Sindhi Jats

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The Sindhi Jats (Sindhi: سنڌي جت/جاٽ) are the indigenous population of Sindh.

Sindhi Jats
Languages
Sindhi (different dialects).
Religion
Islam
Related ethnic groups
Jats

Background[edit | edit source]

The Jats of Sindh are mainly divided into three sections: First are Jutts (Sindhi: جت) known for their ancient ancestral camel-herding profession,[1] they speak Juttki/Jatki a very old dialect of Sindhi language, Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai has also written some poems in Juttki/Jatki dialect of Sindhi, in his famous book of "Shah jo Risalo". These Jutts are in much love with Shah latif, as much as so they memorize whole book of Shah jo Risalo, and make their children remember the whole book. In fact in older times, the boys and girls were not got married until they memorized the whole book. These jutts are mainly found in "Lāṛu" region of lower Sindh, the city "Jati" is named after them.[2]

History[edit | edit source]

The Chachnama mentions the Sama, Sahita, Channa, Lohana, Meds and Jats as the ancient indigenous people of Sindh.[3] In Chachnama chronicles the Sindhi jats were classified on basis of their habitats, like "Jatan-i-gharbi" (the western Jats) and "Jatan-i-Sharqi" (the eastern Jats), living on the eastern and western sides of the Indus River. In the chronicles Sindhi jats were further classified as "Lab-i-Daryai" (the Jats of River banks), "Jatan-i-Dashti" (the Jats of desert); and "Rustai Jatan" (the jats of villages). They were also classified professionally on the basis of their habitats, such as those jats living on the riverside were in profession of boatmen and boat-makers, the Jats of countryside were swordmakers and were called "Taighzan" (holder of the swords). The ancient port city of Debal was famous for the manufacture of swords. The "Rustai Jatan" were appointed by the Chach and the Arab commanders as "Jasoos" (spies) and as the "Rahber" (caravan guide). These "Rahber" jats used to guide the caravans on their way during day time and night.[4]

The Sindhi Jats had their origins in pastoralism in the Indus valley, the original homeland of the Sindhi Jats was the lower Indus valley. They were nomadic pastoralists who had migrated from the lower Indus river valley of Sindh to the northern parts of Sindh and later to Punjab and other north indian regions.[5] They were originally Hindus by religion and were the earliest people of Indian subcontinent who had interaction with the pre-islamic inhabitants of Iran and Middle East, multiple trading communities of Jats existed in the pre-Islamic Arabia.[6] They were referred as Zatts (Arabic: الزُّطِّ, romanized: Az-Zutt) by arabs in early Arab writings, and as (Jat-an) by Persians.[2] They were also present in Mesopotamia and Syria.

Sindhi Jats were the first people of Indian subcontinent who converted to Islam during Prophet Muhammad era, they fought on the side of Ali in the Battle of the Camel in 656 under their chief, Ali B. Danur.[7] Some of these Sindhi jats of Arabia also ruled as Emirs, like Al-Sari ibn al Hakam al-Zutti who became the emir of Egypt amidst the Abbasid civil war.[8] He was first who established an autonomous Muslim dynasty in Egypt (815–826), and his sons Ubaydallah ibn al-Sari and Abu Nasr ibn al-Sari ruled Egypt until it was re-conquered by the Abbasid general Abdallah ibn Tahir in 826.[9] The Sindhi Jats of Arabia helped Muhammad bin Qasim in the conquest of Sind in the eighth century.[10]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ Cheesman, David (2013-12-16). Landlord Power and Rural Indebtedness in Colonial Sind. New Delhi, India, Asia: Routledge. p. 36. ISBN 978-1-136-79449-0.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Wink, André (2002). Al-Hind, the Making of the Indo-Islamic World: Early Medieval India and the Expansion of Islam 7Th-11th Centuries. BRILL. pp. 154–160. ISBN 978-0-391-04173-8.
  3. ↑ Bukhari, Mastoor Fatima. ""Development of Buddhism and its Cultural Influence on the Religious Beliefs and Practices of Successive Periods in Sindh"" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2023-07-03.
  4. ↑ Fathe Nama Sindh Urdu (Also known as Chachnama) || Australian Islamic Library.
  5. ↑ Tiemann, Günter (1963). "Review of The Jat of Pakistan". Anthropos. 58 (5/6): 936–938. ISSN 0257-9774. JSTOR 40456070.
  6. ↑ Nahyan, Mansoor Bin Tahnoon Al; Hussain, Jamal; Ghafoor, Asad ul (2019-05-09). Tribes of Pakistan. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. p. 108. ISBN 978-1-5275-3439-1.
  7. ↑ Zakeri, Mohsen (1995). Sasanid Soldiers in Early Muslim Society: The Origins of 'Ayyārān and Futuwwa. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. ISBN 978-3-447-03652-8.
  8. ↑ Beg, Muhammad Abdul Jabbar (1981). Social Mobility in Islamic Civilization: The Classical Period : Y Muhammad Abdul Jabbar Beg. University of Malaya Press.
  9. ↑ Petry, Carl F. (2008-07-10). The Cambridge History of Egypt. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-06885-7.
  10. ↑ Mayaram, Shail (2003). Against History, Against State: Counterperspectives from the Margins. Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0-231-12730-1.
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