| Part of a series on |
| Hinduism |
|---|
 |
 | It has been suggested that this article be merged into Bengali Brahmin . (Discuss) Proposed since July 2023. |
Kulin Brahmins are the Bengali Brahmins belonging to Hindu religion. They trace their ancestry to five families of Kanyakubja Brahmins who migrated to Bengal. [1] [2]
In the 11th century CE, after the decline of the Pala dynasty, a Hindu king, Adi Sura, brought in five Brahmins and their five attendants from Kannauj, his purpose being to provide education for the Brahmins already in the area, whom he thought to be ignorant, and to revive traditional orthodox Brahminical Hinduism. [1] These Vedic Brahmins were supposed to have nine gunas (favoured attributes), among which was insistence on same-rank marriages. [3] Multiple accounts of this legend exist; historians generally consider it to be nothing more than myth or folklore, lacking historical authenticity. [1] The tradition continues by saying that these incomers settled and each became the founder of a clan. [4]
The five Brahmin clans, which later became known as Mukherjees, Chatterjees, Banerjees, Gangulys and Bhattacharjees, were each designated as Kulina ("superior") in order to differentiate them from the more established local Brahmins. [4]
Raja Ram Mohan Roy was an Indian reformer who was one of the founders of the Brahmo Sabha in 1828, the precursor of the Brahmo Samaj, a social-religious reform movement in the Indian subcontinent. He was given the title of Raja by Akbar II, the Mughal emperor. His influence was apparent in the fields of politics, public administration, education and religion. He was known for his efforts to abolish the practices of sati and child marriage. Roy is considered to be the "Father of Indian Renaissance" by many historians.
Brahmo Samaj is the societal component of Brahmoism, which began as a monotheistic reformist movement that appeared during the Bengal Renaissance.
Ganguly, also known as Ganguli, Ganguly, Gangulee, Gangoly or Gangopadhyay is a native Bengali surname that is used by Kulin Brahmin group of the Bengali Brahmin caste. The traditional Bengali version of this surname is Gangopadhyay(a) or Gônggopaddhae.
Kayastha denotes a cluster of disparate Indian communities broadly categorised by the regions of the Indian subcontinent in which they were traditionally located—the Chitraguptavanshi Kayasthas of North India, the Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhus of Maharashtra, the Bengali Kayasthas of Bengal and Karanas of Odisha. All of them were traditionally considered "writing castes", who had historically served the ruling powers as administrators, ministers and record-keepers.
Shashanka was the first independent king of a unified polity in the Bengal region, called the Gauda Kingdom and is a major figure in Bengali history. He reigned in the 7th century, some historians place his rule between circa 600 CE and 636/7 CE, whereas other sources place his reign between 590 and 625 CE.
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.
Mukherjee, also Mukerjee, Mookerjee, Mukerji, Mukherji, Mukhujje or Mookherjee, is a Bengali Hindu Kulin Brahmin surname originating from the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent. The traditional Bengali version is Mukhopaddhae, which is sometimes written Mukhopadhyay.
Bengalis, also rendered as Bangalee or the Bengali people, are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the Bengal region of South Asia. The current population is divided between the independent country Bangladesh and the Indian states of West Bengal and Tripura, Barak Valley, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Jharkhand and part of Meghalaya and Manipur. Most of them speak Bengali, a language from the Indo-Aryan language family.
Chatterjee, also known as Chattopadhyay is a Bengali Hindu surname, used primarily by the Kulin group of the Bengali Brahmin caste. Together with Banerjees, Mukherjees, Bhattacharjees, and Gangulys, Chatterjees form the Kulin Brahmins, the highest tier of the Bengali caste system. They belong to Rarhi clan of Bengali Brahmins and the Kashyapa gotra.
Banerjee, also known as Bandyopadhyay, is a Bengali Kulin Brahmin surname originating from the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent. The surname belongs to the Rarhi clan of Bengali Brahmin caste.
Bengali Hindus are an ethnoreligious population who make up the majority in the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Jharkhand, and Assam's Barak Valley region. In Bangladesh, they form the largest minority. They are adherents of Hinduism and are native to the Bengal region in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent. Comprising about one-thirds of the global Bengali population, they are the second-largest ethnic group among Hindus after Hindustani Hindus. Bengali Hindus speak Bengali, which belongs to the Indo-Aryan language family and adhere to Shaktism or Vaishnavism of their native religion Hinduism with some regional deities. There are significant numbers of Bengali-speaking Hindus in different Indian states. According to the census in 1881, 12.81 per cent of Bengali Hindus belonged to the three upper castes while the rest belonged to the Shudra and Dalit castes.
Baishya Kapali is a Bengali Hindu agricultural caste found in the Indian state of West Bengal and in Bangladesh. From the 1960s, a section of the Kapali caste embraced 'Baishya Kapali' as their caste name, which remains a matter of dispute to date. The Kapalis have excelled in cultivating jute and the manufacture of gunny bags. Baishya Kapalis or Kapalis are listed as Other Backward Classes in West Bengal.
Kulin Kayasthas are a sub-caste of the Bengali Kayastha caste in Bengal region of Indian subcontinent. They are also known as the Kulina Kayasthas.
Baidya or Vaidya is a Hindu community located in Bengal. A caste (jāti) of Ayurvedic physicians, the Baidyas have long had pre-eminence in society alongside Brahmins and Kayasthas. In the colonial era, the Bhadraloks were drawn primarily, but not exclusively, from these three upper castes, who continue to maintain a collective hegemony in West Bengal.
Nadia Raj were a dynasty of Zamindars and the rulers of territories that are now part of the Nadia district region of West Bengal, India. Their seat was at the city of Krishnanagar, Nadia. The estate of Nadia Raj was estimated to cover an area of 8,161 square kilometres (3,151 sq mi).
Bengali Kayastha is a Bengali Hindu caste, and is one of the main subgroups of the Kayastha community. The historical caste occupation of Kayasthas throughout India has been that of scribes, administrators, ministers and record-keepers; the Kayasthas in Bengal, along with Brahmins and Baidyas, are regarded among the three traditional higher castes that comprise the "upper layer of Hindu society." During the British Raj, the Bhadraloks of Bengal were drawn primarily, but not exclusively, from these three castes, who continue to maintain a collective hegemony in West Bengal.
Bengali Muslims are adherents of Islam who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. Comprising about two-thirds of the global Bengali population, they are the second-largest ethnic group among Muslims after Arabs. Bengali Muslims make up the majority of Bangladesh's citizens, and are the largest minority in the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura and Assam.
Maulika Kayastha is a sub caste in the Hindu religion in Bengal. The Bengali Kayasthas are subdivided into different classes or ranks and also divided in terms of their geographical locations. According to legend, the Bengali Hindu King Ballala Sena started the ranking system of Brahmins, Kayasthas and Baidyas. The highest ranked Brahmins and Kayasthas are known as Kulin Brahmins and Kulin Kayasthas, respectively, and those Kayasthas not considered to be Kulins are designated Maulikas, Mauliks, Mouliks or Moulikas.
Suvarna Banik, popularly called Bene, is a Bengali mercantile caste dealing in gold and silver. During the late eighteenth century, merchants of the Suvarnabanik caste became prominent in trade. Despite their depressed status, they were the most well known trading caste in Bengal as per the 1951 Census of India.
Savarna or Savarni/Shavarna is a Brahmin gotra that comprises Kanyakubja Brahmins and Saryupareen Brahmins who are the descendants of sage Savarna Muni. The origins of Savarna gotra can be traced back to the origins of Kanyakubja Brahmins in Kannauj, Uttar Pradesh.
