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Concept
Saurashtra people
Summary
The Saurashtra people, or Saurashtrians, are an Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic Gujarati Hindu Brahmin community of South India who speak the Saurashtra language, an Indo-Aryan Gujarati language, and predominantly reside in the Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.
Saurashtrians trace their ancestry to the historical region of Saurashtra in Western India. Their migration to Southern India owes to the forays and desecration of the Somnath temple triggered by the frequent Muslim invasions, most notably by Mahmud Ghazni. They are known for their expertise in traditional vedic practices and rituals. Apart from being priests and scholars, they are also been involved in various professions such as agriculture, trade, and business and were a prominent industrious and prosperous mercantile community of merchants and weavers in southern India until the 20th century. They have contributed to the cultural and social fabric of Tamil Nadu in many ways and have continued to maintain their distinct identity over the centuries.
Saurashtrians are Brahmins, and are also referred to as Saurashtra Brahmins. Further, like all traditional orthodox Brahmins, they are classified based on their gotra, or patrilineal descent. The majority of the people are Vaishnavas, though there is a significant proportion of Shaivas as well. They are prominently known by their unique family names and also use the titles Sharma, Rao, Iyer, Iyengar and Achary as their surnames but belong to linguistic minorities.
Their name has many alternate spellings, including Sourashtra, Sowrashtra, Sowrastra and Sourashtri. Saurashtrians are colloquially called as Palkar among themselves. They have also been known as Patnūlkarar, but the term is obsolete.
The word Saurashtra literally means "a good state". It is derived from Su meaning good, Rashtra meaning state and the other compound of Saura and Rashtra, meaning "the land of the Sun". These people were once sun worshipers and have built sun temples.
Official source
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