Bharbhunja (Hindu)
Encyclopedia
The Bharbhunja are a largely Hindu
caste found in North India
and Maharashtra
. They are also known as Kalenra in Maharashtra
, Mehra in Punjab
and in Uttar Pradesh
. A small number are also found in the Terai
region of Nepal
.
word bhunja, which means gram, and the community was involved with roasting gram. They were said to have originally belonged to the Jhinwar
caste
, but split off from them when they took to roasting gram. There is no intermarriage between the two communities now. The majority of the Bharbhunja are Hindu
, except a section in Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh
, who form a separate community of Muslim Bharbhunja
. A small number in Punjab
and Haryana
. Those in Haryana
and Punjab
speak Punjabi
.
In Maharashtra
, there are three distinct communities of the Bharbhunja, the Bhad Bhunjari, the Pardeshi Bhunjari and the Bhoi Bhunjari. All the three groups claim their origin from different regions, with Bhad Bhunjari claiming their origin from Gujarat, the Pardeshi from Madhya Pradesh
, and the Bhoi from Rajasthan
. Each of these groups is endogamous, and do not intermarry. They are also separated by language, with the Bhad Bhunjari still speaking Gujarati
, while the other groups speak Marathi
. The Bhad Bhunjari are now found mainly in the districts of Nasik, Pune
, Thane
, Ahmednagar and the city of Mumbai
.
and Hindu
Bharbhunja, and the two are now practically distinct communities.
In Punjab
, the Bharbhunja are also known as Mehra. They speak Punjabi
, and are strictly endogamous. Like other Punjab
communities, they practice gotra
exogamy. Their main gotras are the Behal, Samala, Dehn, Sinhotra, Lendichuk and Memotra. The community are now largely small shop keepers, with very few still involved in grain parching.
The Maharashtra
Bharbhunja are still involved in their traditional occupation of selling parched grain
. A significant numbers are now businessmen, and they were one of the few artisan castes to have made the change over to modern economy fairly successfully. The Bharbhunja are strictly endogamous, and practice clan exogamy. A few of their clans are the Parmar, Powar, Parotia, Jadhav, Shinde and Chowhan, which are also used as surnames.
, the Bhabhunja are referred to as the Bhurji. They are still involved in their traditional occupation of grain parching. wage of the parcher is fixed in terms of the proportion of grain that is parched. They purchase the grain from agrarian castes such as the Kurmi
. The Bhurji live in multi-caste villages, often occupying their own quarters.
The Bhurji are strictly endogamous, and practice clan exogamy.The Bhurji are Hindu
, and their tribal deities include Panchon Pir and Baram Baba. They are found throughout Uttar Pradesh
, but their place is taken by the Kandu
in eastern Uttar Pradesh
, another caste
traditionally associated with grain parching. The community speak the Khari boli dialect in the west, and Bhojpuri in the east.
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
caste found in North India
North India
North India, known natively as Uttar Bhārat or Shumālī Hindustān , is a loosely defined region in the northern part of India. The exact meaning of the term varies by usage...
and Maharashtra
Maharashtra
Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...
. They are also known as Kalenra in Maharashtra
Maharashtra
Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...
, Mehra in Punjab
Punjab (India)
Punjab ) is a state in the northwest of the Republic of India, forming part of the larger Punjab region. The state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the east, Haryana to the south and southeast and Rajasthan to the southwest as well as the Pakistani province of Punjab to the...
and in Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
. A small number are also found in the Terai
Terai
The Terai is a belt of marshy grasslands, savannas, and forests located south of the outer foothills of the Himalaya, the Siwalik Hills, and north of the Indo-Gangetic Plain of the Ganges, Brahmaputra and their tributaries. The Terai belongs to the Terai-Duar savanna and grasslands ecoregion...
region of Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
.
Origin
The Bharbhunja derive their name from the HindiHindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
word bhunja, which means gram, and the community was involved with roasting gram. They were said to have originally belonged to the Jhinwar
Jhinwar
Bold text°The Jhinwar are a Hindu caste and Sikh caste found in the states of Haryana and Punjab in India. They are also known as Dhimar, Jhimar and Kashyap Rajputs...
caste
Caste
Caste is an elaborate and complex social system that combines elements of endogamy, occupation, culture, social class, tribal affiliation and political power. It should not be confused with race or social class, e.g. members of different castes in one society may belong to the same race, as in India...
, but split off from them when they took to roasting gram. There is no intermarriage between the two communities now. The majority of the Bharbhunja are Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
, except a section in Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
, who form a separate community of Muslim Bharbhunja
Bharbhunja
The Bharbhunja are a Muslim community found in the states of Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh in India. In Uttar Pradesh, the community are also known as Bharbhunja Shaikh.- Origin :...
. A small number in Punjab
Punjab (India)
Punjab ) is a state in the northwest of the Republic of India, forming part of the larger Punjab region. The state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the east, Haryana to the south and southeast and Rajasthan to the southwest as well as the Pakistani province of Punjab to the...
and Haryana
Haryana
Haryana is a state in India. Historically, it has been a part of the Kuru region in North India. The name Haryana is found mentioned in the 12th century AD by the apabhramsha writer Vibudh Shridhar . It is bordered by Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to the north, and by Rajasthan to the west and south...
