Khandayat, also spelled Khandait, is a cultivating caste,
as well as a peasant militia
or landed militia caste from
Odisha
Odisha (), formerly Orissa (List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2011), is a States and union territories of India, state located in East India, Eastern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by ar ...
, East India. Some of them had earlier served as feudal chiefs as well as zamindars apart from being land holders and agriculturalists. Numerically they are the largest caste of the state. During British raj, they ruled many tributary states in Odisha, including
Khordha
Khordha is a city and a Municipality area in Khordha District in the Indian States and territories of India, state of Odisha. Bhubaneswar, is the capital of Odisha located within the Khordha district and is only 25 km from Khordha town. Od ...
.
Etymology
The term Khandayat is believed to have originated from the word "
Khanda
Khanda may refer to:
Places
* Khanda, Sonipat, a large historical village in Sonipat district of Haryana, India
* Khanda, Jind, a village in Jind district of Haryana, India
* Khanda Kheri, a village in Hansi Tehsil of Hisar district of Haryana, ...
" meaning sword. Khandayat means swordsman or headman of a ''Khand''.
History
Early mention of Khandayats as feudal chief and military personnel is found during the rule of eastern ganga dynasty in 11th century.
During this time, Khandayat military settlements were established in Bhubaneswar and nearby areas to protect the Great Lingaraj Temple.
During the medieval period, this class of peasant warriors or landed militia acquired good amounts of agricultural land and some of them became local zamindars.
Fakir Mohan Senapati, while quoting Abul Fazal, mentioned Khandayats as a landowning caste that dominated the politics and military of
Gajapati Empire.
Mughal chronicler Ain-i-Akbari gave a clear picture of Odisha after the breakdown of the Gajapati Empire. It mentioned different forts ruled by Khandayat Zamindars along with their King Mukund Dev.
The British conquered Odisha in 1803 and implemented land reforms to increase tax revenue. Khandayats enjoyed tax-free lands in Khurda Kingdom in strictly military tenure. But after their Paika Rebellion, they lost most of the free-hold lands.
During British rule, some wealthy people from communities such as
Adivasi
The Adivasi (also transliterated as Adibasi) are heterogeneous tribal groups across the Indian subcontinent. The term is a recent invention from the 20th century and is now widely used as a self-designation by groups classified as Scheduled Tr ...
s,
Bhuyan
The Bhuiyan or Bhuiya are an indigenous community found in the Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Assam, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. They are not only geographically disparate but also have many cultural variations an ...
s,
Chasas, and
Agharias started identifying as Khandayats in order to gain status, distance themselves from their original castes/communities, and exploit
Zamindar
A zamindar in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semi-autonomous feudal lord of a ''zamindari'' (feudal estate). The term itself came into use during the Mughal Empire, when Persian was the official language; ''zamindar'' is the ...
land rights.
Currently, the Odia Khandayat caste is recognised by the Government of Odisha among the socially and educationally backward classes (SEBC), though they are not entitled to any reservation benefit provided by the central Government of India.
Varna status
Traditionally, they are a peasant militia caste who claim themselves to be of
Kshatriya
Kshatriya () (from Sanskrit ''kṣatra'', "rule, authority"; also called Rajanya) is one of the four varnas (social orders) of Hindu society and is associated with the warrior aristocracy. The Sanskrit term ''kṣatriyaḥ'' is used in the con ...
status considering their quasi-martial background, but they were considered by the
Brahmin
Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...
s and others to be in the
Shudra
Shudra or ''Shoodra'' (Sanskrit: ') is one of the four varnas of the Hindu class and social system in ancient India. Some sources translate it into English as a caste, or as a social class. Theoretically, Shudras constituted a class like work ...
varna category due to the majority of Khandayats being peasants. Pradhan also attributes this to Brahmin patronage of
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 ...
s, who also claimed to be of Kshatriya status.
References
Further reading
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{{Ethnic groups and Communities of Odisha
Social groups of Odisha