Kumain Bahun
Kumain Bahun (Nepali: कुमाइँ बाहुन) or Kumai Bahun is the subcaste of the Nepali Khas Brahmins who had origins in Kumaon region of present day Uttarakhand state in India. Kumain Bahuns literally derive from the Kumaon region meaning residents of Kumaon.
Etymology
The terminology "Kumai" or "Kumain" is a direct derivative of the adjective "Kumaoni", meaning residents of Kumaon region.[1]
History
Divisions
Bahuns were divided into two subcastes based on their location. The Bahun people who lived to the west of the Mahakali river and had origins in the Kumaon region were known as Kumain Bahun.[1][2][3] The Bahun people who lived to the east of the Mahakali river were known as Purbiya (or Purbia) Bahun[1][4] meaning "Eastern Bahun".[3] Later Kumain Bahuns were found to have migrated into the territory of the Karnali region.[5] However, the Bahuns are divided into three subcastes in terms of practice; the three groups are "Purbiya", "Kumain" and "Jaisi".[6]
History
During the Rana regime, Kumain Bahuns constantly rivaled the Purbiya Bahuns for social dominance, which was demonstrated by the conflicts between Badaguruju Hemraj Pandey and Ram Mani Acharya Dixit belonging to the reign of Prime Minister Chandra Shumsher Jang Bahadur Rana.[4] In terms of political differentiation after the 1990 Nepalese revolution, Kumain Bahuns dominated the Rashtriya Prajatantra Party, Purbiya Bahuns dominated the Nepali Congress and Jaisi Bahuns dominated the Nepal Communist Party (Unified Marxist Leninist).[7]
Demographics
Sociologist Lawoti contends that Kumain Bahuns could have a population of less than 5% of the total population of Nepal if the bifurcation of Bahuns into the three known subgroups were done.[8]
Clans
Some of the Kumain Bahun clans and surnames are:[1]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Subba 1989, p. 30.
- ↑ http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=7911#.YqNVNexBzIV
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Chakraborty & Bhattacharya 2003, p. 163.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 https://www.himalmag.com/bahunvada-myth-or-reality-kamal-p-malla-1992/
- ↑ Gurung 1996, p. 25.
- ↑ Lawoti & Hangen 2013, pp. 46-47.
- ↑ Bhattachan 1998, p. 124.
- ↑ Lawoti & Hangen 2013, p. 47.
Books
- Bhattachan, Krishna B. (1 January 1998). "Making No Heads or Tails of the Ethnic "Conundrum" Scholars with European Head and Nepalese Tail" (PDF). Contributions to Nepalese Studies. Centre for Nepal and Asian Studies (CNAS). 25 (1): 111–130. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 August 2019. Retrieved 13 February 2023. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - Gurung, Harka Bahadur (1996). Faces of Nepal. illustrated by Jan Salter. Himal. p. 29. ISBN 978-9993343509. Search this book on
- Lawoti, Mahendra; Hangen, Susan (2013), Nationalism and Ethnic Conflict in Nepal: Identities and Mobilization After 1990, Routledge, pp. 234–, ISBN 978-0-415-78097-1
- Subba, Tanka Bahadur (1989). Dynamics of a hill society: Nepalis in Darjeeling and Sikkim Himalayas. Mittal Publications. ISBN 9788173041143. Search this book on
- Chakraborty, S.K.; Bhattacharya, Pradip (2003). Marie Lecomte-Tilouine; Pascale Dollfus, eds. Ethnic Revival and Religious Turmoil: Identities and Representations in the Himalayas. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780195655926. Search this book on
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