Labanas are a Punjabi

Punjabi people

The Punjabi people , ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ), also Panjabi people, are an Indo-Aryan group from South Asia. They are the second largest of the many ethnic groups in South Asia. They originate in the Punjab region, which has been been the location of some of the oldest civilizations in the world including, the...

 tribe. The Labanas of Punjab region

Punjab region

The Punjab , also spelled Panjab |water]]s"), is a geographical region straddling the border between Pakistan and India which includes Punjab province in Pakistan and the states of the Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh and some northern parts of the National Capital Territory of Delhi...

 are mostly Sikhs, with a small minority of Muslims and Hindus.

History

According to British records 33% of the Labana were baptised Sikhs and were found primarily in the Lahore

Lahore

Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...

, Gujranwala

Gujranwala

Gujranwala is a industrial city in the north-east of the Punjab province. It is the sixth largest city in Pakistan with a population of approximately 2,661,360 as on 24 June 2011...

, and Sialkot

Sialkot

Sialkot is a city in Pakistan situated in the north-east of the Punjab province at the foothills of snow-covered peaks of Kashmir near the Chenab river. It is the capital of Sialkot District. The city is about north-west of Lahore and only a few kilometers from Indian-controlled Jammu.The...

 areas. The Labanas (along with many other groups) saw the highest conversions into Sikhism during 1881–1891.

According to George Armand Furse, "The Jut and Lobana castes of Sikhs possess in a high degree the useful knowledge of the lading and care of beasts of burden".

Origin

The name Laban may refer to the transport of salt. "The term Labana appears to be derived out from loon (salt) and bana means trade, and the lubana, Lobana or libana was doubtless the great salt-carrying and salt trading caste".

Acc. to Gurmat Parkash, Magazine by SGPC, Lobana also means who wear Iron Dress, i.e dress of Military person. They mentioned Lobana were Military persons who served in Guru's army.

These are also called Bahrupia, on account of their versatility in adopting many professions.

Labanki, the dialect of Labanas, is a mixture of Marwari

Marwari language

The Marwari language , also variously Marvari, Marwadi, Marvadi), is spoken in the Indian state of Rajasthan. Marwari is also found in the neighboring state of Gujarat and Haryana and in Eastern Pakistan...

, Saraiki

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...

, Gujarati

Gujarati language

Gujarati is an Indo-Aryan language, and part of the greater Indo-European language family. It is derived from a language called Old Gujarati which is the ancestor language of the modern Gujarati and Rajasthani languages...

, and Marathi

Marathi language

Marathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...

.

Role in Sikh History

After Guru Harkrishan, the eighth Guru of Sikhism, died in 1664, there was confusion about the identification of his successor. According to Sikh legends, Makhan Shah, a great merchant of the Labana tribe, identified Guru Teg Bahadur as the successor of Guru Harkrishan. Makhan Shah was very helpful to Guru Teg Bahadur during his pontificate. The Labanas participated in battles fought by the tenth Guru.

During the Misl

Misl

Misl generally refers to the twelve sovereign states in the Sikh Confederacy. The states formed a commonwealth that was described by Antoine Polier as an "aristocratic republic"...

 period , the Labanas joined the services of various "Misldars".

During the eighteenth century the Labanas began to follow a settled way of life. The Labanas of Lower Indus, Gujranwala and Jhang, settled as cultivators during Sikh rule.

Wherever the Labanas settled they named their villages as Tandas. Tanda in Labanki dialect means a travelling body encampment. In Kangra district, the Lobanas had four hamlets, each called Tanda. By the mid-nineteenth century, the Lobanas at some places owned not only parts of villages, but also entire villages and even groups of villages. They were chiefly found in the Punjab during the Sikh rule.
Labanas were listed as a martial race

Martial Race

Martial Race was a designation created by Army officials of British India, where they classified each ethnic group into one of two categories: 'Martial' and 'Non-Martial'. A 'martial race' was typically considered brave and well built for fighting. The 'non-martial races' were those whom the...

 by the British.

Labanas are said to have nomadic roots but are not related to the Lambada or Labada tribe of Andhra. There are some who believe that they are of the same stock as the Gypsies or Roma people of Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

. Labanas have been linked with Gypsies from Turkey.

