Tuesday, September 20, 2005

The origin of Bajwa

Bajwa is a word derived from arabic words and means "clan of the hawk," and is a common last name amongst both Sikhs and Muslims, especially in the Punjab province of Pakistan.

From a Sikh Point of View: >Bajwa is the subcaste of Jatts who lived in Punjab.This caste is called the bravest caste of Jatts. Their founder was called Wajab. They are descendents of Sun god. Bajwa Jatts have resemblance with Bajju Rajputs. Their customs are also similar. Their ancestor was Baba Manga. They originated from Bajwat in the foothills of Jammu in the district of Sialkot.

> They take their newly wed brides to the Samadh of Baba Manga to pay obeisance. Baba Manga is worshipped. Like other Jatt Clans, they also give a cut to the tree of Jand. Baba Manga had seven sons. The eldest Naro established Narowal village, Deepa founded Kotli Bajwa and Chandu founded Chanduwal.

> The founder of Bajwa Clan, Bajwat used to live at Jaisalmer in Rajsashan. From there, they reached to Sialkot and Gujjranwala. One of its ancestors became ruler of Multan. Raja Shlip of this clan was ousted from Miltan by Alexander Lodhi. Raja Shlip had two sons named Kala and Lis. Both used to tend eagles.

> Lis migrated to Jammu. There he married to a Rajput girl. His descendents were called Rajput Bajju Kala married to a Jatt girl and settled in Paasroor area. Through marriage, Kala merged in the Jatt community. Kala’s descendents came to be known as Bajwa Jatts. Thus, background of Bajju Rajputs and Bajwa Jatts is same. Bajwa Jatts and Bajju Rajput, both are settled in Bajawat region of Jammu.

> Another legend is that their ancestor Rai Jaison was forced to leave Delhi by Rai Pithora (Prithvi Raj Chauhan). At one time Bajwa Jatts had 84 villages in Sialkot area. "