The Making of Kumaoni Community

Despite Kumaon being an integral part of the Indian mainstream, it has often experienced sociological and historical phenomena which are at variance with those in the rest of the country. This may be because of the distinctive geographical features of the region. In the last 4000 years, Kumaon has given shelter to and is, consequently, an amalgamation of various people who have migrated here from all places.

Kumaon is derived from the word "KURMANCHAL". It means the Land of the “KURM AVTAR", the tortoise incarnation of Lord Vishnu. Lord Vishnu is referred to as the preserver of the Hindu Trinity.As Adi Kailash (also known as Chotta Kailash) is situated in Kumaon Hills, the region has immense importance in Hindu mythology. This is more so since Adi Kailash is one of the three residences of Lord Kailash (Shiva), his wife Goddess Parvati and his sons Lord Ganesh and Lord Kartikey.

From 500 B.C. to 600 A.D, The Kunindas ruled the Kumaon region. Theirs was the first known ruling dynasty of Kumaon region. They reigned for almost 11 centuries at a stretch.

For almost five centuries after their reign ended, the Katyuri kings ruled the Kumaon region. Their rule extended from the 7th to the 11th century, with Baijnath, near Almora, serving as the capital. One of the many contributions of the dynasty was the building of the Sun temple of Katarmal which has seen more than 900 years pass by. It is situated on a hilltop facing eastward exactly opposite the town of Almora.

It is also believed that, in the 16th century, the famous Maratha warrior Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj used shilas or granite stones from the sacred river of Kali Gandki for the famous idol of Pratapgad's Bhavani Devi.

The original inhabitants of Kumaon are said to have been the Kols (also related to the Mund, ethnic group). One of their groups migrated to Kumaon after they had been defeated by the Dravidians. The Shilpkars of Kumaon are said to be the descendants of the Kols. The Kirats are believed to have been the ancestors of the tribes which are today known as Shaukas, Banrajis and Tharus. While the Shaukas were active from the Tarai region to Tibet, the Tharus and Boksas confined themselves to the Tarai, and the Banrajis had always lived in 'splendid' isolation.

Later on, the Khasas came from West Asia and settled down in many parts of Himalaya. A major portion of the population of Kumaon is said to have descended from the Khasas. After an indepth study of the languages, social traditions and customs of Kumaon, scholars have come to the conclusion that before the advent of the Khasas and the Kirats. Kumaon was inhabited by
the Kols. The Kols eventually surrendered to the Khasas. Many ancient texts mention the coming of the Shakas. After the Khasas, who can be called pre - Rigvedic Aryan tribes, the Vedic Aryans also came to Kumaon. However there is another school of thought which believes that migration of Aryans never took place and that Hindus or the Aryans have always been the residents of present day India, Pakistan and Afghanistan, For details visit the site: http://www.gosai.com/chaitanya/saranagati/html/vedic-upanisads/aryan-invasion.html


Chand Dynasty of Pithoragarh is, usually, credited for the building and development of the modern Kumaon. With their capital at Almora, right in the heart of Kumaon, the dynasty ruled in the 17th century AD. It took the Chand rulers two centuries to complete the magnificent temple complex at Jageshwar, near Almora which is dedicated to Lord Shiva. It boasts of amazing architectural beauty throughout the cluster of a hundred and sixty-four temples.

In so far as the CHAND Rajas of Kumaon are concerned, another theory is they were decedents of Jaichand, the last ruler of Kannauj, of the short-lived Gahadvala dynasty,and father of Sanyogita, (whose Swayamvar with Prithviraj Chauhan is a famous episode detailed in the Prithviraj Raso). Her choosing Prithviraj Chauhan at the swayamvara for which he was not even invited enraged her father. This led to a rift between Delhi and Kannauj kingdoms which was shrewdly exploited by Muhammad Ghori. Jaichand is also notorious for having sided with Muhammad Ghori against his son-in-law Prithviraj in the First Battle of Tarain (1191AD). However, Jaichand was not killed by Ghori in the battle of Chandwar (1194 A.D.) He fled to Kumaon Hills with his entourage (his consorts, his concubines, his children and his coterie). His descendants later established a kingdom in Kumaon Hills. They were always fighting to establish their supremacy with the local tribals known as Khasis and eventually they managed to establish a kingdom in Kumaon Hills and later came to be known as 'Chand Rajas'.

After the beginning of the local dynastic history, inhabitants of Kumaon, most of whom were pastoralists, agriculturists and traders, were influenced from the 'savarnas' or higher castes who had come from different parts of India. This migration to Kumaon continued upto very recent times.Today Kumaon, is generally said, to consist of Brahmins, Rajputs and Shilpkars, with the Sahs or Shahs sometimes considered a separate caste. However, in order to be able to understand Kumaon fully, one must mention that it consists of Shaukas, Banrajis, Tharus, Boksas, Shilpkars, 'Savarnas' Gorkhas, Muslims, Bengalis and Punjabis (who came after partition) and Tibetans ( who came after 1960).

The Joshis, Pants and Pandes, Brahmins of Kumaon Hills, trace their roots to the Konkan region of Maharashtra. Most of them migrated to and settled in Kannauj, which was then a centre of Brahmanical influence. Kannauj is frequently referred to in the the epic Mahabharata and is alluded to by Patañjali in the second century B.C. In the 17th / 18th Century they again migrated from Kannauj and settled in the Kumaon hills of the Himalayas. The reasons for migration are lost in History, but it may have occurred because by the early years of the 13th Century Kannauj was incorporated into the Delhi Sultanate and by the 17th Century had lost all its relevance.