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The Arain (Template:Lang-ur) are a Muslim tribe of Pakistan who are found mainly in the Punjab province and also that of Sindh. They are chiefly associated with farming, with many being "peasant-proprietors" and some being zamindars (landlords).

Origins

The Arains are historically exclusively Muslim. Their origins are uncertain, with some members of the community claiming a connection with the Rajputs. Others, with whom the historian and political scientist Christophe Jaffrelot agrees, believe that they are probably displaced farming communities who moved to Punjab from Sindh and Multan as Muslim armies encroached. Jaffrelot also believes the community to be related to the Kamboj. Ishtiaq Ahmed, who is a political scientist like Jaffrelot and also a member of the Arain community, acknowledges that some early Arain texts ascribe a Persian origin and others a Suryavansha Rajput descent. He says that the modern-day Arain claims to be of Arab descent are based on the community's uniform belief in Islam and almost-entire adherence to the Sunni sect of that religion, which is a trait they share with the early Arab invaders under Muhammad bin Qasim. Ahmed says that "The Arab-origin claim can be simply a re-orientation towards a (perceived) greater status as conquerors and 'original' Muslims" and that he personally thinks that "like the other farming castes of the Punjab and Haryana the Arains are a mix of many ethnies [sic] and races."

A study of blood types, published in 2005 and intended "to find out the frequency of ABO and RhD phenotypes in different ethnic groups and casts of Pakistan", concluded that "There is no statistically significant difference of ABO and Rh-D distribution among various ethnic groups and casts, O is the most common blood group except in Arains where B is the most common and O is less common. Further ethnic based studies are required to confirm."

British Raj period

The British considered the Arain 'agricultural' caste. When the British wanted land developed in the Punjab after its annexation, Arain were brought in to cultivate lands around the cities, and were preferred to assist with the opening up of the new agrarian frontier in canal colonies of the Punjab between 1906 – 1940. The Arain received 86% of the land that was allotted to Muslim agricultural castes in canal colonies.

The British considered the Arain the best cultivators amongst all the castes, and were favoured for their "hard work, frugality and sense of discipline". Subsequent development of towns and cities and increasing urbanisation resulted in the value of the land settled by Arain to rise significantly, and Arain families thus flourished. Education was prioritised with the new-found wealth and the Arain came to dominate the legal profession amongst urban Punjabi Muslims. Many used law to enter politics.

The Arain also contributed to military service predating and during British rule in India. Lt. Col. J. M. Wikeley acknowledged Arain presence in the military; "They (Arains) may be designated as a fighting race which has produced many Civil and Military officers who have rendered good services to the nation." Their lack of classification as a martial race was most probably a consequence of rebellions against British rule. One notable rebellion occurred in the Mutiny of 1857, when the Arain Shah Abdul Qadir Ludhianvi led an inter-communal uprising in Ludhiana against the British East India Company.

Present day

Although gardening and market-gardening were considered historically to be ritually impure occupations and thus those engaged in such activities were considered to be of low standing, the Arains have proven to be industrious and disciplined practitioners. In the present day, they are the largest agricultural community in Pakistan and they often have a wealth that belies their low ritual status.

Distribution

The Arain were found in territory stretching from the Chenab in the west to the Sultlej in the east, in what was the Punjabi speaking heartland of the British colonial province of Punjab. This was also the region that suffered the worst violence during the partition of India in 1947, with almost the entire Arain population of Indian Punjab migrating to Pakistani territory. However, there are still a small number of Muslim Arains still found in Malerkotla, Sangrur and Patiala districts.

The bulk of the Arain population is now settled in the districts of Faisalabad, Sahiwal and Toba Tek Singh, with a large number of refugees settled by the Thal Development Authority in the districts of Khushab, Mianwali, Bhakkar and Layyah.

Related communities in North India

There are a number of communities in North India, that claim kinship with the Arain of Punjab. The Arain of Delhi claim to be descended from Arains who settled in Delhi during the rule of the Mughal Emperor Akbar.

Another community that is connected with the Arain are the Rayeen, who are a Muslim tribe found in Bareilly, Pilibhit, Udham Singh Nagar, Nainital, Rampur, Bijnor and Saharanpur districts of Uttar Pradesh, India.

Notable people

• Adina Beg, Governor of Punjab in 1758.
• Sir Fazli Husain, politician and a founder of the Unionist Party

References

1. ^ Burki, Shahid Javed (October 1988). "Pakistan under Zia, 1977-1988". Asian Survey. 28 (10): 1082–1100. doi:10.1525/as.1988.28.10.01p0206e. JSTOR 2644708. (subscription required)
2. ^ Jaffrelot, Christophe (2004). A History Of Pakistan And Its Origins. trans. Beaumont, Gilliam. Anthem Press. pp. 154, 208. ISBN 9781843311492. Retrieved 10 December 2012.
3. Ahmed, Ishtiaq (18 April 2006). "There is many a slip betwixt cup and lip". Daily Times. Pakistan. Retrieved 2014-06-15.
4. Ali, Nadir; Anwar, Masood; Bhatti, Farhat Abbas; Nadeem, Mansoor; Nadeem, Asif; Ali, Arif Maqsood (January–March 2005). "Frequency of ABO & Rh Blood Groups in Major Ethnic Groups and Casts of Pakistan". Pakistan Journal of Medical Sciences. 21 (1): 26–29. Archived from the original on 2005-06-01. Further ethnic based studies are required to confirm.
5. Punjab Colony Manual (Lahore, 1936), p. 13; and Chenab Colony Settlement Report (1915)
6. "The Punjab Canal Colonies', 1885-1940", Ph.D. thesis, Australian National University, 1980; and Imran Ali, The Punjab Under Imperialism, 1885-1947 (Princeton University Press,Princeton, New Jersey, 1988).
7. Castes The Panjab, North-West Frontier Province, and Kashmir, by Sir James McCrone Douie. Printed in India at Deluxe Offset Press, Daya Basti, Delhi-110035 and Published by Seema Publications, Delhi-110007
8. Wikeley, J. M. (1991) . Punjabi Musalmans. p. 66.
9. http://www.apnaorg.com/articles/news-33/
10. People of India Punjab Volume XXXVII edited by I.J.S Bansal and Swaran Singh pages 37 to 42 Manohar
11. Kinship and continuity: Pakistani families in BritainAlison Shaw Page 121
12. Three Pakistan villages by John Joseph Honigmann
13. People of India Delhi Volume XX edited by T Ghosh & S Nath pages 49 to 52, Manohar Publications
14. A People of India Uttar Pradesh Volume XLII
15. "Dina Arain: the master 'double game' player".

• Arain