| Regions with significant populations | |
|---|---|
| India | |
| Languages | |
| Urdu (Dakhani) •Kannada •Marathi | |
| Religion | |
| Islam | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Chhaparband |
TheChhaparband Muslims are a Muslim community inhabiting the states ofKarnataka andMaharashtra in India. They are Muslim converts from theChhaparband community.[citation needed]
The Chhaparband are a community that were historically connected with thatching of roofs, an occupation no longer practiced. In Hindi, the wordchhapar means roof and the Persian suffixband means binder and maker. They claim to have beenRajput soldiers in the armies of theMughal Empire, as said to have originated fromKathiawar andRajasthan. Their conversion to Islam is said to have occurred at the hands aSufi saint Pir Bhai Phir Makhan. The Chhaparband speak theDakhani dialect ofUrdu, and are entirelySunni Muslim. They are found mainly in north westKarnataka, mainly in the districts ofBijapur,Dharwad andBelgaum and the districts ofKolhapur andSholapur inMaharashtra.[1]
The Chhaparband are largely a landless community, with many employed as agricultural labourers or urban daily wage labourers. Apart from this, a significant number are now employed as truck drivers, carpenters, masons, fruit sellers and shop owners. Like other Muslim communities in theDeccan, they have acaste association, the Chhaparband Jamat. Each of their settlement also has an informal communal association known as a panchayat, which acts as an instrument of social control.[1]
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