Gurjar

Gurjar or Gujjar
Ethnicity
Ethnic Gujjar elder from Rajasthan
EthnicityPunjabi, Kashmiri, Haryanvi
LocationSouth Asia
LanguagePunjabi, Kashmiri, Hindi-Urdu, Gujarati, Sindhi, Haryanvi, Gojri, Pashto, Balochi
ReligionIslam • Hinduism
SurnamesChaudhary, Choudhary

Gurjar or Gujjar (also transliterated as Gurjara ) are a pastoral, agricultural and peasant ethnic community, who had a reputation for their warlike behaviour , residing mainly in India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. Gurjar tribes includes chief landholders (Zamindars) of western Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, haryana, Madhya Pradesh , nomadic pastoral herders in Jammu and Kashmir, northern and central Pakistan, Azad Kashmir and northeastern Afghanistan. Gurjar people are part of other backward classes in states such as Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Delhi,Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan , while Muslim Nomadic Gujjar of Jammu and Kashmir, parts of Uttrakhand and Himachal Pradesh are classified as scheduled tribe.

There are diverse theories on Gurjar origin. One theory links their early movement to the Huna invasions and rise of various Gurjara kingdoms, with some theories suggesting they migrated from areas near the Caucasus region or Central Asia along with the Huns. Zahid & Hussain believe that Jammu -Kashmir , and Pakistani muslim Gujjars are of a mixed-origin characterised by an indigenous South Asian maternal substrate, measurable West Eurasian autosomal contributions, and paternal affinities to northwestern regional groups like Pashtuns and Pakistani populations.

While according to the research of Dr. Javaid Rahi (National Secretary of Tribal Foundation), the word “Gujjar” originated in Turkey and was initially used by Turks of Central Asia in third millennium BC. In Turkish language the word “Gujjar” was spelled as “Göçer” which stands for an agricultural ethnic group that later turned into seasonal pastoralist nomads. AN Bhardwaj mentions colonial times bardic tales of some Gurjar claiming to have originated from the Kshatriyas like the Khatanas of Himalaya who claim to be descendants of Tur (Tanwar) Rajputs, Rawal Gurjars of Panipat claim descent from Khokhar Rajputs, Chamain Gurjars from a Tuar (Tomar) Rajput, the Mavis from a Chauhan , the Pilwan from a Pundir , the Adhana from a Badgujar , and the Bhati Gurjars from Rana Kansal, a Bhati ruler from Jaisalmer. Kalsian Gurjars claim descent from Rana Har Rai, a Chauhan ruler. . However , Dr Javaid rahi cites that when Bhati Gurjars married women of other castes , their son were known as bhati Rajput of nearby villages. Similar was the case of Chauhan Rajputs being son of Gurjar chauhans and women of other castes in that area.

Further , Tanuja Kothial says that the historical process suggests that Rajputs originated from tribes such as Gurjars, mers etc.

The Gujari language is closely related to Rajasthani and Marwari. As per historical accounts, some parts of Rajasthan and Gujarat were known as Gurjarabhumi or Gurjaratra prior to Mughal period in India due to the presence of a large number of Gujjars in this region. During the 15th-16th century, there were Hindu Gurjars in the areas of Meerut and Dadri. The Gurjars in Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan are mostly Muslims.

After this time, they had both struggles and alliances with the rising Mughal power and later with the Britishers. It is recorded that they were poor nomads and used to live in jungles and forests. With Muslim rule in North India, the Hindu Gurjars of the area surrounding Delhi had to live in jungles in order to survive. The Gurjars of the Punjab region converted to Islam in masses while the Gurjars inhabiting the areas of present-day Haryana, western Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan largely remained Hindu. Modern social theorists and political commentators argue that Gurjars have been part of various varnas in Hinduism.

Geographical Distribution

Today, Hindu Gurjars are found in the Indian states of Rajasthan, Haryana, Western Uttar Pradesh and to a smaller extent Punjab. Muslim Gurjars are found in the Indian states of Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and in the Pakistani provinces of Punjab, Azad Kashmir, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and in the Afghanistan province of Nuristan.

