The Barwar are Hindu

Hindu

Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...

 caste

Caste

Caste is an elaborate and complex social system that combines elements of endogamy, occupation, culture, social class, tribal affiliation and political power. It should not be confused with race or social class, e.g. members of different castes in one society may belong to the same race, as in India...

, found in North India

North India

North India, known natively as Uttar Bhārat or Shumālī Hindustān , is a loosely defined region in the northern part of India. The exact meaning of the term varies by usage...

. They are a branch of the Kurmi

Kurmi

The Kurmi are a Hindu agricultural Jāti in India.The group has been associated with the Kunbi, though scholars differ as to whether the terms are synonymous. In 2006, the Indian government announced that Kurmi was considered synonymous with the Kunbi and Yellam castes in Maharashtra...

 caste. The Barwar are a denotified tribe, one of the tribal groupings that was deemed as criminal under the Criminal Tribes Act

Criminal Tribes Act

The term Criminal Tribes Act applies to various successive pieces of legislation enforced in India during British rule; the first enacted in 1871 as applied mostly in North India The Act was extended to Bengal Presidency and other areas in 1876, and finally with the Criminal Tribes Act 1911, it...

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History and origin

The community is said to have originated in the Saran district

Saran district

Saran District is one of the thirty-seven districts of Bihar state, India. The district, part of Saran Division, is also known as Chapra district after the headquarters of the district - Chapra...

 of Bihar

Bihar

Bihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India....

. They were expelled from Saran, by the local Raja, and settled in the Awadh

Awadh

Awadh , also known in various British historical texts as Oudh or Oude derived from Ayodhya, is a region in the centre of the modern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, which was before independence known as the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh...

 region. The Raja of Bast, in Awadh then expelled them again, as they continued their marauding activities in his dominion. They have three subdivisions, the Sawang, Gulam and Tilam. The Sawang group consider’s itself to be of pure Barwar origin, while the other two groupings are descendents of individuals kidnapped by the Sawang.

Present circumstances

The Barwar historically were a community associated with marauding and plunder. As such they were distinguished from the Kurmi, who are well known peasant caste from North India. The British colonial authorities made various attempts to suppress their brigandage, With the departure of the British, the community was denotified. But many members of the community are still involved in dacoity. But many more have settled down to agriculture, and such are now not very different from their Kurmi kinsmen. The Barwar now have scheduled caste status.