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{{short description|Caste in Punjab region of India and Pakistan}}
{{Cleanup|date=December 2009}}
:''This article is about Tarkhan, a Northern Indian tribe. For other uses, see [[Tarkan (disambiguation)]]''
{{About|the Punjabi community|other uses|Tarkan (disambiguation){{!}}Tarkan}}
{{pp-move-indef}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2020}}
{{EngvarB|date=February 2020}}
{{Infobox ethnic group
{{Infobox ethnic group
|group=Tarkhan (Punjab)
| group = Tarkhan
| image = A Tarkhan at work, by Kehar Singh, circa mid-19th century.png
|image = [[File:SA_with_President_of_India_Giani_Zail_Singh.jpg|300px]]
| caption = A Tarkhan at work, by Kehar Singh, circa mid-19th century
|caption = Giani Zail Singh (right), Chief Minister of [[Punjab]] and First Sikh President of [[India]].
|group = Tarkhan (Punjab)
| popplace = India and Pakistan
| langs = [[Hindi]] • [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]]
|pop =
| rels = Hinduism • Islam • Sikhism
|popplace = [[Punjab region|Punjab]]
| related =
|languages = [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]], [[Hindi]], [[English language|English]]
|religions = [[Sikhism]], [[Hinduism]], [[Islam]]
|related = other [[Indo-Aryans]]
}}
}}
[[File:Portrait of three unidentified Lahore carpenters (likely Tarkhan) with tools, ca.1862–72.png|thumb|Portrait of three unidentified Tarkhan carpenters from Lahore with tools, ca.1862–72]]
The '''Tarkhan''' is a caste found in the [[Punjab]] region of India and Pakistan. They are traditionally [[carpenter]]s by occupation.<ref>{{cite book |first=W. H. |last=McLeod |title=Exploring Sikhism: Aspects of Sikh Identity, Culture and Thought |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2000 |isbn=978-0-19-564902-4 |page=214}}</ref>


The [[Hindu]] members of this clan are generally identified as [[Khati]]s, [[Suthar]]s or [[Lohar (caste)|Lohar]]s following the [[Vishwakarma]] community of India.<ref>{{cite book |title=Sociology: A Study of the Social Sphere |first=Yogesh |last=Atal |publisher=Pearson Education India |isbn=978-8-13179-759-4 |page=242 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RuK9z3jLcwgC&pg=PA242 |year=2012}}</ref> Whereas, Tarkhan Sikhs are among those groups who are identified as [[Ramgarhia]]s, after the [[Misl]] leader [[Jassa Singh Ramgarhia]].<ref>{{cite book |first=W. Owen |last=Cole |title=A Popular Dictionary of Sikhism: Sikh Religion and Philosophy |year=2005 |isbn=1135797609 |page=70 |publisher=Routledge |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vcSRAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA70 |access-date=9 September 2020 |archive-date=27 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220427070711/https://books.google.com/books?id=vcSRAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA70 |url-status=live }}</ref> Despite Sikhism generally rejecting the caste system, it does have its own very similar socio-economic hierarchy and in that the Ramgarhias, of which the Tarkhans are a part, now rank second only to the [[Jat Sikh]]s, thanks to significant economic and social power that elevated this middle class group from its lower caste confines.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Childs |first1=Peter |title=Encyclopaedia of Contemporary British Culture |isbn=978-1134755547 |pages=270 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qHiVvKbSLX8C&pg=PA270 |date=13 May 2013|publisher=Routledge }}</ref>
The '''Tarkhan''' ({{lang-pa|{{nastaliq|ترخان}}}} <small>([[Shahmukhi]])</small>, तरख़ान <small>([[Devanagari]])</small> ''tarkhān'') are considered a [[Punjabi people|Punjabi]] tribe. They are [[carpenter]]s by occupation.<ref>W. H. McLeod, ''Exploring sikhism: aspects of Sikh identity, culture and thought'', Oxford University Press, 2000 ISBN 978-0-19-564902-4, p. 214.</ref>


