 | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
|---|---|
| Languages | |
| Urdu,Punjabi,Bangla Persian (formerly) | |
| Religion | |
| Islam | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Pakistani people,Indian people andBangladeshi people |
TheMughals (also spelledMoghul orMogul) is aMuslimcorporate group from modern-dayNorth India,Pakistan andBangladesh.[1] They claim to have descended from the various Central AsianMongolic,[2][3] andTurkic peoples that had historically settled in theMughal India and mixed with the native Indian population.[1] The termMughal (orMoghul in Persian) literally means Mongol.[4]
In Pakistan, Mughal people are mostly settled in the provinces of Azad Kashmir,Punjab andKhyber Pakhtunkhwa.[1]They use surnames like Mirza, Baig, Khan, Chughtai, Barlas and Sardar.
The Mughals commonly use "Mirza" as their surname.[5] They are also sometimes referred to as Chughtais or Chagatai Türks named after Chagatai Turkic language spoken by the Barlas and other Central Asian tribes.
The Sambhal, who claim Turkic descent, identify as a Biradari, literally translating to "brotherhood", which is the word used for a social unit based on kinship such as tribe or clan.[6] The chief of the Biradari is the "Sardar", who is usually an elder man annually elected as the greatest man in the Biradari. Decisions on important matters are taken only after consulting the Biradari, and once taken binding on every member.[7]
The community had traditionally served as soldiers in the armies of the various Indo-Muslim dynasties which ruled theIndian subcontinent. They were and still are a community of small to medium-sized farmers. A good many are also traders. Like otherGujarati Muslims, they have a caste association known as the Jamat, which acts both as a welfare organization and an instrument of social control.[8] In North India, the term Mughal refers as Gürkani orTimurids.