| Regions with significant populations | |
|---|---|
 India and Pakistan | |
| Languages | |
| Religion | |
 Islam | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Rajputs and otherIndo-Aryan peoples |
Muslim Rajputs orMusalman Rajpoots are the descendants ofRajputs in the northern regions of theIndian subcontinent who generally are followers of Islam.[1] They converted from Hinduism to Islam from themedieval period onwards, creating various dynasties and states while retaining Hindu surnames such asChauhan.[2][3][4] Today, Muslim Rajputs can be found mostly in present-day Northern India andPakistan.[5] They are further divided into different clans.[6]
The termRajput is traditionally applied to the originalSuryavanshi,Chandravanshi andAgnivanshi clans, who claimed to beKshatriya in the Hinduvarna system.[citation needed]
Upon their conversion fromHinduism to Islam, many Muslim Rajputs maintained many of their Hindu customs, and hence retained theirCultural Hindu identity.[2] Muslim Rajputs also often retained common social practices, such aspurdah (seclusion of women), with Hindu Rajputs.[5]
Despite the difference in religious faith, where the question has arisen of common Rajput honour, there have been instances where both Muslim and Hindu Rajputs have united together against threats from external ethnic groups.[7][weasel words]
There are recorded instances of recent conversions of Rajputs to Islam in WesternUttar Pradesh, Khurja tahsil ofBulandshahr.[8]
The Kharagpur Raj was a MuslimKindwar Rajput chieftaincy in modern-dayMunger district ofBihar.[9][10]Raja Sangram Singh led a rebellion against theMughal authorities and was subsequently defeated and executed. His son, Toral Mal, was made to convert to Islam and renamed asRoz Afzun. Roz Afzun was a loyal Commander to the EmperorsJahangir andShah Jahan and Jahangir referred to him as his "favourite" commander in the empire.[11] Another prominent chieftain of this dynasty was Tahawar Singh who played an active role in the Mughal expedition against the nearbyCheros ofPalamu.[12]
In 1339Jam Unar founded a SindhiMuslim RajputSamma dynasty[13] and challenged theSultans of Delhi.
Mewat was a kingdom inRajputana with its capital atAlwar ruled by aKhanzadaMewati Rajput dynasty during the period of theDelhi Sultanate inIndia.Raja Hassan Khan Mewati was represented theMeo Khanzada inBattle of Khanwa.[14]Mewat was covered over a wide area, it includedHathin tehsil,Nuh district,Tijara,Gurgaon,Kishangarh Bas, Ramgarh, Laxmangarh TehsilsAravalli Range inAlwar district and Pahari, Nagar, Kaman tehsils inBharatpur district ofRajasthan and also some part ofMathura district of Uttar Pradesh. The last ruler of Mewat,Hasan Khan Mewati was killed in thebattle of Khanwa against the Mughal emperor Babur. TheMeo Khanzadas were descended from HinduYadu Rajputs.[15][14][6]
TheLalkhanis are a Muslim Rajput community and a sub-clan of theBargujars. They were theNawabs of various estates in WesternUttar Pradesh. These includedChhatari and neighbouring regions including parts ofAligarh andBulandshahr.[16]
The Langah Sultanate was akingdom which emerged after the decline ofDelhi Sultanate in thePunjab region. The capital of the Sultanate was the city ofMultan in southPunjab. The founding Langah tribe is said to have Muslim Rajput origin.[17][18]
After the decline ofHabbari dynasty, the Abbasid Caliphate then appointedAl Khafif fromSamarra; 'Soomro' means 'of Samarra' in Sindhi. The new governor of Sindh was to create a better, stronger and stable government. Once he became the governor, he allotted several key positions to his family and friends; thus Al-Khafif or Sardar Khafif Soomro formed theSoomro Dynasty in Sindh;[19] and became its first ruler. Until theSiege of Baghdad (1258) the Soomro dynasty was the Abbasid Caliphate's functionary in Sindh, but after that it became independent. TheSoomros were first native Muslim dynasty in Sindh with probableParmarRajput origin.[20] Along with Rajput origins, the Soomros also claimedArab ancestry.[21][22]
TheQaimkhanis were a Muslim Rajput dynasty who were notable for ruling theFatehpur-Jhunjhunu region inRajasthan from the 1300s to the 1700s.[23][24] They were descended from Hindu Chauhan Rajputs, though as also stated by the historian Dirk Kolff the Qaimkhani haveTurkic origins.[25]
