Desmukh
Encyclopedia
Deshmukh or desmukh Desmookh the tenth handful. In Marathi
Des or Desh means a country and Mookh means mouth, hence a spokesman of a district. It was the title given to a person who was granted a territory of land, in certain regions of India
, specifically Maharashtra
, Andhra Pradesh
and Telangana
. The granted territory is usually referred to as the deshmukhi. The deshmukh was in effect the ruler of the territory, as he was entitled to the collected taxes. It was also his duty to maintain the basic services in the territory, such as police and judicial duties. It was typically a hereditary system. The title of Deshmukh provided the titled family with revenues from the area and the responsibility to keep the order. For this reason, Deshmukh is loosely translated as 'patriot' and the name still commands respect today. The title is most equivalent of a duke or a count within the European aristocratic system.
The deshmukh system was mostly abolished after the Independence of India in 1947 when the government confiscated most of the land of the Deshmukh's. Some families however maintain their status as real estate barons, most notably in Mumbai, with holdover properties that were not taken away.
It was similar in many respects to the zamindar
and jagir
systems in India, and can be considered as a feudal system. Typically taxes collected were to be distributed fairly and occasionally deshmukhs participated in Vedic rituals in which they redistributed all material possessions to the people. However, title Deshmukh should not be misundertood for having any relation or for being associated to a particular religion.Ex. Deshmukhis were given by Nizams or Maratha
Kings(Chhatrapatis) to Marathas as well as Bhrahmins, Muslims and Jains
.
Inukonda Thirumali describes the role of Deshmukhs as:
Barry Pavier describes Deshmukhs as:
Writing in the nineteenth century, Major W. H. Skyes, the statistical reporter to the Government of Bombay described the Desmukh as:
Marathi language
Marathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
Des or Desh means a country and Mookh means mouth, hence a spokesman of a district. It was the title given to a person who was granted a territory of land, in certain regions of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, specifically Maharashtra
Maharashtra
Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...
, Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
and Telangana
Telangana
Telangana is a region in the present state of Andhra Pradesh, India and formerly was part of Hyderabad state which was ruled by Nizam. It is bordered with the states of Maharashtra on the north and north-west, Karnataka on the west, Chattisgarh on the north-east and Orissa to the east...
. The granted territory is usually referred to as the deshmukhi. The deshmukh was in effect the ruler of the territory, as he was entitled to the collected taxes. It was also his duty to maintain the basic services in the territory, such as police and judicial duties. It was typically a hereditary system. The title of Deshmukh provided the titled family with revenues from the area and the responsibility to keep the order. For this reason, Deshmukh is loosely translated as 'patriot' and the name still commands respect today. The title is most equivalent of a duke or a count within the European aristocratic system.
The deshmukh system was mostly abolished after the Independence of India in 1947 when the government confiscated most of the land of the Deshmukh's. Some families however maintain their status as real estate barons, most notably in Mumbai, with holdover properties that were not taken away.
It was similar in many respects to the zamindar
Zamindar
A Zamindar or zemindar , was an aristocrat, typically hereditary, who held enormous tracts of land and ruled over and taxed the bhikaaris who lived on batavaslam. Over time, they took princely and royal titles such as Maharaja , Raja , Nawab , and Mirza , Chowdhury , among others...
and jagir
Jagir
In historic India, a jagir was a small territory granted by the ruler to an army chieftain in fairly short terms usually of three years but not extending beyond his lifetime, in recognition of his military service...
systems in India, and can be considered as a feudal system. Typically taxes collected were to be distributed fairly and occasionally deshmukhs participated in Vedic rituals in which they redistributed all material possessions to the people. However, title Deshmukh should not be misundertood for having any relation or for being associated to a particular religion.Ex. Deshmukhis were given by Nizams or Maratha
Maratha
The Maratha are an Indian caste, predominantly in the state of Maharashtra. The term Marāthā has three related usages: within the Marathi speaking region it describes the dominant Maratha caste; outside Maharashtra it can refer to the entire regional population of Marathi-speaking people;...
