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The Nawayath (also spelled as Navayath and Nawayat and also called Nait, Naiti , Naithee and Naita) are an Indian community and a subgroup of Konkani Muslims. They speak the
Nawayathi dialect Nawayathi, also spelled as Nawayati, is a dialect of Konkani spoken by Nawayaths of the southwestern coast of India. It is an amalgam of Persian, Arabic and Marathi, with Konkani as its base. The Navayath language uses Persian script for wri ...
of Konkani. The term, as described by
Qanoon-e-Islam ''Qanoon-e-Islam: or, the Customs of the Moosulmans of India'' (later published as ''The Qānūn-i-Islām; the customs of the Musalmāns of India'') is a book describing the culture and rituals of Indian Muslims in the nineteenth century. It ...
,
Mark Wilks Colonel Mark Wilks (1759 – 19 September 1831) was a Manx soldier, historian and East India Company administrator who worked in southern India principally in the princely state of Mysore. He was the acting Resident at the Wodeyar Court. Life ...
and The Imperial Gazetteer of India, means "new comers" in Persian, referring to Arab emigrants in India. Indian historian Omar Khalidi says they are one of three groups of Indian Muslims who have used the Nawayath name. These groups have common origins in
Arabia The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plat ...
and Yemen and Persian Gulf regions, where they were mariners and merchants. One group is based mainly in
Bhatkal Bhatkal, is a coastal town in the Uttara Kannada District of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bhatkal lies on National Highway 66, which runs between Mumbai and Kanyakumari, and has Bhatkal railway station which is one of the major railway ...
,
Tonse Tonse is a combined village, which include Tonse West and Tonse East situated about from Udupi on the western coast of South India, between the Arabian Sea and Western Ghats. Tonse village is about to the north of Mangalore. Location Tons ...
,
Malpe Malpe is a natural port in the Udupi District in Karnataka, India. Located at the mouth of the Malpe River about six kilometers to the west of Udupi, it is an important port and a major fishing harbor on the Karnataka coast. The town of Malpe i ...
,
Shiroor Shiroor is a village in Byndoor Taluk in the state of Karnataka, 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 th ...
,
Gangolli Gangolli (also Ganguli) is a village in Kundapur Taluk of Udupi district in Karnataka state. It is situated at the estuary of the Panchagangavalli River. It is located on a peninsula on the west coast of Karnataka. It is bordered by the river ...
, Sagar,
Kumta Kumta is a town and taluk in the Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka, India. It is one of the important stations along the Konkan Railway line running between Mumbai and Mangalore. Geography The city of Kumta is located on the Arabian sea ...
, Kandlur and Murdeshwar villages in Karnataka, while another is found in
Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Tamil Nadu, the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and territories of India, Indian state. The largest city ...
around
Royapettah Royapettah is a neighbourhood of Chennai, India. Location Royapettah is located at the central part of the city of Chennai, with an elevation of 9 m (29 ft.) above mean sea level. The neighbourhood comes under Teynampet Zone (numbe ...
who have moved from Meenambur, a small village located between Gingee and
Villupuram Viluppuram, Villupuram, or Vizhuppuram () is a Municipality and the administrative headquarters of Viluppuram district. Located south west of a Tiruvannamalai and north west of Cuddalore null The town serves as a major railway junction, ...
in Tamil Nadu. The third group are generally known today as Konkani Muslims, after the region in which they live.


History

Nawayats are migrants predominantly from Yemen and Persia, who married into another trading community of India, the
Jain Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...
s who had been converted to Islam more than 1,000 years ago. With this a new caste system emerged, as the Nawayats marry within the community.


References

{{Indian Muslim Muslim communities of India Social groups of Goa Social groups of Karnataka Muslim communities of Karnataka Persian people Konkani Muslims Indian people of Arab descent Indian people of Iranian descent