Sunni Vohras or Sunni Bohras, are a community from the state of

Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. Sharing the same name as the

Dawoodi Bohras The Dawoodi Bohras are a religious denomination within the Ismā'īlī branch of Shia Islam. They number approximately one million worldwide and have settled in over 40 countries around the world. The majority of the Dawoodi Bohra community r ...

, they are often confused with that community. A few families use the slightly different spelling of "Vora" or "Vahora" as their surname. Another common surname is

Patel Patel is an Indian surname or Indian honorifics, title, predominantly found in the States and union territories of India, state of Gujarat, representing the community of land-owning farmers and later (with the British East India Company) busine ...

. Sunni Bohras have had a large presence in the historical Indian Ocean maritime trade, and the Sunni Bohra merchant Mulla Abdul Ghafur was one of the richest merchants of the 18th Century.

History and distribution

There are multiple Gujarati Muslim communities that use the Vohra name. The community is split into four different sects.

Bharuchi and Surti Sunni Vohras

The Sunni Vohras of South Gujarat are a large community spanning from

Cambay Khambhat state or Cambay state was a princely state in India during the British Raj. The city of Khambhat in present-day Gujarat was its capital. The state was bounded in the north by the Kaira district (Kheda district, Kheda) and in the sout ...

Valsad Valsad (Pronunciation: �alsɑɖ, historically known as Bulsar, is a town and a municipality in Valsad district of the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the district headquarters of Valsad district. Valsad is located north of Vapi and shares bor ...

. The ones north of the river Narmada are commonly known as Bharuchi Sunni Vohras, and the ones South of Narmada are commonly known as Surti Sunni Vohras. Many Vohras from this community, especially north of the Narmada, use the

surname. Historically this community was involved in farming and trade. Many members of this community have substantial amounts of Middle Eastern ancestry from the large Middle Eastern settlements in ancient South Gujarat (see Origins of Bharuchi and Surti Muslims). Some members of this community were converted from the dominant South Gujarat landowning farmer communities during Muslim rule in Gujarat. This community is now found in towns and villages in South Gujarat, and the diaspora is found in many places around the world, especially in places such as

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

Burma Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

Barbados Barbados, officially the Republic of Barbados, is an island country in the Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies and the easternmost island of the Caribbean region. It lies on the boundary of the South American ...

, Reunion (known as

Zarabes Zarabe (variants: Zarab or Z'arabe) is the name given to the Muslim community of Réunion, who migrated in the mid-19th century. Zarabes are mostly South Asian, specifically from the modern state of Gujarat in India. Etymology The name is a Réuni ...

Mauritius Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island country in the Indian Ocean, about off the southeastern coast of East Africa, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island (also called Mauritius), as well as Rodrigues, Ag ...

etc. In many places they have played a substantial role in establishing some of the first Sunni Muslim mosques and being a leading part of the Muslim community, as well as pioneering technological and economic advancements. Many prominent figures such as

Mufti Menk Ismail ibn Musa Menk (born 27 June 1975), commonly known as Mufti Menk, is a Zimbabwean Islamic speaker. He is the Grand Mufti of Zimbabwe, and head of the fatwa department for the Council of Islamic Scholars of Zimbabwe. Early life Menk was ...

Hafiz Patel Hafiz Mohammed Patel (1926 – 18 February 2016) was a British Asian imam known for his role in establishing the Tablighi Jamaat movement in the United Kingdom and for founding the Dewsbury Markaz mosque, the headquarters of Tablighi Jamaat in ...

, Major Atchia,

Ahmed Deedat Ahmed Husein Deedat (; ; ; 1 July 1918 – 8 August 2005), was a South African and Indian self-taught Muslim thinker, author, and orator on Comparative Religion. He was best known as a Muslim missionary, who held numerous inter-religious publi ...

Ajum Goolam Hossen Ajum Goolam Hossen (c. 1850 – 14 February 1919), also known as Hajee Ajum Goolam Hossen was an Indo-Mauritian trader and businessman, known for his role in the migration and trade history of South Gujarat Muslim merchants and traders from Su ...

, Ghulam Vastanvi, Mohsin and Zuber Issa,

Alimuddin Zumla Sir Alimuddin Zumla (born 15 May 1955) is a British-Zambian professor of infectious diseases and international health at University College London Medical School, and a Consultant Infectious Diseases physician at UCLHospitals NHS Foundation ...

and

Ahmed Kathrada Ahmed Mohamed Kathrada OMSG (21 August 1929 – 28 March 2017), sometimes known by the nickname "Kathy", was a South African politician and anti-apartheid activist. Kathrada's involvement in the anti-apartheid activities of the African Natio ...

belong to this community.

Patani Bohras

Patani Bohras Sunni Vohras or Sunni Bohras, are a community from the state of Gujarat in India. Sharing the same name as the Dawoodi Bohras, they are often confused with that community. A few families use the slightly different spelling of "Vora" or "Vahora" a ...

Jafari Bohras Sunni Vohras or Sunni Bohras, are a community from the state of Gujarat in India. Sharing the same name as the Dawoodi Bohras, they are often confused with that community. A few families use the slightly different spelling of "Vora" or "Vahora" a ...

are converts of the Ismaili Bohras in Patan during Muslim rule of Gujarat. Some Dawoodi Bohras underwent persecution during Muslim rule after the Muslim conquest of Gujarat and converted from

Mustaali Musta'li Isma'ilism () is a branch of Isma'ilism named for their acceptance of al-Musta'li as the legitimate ninth Fatimid caliph and legitimate successor to his father, al-Mustansir Billah (). The Nizari the other living branch of Ismailism, ...

Ismaili Ismailism () is a branch of Shia Islam. The Isma'ili () get their name from their acceptance of Imam Isma'il ibn Jafar as the appointed spiritual successor ( imām) to Ja'far al-Sadiq, wherein they differ from the Twelver Shia, who accept ...

Sunni Islam Sunni Islam is the largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any Succession to Muhammad, successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr ...

. The leader of part of this conversion movement to

was said to be Jafar Patani, himself a Bohra convert to

. In 1538,

Syed Jafar Ahmad Shirazi Sunni Vohras or Sunni Bohras, are a community from the state of Gujarat in India. Sharing the same name as the Dawoodi Bohras, they are often confused with that community. A few families use the slightly different spelling of "Vora" or "Vahora" a ...

, a missionary from Sindh, convinced Patani Bohras to cease social relations with Ismaili Bohras making the Patani Sunni Bohras a distinct sect.Sunni Vohras
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Kadiwal Vohras

Kadiwal Vohras are located in Kadi and

Ahmedabad Ahmedabad ( ), also spelled Amdavad (), is the most populous city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ahmedabad district and the seat of the Gujarat High Court. Ahmedabad's population of 5,570,585 ...

and are traditionally followers of Pir Muhammad Shah.

Charotar Vohras

Charotar Vohras are located in

Anand Anand may refer to: People * Anand (name), a surname and given name (including a list of people with the name) * Anand (clan), a clan of an Indian caste * Anand (actor), Indian actor * Anand (Maoist), Indian communist * Anand (writer) (born 1936 ...

and converted from farming communities in Anand during the Gujarat Sultunate.

References