The Rathva or Rathwa also spelled as Rathava
and Rathawa is a
Subcaste
Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultural ...
of the
Koli
Koli may refer to:
Places
* Koli, Finland, a hill in Finland
* Koli National Park, a national park in Finland
* Koli, Iran (disambiguation), several places in Iran
* Koli Airfield, a former airfield in the South Pacific
Other uses
* Koli people ...
caste
Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultura ...
found in the
Indian state
India is a federal union comprising 28 states and 8 union territories, with a total of 36 entities. The states and union territories are further subdivided into districts and smaller administrative divisions.
History
Pre-indepen ...
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 ...
. Rathava Kolis were
agriculturist by profession and turbulent by habits
but now lives like
Adivasis such as
Bhil
Bhil or Bheel is an ethnic group in western India. They speak the Bhil languages, a subgroup of the Western Zone of the Indo-Aryan languages. As of 2013, Bhils were the largest tribal group in India.
Bhils are listed as tribal people of the s ...
because of their neighborhood
Classification
The Rathva Kolis were classified as
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, S ...
or
OBC by
Government of Gujarat but in August 2022 reclassified as a
Scheduled Tribes
The Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) are officially designated groups of people and among the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups in India. The terms are recognized in the Constitution of India and the groups are designa ...
.
History and origin
The Rathwa derive their name from the word ''rathbistar'', which means an inhabitant of a forest or hilly region. Their communal belief is that they came to the Gujarat area in the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
from what is now known as
Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, and Rewa being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the seco ...
. According to the
Government of Gujarat, they are now found in the
talukas of
Chhota Udaipur
Chhota Udaipur is a town and a municipality in Chhota Udaipur district in the state of Gujarat, India. It is the headquarters of Chhota Udaipur district.
History
Chhota Udaipur was originally ruled by Bhil king , The last Bhil king of Chhota ...
, Jabugam and
Nasvadi
Nasvadi is name of a town, a village as well as a Taluka in Chhota Udaipur district of Gujarat, India.
History
Princely State
Before independence, during British IndiaNasvadiwas a Princely State of India, ruled by Hindu rulers of Solanki clan o ...
in
Vadodara district and the Baria,
Halol and
Kalol talukas of
Panchmahal district.
Although sometimes referred to as the Rathwa Koli, and sometimes self-identifying as such,
they are treated as inferior by the
Koli people
The Koli is an Indian caste found in Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, Odisha and Jammu and Kashmir states in India. Koli is an agriculturist caste of Gujarat but in coastal areas they ...
.
Some sources say that they are in fact descended from migrant
Bhil people
Bhil or Bheel is an ethnic group in western India. They speak the Bhil languages, a subgroup of the Western Zone of the Indo-Aryan languages. As of 2013, Bhils were the largest tribal group in India.
Bhils are listed as tribal people of the s ...
, although
Shereen Ratnagar
Shereen F. Ratnagar is an Indian archaeologist whose work has focused on the Indus Valley civilization. She is the author of several books and academic textbooks.
Career
Ratnagar was educated at Deccan College, University of Pune. She studied ...
noted that those Rathwa to whom she spoke during her anthropological studies rejected that association and that labels such as ''Koli'' and ''Bhil'' were historically imposed upon communities by administrative outsiders as catch-all terms.
Bhils and Kolis historically co-existed in the hills of what is now Gujarat, which sociologist
Arvind Shah
Professor Arvind M. Shah retired from his professorship in the Department of Sociology at the University of Delhi in 1996. He had been a student of M. N. Srinivas in 1952 and became a teacher in sociology at Maharaja Sayajirao University, Barod ...
says has led to confusion of the two groups, not helped by there being "hardly any modern, systematic, anthropological, sociological or historical study" of the Kolis. The Rathwa themselves were barely studied until a seminal paper produced by R. B. Lal in 1970, in part because they lived as niche communities in steep, densely forested, relatively inaccessible areas.
Clans
Here are some of the clans of Rathwa Kolis of Gujarat,
*
Baria Koli
Baria, or Baraiya, Bareeya and Bariya is a clan (Gotra) of the Koli caste found in the Indian State of Gujarat and Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. the Devgad Baria was their Stronghold or given their name to Baria State in Gujarat. acco ...
