Jats of Kutch

The Jats of Kutch are a cattle breeding nomadic Muslim community, found in the Kutch region of Gujarat in India. They are one of a number of communities of Maldhari pastoral nomads found in the Banni region of Kutch.

History and origin

The Jat, or Jath claim descent from Mohammad bin Haroon, the first Muslim conqueror of the Makran region. According to their traditions, they were initially settled in Alepo in Syria. A king of Iran wanted to marry a beautiful girl with in the tribe, by the name of Jattu. They did not have the courage to refuse the proposal, but when the king arrived to take his bride, they fell upon his soldiers and massacred them. They then fled to the Indus delta region of Sindh, in Pakistan, where a good members of the tribe still reside. From there, they moved into the Bani region in search of pastorage. With the partition of India, the Jat of Kutch have lost all contact with there kinsmen in Sindh. They appear to be distinct from the Jat community of North India and Pakistan.

Present circumstances

The Jats are a Maldhari cattle hearding group, and are mainly distributed in Kutch and Saurashtra. They have three territorial divisions, the Halai Jat (found in Jamnagar and Porbandar), Verai Jat (Banaskantha District), and Kutchi Jat (found in Kutch District). The Kutchi are further subdivided into the Dhanetah, Girasia and Fakirani, the latter consider themselves superior to the other two, and are strictly endogamous. They are further divided into clans like the Badajang, Podani, Aamar, Vangayi, while the Girasia are divided into the Mudrag, Bhallad and Hallayi. All these clans, except the Fakirani, enjoy equal status. The Saurashtra Jat, known as Malaks, maintain a system of gotra exogamy.

In addition to cattle rearing, the community are also involved in the breeding of camels, especially the Fakirani. A good many of the Saurashtra community are small scale peasant farmers. A few are landless, and work in as agricultural labourers. The Kutch Jat are also known for there embroidery work.

See also

• Jat