Ginuar, eel, a totemistic sept of Korwas in Chota Nagpur. Ghosi naik, Naik, a sub-caste of Telis or oil-pressers in Hazari bagh. Giri, a sect of Dasnami San nyasis; a title adopted by Ma hantas, trustees of religious endowments. There is also a low caste of the name somewhat akin to Jugis, etc., who string gold and silver ornaments and sometimes beg ; their females make mats of date leaves. A title of Kaibarttas in Bengal. Ghritakausika, a section of Brahmans, Baidyas, and Kayasths in Bengal. Ghuldm-Kdyasth, a synonym for Sudra. Ghumla, a section of Godlds in the North- Western Provinces and Behar. Giriak, a mul or section of the Maghaya sub-caste of Kandus in Behar. Ghundane, a thar or sept of Gurungs in Darjiling.

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282 GIEIDHAEI. GOALA. Giridhari, a class of Vaish- Dejong Lhoris or Bhotias of the south. navas. Giritar, a mul or section of the Maghaya sub-caste of Barhis in Behar. Goa, a section of the Biyahut and Kharidaha Kalwars in Behar. Goa it, a kui or section of Babhans and Gonrhis in Behar. Gimdm, a class of Sannyasi or hermit. Gislihi, bird, a totemistic sept of Oraons in Chota Nagpur. Goal, a synonym for Goald. Gnyambipa, a rui or sept of the Bed tshan-gye sub-tribe of Goal, cow, a totemistic sept of Pans in Chota Nagpur. (Hoala, Godr, Ahir (Sanskr. Abhira), the great pastoral caste of India. According to Manu, an Abhira is the Traditions of origin. offspring of a Brahman by an Ambastha girl. Lassen1 describes the Abhira as a non-Aryan pastoral race, dwelling near the mouth of the Indus, and remarks that the modern word Ahir means cowherd. At the present day the designation Ahir seems to be confined to Behar and parts of Upper India, Goala being more commonly used in Bengal. The traditions of the caste bear a highly imaginative charaoter, and profess to trace their descent from the god Krishna, whose relations with the milkmaids of Brindaban play a prominent part in Hindu mythology. Krishna himself is supposed to have belonged to the tribe of Yadavas, or descendants of Yadu, a nomadic race, who graze cattle and make butter, and are believed to have effeoted an early settlement in the neighbourhood of Mathura. In memory of this tradition, one of the sub-castes of Goalas in the North-Western Provinces is called Yadu or Jadu-bansi at the present time. Another story quoted by Buchanan makes out the Goalas to be Vaisyas, who were degraded in consequence of having introduced castration among their herds, and members of the caste who are disposed to claim this distinguished ancestor may lay stress upon the fact that the tending of flocks and herds is mentioned by the authorities among the duties of the Vaisya order. Taken as a whole, the Goala traditions can hardly be said to do more than render it probable that one of their earliest settlements was in the neighbourhood of Mathura, and that this part of the country was the centre of distribution of the caste. The large func- tional group known by the name Goala seems to have been recruited not merely by the diffusion along the Ganges Valley of the semi- Aryan Goalas of the North-Western Provinces, but also by the inclusion in the caste of pastoral tribes who were not Aryans at all. These of course would form distinct sub-castes, and would not be admitted to the ./as connubii with the original nucleus of the caste. The great differences of make and feature which may be observed among Goalas seem to bear out this view, and to show that whatever may 1 Ind. Alt. F, 947 and 652, note 4.

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283 GOALA. have been the original constituents of the caste, it now comprises several heterogeneous elements. Thus even in a district so far from the original home of the caste as Singbhum, we find Colonel Dalton remarking that the features of the Mathurabasi Godlds are high, sharp, and delicate, and they are of light-brown complexion. Those of the Magadha sub-caste, on the other hand, are undefined and coarse. They are dark-complexioned, and have large hands and feet. " Seeing the latter standing in a group with some Sing bhum Kols, there is no distinguishing one from the other. There has doubtless been much mixture of blood." These remarks illustrate both the processes to which the growth of the caste is due. They show how representatives of the original type have spread to districts very remote from their original centre, and how at the same time people of alien race, who followed pastoral occupations, have become attached to the caste and are recognised by a sort of fiction as having belonged to it all along. Owing to the wide range of the caste, and to the double process by which its members have been recruited. Internal structure. ±1; • i. iii. • l i • , * the internal structure is extremely complicated, and the number of sub-castes and sections unusually large. Taking the Godlds of the North-Western Provinces as the type, we find the following seven divisions recognised : — Desi, Nandbansi, Jadu bansi, Sur ajb ansi, Goalbansi, Ahir, and Katha. These again are subdivided into a very large number of sections, the names of which appear for the most part to have reference to locality rather than to descent. According to Sir Henry Elliot traces of hypergamy may be found among these groups, but his information on this point seems to be incomplete. Among the Godlds of Behar a different series of sub-castes has been developed, and none of the names current in the North-Western Prov inces are met with. As a rule, too, the names of the groups are in Behar of a different type, and instead of being based, as in the North-West, upon descent from a particular stock or from some mythical progenitor, have reference either to the number of muls or sections with which intermarriage is prohibited, or to some departure from traditional usage on the part of its members. Naomulia and Satmulia are instances of the former type, the peculiarities of which are explained more fully in the paragraphs on marriage below. Satmulia has the alternative title Kishnaut, and seems to arrogate descent from the god Krishna. Naomulia is also called Majraut, a name which I am unable to interpret. In Bhagalpur members of the Kishnaut and Majraut groups will not make butter — an occupation which they consider degrading— and confine themselves to dealing in milk. The Goria or Dahiara sub-caste is said to have been degraded because its members make butter without first scalding the milk — a practice enjoined by the Hindu scriptures and recognised as a crucial test of purity by all Goalas. Dr. Wise spells the name Daira, and says it is generally believed to be merely a corrup tion of the Bengali ddri, a beard, adding as a reason that many Dahiara Godlds have become Mahomedans and wear beards. This seems to be a little far-fetched : a more probable etymology is from

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284 GOALA dahi, curds. The Kantitaha derive their name from their custom of branding cows with a kdnti, or hook, a practice confined to Ahirs and never resorted to by the higher grades of Godlds, except at srdddhs, when the Dharm-Sanr is branded and let go. The Kanaujia and Bargowar sub-castes believe their ancestors to have migrated to Behar from the North-Western Provinces, and on this ground claim to be superior to, and hold themselves aloof from, the other sub-castes. The Separi are a writer sub-caste, largely employed a9 patwaris in some parts of Behar. They are looked down upon by the other sub-castes, because they do not call in the Chamai, the barber, or the Dhobi at the birth of a child, but cut the navel string and perform all necessary offices themselves. Turning now to Bengal, we find the Pallab or Ballabh sub caste tracing their descent from one Gham Ghosh, who is said to have sprung from the sweat of Krishna; the Bagre or Ujainia sub caste affect to have come from Ujain; while the Gaura Ghosh or Gop-Goala, also known as Lathials, pretend to be pure Sudras, and resent the suggestion that they should intermarry with any other sort of Goald. The Rarhi or Bhoga Goalas, like the Kantitaha in Behar, are cut off from intermarriage with the rest and generally looked down upon, because they brand their cows with red-hot iron and castrate bull calves. Two curious groups are found in Dacca — the Sada or white Goalas and the Lai or red Goalas, the names being derived from the colour of the clothes worn by the bride and the members of the bridal procession. With the Sada Goalas all of these are dressed in white, while the Lai Godlds wear red. The Sada are reckoned the higher of the two, and a pan or bride-price is given when a girl of this group marries a Lai Goald. In all cases of intermarriage between Sada and Lai Godlds the colour of the clothes to be worn by the bridal party follows that of the group to which the bridegroom belongs. Goalas are very strong in Orissa, and a large proportion of the Uriyas employed as personal servants by Europeans belong to that caste. It is a question whether the Gaura or Gopopuria sub-caste or the Mathurabasi rank higher. Both are very particular in all matters touching their ceremonial purity, and the Mathurabasi lay stress on the duty of making occasional pilgrimages to the original home of the caste at Brindaban. The Dumala or uadupuria Godrd seem to be a group of local formation. They cherish the tradition that their ancestors came to Orissa from Jadupur, but this appears to be nothing more than the name of the Jddavas, the mythical progenitors of the Goald caste transformed into the name of an imaginary town. In Chota Nagpur the distribution of sub-castes is very much what might be expected. In parts of Singbhum and the adjoining Tributary States a large Godla population exists, holding rather a subordinate position in relation to the dominant Hos and Bhuiyas, but on the whole the most flourishing of the peasantry in that part of the country. These people belong to the sub-castes known in Orissa, and appear to have entered Chota Nagpur from the south. According to Colonel Dalton, the Magadha Goalas are suspiciously

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285 GOALA. like Hos, and in most Ho villages a few of them will be found receiving pay for looking after the Hos' cattle. The Mathura basi Godlds, who are of a much more Aryan type and claim to be pure Gopas, will not condescend to take service with Dravidians. Without forsaking their hereditary calling, they frequently manage to gain possession of substantial farms, where they keep large herds of cows and buffaloes, and deal in milk and ghi. In the north and west of the division numerous representatives of the Behar sub castes are met with, who come in from the crowded and over cultivated districts of Behar to feed their cattle on the forest -clad table lands of Hazaribagh, Lohardaga, and Sarguja. Here they lead a nomadic life during the dry season, living in tents of bamboo matting and moving from place to place as the supply of forage requires. The character of the exogamous subdivisions of the Godlds and of the rules by which intermarriage is regulated differs markedly in different parts of the country. In Bengal the caste recognises six gotras, borrowed from the Brahmanical system, and forbids a man to marry a girl who belongs to the same gotra as himself. The gotra of the mother, or, to speak precisely, of the maternal grandfather, is not excluded. The intermarriage of sapindas is also prohibited, though the rules on this point observed by the Godlds are hardly so elaborate as those followed by the higher castes. In Behar the Brahmanical gotras are unknown, and marriage among the Godlds is regulated by a very large number of muls or exogamous groups of the territorial type, the names of which are given in the appendix. In some places where the existing muls have been found inconveniently large, and marriage has been rendered unduly difficult, certain muls have broken up into purukhs or sub-sections. Where this has taken place, a man may marry within the mul, but not within the purukh, the smaller and more convenient group taking the place of the larger one. Some difference of opinion prevails concerning the precise manner in which the rule of exogamy is worked, and the subject is one of such extreme intricacy that it would be unreasonable to look for uniformity of practice everywhere. The Satmulia or Kishnaut Goalas in Bhagalpur forbid a man to marry a woman belonging to the following sections or muls : — (a) His own mul. (b) His mother's mul. (c) His maternal grandmother's mul. (d) His maternal great-grandmother's mul. (e) His paternal grandmother's mul. (/) His paternal great-grandmother's mul. (g) His paternal great-great-graudmother's mul. To these the Naomulia add— (h) The mul of his paternal grandmother's mother. (i) The mul of his paternal great-grandmother's mother. In some cases a further complication is introduced by taking into account not only the bride's mul, but also that of some of her

