The Bhuiyar or Bhuyiar are a

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

caste A caste is a Essentialism, fixed social group into which an individual is born within a particular system of social stratification: a caste system. Within such a system, individuals are expected to marry exclusively within the same caste (en ...

found in the

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Associated with India * of or related to India ** Indian people ** Indian diaspora ** Languages of India ** Indian English, a dialect of the English language ** Indian cuisine Associated with indigenous peoples o ...

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

. They have scheduled caste status and are also known as Bhanyar. The traditional occupation of the Bhuiyar caste is

weaving Weaving is a method of textile production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. Other methods are knitting, crocheting, felting, and braiding or plaiting. The longitudinal ...

but that has declined due to mechanisation.

Origin

They are a group of

Munda __NOTOC__ Munda may refer to: Places India * Munda, a village in Hanumangarh district, Rajasthan, India * Munda Majra, a former village in Haryana, India * Munda Pind, a village in Punjab, India Pakistan * Munda, a village near Bilyamin in Kur ...

tribesmen who settled in the southern and the western Uttar Pradesh in the 16th century. They were a community that historically were involved with weaving and some were involved

slash and burn Slash-and-burn agriculture is a form of shifting cultivation that involves the cutting and burning of plants in a forest or woodland to create a field called a swidden. The method begins by cutting down the trees and woody plants in an area. T ...

agriculture, and occupied the hilly terrain of south

Mirzapur district Mirzapur district is one of the 75 districts in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The district is bounded on the north by Bhadohi and Varanasi districts, on the east by Chandauli district, on the south by Sonbhadra district and Rewa dist ...

. The Bhuiyar are further divided into sub-divisions, which are referred to as ''kori''. Their main koris are the Baria, Birkunia, Chandnihys, Chetrihya, Chiriha, Dioriya, Khutta, Parha, Patparaha and Sudha. They are strictly

endogamous Endogamy is the cultural practice of marrying within a specific social group, religious denomination, caste, or ethnic group, rejecting any from outside of the group or belief structure as unsuitable for marriage or other close personal relatio ...

, and practice clan

exogamy Exogamy is the social norm of mating or marrying outside one's social group. The group defines the scope and extent of exogamy, and the rules and enforcement mechanisms that ensure its continuity. One form of exogamy is dual exogamy, in which tw ...

. The Bhuiyar are found in the districts of

Sonbhadra Sonbhadra (also known as Sonebhadra) or Sonanchal is the second largest district by area of Uttar Pradesh after Lakhimpur Kheri. The district headquarters is in the town of Robertsganj. Sonbhadra is also known as the "Energy Capital of India" f ...

and Mirzapur. They speak

Hindi Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...

, having long forgotten their

Munda language The Munda languages are a group of closely related languages spoken by about eleven million people in India, Bangladesh and Nepal. Historically, they have been called the Kolarian languages. They constitute a branch of the Austroasiatic langu ...

Present circumstances

The Bhuiyar are now a community of settled agriculturists. Their earlier slash and burn practices have disappeared. Most Bhuiyar are a small and medium-sized farmers, with a minority being employed as agricultural labourers. Many are now also employed in the mines that have appeared in Mirzapur district. They live in multi-caste villages, occupying their own distinct quarters. They have much in common with neighbouring tribal communities such as the Kol, Agariya and

Chero The Chero is a caste found in the states of Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh in India. History and origin The community claims to have originally been tribal people. The Chero are essentially one of many tribal communities, such as the Bhar ...

. Each of their settlement contains an informal caste council, known as a biradari panchayat. The panchayat acts as instrument of social control, dealing with issues such as divorce and adultery. The 2011 Census of India for Uttar Pradesh showed the Bhuiyar population as 28,360.

References

External links

निर्धारित लक्ष्य को संघर्ष करें छात्र: दयाराम भामड़ा

* ttps://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/in-bijnor-bjp-banking-on-jats-mbcs-non-jatav-dalits-and-bsp-on-muslims-jatavs/articleshow/57115786.cms/ Bhuiyar in News Papers{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215234807/http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/in-bijnor-bjp-banking-on-jats-mbcs-non-jatav-dalits-and-bsp-on-muslims-jatavs/articleshow/57115786.cms , date=15 February 2017 Scheduled Castes of Uttar Pradesh Weaving communities of South Asia