Thakur is a historical
feudal
Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was a combination of legal, economic, military, cultural, and political customs that flourished in Middle Ages, medieval Europe from the 9th to 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of struc ...
title
A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify their generation, official position, military rank, professional or academic qualification, or nobility. In some languages, titles may be ins ...
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 is also used as a surname in the present day. The female variant of the title is Thakurani or Thakurain, and is also used to describe the wife of a Thakur.
There are varying opinions among scholars about its origin. Some scholars suggest that it is not mentioned in the
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...
texts preceding 500
BCE, but speculates that it might have been a part of the vocabulary of the dialects spoken in
northern India
North India is a geographical region, loosely defined as a cultural region comprising the northern part of India (or historically, the Indian subcontinent) wherein Indo-Aryans (speaking Indo-Aryan languages) form the prominent majority populati ...
before the
Gupta Empire
The Gupta Empire was an Indian empire during the classical period of the Indian subcontinent which existed from the mid 3rd century to mid 6th century CE. At its zenith, the dynasty ruled over an empire that spanned much of the northern Indian ...
. It is viewed to have been derived from word ''Thakkura'' which, according to several scholars, was not an original word of the Sanskrit
language
Language is a structured system of communication that consists of grammar and vocabulary. It is the primary means by which humans convey meaning, both in spoken and signed language, signed forms, and may also be conveyed through writing syste ...
but a borrowed word in the Indian lexis from the Tukharistan region of
Uzbekistan
, image_flag = Flag of Uzbekistan.svg
, image_coat = Emblem of Uzbekistan.svg
, symbol_type = Emblem of Uzbekistan, Emblem
, national_anthem = "State Anthem of Uzbekistan, State Anthem of the Republ ...
. Another view-point is that ''Thakkura'' is a loan word from the
Prakrit
Prakrit ( ) is a group of vernacular classical Middle Indo-Aryan languages that were used in the Indian subcontinent from around the 5th century BCE to the 12th century CE. The term Prakrit is usually applied to the middle period of Middle Ind ...
language.
Scholars have suggested differing meanings for the word, i.e. "god", "lord", and "master of the estate". Academics have suggested that it was only a title, and in itself, did not grant any authority to its users "to wield some power in the state".
In India, this title is widely used by the people belonging to the
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 ...
community while few people of other communities also use this title include communities such as,
Bengali Brahmins
Bengali Brahmins are the community of Hindu Brahmins, who traditionally reside in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent, currently comprising the Indian state of West Bengal and the country of Bangladesh.
The Bengali Brahmins, along wi ...
,
Bhumihars,
Charan
Charan (IAST: Cāraṇ; Sanskrit: चारण; Gujarati: ચારણ; Sindhi: چارڻ; IPA: cɑːrəɳə) is a caste in South Asia natively residing in the Rajasthan and Gujarat states of India, as well as the Sindh and Balochistan prov ...
s and
Kolis.
Etymology and meaning
Sisir Kumar Das stated that the word ''Thakur'' is derived from the "late
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...
" word ''Thakkura''.
Harka Bahadur Gurung noted that the
Nepalese version of the word ''Thakur'' is ''Thakuri''.
The meaning of the word ''Thakur'' was suggested to be "god" by S. K. Das;
"lord" by Blair B. Kling; and "master of the estate" by H. B. Gurung.
Origin
Nirmal Chandra Sinha stated that the word ''Thakura'' is "unknown" to the Vedic and Classical Sanskrit and finds no mention in the Sanskrit literature preceding 500 BCE. He suggests, however, that "the word was possibly current in many north Indian dialects before the Imperial Guptas". Sinha notes that many scholars, such as Buddha Prakash,
Frederick Thomas,
Harold Bailey,
Prabodh Bagchi,
Suniti Chatterji, and
Sylvain Lévi, have suggested that ''Thakura'' is a borrowed word in the Indian lexis from the Tukhara regions of Current Uzbekistan.
