page_title: Pahari people
section_title: Society
hierarchical_section_title: Pahari people / Society
caption_attribution_description: English: Rana Bahadur Shah, King of Nepal (1777-1799) and Mukhtiyar of Nepal (1804-1806)
context_page_description: The Pahari people, also called Pahadi and Parbati, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group of the Himalayas living in the Himalayan regions of India and share cultural and linguistic ties with Nepal's Khas-Arya. In Nepal, the Paharis constituted one of the largest ethnic group at about 8,000,000, or one-third of the Nepalese population through the 1990s. Most Indo-Aryan Paharis, however, identify as members of constituent subgroups and castes within the larger Pahari community such as Brahmin, Rajput and Dalits.
  The name Pahari derives from pahar, meaning "hill", and corresponds to the Himalayan Hill Region which the Paharis inhabit. Nepali interpretation generally includes Pahari as constituting the dominant Khas, indicating a contrast to that of these Indo-Aryan ethnicities with that of the adibasi janjati or tribal origins like Magar, Tamang, Gurung, Kirant, among others. Pahari may also contrast geography alone.
context_section_description: The most prominent features of Nepalese Pahari society have been the Chhetri Shah dynasty (1768–2008), the Rana Prime Ministers that marginalized the monarchy (1846–1953), and its upper-caste presence in the armed forces, police, and government of Nepal. The King of Nepal himself was a member of the Chhetri Thakuri subcaste. In traditional and administrative professions, upper-caste Paharis were given favourable treatment by the royal government.
  Historically, Hindu Paharis have practiced a spectrum of marital customs including monogamy, polygamy (both polyandry and polygyny), and group marriage. Girls under age 10 may be betrothed, though they cohabit with their husbands only when they reach maturity. Wives must be faithful to their husbands while with them, however when wives visit their parents, they may behave as if unmarried. Most upper-caste Paharis do not practice cross-cousin marriage, however the aristocratic Thakuri subcaste allows marriage of maternal cross-cousins. Among all Paharis, remarriage by widows is formally prohibited by social norms; however an institution called "Jari" ( Sanskrit "Jarah" debauchery, paramour) exists. In this practice among Pahari hill dwellers, a woman will take a paramour, leaving her first husband. The second husband must pay the first husband "Jar dine" for the loss of his wife. Among Pahari families, death is treated by both burial and cremation. Low status individuals, such as children and some women are buried. Also, indigenous healers known as "Jhankri" are buried with their fontanelle pierced to allow their spirit to rise to the spirit world. Others, high caste and wealthy, are cremated per classic HIndu tradition.
caption: King of Nepal, Rana Bahadur Shah belonged to Pahari community
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