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286 GOALA, female ancestors, so that if, for example, the mul of the proposed bride's maternal grandmother should happen to have been the same as that of the proposed bridegroom's paternal grandmother, no marriage could take place between the parties, although the mul of the bride herself might not correspond with any of those prohibited to the bridegroom. Elaborate as the system is, an examination of the annexed table will show that the prohibitions of intermarriage based on the mul or section require to be supplemented by the standard formula : Chacherd, mamera, phuphera, maserd, ye char ndtd bachdke shddi hotd hai ( " The line of paternal uncle, maternal uncle, paternal aunt, maternal aunt, — these four relationships are to be avoided in marriage "j. To a certain extent this rule overlaps the rule of exogamy reckoned from the mul. Thus in the first gen eration the whole of the paternal uncle's descendants, both male and female, would be excluded by the rule prohibiting marriage within the section. In the second and subsequent generations agnates would be barred, but descendants through females would not, for the paternal uncle's daughters having necessarily married out of the section, their children would belong to some other section, and their second cousins would be able to marry. On the other hand, the rule of exogamy, if it stood alone, would permit the marriage of first cousins in three out of four possible cases. A reference to the table will show how this conclusion is arrived at ; for Pro positus belonging himself to section A might, so far as the rule of exogamy is concerned, marry the daughters of his paternal and maternal aunts, who would not belong to any of the muls barred for him. The rule defining the prohibited degrees is usually calculated to four generations in the descending line.

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287 GOALA, Table illustrating exogamy as practised by Sdtmulia and Naomulia Goalas. [The small letters a to n show the muls. The Satinulia exclude the * Seven muls' a tog inclusive ; the Naomulia further prohibit marriage within h and i._\

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288 GOALA. These elaborate precautions against consanguineous marriages appear to be unknown in Orissa and Chota Nagpur. In Chota Nagpur the Goalas have totemistic sections of the type common in that part of the country. A man may not marry a woman who belongs to his own totem, and is also bound to observe the standard rule concerning prohibited degrees. Regarding Orissa the information available on this point is defective, and I have been unable to ascertain the names of the exogamous subdivisions of the caste and the rules governing intermarriage. Among the Goalas of Bengal and the higher Go&las of Orissa, the orthodox view of Hindu marriage is on the whole accepted. Girls are married as infants ; widow-marriage is strictly prohibited, and divorce is unknown. If a woman commits adultery with another Goala or with a man of higher caste, the matter is hushed up : an intrigue with a low-caste man is punished with instant exclusion from caste. In Behar infant-marriage has established itself as a usage essential to the maintenance of social respectability ; but a widow is allowed to marry again, and is generally expected to marry her late husband's younger brother. Under no circumstances may she marry the elder brother. With the Goalas of Chota Nagpur both adult and infant- marriage are recognised, the latter being regarded as a counsel of perfection, which well-to-do persons may be expected to act up to. Tbe rule that the rukhsati or final ceremony celebrating the departure of the bride to the house of the bridegroom and the commencement of regular connubial relations shall ordinarily take place four months after the wedding shows pretty clearly that infant-marriage cannot have been introduced in the strict sense in which it is understood in Bengal. A bride-price is paid, varying from Rs. 5 to Rs. 25, accord- ing to the status of the families concerned, and out of this sum the bride's father is expected to provide his daughter with ornaments. Brahmans officiate at the wedding. The smearing of vermilion on the bride's forehead is believed to be the most important part of the ceremony. Widows may marry again by the meagre ritual known as sagai. At this no Brahman attends ; new sdris and some sweet- meats are presented to the bride and to her mother, and either the bridegroom himself or some widow of the oompany puts vermi- lion on the bride's forehead. This completes tbe marriage ; no rukhsati is required, and the parties begin to live together at once. Among the Goa Ids of Singbhum a widow is required to marry one of her late husband's younger brothers ; and failing these, she must select a husband from among tbe exogamous group to which her husband belonged. This deserves notice, as being in all probability a survival of earlier custom which has elsewhere fallen into disuse. The usages current in Orissa do not differ very materially from those which prevail in Behar. In both infant-marriage is the stand ard to which every one seeks to conform, but it may be conjectured that this has not been so in Orissa for very long. The Goalas there say that if by chance a girl should remain unmarried in her father's house after she has attained puberty, the breach of ceremonial

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289 GOALA, requirements may be got over by giving her in marriage to an old man or a man otherwise unfit for marriage. After the marriage she is at once divorced by her husband, and is then competent to marry again by the ritual appointed for widows. I have mentioned above that the higher Goalas of Orissa affect a high standard of orthodoxy, and look down upon the Behar and Bengal divisions of the caste. Among them widow-marriage is said to be forbidden. Most Uriya Goalas, however, allow a widow to remarry by the usual form. Some curious particulars concerning the birth customs of the „. , Orissa Goalas may be given here. During labour and after delivery the mother is kept in a separate house, from which fresh air is excluded as much as possible, and which is kept artificially heated for a period of twenty-one days. Branches of kendu (Embryopteris Glutinifera) and ligu (Ligneolaria) are hung near the front door of the house ; iron nails are driven into the door-posts, and chimuai (Hemidesmus Indicus), aud bholia (Semecarpus Anacardium) are laid in the infant's bed. After the navel string has been cut the child is bathed in hot water in which leaves of basanga (Justicia Adhatode), arka (Asclepios Gigantea), bigunia (Viter Negnanda), daukari, and dhatura (Datura nutal) have been boiled. On the fifth day after the birth harada (Cytisus Cajan), mung pulse, biri (Phaseolus Muugo), rice, and wheat are fried together and distributed to friends. The worship of the goddess Shashthi is performed on the sixth day, when Vidhata, or Brahma, is believed to enter the house and write its destiny on the child's forehead. On this occasion two lumps of cowdung are placed at each side of the door, and for fifteen days red lead is smeared on them, and dub grass well moistened laid on the top. On the eighth day a feast is given to relatives and members of the caste. Finally, on the 21st day new cooking pots are brought into use, an elaborate entertainment is prepared, and the child is named. During this period of three weeks not only the mother, but also the father, is deemed to be impure, and is required to abstain from all his ordinary occupations. There is Httle to be said about the religion of the caste. In Bengal most of them are Vaishnavas, and celebrate the Janmashtami or festival of the birthday of Krishna with great circumstance. They employ Brahmans for religious and ceremonial purposes, but these are looked upon as degraded, and are not received upon equal terms by the higher orders of the priestly caste. In Behar the tendency to Vaishnavism does not seem to be so strong, and a considerable proportion of the caste are said to belong to the Saiva and Sakta sects. There Goala Brahmans occupy a higher position than in Bengal, and are deemed as respectable as the Brahmans who serve other castes of the same status. It is, however, ooly for marriage, srdddh, and the worship of Sat Narain and the greater gods that the services of Brahmans are required. When it is only a question of propiti ating the host of minor gods, who play so important a part iu the domestic religion of the people, the householder himself officiates as priest. By Goalas special reverence is paid to Bisahari, Ganpat T

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GOALA. 290 GOBANSI. Gohil, Gosawan, the god of cattle disease, Kalumanjhi, and a number of gaidn or ghosts. To these vague shapes flowers, sweetmeats, milk, rice, and occasionally sacrifices of goats, are offered and partaken of by the worshippers. Monday and Friday are considered the most auspicious days, Saturday being reckoned peculiarly unlucky. At the time of the Sankranti on the last day of K&rtik, October-November, a pig is turned loose among a herd of buffaloes, who are encouraged to gore it to death. The carcase is then given to Dosadhs to eat. The Goalas or Ahirs, who practise this strange rite, aver that it has no religious significance, and is merely a sort of popular amusement. They do not themselves partake of any portion of the pig. In point of social standing the Goalas of Behar rank with Kurmis, Amats. aud the other castes from whose hands a Brahman can take water. In Bengal they occupy a lower position, and are counted as inferior, not only to tbe Naba-Sakh, but also to the cultivating division of the Kaibartta caste. The Orissa Goalas, on the other hand, affect a high standard of ceremonial purity, and look down upon the Behar and Bengal divisions of the caste. Most Goalas combine cultivation with their hereditary pursuits, and in Orissa and Singbhum some members of the caste hold landed tenures of substantial value. The following statement shows the number and distribution of Goalas in 1872 and 1881 : — Goalabhuiya, a sub-caste of Sutradhars in Western Bengal. Goalbansi, a sub-caste of Goalas in the North-Western Provinces and Behar. Godr, a synonym for G06I&. Gobans, cow-born, a sept of Bairagis in Chota Nagpur. Gobans i, a title of the family of the Rajas of Pachet, in the district of Manbhum, referring to the legend that the founder of Distbict. 1872. 1381. Noakhali Tipperah Chittagong Hill Tracts ... Patna Gya Shahabad Mozufferpur Darbhanga Saran Champaran Monghyr Bhagalpur Purniah Maldah Santal Parganas Cuttack Puri Balasore Tributary States Hazaribagh Lohardaga Singbhum Manbhum Tributary States 1,620 9,022 2,805 11,099 29 217,845 309,871 242,721 ( 299,127 I 349,112 256,518 169,274 217,616 313,630 131,629 16,875 88,544 140,170 66,662 69,581 136,420 129,445 78,677 88,673 29,081 45,743 179,848 278,665 214,605 | 626,683 288,749 131,413 197,569 335,137 128,608 14,389 74,529 105,840 48,227 66,649 96,886 92,890 60,433 86,320 35,176 29,002 District. 1872. 1881. Bardwan Bankura Birbhum Miunapur Hughli Howrah 24-Parganas ... Nadiya Jessore Khulna Muri-hedabad Dinajpur kajshahye Rangpur Bogra Pabna Darjiling Jalpigon Kuch Behar ... Dacca Faridpur Bakarganj Maimansinh ... Chittagong ... 99,325 38,572 17,448 44,163 j 65,366 88,551 91,269 20,992 70,262 59,652 16,125 63,994 f 46,134 I 17,317 77,956 93,382 17,270 14,021 35,411 6,123 9,273 6,881 2,925 11.788 1,494 2,162 1,710 25,327 6,316 4,240 22,592 664 89,953 4,280 9,594 8,049 3,594 11,648 420 950 22,788 2,912 6,738 17,618 327