According to the [[Census of India prior to independence|1921 census of India]], which may not be reliable, some Tarkhan Sikhs owned large areas of land and, in some cases, whole villages.<ref>{{cite book |first=Subash Chander |last=Sharma |title=Punjab, the Crucial Decade |publisher=Nirmal Publications |year=1987 |isbn=978-8171561735 |page=114 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=L1RGX3whGEIC&pg=PA114 |access-date=9 September 2020 |archive-date=27 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220427070713/https://books.google.com/books?id=L1RGX3whGEIC&pg=PA114 |url-status=live }}</ref>
H.A. Rose{{ref}} supposed that they are descended from the [[Saka]] tribes, and originally settled in [[Taxila]]. Scholars such as Khalsa have analysed the work of ethnographers such as Ibbetson, Cunningham, and Elliot, and have concluded that agrarian and artisan communities in Punjab such as Tarkhans may be of [[Scythian]] origin.<ref>http://rajputana.htmlplanet.com/scy_raj/scy_raj1.html</ref>


In 2001, the Punjab Government included Ramgarhia, Tarkhan and Dhiman in the list of [[Other Backward Classes]] (OBC) to improve their economic conditions.<ref>{{cite news |title=Ramgarhias in OBC list |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chandigarh/Ramgarhias-in-OBC-list/articleshow/433739102.cms |access-date=3 September 2020 |work=The Times of India |date=31 August 2001 |language=en |archive-date=11 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210411093701/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chandigarh/Ramgarhias-in-OBC-list/articleshow/433739102.cms |url-status=live }}</ref> They were also added in the list of backward classes by the governments of [[Government of Haryana|Haryana]] and [[Government of Himachal Pradesh|Himachal Pradesh]].<ref>{{cite web |title=List of Backward Classes {{!}} Welfare of Scheduled Caste & Backward Classes Department, Government of Haryana |url=http://haryanascbc.gov.in/list-of-backward-classes |website=haryanascbc.gov.in |access-date=4 September 2020 |archive-date=20 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201020214546/http://haryanascbc.gov.in/list-of-backward-classes |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=HBCFDC |url=http://himachalservices.nic.in/hbcfdc/list.htm |website=himachalservices.nic.in |access-date=31 October 2020 |archive-date=4 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201104195331/http://himachalservices.nic.in/hbcfdc/list.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>
Further analysis has suggested that Tarkhans may be descended from Scythic tribes who settled in north-western India in successive waves between 500 B.C. too 500 AD.<ref>www.worldmultimedia.biz/Culture/yuechih%20sakas%20kushans.pdf</ref>


==History==
==Notable people==
* [[Jassa Singh Ramgarhia]], [[jathedar|General]] of the [[Ramgarhia Misl]]<ref>{{cite book |title=Historical Dictionary of Sikhism |url=https://archive.org/details/historicaldictio00mcle |url-access=limited |first=W. H. |last=McLeod |edition=2nd |publisher=Scarecrow Press |year=2005 |orig-year=1995 |isbn=0-8108-5088-5 |page=[https://archive.org/details/historicaldictio00mcle/page/n132 102]}}</ref>
Sikh Tarkhans are more commonly referred to as Ramgarhias because of their reverence for the famous Misl leader, Jassa Singh Ramgarhia (1723-1803), who was a Tarkhan. A very proud and fiercely independent people, they are amongst the wealthiest and most educated clans of India. Historically, the Sikh tarkhans' occupation was Carpentry. Tarkhans have served couragously in crack Commando units of the Punjab and Sikh Regiments of the Indian Army, as brave fighter pilots and in the Navy. They were made famous on the silver screen in the Bollywood film, “Border” , which depicted their brave actions in the Battle of Longowal, a battle fought during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. <ref>http://www.sikhiwiki.org/index.php/Tarkhan</ref>
* [[Bhai Lalo]], Sikh religious figure<ref>{{cite book |last1=Singh |first1=Pashaura |last2=Barrier |first2=Norman Gerald |title=Sikh Identity: Continuity and Change |date=1999 |publisher=Manohar |isbn=978-81-7304-236-2 |pages=235 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DIN0AAAAMAAJ&q=bhai+lalo}}</ref>

