Jat

One of the hundreds of subgroups of
traditional Indian society known as jatis
(“birth”). Each jati was associated
with—and held a monopoly over—a
particular occupation, and that occupation determined the social status of the
jati’s members; this system led to the
modern caste system. The Jats are a
northern Indian jati whose members are
spread through many of the states of
northern India, particularly Haryana,
Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan.
In the Punjab the Jats are evenly split
between Hindus and Sikhs, but in other
areas the community is solidly Hindu.
The Jats’ hereditary occupation is farming, and they are often described as
tough and resilient peasants; these qualities have also made them superior soldiers, both in the service of the British
Empire and in independent India.