Labanas today

Today Labana is a landholding-rich community of Punjab. A large number of Labanas are settled abroad in western countries. The people are hard-working and uplifted the community again to its pride, which was in crisis during the early years of partition. Most Sikh Labanas are of western Punjab origin (now in Pakistan) and are called Panahi, while a smaller ratio are of East Punjab origin and are called Jaddi.

Demographics

The Labana Sikh community's main regions of concentration are: Tri State Area (NY City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

, New Jersey

New Jersey

New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...

, Connecticut

Connecticut

Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...

) and Michigan

Michigan

Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

 in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

; the Greater Toronto Area

Greater Toronto Area

The Greater Toronto Area is the largest metropolitan area in Canada, with a 2006 census population of 5.5 million. The Greater Toronto Area is usually defined as the central city of Toronto, along with four regional municipalities surrounding it: Durham, Halton, Peel, and York...

 in Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

; Brescia, Mantova, Pralboino in Italy

Sikhism in Italy

Italian Sikhs are a religious minority in Italy. Italy has the second biggest Sikh population in Europe after United Kingdom. They number more than 70,000 ....

; Hoshiarpur/Jalandhar/Kapurthala/Gurdaspur region in East Punjab

East Punjab

East Punjab was the part of the Punjab region that went to India following the Partition of the Punjab Province of British India between India and Pakistan in 1947...

 and Ambala/Yamunagar/Pehowa (Distt. Kurukshetra) region 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...

. In addition, there is a sizeable Labana community present in California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, Indiana

Indiana

Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...

, Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

 (USA); Frankfurt area (Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

); Birmingham, Southall (UK); Jammu region (J&K); Mohali

Mohali

Mohali is a city adjacent to Chandigarh, 18th District in Punjab, India. It is officially named after the eldest son of Guru Gobind Singh, Sahibzada Ajit Singh . It, along with Chandigarh and Panchkula, form a part of the Chandigarh Tricity...

 and Panchkula

Panchkula

Panchkula is a planned city in Panchkula district, Haryana, India. It is a satellite city of the Union Territory of Chandigarh. It also shares seamless border with Mohali district in Punjab. The prestigious Chandimandir Cantonment Headquarters of the Indian Army Western Command, is also located in...

 (Chandigarh

Chandigarh

Chandigarh is a union territory of India that serves as the capital of two states, Haryana and Punjab. The name Chandigarh translates as "The Fort of Chandi". The name is from an ancient temple called Chandi Mandir, devoted to the Hindu goddess Chandi, in the city...

); Karnal

Karnal

Karnal is an important city and the headquarters of Karnal District in the Indian state of Haryana.Karnal is said to have been founded by the Kauravas in the Mahabharata era for the king Karna, a mythological hero and a key figure in the epic tale...

 and Panipat

Panipat

Panipat بَنِبَت is an ancient and historic city in Panipat district, Haryana state, India. It is 90 km north from Delhi and 169 km south of Chandigarh on NH-1. The three battles fought at the city were turning points in Indian history. The city is famous in India by the name of "City of...

 region (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...

); NCR

National Capital Region (India)

The National Capital Region in India is a name for the conurbation or metropolitan area which encompasses the entire National Capital Territory of Delhi as well as urban areas ringing it in neighbouring states of Haryana, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan...

 (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...

 etc.); Banswara/Udaipur/DungrpurRajasthan

Rajasthan

Rājasthān the land of Rajasthanis, , is the largest state of the Republic of India by area. It is located in the northwest of India. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert , which has an edge paralleling the Sutlej-Indus river valley along its border with...

; Dahod Gujrat

Gujrat

Gujrat is a city in Pakistan. It is the capital of Gujrat District and the Gujrat Tehsil subdivision in the Punjab Province. People living in Gujrat refer to themselves as Gujratis, which sometimes leads to confusion with people from the Indian state of Gujarat which adjoins Pakistan...

;Jhabua Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh , often called the Heart of India, is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and Indore is the largest city....

 Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

, Portugal

Portugal

Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

, France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

, Greece

Greece

Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

, and Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

.

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...

 Labanas (also called Rahmani) are scattered across Sheikhupura

Sheikhupura

Sheikhupura or Shekhupur , formerly Kot Dayal Das or Singhpuria or Virkgarh , is an industrial city in the province of Punjab slightly northwest to Lahore in Pakistan. It is known for its historical places, and is commonly known locally as Qila Shaikhupura, because of the fort in the city,...