* [[Zail Singh]], [[president of India]] between 1982 and 1987<ref>{{cite book |last1=Kumar |first1=Ashutosh |title=Electoral Politics in Punjab: Factors and Phases |date=22 November 2019 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=978-1-000-76939-5 |page=175 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oNi_DwAAQBAJ&dq=zail+singh+tarkhan&pg=PT75 |language=en}}</ref>
==Tarkhan clans==
[[File:Ajay-Devgan-LondonDreams01.jpg|thumb|right|[[Ajay Devgan]] an Indian actor. A Degan Tarkhan]]
According to [[Sir Denzil Ibbetson]]{{ref|Ibbetson}}, the major Twelve Tarkhan clans (Based on 1881 census) of the [[Punjab region|Punjab]] and the [[Northwest Frontier Province]] in the order as they occur from east to west are:

* [[Jhangra]] - found in Delhi and Hissar
* [[Dhiman sikh|Dhaman/Dhiman]] - found in Karnal, Ambala, Jalandahar, Sialkot, Patiala, Nabha, Faridhkot and Firozpur.
* [[Khatti]] - found in Karnal, Ambala, Jalandahar, Sialkot, Patiala, Nabha, Faridhkot and Firozpur.
* [[Siawan]] - Jallandhar and Sialkot
* [[Gade (clan)|Gade]] - Amritsar
* [[Matharu]] - Ludhiana, Amritsar and Lahore.
* [[Netal]] - Hoshiarpur
* [[Janjua]] - Rawalpindi
* [[Matharu|Tharu]] - Gurdaspur and Sialkot
*[[Khokhar|Khokar]] - Lahore, Rawalpindi and Multan
*[[Bhatti]] - Lahore, Rawalpindi and Multan
*[[Begu Khel|Begi Khel]] - Hazara.''
Ibbetson notes further that:

:''"The carpenters of Sirsa are divided into two great sections: the [[Dhiman sikh|Dhaman/Dhiman]] and Khatti proper, and the two will not intermarry. These are two great tribes of the Lohars (q.v.). The Dhamans again include a tribe of Hindu Tarkhans called [[Suthar]], who are almost entirely agricultural, seldom working in wood, and who look down upon the artisan sections of their caste. They say they came from Jodhpur, and that their tribe still holds villages and revenue free grants in Bikaner." ''

==Tarkhans and Lohars==

Historically,the Sikh tarkhan's occupation was carpentry as well as being blacksmiths.Many administrators of the [[British Raj]] period who also wrote books&nbsp; - such as [[H. A. Rose]]<ref>{{note|Rose}} ''see'' [http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=1QmrSwFYe60C&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false H.A. Rose. ''A Glossary of the Tribes and Castes of the Punjab and North-West Frontier Province 1919]</ref> and [[Denzil Ibbetson]]<ref>{{cite book|last=Ibbetson|first=Denzil|title=Panjab Castes|year=1916|publisher=Low Price Publications, 1916|location=Lahore|isbn=8185557551, 9788185557557|pages=349|url=http://books.google.co.in/books/about/Panjab_castes.html?id=VWhuAAAAMAAJ&redir_esc=y|edition=reprint|accessdate=2 December 2012|pages=309–314|chapter=Workers in wood,iron,stone and Clay}}
</ref> -&nbsp;referred to the blacksmith communities as ''[[Lohar]]s'', although in fact that term refers to a specific group of people [[sikligar]] and is not the synonym that they supposed.<ref>{{cite book |title=Strategies of social change in India |first1=Paramjit S. |last1=Judge |first2=Gurpreet |last2=Bal |publisher=M.D. Publications |year=1996 |isbn=978-81-7533-006-1 |url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=7lKM4aWhIH0C |page=54 |accessdate=2012-03-21}}</ref>

