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User:Joshua Jonathan/Raju (Kshatriya) sources

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Kshatriya

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Statement: Rajus are kshatriyas

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Claim: The Raju (or Rajulu) are Kshatriyas in Andhra Pradesh.

Sources

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  • Ayyangar & Seshagiri Rao (1922), Studies in South Indian Jainism:[1]

[...] the leadership of the South Indian Rajaput clans.[1]

What's the relevance of this?
  • Bhandari (2009), The Satyam Saga:[2]

"The rajus are a small, close-knit community (about 1.2 percent of the population) of the kashtriya caste"

The book's topic is the 'Raju scam'. No refrence for this statement. Conclusion: unreliable.
  • Patrick French (2011), India: A Portrait:[3]

Bangalore: [...] They were Raju Kshatriyas, which in this regional setting meant they had inferior status. In North India, the Kshatriyas were a powerful group, traditionally part of the warrior caste, but here they had little to do.

The quote does not say that the Rajus are, or were, Kshatriyas. Conclusion: no support for this claim.

Raju Kshatriyas demand 5 per cent reservation[web 1]

What's the relevance of this one?
  • Murty (2001), Parties Elections And Mobilisation:[4] inaccessible; no quotation provided. Conclusion: Not WP:VERIFY.
  • Rajpramukh (2013), SATELLITE CASTES AND DEPENDENT RELATIONS: Dalits in South India:[5]

"a caste of bards derved the rajus (kshatriyas"

Mere repetition of name. Conclusion: no support for this claim.
  • Randhawa (1961), Farmers of India: Madras, Andhra Pradesh:[6]

Rajus, comparatively a little higher up in the social ladder among farming communities, Rajus belong to the Kshatriya caste[7]

No further references; inaccessible. Conclusion: doubtfull, not WP:VERIFY.
  • K.S. Singh (1996), Communities, segments, synonyms, surnames and titles:[8] inaccesible; no quotation provided. Conclusion: Not WP:VERIFY.
  • Singh, Thirumalai & Manoharan (1997a), People of India, Volume 40 - Tamil Nadu Part 1:[9]

"Kshatriya Raju, Dasari, Chakkiliyan, Arudathiyar and Gajulu Baliji. All these communities follow the norm of community endogamy."[10]

Inaccessible; mentions only the common name, not an exploration of their history. Conclusion: no support for this claim.
  • Singh, Thirumalai & Manoharan (1997b), People of India, Volume 40 - Tamil Nadu Part 2:[11]

The Kshatriya Raju were traditionally warriors and rulers... Even Today they practice subgroup endogamy while the southern district the Raju remain as an isolated endogamous group in the community. All groups of the community have four common gotras, viz. Vasishta, Pasupati, Dhanumajay and Kashyapa.[11]

Inaccessible. Clear citation, but no further reference or exploration. Conclusion: Citable as "According to Singh c.s.".
  • Singh, Thirumalai & Manoharan (1997c), People of India, Volume 40 - Tamil Nadu Part 3:[12]

The Raju, a warrior community and are also reffered to as Rajoo, Razu, Kshatriya, Rachavar, Rachevar, Rajawar[12]

Inaccessible. Suggestive, but not conclusive. Conclusion: at best useable as an appendix to Singh 1997b, if cited as "according to Singh c.s."
  • K.S. Singh (1998), India's Communities:[13]: inaccessible; no quotation provided. Conclusion: Not WP:VERIFY.
  • Matthew Atmore Sherring (1872), Hindu Tribes and Castes, Volume 1:[14]

The Maharaja of Vizianagram is descended from the Ranas of Udaipur, one of the most ancient, and, in popular estimation, most illustrious families in India. He is consequently of the Grahilot tribe; and speaks of himself as belonging to the Sisodiya branch, and of the Vasisht gotra. According to the traditions of this famous house, Bijaibhup, one of its members, at a very early period, settled in Ajudhiya, the modern Oudh, whence, in the year 514 of the Saka era, corresponding to 592 A.D., his descendant, Madhavavarma, emigrated to the Telingana country, accompanied by representatives of the Vasisht, Dhanunjaya, Kaundinya, Kasyap, and Bharaddwaj gotras of his own tribe.

