Gopal (caste)

Gopal (Gauda)
ClassificationAhir (Yadav)
ReligionsHinduism
LanguagesOdia
Populated statesOdisha
Population431,474 (1901 census)[1]
890,702 (1931 census)[2]
SubdivisionsMathurapuria
Gopapuria
Magadhaa
Related groupsAhir, Sadgope

Gopal or Gouda is an Indian caste,[3][4][5] from Odisha State in East India. Their traditional occupations include dairy farming, cattle herding, cultivation and carrying palanquins of deities.[6][7] They also worked as Paikas (soldiers) under the kings.[8][9] Gopal is the name of the milkmen or herdsmen caste in Odisha, which is known by other names (such as Ahir, Yadav, Goala etc.) in various parts of India.[10][11]

According to 1931 census of India, they are second largest caste by numbers and comprise around 9% of Odisha's population.[12]

  1. ^ Gait, E. A. (1909). Census of India – 1901, Vol- VIA – The lower probinces of Bengal and their Feudatourie (Part II, The Imperial Tables). Bengal Secretariat Press. pp. 212–213.
  2. ^ Lacey, W. g (1932). Bihar and Orissa – Census Of India 1931. Vol. 7. Part II, Tables. p. 137.
  3. ^ Dipti Ray (2007). Prataparudradeva, the Last Great Suryavamsi King of Orissa (A.D. 1497 to A.D. 1540). Northern Book Centre. pp. 90–. ISBN 9788172111953.
  4. ^ Orissa (India) (1966). Orissa District Gazetteers: Cuttack. Superintendent, Orissa Government Press. p. 168.
  5. ^ Nishamani Kar (2002). Animal Husbandry and Rural Development: Restructuring and Planned Development of the Bovine Economy. Deep and Deep Publications. pp. 206–. ISBN 9788176293587.
  6. ^ Rabindra Nath Pati; Jagannatha Dash (2002). Tribal and Indigenous People of India: Problems and Prospects. APH Publishing. pp. 196–. ISBN 978-81-7648-322-3.
  7. ^ Mahapatra, M. (1981). Traditional Structure and Change in an Orissan Temple. Indische Studien. Punthi Pustak. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  8. ^ Akio Tanabe (29 July 2021). Caste and Equality in India: A Historical Anthropology of Diverse Society and Vernacular Democracy. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-00-040933-8.[page needed]
  9. ^ Surajit Sinha; Centre for Studies in Social Sciences (1987). Tribal Polities and State Systems in Pre-colonial Eastern and North Eastern India. Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, Calcutta. ISBN 9788170740148.[page needed]
  10. ^ Rolamba. Joshi Research Institute. 1982.
  11. ^ Kumar Suresh Singh (1993). People of India: Bio-cultural Dimensions : a K.S. Singh Festschrift. Inter-India Publications. ISBN 9788121003254.
  12. ^ Kumar, Sanjay (2004). "JANATA REGIONALIZED: CONTRASTING BASES OF ELECTORAL SUPPORT IN BIHAR AND ORISSA". In Rob Jenkins (ed.). Regional Reflections: Comparing Politics Across India's States (PDF). Delhi: Oxford University Press. p. 6.