Kharwar is a community found in the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Orissa and West Bengal.

Etymology

The Khar grass is totem of the Kharwar. They don't cut or injure it while growing. Kharwar tribe of present day may be enlarge totem sept which broke off from some larger group and in course of time developed a separate organisation.

History

The Kharwar have various putative origins. Some may be traced to Palamu region, now in the state of Jharkhand, while others may have lived in the Sone Valley. Those of Uttar Pradesh claim to have come from Rohtas and to be descended from the mythological Suryavansha dynasty.

According to a inscription dated 1169 AD found at Phulwari in Rohtas district, which refers to road construction by Nayak Pratapdhavala, the chief of Japila(modern Japla). Pratapdhavala is also known for his inscription of Tarachandi temple in Sasaram and Tutla Bhawani in Tilothu. According to a inscription dated to 1223 AD at Lal Darwaja of Rohtas fort, the descendant and successor of Pratapdhavala was Shri Pratapa.In inscription Shri Pratapa is referred to as belong to Khayaravalavansha or Khayaravala dynasty. Khayaravala survives as modern day Kharwar.

The Khayarwal dynasty has been ruled by the Kharwar kings. By the way, this dynasty originally belonged to Japla in present-day Jharkhand. Their rule was from the border of Varanasi to Gaya. The kings of this dynasty ruled here from the 11th century to the 16th century. King Sahas Dhaval Dev became the king of this dynasty in the 12th century. He was the third son of the famous king Pratap Dhaval Dev. A 12th century copper plate inscription written by him has been found while digging the foundation of a house from Adamapur in Rohtas district.

This copper plate is of Mahanripati Sahas Dhaval Dev. Its language is Sanskrit and the script is early Nagari. The inscription is of 34 lines written on both sides of the copper plate. On the top hand is the name of Dhaval Dev, the Courage. It is clear from this that it was written by the king himself. For the first time any inscription of Sahas Dhaval has been found. In this also, after Pratap Dhaval Dev, there is the name of Sahas Dhaval Dev in the royal lineage. This copper plate is a donation card given to a temple. The temple was in Ambada village, whose present name has become Adamapur.

The copper plate inscription is of Vikrami Samvat 1241. According to the article, he is donating the land of Maharaja lying in Ambada village to Nibeshwar Mahadev. This copper plate will also help in understanding the cultural and economic of the settlements and Kharwars here seven hundred years ago.

Historian DrShyam Sundar Tiwari says that Pratap Dhaval Dev's first and second inscriptions-Tutla and Phulwaria also show that he had Sahas Dhaval after his first son Shatrughan and second son Virdhan. In later inscriptions and copperplate writings, only the mention of Sahas Dhaval Dev is found. The copper plate of Indra Dhaval Dev, the second son of Sahas Dhaval Dev, was obtained from Navner (Aurangabad district). His first son Vikram Dhaval Dev had an inscription written at Bandu. In both of these, there is a mention of Sahas Dhaval Dev. The present copper plate inscription has been found while digging the foundation of a house from Adamapur in Rohtas district. After a lot of hard work, success has been found in reading it. This copper plate is of Mahanripati Sahas Dhaval Dev. Its language is Sanskrit and the script is early Nagari.

The inscription is of 34 lines written on both sides of the copper plate. On the top hand is the name of Dhaval Dev, the Courage. It is clear from this that it was written by the king himself. For the first time any inscription of Sahas Dhaval has been found. In this also, after Pratap Dhaval Dev, there is the name of Sahas Dhaval Dev in the royal lineage. This copper plate is a donation card given to a temple. The temple was in Ambada village, whose present name has become Adamapur. The copper plate inscription is of Vikrami Samvat 1241. According to the article, he is donating the land of Maharaja lying in Ambada village to Nibeshwar Mahadev. This will keep the temple stocked for incense lamps and Naivadya. The donation is given along with the mantra rituals. Hundreds of people were present on that occasion, including members of the king's family and his officers. It is clear from this copper plate that the first king of this dynasty was Khadir Pal. He was followed by his son Sadhav. Sadhva's son Ran Dhaval and his son Pratap Dhaval became Dev. After him, Sahas Dhaval Dev became the majestic king of this dynasty, during whose reign Rohtasgarh could be captured from the Oraon kings. Even in this copper plate, Sahas Dhaval Dev has described himself as a resident of Japla. In this copper plate is issued by Akshapatalik i.e. Judge Pandit Mahanidhi. Doctor Tiwari says that this copper plate article is of 1181 AD and is very important. In this the complete genealogy of Sahas Dhaval and his former kings has been found with official evidence for the first time.

Present Circumstances

The primary traditional economic activity of the Kharwar has been agriculture but their reliance on a single annual crop and on suitable weather means that it is barely enough to sustain themselves for a part of the year. Thus, they also engage in work based on forest activities, livestock, fishing, hunting and trapping.

Kharwar speak Sadri, an Indo-Aryan language, at home, and Hindi with others. Kharwar have six endogamous division which are Surajbanshi, Daulat bandi, paraband, Kharia bhogti and Mauijhia. Risley(1891) records Bania, Ba Bahera, Bael(Aegle marmelos), Bair(berry), Bamria, Bandia and few more septs among Kharwar of Chotanagpur. He further reports that in Palamu Kharwar have Pat bandh, Dulbandh and khairi sub tribes where as in southern Lohardaga the community has Deshmari, Kharwar, Bhagta, Rout and Manjhia sub tribes. They consider themselves Kshatriya, often consider themselves Athara Hazari and claim descent from Surajvanshi Rajput.

Birth pollution observed for six days. They cremate or bury the dead and observe death pollution for ten days.

The Government of Uttar Pradesh had classified the Kharwar as a Scheduled Caste but the community members disliked this. preferring to think of themselves as a tribe. By 2007, they were one of several groups that the Uttar Pradesh government had redesignated as Scheduled Tribes. As of 2017, this designation applied only in certain districts of the state. The Kharwar Scheduled Caste population in Uttar Pradesh at the 2011 Census of India was 14,796. Kharwar are classified as Scheduled Tribes in Jharkhand.