Vagri
Encyclopedia
The Vagri or Bagri are a scheduled caste found in the states of Rajasthan
and Gujarat in India
, and the province of Sindh
in Pakistan
.
word vagode, which means to run away. During the Colonial period
, Vagri were listed under the Criminal Tribes Act
, 1871, as being a tribe "addicted to the systematic commission of non-bailable offences." They suffered greatly as a result of this decision, and are still suffering the consequence. According to their traditions, the Vagri originated through intermarriage among the members of the Gujjar
, Jat and Rajput
communities.
, they are found mainly in the Jaipur District
. Like many other Rajasthan
Hindu
communities, they are endogamous, but maintain gotra
exogamy. Their main clans are the Badgujar, Pawar, Solanki, and Godara.
They are a landless community, although a few do hold small plots of land. The Vagri are also cattle breeders and cattle traders, and sell their cattle at the famous Pushkar
cattle fair. They have an effective caste
council, which acts as quasi-judicial body and deals with intra-community disputes. It is headed by an heredity office holder, known as a Patel. They are a Hindu
community, with their main tribal deities being Jabner mata, Galta mata, Sambher mata and Shile mata. .
In Gujarat, the Vagri are found mainly in the districts of Sabarkantha, Banaskantha, Panchmahal, Kheda
and Ahmedabad
. They speak Marwari
among themselves, and Gujarati
with outsiders. The Vaghri are divided into a number of sub-divisions, the main ones being the Chunarias, who are cultivators, the Datanias who sell twig toothbrushes, the Vedus who sell gourd, Salaat, who are stonemasons, and the remaining clans being landless agriculture workers. Their minor sub-divisions include the Mori, Bajania, Kakodia, Bamcha and Pomla. They are endogamous, and maintain gotra
exogamy. The Vaghri are landless, and depend on agricultural labour. They are also involved in the raising poultry, sheep, goat, and cattle, as well as selling vegetables. In Gujarat, the Vagri are Hindu
, and their main tribal deties are Vihat, Narsingabir, Kalika and Meldi mata.
are found mainly in the districts of Umerkot
and Tharparkar
. They are landless, and have been subject to discrimination at the hands of the locally powerful Sodha
Rajput
community.
A recent study showed that the majority of scheduled caste population of Pakistan
, which includes the Vagri are practically landless. The survey conducted showed that in Tharparkar, Umerkot
, Rahim Yar Khan
, and Bahawalpur
districts revealed that an overwhelming majority of 83 percent Scheduled Caste population did not own even a small piece of land. The land ownership by the remaining 17 percent is also very small as 90 percent of the Scheduled Caste land owners have a very small piece of land between one and five acres. Like those in India
, the Pakistan
Vagri are Hindu
, and speak both Sindhi
and their own language, Bagri, which distantly related to Rajasthani
.
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...
and 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...
, and the province of 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 etymology of the word Vagri is said to come from the RajasthaniRajasthani language
Rajasthani Rajasthani Rajasthani (Devanagari: , Perso-Arabic: is a language of the Indo-Aryan languages family. It is spoken by 50 million people in Rajasthan and other states of India and in some areas of Pakistan. The number of speakers may be up to 80 million worldwide...
word vagode, which means to run away. During the Colonial period
British Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
, Vagri were listed under the Criminal Tribes Act
Criminal Tribes Act
The term Criminal Tribes Act applies to various successive pieces of legislation enforced in India during British rule; the first enacted in 1871 as applied mostly in North India The Act was extended to Bengal Presidency and other areas in 1876, and finally with the Criminal Tribes Act 1911, it...
, 1871, as being a tribe "addicted to the systematic commission of non-bailable offences." They suffered greatly as a result of this decision, and are still suffering the consequence. According to their traditions, the Vagri originated through intermarriage among the members of the Gujjar
Gujjar
The Gurjar are an ethnic group in India, Pakistan and Afghanistan. Alternative spellings include Gurjara, Gujar, Gurjjara and Gūrjara. The spelling Gurjara or Gurjar is preferable to the rest....
, Jat and 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...
communities.
In India
In RajasthanRajasthan
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...
, they are found mainly in the Jaipur District
Jaipur district
Jaipur District is a district of the state of Rajasthan in western India. The city of Jaipur, which is Rajasthan's capital and largest city, is the district headquarters. It is the tenth most populous district in India .-Geography:...
. Like many other Rajasthan
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...
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...
communities, they are endogamous, but maintain gotra
Gotra
In the Hindu society, the term Gotra broadly refers to people who are descendants in an unbroken male line from a common male ancestor. Panini defines gotra for grammatical purposes as apatyam pautraprabhrti gotram , which means "the word gotra denotes the progeny beginning with the son's son"...
exogamy. Their main clans are the Badgujar, Pawar, Solanki, and Godara.
