This article is about the specific "Maratha caste".

For the wider group of Marat

hi speakers, see Marathi people.
Maratha
Maratha Solider.jpg
Engraving of a Maratha Soldier by James Forbes, 1813.
Religions Om.svg Hinduism
Languages Marathi ( ????? )
Populated States Major: Maharashtra
Minor: Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh.
The Maratha (IPA: ['m?ra?a]; archaically transliterated as Marhatta or Mahratta)
are found predominantly in the state of Maharashtra. The term Maratha has two r
elated usages: within the Marathi-speaking region it describes the dominant Mara
tha caste; historically, the term describes the Maratha Kingdom founded by Shiva
ji in the seventeenth century and continued by his successors.[1]
The Marathas primarily reside in the Indian states of Maharashtra, Madhya Prades
h, Gujarat, Karnataka and Goa. Those in Goa and neighbouring Karwar are known sp
ecifically as Konkan Marathas as an affiliation to their regional and linguistic
alignment.[2]
Contents [hide]
1 Etymology
2 Varna status
3 Maratha clans
4 History
4.1 Before Shivaji
4.2 Maratha Empire
5 Maratha dynasties and states
6 Internal diaspora
7 Political participation
8 Military service
9 See also
10 References
11 Further reading
Etymology[edit]
Maharashtra (in red) is the homeland for most of the Maratha people.
The modern Marathi language developed from the Prakrit known as Maharashtri.[3]
The words Maratha and Marathi may be a derivative of the Prakrit Marhatta found
in Jain Maharashtri literature.
The generally accepted theory among the scholars is that the words Maratha and M
aharashtra ultimately derive from a compound of Maha (Sanskrit for "great") and
rashtrika.[4] The word rashtrika is a Sanskritized form of Ratta, the name of a
tribe or a dynasty of petty chiefs ruling in the Deccan region.[5] Another theor
y is that the term is derived from Maha ("great") and rathi or ratha (charioteer
).[5]
An alternative theory states that the term derives from the words Maha ("Great")
and Rashtra ("nation/dominion").[citation needed]
Varna status[edit]
The varna of the Maratha is a contested issue, with arguments for their being of
the Kshatriya (warrior) varna, and others for their being of peasant origins. T
his issue was the subject of antagonism between the Brahmins and Marathas, datin
g back to the time of Shivaji, but by the late 19th century moderate Brahmins we
re keen to ally with the influential Marathas of Bombay in the interests of Indi
an independence from Britain. These Brahmins supported the Maratha claim to Ksha
triya status, and the legend of Shivaji, but their success in this political all
iance was sporadic, and fell apart entirely following independence in 1947.[6]