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

GOBANSI. 291 GODNA-WALI* ■1 the house was deserted in the woods as an infant and was suckled by a cow. other Bauris (Jhantias) simply sweep the ground; a sub-caste of Mais and Lohars in Bankura. Gobargarhci, a mul or section of the Naomulia or Majraut sub caste of Goalas in Behar. Gochalya, a sept of the Tung jainya sub- tribe of Chakmas in the Hill Tracts of Chittagong. Gobaria, a synonym for Sikharia Bhuiya, q.v. Gochchhasi, a gain of the Bharadwaj a gotra of Barendra Brahmans in Bengal. Gobasi, "beef-eaters," an op probrious designation of Bauris, Haris, and other low castes. Gochhpuria- a pur or section of Sakadwipi Brahmans in Behar. Gobhil, a. gotra or section of Agarwals. Godahia, Goddgd, a sub-caste of Goalds in Behar who brand cattle with a red-hot iron, see Gujiar. Gobindpuria, see Govind puria. Gobolachan, a totemistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur who cannot eat beef. Godahiya, a sub-caste of Kumhars in Behar. Gobra, Gobrea, a sub-caste of Bauris, so designated from their purifying the ground with cow dung where they eat, while the Godhanpuria, a mul or section of the Kamarkalla sub caste of Sonars and of Lohars in Behar. Godna-walf, a female tattooer. In Eastern Bengal, according to rat the country with a bag, con g horn (Singd), and a scarificator by bawling " To tattoo, to cup, Dr. Wise, Bediya women travel about taining a variety of drugs, a cupping I (Ndran). They attract attention by and to extract worms from decayed teeth ! " They also prescribe for female disorders. It is said that small grubs are kept in a bamboo tube, and while the patient's attention is occupied by the talk of the operator, a maggot is presented as if it had been extracted from the hollow tooth. For this trick the Godna-wali receives a suitable fee. In tattooing the juice of the Bhangra plant (Lndigofera linifolia) and woman's milk are the materials used, and the punctures are made with needles or the thorns of the Karaunda (Carissa Carandas). While the operation is being performed, a very equivocal mantra is recited to alleviate pain and prevent any subsequent inflammation. In respectable Hindu families an old nurse usually tattoos ihe girls. Now-a-days the ordinary tattoo design, either circular or stellate, is made at the top of the nose in the centre of the forehead ; formerly the fashionable stain ( Ullikhi) was at the same spot, but a line extended along the bridge of the nose, branching out into two curves over each ala. Tattoo marks were originally distinctive of Hindu females, but Muhammadan women copied them, and it is only since the Farazi revival that they have discontinued the habit. t 2

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

292 GOND. GODNA-WALI. Chanddl women are often employed to cure goitre by tattooing. A circular spot on the most prominent part of the swelling is punctured with a bamboo spike, and common ink mixed with tne sap of the K&li Koshijia rubbed in. Golaia, a sept of Oraons in Chota Nagpur. Godo, crocodile, a totemistic sept of Oraons in Chota Nagpur. Golangya, a thar or sept of Gurungs in Darjiling. Gogrami, a gain of the Bha radwaja gotra of Barendra Brah mans in Bengal. Golchia, a section of the Oswal Baniyas. Goldar, a title of Kalwars in Behar. Goh, a sept of Gonds in Chota Nagpur. Gole, a section of Murmis in Darjiling. Goherwar, a sept of Chiks in Chota Nagpur. Goleg-pa, go, a head, and leg, good— the peaceful, a sub-sept of the Nah-pa sept of Sherpa Bhotias. Gohori, a thar or sept of Gurungs in Darjiling. Goil, a section of Agarwals. Golmetah, a section of Mag haya Dhobis in Behar. Goin, a hali-gotra or section of Agarwals. Gol oar, sweet potato, a totem istic sept of Lohars in Chota Nagpur. Goit, a mul or section of the Ghosin sub-caste of Goalas in Behar ; a totemistic sept of Bhuiyas in Chota Nagpur. Got ram, a mul or section of the Naomulia or Majraut sub caste of Goalas in Behar. Goita, a sub-caste of Koiris in Behar. Golsaz, see Hawaigar. Gojia, a sub-caste of Kamars in Hazaribagh. Gol var, a section of Ghasis in Chota Nagpur. Gola, a sub-caste of Bhan daris in Orissa. Gomdan, a section of Murmis in Darjiling. (Hotti, a non-Aryan tribe, classed on linguistic grounds as Dravidian, properly belonging to the Central Provinces,1 but found also in the Tributary States of Chota Nagpur, in the south of Lohardaga and in Singbhum. In the States of Sarguja, Korea, and Udaipur most of the feudal tenures held on terms of military service directly under the Chief are in the hands of Gonds — a fact which suggests that the tribe must have been among the earliest permanent settlers in that part of the country. The Gonds of Bengal are divided into four sub-tribes : — Gond, Raj-Gond, Dhokar-Gond, and 1 The present article deals only with the Gonds of Bengal, and does not attempt to give an exhaustive account of the entire tribe.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

293 GOND Doroa-Gond or Naik. The Gond represent the bulk of the tribe, while the Raj-Gond are supposed to be des- Internal structure. cended fn)m famiUes who attained to the dig nity of Chief. The Dhokar-Gond are a wandering race, who make a living by begging aud thieving. The Doroa-Gond or Naik are found only in Singbhum. According to Colonel Dalton, they were the military retainers of the Mahapatra of Bamanghati, a feudatory of the Paja of Moharbhanj, who were driven out of Bamanghati with their leader and permitted to settle in Singbhum in consequence of his having rebelled against his lord paramount. Their sections, shown in Appendix I, are totemistic. One of them, Besrd (hawk), occurs also among the Santals. Gonds practise both infant and adult-marriage, but under . Hindu influence the former practice tends continually to become more popular and to be looked upon as a badge of social distinction. The ceremony is modelled on that in use among the lower castes of Hindus. Sindurddn and marriage to a mango-tree form prominent parts of the ritual, while according to some the binding portion of the rite consists in the village barber pouring a vessel of water over both bride and bridegroom. Widows are allowed to marry again, the usual practice being for the widow to marry her late husband's younger brother. No religious ceremony is in use on such occasions, nor is it customary to send for the Brahman and Hajjam, who officiate at the marriage of a virgin. All that is necessary is to assemble a sort of committee of relations, before whom the bridegroom gives the bride a new cloth and a lac bracelet and promises to maintain her in a suitable fashion. The proceedings end, as is the manner of the non-Aryan tribes, with a feast, at which every one gets very drunk. The Bengal members of the tribe affect to be orthodox Hindus, and worship the standard gods with the assist- ance of a degraded class of Brahmans, who also officiate at their marriages. Although to this extent they have embraced the popular religion, they still worship the charac teristic deities of the non-Hinduised Gonds — Bar Deo and Dulha Deo. They burn their dead, but the relatives mourn for three days only, after which period they purify themselves by bathing and shaving, and make offerings of bread and milk to the spirit of the departed. Their social rank is very low, as in spite of their professed conformity to Hinduism they eat fowls and other unclean food. Concerning their appearance and characteristics, Colonel Dalton has the following remarks : — " Socially, I consider the Hinduised or semi-Hinduised Gonds _ . , . to be the least interesting of the great families Social status. __•__.,_. ■___■■ ___ *r -s • mi i ot the aborigines oi India, ihey have none of the lively disposition of the Oraons or of the free, dignified demeanour which characterises many of the Singbhum Kols. They are in character reserved, sullen, and suspicious. They are indifferent cultivators and careless about the appearance of their home steads, and they are withal singularly ill-favoured ; aud though

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

OOND. 294 GONEHI. some of the wealthier families have formed a series of alliances with other races, which have improved their looks, I can point to many who have tried this in vain, and who show to this day features more closely resembling the lower Negro type than any I have met with amongst the tribes of Bengal. They often have short crisp curly hair, and though it is said, and no doubt truly, that this is far removed from the regular woolly covering of a Negro's head, I have generally found such hair in conjunc tion with features very noticeably Negro in type, and accompany ing a very dark skin. They are larger and heavier in build than the Oraons and Kols, and with none of the graceful physique to be found in both these tribes." The following statement shows the number and distribution of Gonds in 1872 and 1881 :— Gongbd, a section of Murmis in Darjiling. Gonda, a thar or sept of Man* gars in Darjiling. Gondh, a sub-caste of Binds in Behar. Gonr, a sub-caste of K&ndus in Behar ; a section of the Biyahut and Kharidaha Kalwars in Be har ; a stone-cutter and maker of stone plates and household utensils. Gondli, a kind of grain, a totemistio sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Gondrari, a tree, a totemistio sept of Oraons in Chota Nagpur. Gonduk, a thar or sept of Gurungs in Darjiling. Gonrhi, a title of Mallahs in Behar. (Hflttrki., Qunrhi, Malldh, Machhud, a fishing and cultivating . . caste of Behar, who claim descent from Nikhad or Nish&d, a mythical boatman, who is said to have ferried Ram Chandra aoross the Ganges at Allahabad. The fact that the word Nishad, which is used in the Rig Veda as a general name for the non-Aryan races, should appear in the traditions of the Gonrhi as a personal eponym, suggests the conjecture that the caste may be descended from one of the aboriginal tribes whom the Aryans found in possession of the Ganges Valley. This view DISTRICT. 1872. 1881. I District. 1872. 1881. Bardwan Bankura Birbhum Midnapur Hughli Howrah 24-PSrganas ... Oya Shahabad Mozufferpur ... Saran Champaran ... 47 3,860 8 7,860 "9,636 Bhagalpur Purniah Santal Parganas Cuttack Puri ... ... ;;; Balasore Tributary Stateg "" Hazaribagh Lohardagd ,M '." Singbhum . Manbhum Tributary States ... 167 1,002 580 16 2 7,161 2 21 85 126 7,089 25 11,652 11,055 12 2 6 22,275 7 1,338 4,838 17,550 2 8,842 2,168 30 72,274 68,614

