A History of the Mahrattas v1.c5.s3.13

v1.c5.s3.13

The problem of the origin of the people who are known as Marāthās has been obscured by the varying use of that term. Grant Duff, for example, applies the term to individuals like Tānājī Mālusrē, and to groups like the Hetkaris who were certainly not Marāthās in the strict caste-sense of that word, as it is used to-day. His use of the term, however, as well as such expressions as Marāthā Brahmans, by which some writers have denoted the Konkanasth or Chitpāvan sect, can be justified if one accepts the view that the word Marāthā, as suggested above, meant originally nothing more than a person dwelling in Mahārāṣṭra or using Marāthī as his home tongue. The gradual development of a Marāthā caste out of the old tribal elements of Mahārāṣṭra during the last two centuries or more necessitates an attempt to determine, so far as may be possible, the origin of the people who now describe themselves as Marāthās and claim communal representation as a distinct caste or community under the new franchise arrangements contemplated by the Government of India Bill of 1919.