The Atishbaz are a Muslim community found in the state Uttar Pradesh in India. They also refer to themselves as Atishbaz Shaikh or sometimes just Shaikh, which is also a common surname. The Uttar Pradesh Atishbaz have been granted Other Backward Class status. A small number are also found in the city of Karachi, SindhPakistan.[2]
The word atishbaz literally means a firework maker, from the Persianatish meaning fire, and baz meaning to play, and the community is said to have acquired the name on account of their traditional occupation, which was the manufacture of fireworks. According to the traditions of the community, they were originally brought over by the Mughals from Central Asia, as their ancestors were specialists in the manufacture of gunpowder. With the decline of the Mughal Empire, the community took to the manufacturing of fireworks. They are found mainly in eastern Uttar Pradesh, in the districts of Mirzapur, Azamgarh, Jaunpur, Basti, Gonda and Varanasi. In Varanasi, they are found in the Kashipura, Aurangabad and Ram Nagar localities. The Atishbaz speak Bhojpuri, although most educated Atishbaz also speak Urdu.[3] A separate grouping of Atishbaz is found in Moradabad and Aligarh districts, where in the city of Aligarh, they occupy the neighbourhood of Atishbazan. These Atishbaz speak Khari boli, as well as Urdu.[4]
Present circumstances
Although the traditional occupation of the Atishbaz was the selling and manufacture of fireworks, the majority are now small to medium-sized farmers, while a larger number are agricultural labourers. In their urban settlements, such as those found in Varanasi, the majority are still involved in their traditional occupation. While the Moradabad and Aligarh Atishbaz are mainly petty businessmen, or involved in the manufacture of locks.[5]
The community live in multi caste and multi religious settlements, but occupy their own distinct quarters. Each settlement has a caste council, known as a panchayat, which acts as an instrument of social control. It deals with intra community disputes, as well as punishing those who breach communal norms. Unlike other Muslim artisan castes in North India, the Atishbaz have not set a formal caste association. However, like other Muslim artisan groups, they are strictly endogamous, preferring to marry close kin. The community are SunniMuslims, and have practices similar to other Uttar Pradesh Muslims.[6]
^People of India Uttar Pradesh Volume XLII Part Two edited by A Hasan & J C Das page 90 to 94 Manohar Publications
^People of India Uttar Pradesh Volume XLII Part Two edited by A Hasan & J C Das page 90 to 94 Manohar Publications
^Tribes and Castes of North Western Provinces and Oudh Volume I by William Crook page 86
^People of India Uttar Pradesh Volume XLII Part Two edited by A Hasan & J C Das page 90 to 94 Manohar Publications
^People of India Uttar Pradesh Volume XLII Part Two edited by A Hasan & J C Das page 90 to 94 Manohar Publications
May 04, 2023
atishbaz, muslim, community, found, state, uttar, pradesh, india, they, also, refer, themselves, shaikh, sometimes, just, shaikh, which, also, common, surname, uttar, pradesh, have, been, granted, other, backward, class, status, small, number, also, found, cit. The Atishbaz are a Muslim community found in the state Uttar Pradesh in India They also refer to themselves as Atishbaz Shaikh or sometimes just Shaikh which is also a common surname The Uttar Pradesh Atishbaz have been granted Other Backward Class status A small number are also found in the city of Karachi Sindh Pakistan 2 AtishbazTotal population3 700 1 Regions with significant populations India PakistanLanguages Urdu HindiReligion Islam 100 Related ethnic groups Shaikh of Uttar Pradesh Contents 1 Origin 2 Present circumstances 3 See also 4 ReferencesOrigin EditThe word atishbaz literally means a firework maker from the Persian atish meaning fire and baz meaning to play and the community is said to have acquired the name on account of their traditional occupation which was the manufacture of fireworks According to the traditions of the community they were originally brought over by the Mughals from Central Asia as their ancestors were specialists in the manufacture of gunpowder With the decline of the Mughal Empire the community took to the manufacturing of fireworks They are found mainly in eastern Uttar Pradesh in the districts of Mirzapur Azamgarh Jaunpur Basti Gonda and Varanasi In Varanasi they are found in the Kashipura Aurangabad and Ram Nagar localities The Atishbaz speak Bhojpuri although most educated Atishbaz also speak Urdu 3 A separate grouping of Atishbaz is found in Moradabad and Aligarh districts where in the city of Aligarh they occupy the neighbourhood of Atishbazan These Atishbaz speak Khari boli as well as Urdu 4 Present circumstances EditAlthough the traditional occupation of the Atishbaz was the selling and manufacture of fireworks the majority are now small to medium sized farmers while a larger number are agricultural labourers In their urban settlements such as those found in Varanasi the majority are still involved in their traditional occupation While the Moradabad and Aligarh Atishbaz are mainly petty businessmen or involved in the manufacture of locks 5 The community live in multi caste and multi religious settlements but occupy their own distinct quarters Each settlement has a caste council known as a panchayat which acts as an instrument of social control It deals with intra community disputes as well as punishing those who breach communal norms Unlike other Muslim artisan castes in North India the Atishbaz have not set a formal caste association However like other Muslim artisan groups they are strictly endogamous preferring to marry close kin The community are Sunni Muslims and have practices similar to other Uttar Pradesh Muslims 6 See also EditMuslims of Uttar PradeshReferences Edit Atishbaz Joshua Project People of India Uttar Pradesh Volume XLII Part Two edited by A Hasan amp J C Das page 90 to 94 Manohar Publications People of India Uttar Pradesh Volume XLII Part Two edited by A Hasan amp J C Das page 90 to 94 Manohar Publications Tribes and Castes of North Western Provinces and Oudh Volume I by William Crook page 86 People of India Uttar Pradesh Volume XLII Part Two edited by A Hasan amp J C Das page 90 to 94 Manohar Publications People of India Uttar Pradesh Volume XLII Part Two edited by A Hasan amp J C Das page 90 to 94 Manohar Publications Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Atishbaz amp oldid 1032438908, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