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

295 GONEHI. derives some support from the physical appearance of the caste, which approaches to the non-Aryan type. The internal structure of the group throws no light on its origin, Internal structure. may migU fa fact thafc one of the sub-castes bears the name of Kolh. The other sub-castes are Banpar, Chab or Chabi, Dhoar, Kurin, Parbatti-Kurin, Khunaut or Khulaut, and Semari. All of these are strictly endogamous, except the Kolh and Kurin sub-castes, which admit of intermarriage with each other, though not with members of other sub-castes. Some members of the Chab sub-caste deny that they have any connection with the Gonrhi. The section-namse, which are shown in the Appendix, are in common use as titles among many other castes in Behar. Their precise bearing on marriage is not easy to ascertain. Gonrhis are not as a class intelligent enough to be able to explain their own customs very clearly, nor have they a sufficiently strong organization to secure uniformity of practice in different parts of the country. Thus according to some accounts the Chab, Dhoar, and Kolh regulate their marriages solely by the standard formula for reckoning prohibited degrees, and tbe Khunaut sub-caste have no exogamous sections, while within the Parbatti- Kurin sub-caste only a special group, known as Jathot, observes the rule of exogamy in respect of its section-names. The rest of the sub-castes regard these names as titles having no special significance. The Kurin have no section-names, and affect to know nothing about the regular custom of exogamy, but they do not allow a man to marry a woman who lives in the same village as himself. The Banpar and Semari sub-castes, on the other hand, appear to have distinct sections, and also count prohibited degrees down to six, or as some say seven, generations in the descending hne. In determining whom a man may marry regard is paid not merely to his own section, but to the section to which his mother and his paternal and maternal grandmothers belonged. Gonrhis marry their daughters as infants or as adults according to their means. Infant-marriage is deemed the more respectable, but no special disgrace attaches to a family because one of the daughters attains the age of puberty before being married. The marriage ceremony is of the standard type. Polygamy is permitted only to the extent that a man may take a second wife if his first wife is barren or suffers from an incurable disease. A widow may marry again by the sagai form, of which sindurddn constitutes the binding portion. She may marry her late husband's younger brother, but is not compelled to do so. Divorce is permitted with the consent of the panchayat, on the ground of misconduct or incompatibility of temper. Divorced wives can marry again. Some hold, however, that a woman taken in adultery is debarred from this privilege, and I gather that divorce is generally regarded with disfavour by the respectable members of tbe caste. Most Gonrhis are Vaishnava Hindus, but a few members of tho j. j. . Saurapatya sect of sun-worshippers are found gI0n' among them. They employ Maithil Brahmans for the worship of the greater gods, but these priests are not usually

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

296 GONEHI. recognised as equals by other members of the sacred order. They have a large number of minor gods, and many of them belong to the Panch Piriya creed — an obscure but widely-spread cult, which appears to have arisen from the contact of Islam with the animistic beliefs of its aboriginal converts. Some, again, worship a water-god, called Koila-Baba, described as an old grey-bearded person who, as Gangdji ka Belddr, ' the navvy of our lady the Ganges,' saps and swallows up whatever opposes the sacred stream. Before casting a new net or starting on a commercial venture, offerings of molasses and seven kinds of grain, kneaded into balls, are offered to him, and at the end of the ceremony one of the balls is placed on the edge of the water, another on the bow of the boat. Another rite common to many, if not to all, fisher castes is the Barwaria or Barahi Piija, when a subscription is made, and in the absence of a Brahman a pig is sacrificed in a garden or on a patch of waste land outside the village. Jai Singh, Amar Singh, Chand Singh, Diyal Singh, Kewal, Marang, Bandi, Goraiya, and a river named Kamalaji, are also regularly worshipped. Jai Singh, who is also a favourite deity of the Tiyar caste, is said to have been a Gonrhi of Ujjain, who had a large timber trade in the Sunderbuns. On one occasion the Eaja of the Sunderbuns imprisoned 70 0 Gonrhis in consequence of a dispute about the price of wood. Jai Singh slew tbe Kaja and released the prisoners, and has ever since been honoured with daily worship. Goats, sweetmeats, wheaten cakes, pan supari, and flowers are offered to him at regular intervals, and no Gonrhi will light a pipe or embark on a fishing excursion without first invoking the name of Jai Singh. Once a year, in the month of Srawan, a flag is set up in honour of Hanuman on a bamboo pole in the courtyard, and offerings of sweetmeats and fruits are presented to the god. These offerings are received by the Brahmans who officiate as priests, while the articles of food given to the minor gods are eaten hy the members of the caste. The dead are burned, usually on the brink of a river, and the ashes thrown into the stream. In Supul the practice is to burn in a mango grove. Srdddh is performed on the thirteenth day after death. The social status of the Gonrhi caste appears to vary in different „ . , . parts of the country, and does not admit of Social status. r . j n ■__.- a *n j.i_ i "■""■■■' y* very precise definition. All that can be said is that they rank below Barhis, Kumhars, and Laheris, and that although Brahmans do not ordinarily take water from their hands, this rule is not observed everywhere. Their own practice in the matter of diet inclines towards laxity, as they eat scaleless as well as scaly fish, pork, water tortoises, and field-rats, and indulge freely in strong drink. There are, however, many Bhakats among them who abstain from liquor and from all kinds of animal food, and are held in respect by reason of their abstinence. The caste will take water and sweetmeats from Kewats, Dhanuks, and Gangotas, but will not eat cooked food prepared by members of those castes. Occupation. believe boating and fishing to be their original and characteristic occupation, but many of them are engaged in agriculture as tenure-holders, occupanoy or non- occupancy raiyats, and landless day-labourers.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

297 GONEHI. GOEAIT* The following statement shows the number and distribution of Gonrhis in 1872 and 1881 :— Gonria, a sub-caste of Goalas in Behar. Gop or Ghosh, a sub-caste of Goalas in Bengal. Gopa, a synonym for Goala, ; a title and a section of the Kanaujia and Goria sub-castes of Goalas in Behar. Gopurbba, a gain of the Bharadwaja gotra of Uttar- Barendra Brahmans in Bengal. Gorahat, a small class of Bhuiyas in the south of Chota Nagpur who make a living by washing for gold in the sands of the rivers. Goraheri, a synonym for Gareri in Behar. Gopal, a synonym for Goala. Gopalghataki, a mel or hyper gamous sub-group of Rarhi Brahmans in Bengal. Gorai, a title of Kaibarttas. Gorait, a title of the headmen of the Dom caste in Bhagalpur, who have under them servants, called Chharidars, to execute or communicate their orders to vil lages ; a watchman and messenger in Behar, usually of the Dosadh caste. Gopal-Karikar, a sub-caste of Sutradhars in Murshedabad. Gop-Godld, a synonym for Goala. Gopijan, a sect of Vaishnavas ; a synonym for Sadgop. Sslrait, Korait, Baikar, a non- a-Aryan caste of musicians, comb cotton-carders found in the south- makers, and Origin. ——») «^u wnuu-i-aiuoioiouLU ill me SOUID- west of the Lohardaga district, and perhaps in Hazaribagh. It may be inferred from the totemistic character District. 1872. 1881. District. 1872. 1881. Bardwan Bankura Birbhum Midnapur Hughli Howrah 24-Parganas ... Nadiya Khulna Jessore Murshedabad Dinajpur Rajshahye ... Rangpur Bogra Pabna Darjiling ... Jalpigori Kuch Behar ... Dacca Faridpur Bakarganj Maimansinh ... 1,663 1,333 466 1,895 I 1,424 2,304 18,237 12,129 7,322 675 1,768 888 2,741 7,530 26 24 454 2,463 3,157 15,244 f 647 (. 657 991 10,679 3,337 10,766 8,302 1,989 1,714 1,166 1,397 6,844 549 3 S61 2,025 2,026 978 22,361 Chittagong Noakhali Tipperah Patna Gya Shahabad Tirbnt f Darbhanga limut (Mozufierpur Saran Champaran Monghyr Bhagalpur Purniah Maldah Santal Parganas Cuttack Puri Balasore Tributary States Hazaribagh Lohardaga Singbhum Manbhum 524 106 2,510 17,721 11,7133 19,269 } 163,355 36,305 60,152 27,437 43,060 39,141 1,656 2,76" 8,417 262 17,213 1,523 1,466 7,250 "i',671 81 1,720 21,335 12,458 17,928 < 116,228 (. 89,339 22,935 68,209 36,674 42,998 46,632 1,933 66,597 10,983 334 21,331 1,317 3,709 12,318 3,587 53 6,567 5,466 1,705 10,061

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

298 GOEAIT. of their sections, a list of which is given in Appendix I, that they are an offshoot from one of the aboriginal races, while the variant Korait rather suggests that they may be connected with the Kora caste. Resemblances between names, however, are but blind guides in questions of tribal affinity, and I doubt whether we can safely do more than surmise that Korait may probably have been the original name of the caste, which was corrupted .into Gorait from its similarity in sound to the familiar title of the village messenger and watchman. Their specialised and comparatively degraded avocations, and the fact that they are not employed as village messengers, exclude the supposition that the converse process can have been at work, and that the bond of a common occupation may have formed a number of Goraits properly so called into an endog- amous group bearing that name. Indeed, although nearly every village in Behar and Chota Nagpur has its Gorait, the profession, owing perhaps to its members being so scattered, shows no tendency towards hardening into a caste. Goraits marry their daughters both as infants and as adults, Marriaee *"**-t former practice is deemed the more respectable, and is followed by all who can afford it. After the bride has been selected, the parents of the bridegroom go to her parents' house to see her. On this occasion a feast is given by the bride's people, at which the liquor — an essential element in all non-Aryan rejoicings — is provided by the father of the bridegroom, and four annas, eight annas, or one rupee is presented to the bride as muh-dekhi, or fee for the privilege of seeing her face. On the next day the girl's parents visit the boy, and are entertained wholly at his father's expense. Lastly, if both parties are satisfied with this mutual inspection, the boy's people go to the bride's house and present to her a new sari, a he-goat, and Rs. 3 to buy ornaments with. These constitute the bride-price (dali). On the day before the wedding the bridegroom's party march in procession to the bride's house and stop there for the night. Next morning the fathers of the bride and bridegroom shake hands and embrace one another (samdhi mildn). Then, in the presence of some elders of the caste, the headman of the village and the priest of the rural gods (pdhn), who are received with great ceremony, the marriage is completedby the bride and bridegroom smearing vermilion on each other's foreheads (sindurddn), while the elders solemnly exhort them to work hard, eat, drink, and prosper and not get divorced. This meagre ceremony takes place in a bamboo marriage shed (marhwa) ereoted in the courtyard. Brahmans are not called in, and the village barber takes no part in the ceremony. On the evening of the same day the bridegroom's party take the bride and bridegroom, both seated in the same palanquin, to the latter's house, where sindurddn is again performed On that night the bridegroom, if he has attained puberty sleeps with the bride. After three days the couple go to the bride's house and stay there nine days, returning finally to their own home on the tenth day. Polygamy is permitted, and there is no rule limiting the number ot wives. A widow may marry again, and her choice is not fettered

