Garasia alternatively spelled Girasia,[1] Girasiya or Garasiya, is a title used by tribal chieftains and members of other arms bearing lineages in India who held the villages as Giras granted by rulers.[1]

Social order

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Present-day Garasias are characterised by several social divisions with well-defined relationships. These divisions have appeared out of situations of culture contact and acculturation. Today Garasias are divided into Koli Garasia, Rajput Garasia, Dungri Garasia and Bhil Garasia.[2][3] The Koli Garasiya were tributary to the ruler of state who gave the Giras.[4]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Bayly, Susan (22 February 2001). Caste, Society and Politics in India from the Eighteenth Century to the Modern Age. New Delhi, India, Asia: Cambridge University Press. pp. 84: They also tended to disparage other arms-bearers whom the Mughals and their succes sors had found both useful and problematic, especially the notables who had been vested with titles like Girasia or, Girishi Raja, meaning someone from Koli or other arms-bearing lineages with the authority of a 'kingly' self-made Rajput lord. ISBN 978-0-521-79842-6.
  2. ^ Mann (1993), p. 103
  3. ^ Mann & Mann (1989), pp. 81–82
  4. ^ Hardiman, David; Hardiman, Professor of History David (1996). Feeding the Baniya: Peasants and Usurers in Western India. New Delhi, India: Oxford University Press. p. 178. ISBN 978-0-19-563956-8.

Bibliography

Further reading

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