, Sargodha

Sargodha

Sargodha is a city in the Sargodha District of Punjab province, Pakistan.Sargodha is located in the northwest of Pakistan. It is the eleventh largest city of Pakistan and also known as Pakistan's best citrus-producing area. It is an agricultural trade centre with various industries...

, Pakpattan

Pakpattan

Pakpattan is the capital city of the Pakpattan District in the Sahiwal Division in the Punjab province of Pakistan. Pakpattan is one of the ancient cities of Pakistan. It is the city that has the shrine of the well-known Sufi of all times, Baba Fareed...

, Gujrat

Gujrat

Gujrat is a city in Pakistan. It is the capital of Gujrat District and the Gujrat Tehsil subdivision in the Punjab Province. People living in Gujrat refer to themselves as Gujratis, which sometimes leads to confusion with people from the Indian state of Gujarat which adjoins Pakistan...

, Sahiwal

Sahiwal

Sahiwal is a city in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the administrative centre of Sahiwal District and Sahiwal Division. Sahiwal is approximately 180 km from the major city Lahore and is the city between Lahore and Multan...

 Sukkar, Rahimyarkhan, Khanpur, Bahawalpur, Hasilpur, Khanewal, Chichwatni and Lahore

Lahore

Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...

 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...

 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...

.

Hindu Labanas live mostly in Himachal Pradesh (Kangra, Mandi, Sundernagar).

Most of the 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"...

 and 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...

 Labanas speak 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...

. Hindu Labanas speak other languages like Pahari-Potwari (Punchhi), Haryanvi (Bagdi), Harauti, and Mewari. The older generation of Sikh and Muslim Labanas used to speak a language called Labanki, which is now extinct.

Clans/Gots

The major Labana clans/gots include Ghotra or Ajrawat, Bawa, Baghyana,Gujjar', Ghotra Lakhman, Multani, Labana, Sujlana, Maniani, Chaniana and [Garha] (most of Garha's belong to Nangal Labana). Other Clans are Badwalie, Belia,bakhelia,Bhagtaun,bharpoda, Bhonie, Dahgre, Danie, Dara Shah, Datla, Dhandsi, Dharim, Dotal, Fatra, Fidda, Gojalia, Gujars, Jullon, jTatra, Kankanya, Kharrie, Khera, Khasria, Kulwana, Lahoriae, Lavana, Lulia, Makhan Shahi,Manhani/Maniani, Mathoan, mathaunie, Mochie, Nanaut, Narowal, Padurgi, Palsiya,Parwal, Pelia(most of pelias belong to village MAKSUDPUR),TAdra, tarheem,tagarya ,Vakhil,Wamial, Wamowal, Lalia, Azrot, Purbia, Tharimia, Ghare, Khajja, Kothari, Merawat,Nayak, Khasawat, Dangar, Jhad, Ghoti, Dhanki.

Labana personalities

Makhan Shah Labana

Bhai Makhan Shah

Makhan Shah Lubana was a devout Sikh and a rich trader from Tanda district Jhelum who discovered the ninth Guru of the Sikhs, Guru Tegh Bahadar in Bakala, India in around 1665...

, Mela Shah, Sant Baba Prem Singh Ji, Bibi Jagir Kaur. Balwinder Singh Fiddu (or Fidda)
Pema Khajja/ Fota Khajja

See also

• List of Labanas
• Gurdwara Rakab Ganj Sahib
  Gurdwara Rakab Ganj Sahib
  The Gurdwara Rakab Ganj Sahib is historic gurdwara near Parliament House in New Delhi. It was built in 1783, after Sikh military leader Baghel Singh captured Delhi, on 11 March 1783, and his brief stay in Delhi, lead to the construction of several Sikh religious shrines within the city...
  
  
• Martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadar

External links

• http://www.labana.org/
• http://www.sikh-history.com/sikhhist/gurus/makhanshah.html
• http://www.sikh-history.com/literature/essays/gurladh.html
• http://www.srigurugranthsahib.org/guru-teg-bahadur/discovery.htm
• http://www.tribuneindia.com/2004/20040622/main8.htm
• http://www.sikh-heritage.co.uk/movements/lobanas/lobanasVS.htm
• http://www.sikh-heritage.co.uk/gurus/TegBahadur/TegBahadur.htm