Mool ( Maithili: मूल) refers to the root or origin of a group of

Maithil Brahmins Maithil Brahmins are the Indo-Aryan Hindu Brahmin community originating from the Mithila region and original inhabitants of Southern Nepal and bordering regions of India that comprises Madhesh Province & some areas of Koshi Province in Nepa ...

in the

Mithila region Mithila (), also known as Tirhut, Tirabhukti and Mithilanchal, is a geographical and cultural region of the Indian subcontinent bounded by the Mahananda River in the east, the Ganges in the south, the Gandaki River in the west and by the foothil ...

of the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...

. It indicates the ancestral lineage and the original place of dwelling of a particular clan. It signifies a common ancestral origin, often tracing back to a shared forefather. It is a fundamental

genealogical Genealogy () is the study of families, family history, and the tracing of their lineages. Genealogists use oral interviews, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kin ...

parameter recorded in the Panji system of the Maithil Brahmin in Mithila. ''Panjikars'' are the authorised persons responsible for keeping the records of the mools of each individual in the region.

Classification

The mool in the Maithil Brahmins is further classified into three classes of hierarchical orders. They are ''Atyant Shrestha'', ''Dwitiya Shreni'' and ''Madhyammul''. The Atyant Shrestha is considered as the first class mool. The mools of this class are Kharauray, Khauaray, Budhbaray, Mararay, Dariharay, Ghusautay, Tisautay, Karamhay, Naraunay, Vbhaniyamay, Hariyamme, Sarisavay and Sodarpuriye, etc. Similarly Dwitiya Shreni are the second class mool. The mools of the second class are Gangaulivaar, Pavaulivaar, Kujaulivaar, Alevaar, Vahirvaar, Sakrivaar, Palivaar, Visevaar, Fanevaar, Uchitvaar, Pandul-vaar, Kataivaar and Tilaivaar, etc. Similarly the third class mool is Madhyammul. The mools of the third class are Dighve, Belauche, Ekahre, Panchobhe, Valiyase, Jajiwal, Takwaal and Panduye, etc.

Description

According to the scholar Carolyn Henning Brown of

Whitman College Whitman College is a private liberal arts college in Walla Walla, Washington. The school offers 53 majors and 33 minors in the liberal arts and sciences, and it has a student-to-faculty ratio of 9:1. Founded as a seminary by a territorial l ...

, the Mool is a spatial identity. It is a historical place related to the factual agnatic line descending from a known founder called as ''Viji Purush''. It is known by the village of residence of the ancestral founding father known as Viji Purush. Indian scholar ''Abhaya Nath Mishra'' in his literary work ''Shrotriyas of Mithila'' mentioned that initially there were about 200 mools of the Maithil Brahmins but later many of them became extinct.

References

{{India-culture-stub Maithil Brahmin Hinduism Mithila Indian genealogy Culture of Mithila