*
Chauhan
Chauhan, historically ''Chahamana'', is a clan name historically associated with the various ruling Rajput families during the Medieval India in Rajasthan.
Subclans
Khichi, Hada, Songara, Bhadauria, Devda etc. are the branches or subclan ...
*
Sarvaiya
The Sarvaiya also spelled ''Sarvaiyya'', ''Sarvia'', ''Sarwia'' are a social group of India, mainly found in Gujarat
Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of whi ...
*
Makwana
The Makwana, or Makawana is a clan ( Gotra) of the Koli caste found in the Indian state of Gujarat. The Makwana clan is mostly found among Talpada Kolis, Chunvalia Koli and Ghedia Kolis.
In 1931 census of Baroda State, there were 20,700 Koli ...
Archive and gallery
Flute Rathava Community Gujrat.jpg
Teer-Kamaan Rathava Community Clothing Gujrat.jpg
Beadwork Rathava Community Gujrat (2).jpg
Rathava Community Clothing Gujrat (2).jpg
Dhak Instrument Rathava Community Gujrat (2).jpg
Dhak Instrument Rathava Community Gujrat (1).jpg
Rathava Men Women Community Gujrat.jpg
Painting
Pithora Painting1.JPG, Pithora Painting on Canvas
Pithora painting3.JPG, Pithora painting
Present circumstances
Rathwa culture is at its most pure in the remote hilly areas of Chhota Udaipur, where most are concentrated, and becomes more diluted elsewhere.
They speak the
Rathwi language among themselves and mostly the
Gujarati language
Gujarati (; gu, ગુજરાતી, Gujarātī, translit-std=ISO, label=Gujarati script, ) is an Indo-Aryan language native to the Indian state of Gujarat and spoken predominantly by the Gujarati people. Gujarati is descended from Old Gu ...
when communicating with outsiders, although
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 de ...
is also used.
Their literacy rates are low, being around 35 per cent at the time of the
2001 Census of India
The 2001 Census of India was the 14th in a series of censuses held in India every decade since 1871.
The population of India was counted as 1,028,737,436 consisting of 532,223,090 males and 496,514,346 females. Total population increased by 18 ...
and under 30 per cent in outlying areas.
However, these rates should improve because the community now recognises the need for education and there is an improved school system for their villages.
The Rathwas are culturally indistinguishable - even by themselves - from the
Dhanak
''Dhanak'' () is a 2015 Indian Hindi-language children's road film written and directed by Nagesh Kukunoor. Produced by Manish Mundra, Nagesh Kukunoor, and Elahe Hiptoola, the film features Hetal Gada and Krrish Chhabria as the two children, pla ...
and
Naikda tribes of the area, having similar dress, similar celebrations of life events such as birth, marriage and death, similar religious beliefs, songs and dance. Like the Dhanka and Naikda, they are
endogamous and this lack of inter-community marriage is the one thing that clearly separates them from each other.
Lal recorded the community as practising a
patrilineal system of inheritance and subsisting mainly through agriculture, supplemented by food gathering, fishing and hunting.
They have a number of
exogamous
Exogamy is the social norm of marrying outside one's social group. The group defines the scope and extent of exogamy, and the rules and enforcement mechanisms that ensure its continuity. One form of exogamy is dual exogamy, in which two groups c ...
clans, including the Hamania, Thebaria, Mahania, Kothari Baka and Fadia.
Lal recorded around 32
septs.
![Pithora wall painting](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/22/Pithora_wall_painting.JPG)
As with other tribes of the region,
ancestor worship is common among the Rathwas. They believe in a omnipresent deity called Babo Pithora or Baba Deb, who is depicted with other scenes of everyday life in religious paintings on the walls of their houses.
Gregory Alles believes that these artworks are akin to
cosmographs. merging aspects of real life with an imaginary world.
They appeal to the deity in times of need and create the painting - called a
pithora - as a thanks for resolution of those needs.
