gujarati

Gujarati people (Gujarati: ગુજરાતી લોકો Gujǎrātī loko^?), or Gujaratis, is an umbrella term used to describe traditionally Gujarati-speaking Indo-Aryan people who can trace their ancestry to the state of Gujarat in India.

Gujaratis in India

Main article: Demographics of India

The Gujarati people live in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, in the state of Gujarat. Many Gujaratis inhabit the states Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh of India as well as the former Portuguese-ruled territories of Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli. Additionally, the Gujarati language has been adopted by communities such as the Kacchis, who use it as their literary language,^[3] and the Parsis, who had made the Gujarat region of the Indian subcontinent their home. Ahmedabad and Vadodara are the cultural capitals of Gujarat.

In terms of ancestry, the majority of Gujaratis share many similar genes with other northern Indian populations, but also show a significant relationship with west Eurasian groups. A 2004 Stanford study conducted with a wide sampling from India, found that over 33% of genetic markers in Gujarat were of West Asian origin, the second highest amongst the sampled group of South Asians with only the Punjabis peaking at 42%.

Furthermore In India, haplogroup U7, not found in Eurasia, frequency peaks at over 12% in Gujarat, in the westernmost state of India, while for the whole of India its frequency stays around 2%. Outside of Gujarat, Haplogroup U7 is only found at over 10% in Iran. Expansion times and haplotype diversities for the Indian and Near and Middle Eastern U7 mtDNAs are strikingly similar (Table 4). The possible homeland of this haplogroup spans likely in Gujarat and Iran because from there its frequency declines steeply both to the east and to the west. If the origin were in Iran rather than in India, then its equally high frequency as well as diversity in Gujarat favors a scenario whereby U7 has been introduced to the coastal Gujarat either very early, or by multiple founders. ^[4]

Some preliminary conclusions from these varying tests support a largely north Indian genetic base for most Gujaratis accompanied by some of the highest degrees of west Asian admixture found in India & Pakistan, with a particular close relationship between Iran and Gujarat, supporting a theory of likely trade contact and migrations out of Iran into Gujarat. ^[5]

Gujaratis in Pakistan

Main article: Demographics of Pakistan

There is also significant community of Gujaratis in neighbouring Pakistan, many have been settled in Sindh for generations. A sizable number migrated after the Partition of India and subsequent creation of independent Pakistan in 1947. These Pakistani Gujaratis belong mainly to the Khoja Bohra, Charotar Sunni Vohra and Memon groups; however, many Gujaratis are also a part of Pakistan's small but vibrant Hindu community. Many Gujaratis in Pakistan retain ties to their relatives in Gujarat, and maintain Gujarati as their native language. However, a growing number are adopting Urdu as their native tongue.

Gujarati diaspora

Significant migrant Gujarati communities exist around the world. The largest expatriate Gujarati population is the former "British East African Asian" community in the United Kingdom. Other major Gujarati communities exist in South and East Africa (most notably Tanzania, Uganda, South Africa, Mozambique - a substantial number of Gujaratis from this former Portuguese colony settled in Portugal after its independence) and South-East Asia (Myanmar, Malaysia). Many Gujaratis live in the United States also.