What's the relevance? The quote, or the page, doesn't even mention "Raju". Conclusion: irrelevant.
  • Srinivasulu (2002), Caste, Class and Social Articulation In Andhra Pradesh. Mapping Differential Regional Tragectories:[15]

"Among the other peasant castes, the Velamas, Rajus and Kapus are important communities with considerable political significance in the State, although in numerical terms they constitute only a small percentage of the population and spatially are confined only to small pockets. While the Velamas are a politically influential land-owning community present in northern Telangana and northern coastal Andhra, the Kapus are dominant in East and West Godavari districts."[15]

Does not even mention "Kshatriya". Conclusion: No support for the claim.
  • Michael C. Shapiro & Harold F. Schiffman (1981), Language and society in South Asia:[16]

Although the Gough article is ostensibly an ethnographic description of the traditional Brahmin family structure, it offers considerable information on both Brahmin and non-Brahmin Tamil kinship teminology. The Kumaraswamy article compares the Tirunelveli Tamil dialect's "personal" kinship terms with the Kshatriya Raju's Telugu dialect of Rajapalayam. Since there is evidence that the fused construction involving kinship terms (Old Tamil has /em-pi/ "my younger brother" /num-pi/ "your younger brother" etc) is a Proto-Dravidian feature, Raja raises the question of why this feature is preserved only in Tirunelveli Tamil and Kshatriya Raju Telugu, but neither in standard Tamil or standard Telugu.[16]

Use of the term "Kshatriya Raju", no further references or exploration. Conclusion: mere repetition, no support for this claim.
  • Office of the Registrar General (1961), Census of India, 1961: Andhra Pradesh India:[17]

Caste Hindus- Brahmin, Vaishya, Kshatriya (Raju)etc., Scheduled Castes (1,132); and Scheduled Tribes (3).

Comment: another example of the 'use of the name "Kashatriya (Raju)".
Conclusion: no suppot for this claim.

Conclusion

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No substantial support for the claim that the Rajus belong to, or descent from, the Kashtriya varna.

Statement: Rajus claim kshatriya status

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Sources

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K.S. Singh, India's communities, is often referred to as a source. This book is inaccessible (at least in Holland), but there is a pdf for Kshatriya Raju Backward class, which cites Singh. It does contain some information, on pages 6-9, on "Kshatriya Raju", or at least the opinions of Shri Venkatarama Raju, president of the "Kshatriya Raju Association", and quotations from Singh. The document cites Singh: "A varna category, there is no Kshatriya jati as such. However, a number of communities claim the status of Kshatriya. (p.8)" The documents says claim, not are.

  • Suri (2002), Democratic Process and Electoral Politics in Andhra Pradesh, India:[18]

"Rajus, who claim Kshatriya status, are mostly confined to the north and central coastal regions and constitute less than 1% of the State’s population."

Conclusion: Kashatriya status is a claim, according to this source.
  • Edgar Thurston (1909), Castes and Tribes of Southern India Volume VI - P to S:[19]

The Rāzus, or Rājus, are stated, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, to be “perhaps descendants of the military section of the Kāpu, Kamma, and Velama castes. At their weddings they worship a sword, which is a ceremony which usually denotes a soldier caste. They say they are Kshatriyas, and at marriages use a string made of cotton and wool, the combination peculiar to Kshatriyas, to tie the wrist of the happy couple. But they eat fowls, which a strict Kshatriya would not do, and their claims are not universally admitted by other Hindus.[20]

Of the Rāzus, Mr. H. A. Stuart writes that "this is a Telugu caste, though represented by small bodies in some of the Tamil districts. They are most numerous in Cuddapah and North Arcot, to which districts they came with the Vijayanagar armies. It is evident that Rāzu has been returned by a number of individuals who, in reality, belong to other castes, but claim to be Kshatriyas. The true Rāzus also make this claim, but it is, of course, baseless, unless Kshatriya is taken to mean the military class without any reference to Aryan origin. In religion they are mostly Vaishnavites, and their priests are Brāhmans. They wear the sacred thread, and in most respects copy the marriage and other customs of the Brāhmans." The Rāzus, Mr. Stuart writes further, are "the most numerous class of those who claim to be Kshatriyas in North Arcot. They are found almost entirely in the Karvetnagar estate, the zemindar being the head of the caste. As a class they are the handsomest and best developed men in the country, and differ so much in feature and build from other Hindus that they may usually be distinguished at a glance. They seem to have entirely abandoned the military inclinations of their ancestors, never enlist in the native army, and almost wholly occupy themselves in agriculture [...]"[21]

Rangari:-[...] In appearance they do not at all resemble the other claimants to Kshatriya descent, the Rāzus and Rājputs.[22]

For the following note on the Rāzus of the Godāvari district, I am indebted to Mr. F. R. Hemingway. “They say they are Kshatriyas, wear the sacred thread, have Brāhmanical gōtras, decline to eat with other non-Brāhmans, and are divided into the three classes, Sūrya [251](sun), Chandra (moon), and Machi (fish). Of these, the first claim to be descended from the kings of Oudh, and to be of the same lineage as Rāma; the second, from the kings of Hastināpura, of the same line as the Pāndavas; and the third, from Hanumān (the monkey god) and a mermaid.[23]