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

299 GOEIA GOEAIT. by the obligation to marry her late husband's younger brother. The ritual used at the marriage differs from that in use at the marriage of a virgin in that no marhica is constructed and the money portion of the bride-price is only Ee. 1. Sindurddn is performed in the presence of the widow's relatives, but there is no marriage procession, and the bride is taken home without any display. According to some authorities if the widow elects to live on with her brother-in-law, it is sufficient to announce this intention to the relatives, and no ceremony of any kind is required. A divorce (chhord-chhuri) may be granted by the caste council (panchayat) if the wife is proved to be unchaste, or if she frequently runs away to her father's house without the permission of her husband. Proceedings may also be initiated by the wife on the ground that her husband is too old for her or is an habitual drunkard. Divorced women may marry again by sagai. Goraits profess to be Hindus, but they have not yet attained to . the dignity of employing Brahmans. They worship Devi Mai and a tribal spirit called Purubia, to whom a goat is sacrificed once a year. In cases of illness an exorcist (mati baigd) is called in to detect the demon or witch who is giving trouble. If this personage ascribes the visitation to the wrath of the tribal god, the pdhn is sent for, and a goat, pig, sheep, or fowl sacrificed. Those who can afford to do so burn the dead, but the bodies of the poor are buried with the head to the north. No regular srdddh is performed. On the tenth day after death the nearest relative of the deceased gets himself shaved and gives a feast to the friends of the family. In point of social status Goraits rank with Lohras and Ghasis, Social status an<^ n0 resPectable people will take water from their hands. They eat beef, pork, and field rats, and indulge freely in spirituous and fermented liquors. As has been already stated, they find employment as hired musicians at weddings and various kinds of festivities, as makers of bamboo combs and carders of cotton. Some are employed in agriculture as non-occupancy raiyats or agricultural labourers (Dhdngars) engaged by the year for a lump sum of Rs. 5 paid down at the time of hiring, one kat and a half (about 38 seers) of paddy per month, and four yards of cloth at the end of the year. In 1881 there were 61 Goraits in Hazaribagh, 3,856 in Lohardaga, and 43 in Singbhum. There was no separate entry for Goraits in 1872. Goraksa, a section of Jugis. Gorhark, a pur or section of S&kadwipi Brahmans in Behar. Gorangi, a title of mendicant Vaishnavas, apparently a variant of Gaurangi. Goria, red earth, a totemistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Goria or Dahiara, a sub-caste of Goalas in Behar who hold the title of Mandar and belong to the Gorea, a sub-section of the Bharadwaja section of Utkal Brahmans in Orissa.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

300 GEIHASTH. GOEIA. Gotanya, a thar or section of Nepali Brahmans. Prem Ghuno gotra. They make butter and sell milk and curds. Also a sub-caste of Dhobas in Manbhum, and of Chamars in Behar who will not make shoes and disown the title Muchi. Goth ar, a section of Murmis in Darjiling. Gothi, a thar or sept of Gu rungs in Darjiling. Goriar, a section of Kurmis in Chota Nagpur and Orissa. Gothwal, a section of Goalas in the North-Western Provinces and Behar. Goro, a sub-caste of Khatwes in Behar ; a sub-caste of Goalas in Chota Nagpur. Gotramasi, a section of Bdruis in Bengal. Gorsar, a sub-caste of Dhobis in Behar. Gotsobhni, a mul or section of the Naomulia or Majraut sub caste of Goalas in Behar. Goru, cow, a totemistic section of Jagannathi Kumhars in Orissa. Govariya, a hypergamous group of Tiyars found in Bhagalpur. Gosain, Gosicdmi, Gonsdi, Gonsid, a master of his passions, a religious mendicant ; a title of a class of Brahmans, the original disciples of Chaitanya, who are spiritual guides of the wor shippers of Vishnu. In Bengal the term is usually applied to Jugis and the Grihi or Grihastha Vaishnavas, who are allowed to marry and follow secular pur suits. It is also used as a com mon title, just as Banarji, Bhat tacharji, etc. Socially it de notes a class of people who manufacture and sell threads, corresponding to _ Jugis. A synonym for Bairagi. Govindpuria, a sub-caste of Telis in Bengal and of Lohars in the Santal Parganas. Gowe, a section of Babhans in Behar. Gozar, a title of Dhobis in Behar. Grahabipra, " Planet-Brah man," a title of Acharji Brah mans. Grahachcirji, Grihdchdrjya, " Teacher of the Planets," a title of Acharji Brahmans. Gosdinji, a synonym for Brahman. Grandan, a section of Murmis in Darjiling. Gosainpanthi, a sect of reli gious mendicants. Granja, a thar or sept of Mangars in Darjiling. Gosti, a thar or sept of Gu rungs in Darjiling. Grihasodhani, a gain of the Batsya gotra of Uttar-Barendra Brahmans in Bengal. Goswalambi, a gain of the Bharadwaja gotra of Barendra Brahmans in Bengal. Grihasth,. a synonym for Babhan; a functional group of Jugis in Bengal composed of Gotama, Gautama, a section of Brahmans.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

301 GULGULIA. GEIHASTH. Guzerat by a Dasnami mendicant named Brahmagiri. See Aoghar. four families — Dhanai Mandal, Jn&nbar, Bhagan Bhajan, and Paban. Guha, a title of Kayasths in Bengal. Grill i, householders, a sept of Mal Paharias in the Santal Parganas. Guhai, Gonhhi, a sub-caste of Baniyas. Gua, areca-nut, a sub-sept of the Hemrom sept of Santals ; a totemistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Gui, a title of Dakshin-Earhi Kayasths ; of Mayaras, Tantis, and of Kaibarttas in Bengal. Gujiar or Godaga, a sub caste of Ahirs or Goalas in Behar who are cow-doctors. Guabari, a mul or section of the Naomulia or Majraut sub caste of Goalas in Behar. Gujrati or Gurjjara, a terri torial division of the Pancha Dravira Brahmans who live in the south of the Vindhya range in Gurjarashtra, the country of the Gujrati language. Persons bear ing this title are found in Behar, they claim to have originally come from Gujrat, and are usually engaged in trade. In Patna they are said to make pickles. Guaburi, the highest thar or sept of Gurungs in Darjiling, whose members, in the absence of a Brahman, are called in to perform the ceremony of nuarmi, that is, the purification of a woman after birth of a child. They are also employed for the ceremonies of marriage and funerals. Gudar, a group of the Aoghar sect of Saiva ascetics founded in Gulgo, a sept of the Bhumij tribe in Manbhum. ©ttlQUllS, a wandering non-Aryan tribe, who live by hunting, teaching monkeys to dance, selling indigenous st™tae aDd interml dru?s' and petty thieving. Their origin is obscure, but it seems likely that they are a branch of the Bediyas. I have been unable to obtain any trustworthy information regarding the internal structure of tbe caste. Some Gulgulias in Gya assured me that they had three sub-castes — Bantari, Pachpania, and Sukwar — and I mention this statement in case it may be of use to other inquirers. My informants seemed to be stupid and ignorant men, and I doubt whether their evidence was worth much. They have a legend that Eukmini, the reputed ancestress ofthe Pasi caste, had a son, called Mohababa, who in his turn had seven sons, Gaiduha, Byadha, Tirsulia, Maghaya, Turk (the Mahomedan Pasi), Gilehri, and Gulgulia. These seven sons challenged each other to jump off the top of a palmyra tree {tar). Gilehri (the squirrel) jumped first and landed unhurt. Tirsulia, who went second, was killed on the spot, whereupon Mohababa, seeing that Gilehri had led the others into trouble, smote him with his hand and cursed him to be reckoned among tbe inferior animals and to be fortunate only in this, that he should jump from great heights and come to no harm. This is the reason why the squirrel is a good jumper and bears the marks of five fingers on his back. The

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

302 GULGTJLIA. story goes on, in a somewhat inconsequent fashion, to say that the next to leave the family was Gulgulia, who observed that his brothers, after serving their customers with tdri, always washed the cup, however low the caste of the man who had drunk from it. This struck the youngest brother — in folklore it is usually the youngest brother who takes a line for himself —as showing a great want of self-respect, and he at once decided to throw over his family and adopt a wandering life. His descendants are true to the traditions of their mythical eponym, and during the dry season at least have no fixed habitations. In the rains they build themselves a sort of tente d'abri about eight feet long by six feet wide, of two bamboo uprights and a ridge pole covered in with a tilt of sirki matting (Saccharum sara, Eoxb.), which reaches to the ground on either side. The whole thing can be struck and carried off at a moment's notice if the owner and his family want to change their quarters in a hurry — a common chance with a tribe of predatory instincts, whom the police are ever ready to credit with every petty theft that baffles their slender detective ability. Such huts or rather tents are usually found on the outskirts of large villages, and the Gulgulias, though they will never admit that they have a fixed residence anywhere, do in fact usually return, if not to the same village, at least to the same neighbourhood, for the rainy season, when frequent shifting even of the most portable habitation is apt to cause much discomfort, especially to people who keep no beasts of burden and carry their house themselves. Gulgulias affect to practise infant-marriage, but admit that . poverty often leads to a girl's marriage being deferred until she has passed the age of puberty. As is the case with gypsies in other parts of the world, their women have a certain reputation for chastity, and sexual indiscre tions are said to be rare. When anything of the kind occurs, the woman in fault is turned out of the oaste, and the man with whom she has gone wrong is fined Es. 10 or so by the chief of the panchayat. This official is elected by an assembly of the local representatives of the caste, and holds office until displaced by the same authority. The marriage ceremony is a meagre copy of the ritual followed by low-caste Hindus. The functions of priest are usually performed by two men selected at the time from the family of the bride and bridegroom, but sometimes the village barber is called in to officiate. A bride-price of from four to six maunds of rice and Es. 3 in cash is usually paid. Polygamy is allowed, but is rarely resorted to owing to tho extreme poverty of the caste. A widow may marry again, and it often happens that she marries her deceased husband's younger brother. To him in any case belongs the custody of her children by her late husband, but in some cases it would appear that the panchayat of the caste exercises the right of allotting the children to the widow in the event of her marrying an outsider. The religion of the Gulgulias appears to be a form of the animism . which characterises the aboriginal races. They worship a host of spiritual powers, whose attri butes are ill-defined, and who are not conceived as wearing any

