Lohar
Encyclopedia
Lohar is an ethnic sub-caste found among Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims in Northern India and Northern Pakistan. Originally this community was a warrior tribe living in provinces of Kermanshah
in Iran
right up to Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa in Pakistan
. In India
the Lohars are also known as Vishwakarma, Sharma
, Lohana
or Panchal
s. Muslim Lohar in North India
are known as Saifi
. The Pakistani city of Lahore was once called Loharpur, the city of the Lohar dynasty. Arif Lohar
and Alam Lohar
are some of the world famous musicians from Pakistan. Mohammad Tariq Lohar is yet another notable artist from the same country.
According to the famous british colonial writer H. A. Rose and the Governor for central provinces in India Denzil Ibbetson, Lohars have descended from Tarkhan tribals (Iranian warriors) who migrated to India.
.
The Lohar dynasty ruled Kashmir for several centuries and throughout their time the area experienced much internal dissent, violence, attacks from the Moghuls, extremes of taxation and corruption in all its forms. Kalhana
recorded the first 150 years or so of this, up to the middle of the 12th century. However it is commendable that this Dynasty was able to defend the Loha-Kot fort and thus the empire for several centuries.
'Lohar' is also the name of a city in the Punjab region of Pakistan which was named after the Lohar Dynasty. The city Lohar Chak was also named after the Lohar Dynasty in Kashmir. Lohar Chak is a city in the State of Jammu & Kashmir with a population of approximately 80,901.
(thread ceremony- initiation) for their children.
. The gotra started after Raja Kalash Loha (कलस लोह). [1]
Alberuni refers to their castle Lohar Kot-as Loha Kot. [4]
Lohara Jats are settled in six villages near Mathura, Chandigarh, LORAN Tehsil and district Gujrat in Pakistan among other areas.
. They are divided along religious lines, with the Hindu
Lohar are known as Vishvakarmas, and Muslim
Lohars are known as Saifi
s. The Lohar are further divided into a number of exogamous
groupings, the main ones being the Kanaujiya, Purbia, Bahai, Moulia and Magajia. Most Lohar are still engaged in their traditional occupation of metal fabrication, but most the Lohar of western Uttar Pradesh are cultivators. The Lohar speak Hindi and its various dialects such as Awadhi
.
Kermanshah
Kermanshah is a city in and the capital of Kermanshah Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 784,602, in 198,117 families.The overwhelming majority of Kermanshahi people are Shi'a Muslims...
in Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
right up to Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. In 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...
the Lohars are also known as Vishwakarma, Sharma
Sharma
Sharma Hindi शर्मा, Urdu شرمہ, ) is a name used in the Indian subcontinent mostly in Northern India as a surname or given name. As a noun in Sanskrit, Sharma has various positive connotations, such as "bliss", "happiness", "shelter", "laid back" and "protection."Sharma is a surname of brahmin...
, Lohana
Lohana
The Lohana also referred to as Luvana are an Indian caste,largely classified as merchants and are categorized as Vaishya or Bania caste although their ancient history proves that they are Kshatriya of Suryavanshi descant, claiming their lineage from Lava, son of Rama...
or Panchal
Panchal
Panchal is an Indian title, in tune with the Hindu caste system, that represents some of the castes that are predominant in the Indian state of Gujarat that are either agriculturalists or blacksmiths.-Ethnicity:...
s. Muslim Lohar 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...
are known as Saifi
Saifi
The Saifi are a Muslim community found in North India, Pakistan. They are now considered as forming a community with in the Shaikh caste. They are also known as Muslim BadhaiLohar Kalayi gar.-History and origin:...
. The Pakistani city of Lahore was once called Loharpur, the city of the Lohar dynasty. Arif Lohar
Arif Lohar
Arif Lohar is a Pakistani folk singer. He usually sings with native musical instrument resembling tongs . His folk music is representative of traditional folk heritage of the Punjab...
and Alam Lohar
Alam Lohar
Muhammad Alam Lohar was a prominent Punjabi folk music singer of Pakistan.He died in 1979 in an accident. He is also credited with popularizing the term and song Jugni.-Early life:...
are some of the world famous musicians from Pakistan. Mohammad Tariq Lohar is yet another notable artist from the same country.
According to the famous british colonial writer H. A. Rose and the Governor for central provinces in India Denzil Ibbetson, Lohars have descended from Tarkhan tribals (Iranian warriors) who migrated to India.
Lohara dynasty
The Lohara Dynasty or Lohar Dynasty was founded by a Nara of Darvabhisara (IV.712). He was a vyavahari (perhaps merchant) who along with others who owned villages like him had set up little kingdoms during the last days of Karkotas. The Lohar dynasty was the only Hindu Empire that ruled Kashmir between 1003 and approximately 1320. Although the Lohar dynasty was not very successful in the last phase, they ruled for a remarkable period of time. The state kingdom of Lohara is now in Poonch district of the state KashmirKashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
.
