The Rahuma, Rahuma,Rayma (Dhatti lang-sd) see)and also known as ( sd, راهمون Rahimoon) are a

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

community found in the state of Chohatan Sedwa Shiv Gadraroad Ramsar Taluka in Barmer Rajasthan

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 ...

and a province of Umarkot Chachro Tharparkar

Sindh Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. They are one of a number of communities of pastoral nomads found in the Banni region of Kutch. The community is also known as Rahuma, especially in

History and origin

The Royma claim to have originated in

, and claim to be

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 ...

s who converted to

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

. They initially migrated to Sukhpar village in

Bhuj Bhuj () is a Municipality and District Headquarters of Kutch District in the state of Gujarat, India. Etymology According to legend, Kutch was ruled by the Nāga chieftains in the past. Sagai, a queen of Sheshapattana, who was married to Kin ...

taluka A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluka, or taluk) is a local unit of administrative division in some countries of South Asia. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administr ...

, and then spread to other parts of

Mandvi Mandvi is a Beach town with municipality in the Kutch district in the States and territories of India, Indian state of Gujarat. It was once a major port of the region and summer retreat for Maharao (king) of the Cutch State. The old city was enc ...

, Anjan and

Lakhpat Lakhpat is a sparsely populated town and sub-district in the Kachchh district in the Indian state of Gujarat located at the mouth of the Kori Creek. The town is enclosed by 7km-long, 18th-century fort walls. Etymology The town is named after ...

s of Kutch District. They are now mainly in the Kanthi region of Kutch. They speak Kutchi, with large number of Sindhi loanwords.

Present circumstances

The community is divided into a number of clans, called ataks, the chief ones being Mammia, Saad and Bidkia. They use the atak name as their surname. The community is endogamous, but does marry with other Samma communities, such as the Sameja. They do not practice clan exogamy as rule, but each clan is of equal status, and do intermarry. The community in fact prefer parallel cousin marriages. The Royma are a community of

Maldhari Maldharis are herder, herdsmen community in Gujarat, India. Originally nomads, they came to be known as Maldharis after settling in Junagadh district (mainly Gir Forest). "Maldhari" is an occupational term which refers to people from a variety of c ...

cattle breeders. In addition to cattle breeding, the Royma are also cultivators, and landless agricultural labourers. Like other Kutchi communities, many of them have migrated to other parts of

in search of employment. Like many

Gujarati Muslim The term Gujarati Muslim is usually used to signify an Indian Muslim from the state of Gujarat in western coast of India. Most Gujarati Muslims have Gujarati language as their mother tongue, but some communities such as the Momin Ansari, Memons ...

s, they have a caste association, the Royma Jamat, which is responsible for the welfare of the community. They are

Sunni Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagr ...

s.People of India Gujarat Volume XXI Part Three edited by R.B Lal, P.B.S.V Padmanabham, G Krishnan & M Azeez Mohideen pages 1207-1210

References

{{reflist Social groups of Gujarat Tribes of Kutch Maldhari communities Muslim communities of India Sindhi tribes * Muslim communities of Gujarat Sindhi tribes in India

History and origin

Present circumstances

See also

References