Maratha (caste)

"The Marāthās" is a collective term referring to a group of Hindu, Marathi-speaking castes of warriors and peasants, hailing mostly from the present-day state of Maharashtra, who created a substantial empire, covering a major part of India, in the 17th and 18th centuries.

The "Marathas" were known by that name since their native tongue was almost invariably Marathi (an Indo-Aryan language); however, not all those whose native tongue is Marathi are Marathas. The term "Maratha" refers only to those marathi-speaking people who also belong to certain specific Hindu castes: for two available listings, refer to Maratha Clan System.Thus, the terms "Marathi people" and "Maratha people" are not interchangable and should not be confused for each other.

Etymology

Maratha/marhatta/Maharath are used in same sense over a period of time.These all words convey same meaning that it is a warrior group.Ratha/Rathi means charioter,marya(Rigvedic-young warriors),Hat(army).Rashtra of Rigveda is Rashtrika of Ashoka , three Maharashtra of Pulkeshi's Aihole inscription and Maharashtra of Huien-Stang ,Maharashtra of Chakradhar are the same as of today's Maharashtra.However for a ready reference earlier thories are as below, though no more valid.

Several theories have been proposed by various scholars for the etymology of the words "Maratha" and "Marathi". One theory holds that a reference to a clan known as "Rāshtrika" in some of Ashoka's inscriptions alludes to a people of the deccan who were progenitors of the marathi-speaking (and maratha) people; that the later "Mahārāshtri" Prakrit, a dialect of Sanskrit, is associated with these people; and that the word "Marāthi" is a derivation of the word "Mahārāshtri".Some people think Rashtra as a nation, but it must be clear that in ancient time it was not used in this sense.Rashtra was a lind of Administrative division bigger than district.In fact Rashtrakut who later rose in fame were one such family , head of a Rashtra.

Ruins of the Raigad Fort which seved as a capital of Maratha Empire in the 17th century

Other theories link the words "Marātha" and "Rāshtri" with "Ratta", supposedly a corruption of "Rāshtrakuta", dynasty that held sway over the deccan between the 8th and 10th centuries AD. However, the Ashokan inscriptions predate the Rashtrakutas by more than a millenium, and these theories cannot be reconciled. All theories however affirm, as do linguists, that the modern Marathi language has developed from the Prakrit known as Mahārāshtri.

Origins

Historians, researchers and scholars are divided over the origins of Marathas. Some of the Maratha clans are descendants of the local dynasties. Most historians put the origin of Marathas as Indo-Aryans. Still, others point out that their origins are mixed and the clan is mostly a mixed stock of Indo Aryans and possibly Dravidians. There is a kunbi or kurmi kshatriyas group apart from 96 royal clans of marathas. However, modern genetic study does not support any distinct Aryan and Dravidian stocks. Whatever their original linguistic affiliations, as they could be Dravidian, Astro-asiatic and Indo-Aryan, now they belong to exclusively Indo-Aryan linguistic group.

Historical prominence

Maratha empire c.1760 AD

The Marathas have contributed a glorious chapter to the history of India. They first came into historical prominence under the leadership of Chhatrapati Shivaji in the 17th century. Shivaji Maharaj, born into the Bhonsle clan of marathas, secured an independent state by dint of lifelong struggle and thereby founded an empire, the remnants of which lasted until the independence of India in 1947. The state thus founded by Chhatrapati Shivaji attained its zenith under the tutelage of the Peshwas in the 18th century, extending from the Indus in present-day Pakistan to Orissa in the east and Thanjavur in the south excluding the kingdom of Mysore which remained independent. At its peak, the Maratha Empire established a protectorate over the mughal emperor and commanded the allegiance of the numerous rajput chieftains of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Central India and elsewhere. This vast empire declined gradually after the third battle of Panipat in 1761; by 1818, all of present-day India had fallen to the British East India Company.