Pūsapāti.—The family name of the Mahārājahs of Vizianagram. From the Kshatriyas in Rājputāna people of four gōtrams are said to have come to the Northern Circars several centuries ago, having the Pūsapāti family at their head. The name of the present Mahārāja is Mirza Rājah Srī Pūsapāti Viziarāma Gajapati Rāj Manya Sultān Bahādur Gāru.[24]

It is noted, in connection with the battle of Padmanābham in the Vizagapatam district, in 1794, that "no correct list of the wounded was ever procured, but no less than three hundred and nine were killed. Of these two hundred and eight were Rājputs, and the bodies of forty Rājputs, of the first rank in the country, formed a rampart round the corpse of Viziarāma Rāzu. Padmanābham will long be remembered as the Flodden of the Rājputs of Vizianagram."[19]

Conclusion: Thurston is very clear that the Rajus claim kshatriya status, but that this is no more than a claim.

Conclusion

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It's more likely that the Rajus claim Kshatriya status.

Overall conclusion

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The statement "Rajus claim kshatriya status" is defendable; the statement "Rajus are kshatriyas" is not based on WP:RS.

Military status

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Statement: Over the centuries they have been called by various alternative names that signified their military status. During the British Raj they were known as Ratsas and Rajavars, which means of or belonging to the caste of Ratsawars (Raja Caste),using the title of Raju."

Sub-statement: "Over the centuries they have been called by various alternative names that signified their military status." No source provided.

Sub-statement: "During the British Raj they were known as Ratsas and Rajavars, which means of or belonging to the caste of Ratsawars"

Sub-statement: "(Raja Caste),"

Sub-statement: "using the title of Raju."

Conclusion

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No support.

Royalty

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Descendents from royal dynasties

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Statement: The present-day Rajus were descended from the ancient royal dynasties of India such as the Eastern Chalukyas, Chalukya-Cholas, Vishnukundina, Gajapati, Chagi, Paricheda and Kota Vamsa.

Sources

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Conclusion

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Not WP:VERIFY.

Suryavamsamu and Chandravamsamu

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Statement: Rajus were classified as Suryavamsamu and Chandravamsamu.

Sources

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  • K.S. Singh (2001), ''People of India, Volume 40, Part 2:[25] inaccessible; no quotation provided. Conclusion: Not WP:VERIFY

Conclusion

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Not WP:VERIFY.

The Rajus were Brahmanas

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Statement: "The generic Raju indicating Kshatriya caste was appended to personal names of Brahamanas who were employed in in the royal court during the period of Eastern Gangas. Eg. Lakshmaraju, Kramaraju"

Sources

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  • M. S. Randhawa and others (1961), Farmers of India: Madras, Andhra Pradesh, Mysore & Kerala

[1]

The generic Raju indicating Kshatriya caste was appended to personal names of Brahamanas who were employed in in the royal court during the period of Eastern Gangas, eg. Lakshmaraju, Kramaraju.[6]

  • Cynthia Talbot (1991), Temples, Donors, and Gifts: Patterns of Patronage in Thirteenth-Century South India:[26]

Falling in the middle are the two remaining social types - reddis and rajus - who gave gifts to major and minor temples at about the average rate. Reddi is a name associated today with a dominant landowning caste-cluster in Andhra, but in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries the use of the term as a caste name had not yet fully evolved; it does appear to denote peasant origin or some connection with agriculture, however. Some reddis in both the Kakatiya and post-Kakatiya periods were eminent warriors and founded chiefly lineages; so the title was used even by persons who had transcended their peasant backgrounds. Unlike the royalty of the southern coastal districts, royal and noble lineages of the northern coastal districts rarely employed the kingly title maharaja in their inscriptions, relying instead on the Telugu variant raju. But not all rajus were of noble family, for approximately one-third of the people with this status name were of humbler ancestry and possessed administrative titles such as pradhdni (minister), mantri (minister), and karnam (accountant). Raju may therefore designate a person (sometimes said to be brahmin) employed by a lord in a ministerial capacity, as well as a prince or lord, and perhaps referred to that group of brahmins, today called niyogi in Andhra, who engage in secular occupations as opposed to vaidiki or Vedic brahmins.[26]

Finally, a reliable, accessible source. And what does it say: "Raju may therefore designate a person (sometimes said to be brahmin) employed by a lord in a ministerial capacity, as well as a prince or lord, and perhaps referred to that group of brahmins, today called niyogi in Andhra, who engage in secular occupations as opposed to vaidiki or Vedic brahmins." Conclusion: Rajus were likely Brahmins engaged in secular activities.

