Sulehria
Encyclopedia
The Suleria are a clan of Chandravanshi Rajputs. The Sikh
and Hindu
Sulehria live in India
. The Muslim
Sulehria are considered a clan of Muslim Rajputs
and nearly all live in Pakistan
. A part of Muslim Sulehrias live in Jammu & Kashmir, on both sides the border.
, and the Census report of the Punjab 1892, by H.A. Rose.
The Sulehrias, as they came to be known, settled around Sialkot
during Bahlul Lodi's rule and then intermarried amongst the various Jatt and Rajput tribes. According to Najmuttawarikh by Munshi Natiq, 25 Rajas of Sulehria clan ruled Sultanate of Punjab (Lahore) for a long time. Some of them were Maha Raja Kedar, Singal, Hem Aria, Ajayse. Jaypal, and Anandpal. According to Tarekh e Jalila, written by Ghulam Dastgir Nami, Raja Sahn Pal Suleria and his descendants chose Islam due to the preachings of Hazrat Abdul Jalil Chorh Bandgi Qureshi in the reign of Bahlol Lodhi, while his other brother Raja Jeet Pal Sulehria and his descendants remain of Hindu religion.
Sulehris were mainly followers of the Islam, however there were some voluntary conversions to the Sikh
faith due to the rise of Sikhism
in the Punjab region
and due to the Sulehris settling and mixing with the people of Punjab for so many generations. There are many well educated successful Sulehris in India today, they go by the name Salaria
and identify strongly from their Rajput heritage. Many Sikh Sulehris successfully work in the fields of medicine, Army and commerce.
In Pakistan, they inhabit a long chain of border villages in Sialkot
, Shakargarh
and Narowal
, Gujranwala
districts along the working boundary between Pakistan and the province of Jammu (Indian Administered Jammu-Kashmir).
There is also a strong affluent population of Sulehris (who are adherents of the Islamic faith) in Pakistani Administered Kashmir in Kotli
, Rawala kot, Poonch
, Bagh
and Muzaffarabad
Districts. Some families are settled in district Jhelum
.
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
and 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...
Sulehria live 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 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...
Sulehria are considered a clan of Muslim Rajputs
Muslim Rajputs
Muslim Rajputs or Musulman Rajputs are Muslims belonging to the Hindu Rajput Kshatriya groups of Indian subcontinent, who converted to Islam.-History:...
and nearly all live 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...
. A part of Muslim Sulehrias live in Jammu & Kashmir, on both sides the border.
Origin
The history of the Suleria is well documented in the Census Report of the Punjab 1883 by Denzil IbbetsonDenzil Ibbetson
Sir Denzil Charles Jelf Ibbetson KCSI was an administrator in British India and an author. He served as governor of the Central Provinces and Berar from 1900 to 1902....
, and the Census report of the Punjab 1892, by H.A. Rose.
The Sulehrias, as they came to be known, settled around Sialkot
Sialkot
Sialkot is a city in Pakistan situated in the north-east of the Punjab province at the foothills of snow-covered peaks of Kashmir near the Chenab river. It is the capital of Sialkot District. The city is about north-west of Lahore and only a few kilometers from Indian-controlled Jammu.The...
during Bahlul Lodi's rule and then intermarried amongst the various Jatt and Rajput tribes. According to Najmuttawarikh by Munshi Natiq, 25 Rajas of Sulehria clan ruled Sultanate of Punjab (Lahore) for a long time. Some of them were Maha Raja Kedar, Singal, Hem Aria, Ajayse. Jaypal, and Anandpal. According to Tarekh e Jalila, written by Ghulam Dastgir Nami, Raja Sahn Pal Suleria and his descendants chose Islam due to the preachings of Hazrat Abdul Jalil Chorh Bandgi Qureshi in the reign of Bahlol Lodhi, while his other brother Raja Jeet Pal Sulehria and his descendants remain of Hindu religion.
Sulehris were mainly followers of the Islam, however there were some voluntary conversions to the Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
faith due to the rise of Sikhism
Sikhism
Sikhism is a monotheistic religion founded during the 15th century in the Punjab region, by Guru Nanak Dev and continued to progress with ten successive Sikh Gurus . It is the fifth-largest organized religion in the world and one of the fastest-growing...
in the Punjab region
Punjab region
The Punjab , also spelled Panjab |water]]s"), is a geographical region straddling the border between Pakistan and India which includes Punjab province in Pakistan and the states of the Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh and some northern parts of the National Capital Territory of Delhi...
and due to the Sulehris settling and mixing with the people of Punjab for so many generations. There are many well educated successful Sulehris in India today, they go by the name Salaria
Salaria
Salaria is a genus of fish in the Blenniidae family.There are four species in this genus.-Species:* Salaria basilisca * Salaria economidisi * Freshwater blenny, Salaria fluviatilis...
and identify strongly from their Rajput heritage. Many Sikh Sulehris successfully work in the fields of medicine, Army and commerce.