{{ref|Ibbetson}}{{Quoter| ''In Hushyarpur They are said to form a single caste called Lohar-Tarkhan, and the son of a blacksmith will often take to carpentry and vice versa; but it appears that the two castes were originally separate, for the joint caste is still divided into two sections who will not intermarry or even eat or smoke together, the Dhaman, from dhamna "to blow", and the Khatti from khat "wood". In Gujranwala the same two castes exist; and they are the two great Tarkhan tribes also (see section 627). In Karnal a sort of connection seems to be admitted, but the castes are now distinct. In Sirsa the Lohars may be divided into three main sections; the first, men undoubted and recent [[Jat]] and even [[Rajput]] origin who have generally by reason of poverty, taken to work as blacksmiths; secondly the Suthar Lohar or members of the Suthar tribe of carpenters who have similarly changed their original occupation; and thirdly, the Gadya Lohar, a class of wandering blacksmith not uncommon throughout the east and south east of the Province, who come up from Rajputana and the North West Provinces and travel about with their families and implements in carts from village to village, doing the finer sorts of iron work which are beyond the capacity of the village artisan. The tradition runs that Suthar Lohars, who are now Musalman, were originally Hindu Tarkhans of the Suthar tribe (see section 627); and that Akhbar took 12,000 of them from Jodhpur to Delhi, forcibily circumcised them, and obliged them to work in iron instead of wood. The story is admitted by a section of the Lohars themselves, and probably has some substratum of truth. These men came to Sirsa from the direction of Sindh, where they say they formerly held land, and are commonly known as Multani Lohars.''| Ibbetson Page 312}}

==Tarkhan culture and society==
===Military===
A large number of the Tarkhans fought courageously in [[World War 1]] and [[World War 2]]. Currently there are many Tarkhans who serve in the [[Indian Army]], including in the [[Sikh Regiment]], [[Rajputana Rifles]]. Historically, the Sikh Tarkhans fought in the Sikh Wars, Battle of Longowal, and were members of [[Dal Khalsa]]. They were seen as a [[Martial Race]] during the British Raj, and were recognized as highly decorated soldiers and warriors.

===Rulers and Warriors===
[[Image:Sardar_Mangal_Singh_Ramgarhia_of_Amritsar.jpg|thumb| [[Mangal Singh Ramgarhia]], Maharaja of [[Amritsar]]]]
*[[Maharaja Jassa Singh Ramgarhia]] - Maharaja of [[Punjab]] and member of the [[Dal Khalsa]]<ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dal_Khalsa_(Sikh_Empire)</ref>
*Maharaja [[Jodh Singh Ramgarhia]] - Heir to the land and states of his father Maharaja Jassa Singh
*Bhagwan Singh Bambra - Sikh warrior, father of Jassa Singh and son of Hardas Singh
*Hardas Singh Ramgarhia - Sikh warrior, father of Bhagwan Singh, and grandfather of Jassa Singh
*[[Tara Singh Ramgarhia]] - Brother of Jassa Singh
*Jai Singh - Brother of Jassa Singh, Sikh warrior
*Khushal Singh
*Mali Singh
*Maharaja [[Mangal Singh Ramgarhia]] - Maharaja of [[Amritsar]], keys to the [[Golden temple]]

===Diet===
The Tarkhans were well known to be fierce, intimidating and independent people. Recent sources indicate that they were known to be the heaviest consumers of alcohol. By and large they were said to be non-vegetarians, this was due to the vast amounts of meat available in the Tarkhan regions of [[Punjab]]. The main courses of meat were usually; chicken; pork; lamb; deer. This was due to the fact that the Tarkhans themselves would go out to hunt their own food, using the weapon known as the [[Gandasa]]
==See also==

[[Dhiman sikh|Dhiman]]


==References==
==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Reflist|2}}
*{{note|Rose}} ''see'' [http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=1QmrSwFYe60C&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false H.A. Rose. ''A Glossary of the Tribes and Castes of the Punjab and North-West Frontier Province 1919]
*{{note|Ibbetson}} Sir Denzil Ibbetson. ''Panjab Castes - page 312f''. {{Year needed|date=October 2010}}


