The Banaut (also known as Bandaut) is a

Bundela The Bundela is a Rajput clan. Over several generations, the cadet lineages of Bundela Rajputs founded several states in area what came to be known as Bundelkhand anciently known as Chedi Kingdom from the 16th century. Etymology As per Jaswa ...

Banaphar Banaphar, also spelled Banafar and Banafer, is a clan native to the Indian subcontinent of mixed Ahir and Rajput descent. The legendary 12th century generals Alha and Udal, who appear in the ''Alha-Khand The term ''Alha Khand'' is used ...

Rajput Rājpūt (, from Sanskrit ''rājaputra'' meaning "son of a king"), also called Thākur (), is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating fro ...

clan found in the Indian states of

Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...

and

Jharkhand Jharkhand (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in East India, eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north ...

. Their loved ones called them banaut which means who meditate and save Ban (forest). They are said to have left

Orchha Orchha is a town, near the city of Niwari in the Niwari district of Madhya Pradesh state, India. The town was established by a Bundela Rajput ruler Rudra Pratap Singh some time after 1501, as the seat of an eponymous former princely state ...

Jhansi Jhansi ( ) is a historic city in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. (Toshan) Balwant Nagar was the old name of Jhansi. It lies in the region of Bundelkhand, on the banks of the Pahuj River, in the extreme ...

Mahoba Mahoba is a city in Mahoba District of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh in the Bundelkhand region, well known for the ninth century granite Sun temple built in Pratihara style. It is also well known for the 24 rock-cut Jain tirthankara imag ...

and other parts of

Bundelkhand Bundelkhand (, ) is a geographical and cultural region and a proposed state and also a mountain range in central and North India. It corresponds to the Post-Vedic Chedi kingdom. The hilly region is now divided between the states of Uttar Prad ...

during Mughal period and migrated to Bihar and Jharkhand.

Origin and History

Banaut originated from

, but later came to parts of Bihar and Jharkhand. As they were from land owning community, they became wealthy zamindars with time and also had strong political positions.

Deities

Banaut have their particular village deities such as Maa Kali, HanumanJi, Ram- Janaki and Radhakrishna.

Subclans

The Gotras of Banaut Rajputs are Bhardwaj, Dhenu, Vaksh, Kashyap, Kaushik, Garg, Sandilya and Vishwamitra.

Notables of Bundela Rajput clan

# Chhatrasaal Bundela #

Rudra Pratap Singh Rudra Pratap Singh Bundela (r. 1501–1531) was the founder and first Raja of the Kingdom of Orchha. His name is sometimes spelled Rudrapratap Singh and his last name, Bundela, is often omitted. He reigned between 1501 and 1531, during whic ...

# Alha Singh # Udal Singh

Population and Language

Most of the Banauts live in the native villages of Anga Region of

namely

Bhagalpur Bhagalpur, historically known as Champapuri, Champa Nagari, is a city in the Indian state of Bihar, situated on the southern bank of the Ganges river. It is the Bihar#Government and administration, third largest city of Bihar by population and ...

Munger Munger, formerly spelt as Monghyr, is a twin city and a Municipal Corporation situated in the Indian state of Bihar. It is the administrative headquarters of Munger district and Munger Division. Munger was one of the major cities in Eastern ...

Katihar Katihar (; ), is the tenth largest city in the state of Bihar in India in terms of population, Along with being one of the largest economic, educational and administrative centre in the eastern part of Bihar. The city situated in the eastern ...

Purnia Purnia (; also romanized and officially known as Purnea) is the fourth largest city of Bihar and is emerging as the largest economic hub in North Bihar. It serves as the administrative headquarters of both Purnia district and Purnia divisi ...

, Banka and in some parts of

Saharsa Saharsa is a city and municipal corporation in the Saharsa District in the eastern part of the state of Bihar, India. It is situated near the eastern banks of the Kosi River. It serves as the administrative headquarters for the Saharsa District ...

and Araria too. They live in parts of

namely

Hazaribagh Hazaribagh is a city and a municipal corporation in Hazaribagh district in the Indian state of Jharkhand. It is also the administrative headquarters of Hazaribagh district and divisional headquarters of North Chotanagpur division. It is known ...

. Many have migrated to bigger cities like Patna, Ranchi and Delhi for better job opportunities and lifestyle. Majority of the Banaut Rajputs speak the regional language of Anga Region -

Angika Angika (also known as ''Anga'', ''Angikar'' or ''Chhika-Chhiki'') is an Eastern Indo-Aryan language spoken in some parts of the Indian states of Bihar and Jharkhand, as well as in parts of Nepal. Angika is closely related to neighbouring Indi ...

along with other languages like Hindi, English.

Villages and Marriage

Some of the Villages of Bundela with significance:

Bihar

Bhagalpur District Bhagalpur district is one of the thirty-eight districts of Bihar state, India. It is one of the oldest districts of Bihar. Bhagalpur city is the administrative headquarters of the district. Geography Bhagalpur district occupies an area of . Bha ...

* Tarar * Dogachchhi * Makarpur * Bhawanpura * Dharhara * Kaharpur

Munger district Munger district is one of the thirty-eight districts of Bihar state in eastern India. The city of Munger is the administrative headquarters of this district. The district is a part of Munger Division. Its literacy rate of 73.3% is higher than ...

* Belari * Rahmatpur * Sahjadpur * Lakhanpur * Asarganj (township and surrounding villages)

Purnia district Purnia District is one of the thirty-eight Districts of Bihar, districts of the Indian state of Bihar. The city of Purnia is the administrative headquarters of this district. The city of Purnia has continued its tradition of hoisting the nationa ...

* Sarsi * Dhamdhaha * Jalalgarh * Aligunj * Sukhasana

Araria district Araria district is one of the thirty-eight districts of Bihar state, India. Araria district is a part of Purnia division. The district occupies an area of . Araria town is the administrative headquarters of this district. The Nepali border is abo ...

* Tamghatti * Pothiya * Narhki * Uphrail * Narsimhapur

Madhepura district Madhepura district is one of the thirty-eight districts of Bihar state, India, and Madhepura town is the administrative headquarters of this district. Madhepura district is a part of Kosi division. History Madhepura district is part of the Kos ...

* Kalasan

Katihar district Katihar district is one of the thirty-eight districts of Bihar state in India, and Katihar city is the administrative headquarters of this district. The district is a part of Purnia Division. It is prominently known for its Katihar Junction Railw ...

* Guagachhi * Baluaghatti * Chandwa

Jharkhand

* Hazaribagh City Their marriage relations are in those villages making them a closely connected and well-knit community.

References

Rajput clans of Bihar Rajput clans Social groups of Jharkhand Social groups of Bihar {{India-ethno-stub