. Those in Haryana
Haryana
Haryana is a state in India. Historically, it has been a part of the Kuru region in North India. The name Haryana is found mentioned in the 12th century AD by the apabhramsha writer Vibudh Shridhar . It is bordered by Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to the north, and by Rajasthan to the west and south...
and Punjab
Punjab (India)
Punjab ) is a state in the northwest of the Republic of India, forming part of the larger Punjab region. The state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the east, Haryana to the south and southeast and Rajasthan to the southwest as well as the Pakistani province of Punjab to the...
speak Punjabi
Punjabi language
Punjabi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by inhabitants of the historical Punjab region . For Sikhs, the Punjabi language stands as the official language in which all ceremonies take place. In Pakistan, Punjabi is the most widely spoken language...
.
In Maharashtra
Maharashtra
Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...
, there are three distinct communities of the Bharbhunja, the Bhad Bhunjari, the Pardeshi Bhunjari and the Bhoi Bhunjari. All the three groups claim their origin from different regions, with Bhad Bhunjari claiming their origin from Gujarat, the Pardeshi from Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh , often called the Heart of India, is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and Indore is the largest city....
, and the Bhoi from Rajasthan
Rajasthan
Rājasthān the land of Rajasthanis, , is the largest state of the Republic of India by area. It is located in the northwest of India. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert , which has an edge paralleling the Sutlej-Indus river valley along its border with...
. Each of these groups is endogamous, and do not intermarry. They are also separated by language, with the Bhad Bhunjari still speaking Gujarati
Gujarati language
Gujarati is an Indo-Aryan language, and part of the greater Indo-European language family. It is derived from a language called Old Gujarati which is the ancestor language of the modern Gujarati and Rajasthani languages...
, while the other groups speak Marathi
Marathi language
Marathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
. The Bhad Bhunjari are now found mainly in the districts of Nasik, Pune
Pune
Pune , is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula ...
, Thane
Thane
Thane , is a city in Maharashtra, India, part of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, northeastern suburb of Mumbai at the head of the Thane Creek. It is the administrative headquarters of Thane district. On 16 April 1853, G.I.P...
, Ahmednagar and the city of Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
.
Present circumstances
Like other occupational castes, the community has seen a decline in their traditional occupation. A majority of the community are now wage labourers, with a small number being petty businessmen. However, the decline in their traditional occupation has not seen a weakening of their identity. The community remains endogamous, and practices clan exogamy. Furthermore, there is no intermarriage between SikhSikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
and Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
Bharbhunja, and the two are now practically distinct communities.
In Punjab
Punjab (India)
Punjab ) is a state in the northwest of the Republic of India, forming part of the larger Punjab region. The state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the east, Haryana to the south and southeast and Rajasthan to the southwest as well as the Pakistani province of Punjab to the...
, the Bharbhunja are also known as Mehra. They speak Punjabi
Punjabi language
Punjabi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by inhabitants of the historical Punjab region . For Sikhs, the Punjabi language stands as the official language in which all ceremonies take place. In Pakistan, Punjabi is the most widely spoken language...
, and are strictly endogamous. Like other Punjab
Punjab (India)
Punjab ) is a state in the northwest of the Republic of India, forming part of the larger Punjab region. The state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the east, Haryana to the south and southeast and Rajasthan to the southwest as well as the Pakistani province of Punjab to the...
communities, they practice gotra
Gotra
In the Hindu society, the term Gotra broadly refers to people who are descendants in an unbroken male line from a common male ancestor. Panini defines gotra for grammatical purposes as apatyam pautraprabhrti gotram , which means "the word gotra denotes the progeny beginning with the son's son"...
exogamy. Their main gotras are the Behal, Samala, Dehn, Sinhotra, Lendichuk and Memotra. The community are now largely small shop keepers, with very few still involved in grain parching.
The Maharashtra
Maharashtra
Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...
Bharbhunja are still involved in their traditional occupation of selling parched grain
Parched grain
Parched Grain is grain that has been cooked by dry roasting. It is an ancient foodstuff and is thought to be one of the earliest ways in which the hunter gatherers in the Fertile Crescent ate grains...
. A significant numbers are now businessmen, and they were one of the few artisan castes to have made the change over to modern economy fairly successfully. The Bharbhunja are strictly endogamous, and practice clan exogamy. A few of their clans are the Parmar, Powar, Parotia, Jadhav, Shinde and Chowhan, which are also used as surnames.
The Bhurji of Uttar Pradesh
In Uttar PradeshUttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
, the Bhabhunja are referred to as the Bhurji. They are still involved in their traditional occupation of grain parching. wage of the parcher is fixed in terms of the proportion of grain that is parched. They purchase the grain from agrarian castes such as the Kurmi
Kurmi
The Kurmi are a Hindu agricultural Jāti in India.The group has been associated with the Kunbi, though scholars differ as to whether the terms are synonymous. In 2006, the Indian government announced that Kurmi was considered synonymous with the Kunbi and Yellam castes in Maharashtra...
. The Bhurji live in multi-caste villages, often occupying their own quarters.
The Bhurji are strictly endogamous, and practice clan exogamy.The Bhurji are Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
, and their tribal deities include Panchon Pir and Baram Baba. They are found throughout Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
, but their place is taken by the Kandu
Kandu
The Kandu are a Hindu caste in India, Bangladesh and Nepal. They traditionally provided parched grains and are one of the Bania castes in the Vaishya Varna. In Bihar, Kandu often use Gupta as a surname. Kandu living in Nepal are also called Kanu...
in eastern Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
, another caste
Caste
Caste is an elaborate and complex social system that combines elements of endogamy, occupation, culture, social class, tribal affiliation and political power. It should not be confused with race or social class, e.g. members of different castes in one society may belong to the same race, as in India...
traditionally associated with grain parching. The community speak the Khari boli dialect in the west, and Bhojpuri in the east.