The Patanwadia 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...

 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...

 found in the state of Gujarat 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 known as Thakor, Thakarda, Dharala and Bariya.

History and origin

The Patanwadia are sub-group of the larger Koli

KOLI

KOLI is a radio station serving Wichita Falls, Texas and Vicinity with a country music format. It operates on FM frequency 94.9 MHz and is under ownership of Cumulus Media. It is the radio flagship station for the Wichita Falls Wildcats hockey team....

 community, and get their name from the city of Patan

Patan, Gujarat

Patan was a capital of Gujarat in medieval times. It is the administrative seat of Patan District in the Indian state of Gujarat and administered by municipality. The city contains many Hindu and Jain temples as well as few mosques, dargahs and rojas...

, in Mehsana District

Mehsana district

Mehsana district is one of the 26 districts of Gujarat state in western India. Mehsana city is the administrative headquarters of this district. The district has a population of over 18 lakhs and an area of over 4,500 km². There are over 600 villages in this district...

. Patan was the historic capital of Gujarat. They have historically connected with the Rajputs of Gujarat

Rajputs of Gujarat

The Rajputs form an important element in the Hindu population of the state of Gujarat in India. They are also known as the Darbars, especially in the Kathiawar and Kutch regions...

, with whom they maintain hypergamous marriages. The Patanwadia are found mainly in Kheda

Kheda

Kheda is a town and a municipality in Kheda district in the Indian state of Gujarat. Kheda, also known as Kaira, is 35 km from Ahmedabad. The National Highway no. 8 connecting Ahmedabad and Mumbai passes through Kheda...

, Vadodara

Vadodara

Vadodara formerly known as Baroda is the third most populated city in the Indian State of Gujarat . It is one of the four cities with the population of over 1 million...

, Mehsana

Mehsana

Mahesana is a city and municipality in Mehsana district, in the Indian state of Gujarat.-City and surrounding area:Situated near Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar, Mehsana is one of the largest cities in North Gujarat; followed by Patan and Palanpur. A number of primary industries including dairy, oil...

, Bharuch

Bharuch

Bharuch , also known as Broach, is the oldest city in Gujarat, situated at the mouth of the holy river Narmada. Bharuch is the administrative headquarters of Bharuch District and a municipality of more than 1,50,000 inhabitants. As Bharuch is a major seaport city, a number of trade activities have...

 and Surat

Surat

Surat , also known as Suryapur, is the commercial capital city of the Indian state of Gujarat. Surat is India's Eighth most populous city and Ninth-most populous urban agglomeration. It is also administrative capital of Surat district and one of the fastest growing cities in India. The city proper...

 districts of Gujarat. They speak 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...

, have backward caste status.

Present circumstances

The Patanwadia have a number of clans which are not strictly exogamous in nature. There main clans are the Solanki, Jhala, Chavda, Gohil, Chauhan, Vaghela and Rathore, all whom are also 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...

 clans. They consider themselves to be of Kshatriya

Kshatriya

*For the Bollywood film of the same name see Kshatriya Kshatriya or Kashtriya, meaning warrior, is one of the four varnas in Hinduism...

 status. Other groups consider them to be Koli

KOLI

KOLI is a radio station serving Wichita Falls, Texas and Vicinity with a country music format. It operates on FM frequency 94.9 MHz and is under ownership of Cumulus Media. It is the radio flagship station for the Wichita Falls Wildcats hockey team....

 sub-group. The Patanwadia are traditionally agriculturist and also act as village guards. They are mainly small and medium sized farmers, with many also keep buffaloes. As a result of urbanization, many are involved in the cutting and polishing of diamonds, especially those who have settled in the city of Surat

Surat

Surat , also known as Suryapur, is the commercial capital city of the Indian state of Gujarat. Surat is India's Eighth most populous city and Ninth-most populous urban agglomeration. It is also administrative capital of Surat district and one of the fastest growing cities in India. The city proper...

.