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Valmiki caste

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This article is about the Indian caste community. Not to be confused with Balmiki sect.

Valmiki is a name used by a variety of communities throughout India who all claim descent from the author of the Ramayana, Valmiki. The Valmikis can be classified as a caste or Sampradaya (tradition/sect).[1]

Valmiki caste
ReligionsHinduism
LanguagesHindi Punjabi Gujrati Marathi Telugu Kannada
CountryIndia
StatusScheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe

North India

Valmiki comes under Scheduled Caste in North India.[2] The originality of Valmiki caste in North India is Chuhra, Haral and Bhangi, historically this caste originated in Delhi Sultanate and Mughal period [citation needed]. Valmikis are thought to be descended from Kshatriyas who were defeated by Islamic invaders. The Kshatriyas were given the options of either accepting Islam or picking up sewage. They did not accept Islam and adopted the practice of manual scavenging, due to this they were seen with a dirty eye in the society.[3] In the North West Punjab region, the Chuhra caste had adopted Sikhism. They were given the task of engaging in war. The Indian British government recruited them in their army and declared them a martial caste.[4] During the 1857 revolution, many valmikis were prominent freedom fighters. Notable examples include Matadin Bhangi, Haral Chuhra, Gangu Mehtar, Bhura Singh Valmiki. At the present time many changes have been seen in this caste, now they incline towards politics[5] and government high positions.

According to the 2001 Census of India, the Valmikis formed 11.2 per cent of the Scheduled Caste population in Punjab[6] and were the second-most populous Scheduled Caste in Delhi National Capital Region.[7][8][page needed] The 2011 Census of India for Uttar Pradesh showed the Valmiki population, which was classified as a Scheduled Caste, as 1,319,241.[9]

South India

In South India the term is mainly used as a self-identification by the Boya or Bedar caste, a traditional hunting and martial caste who are considered as Backward castes now changed by government of Andhra Pradesh into scheduled Tribes in Andhra Pradesh, Most Backward caste (MBC) in Tamil Nadu and Scheduled Tribe in Karnataka. The Valmikis are mainly concentrated in Anantapur, Kurnool and Kadapa districts of Andhra Pradesh and in Bellary, Raichur and Chitradurga districts of Karnataka, although they are spread all over the state.[10][11] They also built a temple of Valmiki in Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh.[12] In Andhra Pradesh they are known as Boya Valmikis or Valmikis.[13][14]

Other countries

In the UK, the Council of Valmiki Sabhas UK claims to represent the Valmiki.[15][page needed][16]

See also

References

  1. ^ Jacobs, Stephen (22 April 2010). Hinduism Today: An Introduction. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 117. ISBN 9781441138200.
  2. ^ "Department of Social Justice and Empowerment".
  3. ^ Shastri, Dr Vijay Sonkar (19 January 2021). Valmiki Hindu Jati (in Hindi). ISBN 9789350485668.
  4. ^ "Sikhi Wiki".
  5. ^ "बैठक: पूर्व मंत्री कृष्ण कुमार बेदी के समर्थन में उतरा वाल्मीकि समाज, आज फिर बुलाई महापंचायत". Dainik Bhaskar (in Hindi). 28 October 2020. Retrieved 23 February 2022.
  6. ^ "Punjab: Data Highlights: The Scheduled Castes" (PDF). Census I. 2001. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
  7. ^ "Delhi: Data Highlights: The Scheduled Castes" (PDF). Census India. 2001. p. 1. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
  8. ^ Leslie, J.(2003) Authority and Meaning in Indian Religions: Hinduism and the Case of Valmiki. Ashgate publishing their favorite weapon is karha . ISBN 0754634302
  9. ^ "A-10 Individual Scheduled Caste Primary Census Abstract Data and its Appendix - Uttar Pradesh". Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  10. ^ Caste,Class and Social Articulation in Andhra Pradesh:Mapping Differential Regional Trajectories (PDF), Osmania University
  11. ^ J. Sreenath; S. H. Ahmad (1989). All India anthropometric survey: analysis of data. South Zone. Anthropological Survey of India. p. 37.
  12. ^ Mohammad, Afsar (December 2013). The Festival of Pirs: Popular Islam and Shared Devotion in South India. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199997596.
  13. ^ Virendra Kumar (1975). Committees and Commissions in India, 1947-73: 1979 (2 v.). Concept Publishing Company. p. 42. ISBN 9788170225089.
  14. ^ Beals, Alan R. (29 September 2017), "The South Indian World", Village Life in South India, Routledge, pp. 27–44, doi:10.4324/9781351299923-1, ISBN 978-1-351-29992-3, retrieved 7 August 2021
  15. ^ Jacobs, Stephen (2010). Hinduism Today: An Introduction. A & C Black.
  16. ^ "Memorandum submitted by Central Valmiki Sabha International (UK)". United Kingdom Parliament. 12 November 2009. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
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