Pithora ritual art, described by Ratnagar as "vibrant colours ... teeming with gods, people, plants, birds and animals", is unique to the Rathwa and significant in its appeal to tourists; aside from practising it in their own houses, the Rathwa also paint pithora in the houses of Dhanak and Naikda people.
![Kavant Fair 90](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1a/Kavant_Fair_90.jpg)
Horses have a particularly prominent role in worship as Babo Pithora is thought to ride one. Not only do the animals feature in the pithora paintings but clay models of them, sourced from
Kumbhar potters, are also offered in thanks at temples. No member of a family is permitted to sit with their back facing the pithora in the house.
Aside from worship of ancestors, nature and tribal deities, Lal noted some aspects of Hinduism integrated into their belief systems;
the number professing solely Hindu beliefs has been increasing under the influence of
sampradaya
''Sampradaya'' ( sa, सम्प्रदाय; ), in Indian origin religions, namely Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism, can be translated as 'tradition', 'spiritual lineage', 'sect', or 'religious system'. To ensure continuity and ...
s.
Although Gujarat is a
"dry" state, the Rathwas also traditionally consider alcohol to be a gift from god that alleviates temporal sorrows while awaiting death, and will travel to smuggle it from neighbouring states or brew it in their own homes.
Government agencies have struggled to define the Rathwa, whom Ratnagar says were not separately recorded from the Kolis until the census of 1971.
However, Lal's paper notes population figures from 1961, which was also a census year.
The community is classified as a
Scheduled Tribe
The Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) are officially designated groups of people and among the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups in India. The terms are recognized in the Constitution of India and the groups are designa ...
in three states under
India's system of positive discrimination, those being Gujarat,
Karnataka
Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...
and
Maharashtra
Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...
.
[
]
Notable people
* Amarsinh Rathawa(1977-1989) Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
, Lok Sabha
* Naranbhai Rathwa (2004-2009) Indian Minister of State for Railways
* Gitaben Rathva ( member of parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
) Political party
Bharatiya Janata Party
* Ninad Rathva an Indian cricketer,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 ...
in the 2017–18 Ranji Trophy
The Ranji Trophy (also known as Mastercard Ranji Trophy for sponsorship reasons) is a domestic first-class cricket championship played in India between multiple teams representing regional and state cricket associations. Board of Control for Cr ...
* Mohansinh Chhotubhai Rathava an Indian politician
*Sukhram Rathva
Sukhram Rathva is an Indian National Congress politician from the state of Gujarat, India. He was a member of Gujarat Legislative Assembly
Gujarat Legislative Assembly or Gujarat Vidhan Sabha is the unicameral legislature of the Indian sta ...
an Indian National Congress ''National Congress'' is a term used in the names of various political parties and legislatures .
Political parties
*Ethiopia: Oromo National Congress
*Guyana: People's National Congress (Guyana)
*India: Indian National Congress
*Iraq: Iraqi Nati ...
politician
A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...
from the state of Gujarat, India.
See also
* List of Koli people
The Koli people (Hindi: कोली) are a community native to India and Pakistan. The Koli forms the largest caste-cluster, comprising 24% of the total population of the Gujarat and 30% of Himachal Pradesh. The following is the list of notable ...
* List of Koli states and clans
The Koli is an Indian caste found in Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, Odisha and Jammu and Kashmir states in India. Koli is an agriculturist caste of Gujarat but in coastal areas they ...
Associated Groups
* Baria
* Koli
Koli may refer to:
Places
* Koli, Finland, a hill in Finland
* Koli National Park, a national park in Finland
* Koli, Iran (disambiguation), several places in Iran
* Koli Airfield, a former airfield in the South Pacific
Other uses
* Koli people ...
References
Notes
Citations
External links
*
Social Contexts of Tribal Education by Vimal P. Shah and Tara Patel, 1985
Agricultural castes
Gujarati people
Gujarati-language surnames
Indian feudalism
Koli people
Koli subcastes
Koli titles
Occupational surnames
Social groups of Gujarat
Surnames of Indian origin
Indian surnames
{{DEFAULTSORT:Koli people
Scheduled Tribes of Gujarat
Bhil