Lohana
Lohana, also referred to as Loharana, Thakkar and Lohrana, are an Indian caste. Lohanas claim to be descendants of the Luva, son of Rama, and to descend from the Raghuvanshi dynasty. The Lohanas are divided into many separate cultural groups as a result of centuries apart in different regions. Thus there are significant differences between the culture, language, professions and societies of Gujarati Lohanas, Sindhi Lohanas, Kutchi Lohanas. Origin. According to "Hinguladri Khanda" ("Skanda Purana"), Lohanas are originally Rathores According to historian Richard Burton, Lohanas originate in Lohanpur in Multan district of Punjab (now in Pakistan). Pierre Lachaier comments  that their name derives from the city of Lohargadh in Lahore district of Punjab (now in Pakistan). Matthew A. Cook adds that according to Burton, Lohana's largely Punjabi origin can be considered on basis of "features and manners, ceremonies and religious opinions as well as their surnames." According to Jürgen Schaflechner, there are many similarities between Punjabi Khatris and Lohanas, both of whom recruited Saraswat Brahmins as priests, have common religious rituals, mythologies, and even intermarried. Many Punjabi Khatris and Bhatias were also absorbed into the Lohana fold. Historian U.T. Thakur also mentions about similarties among Lohanas, Aroras and  Khatris such as common totem based surnames. Sub-divisions. Vast majority of Sindhi Hindus are Lohanas. Sindhi Lohanas have since been divided into several groups, among which are: For hundreds of years, the Sindhi Lohanas absorbed other communities from the western Indian subcontinent. History. According to Chachnama, Samma was a branch of Lohana tribe. Ala al-Din Khiljl (1296-1316) mounted a number of campaigns in the region battling the Sumra princes whose cycle of capitulation/rebellion could be charted exactly to the perceived military stress on the metropole. Yet, the Delhi Sultans and their governor rarely resorted to invading  Sumra held ter- ritories - relying, instead, on alliances with tribal elite and local power struggles. Against the Sumras, Khiljl advanced the cause of the Lohana tribe of Samma. The conflict guaranteed a rolling supply of princes and tribal chiefs wanting alliances with the center. The tussle for dominance between the Sumras and the Samma lasted until the reign of Firuz Shah Tughluq (1351- 1388), when the Jam emirs of Samma were finally able to end Sumra dominance, taking over lower Sindh. Formation of Khoja and Memon Islamic communities. The community's oral history says that the decline of their kingdom  began after the death of Veer Dada Jashraj. It also says that their name derives from the city of Lohargadh (/Lohanpur/Lohkot) in Lahore, from which they migrated in the 13th century after the establishment of Muslim rule there. Pir Sadardin converted some Lohanas to the Shia Ismaili Nizari sect of Islam in the 15th century. As Lohanas were worshippers of Shakti, the emergence of a devotional Ismaili oral tradition that incorporated indigenous conceptions of religion, known as ginans, played a role in the forming of a new ethnic caste-like grouping. This group came to be known as Khojas  (from Khawaja), a title given by Sadardin, that would predominantly merge into what is now understood as the Nizari Ismaili branch of Shia Islam. In 1422, Jam Rai Dan was tribal leader in Sindh during the Samma Dynasty; he was converted to Islam by Sayad Eusuf-ud-Din and he adopted a new name Makrab Khan. At that time a person named Mankeji was head of 84 nukhs of Lohanas, who were in favour in court of that Samma king. He was persuaded by ruler and the Qadri to convert to Islam. However, not all Lohanas were ready to convert  from Hinduism. But 700 Lohana families comprising some 6,178 persons converted in Thatta, Sindh. These are now known as Memons (from Mumins). Post-Partition. After the Partition of British India in 1947, Lohanas from Kutch and Sindh migrated in large numbers to Gujrat, mostly to Kutch, Ahemdabad and Vadodara. Many also settled in Maharashtra in Mumbai, Mulund, Pune, and Nagpur. Overseas diaspora. Thousands of Hindu Gujaratis left India between 1880 - 1920 and migrated to British colonies in the African Great Lakes region of Uganda, Kenya and Tanganyika. A significant number of these came from the Patidar and Lohana communities. At  that time, however, there was already a bustling merchant class diaspora of Gujarati Muslims in these countries. The Lohana migrants to East Africa, of which there were 40,000 in 1970, came mainly from the Saurashtran cities of Jamnagar and Rajkot. Many Lohanas set up businesses in those countries, two of the most successful being those set up by Nanji Kalidas Mehta and Muljibhai Madhvani. In the later part of 20th century, following the independence of British colonies, and particularly after Idi Amin's expulsion order for South Asians in 1972, most Lohanas moved to the United Kingdom, and to a  lesser extent to United States and Canada. In the UK, the highest concentration of Lohanas and other Gujarati Hindu communities is around the West London suburbs of Wembley and Harrow, and the city of Leicester in the East Midlands region of England. Society and culture. Lohanas largely follow Hindu rituals and worship Hindu deities such as Krishna. They worship avatars of Vishnu such as Rama with his consort Sita and Krishna in the form of Shrinathji. They worship Shakti in the form of Ravirandal Mataji, and Ambika. The 19th century saints Jalaram Bapa, and Yogiji Maharaj, also attract many Lohana  devotees. Their main clan deities are Veer Dada Jashraj, Harkor Ba, Sindhvi Shree Sikotar Mata and Dariyalal. The Sun is also worshipped by the community. Some Lohana branches worship Hinglaj as a clan goddess. The Lohanas, Bhatias, and Khatris were close communities and were known to intermarry. The Lohanas recruit Saraswat Brahmins as priests.