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Bania
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Bania

Indian caste
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Also known as: Baniya
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Also spelled:
Baniya
Related Topics:
caste
Vaishya
Agarwālā
See all related content

Bania, (from Sanskrit vāṇijya, “trade”), Indian caste consisting generally of moneylenders or merchants, found chiefly in northern and western India; strictly speaking, however, many mercantile communities are not Banias, and, conversely, some Banias are not merchants. In the fourfold division of Indian society, the innumerable Bania subcastes, such as the Agarwala, are classed as members of the Vaishya, or commoner, class. In religious affiliation they are generally Vaishnavas (worshippers of the Hindu god Vishnu) or Jainas and tend to be strict vegetarians, teetotallers, and orthodox in observing ceremonial purity. The Indian leader Mohandas Gandhi belonged to a Gujarati Bania caste.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Amy Tikkanen.