Aheer
Encyclopedia
Aheer is a Jat tribe found mainly in the western districts of Punjab
Punjab (Pakistan)
Punjab is the most populous province of Pakistan, with approximately 45% of the country's total population. Forming most of the Punjab region, the province is bordered by Kashmir to the north-east, the Indian states of Punjab and Rajasthan to the east, the Pakistani province of Sindh to the...

 and Sindh
Sindh
Sindh historically referred to as Ba'ab-ul-Islam , is one of the four provinces of Pakistan and historically is home to the Sindhi people. It is also locally known as the "Mehran". Though Muslims form the largest religious group in Sindh, a good number of Christians, Zoroastrians and Hindus can...

 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...

.

History and origin

The tribe is also known as Heer
Heer (clan)
Heer also known as Heir/Haer or Hayer is one among the oldest and purest Jat gotras , along with Maan and Bhullar. It is found in the region of Punjab shared by India and Pakistan...

 or Purewal
Purewal
Purewal is clan of Jats found mainly in the state of Punjab in India.The villages of origin of the Purewal clan are Shankar where they can be traced to three Purewal brothers during the Guru Gobind era , Ajit Singh Garhi, Hakim Pur and Kalahwalfatu in the Doaba region of Punjab.The three Purewal...

 depending on the dialect of the speaker. Those that tend to speak dialects of Lahanda
Lahnda languages
The Lahnda or Western Punjabi Languages are an Indo-Aryan languages dialect continuum that are Mutually intelligible and are spoken in South Asia.According to the Ethnologue they include:...

, such as Seraiki or Pothari
Pothohari language
Potwari , also known as Potohari ), is a rich north Indian sub-continent dialect spoken in the Pothohar Plateau around Rawalpindi, Kahuta, Gujar Khan, Jehlum, up to Gujrat in the south and Chakwal in the West, Hazara in the north, Azad Kashmir in the east and also by Sikhs from the Pothohar...

 tend to refer to themselves as Aheer, while those found in central Punjab refers to themselves as Heer
Heer (clan)
Heer also known as Heir/Haer or Hayer is one among the oldest and purest Jat gotras , along with Maan and Bhullar. It is found in the region of Punjab shared by India and Pakistan...

. There connection with the Ahir caste
Caste
Caste is an elaborate and complex social system that combines elements of endogamy, occupation, culture, social class, tribal affiliation and political power. It should not be confused with race or social class, e.g. members of different castes in one society may belong to the same race, as in India...

 of North India
North India
North India, known natively as Uttar Bhārat or Shumālī Hindustān , is a loosely defined region in the northern part of India. The exact meaning of the term varies by usage...

 is unknown, and Sir Denzil Ibbetson in his report on the Census of Punjab simply states that these are Aher Jats as distinct from the Ahir caste. There is a further division as the Heer can be both 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...

 and 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"...

, while the Aheer are always Muslim. According to tribal traditions, the Heer together with the Bhullar
Bhullar
Wrestling_at_the_2010_Commonwealth_GamesBhullar is a Jat gotra or clan found in the Punjab region of India and Pakistan....

 and Maan clan are the original Jat tribes, while other tribes were latter incorporated into the Jat ethnic group. According to other traditions, the Aheer claim descent from Qutab Shah, the ancestor of the Awan
Awan (Pakistan)
Awan , is a South Asian Zamindar tribe, putatively of Arab origin, living predominantly in northern, central, and western parts of Punjab, Pakistan...

 and Khokhar
Khokhar
The Khokhar or Khokar are a people of Punjab region of Pakistan and north-western India. According to H. A. Rose they are the gotra of Rajput, Jat, Arain, Nai, and Churah. According to Denzil Ibbetson, they are also a gotra of the Tarkhan and Khatri tribes. The Khokhars were designated as an...

 tribes.
The Aheer
Aheer
Aheer is a Jat tribe found mainly in the western districts of Punjab and Sindh in Pakistan. -History and origin:The tribe is also known as Heer or Purewal depending on the dialect of the speaker. Those that tend to speak dialects of Lahanda, such as Seraiki or Pothari tend to refer to themselves...

 have been referred to as "an ordinary Musalman peasants, like their neighbours". However, in Khushab District
Khushab District
Khushab District is a rural tribal district located in Punjab, Pakistan. According to the 1998 census, the population was 905,711 with 24.76% living in urban areas. The district consists of 3 tehsils: Khushab, Nurpur, and Quaidabad, as well as a sub-tehsil Naushera...

, the Aheer family of Khushab
Khushab
Khushab is a city of Khushab District in the Punjab province of Pakistan. The city serves as the headquarters of Khushab Tehsil an administrative subdivision of the district....

 were substantial landowners, and were confirmed a fairly large jagir
Jagir
In historic India, a jagir was a small territory granted by the ruler to an army chieftain in fairly short terms usually of three years but not extending beyond his lifetime, in recognition of his military service...

 by the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 colonial authorities.

Distribution

The Aheer are found mainly in the western districts of Punjab, stretching from Rawalpindi
Rawalpindi District
Rawalpindi is a district of Pakistan in the north of the Punjab province which contains the city of Rawalpindi. The district has an area of . It was part of Rawalpindi Division, until the year 2000 when the division was abolished...