Reference

  1. ↑ Mayaram, Shail (2017). "The Story of the Gujars". In Vijaya Ramaswamy (ed.). Migrations in Medieval and Early Colonial India. Taylor & Francis. p. 67. ISBN 978-1-351-55825-9. The heterogeneous category that is variously called gujar/Gujjar/Gurjara.
  2. ↑ Zelin, Madeleine (2015-10-06). Merchant Communities in Asia, 1600–1980. Routledge. p. 148. ISBN 978-1-317-31789-0.
  3. ↑ Wilson, Jon (2016). India Conquered Britain's Raj and the Chaos of Empire. Simon & Schuster UK. ISBN 9781471101274. Gujars , belonging to a community of cattle herders who had a reputation for their warlike behaviour
  4. ↑ Rahi, Javaid, ed. (2012). The GUJJARS - A Book Series on History and Culture of Gujjar Tribe. Vol. 1.
  5. ↑ Govind Sadashiv Ghurye (1969). Caste and Race in India. Popular Prakashan. pp. 232–. ISBN 978-81-7154-205-5.
  6. ↑ Raheja, Gloria Goodwin (1988). The Poison in the Gift: Ritual, Prestation, and the Dominant Caste in a North Indian Village. University of Chicago Press. p. 8. ISBN 978-0-226-70729-7.
  7. ↑ Pandey, Aditya (2005). South Asia: Politics of South Asia. Gyan Publishing House. ISBN 978-81-8205-303-8.
  8. ↑ Sharma, Ram Sharan; Sharma, R. S. (2003). Early Medieval Indian Society (pb). Orient Blackswan. ISBN 978-81-250-2523-8.
  9. ↑ Bharadwaj, A. N. (1994). History and Culture of Himalayan Gujjars. Jay Kay Book House.
  10. ↑ Nijjar, Bakhshish Singh (2008). Origins and History of Jats and Other Allied Nomadic Tribes of India: 900 B.C.-1947 A.D. Atlantic Publishers & Dist. ISBN 978-81-269-0908-7.
  11. ↑ Zahid, Hussain,. "Origins of the Gujjar (Gurjar) Tribe: A Genetic Perspective". Zenodo. doi:10.5281/zenodo.17170462.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  12. ↑ Warikoo, Kulbhushan; Som, Sujit (2000). Gujjars of Jammu and Kashmir. Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya.
  13. ↑ "Gujjars are of Turk Origin: Latest Study". Javaidrahi's Blog. 2009-06-21. Retrieved 2026-10-07.
  14. ↑ Bharadwaj, A. N. (1994). History and Culture of Himalayan Gujjars. Jay Kay Book House. There are also Hindu Khatana Gurjars who have been residing in different parts of the Punjab and other states. They claim Tur Rajput origin, deriving their name from Khatu nagar, a village in Jaipur.
  15. ↑ Elliot, Henry M. (1969). Memoirs on the History, Folk-Lore, and Distribution of the Races of the North Western Provinces of India; being an amplified Edition of the original: Supplemental Glossary of India Terms By the late Henry M. Elliot. Edited, revised, and re-arranged by John Beames. In 2 Volumes. I. Trübner & Company. In these provinces, how-ever, they do not aspire to so high an origin, contenting themselves generally by saying their ancestors on the male side were Rajputs, who had united themselves with women of inferior lineage. Thus the Ráwal Gújars of Panípat say that they are descended from a Khokhar Rajput (a clan which has been considered to be the same as the notorious Ghakkar); the Chhokar from a Jadon; the Chamáyin from a Túar; the Kalsian of Kaírana, and the Mavi, from a Chauhán; the Pilwan from a Púndír; the Ádhaná from a Badgujar; and the Bhatti from Raja Kansal, a Bhatti Rajput from Jaisalmir.
  16. ↑ Crooke, William (1996). “The” Tribes and Castes of the North-Western Provinces and Oudh: In Four Volumes. Government printing.
  17. ↑ Contemporary Social Sciences. Research Foundation of India. 1978.
  18. ↑ Dass, Arvind (2002). Caste System: Caste commentaries and documentation. Dominant Publishers and Distributors. ISBN 978-81-7888-029-7.
  19. ↑ Ibbetson, Sir Denzil; Maclagan (1990). Glossary of the Tribes and Castes of the Punjab and North West Frontier Province. Asian Educational Services. ISBN 978-81-206-0505-3. Kalsan; Claims descent from Rana Har Rai, Chauhan of Jundla by a Gujar wife; had part of his conquests in Doab, still in force here, also hold a little land in Chauhan Nardak.
  20. ↑ A Glossary of the Tribes & Castes of the Punjab & North-west Frontier Province: Based on the Census Report for the Punjab, 1883, by the Late Sir Denzil Ibbetson ... & the Census Report for the Punjab, 1892, by Sir Edward Maclagan ... & Comp. by H.A. Rose ... Superintendent, government printing, Punjab.
  21. ↑ Punjab District and State Gazetteers: Part A]. Compiled and published under the authority of the Punjab government.
  22. ↑ Rahi, Javaid (ed.). The Gujjars Vol: 01 and 02. Jammu: Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture, Languages. p. 498. Retrieved 2026-10-24.
  23. ↑ Kothiyal, Tanuja (14 March 2016). Nomadic Narratives: A History of Mobility and Identity in the Great Indian Desert. Cambridge University Press. p. 265. ISBN 978-1-107-08031-7. from gradual transformation of mobile pastoral and tribal groups into landed sedentary ones. The process of settlement involved both control over mobile resources through raids, battles and trade as well as channelizing of these resources into agrarian expansion. Kinship structures as well as marital and martial alliances were instrumental in this transformation. ... In the colonial ethnographic accounts rather than referring to Rajputs as having emerged from other communities, Bhils, Mers, Minas, Gujars, Jats, Raikas, all lay a claim to a Rajput past from where they claim to have 'fallen'. Historical processes, however, suggest just the opposite.
  24. ↑ Ramesh Chandra Majumdar; Achut Dattatrya Pusalker, A. K. Majumdar, Dilip Kumar Ghose, Vishvanath Govind Dighe, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan (1977). The History and Culture of the Indian People: The classical age. Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. p. 153.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  25. ↑ Keay, John (2000). India: A History. Grove Press. pp. 95, 2001. ISBN 978-0-8021-3797-5.
  26. ↑ Singh, David Emmanuel (2012-08-31). Islamization in Modern South Asia: Deobandi Reform and the Gujjar Response. Walter de Gruyter. ISBN 978-1-61451-185-4.
  27. ↑ Kumar, Satendra (2022-09-21). Popular Democracy and the Politics of Caste: Rise of the Other Backward Classes in India. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-000-68431-5.
  28. ↑ SHEPHERD, KANCHA ILAIAH (2021-04-20). "The Shudras at the Heart of Tikait". www.thecitizen.in. Retrieved 2026-10-07.
  29. ↑ BUREAU, THE CITIZEN (2022-05-02). "Hindutva's Caste Ambiguity". The Citizen - Independent Journalism | Indian News | The Citizen. Retrieved 2026-10-07.