The Kadia are a 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...

 community found in the state of Gujarat 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...

. They are 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...

 converts from the 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...

 Kadia

Kadia (community)

Kadia is a Hindu community in Gujarat State of India. They are specialised in masonry works, artistic carvings and sculpting as well as artistic wooden works.- History and origin :...

 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...

.

History and origin

The Kadia are a community of masons and bricklayers. They are said to have 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 Gujarat Sultan Mahmud Begada

Mahmud Begada

Sultan Abu'l Fath Nasir-ud-Din Mahmud Shah I, popularly known as Mahmud Begada was the most prominent sultan of Gujarat. He was the great-grandson of Ahmad Shah I, the founder of the Muzaffarid dynasty, and of the city of Ahmedabad in the present-day state of Gujarat, India. He was known to be...

, and claim to have originally been 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 from the Sikar

Sikar

Sikar is a city located in the Shekhawati region of Rajasthan state in India. It is the administrative headquarter of Sikar District. Sikar is a historical city and contains many old Havelis which are a huge tourist attraction. The best way to reach the city is to use road transport from Jaipur...

 region.

Present circumstances

They are found mainly in Dhaboji town and the nearby city of Vadodara

Vadodara

Vadodara formerly known as Baroda is the third most populated city in the Indian State of Gujarat . It is one of the four cities with the population of over 1 million...

. The community is split into a number of clans, the main ones being the Vaniannola, Tollanolla, Ajeetnola and Bodiwala. Other clans include the Chauhan, Solanki, Tawaar, Sisodia and Langha. These clans are exogamous.

The community are essentially still masons, with the trade passed from father to son. A few are also involved in selling vegetables or petty trade. They have their own caste association, the Kadia Muslim Jamaat, which has state wide memberships. The community are Sunni 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...

s, and share customs with other Gujarati Muslim

Gujarati Muslim

The term Gujarati Muslims is usually used to signify an Indian Muslim from the State of Gujarat in west India, who speaks the Gujarati Language as a mother-tongue and follows certain customs different from the rest of Indian Muslims...

communities.