The Tarkhan is a caste found in the Punjab region of India and Pakistan. They are traditionally carpenters by occupation.[1]
 Tarkhan, carpenter caste of the Panjab - Tashrih al-aqvam (1825) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
|---|---|
| India and Pakistan | |
| Languages | |
| Hindi • Punjabi | |
| Religion | |
| Hinduism • Islam • Sikhism |
The Hindu members of this clan are generally identified as Khatis, Suthars or Lohars following the Vishwakarma community of India.[2] Whereas, Tarkhan Sikhs are among those groups who are identified as Ramgarhias, after the Misl leader Jassa Singh Ramgarhia.[3] Despite Sikhism generally rejecting the caste system, it does have its own very similar socio-economic hierarchy and in that the Ramgarhias, of which the Tarkhans are a part, now rank second only to the Jat Sikhs, thanks to significant economic and social power that elevated this middle class group from its lower caste confines.[4]
According to the 1921 census of India, which may not be reliable, some Tarkhan Sikhs owned large areas of land and, in some cases, whole villages.[5]
In 2001, the Punjab Government included Ramgarhia, Tarkhan and Dhiman in the list of Other Backward Classes (OBC) to improve their economic conditions.[6] They were also added in the list of backward classes by the governments of Haryana and Himachal Pradesh.[7][8]
Notable people
edit- Jassa Singh Ramgarhia, General of the Ramgarhia Misl[9]
- Bhai Lalo, Sikh religious figure[10]
- Zail Singh, president of India between 1982 and 1987[11]
References
edit- ^ McLeod, W. H. (2000). Exploring Sikhism: Aspects of Sikh Identity, Culture and Thought. Oxford University Press. p. 214. ISBN 978-0-19-564902-4.
- ^ Atal, Yogesh (2012). Sociology: A Study of the Social Sphere. Pearson Education India. p. 242. ISBN 978-8-13179-759-4.
- ^ Cole, W. Owen (2005). A Popular Dictionary of Sikhism: Sikh Religion and Philosophy. Routledge. p. 70. ISBN 1135797609.
- ^ Childs, Peter (13 May 2013). Encyclopaedia of Contemporary British Culture. Routledge. p. 270. ISBN 978-1134755547.
- ^ Sharma, Subash Chander (1987). Punjab, the Crucial Decade. Nirmal Publications. p. 114. ISBN 978-8171561735.
- ^ "Ramgarhias in OBC list". The Times of India. 31 August 2001. Retrieved 3 September 2020.
- ^ "List of Backward Classes | Welfare of Scheduled Caste & Backward Classes Department, Government of Haryana". haryanascbc.gov.in. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
- ^ "HBCFDC". himachalservices.nic.in. Retrieved 31 October 2020.
- ^ McLeod, W. H. (2005) [1995]. Historical Dictionary of Sikhism (2nd ed.). Scarecrow Press. p. 102. ISBN 0-8108-5088-5.
- ^ Singh, Pashaura; Barrier, Norman Gerald (1999). Sikh Identity: Continuity and Change. Manohar. p. 235. ISBN 978-81-7304-236-2.
- ^ Kumar, Ashutosh (22 November 2019). Electoral Politics in Punjab: Factors and Phases. Taylor & Francis. p. 175. ISBN 978-1-000-76939-5.