 First page of Castes in India as originally published in The Indian Antiquary in May 1917 | |
| Author | B. R. Ambedkar |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Genre | Scholarly paper |
| Publisher | The Indian Antiquary |
Publication date | May 1917 |
| Publication place | India |
| ISBN | 9781982085346 |
| Text | Castes in India: Their Mechanism, Genesis and Development at Wikisource |
Castes in India: Their Mechanism, Genesis and Development was a paper read by B. R. Ambedkar at an anthropological seminar of Alexander Goldenweiser in New York on 9 May 1916. It was later published in volume XLI of Indian Antiquary in May 1917. In the same year, Ambedkar was awarded a PhD degree by Columbia University on this topic.[1] In 1979, the Education Department of the Government of Maharashtra (Bombay) published this article in the collection of Ambedkar's writings and speeches Volume 1; later, it was translated in many languages.
In the paper, Ambedkar made a presentation a social phenomenon that emerged from the strategy of the Brahmins who adopted a strictly endogamous matrimonial regime, leading the other groups to do the same in order to emulate this self-proclaimed elite. He said that "the superposition of endogamy on exogamy means the creation of caste".[2]
- ^ Naik (2003), p. 165.
- ^ Ambedkar (1917), p. 5.