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

303 GULL GULGTTLIA. bodily form. This at least may be inferred from the fact that they make no images, and that Baktawar, the tutelary deity of the Patna Gulgulias, is represented by a small mound of hardened clay set up in an earthen plate. Among their objects of worship we find also Jagdamai or Devi, Earn Thakur, Baren, Setti, Goraiya, Bandi, Parameswari, and Dak. In Hazaribagh they worship Danu in the form of a stone daubed with five streaks of red lead and set up outside the house. The offerings made to these deities consist usually of rice, milk, fruit, and sweetmeats, which are afterwards eaten by the worshippers. In disposing of the dead they have the curious practice of pouring some country spitit into the dead man's mouth and killing a fowl, so that the spirit may be satisfied and may not come back to trouble his relatives with bad dreams. The corpse is then burned and the ashes thrown into a tank. Although the squirrel is the reputed ancestor of the caste, Gulgulias are so far from regarding the animal as sacred that its flesh forms their favourite food. Spearing squirrels with a series of seven reeds (narsar), which fit one into the other like the joints of a fishing rod, is a pursuit at which they are specially expert, and some say that the name Gulgulia is derived from a peculiar noise, sounding like gul gul, which they make in order to attract the squirrel's attention while they are gradually bringing the narsar within stabbing distance. Another theory is that they are called Gulgulias, ' the chatterers,' because they use a peculiar patois or thieves' slang understood only among themselves. The narsar is also used for spearing birds. Gulgulias never cultivate themselves, but they are in the habit of gleaning what is left on the ground after the crops are cut. Begging, pilfering, and exhibiting goats and monkeys are their chief means of livelihood. They buy monkeys from the Birhors, whom they affect to look down upon for their promiscuous habits in the matter of food. Gulgulias themselves profess to abstain from beef, but they eat pork, field-rats, a variety of small birds and animals, and the leaviugs of all Hindu castes except the Dhobi, Dom, Musahar, Hari, and Chamar. Their women sell drugs and profess to cure a variety of small ailments, such as earache, tooth ache, rheumatism, and the like. It is rumoured that they also know remedies for barrenness, and will supply medicines which facilitate parturition and bring about abortion. The following statement shows the number and distribution of the Gulgulias in 1881. There is no separate entry of them in 1872:— Patna 254 Gya 99 Darbhanga ... ... 113 Monghyr 77 Purniah j25 Hazaribagh. ... ... 436 Singbhum ... ... 12 Hanbhum 92 Guli, a sub-caste of Bagdis in Western Bengal, among whom the men cultivate, while the women catch and sell fish.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

304 GUETOG. GUMI. Gumi, a section of Godlds in the North-Western Provinces and Behar. Gura Gain, a thar of the Dhanjaya gotra oi Nepali Brah mans. Gumia, a sub-caste of Goalas in Behar. Gur6h- a section of Godlds in the North-Western Provinces and Behar. Gun, Guna, a title of Kay asths in Bengal. Gureni, a mul or section of the Tinmulia Madhesia sub-caste of Halwais in Behar. Gundii a section of Kaibart* tas in Orissa. Gundki, a kind of wood, a totemistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. •Suda, the confectioner caste in Orissa. Also a sub-caste of Mallahs in Behar. Gundii, a section of Mahilis in Chota Nagpur. Guri-Bawa, a sub-caste of Koras in Chota Nagpur. Gundri, a bird, a totemistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nag pur. Gurjar Gaura, a sub-caste of Gaura Brahmans. Gungambhir, a section of Kanaujia Lohars in Behar. Gurmachhan, a thar or sept of Mangars in Darjiling. Gunj, a kind of fruit, a totem istio sept of Lohars in Chota Nagpur. Gurni, a vegetable, a totemis tic sept of Mundas in Chota Nag pur. Gunsaiya, a pur or section of Sdkadwipi Brahmans in Behar. Guro, a sept of Thdrus in Behar. Gunwaria, a section of Eaj puts in Bhagalpur, to which the Eaja of Sonbarsa belongs. Guromani, a section of Man gars in Darjiling. Guru, a totemistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur who cannot eat beef. Gupta, a title of Dakshin- Earhi and Bangaja Kayasths, and of Siddha Baidyas in Bengal. Gitrum, a synonym for Gurung in Darjiling. Gupta Rai or Rai Gupta, a title of Baidyas in Bengal. Gurumbo, Gyu-rumbo, a rui or sept of Dejong Lhoris whose ancestor had emigrated from Bhotan. Gur, a gain of the Kasyapa gotra of Barhi Brahmans in Bengal ; a title of Tambulis. dUlttUttg, Gurungd, Gurungdh, one of the best of the fighting tribes of Nepal, divided into two endogamous sub-castes and a num ber of septs shown in Appendix I. Gurungs marry their daughters as adults, and like most Nepalese castes allow great license in the matter of divorce on repayment of the bride-price to the woman's father. Divorced women may marry again by the full ceremony, a privilege denied to the widow who may live with a man, especially

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

GUEUNG. 305 GTON-SAH-PA. with her late husband's younger brother (but not the elder) as his con cubine, but cannot go through any ceremony. The caste was once Buddhist, and is now Hindu, Bhim Sen, the second of the Pandava brethren, being their favourite deity. They still retain pronounced traces of the primitive animism which they professed before their conversion to Buddhism, and worship the mountains and rivers, offering flowers and grass to the former and food to the latter. This worship seems to be of a propitiatory kind, and is celebrated more particularly for recovery from illness or relief from domestic calamity. Brahmans serve them as priests, but if no Brahman is available, a member of the Guaburi thnr may take his place and may perform the ceremonies of marriage and disposal of the dead and nuarmi or purification after childbirth. All Gurungs bury their dead, except members of the Urunta thar, who burn their dead on a hill top and throw the ashes in the air. At funerals a man of the Leh-lama thar casts earth on the grave and recites mystical formulæ (mantras) sup posed to put the soul of the dead man to rest. In other respects the ceremony is the same as that used by the Sunuwar tribe. Gurungs abstain from beef, pork, or vermin, but eat the flesh of the buffalo and wild pigs and the domestic fowl. The four castes — Chattri or Khas, Gurung, Mangar, and Sunuwar — are classed together as mukhya or chief. With members of the other castes included in this group a Gurung will not formally intermarry, but if one of them runs away with his daughter, he will accept the bride-price of Rs. 140 or some definite fraction of that amount. A woman thus married cannot cook rice or dai for her husband, but may make bread or cook meat. If a Gurung steals a wife from one of the other castes in this manner, ber children will be admitted into the Gurung caste, but once admitted they may not eat rice cooked by their mother. If he marries a girl of the Kiranti group, her children are not reckoned as Gurungs. Guru Tashi, the blessed rui or sept of the Tongdu sub-tribe of Dejong Lhoris, of which Guru Pema was guide. Gyasain, a section of the Amasbta Kdyasths in Behar. Gyon-sah-pa, he of the new monastery, a rui or sept of the Bed tshan-gye sub-tribe of Dejong Lhoris or Bhotias of the south. Guta, a title of Dakshin-Barhi Kayasths in Bengal. Gyangmi, a thar or sept of Mangars in Darjiling. V

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

306 HAJAM. HABIBPUE PHUPIDIH. H Hadung, black tree-ant, a totemistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Habibpur Phupidih, a mul or section of the Naomulia or Majraut sub-caste of Goalas in Behar. Hafiz, a reciter of the Koran. Habin, a tree, a totemistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Hah-po, a rui or sept of De jong Lhoris whose ancestor had emigrated from North Bhotan. Hada, a section of Goalas in the North-Western Provinces and Behar. Haiboru Langi, a sept of Hos in Singbhum. Haidibutha, a thar or sept of Khambus in Darjiling. Hadauriar, a pur or section of Sakadwipi Brahmans in Behar. Haio, a thar or sept of Man gars in Darjiling. Hadkwal, a section of Godlds in the North-Western Provinces and Behar. Hajam, a synonym for Bhan dari. J$di, Ndu, Naud, the barber caste of Behar, popu- . . larly supposed to have been specially created by Viswakarma for the convenience of Mahadeva. There are seven sub-castes — Awadhia, Kanaujia or Biahut, Tirhutia, Sribastab or Bastar, Magahiya, Bangali, and Turk- Nauwa. Of these, the Awadhia claim to have come from Oudh ; the Kanaujia from Kanauj ; the Tirhutia are located on the north, and the Magahiya on the south of the Ganges ; the Bangali are immigrants from Bengal into the border districts of Behar ; and the Turk-Nauwa are Muhammadans. The sections Internal structure. r, ,, . *, , • . -i-r**- ■•/ i ot the Awadhia and Kanaujia sub-castes are shown in Appendix I. Most of them are of the territorial type. The former observe a highly complex system of exogamy, which forbids marriage into the sections to which the following relatives belong: — (1) Pather, (2) paternal grand-mother, (3) paternal great grand-mothers, (4) paternal great-great-grand-mothers ; (5) mother, (6) maternal grand-mother, (7) maternal great-grand-mothers. In applying these rules to a particular case, the double method of reckoning explained in the article on Bais is resorted to ; so that if one of the bridegroom's paternal great-great- grand-mothers should have belonged to the same section as one of the bride's great-grand mothers, the marriage will be disallowed, although the bride aud bridegroom themselves belong to different sections. The other sub castes appear either to have no sections or to have borrowed a few 1 Mr. Nesfield calls the Hindu barber Napit, and says that the name Hajam is confined to the Muhammadan barber. This, however, is not the case in Behar.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

