The Sansi or Sansis are a nomadic tribe, originally located in the Rajasthan area of northwestern India, but expelled in the 13th century by Muslim invaders and now spread to the states of Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab as well as scattered throughout India. They are often confused with other ethnic groups called Sansi, as Sansi is a widespread name in South Asia.Tribes of India By T. Baldizzone, Local Colour LtdJournal of Social Research By Council of Social and Cultural Research (Bihar, India), Ranchi University Dept. of Anthropology
History and origin
The Sansis were considered the most prominent criminal tribe in Punjab, with an estimated population of 25,800 in 1912. The British believed other tribes, such as the Baurias and Harnis, were offshoots of the Sansis, who claimed to have originated from Rajput ancestry. Despite acknowledging their ancestry, the British constantly emphasised the Sansis' "degraded" status through stereotypical descriptions. Their religion, primarily a form of Hinduism, was considered primitive, mixed, and debased. After the Criminal Tribes Act was imposed, the Sansi were labelled down to a very pitiful position.
Language Their language is Sansiboli, or Bhilki too that is a highly endangered Indo-Aryan language of the Central group; total speakers in India number 60,000 (2002) and in Pakistan 20,000.Ethnologue.com: Ethnologue report for SansiLanguage in India: Endangered Language: A Case Study of Sansiboli Their traditional occupations vary, from trading to farming.
History During British rule in India they were placed under the Criminal Tribes Act 1871, hence stigmatized for a long time,Punjab - Police and Jails The Imperial Gazetteer of India, 1908, v. 20, p. 363. after independence, however, they were denotified in 1952.Bania Arrested for Spying by Dilip D'Souza. Rediff.com, 18 January 2003 As the Sansiya, they were recorded in Uttar Pradesh in the 2011 Census of India. There they were a Scheduled Caste, with a population of 5689.
Demographics + Sansi in Punjab by Districts (2011)Districts2011 India censusSansi Caste PopulationAmritsar 19,237 Barnala 2,159 Bathinda 2,232 Faridkot 1,647 Fatehgarh Sahib 2,015 Firozpur 10,376 Gurdaspur 18,248 Hoshiarpur 2,731 Jalandhar 9,904 Kapurthala 2,056 Ludhiana 11,180 Mansa 1,131 Moga 1,382 Sri Muktsar Sahib 2,982 Patiala 5,743 Rupnagar 391 Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar 1600 Sangrur 7,701 Nawanshahr 1,952 Tarn Taran 17,534
Further reading
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