Group	Lohanas ''લોહાણા'' / ''لوها ڻا''/'' लोहाना''
Poptime	?
Region1
Pop1	?
Region2	(Primarily Maharastra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Delhi)
Pop2	<0.5 Million
Region3
Pop3	?
Region4	(Primarily Sindh)
Pop4	?
Region5
Pop5	30-35,000
Region6
Pop6	?
Region7
Pop7	?
Region8
Pop8	?
Region9
Pop9	?
Region10
Pop10	?
Langs	Indo-Aryan languages, primarily Gujarati, Kutchi, Sindhi and Hindi. Also English in the UK, USA and Canada, Arabic in Afghanistan. Swahili is spoken as a second language by some Lohanas in East Africa.
Rels	Primarily Hinduism. Those who converted to Islam are referred to as Memons or Khojas and are now separate independent communities. }}

Lohanas (Persian: لامياحاءأنأ, Gujarati: લોહાણા Sindhi: لوها ڻا Hindi: लोहाना) are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group who claim that they are Kshatriya of Ranghuvanshi descant..In India, they mainly reside in Gujarat, Mumbai and other parts of the country. In the last 150 years, some Lohanas have lived or do live in parts of Africa, such as Uganda and Kenya, and parts of the Western world, such as the U.K., Canada, and the U.S.

Overview

Originally Lohanas (pronounced Lu-wa-nah) were a prominent community of the tamers of the populations that were augmented by the suryavanshi Kshatriyacaste (Sanskrit क्षत्रिय Kshatriya) that originated in then in the region of Punjab and later on migrated to Sindh and present day Gujarat state in India. As warriors, Loharanas were assigned with protecting the people, and serving humanity. Over time, however, as a result of economic and political exigencies, the majority of Lohanas are now mainly engaged in mercantile occupations.

Many of the lohanas due to being affected by Islamic missionaries (from Sindh and Afghan regions) were converted to Sunni Hanafi Islam, they are called Memons ().

Ismaili Dai' Pir Sadardin converted many of them to the Shia Ismaili Nizari sect of Islam. They are known as Khojas (ethno Khawaja).

History

Early History

The Lohanas, also known as the Thakkar and hence often holding surnames including Thakkar, Thakur and Thakrar), trace their roots in history right up to the emergence of Aryans. It is believed by legend that the Lohanas are descendants of the hero Rama (''Raghuvanshi'', descendant of King Raghu), who bore two sons: Luv (Also spelled as Lava) and Kush. From the elder son Luv, the Lohanas are supposed to have originated along with the Kurmi (later settled in North-East and some Western part i.e. UP, Undivided Bihar, MP, Gujrat, Maharashtra of India.)

Descendants of Kush are known as Kushwaha. His younger son Luv was given the North (uttar Kaushala) of his kingdom (Refer :Valmk Ramayan Uttar Kand sarg 107), which came to be, called Luvalka or Luv's land consisting of present day Lahore (Pakistan) as it's Capital.

Around 580 BC., when king Bimbisara ruled over Bharat (India), the society came to be divided into different communities based on their occupation. One of their communities was called Kshatriyas and King Luv's descendants were classed with them and came to be known as Luvanam, which was also referred to as Luvana. The Luvanas from Loharghat became known as Loharana (masters of swords; or iron ("Loha") chiefs ("Rana")), which later became Lohana.

Chinese traveller Fa-hien, who visited India between 414 and 399 B.C., calls Lohanas a brave community ruling the northwest territory of India,in his diary. Another Chinese traveler, Kurmang who came in the eleventh century A.D. speaks of a Lohrana kingdom as a mighty power. Historian Burton writes Lohanas were brave people and says they were spread over today's Baluchistan (Pakistan), Afghanistan and eastern fringes of Central Asia. .Col. Todd, who delved into history of Rajasthan, describes Lohanas as one of the oldest Kshatriya community.

The likely reason for this title of bravery is that they were the first line of defense for the Indian subcontinent in the direct path of invaders from northwest like Persians, Macedonians, Huns, Mughals, etc..

Between the 7th and 11th century the Lohanas held their grounds in Afghanistan, blocking the advent of Islam eastwards.in 636 AD In the 11th century, they finally had to fall back and moved initially to the Sindh province of today's Pakistan, where again for over two centuries they provided the frontline of defense against the invading hordes. Finally, at the turn of the 13th century, the Loharana king, Chahir Ray, was betrayed by his confidant Kualnger, who turned traitor for a large fortune in gold and gems. The Lohana kingdom disintegrated into smaller segments. After the community split, a new leader emerged who again unified the Lohanas. Veer Jashraj, who is revered as Veer Dada Jashraj, was born in the city of Lohar (today's Lahore in Pakistan), which was the capital of Lohargadh. His domain extended from Lahore to Multan (also in Pakistan today).

As the folklore goes, Mongol invader Changez Khan, attacked Multan and was killed by Dada Jashraj, Rana of Lohargadh.

This finds mention in Mongol folklore, which say, "King of Mongols was killed by Mirana, the tiger of Multan fort". His descendants who proudly carry the surname of 'Mirana' preserve the memory of this great warrior king. Dada Jashraj was also treacherously killed when only 28 - a life so short but full of heroic deeds.

After the death of Dada Jashraj, the decline of Lohana kingdom began and their reign at Lohargadh ended. King Dahir ruled for a while from Narayankot (today's Hyderabad, Sindh). After his demise in a war against Muslims, Narayankot and Sindh fell to Muslims. It was around this time that some Lohanas converted to Islam. Many migrated to far-off regions like Kutchchh, Saurashtra and Gujarat and gradually became a trader community like Agarwals and Baranwals.

