The Lodha Muslim are a tribal or
Adivasi
The Adivasi refers to inhabitants of Indian subcontinent, generally tribal people. The term is a Sanskrit word coined in the 1930s by political activists to give the tribal people an indigenous identity by claiming an indigenous origin. The te ...
community found in the state of
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the four ...
in
India
India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...
. They are a
Muslim tribe.
Origin
The exact circumstances of the conversion of the Lodha Muslims to
Islam remains shrouded in mystery, but the conversion process was gradual, and the community still preserve many of their pre-Islamic customs. They are found mainly in the
Midnapore District
Midnapore district was a district of the state of West Bengal, India. This district was bifurcated on 1 January 2002 into the Purba Medinipur district and the Paschim Medinipur district. On 4 April 2017, the Jhargram subdivision of Paschim Medi ...
, in particular in the villages of Madhya Hingli, Uttar Rani Chak, Gamatub, Maniktala, Laldighi, Chapbasan, Sodhpur and Piyada. .
Present circumstances
The traditional occupation of the Lodha was hunting and gathering, in particular catching of snakes and toads, and then selling their skins. They are no longer hunters and gatherers, and community has now taken up the occupation as locksmiths. A small number are also marginal farmers, but their holdings are incredibly small. The bulk of the community are now wage labourers, with a steady immigration to the city of
Kolkata
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...
.
The Lodha are strictly endogamous community, and prefer to marry close kin. They are residentially segregated, live in their own quarters within the villages they reside. Each settlement contains a jati panchayat or caste council, which maintains social control, and resolves any intra community dispute. The community are
Sunni Muslims and have customs similar to other
Bengali Muslims
Bengali Muslims ( bn, বাঙালি মুসলমান; ) are adherents of Islam who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. Comprising about two-thirds of the global Bengali population, they are the s ...
.
[Marginal Muslim Communities in India edited by M.K.A Siddiqui pages 415-424]
See also
*
Lodha people
Lodha people are one of Schedule Tribes and PVTGs of India, primarily living in West Bengal and Odisha. Lodhas of West Bengal mostly live the Paschim Medinipur and Jhargham districts. A section of the Lodha has converted to Islam, and forme ...
*
Kela Kela or KELA may refer to:
* KelA, a sports club in Kellokoski, Finland
* KELA (AM), a radio station (1470 AM) licensed to Centralia-Chehalis, Washington, United States
* Kela (Finnish institution), the Finnish social security agency
* Kela (trib ...
References
{{Authority control
Social groups of West Bengal
Muslim communities of India
Ethnic groups in India
Indigenous peoples of South Asia
Tribes of West Bengal
Scheduled Tribes of India