The history of the states and dynasties comprising the Maratha Empire constitutes a major portion of the history of late medieval India. While that extensive history is detailed elsewhere, it is noteworthy that the rise of the Marathas:

represented the revival of the political power of the Hindus in north India after many centuries of muslim overlordship;
prevented the spread of the mughal empire and associated islamic culture to south India;
was the primary cause of the decline of the mughal empire, a momentous development;
constituted one of the earlier instances, in later medieval India, of the empowerment of subaltern castes; this arguably presaged the social modernization of India;
encouraged the development of the Marathi language and was seminal to the consolidation of a distinct Maharashtrian identity.

Maratha States

Since the marathas ruled much of India in the period immediately preceding the consolidation of British rule in India, the maratha states came to form the largest bloc of princely states in the British Raj, if size be reckoned by territory and population. Prominent maratha states included:

Kolhapur
Gwalior
Indore
Baroda
Dewas (Senior and Junior)
Dhar
Chhatarpur
Mudhol
Sandur
Akkalkot
Phaltan
Jath
Jawhar
Sawantwadi, and many others

Communities and clans

As mentioned above, the term "Maratha" refers exclusively to a certain group of marathi-speaking castes and clans. While most ruling chiefs and warriors of the maratha empire belonged to this social group, certain other marathi-speaking communities essayed important roles in the affairs of that empire. Certain brahmin families were prominent among these, including:

The Peshwas, who held de facto power during the heyday of the empire, under the nominal authority of the maratha Chhatrapatis;
The rulers of Jhansi, including the celebrated Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi, heroine of the events of 1847;
The Patwardhan family, including the rulers of Sangli, Miraj, Kurundwad and Jamkhandi

To this day, their days of empire form a central part of how they, and other Indians, see the marathas. In particular, they are known for espousing a particularly passionate brand of nationalism, often criticised as being ultranationalism. It is debatable whether this nationalism stems from their history, or whether the course their history took followed from this peculiar brand of nationalism.

Maratha clans

According to some sources, every maratha must belong to one of 96 different clans (the "96 Kuli Marathas"). The list of 96 Maratha clans is different as per different historians. An authoritative listing was apparently first attempted in 1888 and a list finalised in 1956 by the Government of India, probably pursuant to their affirmative-action program. Two of several available listings of the various maratha clans are available at Maratha Clan System.

Notable Marathas

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj
Tanaji Malusare, hero of the conquest of Kondana
Ahilyabai Holkar, ruler of Malwa
Tarabai, regent of Kolhapur
Serfoji II, Maharaja of Thanjavur
Shahu Maharaj, Chhatrapati of Kolhapur

Prominent maratha dynasties

Bhonsles of Kolhapur, Satara, Nagpur and Thanjavur
Sindhias (Shinde) of Gwalior
Gaekwads of Baroda
Holkars of Indore
Pawars of Dewas, Dhar and Chhatarpur

Maratha Genetics

One recent Genetic study shows that some Marathas are of Proto-Asian origins with 20-25% West Eurasian admixture(Gaikwad et al. 2005). Their major Y-Haplogroups are H and Anatolian J2. The frequency of these two haplogroups is comparable to that of South Indian non-brahmin castes(Sengupta et al. 2006).

Haplogroup J2 is associated with the spread of agriculture in South India. This haplogroup in Maratha population might concur with historical fact of farmer communities during Shivaji's time joining other Maratha communities and founding Maratha empire.

Maratha caste is geographically dispersed and represents more than 50% of the current Maharashtrian population. This endogamous community of fifty- million individuals became dominant owing to their occupational hierarchy. Their warrior element is conglomeration of Royal descendents such as Rashtrakuts, Mauryas, Pariharas/ Parmar (Pawar), Pratiharas, Shilahars, Kadambas, Yadavas, Chalukyas etc. as a result of successful expeditions and conquests of different parts (small Kingdoms) of the country.

References

1. Haplogroups of Marathi people[1]

2. Molecular insight into the genesis of ranked caste populations of western India based upon polymorphisms across non-recombinant and recombinant regions in genome[2] -Sonali Gaikwad and VK Kashyap

3.Influence of language and ancestry on genetic structure of contiguous populations: A microsatellite based study on populations of Orissa Sanghamitra Sahoo and VK Kashyap [3]

External links