Sunni Vohras or Sunni Bohras, are a community from the state of

Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, 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 List of states and union territories ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. Sharing the same name as the Dawoodi Bohras, they are often confused with that community. A few families use the slightly different spelling of "Vora" or "Vahora" as their surname. Another common surname is Patel. Sunni Bohras have had a large presence in the historical Indian Ocean maritime trade, and the Sunni Bohra merchant Mulla Abdul Ghafur was one of the richest merchants of the 18th Century.

History and distribution

There are multiple Gujarati Muslim communities that use the Vohra name. The community is split into four different sects.

Bharuchi and Surti Sunni Vohras

The Sunni Vohras of South Gujarat are a large community spanning from Cambay to Valsad. The ones north of the river Narmada are commonly known as Bharuchi Sunni Vohras, and the ones South of Narmada are commonly known as Surti Sunni Vohras. Many Vohras from this community, especially north of the Narmada, use the Patel surname. Historically this community was involved in farming and trade. Many members of this community have substantial amounts of Middle Eastern ancestry from the large Middle Eastern settlements in ancient South Gujarat (see Origins of Bharuchi and Surti Muslims). Some members of this community were converted from the dominant South Gujarat landowning farmer communities during Muslim rule in Gujarat. This community is now found in towns and villages in South Gujarat, and the diaspora is found in many places around the world, especially in places such as

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, Britain,

Burma Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

Barbados Barbados, officially the Republic of Barbados, is an island country in the Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies and the easternmost island of the Caribbean region. It lies on the boundary of the South American ...

, Reunion (known as Zarabes),

Mauritius Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island country in the Indian Ocean, about off the southeastern coast of East Africa, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island (also called Mauritius), as well as Rodrigues, Ag ...

etc. In many places they have played a substantial role in establishing some of the first Sunni Muslim mosques and being a leading part of the Muslim community, as well as pioneering technological and economic advancements. Many prominent figures such as Mufti Menk, Hafiz Patel, Major Atchia, Ahmed Deedat, Ajum Goolam Hossen, Ghulam Vastanvi, Mohsin and Zuber Issa, Alimuddin Zumla and Ahmed Kathrada belong to this community.

Patani Bohras

Patani Bohras or Jafari Bohras are converts of the Ismaili Bohras in Patan during Muslim rule of Gujarat. Some Dawoodi Bohras underwent persecution during Muslim rule after the Muslim conquest of Gujarat and converted from Mustaali Ismaili to

Sunni Islam Sunni Islam is the largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any Succession to Muhammad, successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr ...

. The leader of part of this conversion movement to

was said to be Jafar Patani, himself a Bohra convert to

. In 1538, Syed Jafar Ahmad Shirazi, a missionary from Sindh, convinced Patani Bohras to cease social relations with Ismaili Bohras making the Patani Sunni Bohras a distinct sect.Sunni Vohras
/ref>

Kadiwal Vohras

Kadiwal Vohras are located in Kadi and Ahmedabad and are traditionally followers of Pir Muhammad Shah.

Charotar Vohras

Charotar Vohras are located in Anand and converted from farming communities in Anand during the Gujarat Sultunate.

References