Sohal
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sohal is a last name used by Jat people of states of East Punjab, India and West Punjab, Pakistan. In Indian Punjab, Sikhs write this last name as "sohal" for its pronounced as such when written in Gurmukhi.
In Europe a similar last name is written as "Sohl",primarily with people of German ancestory.Many Americans in USA tracing German ancestory have this last name.
In Indian punjab there are many villages named "Sohal" in the district of Amritsar & Gurdaspur.(Its intresting all inhabitants of these villages, many of them non-jats like Tarkhans, Majhabi sikhs or Christians write this as their last name,thus claiming a Jat decent. This is the case with other Jat castes as well.e.g all over punjab we find villages named "Mannawala" all inhabitants claim themselves to be Mann and thus Jatt, which is shameless on part of these people, to say the least)
In Pakistan Punjab there are many villages of "Sohal"s" in the district of Sheikhupura. Many of them are listed as "Hardo-Sohal" on the google maps, pointing to majority population being of Sikh identity,before migration to E.Punjab during the 1947 partition.
One of the biggest villages is located on Amritsar Pathankot GT road few miles north of the town of Dhariwal in District Gurdaspur. It also has a Train Station on Amritsar- Jammu rail line.
Sohal Jat sikhs are considered cousins of Aulakh Jat Sikhs and they do not marry each other.
The great Kushan King "Kanishka" is said to have belonged to Sohal tribe.
[edit] References
Thakur Deshraj: Jat Itihas, Maharaja Suraj Mal Smarak Shiksha Sansthan, Delhi, 1934, 2nd edition 1992.
