The Pateliya, or Patelia[1] or Patel is a landowning Subcaste of Koli caste found in the Indian states of Gujarat.[2] During the British Raj in India, Patelia Kolis served as tax collectors and administrators. The name Patelia comes from a word meaning village chief.[3] Many Patelia Kolis also went into business and commerce during the Raj period. Patelia Kolis are part of Talapada Kolis of Gujarat.[4]
| Pateliya Koli | |
|---|---|
| Patelia Koli | |
 Koli population in 1931 in Gujarat including Patelia Kolis | |
| Abbreviation | PK |
| Jāti | Koli |
| Classification | Other Backward Class |
| Religions | Hinduism |
| Languages | |
| Country |  India |
| Original state | Gujarat |
| Ethnicity | Koli people |
| Status | Subcaste of Koli caste |
| Reservation (Education) | Yes |
| Reservation (Employment) | Yes |
| Reservation (Other) | Yes |
Origin and distribution
The term 'Pateliya' has been derived from the term Patel which locally means 'headman'.
The Pateliya are mostly distributed in Dahod Mahisagar Panchmahal districts of Gujarat and Jhabua, Dhar, Indore, Dewas, Guna districts of Madhya Pradesh. They speak Malvi among themselves and Hindi with others.
Traditional occupation of the Pateliya Kolis is agriculture. They are in Variety of governmental services on higher posts. Apart from agriculture and services, several of them also work as wage labourers. Agriculture is an important source of income.
Clans
The Patelia Kolis has a number of exogamous clans. All the clans enjoy an equal status. The Pateliya Koli clans have been grouped under six broader categories:[5]
Present circumstance
The Patelia Kolis traditionally practice settled agriculture and land owned is medium and small. Nowadays they are in many different government services on both higher and smaller posts. They profess Hinduism, and worship local deities such as Devkarji, Mataji, and Kalka Devi, Baba Ghodaja, Nihal Devi, Baba Khatri.
References
- ^ Tambs-Lyche, Harald (31 December 1996). Power, Profit, and Poetry: Traditional Society in Kathiawar, Western India. New Delhi, India: Manohar Publishers & Distributors. p. 130. ISBN 978-81-7304-176-1.
The highest Koli families in the social sense prohibited widow remarriage in imitation of the Rajputs, and the same is true of the Khant Koli and Baria Kolis of the North and of the Patelias or Patelia Kolis of the Panch Mahals and the Rewa Kantha. These high caste Kolis never give their daughters to the lower Kolis such as Pagis, Kotwads and Patanwadias
- ^ Jain, Jyotindra; Gujarat, Shreyas Folk Museum of (1980). Folk Art and Culture of Gujarat: Guide to the Collection of the Shreyas Folk Museum of Gujarat. New Delhi: Shreyas Prakashan. p. 133.
The Khant Koli and Baria Koli of North Gujarat, the Patelia Koli of Panch Mahals and Reva Kantha have raised their status through such marriages and consider themselves superior
- ^ Shah, Ghanshyam (1975). Caste Association and Political Process in Gujarat: A Study of Gujarat Kshatriya Sabha. New Delhi, India: Popular Prakashan. p. 13.
- ^ Lobo, Lancy (1995). The Thakors of North Gujarat: A Caste in the Village and the Region. New Delhi: Hindustan Publishing Corporation. p. 163. ISBN 978-81-7075-035-2.
[I]mmigrant Kolis (Pardeshis) from an adjoining area, as in Saurashtra, the Panchmahals, and central and South Gujarat. Here the Talpadas belonging to the same division marry freely among themselves and are known by several names like Baraiya, Dharala, Khant, Kotwal, Patelia, Talpada and Thakor
- ^ People of India: Rajasthan Volume XXXVIII Part Two edited by B. K. Lavania, D. K Samanta, S. K. Mandal & N. N. Vyas pages 743 to 746 Popular Prakashan
Further reading
- The Structure of Indian Society: Then and Now by A. M. Shah
- Routledge Handbook of the Other Backward Classes in India: Thought, Movements and Development by Simhadri Somanaboina, Akhileshwari Ramagoud Taylor & Francis