{{Ethnic groups, tribes and clans of the Punjab}}
{{Ethnic groups, tribes and clans of the Punjab}}

[[Category:Punjabi tribes]]
[[Category:Punjabi tribes]]
[[Category:Social groups of Punjab, India]]
[[Category:Social groups of Punjab, Pakistan]]
[[Category:Hindu communities]]
[[Category:Carpenter castes]]
[[Category:Carpenter castes]]

Latest revision as of 12:46, 11 December 2024

This article is about the Punjabi community. For other uses, see Tarkan.

Tarkhan
A Tarkhan at work, by Kehar Singh, circa mid-19th century
Regions with significant populations
India and Pakistan
Languages
Hindi • Punjabi
Religion
Hinduism • Islam • Sikhism
Portrait of three unidentified Tarkhan carpenters from Lahore with tools, ca.1862–72

The Tarkhan is a caste found in the Punjab region of India and Pakistan. They are traditionally carpenters by occupation.[1]

The Hindu members of this clan are generally identified as Khatis, Suthars or Lohars following the Vishwakarma community of India.[2] Whereas, Tarkhan Sikhs are among those groups who are identified as Ramgarhias, after the Misl leader Jassa Singh Ramgarhia.[3] Despite Sikhism generally rejecting the caste system, it does have its own very similar socio-economic hierarchy and in that the Ramgarhias, of which the Tarkhans are a part, now rank second only to the Jat Sikhs, thanks to significant economic and social power that elevated this middle class group from its lower caste confines.[4]

According to the 1921 census of India, which may not be reliable, some Tarkhan Sikhs owned large areas of land and, in some cases, whole villages.[5]

In 2001, the Punjab Government included Ramgarhia, Tarkhan and Dhiman in the list of Other Backward Classes (OBC) to improve their economic conditions.[6] They were also added in the list of backward classes by the governments of Haryana and Himachal Pradesh.[7][8]

Notable people

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ McLeod, W. H. (2000). Exploring Sikhism: Aspects of Sikh Identity, Culture and Thought. Oxford University Press. p. 214. ISBN 978-0-19-564902-4.
  2. ^ Atal, Yogesh (2012). Sociology: A Study of the Social Sphere. Pearson Education India. p. 242. ISBN 978-8-13179-759-4.
  3. ^ Cole, W. Owen (2005). A Popular Dictionary of Sikhism: Sikh Religion and Philosophy. Routledge. p. 70. ISBN 1135797609. Archived from the original on 27 April 2022. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
  4. ^ Childs, Peter (13 May 2013). Encyclopaedia of Contemporary British Culture. Routledge. p. 270. ISBN 978-1134755547.
  5. ^ Sharma, Subash Chander (1987). Punjab, the Crucial Decade. Nirmal Publications. p. 114. ISBN 978-8171561735. Archived from the original on 27 April 2022. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
  6. ^ "Ramgarhias in OBC list". The Times of India. 31 August 2001. Archived from the original on 11 April 2021. Retrieved 3 September 2020.
  7. ^ "List of Backward Classes | Welfare of Scheduled Caste & Backward Classes Department, Government of Haryana". haryanascbc.gov.in. Archived from the original on 20 October 2020. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
  8. ^ "HBCFDC". himachalservices.nic.in. Archived from the original on 4 November 2020. Retrieved 31 October 2020.
  9. ^ McLeod, W. H. (2005) [1995]. Historical Dictionary of Sikhism (2nd ed.). Scarecrow Press. p. 102. ISBN 0-8108-5088-5.
  10. ^ Singh, Pashaura; Barrier, Norman Gerald (1999). Sikh Identity: Continuity and Change. Manohar. p. 235. ISBN 978-81-7304-236-2.
  11. ^ Kumar, Ashutosh (22 November 2019). Electoral Politics in Punjab: Factors and Phases. Taylor & Francis. p. 175. ISBN 978-1-000-76939-5.
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