Bahun

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Hill Brahmin
Bahun
Gaze of a priest.JPG
A Bahun (Hill Brahmin) priest in Nepal
Regions with significant populations
   Nepal3,226,903 12.2% of Nepal (2011)[1]
Languages
Nepali (Khas-Kura), Sanskrit
Religion
Hinduism 99.56% (2011)

Bahun (Nepali: बाहुन) or Khas Brahmin[2] (Nepali: खस ब्राह्मण) is a caste (Varna) among Khas people of Nepal. Their origins are from the Indo-Aryan Khasa tribe of Nepal and South Asia. According to the 2011 Nepal census, Bahun is the second most populous group after Chhetri, another Varna within the hill Hindus in Nepal.[3]

According to 1854 Muluki Ain (Nepalese Legal Code), Bahuns were regarded as caste among sacred thread bearers (Tagadhari) and twice-born Hindus.[4]

A Bahun (Brahmin) man at the Bratabandha ceremony in Nepal

Origin[edit]

Traditionally, Bahuns were members of the Khas community together with Chhetris and Hill Dalits.[2] Possibly due to political power of the Khasa Malla kingdom, Khas Bahun and Khas Rajput (Chhetris)[5] had high social status like plain Brahmins and Rajputs in the present-day western Nepal.[2] Bahuns, regarded as upper class Khas group together with Chhetri, were associated mostly with the Gorkha Kingdom.[6][6][7] Bahuns were original inhabitants of Karnali region of Nepal. The immigration of Brahmins into Nepal increased significantly from 1324 and continued up to 1769 due to the foreign invasion in the western portion of the Indian subcontinent.[8]

Clans[edit]

Bahuns were divided into two clans on the basis of residency. The Bahun residents east of Mahakali river were known as Purbiya Bahun and west of the river were known as Kumai Bahun.[9] Kumai or Kumain is a direct derivative of Kumaoni, meaning residents of Kumaon.[9]

Demography[edit]

According to the 2011 Nepal census, Bahuns (referred as Hill-Brahmin) are the second most populous group after Chhetri with 12.2% of Nepal's population (or 32,26,903 people).[10] Bahun are the second largest Hindu group with a population of 3,212,704 (99.6% of Bahuns).[10] Bahuns are the largest group in 15 districts in Nepal: Jhapa, Morang, Kathmandu, Chitwan, Nawalparasi, Rupandehi, Kaski, Syangja, Parbat, Gulmi and Arghakhanchi. Among these, Bahuns in Parbat (35.7%), Arghakhanchi (32.8%), Syangja (30.9%), Chitwan (28.6%), Kaski (27.8%) and Gulmi (25.2%) consist more than 25% of the district population. Kathmandu has largest Bahun population with 410,126 people (23.5%).[10]

Bahuns have the highest civil service representation with 39.2% of Nepal's bureaucracy while having only 12.1% of Nepal's total population. The civil service representation to population ratio is 3.2 times for Bahuns which is fourth in Nepal. Chhetris represent 5.6 times in civil services to their percentage of population, which is the highest in Nepal.[11] As per the Public Service Commission, Brahmins (33.3%) and Chhetris (20.01%) were two largest caste group to obtain governmental jobs in F.Y. 2017-18 even though 45% governmental seats are reserved for women, Madhesis, other caste and Tibetan tribes, people with disability and those from the backward regions.[12] Similarly, in the fiscal 2018–19, Bahuns (34.87%) and Chhetris (19.63%) maintained 55% of their proportion in civil service as per Public Service Commission.[13]

Notable people[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. "Nepal Census 2011" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-09-18. Retrieved 2017-04-09.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 John T Hitchcock 1978, pp. 116-119.
  3. "Nepal Census 2011" (PDF).
  4. Sherchan 2001, p. 14.
  5. John T Hitchcock 1978, p. 116.
  6. 6.0 6.1 Whelpton 2005, p. 31.
  7. "Nepal -".
  8. "(O)r of (Brahmin) immigration to Nepal around 1324, continuing until c. 1769"(Witzel 1993:266)
  9. 9.0 9.1 Subba 1989, p. 30.
  10. 10.0 10.1 10.2 "Nepal Census 2011" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-09-18. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
  11. Dhakal, Amit (11 June 2014). "निजामती सेवामा सबैभन्दा बढी प्रतिनिधित्व राजपूत, कायस्थ र तराई ब्राम्हण". Setopati.
  12. "Brahmins and Chhetris land most government jobs". kathmandupost.com.
  13. "Brahmins and Chhetris continue to dominate entry into civil service". kathmandupost.com.
  14. Chabilal Upadhyaya - Wikipedia
  15. Raj, Prakash A. (2006). Dancing Democracy: The power of a Third Eye. Rupa & Company. ISBN 9788129109460.
  16. 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 "Girija Prasad Koirala: The architect of democracy in Nepal". Dawn. 23 March 2010. Retrieved 13 December 2017.
  17. Westminster legacies. UNSW Press. 2005. ISBN 978-0-86840-848-4. Retrieved 2009-05-15.
  18. "Flight of a free bird". My Republica. 7 March 2011. Retrieved 13 December 2017.
  19. Goldenberg, Suzanne (4 May 1999). "Man Mohan Adhikari". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 December 2017.
  20. "CPN Maoist Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal elected as 39th Prime Minister of Nepal". Xinhuanet. Archived from the original on August 5, 2016. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  21. "Prachanda elected Prime Minister of Nepal". The Hindu. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  22. "CPN-UML Comrades Apart". Spotlight Nepal Magazine. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  23. "Caste no bar". Nepali Times. 16 January 2009. Retrieved 12 February 2018.

Bibliography[edit]

Template:Ethnic groups in Nepal

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