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[[File:Portret van Shaikh Zeaoollah uit Aligarh Sheikh Zeaoollah. Soonee mahomedan Sheikh caste. Allyghur (titel op object), RP-F-2001-7-1122C-30.jpg|thumb|A Shaikh man from [[Aligarh]], c. 1858-1868]]
'''''Shaikh''''', also rendered as '''''Sheikh''''', '''''Sheik''''', '''''Shaik''''', '''''Shaykh''''', '''''Shaikh''''', '''''Shekh''''', '''''Cheikh''''', '''''Šeih''''', '''''Šejh''''', '''''Şeyh''''' and other variants ([[Arabic language|Arabic]]: {{lang|ar|شيخ}}, ''shaykh''; [[plural|pl.]] {{lang|ar|شيوخ}} ''shuyūkh''), is a title given to many South Asian Muslim castes. It originally was a word or [[honorific]] term in the [[Arabic language]] that commonly designated a [[Tribal chief|chief of a tribe]], [[royal family]] member, Muslim [[Ulama|religious scholar]], or "[[Elder (administrative title)|Elder]]". However in South Asia it was used as a title by castes that rarely had any Arab descent.

==Origin==
In South Asia it is not an ethnic title but an occupational title generally attributed to Muslim trading families. The Shaikhs claimed to be descendants of Arabs, however almost all Shaikhs did not actually descend from Arabs. [[Hindus]] who converted to Islam and took the title ''shaikh'' tended to be of the [[Kshatriya]] varna, although use of the title was flexible. In the former [[Frontier Regions]] and [[Punjab, Pakistan|Punjab]] of [[Pakistan]], the title ''shaikh'' was given to recent converts and not those of Arab descent.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Nyrop|first=Richard F.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FaggQsmGFWkC&q=sheikh+occupational+title+in+pakistan&pg=PA149|title=Pakistan a country study|publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office|year=1983|edition=4|pages=149}}</ref> The [[Julaha]] weaver caste became [[Momin Ansari|Ansaris]], who claimed to descend from Abu Ayub Al-Ansari. The butcher castes claimed to descend from the [[Quraysh|Quraysh tribe]]. The [[Kayastha]] record keeper caste became [[Siddiqui|Siddiques]], who claimed to descend from [[Abu Bakr|Abu Bakr Al-Siddiq]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|last=Robinson|first=Rowena|url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Sociology_of_Religion_in_India/Mc6GAwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0|title=Sociology of religion|publisher=SAGE Publications|year=2004|pages=90}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite book|last=Khanam|first=Azra|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vxdBDwAAQBAJ&q=shaikh+is+occupational+caste&pg=PP32|title=Muslim backward classes: a sociological perspective|publisher=SAGE Publications|year=2013|pages=22|isbn=9788132118077}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{cite book | last =Delage | first =Rémy | title =Muslim Castes in India | date =29 September 2014 | url =https://booksandideas.net/Muslim-Castes-in-India.html |issn=2105-3030 }}</ref>

A famous saying which attests to the flexibility of the title of ''shaikh'' stated: "Last year I was a Julaha (weaver); this year I am a sheikh; next year, if the crops are good, I shall be a [[Sayyid#South Asia|Syed]]."<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":3" />

==Sub-divisions==
{{more citations needed section|date=December 2020}}
The subdivisions of the Shaikh include:
* Shaikh [[Qidwai]], who claim to be descendants of the Qazi Qidwa, a son of the Sultans of Rum
* Shaikh [[Hashmi]], who claim to be descendants of the [[Banu Hashim]] clan of the [[Quraysh (tribe)|Banu Quraish]] tribe. The Islamic prophet, [[Muhammad]] belonged to this clan. Usually carry the title [[Sayyid]] or [[Sharif]]
* Shaikh [[Siddiqui]], who claim to be descendants of [[Abu Bakar]], the first [[Caliph|Khalifa]] of [[Islam]]. Actually are descendants of the Hindu [[Kayastha]] caste.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />
* Shaikh [[Osmani|Usmani]] (Osmani), who claim to be descendants of [[Uthman Ibn Affan]] the third [[Caliph|Khalifa]] of Islam
* Shaikh [[Farooqi]], Honorific reverence to [[Umar|Umar Farooq Bin Al-Khattab]]
* Shaikh Narowali

== See also ==
* [[Sheikh]]
* [[Shaikhzada]]
* [[Sindhi Shaikh]]
* [[Punjabi Shaikh]]
* Bengali Sheikh
* [[Muslim Kayasths]]
* [[Kashmiri Shaikh]]s
* [[Gujarati Shaikh]]
* [[Rajasthani Shaikh]]
* [[Shaikh of Bihar]]
* [[Shaikh of Uttar Pradesh]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Indian Muslim}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shaikhs In South Asia}}
[[Category:Titles]]
[[Category:Islamic culture]]
[[Category:Social groups of Pakistan]]
[[Category:Social groups of India]]
[[Category:Muslim communities of India]]
[[Category:Shaikh clans]]
[[Category:Muhajir communities]]
[[Category:Titles in Bangladesh]]

Shaikhs in South Asia - Revision history

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