Ahirs of North India
Swami Ramdev (Ramkishen Yadav) born in Mahendragarh Haryana
For centuries the Ahirs were eclipsed as a political power in Haryana until the time of the Pratihara dynasty. In time they became independent rulers of Southwest Haryana. Although the Ahirs and Yadavas form one group, the former are an important community of Haryana, but numerically they constitute less than 10% of the total population. They are majority in the region around Behror, Alwar, Rewari, Narnaul, Mahendragarh, Gurgaon[70] and Jhajjar[71][72] which is therefore known as Ahirwal or the abode of Ahirs.
Ahirs synonyms are Yadav and Rao Sahab. Rao Sahab is only used in Ahirwal region consisting of territories of few villages of Delhi, Southern Haryana & Behrod area of Alwar district (Rajasthan). Ahir's of this region are mainly in armed forces. Yadav dominated areas in National Capital Region(NCR) includes Gurgaon, Noida,[73] Manesar, Behror,[74] Neemrana,[75] Bawal, Dharuhera, Pataudi, Bhiwadi, Badshahpur, Kosli, Alwar and Rewari.This belt is also called as Ahirwal Belt.Delhi has 40 village [76][77][76][78][79] neighbouring Gurgaon has 106 villages [80] and Noida has around 30 villages.[81][82][83]
Thousands of Yadav villagers from Gurgaon and Manesar are millionaires today after selling their agricultural land to private builders and HUDA and many have become property dealers [84][85] and Southern Haryana is dominated by Ahirs.[86] Rao Birender Singh Yadav was the second chief minister of Haryana and Chaudhary Brahm Prakash Yadav was the first chief minister of Delhi.
Rajasthan has Alwar, Jaipur,[74][75] Jodhpur,[87] Jhunjhunu, Jaisalmer, Bharatpur, Sikar and Ajmer Districts.[88][89]
Haryana has Gurgaon, Narnaul, Rewari , Mahendragarh and Jhajjar.[71][72]
Uttar Pradesh has Noida, Agra, Badaun, Etah, Mainpuri, Firozabad, Kanpur, Etawah, Farukhabad, Kannauj, Auraiya, Unnao, Hardoi, Azamgarh, Gorkakhpur, Jhansi, Lalitpur, Gazipur, Banares, Hamirpur, Jaunpur, Barabanki district and Mirzapur District.[90][91][92][93]
Bihar has Gopalganj, Banka, Darbhanga, Siwan, Chhapra, Madhubani, Munger.[94][95]
[edit]Ahirs of Gujarat
Kachchh (Kutch) District, State of Gujarat
There is a great concentration of Ahirs in Kutch: of the 18 million Ahirs in India about 300,000 live in Kutch.[96] There are five main castes of Ahirs in Kutch: Pancholi, Prantharia, Mochhaya, Boricha, and Sorathia. These communities are mainly of farmers who once sold milk and ghee but who now have diversified their businesses because of the irregularity of rain. The other community is of Bharwads those of Saurashtra use Ahir[97] as a surname, [98] Bharwad consider themselves as Nandvanshi Ahirs.[97][99] Their mother tongue is Gujrati.
[edit]Ahirs or Ahers of Maharashtra
In Marubhumi (Marwar), Saurashtra and Maharashtra they served the local rulers and established their own rule. Ishwarsena, a great Ahir general, became master of Western Deccan in place of the famous Satava-hanas. He took the title of Rajan and an era was named after him. His descendants continued to rule for nine generations. There is a significant concentration of [Aher]s in Northern Maharashtra. They are very influential in politics, administration. They are all Kshatriyas with classification as 96 Kuli Marathas since the establishment of Hindavi Swaraj by Chhatrapati Shivaji.
With the downfall of the Rashtrakutas which ruled Pune from the 8th century AD to the middle of the 10th century.It went under the control of the Yadavs.The Yadavs ruled Maharashtra from 10th century AD to the end of the 13th century. Singhania, the Yadav ruler was a lover of literature and art. Sant Dnyaneshwar, a Bhakti saint lived during this period. The Yadav rule came to an end with the coming of Ala-ud-din Khilji.
See also: Yadavas of Devagiri
[edit]Ahirs of Bundelkhand
Historically, Ahir laid the foundation of Ahir Batak town which was later called Ahrora and Ahirwada in Jhansi district in AD 108. Rudramurti Ahir became the chief of the Army and later on, the king. Madhuriputa, Ishwarsen and Shivdatta were well-known kings from the lineage. As Jhansi was known for a long time as Ahirwada (land of Ahir’s). Bundelkhand anciently known as Chedi Kingdom. The region is now divided between the states of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, with the larger portion lying in the latter. The major towns are Jhansi, Datia, Tikamgarh, Lalitpur, Sagar, Damoh, Orai, Panna, Hamirpur, Mahoba, Banda, Narsinghpur, Khajuraho and Chhatarpur. However, the cities of Gwalior, Jabalpur and even Bhopal are under close cultural influence of Bundelkhand, especially linguistically.
Ahirs from Ahirwada and Bundelkhand also known as Dau sahab (Dau saab). Dau sahab means the powerful and mighty of all. Up to 1800 A.D. ruling class among Ahirs in Bundelkhand use Rao as their title name which was replaced by the title Maate. Maate means Mother Goddess or Supreme authority of that region. zamindar having control over multiple villages known as Maate.In Bundelkhand, Ahirs are considered to be very strong and powerful class. In Bundelkhand both Chandravanshi Rajputs/Thakurs (Ahirs , Chandela, Bundela) and suryavanshi Rajputs/Thakurs has equal status. Ahirs of Jhansi and Bundelkhand either came from Rewari or Gurgaon. A town 22 km from Jhansi known as Niwari which is named analogous to the name Rewari of Haryana, since Niwari is in jhansi zone it is also an Ahir dominant region.,[56]
See also: Yaduvanshi ahirs
[edit]Aharwar
The Aharwar are a Hindu caste found in North India. They are said to was descend from Ahir tribe. The Ahars are one of the most ancient martial tribes of India, who ruled over different parts of India and Nepal since ancient times. In appearance, they proclaim their Aryan descent. They are tall and wiry, have dark eyes, long noses, black hair and their complexion varies from wheatish to dark brown.
