Caste: evolution through history and theories of origin

Sociology - Indian Society Continuity and Change · Unit IV · Topic 12 of 16 · 4 min read

Meaning of caste and varna, the development of caste from the Vedic period to independent India, and the traditional, racial, occupational, political and other theories of its origin.

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1. Caste and varna
2. Evolution of caste through different periods
3. Theories of origin
How this is examined

Cases checked to exist. Read the judgment before quoting a holding.

Every case cited here has been checked to exist — the citation resolves and names the right parties. The propositions attributed to each case have not been verified line by line against the judgment. Case names link through to the full judgment: read it before quoting a holding in an examination answer, and never carry a proposition from notes into court on trust.

The examinable core. Two syllabus heads: the evolution of caste through different periods, and the theories of its origin. A theories question needs each theory with its author, the argument, and one line of criticism; the conclusion should say no single theory is sufficient.

1. Caste and varna

The word caste comes from the Portuguese casta (breed, race). Two Indian ideas lie behind it:

Varna: the fourfold scheme of Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya and Shudra, found in the texts; an all-India model of rank.
Jati: the actual endogamous, hereditary, local groups, numbering in thousands, which are ranked in practice.

H.H. Risley defined caste as a collection of families bearing a common name, claiming common descent from a mythical ancestor, professing to follow the same hereditary calling, and regarded as forming a single homogeneous community. A.L. Kroeber: an endogamous and hereditary subdivision of an ethnic unit occupying a position of superior or inferior rank.

2. Evolution of caste through different periods

Rig Vedic period. Society divided into Aryas and Dasas; three classes of priests, warriors and commoners; the Purusha Sukta (Rig Veda, Book X) describing four varnas springing from the mouth, arms, thighs and feet of the cosmic being is generally considered a late hymn. Varna was not yet rigid; occupations could change.
Later Vedic period. The four varnas became established; Brahmins rose through ritual; the Shudras were assigned service; ideas of purity grew.
Age of the Dharmashastras (Manusmriti and later). Rules of marriage, food and occupation laid down; the theory of mixed castes (varnasankara) explained the multiplication of jatis; untouchability (the Chandala) appears clearly.
Buddhist and Jain challenge. Rejection of Brahmin superiority by birth, though caste persisted among lay followers.
Medieval period. Jatis multiplied with occupational specialisation; the bhakti saints (Kabir, Ravidas, Basavanna in Karnataka) opposed caste; converts to Islam carried caste with them.
British period. The census, especially Risley’s 1901 Census, ranked castes and so made them more self-conscious; caste associations and petitions for higher rank followed. Social reform and non-Brahmin movements (Jyotirao Phule’s Satyashodhak Samaj, 1873; the Justice Party; Periyar) began.
Independent India. Untouchability abolished (Article 17); reservation; caste weakened in ritual and occupation but grew stronger as a political group.

3. Theories of origin

(a) Traditional (divine) theory

The varnas were created by Brahma from parts of the Purusha: the Brahmin from the mouth, the Kshatriya from the arms, the Vaishya from the thighs, the Shudra from the feet (Purusha Sukta; repeated in Manusmriti). The Gita adds that the four varnas were created according to guna and karma. Criticism: explains varna, not the thousands of jatis; a religious justification, not a historical account.

(b) Racial theory

H.H. Risley (The People of India, 1908): caste arose from contact between the fair-skinned Indo-Aryans and the darker indigenous people. The Sanskrit word for varna also means colour. Ranking followed nasal index: the finer the nose, the higher the caste. G.S. Ghurye accepted a partial racial element in the north. Criticism: no caste is racially pure; the nasal index is unscientific; caste exists among groups of the same race.

(c) Occupational theory

J.C. Nesfield (1885): function and function alone is responsible for the origin of caste. Occupations of different prestige became hereditary, and the groups following them became castes. Castes following “clean” or skilled work ranked higher. Criticism: occupations exist everywhere without producing caste; it does not explain endogamy or untouchability.

(d) Political theory

Abbé J.A. Dubois, a French missionary (early 19th century): caste was a clever device invented by the Brahmins to keep themselves at the top and the others in subordination. Criticism: no single group could impose so complex a system on a whole society; the Brahmins themselves were divided.

(e) Other theories

Mana theory (J.H. Hutton, Caste in India, 1946): tribal beliefs in mana (an impersonal supernatural power) and taboo created fear of contact with other groups, which grew into rules of commensality and marriage.
Religious theory (A.M. Hocart; Senart): caste arose from the roles of groups in the royal ritual and sacrifice; purity of worship separated them.
Guild theory (Denzil Ibbetson): tribes became guilds of occupation, and the guilds became castes, with Brahmins giving them religious sanction.
Evolutionary theory: caste grew gradually from many causes over centuries, as Hutton and Ghurye concluded.
Ambedkar: endogamy superimposed on exogamy (see the subaltern note).

Conclusion for any origin answer. Each theory explains one aspect: the traditional theory the ideology, the racial theory colour consciousness, the occupational theory hereditary work, the political theory Brahmin dominance, the mana theory pollution. The accepted view is a multiple-factor one: caste is the product of a long evolution of racial, occupational, religious and political factors.

How this is examined

The recent papers have not set origin theories directly, but the syllabus lists them as a separate head (e), so expect them as an essay or a note on one theory. Ghurye’s six features, set in February 2025, are best answered with this note’s definitions as the opening. Evolution of caste is usually combined with changes in caste (Unit IV, topic 3). For a full answer, give definitions of caste and varna, then five theories with authors and criticism, and end with the multiple-factor conclusion.

Now try the real questions: Sociology - Indian Society Continuity and Change past question papers.