Tribes and clans of the Pothohar Plateau

Tilla Jogian, second highest peak in the Pothohar plateau

The Pothohar Plateau is a plateau and historical sub-region in northern part of the Punjab region, present-day Punjab, Pakistan. Ethnic Punjabis are the native people of the area and are subdivided into many tribes and clans (Baradari). ^[1]

During the medieval era in Punjab, most of the tribes in northern Punjab converted to Islam. Various Punjabi tribes, as well as foreign powers, fought for control over the region. ^[2]

Major

The major baradaris in the area (tribes or clans) include Dhund Abbasi, Awan, Rajput, Janjua, Jodhra, Jatt, Arain, Gujjar, Gakhars, Kharal, and Khokhars. ^{[3] [4] [5] [6]} Prior to the partition of India, other biradaris including the Khatris, Mohyal Brahmins, and Aroras were also present in large numbers throughout the region. ^{[7] [8] [9]}

The anthropologist Pnina Werbner has confirmed the continuing strength of tribal feelings among emigrants from Punjab in the United Kingdom. ^[10] This area was and still is an important source of recruitment into the old colonial British Indian Army, under the martial race designation of the Punjabis in the colonial era, and its successor, the Pakistan Army. ^[11] Official recruitment policies have also encouraged a sense of tribal belonging amongst Punjabis. ^[12]

References

1. "Salt Range: A Hidden Treasure". Daily Times newspaper. Archived from the original on 25 November 2004. Retrieved 31 October 2024.
2. Al Nahyan, Mansoor Bin Tahnoon; Ghafoor, Asad ul; Hussain, Jamal (2019). Tribes of Pakistan. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing. ISBN   978-1-5275-3439-1.
3. Panjab. (1895). Gazetteer of the Rawalpindi district. "Civil and Military Gazette" Press. OCLC   455118747.
4. Singh, Kumar Suresh (2003). People of India: Jammu & Kashmir. Anthropological Survey of India. p. xxiii. ISBN   978-81-7304-118-1. Gujars of this tract are wholly Muslims, and so are the Khokhar who have only a few Hindu families. In early stages, the converted Rajputs continued with pre-conversion practices.
5. Malik, M. Mazammil Hussain (1 November 2009). "Socio-Cultural and Economic Changes among Muslims Rajputs: A Case Study of Rajouri District in J&K". Epilogue. 3 (11): 48. Rajputs Kokhar were the domiciles of India and were originally followers of Hinduism, later on they embraced Islam and with the passage of time most of them settled near Jehlam, Pindadan Khan, Ahmed Abad and Pothar. In Rajouri District, Khokhars are residing in various villages.
6. Bakshi, S. R. (1995). Advanced History of Medieval India. Anmol Publishers. p. 142. ISBN   9788174880284.
7. McLeod, W. H. (2009). The A to Z of Sikhism. W. H. McLeod. Lanham: Scarecrow Press. ISBN   978-0-8108-6344-6. OCLC   435778610.
8. Ruffle, Karen G. (20 April 2021). Everyday Shi'ism in South Asia. Wiley via University of Toronto. p. 42. ISBN   9781119357148. This caste of Brahmins trace their origins to the Gandhara region, located in contemporary northwest Pakistan between Peshawar and Taxila. The region has long been associated with governmental administrative and military service. In addition to being referred to as "Husaini" Brahmins for their rituals of devotion to Imam Husain, which will be discussed below, this caste is more formally known as Mohyal.
9. Mehta, Balram Singh (27 December 2021). The Burning Chaffees: A Soldier's First-Hand Account of the 1971 War. Penguin Random House India Pvt. Ltd. p. 32. ISBN   9789354923951. The surname — Mehta — is actually a title granted to the more erudite and better educated amongst the Mohyal community, originating from the Gandhara region.
10. The Migration Process: Capital, Gifts and Offerings among British Pakistanis (Berg, 1990 and 2002).
11. Mustapha Kamal Pasha, Colonial Political Economy: Recruitment and Underdevelopment in the Punjab, Oxford University Press, 1998, pp. 198–200. ISBN 0 -19-577762-X
12. Stephen P. Cohen, The Pakistan Army (1998 edition; paperback), Oxford University Press (July 1, 1998). ISBN   0-19-577948-7