Garhwal division
Coordinates: 30°30′N 78°30′E / 30.5°N 78.5°E Garhwal (Hindi: गढ़वाल [ɡəɽʱʋaːl]) is the north-western region and administrative division of the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand which is home to the Garhwali people. Lying in the Himalayas, It is bounded on the north by Tibet, on the east by Kumaon region, on the south by Uttar Pradesh state, and on the north-west by Himachal Pradesh state. It includes the districts of Chamoli, Dehradun, Haridwar, Pauri Garhwal, Rudraprayag, Tehri Garhwal, and Uttarkashi. The people of Garhwal are known as Garhwali (गढ़वाली) and speak the Garhwali language (गढ़वाली भाषा). The administrative center for Garhwal division is the town of Pauri.
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[edit] Etymology
It is believed that Gadhwal was named so because it had 52 Gadhs 52 chieftains, each chief with his own independent fortress (gadh).
[edit] History
[edit] Origin
The region was originally settled by Kols, an aboriginal people of the austro-asiatic physical type who were later joined by Indo-Aryan Khas/Khasas tribes that arrived from the northwest by the Vedic period.
The Khas are typically thought to be descendants of the ancient Kamboj people who were of eastern Iranian origin. The Khasas are believed to have arrived from Tarim Basin and are supposed to be of pure Aryan stock which domintaed the region centuries ago. Wave of later migrations such as Sakas, Kuninda and from gangetic plains fused with the earlier Aryan settlements. The present population of Uttarakhand owes its origins to many of the races that moved in the region before and after the Vedic period. Rahul Sankrityayan attests khas and Saka to be of the same branch of Indo European family who entered India at different points in time.
Historians of Kumaun and Garhwal say that there were primarily three castes:Rajput, Brahmin and Silpkar. Main occupation of Rajputs was of Zamindari and law enforcement. Occupation of Brahmins was to perform religious rituals in temples and education of the elite. Shipkar were mainly working for Rajputs, in their lands and were expert in handicrafts.
We can still see that surnames of these origin people are associated with the name of villages they belonged to e.g. Bahuguna from Bahugani and Pandey from Pandeygaon. However, one's surname doesn't neccessarily indicate the cast of the Uttarakhandi people. For example, two famous surnames Bisht and Bhandari are used by both Rajputs and Brahmins.
These people of Garhwal were later joined by others through several waves of migration which took place over centuries mainly from the western Indian states of Rajasthan and Gujarat.
[edit] Garhwal Kingdom
Garhwal Kingdom was founded by Rajputs. Nearly 700 years ago, one of these chiefs, Ajai Pal, reduced all the minor principalities under his own sway, and founded the Garhwal Kingdom. He and his ancestors ruled over Garhwal and the adjacent state of Tehri-Garhwal, in an uninterrupted line till 1803, when the Gurkhas invaded Kumaon and Garhwal, driving the Garhwal chief into the plains. For twelve years the Gurkhas ruled the country with a rod of iron, until a series of encroachments by them on British territory led to the Gurkha War in 1814. At the termination of the campaign, Garhwal and Kumaon were converted into British districts, while the Tehri principality was restored to a son of the former chief. The British district of Garhwal was in the Kumaon Division of the United Provinces, and had an area of 5,629 sq mi (14,580 km2). After annexation, Garhwal rapidly advanced in material prosperity. Pop. (1901) 429,900. Two battalions of the Indian army (the 39th Garhwal Rifles) were recruited in the district, which also contained the military cantonment of Lansdowne. Grain and coarse cloth were exported, and salt, borax, livestock and wool were imported, and the trade with Tibet was considerable. The administrative headquarters was at the village of Pauri, but Srinagar was the largest city. It was an important mart, as was Kotdwara, the terminus of a branch of the Oudh and Rohilkhand railway from Najibabad.
[edit] Geography
The region consists almost entirely of rugged mountain ranges running in all directions, and separated by narrow valleys which in some cases become deep gorges or ravines. The only level portion of the district was a narrow strip of waterless forest between the southern slopes of the hills and the fertile plains of Rohilkhand. The highest mountains are in the eastern Chamoli district, the principal peaks being Nanda Devi 7,816 m (25,643 ft), Kamet 7,756 m (25,446 ft), Chaukhamba 7,138 m (23,419 ft), Trisul 7,120 m (23,360 ft), Dunagiri 7,066 m (23,182 ft), and Kedarnath 6,940 m (22,769 ft). The Alaknanda River, one of the main sources of the Ganges, receives with its affluents the whole drainage of the district. At Devprayag the Alaknanda joins the Bhagirathi, and thenceforward the united streams bear the name of the Ganges. Cultivation is principally confined to the immediate vicinity of the rivers, which are employed for purposes of irrigation.
[edit] Garhwali People
Garhwalis are an Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic group who primarily inhabit the Garhwal Himalayas. Any person who has ancestral Garhwali roots or lives in Garhwal and has a Garhwali heritage is called a Garhwali. They include all those who speak the Garhwali language or any of its numerous dialects.
The culture of the present Garhwal is an amalgamation of influences from the indigenous population coupled with traditions superimposed by various immigrants who settled in the region from time to time. Majority of the people are involved in the agriculture, tourism and the defense industry.
Garhwali people are divided into three castes- Garhwali Brahmin, Garhwali Rajput and Shilpkaar. Their surnames are based either on the names of their villages (Pant, Hatwal, Uniyal, Bahuguna, Semwal, Nautiyal etc.) or according to their professions (Bisht, Negi, Joshi, Rawat etc). Shipkaars, on the other hand, are composed of various sub-castes and are classified as Scheduled Castes in the Constitution of India. Even with the wave of migrations the ancient culture survived and was adopted by incoming people.
[edit] Garhwali Language
The Garhwali language (गढ़वाली भाषा) is a Central Pahari language belonging to the Northern Zone of Indo-Aryan and is native to Garhwal.
Garhwali is one of the 325 recognized languages of India[1] spoken by over 2,267,314[2] people in Tehri Garhwal, Pauri Garhwal, Uttarkashi, Chamoli, Dehradun, Haridwar and Rudraprayag districts of Uttarakhand.[3] Garhwali is also spoken by people in other parts of India including Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.
UNESCO’s Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger designates Garhwali as a language which is in the unsafe category and requires consistent conservation efforts.[4]
[edit] See also
- Garhwali people
- Garhwali
- Garhwal Rifles
- Bengal Engineer Group (based in Uttarakhand)
- Kumaon
- Special Frontier Force
[edit] References
- ^ "India languages". We make learning fun. Hindikids. http://www.hindikids.com/india_language.html.
- ^ "Sensus Data Online http://www.censusindia.gov.in/Census_Data_2001/Census_Data_Online/Language/Statement1.htm.". We make learning fun. Hindikids. http://www.censusindia.gov.in/Census_Data_2001/Census_Data_Online/Language/Statement1.htm.
- ^ Claus-Peter Zoller (March 1997). "Garhwali. A language of India". Ethnologue. http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=gbm. Retrieved September 4, 2010.
- ^ "UNESCO Interactive Atlas of the World’s Languages in Danger". UNESCO. http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/index.php?pg=00206. Retrieved 11 October 2010.
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