Kings(Chhatrapatis) to Marathas as well as Bhrahmins, Muslims and Jains
Jainism
Jainism is an Indian religion that prescribes a path of non-violence towards all living beings. Its philosophy and practice emphasize the necessity of self-effort to move the soul towards divine consciousness and liberation. Any soul that has conquered its own inner enemies and achieved the state...
.
Inukonda Thirumali describes the role of Deshmukhs as:
They were primarily revenue collectorsTax collectorA tax collector is a person who collects unpaid taxes from other people or corporations. Tax collectors are often portrayed in fiction as being evil, and in the modern world share a somewhat similar stereotype to that of lawyers....
; and when (magisterial and judicial) responsibilities were added to their function they became deshmukhs, chiefs of the parganaParganaA pargana is a former administrative unit of the Indian subcontinent, used primarily, but not exclusively, by the Muslim kingdoms.Parganas were introduced by the Delhi Sultanate, and the word is of Persian origin. As a revenue unit, a pargana consists of several mouzas, which are the smallest...
s. Gradually, each of these assignments tended to become a 'watan' i e, hereditary lease. Despite changes in the political authority at the top, this institution survived, since no ruler from above wished to risk disturbing local administration, headed by village officials. This institution was cleeply entrenched in the region with local support and structured in organised 'community' life. The deshmukhs presided over meetings of the pargana community known as ['got sabha'] which decided and confirmed claims over inheritance, purchase and transfer of watans. The deshmukhs by virtue of local sanction and consensus could not be easily displaced from above.
Barry Pavier describes Deshmukhs as:
These were, in the 1940s, the layer of the very large landowners in Telengana. They owned from 2,000-3,000 acres at the lower end to 160000 acres (647.5 km²) at the upper as in the case of the Janareddy family of Nalgonda DistrictNalgonda districtNalgonda / Nallagonda District is a district in Andhra Pradesh. It has a population of 3,483,648 of which 13.32% is urban as of 2001.-Etymology:Its name is derived from two Telugu words Nalla & Konda i.e...
. Their origin can be traced to the administrative reforms of Salar Jung I, prime minister of Hyderabad stateHyderabad State-After Indian independence :When India gained independence in 1947 and Pakistan came into existence in 1947, the British left the local rulers of the princely states the choice of whether to join one of the new dominions or to remain independent...
in the 1860s and 1870s. The reforms abandoned the previous practice, of auctioning off the revenue collection in the government-administered areas to farmers, in favour of direct revenue collection by the State. The 'revenue farmers' were given land in com pensation. Most of them availed of the opportunity to seize as much of the best land as they could. They also received a pension. The deshmukhs were thus given a dominant position in the rural economy which they proceeded resolutely to strengthen during the succeeding decades.
Writing in the nineteenth century, Major W. H. Skyes, the statistical reporter to the Government of Bombay described the Desmukh as:
The Desmukhs were, no doubt, originally appointed by Government, and they possessed all the above advantages, on the tenure of collecting and being responsible for the revenue, for superintending the cultivation and police of their districts, and carrying into effect all orders of Government. They were, in fact, to a district what a Patel is to a village ; in short, were charged with its whole Government.
Deshmukh as a surname
Some people with this surname are:- Bhaiyuraje Deshmukh - Also known by name: Raj Deshmukh. Businessman of one of the Royal Maratha Family "Hande-Deshmukh". Sansthanik of Royal Ranjangaon Sansthan.
- Gopal Hari DeshmukhGopal Hari DeshmukhGopal Hari Deshmukh was a social reformer from Maharashtra, India.-Career:Deshmukh started his career as a translator for the government then under British Raj. In 1867, the government appointed him a small cause judge in Ahmedabad, Gujarat...