Sinha observed:
Byomkes Chakrabarti
Byomkes Chakrabarti (also spelled Byomkesh Chakraborty or Byomkesh Chakrabarty) (1923–1981) was a Bengali research worker on ethnic languages. He was also a educationist and a poet. His major contribution to linguistics was in finding out some ...
noted that the Sanskrit word ''Thakkura'' finds mention in "late Sanskrit". He doubted, however, that ''Thakkura'' is "an original Sanskrit word" and was of the opinion that ''Thakkura'' is probably a loan word from the Prakrit language.
Usage
Susan Snow Wadley noted that the title ''Thakur'' was used to refer to "a man of indeterminate but mid-level caste, usually implying a landowning caste". Wadley further notes that ''Thakur'' was viewed as a "more modest" title in comparison to "''
Rājā''" (King).
S. K. Das noted that while the word ''thakur'' means "god".
In India, this title is widely used by the people belonging to the
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 ...
caste
while few people of some other caste groups using it include castes such as,
Bengali Brahmin,
Bhumihar
Bhumihar, also locally called Bhuinhar and Babhan, a Hindu Indian caste system, caste mainly found in Bihar (including the Mithila (region), Mithila region), the Purvanchal region of Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, the Bundelkhand region of Madhya ...
,
Koli and
Charan
Charan (IAST: Cāraṇ; Sanskrit: चारण; Gujarati: ચારણ; Sindhi: چارڻ; IPA: cɑːrəɳə) is a caste in South Asia natively residing in the Rajasthan and Gujarat states of India, as well as the Sindh and Balochistan prov ...
.
Some academics have suggested that "''Thakur'' was merely a title and not an office whereby a holder was entitled to wield some power in the state". However, some other academics have noted that this title had been used by "petty chiefs" in the western areas of
Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...
. Examples include the Thakurs of Kolong, Gumrang, and
Gondhla in
Lahaul, who governed hereditary
jagirs in Lahaul under the Rajas of Kullu, and later under British rule.
The title was used by rulers of several
princely states, including
Ambliara,
Vala,
Morbi
Morbi or Morvi is a city founded as a princely state around 1698 by Jadeja Thakor Saheb Shree Kayoji Ravaji. It is in the Morbi district in the States and territories of India, state of Gujarat, India. It is situated on the Kathiawar peninsula. ...
,
Barsoda, and
Rajkot State. Sons of thakurs were given the Sanskrit title of ''
Kumara'' ('prince'), popular usage being ''
Kunwar'' in the North and ''
Kumar'' in
Bengal
Bengal ( ) is a Historical geography, historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the Eastern South Asia, eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Benga ...
and
southern India
South India, also known as Southern India or Peninsular India, is the southern part of the Deccan Peninsula in India encompassing the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana as well as the union territories of ...
.
The territory of land under the control of a ''Thakur'' was called ''thikana''.
See also
*
Sardar
Sardar, also spelled as Sardaar (, , 'commander', literally 'headmaster'), is a title of royal family, royalty and nobility that was originally used to denote princes, noblemen, chiefs, kings and other Aristocracy (class), aristocrats. It ha ...
*
Chaudhary
Chowdhury (also: Choudhuri, Chaudhuri, Choudhury, Chaudhri, Chaudhary) is a title of honour, usually hereditary, originating from the Indian subcontinent. It is an adaption from Sanskrit. During the Mughal rule, it was a title awarded to eminen ...
*
Mankari
*
Thakkar
*
Thakuri
The Thakuri (Nepali: ठकुरी) . This term is Nepalese title ""Thakuri"", which translates to 'master of the estate'. The term denotes the royal descendants of kings of Baise Rajya and Chaubisi Rajya.
During the height of their influence ...
*
Thakor
*
Thakurdas
*
Rajputs in Bihar
*
Dharmathakur
Dharmathakur (also called, Dharmaraj or simply Dharma) is a Hindu deities, Hindu deity of death and justice, worshipped by villagers in the traditional Rarh region in the present day Indian state of West Bengal as one of their special village go ...
References
{{reflist
Titles in India
Rajput titles
Surnames of Indian origin
Indian feudalism
Titles in Bangladesh