Vedic Index of Names and Subjects v1.c3.s11.1079

v1.c3.s11.1079

The evidence of the Jātakas¹ points to the word Khattiya denoting the members of the old Āryan nobility who had led the tribes to conquest, as well as those families of the aborigines who had managed to maintain their princely status in spite of the conquest. In the epic² also the term Kṣatriya seems to include these persons, but it has probably a wider signification than Khattiya, and would cover all the royal military vassals and feudal chiefs, expressing, in fact, pretty much the same as the *barones* of early English history. Neither in the Jātakas³ nor in the epic⁴ is the term co-extensive with all warriors; the army contains many besides the Kṣatriyas, who are the leaders or officers, rather than the rank and file.