They are a landless community, although a few do hold small plots of land. The Vagri are also cattle breeders and cattle traders, and sell their cattle at the famous Pushkar
Pushkar
Pushkar is a town in the Ajmer district in the state of Rajasthan, India. It is situated at 14 km North West from Ajmer at an average elevation of 510 metres , and is one of the five sacred dhams...
cattle fair. They have an effective 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...
council, which acts as quasi-judicial body and deals with intra-community disputes. It is headed by an heredity office holder, known as a Patel. They are a 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...
community, with their main tribal deities being Jabner mata, Galta mata, Sambher mata and Shile mata. .
In Gujarat, the Vagri are found mainly in the districts of Sabarkantha, Banaskantha, Panchmahal, Kheda
Kheda
Kheda is a town and a municipality in Kheda district in the Indian state of Gujarat. Kheda, also known as Kaira, is 35 km from Ahmedabad. The National Highway no. 8 connecting Ahmedabad and Mumbai passes through Kheda...
and Ahmedabad
Ahmedabad
Ahmedabad also known as Karnavati is the largest city in Gujarat, India. It is the former capital of Gujarat and is also the judicial capital of Gujarat as the Gujarat High Court has its seat in Ahmedabad...
. They speak 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...
among themselves, and 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...
with outsiders. The Vaghri are divided into a number of sub-divisions, the main ones being the Chunarias, who are cultivators, the Datanias who sell twig toothbrushes, the Vedus who sell gourd, Salaat, who are stonemasons, and the remaining clans being landless agriculture workers. Their minor sub-divisions include the Mori, Bajania, Kakodia, Bamcha and Pomla. They are endogamous, and maintain gotra
Gotra
In the Hindu society, the term Gotra broadly refers to people who are descendants in an unbroken male line from a common male ancestor. Panini defines gotra for grammatical purposes as apatyam pautraprabhrti gotram , which means "the word gotra denotes the progeny beginning with the son's son"...
exogamy. The Vaghri are landless, and depend on agricultural labour. They are also involved in the raising poultry, sheep, goat, and cattle, as well as selling vegetables. In Gujarat, the Vagri are 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...
, and their main tribal deties are Vihat, Narsingabir, Kalika and Meldi mata.
In Pakistan
The Vagri in PakistanPakistan
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...
are found mainly in the districts of Umerkot
Umerkot District
Umerkot District or Umarkot District is a district of Sindh province, Pakistan.-History:After the 1843 invasion by Charles Napier, Sindh was divided into provinces and was assigned a Zamindars, also known as Wadaras, to collect taxes for the British....
and Tharparkar
Tharparkar District
Tharparkar District is one of twenty three districts of Sindh province in Pakistan. It is headquarters is at Mithi. It has the lowest Human Development Index of all districts in Sindh.-Demography:...
. They are landless, and have been subject to discrimination at the hands of the locally powerful Sodha
Sodha
Sodhar is a sindhi tribe found in Sindh, Pakistan and Gujarat, India. They claim to be a branch of the sodhar tribe.-History and origin:The Sodhar sindhis are said to be descended from Paramara Sodhar, are supposed to have come into this...
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.
A recent study showed that the majority of scheduled caste population 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...
, which includes the Vagri are practically landless. The survey conducted showed that in Tharparkar, Umerkot
Umerkot District
Umerkot District or Umarkot District is a district of Sindh province, Pakistan.-History:After the 1843 invasion by Charles Napier, Sindh was divided into provinces and was assigned a Zamindars, also known as Wadaras, to collect taxes for the British....
, Rahim Yar Khan
Rahimyar Khan District
Rahim Yar Khan District is a district in the Punjab province of Pakistan, the city of Rahim Yar Khan is the capital. The district lies between 27.40' - 29.16' north latitudes and 60.45' - 70.01' east longitudes. The Indus flows on the northern outskirts of the districts of Dera Ghazi Khan and...
, and Bahawalpur
Bahawalpur District
Bahawalpur District is one of the districts of Punjab, Pakistan. According to the 1998 Census of Pakistan it had a population of 2,433,091 of which 27.01% were urban Bahawalpur district covers 24,830 km². Approximately two-thirds of the district is covered by the Cholistan Desert, which...
districts revealed that an overwhelming majority of 83 percent Scheduled Caste population did not own even a small piece of land. The land ownership by the remaining 17 percent is also very small as 90 percent of the Scheduled Caste land owners have a very small piece of land between one and five acres. Like those 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...
, the 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...
Vagri are 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...
, and speak both 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...
and their own language, Bagri, which distantly related to Rajasthani
Rajasthani language
Rajasthani Rajasthani Rajasthani (Devanagari: , Perso-Arabic: is a language of the Indo-Aryan languages family. It is spoken by 50 million people in Rajasthan and other states of India and in some areas of Pakistan. The number of speakers may be up to 80 million worldwide...
.