The Bhambi Rohit are a

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

caste found in the state of

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. They are a sub-group within the

Bhambi The Bhambi are a Hindu caste. Those from Gujarat are Chamar. Those found in the state of Maharashtra and Punjab, India, Punjab in India. Bhambi's from Punjab region are Saraswat Brahmin People of India Maharshtra Bambi's from Punjab are Gaud Sara ...

community. They used to claim to be Rajput via

Rajputization Modern historians agree that Rajputs consisted of a mix of various different social groups and different varnas. Rajputisation (or Rajputization) explains the process by which such diverse communities coalesced into the Rajput community. Forma ...

Origin

The community gets its name from Rohidas, a

saint, and Rohit are followers of this saint. They broke away from the

Bhambi Khalpa The Bhambi Khalpa are a Hindu caste found in the state of Gujarat in India. They are a sub-group within the Bhambi community. The Khalpa have scheduled caste status. Origin The name Khalpa has been derived from the word khal, which is the Guj ...

community, when they decided to abandon the traditional occupation of the Bhambi, which was

leather Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and hog ...

shoemaking. According to other traditions, the Rohit are a sub-group of the

Rajput Rajput (from Sanskrit ''raja-putra'' 'son of a king') is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating from the Indian subcontinent. The term Ra ...

community due to

. They are found in the districts of Kaira, Surat,

Ahmedabad Ahmedabad ( ; Gujarati: Amdavad ) is the most populous city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ahmedabad district and the seat of the Gujarat High Court. Ahmedabad's population of 5,570,585 (per t ...

, and

Baroda Vadodara (), also known as Baroda, is the second largest city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Vadodara district and is situated on the banks of the Vishwamitri River, from the state capital ...

. The Rohit are a

Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them * Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub ...

speaking community.

Present circumstances

The Rohit are an endogamous community, and practice clan exogamy. Historically, they used to intermarry with the

, but this has been discontinued. Historically, the Rohit were

tanners Tanners may refer to: * Tanners (company), a British wine company * Tanners, Virginia, an unincorporated community located in Madison County, United States * Jerald and Sandra Tanner, opponents of the LDS Church (Mormons) * Leatherhead F.C., a fo ...

and

shoemakers Shoemaking is the process of making footwear. Originally, shoes were made one at a time by hand, often by groups of shoemakers, or cobblers (also known as ''cordwainers''). In the 18th century, dozens or even hundreds of masters, journeymen an ...

, but like other artisan communities are abandoning their traditional occupation. Many are now employed as wage labourers.People of India Gujarat Volume XXII Part One edited by R.B Lal, S.V Padmanabham & A Mohideen page 162 to 166 Popular Prakashan

References

{{Social groups of Gujarat Indian castes Tribal communities of Gujarat Scheduled Castes of Rajasthan Scheduled Castes of Gujarat

Origin

Present circumstances

See also

References