Kanjar: Difference between revisions

| group           = Kanjar

| poptime         =  

| popplace         = India • Pakistan

| langs           = [[Kanjari language|Kanjari]] • [[Hindi language|Hindi]] • [[Rajasthani language|Rajasthani]] • [[Bhojpuri]] • [[Urdu language|Urdu]] • [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]]

| rels             = [[Hinduism]] • [[Sikhism]] • Islam

| related         = [[Patharkat]]

The [[Kanjari language|Kanjari]] language is spoken mostly by the Kanjari people. Kanjari is a lesser known [[Indo-Aryan languages|Indo Aryan language]], but almost all also speak [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]] and [[Urdu]].<ref name="Joseph C Berland' pages247">''Kanjar Social Organization by Joseph C Berland'' in The other nomads : peripatetic minorities in cross-cultural perspective / edited by Aparna Rao pages247 to 268 {{ISBN|3-412-08085-3}} Köln : Böhlau, 1987.</ref>

In the [[British Raj|Colonial period]], Kanjaris were listed under the [[Criminal Tribes Act]], 1871, as a tribe "addicted to the systematic commission of non-bailable offenses."<ref>[https://dsal.uchicago.edu/reference/gazetteer/pager.html?objectid=DS405.1.I34_V18_373.gif Nanta Village] ''[[The Imperial Gazetteer of India]]'', 1908, v. 18, ''p. 367.''</ref>

The Kanjari were [[Denotified tribes of India|denotified]] in 1952, when the Criminal Tribes Act was replaced by the [[Habitual_Offender_Laws#India|Habitual Offenders Act]], but the community carries considerable [[social stigma]], mainly due to the association of their subculture with [[sex work]] (''dhandha'') and traditions distinct from mainstream [[Indian culture]].<ref name="Cult. Health Sex.">{{cite journal |last=Dayal |first=Surbhi |date=February 2020 |title=''Kanjar'' subculture: socialisation for sex work amongst traditional entertainers in India |journal=[[Culture, Health & Sexuality|Culture, Health & Sexuality: An International Journal for Research, Intervention and Care]] |publisher=[[Taylor & Francis]] |volume=23 |issue=2 |pages=273-283 |doi=10.1080/13691058.2019.1705397 |pmid=32031496 |eissn=1464-5351 |issn=1369-1058 |oclc=41546256 |s2cid=211047159}}</ref> Kanjaris are also known as Gihar which is not notified.{{cn|date=February 2017}}

The Kanjari speak 4-5 languages along with their native language, called Narsi-Parsi. It consists of different sounds of animals and birds, coded words, and signs.<ref>Madan Meena: Secret Language of the Kanjar Community, Fellowship from Firebird Foundation for Anthropological Research, USA</ref>

The [[2011 Census of India]] for [[Uttar Pradesh]] showed the Kanjari with a population of 115,968.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.censusindia.gov.in/2011census/PCA/SC_ST/PCA-A10/SC-0900-PCA-A-10-ddw.xlsx |title= A-10 Individual Scheduled Caste Primary Census Abstract Data and its Appendix - Uttar Pradesh |publisher=Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India |accessdate=2017-02-06}}</ref>

In [[Pakistan]], two distinct communities go by the name Kanjari. Over the centuries they became associated with the profession of prostitution and a peripatetic community of craftsmen and entertainers, best known for the [[terracotta]] toys they manufacture and peddle. In [[Karachi]], the Urdu speaking community has large numbers of descendants of Kanjaris from Northern India. Most of them moved from [[Delhi]] and [[Lucknow]] to Karachi. The term 'Kanjar' is more generally used to refer to a [[Procuring (prostitution)|pimp]] or a person of low moral character than as a reference to the tribe.<ref>Kanjar Social Organization by Joseph C Berland in The other nomads : peripatetic minorities in cross-cultural perspective / edited by Aparna Rao pages247 to 268 {{ISBN|3-412-08085-3}} Köln : Böhlau, 1987.</ref><ref name="ReferenceB">''Taboo: The Hidden Culture of a Red Light Area'' by Fouzia Saeed, Oxford University Press {{ISBN|0195797965}}</ref>{{pn|date=June 2020}}

The Kanjaris are sometimes associated with the [[Lahore]] neighborhood of [[Shahi Mohalla]]. This famous bazaar was inhabited and later flourished under influence of Kanjaris of Lucknow and Kanjaris of other parts of northern India. For centuries Lucknow was a hub for prostitution and affluent families would send their children to be educated in Lucknow. It was believed those women carried the roots of Urdu speaking cultures and pride. From there many moved to Heera Mandi (Shahi Mohalla) and after partition established in Karachi. In Karachi, such Urdu speaking families are well educated but their lineage is easily traceable to Kanjaris. This has been home to a large community of Kanjari for centuries. Many musicians in Pakistan have their roots in the Kanjari community. A recent study found that: "A Kanjari hears the music of [[tabla]] and [[ghungroo]] from the day of her birth and must begin her formal education before her non-Kanjari friends start going to school."<ref>''Taboo: The Hidden Culture of a Red Light Area'' by Fouzia Saeed, Oxford University Press, page 61</ref>

Although nomadic, the Kanjari follow a set route, and often maintain a relationship with the villages they visit. Many of the men work as agricultural labourers. Their tents are made from split bamboo or munji grass, and their encampments can be found at the edges of villages, as well as in urban areas such as [[Faisalabad]] and Lahore.<ref name="Joseph C Berland' pages247"/>

They are the subject of the Hindi story ''Indrajal'' (Magic in English), by [[Jaishankar Prasad]].

In the [[Lollywood]] film ''[[Bol (film)|Bol]]'', prominent character Saqa Kanjari, financially helps a fanatic [[Hakim (title)|hakim]] after the latter bribes the police to bury the case of [[Honor killing|honour killing]] of his own son. The hakim in return had to bear a daughter for Saqa Kanjar's daughter Meena.