The Gaurwa are a Rajput

Rajput

A Rajput is a member of one of the patrilineal clans of western, central, northern India and in some parts of Pakistan. Rajputs are descendants of one of the major ruling warrior classes in the Indian subcontinent, particularly North India...

 community, found in the 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...

 province of 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...

, and the states of Haryana

Haryana

Haryana is a state in India. Historically, it has been a part of the Kuru region in North India. The name Haryana is found mentioned in the 12th century AD by the apabhramsha writer Vibudh Shridhar . It is bordered by Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to the north, and by Rajasthan to the west and south...

, Uttar Pradesh

Uttar Pradesh

Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...

 and Delhi

Delhi

Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...

 in India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

.

History and origin

The Guarwa are by origin Chauhan

Chauhan

Chauhan, Chouhan or Chohan , , - is a clan who ruled parts of northern India in the Middle Ages. The clan is most famous for Rajput King Maharaja Prithviraj Chauhan...

 Rajput

Rajput

A Rajput is a member of one of the patrilineal clans of western, central, northern India and in some parts of Pakistan. Rajputs are descendants of one of the major ruling warrior classes in the Indian subcontinent, particularly North India...

s, whose ancestors were said to have allowed widow re-marriage (karewa in Hindi

Hindi

Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...

), a custom not allowed in traditional Hindu

Hindu

Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...

 societies. Many of the Gaurwa converted to Islam

Islam

Islam . The most common are and .   : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...

, during the rule of the Mughal

Mughal Empire

The Mughal Empire ,‎ or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...

 Emperor Aurangzeb

Aurangzeb

Abul Muzaffar Muhy-ud-Din Muhammad Aurangzeb Alamgir , more commonly known as Aurangzeb or by his chosen imperial title Alamgir , was the sixth Mughal Emperor of India, whose reign lasted from 1658 until his death in 1707.Badshah Aurangzeb, having ruled most of the Indian subcontinent for nearly...

. Gaurwa have the following divisions:

• Bargala
  Bargala (caste)
  The Bargala are a Hindu caste found in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. They are sub-clan within the Gaurwa community. A smaller number of the Bargala have converted to Islam.- Origin :...
  
  
• Jais
  Jayas
  The Jayas or Jayash is one of the oldest Rajput clans of India, who enjoy a reputation both as rulers and soldiers. They use Thakur as their surname, therefore, they are also known as Jayas Thakurs...
  
  
• Tarkar
• Jasawat
• Jaiswar
• Bhal
• Indauliya
• Bachhal
  Bachhal
  Bachal are a clan of Rajput group in India. Further, in Pakistan & Afghanistan, Bachal or Bachhal are part of converted Muslim Rajput group...
  
  
• Nare
• Uriya
• Mahadwar
• Bangar
• Porch

The 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...

 branch of the tribe emigrated to 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...

, at the partition of India

Partition of India

The Partition of India was the partition of British India on the basis of religious demographics that led to the creation of the sovereign states of the Dominion of Pakistan and the Union of India on 14 and 15...

. The Gaurwa have practically merged into the Ranghar

Ranghar

Ranghar are a Muslim ethnic group, which is found in Sindh and Punjab provinces of Pakistan and Haryana and Uttar Pradesh states of India. Ranghar were native to Indian state of Haryana and also found in the Doab region of Uttar Pradesh, as well as Delhi in India...

 community, with whom they had already shared many customs. They have all but abadoned the Braj Bhasa dialect, and have switched to Ranghari and Punjabi

Punjabi language

Punjabi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by inhabitants of the historical Punjab region . For Sikhs, the Punjabi language stands as the official language in which all ceremonies take place. In Pakistan, Punjabi is the most widely spoken language...

.

In India, the community is basically made of small peasents, concenterated in the Doab

Doab

A Doab is a term used in India and Pakistan for a "tongue" or tract of land lying between two confluent rivers...

 region of Uttar Pradesh

Uttar Pradesh

Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...

, and neighbouring districts of Haryana

Haryana

Haryana is a state in India. Historically, it has been a part of the Kuru region in North India. The name Haryana is found mentioned in the 12th century AD by the apabhramsha writer Vibudh Shridhar . It is bordered by Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to the north, and by Rajasthan to the west and south...

. They have a village based caste council, which exercise social control. They marry among themselves, although there are a few marriages with pure Hindu

Hindu

Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...

 Rajput

Rajput

A Rajput is a member of one of the patrilineal clans of western, central, northern India and in some parts of Pakistan. Rajputs are descendants of one of the major ruling warrior classes in the Indian subcontinent, particularly North India...

 clans. Unlike their Pakistani counterparts, the Indian Gaurwa continue to speak the Braj Bhasa language.

Distribution

In India, they are found mainly in Ballabhgarh

Ballabhgarh

Ballabhgarh is a town and a tehsil in Faridabad District of Haryana, India, and is part of the National Capital Region...

 tehsil and Palwal

Palwal

Palwal is a city and a municipal council. It is the headquarters of Palwal district, the 21st district of Haryana state in northern IndiaIt is situated at a distance of 60 km from Delhi on the Delhi-Mathura highway. The latitude of the town is 28° 40' N and longitude is 76° 59' E...

 tehsil of Faridabad District

Faridabad District

Faridabad district is one of the 21 districts in Haryana, and Faridabad city is the district headquarters. Delhi-Mathura National Highway No.2 passes through the centre of the District. The district occupies an area of 2151 km². The district has a population of 2,193,276...

, in Haryana

Haryana

Haryana is a state in India. Historically, it has been a part of the Kuru region in North India. The name Haryana is found mentioned in the 12th century AD by the apabhramsha writer Vibudh Shridhar . It is bordered by Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to the north, and by Rajasthan to the west and south...

 state. Communities are also found in Agra

Agra District

Agra District is one of the 70 districts of Uttar Pradesh state of India, and the historical city of Agra is the district headquarters. Agra district is a part of Agra division.-Geography:...

, Bulandshahr

Bulandshahr District

Bulandshahar District is a district of Uttar Pradesh state in northern India. Bulandshahr city is the district headquarters.-Geography:...

 and Mathura

Mathura District

Mathura District is a district of Uttar Pradesh state of northern India. The historic town of Mathura is the district headquarters.The district is bounded on the northeast by Aligarh District, on the southeast by Hathras District, on the south by Agra District, and on the west by Rajasthan and...

 districts of Uttar Pradesh

Uttar Pradesh

Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...

.

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...

, they are found mainly in Okara

Okara District

Okara District is a district of Punjab, Pakistan. The Multan Road connects the district capital, Okara with tLahore 110 km away. Okara began as a small town about 40 km from the city of Sahiwal. It later become a city in its own right. According to the 1998 census, the district had a...

, Vehari

Vehari District

Vehari District is a district in the Punjab province of Pakistan - the city of Vehari is the capital of the district. The district was created in 1976 out of the three tehsils of Multan District . The name Vehari means low lying settlement by a flood water channel...

 and Multan

Multan

Multan , is a city in the Punjab Province of Pakistan and capital of Multan District. It is located in the southern part of the province on the east bank of the Chenab River, more or less in the geographic centre of the country and about from Islamabad, from Lahore and from Karachi...

district.