Distribution
Today Sulehrias are mostly found around the northern part of the Indian Sub-Continent.In Pakistan, they inhabit a long chain of border villages in Sialkot
Sialkot
Sialkot is a city in Pakistan situated in the north-east of the Punjab province at the foothills of snow-covered peaks of Kashmir near the Chenab river. It is the capital of Sialkot District. The city is about north-west of Lahore and only a few kilometers from Indian-controlled Jammu.The...
, Shakargarh
Shakargarh
Shakargarh , the headquarters of Shakargarh Tehsil, is a city in the north-east of Narowal District, Punjab, Pakistan. It borders Jammu to the North and Sialkot to the west The city is located at 32°16'0N 75°10'0E and is situated at the west bank of the Ravi River.-Demographics:The total area of...
and Narowal
Narowal
Narowal is a city in the northeast of the Punjab province of Pakistan. The city is the capital of Narowal District and tehsil. It is situated on the banks of Ravi River about 4–5 km from the Indian border.-Etymology:...
, Gujranwala
Gujranwala
Gujranwala is a industrial city in the north-east of the Punjab province. It is the sixth largest city in Pakistan with a population of approximately 2,661,360 as on 24 June 2011...
districts along the working boundary between Pakistan and the province of Jammu (Indian Administered Jammu-Kashmir).
There is also a strong affluent population of Sulehris (who are adherents of the Islamic faith) in Pakistani Administered Kashmir in Kotli
Kotli
Kotli is the chief town of Kotli District, in the Pakistani-administered Azad Jammu and Kashmir. Kotli is linked with Mirpur by two metalled roads, one via Rajdhani, and the other via Charhoi...
, Rawala kot, Poonch
Poonch
Poonch is a town and a municipal committee in Poonch District in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. Based on the Mahābhārata evidence, and the evidence from 7th Chinese traveler Xuanzang, the districts of Poonch along with Rajauri and Abhisara had been under the sway of the Republican Kambojas...
, Bagh
Bagh
Bagh is the chief town of Bagh District in Azad KashmirBagh, the district headquarters of district Bagh is 100 Kilometers from Muzaffarabad via Kohallah & 80 Kilometers via Suddhen Gali, 205 Kilometers from Islamabad and 48 kilometers from Rawalakot. This town is situated on the confluence of two...
and Muzaffarabad
Muzaffarabad
Muzaffarabad is the capital of Pakistan Occupied Kashmir, Pakistan. It is located in Muzaffarabad District on the banks of the Jhelum and Neelum rivers...
Districts. Some families are settled in district Jhelum
Jhelum
Jhelum or Jehlum may refer to:* Jhelum, a city in Pakistan on the banks of the Jhelum River* Jhelum District, an administrative division in Punjab, Pakistan surrounding the city of Jhelum...
.
Titles used by Sulehria Rajputs
- ThakurThakur (Indian title)Thakur is an Indian feudal title in several Indian languages, literally meaning "lord". A Thikana is the state or estate of a Thakur. A Thakurani is the wife of a Thakur...
: Some Sulehria Rajputs of Sialkot, Narowal, and Gurdas Pur use the title Thakur. - RajaRajaRaja is an Indian term for a monarch, or princely ruler of the Kshatriya varna...
: In Jhelum and Azad Kashmir regions Sulehria Rajputs use this title. - RanaRana (title)Rana is a Princely title of Royalty in Sanskrit. Rana is used by the Jats and Rajput of South Asia. The name is usually interpreted to mean "Prince".Compound titles Rana Sahib, Rana Bahadur, and Maharana.-Royal title in India:...
: Sulehria Rajputs of Faisal Abad, Lahore, etc., use the title Rana. - ChaudharyChaudharyChoudhury is a term in Indo-Aryan languages, literally meaning "holder of four". Traditionally, the term is used as a title indicating the ownership of ancestral land, but in contemporary usage it is often taken as a surname or title....
: In Sialkot, Narowal, and Gujranwala, many Sulehrias use this title. Chaudhary is a common title of Rajputs and Jatts.
Notable Sulehris
- Sara SuleriSara SuleriSara Suleri Goodyear, born Sara Suleri, is an author and, since 1983, professor of English at Yale University, where her fields of study and teaching include Romantic and Victorian poetry as well as a recent interest in Edmund Burke. Her special concerns include postcolonial literatures and...
, English professor - Dr. Rasheed Ahmed Sulehria, (Social Worker Sialkot, Gujranwala)
- Chaudhary Munir Ahmed Sulehria, (Nazim Sialkot)
- Akhtar Ali Sulehri, High Commissioner of Pakistan to Maldives
- Javed Suleri
- Chaudhary Awais qasim khan sulehry.of ROPOCHAK (.member of provincial assembly)
- NUSRAT THAKUR of kingra moor(landlord in kingra mor)..
- Chaudhary MAQSOOdOF POLARPOR(CITY NAZIM OF PASRUR).
- DR TANVIR ISLAM(SOBAI WAZIR_E SEHAT).
- MAZAR OF THAKUR HANSPAL Sulehria(in village hanspal near marajkai mor)...(A GREAT AND BRAVE WARRIOR DURING THE REGION OF RAJA NANDPAL)
- Justice Chaudhary Ijaz AhmedSupreem court Islamabad.