RAJPUT, the generic term for a number of castes, which gives Rajputana (q.v.) its name, and is widely spread over the rest of northern India. Claiming to have replaced the ancient Kshattriyas (q.v.), the Rajputs are a dominant, fighting, land owning class. Of Indo-Aryan type, they have been also recruited from earlier ethnic elements which rose to power and from in vading races, notably the Huns. As a body they are physically robust, brave and chivalrous, cherishing the feudal spirit and traditions. Pride of birth makes them punctilious in questions of honour, but poor cultivators when in reduced circumstances. They still hold somewhat aloof from the civil professions, re garding military service as their proper metier. Rajput history is a bardic adaptation of myth to courtly adulation. It asserts that to their two original races, the Solar and the Lunar, were added four, the Agnikula,"Fire-sprung," purified by Brahmans in the great agnikunda, "fire-pit" on Mt. Abu to fight the Daityas, "Titans." Being interpreted, this must mean that the four clans were Brahmanised, or Hinduised, to suppress some anti Brahmanical people or foreign foes. The four were the Chalukya,
modern Solanki, a Sanskritized patronymic of Chalkya, a dynasty in the Deccan, but immigrant from Kashmir and probably Gur jara by race : the Pratihara, now Parihar, "durward," known to be Gurjaras: the Pramara, now Panwar; and Chahamana, now Chauhan. These became eponyms of leading Rajput tribes, and the legend traced their origin to Rudra, Brahma, Indra and Vishnu. Folketymology also derived Chahamana from Chatur bhuja, "four-armed." From these, by some incoherent process, were derived 36 "royal races," never the same in any two versions of their names, but in some including the Jat, Hun, Ahir and Bar Gajar clans. To these must be added clans like Chandel, doubt less of Gond origin. Below them were ranged the 84 mercantile tribes, chiefly of Rajput origin, in whom we may see the Bhatias and recall the ancient Vaisyas.