, Khushab
Khushab District
Khushab District is a rural tribal district located in Punjab, Pakistan. According to the 1998 census, the population was 905,711 with 24.76% living in urban areas. The district consists of 3 tehsils: Khushab, Nurpur, and Quaidabad, as well as a sub-tehsil Naushera...

, Jhang
Jhang District
Jhang District is a district of the Punjab province of Pakistan. The city of Jhang is the district's capital. According to the 1998 census of Pakistan, the district's population was 2.8 million, of which 23 percent lived in urban areas. By 2008, according to estimates, the population had...

, Bhakkar
Bhakkar District
Bhakkar is a District in the Punjab province of Pakistan. The district was created in 1981 with Bhakkar city as the capital. It is located between 31° 10' and 32° 22' N. and 70° 47' and 72° E. with an area of , most of it lies in the desolate plain of the Thal, but the Kachhi or strip of...

 and Faisalabad
Faisalabad District
Faisalabad District is one of the districts of Punjab province, Pakistan. According to the 1998 census of Pakistan it had a population of 5,429,547 of which almost 42% were in Faisalabad City....

 districts.

Important Villages

Important Aheer villages include:
  • In Sahiwal District
    Sahiwal District
    Sahiwal District is a district in the Punjab province of Pakistan. As of 1998, it had a population of 1,843,194 people, 16.27% of which were located in urban areas. Since 2008, Sahiwal District along with Okara District and Pakpattan District has comprised the Sahiwal Division...

     their main village is 77/12-L. Here a good portion of population is Aheer.
  • In Chiniot District
    Chiniot District
    Chiniot District became the 36th district of the Punjab province of Pakistan in February 2009. Earlier it was a tehsil of Jhang District.- History :...

     Chak 142J.B ( Khai Aheeran), Chak 235JB (Haiboana), Langrana and Mouza Lodhran are important Aheer villages.
  • In Jhang District the main village is Chak 452 JB(Aheeranwala).
  • In Sargodha district Aheer are found mainly near Sahiwal, where there are several villages such as Ahir Fateh Shah and Ahir Surkhru.
  • In Rawalpindi District, Ahir and Bher Ahir
    Bher Ahir
    Bher Ahir is a village situated in the Gujar Khan Tehsil of Rawalpindi District, of Punjab, Pakistan. Its geographical coordinates are 33° 13' 0 North and 73° 4' 0 East.Most of the population is Muslim, and belongs to the Aheer clan of the Jat tribe....

     in the Gujar Khan Tehsil
    Gujar Khan Tehsil
    Gujar Khan Tehsil, head-quartered at Gujar Khan, is one of the seven Tehsils of Rawalpindi District in the Punjab province of Pakistan...

     are important villages.
  • In Mianwali District
    Mianwali District
    Mianwali is a district in the northwest of Punjab province, Pakistan. It borders eight districts: Attock District in the north, Chakwal District in the northeast, Khushab District in the east, and Bhakkar District in the south, while Lakki Marwat lies to the west, Kohat and Karak districts to the...

     there are many villages of Aheers, most notable: Aheeranwala, Aba Khel, Ahheranwala, Jandanwala and Wandhi Aheeranwali near Pai-Khel.
  • In Lodhran District, the villages of Basti Aheer and Jhok Aheer.
  • In Khanewal District they are found in Kabirwala and near Qadirpur Raan.
  • In Mandi Bahauddin District in Malakwal Tehsil there is the famous village of Chak 7 (Aheeranwala).
  • Also found in Khushab District, mainly in the district headquarters in Khushab
    Khushab
    Khushab is a city of Khushab District in the Punjab province of Pakistan. The city serves as the headquarters of Khushab Tehsil an administrative subdivision of the district....

    , and several villages in the Thal Desert
    Thal Desert
    The Thal desert is situated in Punjab, Pakistan. It is vast area mainly between the Jhelum and Sindh rivers near the Pothohar Plateau. Its total length from north to south is 190 miles, and its maximum breadth is while minimum breadth is 20 miles. This region is divided into the districts of...


Language

The Aheer in Punjab speak Jhangochi
Jhangochi
Jhangochi is the oldest and most conservative dialect of the Punjabi language. Jaangli,Jhangvi,Chenavri,Changvi and Rachnavi are alternate names of this dialect. It is spoken throughout a widespread area, starting from Khanewal and Jhang at both ends of Ravi River and Chenab River to Gujranwala...

 and Seraiki
Saraiki language
Saraiki , transliterated as Sirāikī and sometimes spelled Seraiki and Saraiki, is a standardized written language of Pakistan belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages. It is a language spoken in the heart of Pakistan...

, while those in Sindh
Sindh
Sindh historically referred to as Ba'ab-ul-Islam , is one of the four provinces of Pakistan and historically is home to the Sindhi people. It is also locally known as the "Mehran". Though Muslims form the largest religious group in Sindh, a good number of Christians, Zoroastrians and Hindus can...

 speak Sindhi
Sindhi language
Sindhi is the language of the Sindh region of Pakistan that is spoken by the Sindhi people. In India, it is among 22 constitutionally recognized languages, where Sindhis are a sizeable minority. It is spoken by 53,410,910 people in Pakistan, according to the national government's Statistics Division...

.
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