Anavil Brahmin
Anavil Brahmins are a community of Brahmins who are believed to be made Brahmin by Lord Ram [ 7th incarnation of Lord Vishnu ] when there was need of Brahmins at Anaval village [ recently region of south Gujarat ].As their origin is at Anaval place, they are called Anavil Brahmins.Then they were given the land of Parshuram -Parshubhumi[ The land between Vapi and Tapi {Surat} ]. They are dominant in the [ Parshubhumi ] Valsad, Navsari and Surat district of south Gujarat, India, where they have been significant land-owners and have an influential role in politics.[1][2]
The Anavil are among the Brahmins communities who do not perform a priestly function. They comprise two sub-groups, called the Desai and the Bhathela. The former acted as tax farmers during the era of the Maratha Empire, then as minor rulers and eventually underwent a process of sanskritisation that saw them conform more closely to the classical Brahmin practices.
History
Anavil Brahmins also known as Ayachak (One who never begs). Yachana is quite a norm among the Brahmin community. After each holy ritual, Brahmins demand something from the host, also known as Yachana.
The most popular surname among Anavil Brahmins are Desai & Naik (Nayak), among many like Vashi, Thakor, Mehta.
References
- Goody, Jack (1990). The Oriental, the Ancient and the Primitive: Systems of Marriage and the Family in the Pre-Industrial Societies of Eurasia. Cambridge University Press. p. 187. ISBN 978-0-52136-761-5.
- Streefkerk, Hein (1985). Industrial Transition in Rural India: Artisans, Traders, and Tribals in South Gujarat. Popular Prakashan. p. 131. ISBN 978-0-86132-067-7.
Further reading
- Jan Breman (2007). The Poverty Regime in Village India: Half a Century of Work and Life at the Bottom of the Rural Economy in South Gujarat. Oxford University Press.
- Klaas W. van der Veen (1972). I Give Thee My Daughter: A Study of Marriage and Hierarchy Among the Anavil Brahmans of South Gujarat. Van Gorcum.