Translations:Rajput/47/en
The term "Rajput" denotes a cluster of castes,[1] clans, and lineages.[2] It is a vaguely-defined term, and there is no universal consensus on which clans make up the Rajput community.[3] In medieval Rajasthan (the historical Rajputana) and its neighbouring areas, the word Rajput came to be restricted to certain specific clans, based on patrilineal descent and intermarriages. On the other hand, the Rajput communities living in the region to the east of Rajasthan had a fluid and inclusive nature. The Rajputs of Rajasthan eventually refused to acknowledge the Rajput identity claimed by their eastern counterparts,[4] such as the Bundelas.[5] The Rajputs claim to be Kshatriyas or descendants of Kshatriyas, but their actual status varies greatly, ranging from princely lineages to common cultivators.[6]
- ↑ Lawrence A. Babb (1975). The Divine Hierarchy: Popular Hinduism in Central India. Columbia University Press. p. 15. ISBN 978-0-231-08387-4.
The term Rajput denotes a cluster of castes that are accorded Kshatriya status in the varna system.
- ↑ Lawrence A Babb (2004). Alchemies of Violence: Myths of Identity and the Life of Trade in Western India. SAGE. p. 17. ISBN 978-0-7619-3223-9.
...the region's erstwhile ruling aristocracy, a cluster of clans and lineages bearing the label 'Rajput'.
- ↑ Ayan Shome 2014, p. 196.
- ↑ Catherine B. Asher & Cynthia Talbot 2006, p. 99 (Para 3): "...Rajput did not originally indicate a hereditary status but rather an occupational one: that is, it was used in reference to men from diverse ethnic and geographical backgrounds, who fought on horseback. In Rajasthan and its vicinity, the word Rajput came to have a more restricted and aristocratic meaning, as exclusive networks of warriors related by patrilineal descent and intermarriage became dominant in the fifteenth century. The Rajputs of Rajasthan eventually refused to acknowledge the Rajput identity of the warriors who lived farther to the east and retained the fluid and inclusive nature of their communities far longer than did the warriors of Rajasthan."
- ↑ Cynthia Talbot 2015, p. 120 (Para 4): "Kolff's provocative thesis certainly applies to more peripheral groups like the Bundelas of Cenral India, whose claims to be Rajput were ignored by the Rajput clans of Mughal-era Rajasthan, and to other such lower-status martial communities."
- ↑ "Rajput". Encyclopædia Britannica.