307 HAJAM of the Brahmanical gotras. All observe the standard formula for determining prohibited degrees, calculated to seven, or, in the case of the Awadhia, to four generations in the descending line. With rare exceptions, Hajams marry their daughters as infants, and ordinarily pay a small bridegroom-price ( tilak), varying with the means and relative status of the families. The ceremony is of the standard type, sindur ddn being considered the essential and binding portion. Polygamy is permitted if the first wife be barren, but even in this case a man may not have more than two wives. He may marry his wife's younger sister during the former's life-time, but not an elder sister. In all the sub-castes, except the Biahut and Sribastab, widows may marry again, and are restricted by no positive conditions in their selection of a second husband, though it is considered right and proper for a widow to marry her deceased husband's younger brother if there is one. Divorce is not generally recognised by the Hajams of Behar : a faithless wife is turned adrift and ceases to be a member of the caste. In Palamau, the Santal Parganas, and parts of Darbhanga adultery by the wife and incompatibility of temper are admitted as grounds of divorce. A panchayat is summoned to decide the question, and if cause is shown for a divorce a stick is solemnly snapped iu two, a leaf torn, or an earthen vessel broken in pieces to symbolise the rupture of the marriage bond. Divorced wives may marry again by the sagai form. The religion of the caste does not differ materially from the . average Hinduism of the middle classes in Behar. Kanaujia or Srotri Brahmans serve them as priests, and are received on equal terms by other members of the sacred order. In addition to the minor gods recognised throughout Behar, the head of a Hajam household worships Banirdm or Gaiydn with offerings of castrated goats, molasses, sweetmeats, betel leaves, and ganja. Dharm Das, said to have been a Hajam himself, is also worshipped in similar fashion. The dead are burned, and the ceremony of srdddh is performed on the thirteenth day after death. Periodical libations (tarpan) are offered in the month of Asin for the benefit of deceased ancestors. The social standing of the caste is respectable, and Brah- _ . , mans will take water from their hands. Thev Social status. .*. ., •-., , , , ,. • , , , J tbemselves will eat kachchi food prepared by Brahmans, Rajputs, Babhans, and high-caste Banias, and will take pakki articles from members of those castes from whom Brahmans will receive water. Their own rules regarding diet are the same as are followed by most orthodox Hindus, but they are believed not to be very particular as to the use of spirituous liquors. The importance of the place taken by the barber in the consti- tution of the Hindu village community and Occupation. ,, ... .. i*i _• ■_ • tbe religious sanctions on which many ot his functions depend are well brought out by Mr. Nesfield in the follow ing remarks : — " Every child after the age of six months or a year undergoes the ceremony of having its head for the first time touched with the u 2

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

308 HAJAM, razor. This is a ceremony of no little importance in the eyes of a Hindu, and is called chura karan. It is performed in the presence of some deity, or rather in that of his image, who is believed hence forth to take the child under his special patronage. The cutting off of the birth-hair is believed to remove the last trace of the congenital taint inherited from the maternal womb, and hence the ceremony has the same significance as that of a baptismal or lustral rite. The custom of cutting off the birth* hair has been widely practised among backward races elsewhere, and is not at all confined to the natives of India. The germs of tbe barber caste may therefore have existed in times before the Aryan had appeared. " In funeral ceremonies the Napit plays an important part. He shaves the head and pares the nails of the dead preparatory to cremation. He shaves the head of the man who puts the first light to the pyre. Ten days afterwards he shaves the head of every member of the household. By this time, after taking a final bath, they are purified of the contagion of death. " In the celebration of marriage ceremonies he acts as the Brahman's assistant, and to the lowest castes or tribes, who cannot employ a Brahman, he is himself the matrimonial priest. The important part he plays in marriage ceremonies has led to his becom ing the match-maker among all the respectable castes. It is he who hunts out the boy, finds out whether his clan or caste is marriageable with that of the girl, settles the price to be paid on both sides, takes the horoscopes to the Brahman to be compared, so as to see if the stars are favourable, -carries the presents from one house to the other, and so forth. His function as match-maker is not an unimportant one in a state of society in which the rules of caste have imposed endless restrictions on the freedom of marriage. " Shaving is not the only service that he is expected to render to his constituents. He is the ear-cleaner, nail-cutter, cupper, and bleeder, etc. In short, he performs any kind of operation on the body of man that requires a sharp knife, from shaving a beard to lancing a boil. He might therefore be fitly styled a barber-surgeon. In this double capacity he is the exact counterpart of the barber-surgeons of mediæval Europe, out of whom the modern medical profession has sprung. His wife acts as nurse to the mother and child for the last six days of the confinement. During the first six days they are in charge of the midwife — some woman of the less respected castes of Chamar, Dhanuk, or others. She also pares the nails of the new born ohild, and receives a fee for doing so." In Behar the Hajdm is sent round with invitations to weddings and funerals, and announces the birth of a child to the relations in the neigh bourhood. For this he gets a small fee, which is higher in the case of a first-born child, especially if it be a son. Ihe ordinary charge for_ shaving is one pice, but the regular village barber gets a variety of periodical perquisites, and does not charge by the job. Among these perquisites Mr. Grierson mentions' kharwan, an armful of the crop given at harvest-time ; kera, a smaller bundle ; and puri, three handfuls. Many Hajdms, besides practising their 1 Behar Peasant Life p. 319.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

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003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

HAJAM. 309 HAJEA hereditary functions, are also cultivators themselves, but none of them appear to have risen above the status of occupancy raiyats. In some parts of the country they hold tenures granted to them rent free or at a quit-rent by the local zamindars as remuneration for their professional services. In the Chota Nagpur estate such tenures go by the name of bhittdnd, a term which includes the holdings bestowed upon table-servants, gold and silversmiths, grooms, chobddrs or mace-bearers, palanquin-bearers, khakis or men dicants, and prostitutes. While actually in attendance on the Raja, all these people usually received a small daily allowance in addition to the proceeds of their tenures. These lands are not alienable by the holders, and are believed to be liable to resumption when service is no longer required. In the Pachet estate in Manbhum, these petty chdkaran are usually rent-free, but in a few they are subject to a very 6mall quit-rent or mughuli jama. The Turk-nauwd or Muhammadan barber is not so intimately associated with religious offices as his Hindu nauwls! StatUS °f Turk' namesake, and holds a far lower social position. His services are not indispensable, and he is therefore less independent and wayward than the Hindu barber is popularly supposed to be. Musicians (Bajunia) used formerly to be selected from among Muhammadan barbers, but of late the two classes have been gradually separating. Like barbers in other countries, they dabble in medicine and surgery; consequently they are often styled Bhedi, from their skill in extracting worms from decayed teeth, and Mas-Kata, from circumcising boys. In many parts of the country they are also the Abddl, who geld bulls ; but any Mussulman peasant will castrate kids. When not otherwise employed, they cultivate the soil. Their women sell mantras, or magical formulae, against toothache, earache, and neuralgic pains ; and prepare liniments to cure cohe and other internal disorders. The following statement shows the number and distribution of Hajams in 1872 and 1881 :— Hajeri, a kind of tree or bush, a totemistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Hajjam Thakur, a title of barbers in Behar. Hajra, Hazra, (i) in Bengal a title of Kaibarttas; {ii) in Behar a title of Dosadhs, used in practice as a synonym for the caste. District. 1872. 1881. DlBTBICT. 1872. 1881. Birbhum 24-Parganas Dinajpur Rangpur Darjiling Faridpur Patna Gya Shahabad Tirbnt fMozuflerpur lirhut (Darbhanga 25,570 87,190 25,808 | 69,536 3 8 63 39 138 1 29,165 37,859 29,153 f 38,643 I 81,951 Saran Champaran Monghyr Bhagalpur Purniah Santal Parganas ... Hazaribagh Lohardaga Singbhum Manbhum Tributary States ... 29,022 20,867 27,020 27,181 18,350 12,338 16,2311 11,739 1,875 13,504 1,413 31,844 21,109 39.106 33,927 18,704 7,628 23,659 14,080 275 26 2,946

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

310 HAKfM. HALWAI. Hakim, a Mahomedan physi- Ha Id i a, a sub-caste of Telis in Orissa and Chota Nagpur, characterised by their practice of yoking a pair of bullocks in their oil-presses. oian. Hakkdk, a maker of glass beads, a lapidary ; an occupation usually followed by Mahomedans. Halia Balai, a hypergamous group of Kaibarttas in Bakar ganJ- Haladhar, a title of Chasa dhobas and Kaibarttas in Bengal. Hdlid-Dds, a synonym for and a sub-caste of Kaibarttas. Halalkhor (halat, 'lawful,' and khordan, 'to eat,') one to whom all food is lawful : hence, a sweeper. A class of Mahom edan mehtars ; also a class of musicians; a synonym for Mehtar, Khakrob, and Bhangi. Halia, Mahasthan or Mastan, a sub-caste of Utkal Brahmans in Orissa. Halik, a sub-caste of Kaibart tas in Maldah. Haidar, a title of Srotriya Brahmans, Kayasths, Banias, and Telis ; a title of honour amongst the lower castes, such as Kai barttas, Kapalis, Chandals, Chdsadhobds, Mais, and some Mahomedans in Bengal. Halkhori, a class of musicians who sing and play on pipes. Haludbona, a group of the Ekddas Telis in Bengal. Halui, a gain or sub-section of Saptasati Brahmans in Bengal. Baluikar, a variant for Halwai. Haldar-Paramanik, a sub caste of Napits in the 24- Parganas. Halwa, a functional group of Jugis in Bengal. Mithiyd, the confectioner caste of Behar, often con- founded with the Kandu, who is properly a Origin. grain-parcher, though he also deals in sweet meats. The two castes, however, are entirely distinct, and do not intermarry with one another. The name Halwai is derived from hnlwd, a sweetmeat made of flour, clarified butter, and sugar, coloured with saffron and flavoured with almonds, raisins, and pistachio nuts. The sub-castes and sections of Halwais are shown in Appendix I. They give no clue to the origin of the caste, which is clearly a functional group composed of members of respectable middle-class castes who adopted the profession of sweetmeat-making. The sections, which are very numerous, seem to be of the territorial type, and bear no traces of either totemism or eponymy. The rule of exogamy is carefully observed. A man may not marry a woman of his own section, or of the seotions to which his mother and his paternal grandmother belong. These sections, moreover, are taken into account on both sides ; so that if the proposed bride's mother belonged to the same section as the bridegroom's paternal grand-mothei , no marriage can take place, although the parties themselves belong to different sections. Prohibited degrees are reckoned by the standard formula calculated to seven generations in the descending Une.