TheMayi clan were the chieftains of the Narhat-Samai (Hisua) chieftaincy in modern-dayNawada district in SouthBihar. The founder of the Mayi clan was Nuraon Khan who arrived in Bihar in the 17th century. His descendants were Azmeri and Deyanut who were granted zamindari rights over six parganas by the Mughal authorities. Deyanut's son was Kamgar Khan who expanded his land by attacking and plundering neighbouring zamindars. Kamgar Khan also led numerous revolts against the Mughals and attempted to assert the Mayi's independence. His descendant was Iqbal Ali Khan who took part in the1781 revolt in Bihar against the British however his revolt failed and Mayi's lost much of their land.[26]
Rajput communities began settling inBengal during the Sultanate period where they were given high ranks in the Bengal government. One notable example is of Bhagirath ofAyodhya, who belonged to the HinduBais clan, who was appointed as theDewan of SultanGhiyasuddin Mahmud Shah.[citation needed] His son, Kalidas Gajdani embracedSunni Islam through the guidance ofIbrahim Danishmand and became known as Sulaiman Khan. Bhagirath's grandson,Isa Khan, grew to become the chief of Bengal'sBaro-Bhuiyan confederacy which posed as a threat to theMughals who wanted to conquer Bengal.[27] Thediwans ofMymensingh andDhaka during the 19th-century were said to be the descendants of Muslim Rajputs.[28]
Another Bengali Rajput community are theGhosi, who can predominantly be found in the24 Parganas andMidnapore districts, particularly near the towns ofBarrackpur andKharagpur. They migrated to Bengal fromKanpur five centuries ago and are descended from Amar Singh Rathore, a Rajput nobleman fromJhansi who converted toIslam. They are divided into several clans; Rathore, Dogar, Chauhan, Khelari, Tatar, Lehar, Nahar and Maidul.[29][need quotation to verify]
In thePunjab province ofBritish India, comprisingPunjab and some parts ofKhyber Pakhtunkhwa in modern Pakistan as wellPunjab,Haryana,Chandigarh,Delhi, and some parts ofHimachal Pradesh in modern India, in 1921, 70.7% of the Punjabi Rajputs wereMuslims while 27.7% were Hindus, with the highest percentage of Rajputs found inRawalpindi, with 21%.[30]
In 2008, it was estimated that the Rajput population in Pakistan stood at 15 million, with around 9 million inPunjab, nearly 5 million inSindh, followed by 643,000 inAzad Kashmir, 223,000 inIslamabad, 174,000 inKhyber Pakhtunkhwa and 37,000 inBalochistan.[31]
In Pakistan's Punjab province, the Rajputs are dominant in thePotohar plateau through its politics and military.[32]
As per the2017 Pakistan census, Rajputs numbered around 5% ofLahore's population, their population amounting to some 550,000 individuals out of Lahore's total population of around 11 million.[33]
In India'sUttar Pradesh, many Rajput communities have embraced Islam, such as theBais or theGautam, the Gautamanas or GautamThakurs as they like to call themselves being the largest such group in theFatehpur district, where they number around 100,000.[34]
Large communities converted to Islam from among Hindus carried with them Hindu customs and usages, and often passed them on to other Muslims. Many Rajput converts even retained their family names, such as Chauhan and Rajput.
The next in status are a few higher caste Hindu converts to Islam, particularly the Rajputs
The latter may be subdivided into three distinct groups: converts from Hindu high castes such as Muslim Rajputs, converts from clean occupational castes such as Julahas and Qassabs, and converts from unclean occupational castes such as Bhangis and Chamars.
It was the conquest of Kutch by the Sindhi tribe of Sama Rajputs that marked the emergence of Kutch as a separate kingdom in the 14th century.
Under the shadow of Rajput Langah dynasty of Multan...
Meanwhile the Langah Rajputs had established themselves on the throne of Multan...
But as many kings of the dynasty bore Hindu names, it is almost certain that the Soomras were of local origin. Sometimes they are connected with Paramara Rajputs, but of this there is no definite proof.
The Sumras were a dynasty of local origin, later claiming to be Rajputs as well as Arabs, and are clearly distinguishable from the pastoral-nomadic Jats or Mids.
Rajputs are dominant in northern Punjab, where Abbasi's constituency is located, followed by Jats in central and Balochs in the province's south.