Golla (caste)

The Golla are a Telugu-speaking pastoral community primarily living in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana with smaller numbers in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. They are related to other pastoral-herding castes like Gulla, Gullar (in Karnataka), Gollewar, Gavli and Dhangar (in the Marathwada area of Maharashtra State) and are a part of the larger Yadav community. They are classified as a Backward Caste. Gollas are traditionally cowherds, but they engage in both sheep/goat and cattle pastoralism, in that they either herd exclusively sheep, a mixed herd of sheep and goats, or cattle. One etymology for Golla name comes from the Sanskrit "Gopala", which in North India passed through Prakrit "Gwala". Several other variants of the name exist in South India, in such forms as Gollavaru, Godlavaru, etc. There are many synonyms by which they are referred to within their community, namely Kadugolla, Oorugolla, Adivigolla, Handigolla and Gopala. Others refer to them only as Golla or Gollaru. The Gollas also call themselves Yadava. In the early 1920s, castes such as Ahir, Gavli, Golla, Gopa and Goala, which were traditionally engaged in cattle-related occupations, started referring to themselves as Yadav/Yadava. They claimed that they were related to the Abhiras and Yadavas of the Puranas, which were held to be synonymous and associated with Lord Krishna, a cowherd. The community, due to its size, has a great number of sub-castes, including: Yerra, Mushti, Masaram, Karine, Pakinati, Puja, Modateetta, Nallasadana, Gujarathi, Gampa, Peyya, Veyya, Kuruma and Sidda. The Kannada-speaking Hanabaru or Krishna Golla are also considered to be a sub-caste. The Gollas trace their genealogical links with the Yadavas. In the context of Puranic Yadava lineages, attention was drawn (Romila Thapar 1978) to a South Indian tradition, according to which eighteen Yadava (Velir) clans are believed to have migrated from the North to the Deccan around 800 B.C. under the leadership of Agastya. Then some of the medieval dynasties (c. 1200 A.D.