The Lohar dynasty ruled Kashmir for several centuries and throughout their time the area experienced much internal dissent, violence, attacks from the Moghuls, extremes of taxation and corruption in all its forms. Kalhana
Kalhana
Kalhana , a Kashmiri, was the author of Rajatarangini , an account of the history of Kashmir. He wrote the work in Sanskrit between 1148 and 1149. All information regarding his life has to be deduced from his own writing, a major scholar of which is Mark Aurel Stein...
recorded the first 150 years or so of this, up to the middle of the 12th century. However it is commendable that this Dynasty was able to defend the Loha-Kot fort and thus the empire for several centuries.
'Lohar' is also the name of a city in the Punjab region of Pakistan which was named after the Lohar Dynasty. The city Lohar Chak was also named after the Lohar Dynasty in Kashmir. Lohar Chak is a city in the State of Jammu & Kashmir with a population of approximately 80,901.
Exogamous divisions
- AbbasiAbbasiAbbasi is a prominent Islamic family name. - Origin :The Abbasid caliphate was founded by the descendants of the Islamic prophet Muhammad's youngest uncle, Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib, in Harran in 750 CE and shifted its capital in 762 to Baghdad...
- Dagar
- Yaduvanshi
- SolankiSolankiThe Solanki was a royal Hindu Indian dynasty that ruled parts of western and central India between the 10th to 13th centuries. A number of scholars including V. A. Smith assign them Gurjar origin....
- DangiDangiThe Dangi are a Hindu caste found in the states of Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Hariyana, Gujarat, Uttrakhand, Maharastra, Chhatisgarh, Jharkhand, Punjab, and Nepal.-History and origin:...
- LohanaLohanaThe Lohana also referred to as Luvana are an Indian caste,largely classified as merchants and are categorized as Vaishya or Bania caste although their ancient history proves that they are Kshatriya of Suryavanshi descant, claiming their lineage from Lava, son of Rama...
- Panwar
- ChauhanChauhanChauhan, Chouhan or Chohan , , - is a clan who ruled parts of northern India in the Middle Ages. The clan is most famous for Rajput King Maharaja Prithviraj Chauhan...
- Dharu / dharra
Brahmin Lohars
The Brahmin-Lohars belong to the Parusheya (Vishwakarma) Brahmin community. These Persian migrants who settled in Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra identify themselves as Maithil Brahmins, Lohars from Gujarat identify themselves as Panchal Brahmins and Lohars from Maharashtra identify themselves as Vishwa Brahmins of the Vishwakarma community. In most of these states, Lohars follow Brahmin rites and have Brahmin surnames. They perform UpanayanamUpanayanam
Upanayana is the initiation ritual by which initiates are invested with a sacred thread, to symbolize the transference of spiritual knowledge .- Significance of the sacred thread :...
(thread ceremony- initiation) for their children.
Lohara
Lohara (لوھراءجاٹ) or Lohroy in Urdu( لورائے جاٹ) is also gotra of Jats dwelling in Uttar PradeshUttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
. The gotra started after Raja Kalash Loha (कलस लोह). [1]
Alberuni refers to their castle Lohar Kot-as Loha Kot. [4]
Lohara Jats are settled in six villages near Mathura, Chandigarh, LORAN Tehsil and district Gujrat in Pakistan among other areas.
Lohar of Uttar Pradesh
The Lohar are one of the most widespread communities in Uttar PradeshUttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
. They are divided along religious lines, with the 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...
Lohar are known as Vishvakarmas, and Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
Lohars are known as Saifi
Saifi
The Saifi are a Muslim community found in North India, Pakistan. They are now considered as forming a community with in the Shaikh caste. They are also known as Muslim BadhaiLohar Kalayi gar.-History and origin:...
s. The Lohar are further divided into a number of exogamous
Exogamy
Exogamy is a social arrangement where marriage is allowed only outside of a social group. The social groups define the scope and extent of exogamy, and the rules and enforcement mechanisms that ensure its continuity. In social studies, exogamy is viewed as a combination of two related aspects:...
groupings, the main ones being the Kanaujiya, Purbia, Bahai, Moulia and Magajia. Most Lohar are still engaged in their traditional occupation of metal fabrication, but most the Lohar of western Uttar Pradesh are cultivators. The Lohar speak Hindi and its various dialects such as Awadhi
Awadhi language
Awadhi is an Indo-Aryan language, part of the Hindi-Urdu continuum. It is spoken chiefly in the Awadh region of Uttar Pradesh, although its speakers are also found in Madhya Pradesh, Delhi and Nepal. Furthermore, the Fiji Hindi dialect spoken by Indo-Fijians is considered a variant of Awadhi,...
.