A community of Hindu Kshatriya belong to Ahirwada (Jhansi) are known as Ahirwar / Aharwar Kshatriya. It is considered as a very progressive caste. Aharwar is also used as a surname (last name) by Rajput clan belonging to the chandravanshi kshatriya lineage.
Many Aharwar live in different regions of India including Delhi, Mathura, Ahmedabad, Murena, Agra, and Jhansi. The Aharwar was derived from Ahar. The Ahars are one of the most ancient martial tribes of India, who ruled over different parts of India and Nepal since ancient times.
[edit]Society and regions
Khatushyamji in Sikar Rajastan Ahirs of north India visit this temple.
Ahir community is known to produce best of the military jawans, wrestlers and agriculturists. The Ahir’s preserve their associations with the country lying between the Sutlej and the Yamuna. In many Western Uttar Pradesh districts like Badaun, Etah, Mainpuri, Southern Haryana, northern Madhya Pradesh and eastern Rajasthan, the Ahir’s are still in a majority. Ahir’s also form a majority in various districts of Eastern Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, including Azamgarh and Madhepura.
In medieval times the Ahir community gave up their arms and took to agriculture especially in areas like Azamgarh. In early British settlement reports they are spoken of highly as farmers. They stand on an equal footing with the Rajputs and Jats in the caste hierarchy, but though they eat with them, they do not intermarry. In appearance, they proclaim their Aryan descent. They are tall and wiry, have dark eyes, long noses, black hair and their complexion varies from wheatish to dark brown. Though mostly agriculturists, they also make good soldiers.
Ahir’s have been serving the Indian military right from the British period and won the highest of gallantry awards like Victoria Cross and the Param Veer Chakra. In the annals of Indian military history there is sufficient proof of Ahir bravery that is immortalized in the ballads of Alah and Udal of Bundelkhand.
As Jhansi was known for a long time as Ahirwada (land of Ahir’s). People from Ahirwada also known as Ahirwar/Aharwar, Ahirwar are living in different regions of India from Jhansi to Mathura, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Agra region.
Some of the major groups derived from the principal professions they follow or the crafts they practice, for example, the cattle-breeding group takes the significant name of Gawli, derived from a Sanskrit word for cow. The names of the shepherd castes seem to be derived from words meaning sheep. Such is at least the case with Gadaria from 'gadar', on old Hindi word for sheep. Many others of these major groups called castes bear merely tribal or ethic names. Such are for example: Arora, Gujjar, Lohana, Bhatia, Nayar, Maratha etc.[100]
[edit]Dialects
Although the Abhiras constituted a distinct ethnic group, they spoke diverse regional dialects. The language of the Ahirs was known as Ahirani in Khandesh, resembling Marathi. While the Ahirs of Kathiawad and Kachh have a dialect which resembles Gujarathi (Bhandarkar, 1911:17). Abhira bhasha is in fact considered to be Apabhransha. In the ninth century B.C., it had become the language of the people, and was spoken from Saurashtra, and Shastri (1967) proves that poetry was composed in the language around the sixth century B.C. Suryavamsi (1962:14–15) mentions the following two dialects in addition to the ones above--Gaddi, which is currently the dialect spoken in Gadderan, on the outskirts of the Chamba and Kangra hills, and Gandi, spoken in some parts of Madhya Pradesh. Abhiri as a dialect has been recorded by Sanskrit poets such as Bharata and Dandin. Yadav (1916:15), notes that the dialect the people of Ahirwal in Haryana speak, has a resemblance to Rajasthani, and Grierson (1916:9) considers Ahirwati a branch of eastern Rajasthani and western Hindi.
Ahirwati is a Indo-Aryan language, classified as a Rajasthani language,[101] and is spoken in the Mahendragarh and Rewari districts of Haryana. According to famous historian Robert Vane Russell Ahirwati is language of Yaduvanshi Ahirs and spoken in Rohtak and Gurgaon Districts of Punjab (now Haryana) and Delhi. This is akin to Mewati, one of the forms of Rajasthani or the language of Rajputana.[102]
[edit]Political Progress
Through numerous political parties such as the Samajwadi Party, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Janata Dal (Republic), Janata Dal the Yadavs have considerable political influence, especially in the North Indian states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.[103] Laloo Yadav became the chief minister of Bihar and Mulayam Singh in UP and in Madhya Pradesh Subhash Yadav became the Deputy chief minister for two terms. Arun Subhash Yadav became the Centre Minister of Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises. Siddaramaiah became the Deputy chief minister for two terms. Rao Birender Singh became the chief minister of Haryana and his son Rao Inderjit Singh became Minister of State of External Affairs and Defence. Chaudhary Brahm Prakash was the first chief minister of Delhi.Ram Baran Yadav became President of Nepal.Yoga Guru Baba Ramdev started a political party called Swabhiman.[104]
[edit]Ahirs in military
Naik Gulab Singh Yadav got Vir Chakra
Yogendra Singh Yadav got Param Veer Chakra
Umrao Singh got The prestigious Victoria Cross, awarded for exceptional valour "in the face of the enemy".
