Jats

Majectic kingsman of Indian subcontient
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Jat[1] also known as Jadgal, Jutt or Jaat is a traditional semi-nomadic rural community, substantially belong to feudal elite sub-caste of landholding[2] agriculturalist dominantly found in north western region of  India including some parts of  Pakistani Punjab[3]. The Jat community is found majorly in three religions: Hindu, Muslim and Sikh.[4][5]

History

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Jats had its origins in pastoralism in the lower Indus valley of Sindh until they were forced northwards due to the Islamic conquests.[6]

"... (North India) contained large numbers of non-elite tillers.Like many similar titles used elsewhere, this was not so much a caste name as a broad designation for the man of substance in rural terrain. … To be called Jat has in some regions implied a background of pastoralism, though it has more commonly been a designation of non-servile cultivating people".[7]

Many Jat people serve in the Indian Army, including the Jat Regiment, Sikh Regiment, Rajputana Rifles and the Grenadiers, where they have won many of the highest military awards for gallantry and bravery. Jat people also serve in the Pakistan Army especially in the Punjab Regiment.

Distribution

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Jaats inhabited throughout the Punjab region, Sindh and some other northwestern parts of Subcontinent. [source?]

References

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  1. Rawat, Ramnarayan S.; Satyanarayana, K. (2016-04-07). Dalit Studies. Duke University Press. p. 251. ISBN 978-0-8223-7431-2. OL 27435967M. They feared that the formation of a Sikh-majority province would further consolidate the power of the already dominant landowning Jat Sikhs, which would make their position in the rural society of Punjab even more vulnerable. After the 1966 reorganization of Punjab, the Jat Sikhs constituted nearly 60 percent of the population and the Hindus around 38 percent.
  2. Bal, Gurpreet (September 2006). "Entrepreneurship among Diasporic Communities". The Journal of Entrepreneurship. 15 (2): 189. doi:10.1177/097135570601500205. ISSN 0971-3557. Most of the Sikhs are Jats and owing to their numerical preponderance and landownership, they are a dominant caste in Punjab. The word Jat and farmer are synonymous in Punjabi. They are landowners and their occupation is agriculture.
  3. Kaur, Harjinder (2010). Nationalist Historians On Sikh History. Punjab (India): Department of History-University of Patiala. p. 238. Jatt/ Jaat: A section of Indian society which dominates the rural areas in the Northern India. These people are most agriculturist
  4. "Jat | Ethnic Group | Britannica". www.britannica.com. 2024-08-03. Retrieved 2024-08-31.
  5. Etienne, Gilbert (2023-11-15). Studies in Indian Agriculture: The Art of the Possible. Univ of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-32378-0.
  6. Asher, Catherine B.; Talbot, Cynthia (2006). India Before Europe. Cambridge University Press. p. 270. ISBN 0-521-80904-5.
  7. Bayly, Susan (2001). Caste, Society and Politics in India from the Eighteenth Century to the Modern Age. Cambridge University Press. p. 37. ISBN 978-0-521-79842-6. Retrieved 15 October 2011.

Further reading

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  • Census Of India 1911 Volume XIV Punjab Part 2 by Pandit Narikishan Kaul
  • 'A glossary of the tribes and castes of the Punjab and North West Frontier Province' by H.A. Rose, Page 354, published in 1919.