The Bakarwals of Jammu and Kashmir and their changing marriage rituals
Abstract The Bakarwals of Jammu and Kashmir are a nomadic pastoral group, notified as a Scheduled Tribe (ST), under the Jammu and Kashmir Scheduled Tribes Act, 1991. Ensuing from ethnographic fieldwork conducted with the Bakarwals in the Jammu and Kashmir region, this paper argues that the tradition...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2023-01-01
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| Series: | Pastoralism |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13570-022-00264-2 |
| _version_ | 1797283679308873728 |
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| author | Sajad Ahmad Dar |
| author_facet | Sajad Ahmad Dar |
| author_sort | Sajad Ahmad Dar |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract The Bakarwals of Jammu and Kashmir are a nomadic pastoral group, notified as a Scheduled Tribe (ST), under the Jammu and Kashmir Scheduled Tribes Act, 1991. Ensuing from ethnographic fieldwork conducted with the Bakarwals in the Jammu and Kashmir region, this paper argues that the traditional marriage practices of the Bakarwals have transformed in the contemporary times with respect to the various processes associated with globalization and the increasing access to the new facilities of mobility. The cultural transactions resulting as a part of liberalization and globalization have led the Bakarwals to associate with modern traditions, rituals and customs, which are essentially non-Bakarwal patterns of life. This paper highlights the new patterns and meanings adopted by the Bakarwals of Kashmir as a mode of their new existence. The exposure to new variants of contemporary culture and shrinking pastures have made many Bakarwals to give up their traditional occupation of rearing livestock —an occupation once seen as sacred. Many of the Bakarwals have started practising agricultural farming, while few have started working as labourers and others have started taking “modern” occupations like driving. In marriages too, the Bakarwals are seen to follow the traditions and rituals followed by the non-Bakarwal groups. The Bakarwals used to have their own traditions, customs and rituals in marriages which were not seen in other non-Bakarwal groups. However, in contemporary times, the Bakarwals are avoiding these ancestral traditions, rituals and customs. This paper is an attempt to document the changes in the marriage practices and rituals, which were once cherished by the Bakarwals but now seem on the verge of extinction. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T17:35:19Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-aab7c77eab0b4e4ab83c518e31c3a3b6 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2041-7136 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T17:35:19Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Pastoralism |
| spelling | doaj.art-aab7c77eab0b4e4ab83c518e31c3a3b62024-03-02T17:07:31ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Pastoralism2041-71362023-01-011311810.1186/s13570-022-00264-2The Bakarwals of Jammu and Kashmir and their changing marriage ritualsSajad Ahmad Dar0National Institute of Educational Planning and AdministrationAbstract The Bakarwals of Jammu and Kashmir are a nomadic pastoral group, notified as a Scheduled Tribe (ST), under the Jammu and Kashmir Scheduled Tribes Act, 1991. Ensuing from ethnographic fieldwork conducted with the Bakarwals in the Jammu and Kashmir region, this paper argues that the traditional marriage practices of the Bakarwals have transformed in the contemporary times with respect to the various processes associated with globalization and the increasing access to the new facilities of mobility. The cultural transactions resulting as a part of liberalization and globalization have led the Bakarwals to associate with modern traditions, rituals and customs, which are essentially non-Bakarwal patterns of life. This paper highlights the new patterns and meanings adopted by the Bakarwals of Kashmir as a mode of their new existence. The exposure to new variants of contemporary culture and shrinking pastures have made many Bakarwals to give up their traditional occupation of rearing livestock —an occupation once seen as sacred. Many of the Bakarwals have started practising agricultural farming, while few have started working as labourers and others have started taking “modern” occupations like driving. In marriages too, the Bakarwals are seen to follow the traditions and rituals followed by the non-Bakarwal groups. The Bakarwals used to have their own traditions, customs and rituals in marriages which were not seen in other non-Bakarwal groups. However, in contemporary times, the Bakarwals are avoiding these ancestral traditions, rituals and customs. This paper is an attempt to document the changes in the marriage practices and rituals, which were once cherished by the Bakarwals but now seem on the verge of extinction.https://doi.org/10.1186/s13570-022-00264-2CattleIndiaExtinctionModernity |
| spellingShingle | Sajad Ahmad Dar The Bakarwals of Jammu and Kashmir and their changing marriage rituals Pastoralism Cattle India Extinction Modernity |
| title | The Bakarwals of Jammu and Kashmir and their changing marriage rituals |
| title_full | The Bakarwals of Jammu and Kashmir and their changing marriage rituals |
| title_fullStr | The Bakarwals of Jammu and Kashmir and their changing marriage rituals |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Bakarwals of Jammu and Kashmir and their changing marriage rituals |
| title_short | The Bakarwals of Jammu and Kashmir and their changing marriage rituals |
| title_sort | bakarwals of jammu and kashmir and their changing marriage rituals |
| topic | Cattle India Extinction Modernity |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13570-022-00264-2 |
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