Conclusion

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Looks like the term "kshatriya" was used by Brahmins with secular functions.

Synonyms and alternative names

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Rajoo, Razu, Kshatriya, Rachavar, Rachevar, Rajawar, Ratsas, Rajavars

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Sources

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  • Singh, Thirumalai & Manoharan (1997c), People of India, Volume 40 - Tamil Nadu Part 3:[12]

The Raju, a warrior community and are also reffered to as Rajoo, Razu, Kshatriya, Rachavar, Rachevar, Rajawar[12]

Inaccessible. Suggestive, but not conclusive. Conclusion: at best useable as an appendix to Singh 1997b, if cited as "according to Singh c.s."
  • C. D. Maclean (1877), Standing information regarding the official administration of the Madras presidency in each department: in illustration of the yearly administration reports:[27]

During the British Raj they were known as Ratsas and Rajavars, which means of or belonging to the caste of Ratsawars[27]

Conclusion: Not WP:VERIFY, outdated
  • Edgar Thurston (1909), Castes and Tribes of Southern India Volume VI - P to S:[19]

It may be noted that some Konda Doras call themselves Rāja (= Rāzu) Kāpus or Reddis, and Sūryavamsam (of the solar race).[28]

Conclusion

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Useable, if cited as "According to etc."

Andhra Kshatriya

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Statement: "From the medieval period, the term "Andhra Kshatriya" has been used synonymously with Rachavaru, Rajus and Telugu Kshatriya."

Sources

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Conclusion

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If the source is correct, various groups claimed the term "Andhra Kshatriya". Does this prove that the Rajus were kshatriyas?

Gotras

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Vasishta, Pasupati, Dhanumajay and Kashyapa

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Statement: Their Gotras include "Vasishta", "Dhanumjaya", "Kasyapa", "Koundinya" and also "Pasupati".

Sources

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  • Singh, Thirumalai & Manoharan (1997b), People of India, Volume 40 - Tamil Nadu Part 2:[11]

The Kshatriya Raju were traditionally warriors and rulers... Even Today they practice subgroup endogamy while the southern district the Raju remain as an isolated endogamous group in the community. All groups of the community have four common gotras, viz. Vasishta, Pasupati, Dhanumajay and Kashyapa.[11]

Clear citation, but no further reference or exploration. Conclusion: Citable as "According to Singh c.s.".
  • K.S. Singh (1998), India's communities:[13] inaccessible; no quotation provided. Conclusion: Not WP:VERIFY.

Conclusion

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Overall conclusion: "Vasishta, Pasupati, Dhanumajay and Kashyapa" acceptable, if cited as "According to Singh c.s."

Named after sages

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Statement: The gotras of "Rajus" are named after sages.

Sources

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Conclusion

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No support.

Conclusion

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The Rajus claim Kshatriya = warrior status, but most likely the term Kshatriya was applied to Brahmins engaged in secular activities.

References

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Printed references

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  1. ^ a b Ayyangar & Seshagiri Rao 1922, p. 23.
  2. ^ Bhandari 2009, p. 98.
  3. ^ French 2011, p. 230.
  4. ^ Murty 2001.
  5. ^ Rajpramukh 2013, p. 38.
  6. ^ a b Randhawa 1961.
  7. ^ Mysore & Kerala 1961.
  8. ^ Singh 1996.
  9. ^ Singh, Thirumalai & Manoharan 1997a.
  10. ^ Singh, Thirumalai & Manoharan 1997.
  11. ^ a b c d Singh, Thirumalai & Manoharan 1997b.
  12. ^ a b c d Singh, Thirumalai & Manoharan 1997c.
  13. ^ a b Singh 1998.
  14. ^ Sherring 1872.
  15. ^ a b Srinivasulu 2002, p. 3.
  16. ^ a b Shapiro & Schiffman 1981.
  17. ^ Office of the Registrar General 1961.
  18. ^ Suri 2002, p. 10.
  19. ^ a b c Thurston 1909.
  20. ^ Thurston 1909, p. 247.
  21. ^ Thurston 1909, p. 248-249.
  22. ^ Thurston 1909, p. 242-243.
  23. ^ Thurston 1909, p. 249-250.
  24. ^ Thurston 1909, p. 236.
  25. ^ Singh 2001.
  26. ^ a b Talbot 1991.
  27. ^ a b Maclean 1877, p. 341.
  28. ^ Thurston 1909, p. 248.

Web-references

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  1. ^ a b Hindu Times (2006), Raju Kshatriyas demand 5 per cent reservation

Sources

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