Behera (title)

The behera is an honorific title among the Odia in India. Formerly Dala-Behera was a title reserved for the leader of a group of soldiers.

As a title

The Behera is a popular Odia title found in people from various communities but mostly used by Khandayat and Gopal ^{[1] [2]} caste of Odisha who were Dalpatis (Commander of troops) in the army of kings. ^[3]

• Royal writers of Jagannath Temple, Puri belonging to Karana community bear the title "Behera". ^[4]
• The Behera surname is predominantly associated with the Khandayat community of Odisha. ^[5]
• Devangas of Ganjam district who are weaver by profession also use the title of Behera because king of Ganjam offered the title of Behera to Devangs for their weaving skills. ^[6]
• Brahmins of Sambalpur and Kalahandi in Odisha also use the title of Behera. ^[7]

Notable people

• Bhagabat Behera, Former Cabinet Minister (O.L.A)
• Bhubaneswar Behera, Indian Scholar.
• Chakradhar Behera, Freedom Fighter & Politician.
• Daitari Behera, Indian Politician.
• Deepak Behera, Indian Cricketer.
• Dharmananda Behera, Indian Politician
• Digambar Behera, Indian Physician.
• Jayanta Behera, Indian Cricketer.
• Jayanti Behera, Indian Sprinter.
• Lokanath Behera, D.G.P of Kerala state Police.
• Madhusmita Behera, Indian Cricketer.
• Mandakini Behera, Indian Politician.
• Nandita Behera, Indian odissi Dancer.
• Natraj Behera, Indian Cricketer.
• Niranjan Behera, Indian Cricketer.
• Prasanta Behera, Indian Politician.
• Ritwik Behera, American cricketer
• Shashi Bhusan Behera, Indian Politician

References

1. Senapati, Fakir Mohan; Acharya, Krishna Mohan (1997). Uncle. Orissa Sahitya Akademi. ISBN   978-81-7586-018-6.
2. Tripathy, Shyam Sunder (1988). Buddhism and Other Religious Cults of South-east India. Sundeep Prakashan. ISBN   978-81-85067-15-5.
3. Singh, Kumar Suresh (1992). People of India: Odisha (2 pts.). Anthropological Survey of India. ISBN   978-81-7046-294-1.
4. Society, Indian Anthropological (1998). Journal of the Indian Anthropological Society. The Society.
5. Odisha. 2, People of India / Anthropological Survey India. K. S. Singh, Calcutta: Anthropological Survey of India [u.a.], 2013, ISBN   978-81-7046-294-1
6. Ghosh, G. K.; Ghosh, Shukla (1995). Indian Textiles: Past and Present. APH Publishing. ISBN   978-81-7024-706-7.
7. Frodsham, J. D. (20 August 2014). Fool's Mate (in German). AuthorHouse. ISBN   978-1-4969-8710-5.