- Writer and social reformer best known for his Lokhitwadinchi Shatapatre. - Jagtap Deshmukh - One of the Royal MarathaMarathaThe Maratha are an Indian caste, predominantly in the state of Maharashtra. The term Marāthā has three related usages: within the Marathi speaking region it describes the dominant Maratha caste; outside Maharashtra it can refer to the entire regional population of Marathi-speaking people;...
surnames From the time of Great Great Maratha Emperor Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
- Dhamale Deshmukh, Konde DeshmukhKonde DeshmukhKonde Deshmukh is one of the Royal Maratha 96k surnames. Deshmukh is an honorary title in the Maratha Community. Royal 96k Clans used to marry with these Deshmukhs within 96k and apart it.- Origin :...
, Shinde-Deshmukh - One of the Royal MarathaMarathaThe Maratha are an Indian caste, predominantly in the state of Maharashtra. The term Marāthā has three related usages: within the Marathi speaking region it describes the dominant Maratha caste; outside Maharashtra it can refer to the entire regional population of Marathi-speaking people;...
96K surnames. - Shri. Chintamanrao Deshmukh aka C D Deshmukh - economist, former governor of Reserve Bank of IndiaReserve Bank of IndiaThe Reserve Bank of India is the central banking institution of India and controls the monetary policy of the rupee as well as US$300.21 billion of currency reserves. The institution was established on 1 April 1935 during the British Raj in accordance with the provisions of the Reserve Bank of...
and former Finance Minister in the Union Cabinet. - Durgabai DeshmukhDurgabai DeshmukhDurgābāi, Lady Deshmukh was an Indian freedom fighter, lawyer, social worker and politician. She was a member of the Constituent Assembly of India and the Planning Commission of India....
- wife of C.D. Deshmukh and founder of Andhra Mahila Sabha. - Dalvi-Deshmukh of Nasik, Maharashtra.
- Gharge-Desai (Deshmukh) ShirolGharge-Desai (Deshmukh) ShirolGharge-Desai-Deshmukh was a Maratha dynasty and one of the oldest existing Maratha Sur-Deshmukhs of Nimsod in Satara District...
and Nimsod descendants of king Yashowarden of Mahabharata - Dr.Panjabrao Deshmukh - Social and political leader. Founder of Shivaji education Society,Amravati. Agricultural minister in Nehru's cabinet.
- Late Smt. Sulochana Deshmukh - Publisher of MarathiMarathi languageMarathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
Literature since 1937. - Vilasrao DeshmukhVilasrao DeshmukhVilasrao Dagadojirao Deshmukh , popularly known as Vilasrao is the current Minister of Science and Technology and Minister of Earth Sciences....
- Former Chief-Minister of MaharashtraMaharashtraMaharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...
. - Ritesh Deshmukh - Hindi film actor. Son of Vilasrao DeshmukhVilasrao DeshmukhVilasrao Dagadojirao Deshmukh , popularly known as Vilasrao is the current Minister of Science and Technology and Minister of Earth Sciences....
. - Chavan Deshmukh - Also known by name: Desai-Deshmukh. One of the Royal Maratha Family of Kusur,Kolewadi (Karad -Maharashtra).
See also
- Dalvi-Deshmukh of Nasik, Maharashtra.
- Deshmukhs of SowaliDeshmukhs of SowaliThe Syeds of Sowali were Deshmukhs. They ruled from about 1720 till 1948 when the Nizam of Hyderabad was overthrown by the newly formed Indian government...
- ZamindarZamindarA Zamindar or zemindar , was an aristocrat, typically hereditary, who held enormous tracts of land and ruled over and taxed the bhikaaris who lived on batavaslam. Over time, they took princely and royal titles such as Maharaja , Raja , Nawab , and Mirza , Chowdhury , among others...
- Jagirdar
- Chowdhury
- FeudalismFeudalismFeudalism was a set of legal and military customs in medieval Europe that flourished between the 9th and 15th centuries, which, broadly defined, was a system for ordering society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour.Although derived from the...