The Chik are a Muslim community, found in the states of

Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...

and

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

in India. They are also known as Bakar Qasab, Buz Qassab and Chikwa. The Chik have been granted

Other Backward Class The Other Backward Class is a collective term used by the Government of India to classify castes which are educationally or socially backward. It is one of several official classifications of the population of India, along with General castes, ...

status in both Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.People of India Bihar Volume XVI Part One edited by S Gopal & Hetukar Jha pages 232 to 235 Seagull BooksPeople of India Uttar Pradesh Volume XLII Part One edited by A Hasan & J C Das page 140 to 146 Manohar Publications

Origin

The Chik are traditionally involved in the slaughter and selling of goat meat. They claim descent from

Qureshi Qureshi (also known as Qureyshi, Quraishi, Qurayshi, Qureshy, Quraishy, Qoraishi, Qoreshi, Koraishi, Kureshi, Kureshy, Kureishi, Coreish) is a Muslim family name. In English it has many spellings, in Arabic is spelled "", which means part of the ...

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

s, who are said to have arrived in India in the early Middle Ages.Most of them are converted from Hindu Chikwa Tribe.The Chik are a sub-group within the larger

Qassab The Qassab ( ur, قصاب; from the Arabic word (''Qasaab- butcher''), are members of a north Indian community or ''biradari''. Occasionally most Quresh caste members are referred to as the Qassab. At present, Qassab who are engaged in meat cu ...

community of

South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth descr ...

. They specialize in the slaughtering of goats, while the

are involved in the slaughtering of buffaloes. In Uttar Pradesh, the Chik are often referred to as Bakar Qassab or Buz Kassab. The word ''bakar'' comes from the

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' Gadariya community, those in the rural areas rear their own sheep and goats. A significant number of Chik are also involved in tanning of hides, with a small number now owning tanneries. A section of the Chik in Uttar Pradesh have now entered the transportation business, running trucks throughout the state. Each settlement of the Chik contains an informal caste council, known as a

panchayat The Panchayat raj is a political system, originating from the Indian subcontinent, found mainly in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. It is the oldest system of local government in the Indian subcontinent, and historical men ...

. The panchayat is headed by a chaudhary. His duties include keeping a record of community members in the settlement. Traditionally, the panchayat deals with all intra community disputes, as well as traditionally punishing those who transgress community norms. The Chik are now also involved with the Anjuman Quraish, which is an India wide caste association of both the Chik and Qassab. The Chik of Uttar Pradesh are strictly endogamous, and have a marked preference of marrying close kin. They speak

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' Khari boli Kauravi ( hi, कौरवी, ur, ), also known as Khaṛībolī is a set of Western Hindi varieties of Shauraseni Prakrit mainly spoken in Northwestern Uttar Pradesh. Standard Hindi and Urdu are based on Khariboli, specifically on its De ...

and

Awadhi Awadhi (; ), also known as Audhi (), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in northern India and Nepal. It is primarily spoken in the Awadh region of present-day Uttar Pradesh, India. The name ''Awadh'' is connected to Ayodhya, the ancient city ...

. The Chik are Sunni Muslims and are one of the more orthodox communities, incorporating fewer folk practices. In terms of distribution, the Chik are found mainly in Rohilkhand and

Awadh Awadh (), known in British historical texts as Avadh or Oudh, is a region in the modern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, which was before independence known as the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh. It is synonymous with the Kośāla region of ...

, with particular concentrations in the districts of

Bareilly Bareilly () is a city in Bareilly district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is among the largest metropolises in Western Uttar Pradesh and is the centre of the Bareilly division as well as the historical region of Rohilkhand. The c ...

, Bijnor, Badaun, and

Shahjahanpur Shahjahanpur () is a municipal corporation, town and district headquarters of Shahjahanpur District in Uttar Pradesh, India. The city is between Bareilly and Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh. History Shahjahanpur was established by Di ...

in Rohilkhand, and

Lucknow Lucknow (, ) is the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is also the second largest urban agglomeration in Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and division ...

Kheri Kheri is a town and a Nagar Panchayat in Lakhimpur Kheri district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. History According to the 1908 British publication "The Imperial Gazetteer of India"(volume: XV): '' . H. Butler, Settlement Report (1901) ...

Unnao Unnao is a city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of Unnao district and a part of Lucknow division, between Kanpur and Lucknow. Unnao is a large industrial city with three industrial suburbs around it ...

and

Hardoi Hardoi is a city and municipal board in Hardoi district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of Hardoi district. History The early history of Hardoi is obscure. The name suggests a Bhar, a Dalit caste ...

. The Chik of Bihar speak the Sadri dialect of

Hindi Hindi ( Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...

. They are found throughout Bihar, and are one of the most widespread Muslim groups in that state. Their occupation remains the selling of meat, and this occupation is almost exclusive to this community. But many have now taken to other occupations, such as petty trade. The Anjuman Chik is one of the oldest caste association in Bihar, and have actively lobbied for the Chik.

References

{{Indian Muslim Social groups of Uttar Pradesh Muslim communities of Uttar Pradesh Social groups of Bihar Indian castes Muslim communities of India Muslim communities of Bihar