History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v2.c19.137

v2.c19.137

Manu X. 22 gives seven names for the same caste and Manu X. 23 gives five for another. Viśvarūpa on Yāj. I. 92 explains that these different names are due to difference of locality.¹⁴⁰ There is another difficulty. The same name given to a caste is differently derived by different writers (vide under niṣāda and pāraśava below). For the same sub-caste different names are given in different smṛtis (vide under kṛta and rāmaka). It became difficult to assign any peculiar derivation for groups of people and so Manu (X. 40), Vasiṣṭha¹⁴¹ (18.7) and Anuśāsanaparva 148. 29 laid down that men's sub-caste was to be known from their actions and occupations. This shows that according to most writers castes in the times of the smṛtis were predominantly occupational.