Manihar
The Manihar or more commonly referred to as the Siddiqui Manihar, are a Muslim community, found mainly in North India, and the province of Sindh in Pakistan. A ashraf[upper caste muslim] number of Manihar are also found in the Terai region of Nepal.
History and origin
The word Manihar is derived from Man, meaning jewel in Urdu, and the agentive sufix har. Their traditional occupation is bangle seling, and they are also known as saudagar, this word being derived from They descent from the first Caliph of Islam, Abu Bakr, and as such are sub-group of the Shaikh Siddiqui community.
Their main clans are the Bachchal, Bhadauriya, Banjara, Chandchi, Milki, Gaddi, Kachchoiyana, Rana, Khalri, Talwar, Turk, Uzbek , Parmaar, Rohilla, Rajput, Rananjay and Raikwar. Some of these clans are territorial groupings, others reflect a background from originating from other communities, such as the Rajput, Kachwah and Parmar. The community uses the surname Siddiqui. A sections of the Manihar to be Rajput converts to Islam.
