Nai (caste)
Encyclopedia
The word Nai refers to a particular profession, that of cutting hair, running beauty salon
Beauty salon
A beauty salon or beauty parlor is an establishment dealing with cosmetic treatments for men and women...

s, makeup or facelift
Facelift
Facelift is the common name for rhytidectomy, a cosmetic surgery procedure.Facelift may also refer to:* Facelift , the revival of a product through cosmetic means such as changing its appearance...

 clinics, beauty parlours, etc. among 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...

s, Sikh
Sikh
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"...

s or Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...

s in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

. They are also referred to as Nai and Nai-Thakur, Sains. In Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...

, the Nai (Urdu: نائی) or hairdresser were following it as a family tradition. Now, many Nais are educated and have left their family profession. Men and women belonging to different 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...

s or social groups: Brahmin
Brahmin
Brahmin Brahman, Brahma and Brahmin.Brahman, Brahmin and Brahma have different meanings. Brahman refers to the Supreme Self...

s, Rajput
Rajput
A Rajput is a member of one of the patrilineal clans of western, central, northern India and in some parts of Pakistan. Rajputs are descendants of one of the major ruling warrior classes in the Indian subcontinent, particularly North India...

s, Punjabi
Punjabi people
The Punjabi people , ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ), also Panjabi people, are an Indo-Aryan group from South Asia. They are the second largest of the many ethnic groups in South Asia. They originate in the Punjab region, which has been been the location of some of the oldest civilizations in the world including, the...

s, Jats and other castes are adopting this profession and becoming rich in modern India.

History and origin

According to their legends, the persons from the upper castes took up this profession to earn their livelihood. In earlier times, when a person who chose a particular job, he was to be called by that particular profession
Profession
A profession is a vocation founded upon specialized educational training, the purpose of which is to supply disinterested counsel and service to others, for a direct and definite compensation, wholly apart from expectation of other business gain....

, and it was very difficult for him to change his profession or social status and accordingly a particular community was formed. They were in minority as only one or two persons used to adopt the job from the upper caste or it could be said that from the majority caste/tribe. Now, anybody, whether he is Brahmin, Rajput or Jat is adopting and doing the job of barber
Barber
A barber is someone whose occupation is to cut any type of hair, and to shave or trim the beards of men. The place of work of a barber is generally called a barbershop....

s, running beauty parlors or saloons, beauty clinics to earn their livelihood and becoming prosprous. Had it would be happened in those days, they would be converted in this particular caste/community. This section is divided mainly into two sections/ endogamous sub-castes: the Gole
Gole
Gole may refer to:* Göle, Turkey* Gole, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland* Gole, Masovian Voivodeship, Poland* Gole , a family name...

 and Bhanberu. The evidence of formation of this caste/section from upper castes is the gotras of persons of this community, Kacchawayas (found in Delhi jonapur ayanager chatarpur ghitorni, Haryana and Rajasthan), Bachhas( in Delhi and Haryana),Tanwars in Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi and Uttarpradesh, Ranas in Brijwasan, Gautam (in Uttar Pradesh), Maans in Delhi, Haryana and Punjab, Dahiya in Haryana, Delhi, Chauhan in Haryana and Delhi, Dabas in Delhi, Dalals in Delhi and Haryana, Bad-Gujar in Rajasthan, Sisodia in Uttarpradesh and Rajasthan, Gaur, Kaushik, Bhardwaj, Vats, Vashisth in Uttarpradesh etc.

Each of these divisions is subdivided into numerous 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"...

s.there are Atry Gotra.In Bihar
Bihar
Bihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India....

, people mainly has surnames Thakur or Sharma. In West Bengal
West Bengal
West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...

, they mainly have Pramanik as surname. 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...

 they have Sharma as surname Sain Bhagat also belonged to this profession and presently his name and sayings are the part and parcel of the Holy Guru Granth sahib.
Most of the historians agree that Nandas of Nanda Dynasty
Nanda Dynasty
The Nanda Empire originated from the region of Magadha in Ancient India during the 5th and 4th centuries BC. At its greatest extent, the Nanda Empire extended from Bengal in the east, to Punjab in the west and as far south as the Vindhya Range...

 were Nai
Nai
Nai may refer to:*Nai , a Barber caste in India* Nai language, a language of Papua New Guinea* Nai , an album by singer Anna Vissi*Nai , a wind instrument, also known as the Moldavian pan flute...

 by caste. Nandas founded the earliest and biggest dynasties of India, they conquered and ruled a vast part of ancient India.Chandragupta Maurya
Chandragupta Maurya
Chandragupta Maurya , was the founder of the Maurya Empire. Chandragupta succeeded in conquering most of the Indian subcontinent. Chandragupta is considered the first unifier of India and its first genuine emperor...

 is believed to be the son of a Nanda prince and some courtesan by some historians.

Present circumstances

The community is included as Other Backward Castes in many states of India. Their occupation no longer restricted, members of the Nai community have moved into various branches of government service.

See also

  • Valand
    Valand
    -History and origin:The word valand in the Gujarati language means a barber. They are the traditional barbers of the Gujarat region. They claim to have been Brahmins, who due to some misfortune of history took up the occupation of barbering...

  • sen
    Sen
    Sen may refer to:-Currency:* Sen, a unit of currency that is the original subdivision of:** Cambodian riel** Malaysian ringgit** Japanese yen-People:* Sen , a Bengali name** Ballal Sen ** Lakshman Sen...

  • parekh
    Parekh
    Parekh is a widely used surname amongst Gujarati Hindu people. However, it can also be seen in the Jain and Swaminarayan religions, which were also founded in India...

  • bhatti
  • limbchiya
  • sen sharma
  • Mangali
    Mangali
    Mangali or Nayee is a caste from the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. They are hereditary Barber-Clan origin:The word Nayee stems from the Sanskrit root 'Nay'- which means to lead - stands for leadership...

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