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

311 HALWAI, As a general rule Halwais marry their daughters as infants, but . they do not take an extreme view of the necessity of doing so, and no slur attaches to a man who from poverty or any other reason is unable to get his daughter married before she attains the age of puberty. In fact some Halwais of the Kanaujia sub-caste have assured me that they do not think it right to get their daughters married under eleven or twelve years of age. The marriage ceremony in vogue does not differ materially from that used by other Behar castes of about the same social standing. Sindurddn, or the smearing of vermilion on the bride's forehead and the parting of her hair, is deemed to be the binding portion of the ritual. Polygamy is permitted when the first wife is barren, but in no case may a man have more than two wives. A widow may marry again by the sagai form. She is free to choose any one she will for her second husband, provided that the prohibited degrees are observed ; and she is not required to marry her late husband's younger brother or cousin, as is the custom in some castes. In practice, however, it often happens that she does marry the next brother, as he in any case can claim the custody of the children she may have had by her first husband. A very singular custom is observed when a bachelor marries a widow. The ceremony takes place, as is the usual practice, in the widow's house, but before going there tbe bridegroom is formally married in his own house to a sword or a piece of iron, which he bedaubs with vermilion as if it were his bride. With this may be compared the usage common among the Kandu caste of marrying to a sword a daughter who by reason of some physical defect is not considered likely to find a husband. The theory seems to be that the full marriage ceremony is a sort of sacrament, which must be partaken of by every one at least once in life. On the question of divorce there is some difference of practice among the sub-castes. The Kanaujia and Pachimi- Madhesia do not recognise the authority of the panchayat as between husband and wife, and if a woman proves faithless turn her out of the house without further ceremony. In the Magahiya and Purbiya- Madhesia sub-castes a charge of unchastity on the part of the wife or of persistent ill-treatment on the part of the husband is laid before the panchdyat or caste council, who, after taking evidence and hearing what both parties have to say, may dissolve the marriage, either party being at liberty to marry again. The majority of the caste are Vaishnavas, and comparatively . few adherents of other sects are found among them. For religious and ceremonial purposes they employ Maithil Brahmans, who are received on equal terms by all other members of the sacred order, except by those who regard it as unworthy of a Brahman to serve any man as priests. The minor god Ghamnath is worshipped on Saturdays with offerings of rice, fruit, and sweetmeats, which are afterwards eaten by the members of the household. At marriages a fee of one anna is paid by the bride, and two annas by the bridegroom for the worship of this deity. The members of the caste also hold in honour Bandi, Goraiyd, and other minor gods of Behar, and many of them are adherents of the Panch

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

312 HALWAI. Piriya sect. Halwdis burn their dead and perform the ceremony of srdddh on the thirty-first day after death. The social standing of the Halwai is respectable, and Brahmans will take water from his hands. " His art," says Mr. Nesfield, ■' implies rather an advanced stage of culture, and hence his rank in the social scale is a high one. There is no caste in India which is too pure to eat what a confectioner has made. In marriage banquets it is he who supplies a large part of the feast, and at all times and seasons the sweetmeat is a favourite viand to a Hindu requiring temporary refreshment. There is a kind of bread called puri, which contains no sugary element, but yet it is specially prepared by men of the confectioner caste. It consists of wheaten dough fried in melted butter, and is taken as a substitute for the chapdti or wheaten pancake by travellers and others who happen to be unable to have their bread cooked at their own fire. With the exception of Brahmans, there is no class of men in India which declines to eat a buttered pancake prepared by the Halwai ; and considering the immense amount of fuss (involving even forfeiture of caste) which is attached to the domestic fire-place, this says much for the respect in which the Halwai is held. As in the case of the Bari, the caste which makes leaf-plates for all classes of the community, considerations of general convenience have no doubt contributed something to the social respectability of the confectioner caste." The rules of the caste regard ing their own diet are much the same as those followed by other Hindus of about the same standing. None of them will eat the leavings of the higher castes, even of the Brahmans who serve them as priests ; and members of the Madhesia sub-caste profess to abstain from wine. Only a small proportion of the caste have taken to agriculture, and those are mostly occupancy .cupa ion. raiyats. Men of the Magahia and Bantiria sub-castes are often servants or petty shop-keepers, and many Magahia Halwdis combine grain-parching with the characteristic business of their caste. The Mahomedan Halwdis found in most districts of Bengal are an entirely distinct class, and there is no reason to suppose that they are recruited by conversion from among the ranks of the Hindu confectioners. Aocording to Dr. Wise, the art of preserving fruits in sugar or vinegar is unknown to the Hindus, and all the preserves procurable in the bazars of the East are made by the Musalman Halwai, who, however, destroys by too many spices and by excess of sugar the natural flavour of tho fruit. The Halwdi prepares jams of mango, cocoanut, ginger, and bil, and candies oranges, citrons, and bil fruit. The pickles (dchdr), consumed in large quantities by all Muhammadans, are of three kinds, prepared with vinegar, mustard oil, or salt. The Halwai likewise makes his own vinegar with sugar, molasses, and water, and with it preserves vegetables and fruits of all kinds. Mangoes and limes are, however, often preserved in mustard oil to which pounded mustard seed has been added. Jdraka, or fruit in brine, is highly recommended as an aid to digestion when eaten as dessert. Arab pedlars bring the best to Bengal, but in Dacca the aromatic lime, known

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

HALWAI. 313 HANSI. as kdghazi, from the fineness of its rind, is usually preserved in this way. The following statement shows the number and distribution of Halwais in 1872 and 1881 :— Hamdcibadi, a section of So nars in Behar. Han, nest of ants, a totemistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Handi, a section of theBahan najati sub-caste of Khatris in Bengal. Handi, earthen vessel, a sub sept of the Murmu sept of San tals. Hansa, wild goose or swan, a totemistic sept of Mundas and Gonds in Chota Nagpur ; a sec tion of Kumhars in Jessore. Hansa, a section of the Maga hiya, Paehainya, and Tirhutiya sub-castes of Doms in Behar. Hansadaha-Paramanik, a sub-caste of Napits in the 24- Parganas. Hansarishi, a Brahmanical section of Khatris in Bengal. Hangam, the king's officer, a sept of the Midkhola sub-tribe of Limbus in Darjiling. Hansarwar, duck, a sept of Kharwars in Chota Nagpur. Hanjait, kutuna fruit, a to temistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Hansda, Hasdak or Hasda giar, a totemistic sept of the Bhumij, Turis, Kharwars, Kords, Hos, Kurmis, Korwas, Santals and Mahilis in Chota Nagpur, the members of which will not touch, kill, or eat a wild goose. Hanre, a bird, a totemistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Hanriao, a mul or section oi the Tinmulia Madhesia sub-caste of Halwdis in Behar. Hansi, a title of Tantis in Bengal and a section of Maj raut Godlds in Behar. Hans, 6wan, a totemistic sept of Kharwars in Chota Nagpur. District. 1872. 1881. District. 1872. 1881. Bardwan Bankura Birbhum Midnapur Hughli Howrah ;24- Parganas ... Nadiya Jessore Murshedabad ... Dinajpur Rajshahye ... Rangpur Bogra Pabna Darjiling Jalpigori Kucb Behar ... Dacca Bakarganj Maimansinh ... Chittagong c o © +•3 o J3 96 1 698 129 230 1 351 1,694 105 614 1,107 85 195 68 208 180 159 282 778 13 41 2 Patna Gya Shahabad Tirhut fMozuflerpur ... ilrlmt I Darbhanga ... Saran Champaran Monghyr Bhagalpur Purniah MaWah Santal Parganas Cuttack Puri Balasore Tributary States Hazaribagh Lohardagd Singbhum Manbhum ... Tributary States 9,716 11,126 4,552 } 45,567 1,105 3,289 14,918 21,096 7,889 "8,624 11 1 1,040 7 2,079 2,995 660 9,640 258 10,148 13.i'64 4,1-35 f 10,722 ( 38.3)3 1,567 4,735 15,895 22,287 9,905 69 4,178 65 13 1,044 109 2,213 3,051 104 2,765 667 0 T3 G) "3 g & 3 6<

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English

003109315

1891

The Tribes and Castes of Bengal ... Ethnographic glossary. (Official edition, circulated for criticism.)

Calcutta

314 HAEI HANSI-TANTI. Harchanpuria, a section of the Banodhia and Jaiswar Kalwars in Behar. Hansi-Tanti, a sub-caste of Tantis in Orissa. Hansnemba, a sept of the Panthar sub-tribe of Limbus in Darjiling. Harda, a section of Godlds in the North-Western Provinces and Behar. Hansota, a section of the Pachainya sub-caste of Doms in Behar. Hardi, turmeric, a totemistic sept of Lohars in Chota Nagpur. Hanthi, elephant, a sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Hardial, a section of Bais Sonars in Behar. Hanuman, monkey, a totem istic sept of Mundas and Chiks in Chota Nagpur; a section of Sondrs in Behar. Hard war, a sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Hardwar, a section of the Biyahut and Kharidaha Kalwdrs ; a mul or section of the Ayodhia basi sub-caste of Sonars in Behar. Har, a gain of the Kasyapa gotra of Rarhi Brahmans in Bengal. Har, plough, a totemistic sept of Korwas in Chota Nagpur ; a section of theTirhutiya sub- caste of Doms in Behar. Hargambai, a section of the Amashta sub-caste of Kayasths in Behar. Hard, a sept of Eajputs in Hargamia, a section of Awa dhia Hajams in Behar. Behar. Harabans, a sept of _ the Suryabansi sub-tribe of Rajputs in Behar. Hargurra, bone, a totemistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur. Hararia, a section of Bab hans in Behar. Hari, a synonym for Kord, used inaccurately by outsiders only ; a synonym for Bhuinmdli ; a sub-caste of Ghdsis in Chota Nagpur ; a totemistic sept of Mundas in Chota Nagpur whose ancestors are said not to have washed their mouths after eating ; a section of the Dhapra sub-caste of Doms in Behar. Harbang, a sept of Tipperahs in the Hill Tracts of Chitta gong- Harbans, a sept of Chamars and Doms in Chota Nagpur, the members of which cannot wear bones in any shape. |j)ari, Mihtar, Har -San tan, a menial and scavenger caste of Bengal Proper, which Dr. Wise identifies with the Bhuinmdli and regards as "the remnant of a Hiuduised aboriginal tribe which was driven into Bengal by the Aryans or the persecuting Muhammadans." This conjecture is borne out by the physical features of the caste, and by the faot that

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e

Risley, Herbert Hope, Sir, k.c.i.e [person]

2 volumes (8°)

English