The Bhuiyar or Bhuyiar 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
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
Indian or Indians may refer to:
Peoples South Asia
* Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor
** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country
* South Asia ...
state of
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 ...
. They have
scheduled caste
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 ...
status and are also known as Bhanyar. The traditional occupation of the Bhuiyar caste is
weaving
Weaving is a method of textile production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. Other methods are knitting, crocheting, felting, and braiding or plaiting. The longitudinal th ...
but that has declined due to mechanisation.
[People of India Uttar Pradesh Volume XLII Part One edited by A Hasan & J C Das pages 307 to 312 Manohar Publications]
Origin
They are a group of
Munda tribesmen who settled in the southern and the western Uttar Pradesh in the 16th century. They were a community that historically were involved with weaving and some were involved
slash and burn
Slash-and-burn agriculture is a farming method that involves the cutting and burning of plants in a forest or woodland to create a field called a swidden. The method begins by cutting down the trees and woody plants in an area. The downed vegeta ...
agriculture, and occupied the hilly terrain of south
Mirzapur district. The Bhuiyar are further divided into sub-divisions, which are referred to as ''kori''. Their main koris are the Baria, Birkunia, Chandnihys, Chetrihya, Chiriha, Dioriya, Khutta, Parha, Patparaha and Sudha. They are strictly
endogamous, and practice clan
exogamy. The Bhuiyar are found in the districts of
Sonbhadra
Sonbhadra or ''Sonebhadra'' is the second largest district by area of Uttar Pradesh after Lakhimpur Kheri. It is the only district in India which borders four states, namely Madhya Pradesh to the west, Chhattishgarh to the south, Jharkhand in t ...
and Mirzapur. They speak
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 ...
, having long forgotten their
Munda language.
Present circumstances
The Bhuiyar are now a community of settled agriculturists. Their earlier slash and burn practices have disappeared. Most Bhuiyar are a small and medium-sized farmers, with a minority being employed as agricultural labourers. Many are now also employed in the mines that have appeared in Mirzapur district. They live in multi-caste villages, occupying their own distinct quarters. They have much in common with neighbouring tribal communities such as the
Kol,
Agariya and
Chero. Each of their settlement contains an informal caste council, known as a biradari panchayat. The panchayat acts as instrument of social control, dealing with issues such as divorce and adultery.
The
2011 Census of India
The 2011 Census of India or the 15th Indian Census was conducted in two phases, house listing and population enumeration. The House listing phase began on 1 April 2010 and involved the collection of information about all buildings. Information ...
for Uttar Pradesh showed the Bhuiyar population as 28,360.
References
{{reflist
External links
निर्धारित लक्ष्य को संघर्ष करें छात्र: दयाराम भामड़ा
*
ttps://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/in-bijnor-bjp-banking-on-jats-mbcs-non-jatav-dalits-and-bsp-on-muslims-jatavs/articleshow/57115786.cms/ Bhuiyar in News Papers Scheduled Castes of Uttar Pradesh
Weaving communities of South Asia