Vankar

The Vankar is a Hindu social group found in the states of Gujarat and Rajasthan in India. Starting from the early 1990s, a sizable number have emigrated to other parts of the world, particularly to Canada, United States, United Kingdom and Australia.[1][2]

History and origin

The Vankar is a social group found largely in western states of India.[1] Some claim to be descended from Rajputs and use the prefix Maru (meaning from Marwar, whence they believe they came) to differentiate themselves from other Vankar groups.[2] They migrated to places like Bhilad, Gariadhar, Cheetal and Patan.[3]

Demographics

They are largely spread in Saurashtra region of Gujarat and also found in Dadra, Daman and Diu.[1][2] According to the 1981 census, the Vankar population (including Mahyavanshi Vankars and Maru Vankar) was 10,49,837 in Gujarat.[1]

Culture

They are endogamous community, consisting of a series of exogamous clans.[3]

Occupation

The main occupation of Vankars was the weaving of cloth.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 India's communities by K. S. Singh. Oxford University Press. 1998. p. 1776,2101–03.
  2. 1 2 3 Gujarat, Part 1. 2003. pp. 882–885.
  3. 1 2 3 People of India Gujarat Volume XXI Part Three edited by R.B Lal, P.B.S.V Padmanabham, G Krishnan & M Azeez Mohideen pages 1126-1129
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.