Indian Antiquary Vol 40

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple, Devadatta Ramkrishna Bhandarkar
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 39

JANUARY, 1011.)
FOREIGN ELEMENTS IN THE HINDU POPULATION.
38
in Ambadás. But in the present list, most of them, snch as Nanda, Varman and so forth, are certainly neither of them. On the contrary, even a moment's reflection will convince us that no less than ten of these thirteen Sarmans' are found as family names among Kayasthas in Bengal, corresponding to Datta, Gupta, Nandi, Ghosh, Sarma, Das, Barmii, Bhut, Mitra and Deb38. And of these the names Gupta, Varman, and Mitra are by no means unfainiliar to Indian epigraphy as those of royal families. Several coins have been found in Oudh, Rohilkhand, and Gorakhpur, the legends on which give the names of kings ending in mitra ; and those have consequently been rightly assigned to the Mitra dynasty. The Gupta family is too well known to require any mention. All the kings of the Maukhari dynasty have their names ending in varman, and have, therefore, been styled also as the Varman dynastyo. Again, if these. Sarmans' are mere name-endings, it is inconceivable how Varman could have found a place in their list. For Varman is a suffix attached to the names of Kshatriyas only, and cannot possibly be affixed to the names of Nagar Brâbmaņas, as they are Brahmaņas. Bat the very fact that Varman is included in the list shows that it is not a mere honorific suffix but a family name, whose existence is attested by the Maukbsris also called Varman, and by the surname Barmà actually current in Bengal among the Kâyaathashl, Mr. Acharya has told us in one place that, at the time of performing religious ceremonies, it is customary to say Bhagvanlala-tråla for Bhagvanlai, Manisaikar-gupta for Manisankar and so forth. Here at any rate Trdta and Gupta eannot be taken as unere suffixes. For as suffixes they would be tautologous, as we have them already in lal of Bhagvanlal and Sankar of Manisankar. The conclusion is, therefore, irresistible that at least ten of these 'Sarmans' represent the names of families or tribes that were incorporated into the Nagar Brâhmana caste. This seems to point to a racial identity or affinity between the Kayasthas of Bengal and the Nigar Brahmanas of Bombay Gujarat.
If this line of reasoning has any weight, Mitra, one of the Sarmans' amongst the Nagar Brâhmaņas, really represents one of such tribes or clans amalgamated into that caste. And we have already seen that the Nägar Brahmaņas, first came to notice during the role of Valabhi kings who were Maitrakas. It is difficult to avoid the conclosion, as I have stated elsewhere, that Maitraka and Mitra denote one and the same tribe, just as we know that the Solankis of Gujarat have been called by one and the same poet at one time Chulukyas and at another time Chaulvkyas.
Besides the Mitras, there were, of course, as I have just stated, other families or tribes that were incorporated into the Någar Brâhmaņa caste. In this connection the following learned words of the late Sir James Campbell deserve to be noticed :-" The facts tbat there are Nágaras among Gujarát Wániás; that Nagaras are 50,000 strong among the Gúrjaras of Bulandshahr (N. W. P. Gazetteer, III, 48); and that Nágaras appear as Nagres among Jats (Sialkot Gazetteer, 45 ) add to the doubt of the correctness of the Gujarát Nágara claim to be Bráhmans" 13. Nâgars thas appear not to have been indigenous to Gujarat, but came there from the north. When they did come into Gujarat, they doubtless established themselves at
# The Trider and Castaw of Bongal, by Bisley, Vol. II., Appendix pp. 74-5.
* Indian Coins, by Rapson, $$ 44 and 53 ; Catalogue of the Coins in the Indian Muum, Calcutta, by V. A. Smith, p. 184.
** The Chronology of India, by O. Mabel Duff, p. 308.
1 The Kayasthas of Bengalaro, according to traditions, supposed to have come from Kananj in the time of Adibara (The Tribor and Oaste of Bongal, Vol. I, p. 488). And that the Nagars sluo on me from the north, will be shown furthor on. Nothing, therefore, kroon against the view of their racial afflity, if not, identity. It is again worthy of note that the BrimAll Brahmapes of M&rwar also have no less than nine 'Barmans' in common with the Nagoro; via., Nanda, TrAtaka, Mitra, Bhata, Disa, Gupta, Ghosha, Datta and Dova (Cervus Report of the Jodhpur State, for 1891, Vol. III. Pp. 141-3). This shows that the Nagar and BrimAll Brahmap and the Bengal Klyaathas originally belonged to the same race. 41 Vienna Ort. Jour., Vol. VII, p. 296.
*1 Bombay Gaxettear, Vol. IX., p. 188, note 9.