Recent history

In 1422 AD, 700 Lohana families comprising some 6178 persons converted to Islam at the hands of one Yusuffuddin Qadri in Thatta Sindh — these are now known as Memons.

It was around this time, that Uderolal who is revered as Jhulelal (by Sindhis) or Dariyalal (by Gujaratis), son of Ratanchand Thakur and Mata Devki of Nasarpur, about 90 miles from Narayankot (now Hyderabad, Sindh) took on the mantle of Lohana leadership. Uderolal fought with Muslim chief Mirkshah, and initiated him into the true meaning of religion. Uderolal won the freedom of religion for Hindus from the Muslim rulers and devoted the rest of his life to spiritual and community service. Today Uderolal is revered as Jhulelal, the patron saint of Sindhis, both Hindus and Muslims visit the site of his samadhi.

The Loharanas felt their identity was increasingly threatened in Sindh and they began to migrate towards Kutchchh, Saurashtra, Gujarat and even as far as Thailand. In Gujarati, Lohanas performing the puja (ritual worship) of Dariyalal are known as Pujaras and Dariyalal's descendants as Ratnani.

Famous warriors once, Majority of Gujarati Lohanas took to trade and business. However, their mettle as warriors past was again tested in 1764, when Gulam Shah Kora attacked Kutchchh and they had to account for themselves in the battle of Zora. Lohana women fought alongside their men in this battle and the land of Kutchchh is strewn with memorial stones marking the deaths of Lohanas. A saying in Gujarati eulogies Lohana women thus: Only Rajputani, Loharani and Miyanai bring forth gem of children.

Lohanas today

Lohana culture has diverged over the centuries between different regions. Thus there are significant differences between the culture, professions and societies of Sindhi Lohanas, Kutchi Lohanas and those of Gujarati Lohanas.

Gujarati Lohanas gravitated towards trading since the eighteenth century. A large number of Hindu Lohana from Gujurat migrated to the British colonies of East Africa during the early part of the 20th century. Gujarati Lohanas in East Africa were great entrepreneurs. The Ruparelia, Madhvani, Mehta,and Jobanputra families being the prominent industrialists in Uganda. The descendants of these East African settlers have moved to either Kenya and Tanzania or Great Britain in recent decades. Many of them can be found in North West London and Leicester.

Today, a good number of Gujarati Lohanas reside in Gujarat and in other parts of India. In Gujarat, many of them are in Rajkot, Jamnagar, Ahmedabad, Vadodara and Surat. Outside Gujarat, they can be found in Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur, Bangalore, Mangalore, Kolkata, Varanasi, New Delhi, Guwahati,Bilaspur,Raipur,Dhanbad,Hyderabad,Chennai and other major Indian cities. Also, Gujarati Lohanas own the majority of food businesses, especially “Farsan Marts,” in major cities. They also have a noticeable share in other businesses. A significant number of Gujarati Lohanas also reside outside India.

Sindhi Lohanas, including the Bhaiband community, were primarily engaged in Agriculture, Industries and Professional Services before the Partition of India. However, after the partition, Sindhi Lohanas dispersed throughout the world, and having lost their agricultural property, have focused on Industry, Trading and Professional Services. The Khudabadi Sindhi Swarankar (Sonara) community, also affiliated with the Sindhi Lohana faction of the warrior Kshatriya caste of Hindu society, were mostly in the jewellery business. In fact, the 1911 Encyclopedia Brittanica stated in the article about Sindh that:

Lohanas are still to be found in Afghanistan and Pakistan, which are now Islamic states. In Afghanistan, they still maintain their Hindu religious identity and are known as Lokhathra.The Lohanas who keep their Hindu identity in Sindh are known as Sindhi Lohana.

Those Lohanas who converted to Sunni Islam are known as Memons. Those who converted to Shia Ismaili Nizari Islam or became Ismaili Nizari Muslims are known as Khojas. Many of them retain their Hindu surnames from which many are ancient Persian surnames. Among them was the creator of Pakistan, Mohammed Ali Jinnah, whose father's name was Jinabhai Poonja and grandfather was Poonja Gokuldas Meghji, a Hindu Bhatia from Paneli village in Gondal state in Kathiawar.

Not only Khoja Ismaili Muslims but Memon Sunni Muslims also retain their Hindu and Persian surnames, among the most famous of these is Lakhani.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: Gujjar, Lohana, Bhatia, Meena, Ahir, Maratha, etc.

Notable Lohanas

Veer Dada Jasraj RANA (king) of Lohargadh

Shree Jalaram Bapa

Guru Nanak

Yogiji Maharaj: 4th spiritual successor of Bhagwan Swaminarayan

Kal Penn

Lekhraj Kripalani founder of the BKWSU

Shriti Vadera- Baroness and UK Government Minister.

Rao Bahadur Sheth Curumsey Damjee

Nanji Kalidas Mehta

Shekhar Mehta

Jai Mehta

Muljibhai Madhvani

Jaydev Unadkat - Cricketer.

See also

Kshatriya

Memon

Agham Kot - A settlement also called Agham Lohana, as Agham was the name of the Lohana chieftain of the area.

Chach of Alor

References

Oonk,G, The Changing Culture of Hindu Lohanas in East Africa, in Contemporary Asians Studies, 13, 2004, 83-97.

External links

Lohanas: People of India: Maharashtra, Volume 2 - By Kumar Suresh Singh, B. V. Bhanu, Anthropological Survey of India

Lohana

Category:Social groups of Gujarat Category:Social groups of India Category:Ethnic groups in India Category:Demographic history of India Category:Indo-Aryan peoples Category:Ancient peoples Category:History of medieval India Category:Hindu dynasties Category:Indian castes Category:Pre-Islamic heritage of Pakistan Category:Social groups of Pakistan Category:Ethnic groups in Pakistan Category:Social groups of Punjab (India)

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