Bhangu, Bhangoo, or Bhango (pronounced P'ngoo) is a Jat gotra or clan mainly found in the Punjab state of North India, Sindh and Punjab province of Pakistan.
| Total population |
|---|
| 65,000 approx •13000 (1901)[1] |
| Regions with significant populations |
| • India • Pakistan |
| Languages |
| Religion |
|
• Sikhism • Islam |
| Related ethnic groups |
Contents |
The Bhangoo tribe was mentioned by the Greek historians, at the time of Alexander's invasion in the 4th century B.C. The Greek historians mention a ruler Phegelas or Phegus of a native tribe when Alexander approached the river Hyphasis (Beas) in 326 BC. The name is translated to Sanskrit as Bhagala or Bhagoo.[2]
The tribe is also mentioned during the Arab attack on Sindh in the 7th century A.D. The ruler of the lands at the time of Mohammad Bin Kasim’s invasion of Sindh was the chief of the Bhangoo tribe, Kaka.[3] The Bhangoos were the lords of "Budhiya" around present day Sehwan, Sindh, Pakistan. Kaka was the son of Kotal, and the grandson of Bhandargu Bhangoo, a Jat of the Bhangoo tribe.[3] The members of the Bhangoo tribe were the follower of the Buddhist faith as most of the Jat tribes were around the 7th century AD.[3]
In the census reports of Punjab from 1883 and 1892, the Bhangoos have been described as one of the original Jat tribe and the earliest inhabitants of the Jhang district.[4][5] The Bhangoo tribe held the area around Shorkot.[6] The Bhangoos were later displaced by the migration of Sials into Jhang.[6] The Sials were subjects of the Bhangoo chiefs until the beginning of the 16th century AD.
They are fewer in number than other Jat clans but they are considered one of the most prominent Jatt clans because of their fierce nature and their royal ancestry. The Bhangoo clan is one of the oldest Jat clans.
Several members of the Bhangoo clan have died in the service of the Khalsa. In 1740 Bhai Mehtab Singh Bhangoo killed Massa Ranghar and helped to liberate the Golden Temple from the Mughal clutches.[7] He later achieved martyrdom in Lahore.[7] In 1841 his grandson Bhai Rattan Singh Bhangu wrote the first documented history of Sikhs, Prachin Panth Parkash.
In 1984, the expert in guerilla warfare Shabeg Singh Bhangoo orchestrated the fortification in the defence of Sri Akal Takht with Sikh Khalistani militants. He died 6 June that year defending the premises of Golden Temple against the Indian Army that had been sent to arrest the militant leader Bhindranwale. Jagtar Singh Hawara from village Hawara (Dist. Fatehgarh) who is a prominent sikh warrior from modern times also belongs to Bhangoo's.
The customs and traditions are not in practice now and were current until the 19th century. The Bhangu clan was amongst the many Jats who denied a widow’s right to adopt in the 19th century.[8] In Ludhiana district the Bhangu clan used to follow the chhatra tradition in which the bridegroom's forehead was to be marked with blood, from a severed goat's ear.[6]
In 1851, a Jodh Singh Bhangu was mentioned to be a former Jagirdar of Nurpur Suhutti, district Jhelum (present day district Chakwal, Punjab, Pakistan).[9]
In 1890 Sardar Harnam Singh, a Bhangu Jat Sikh is listed in the “Chiefs and Families of Note in the Delhi, Jalandhar, Peshawar and Derajat Divisions of the Panjab” he is described to be residing in Moron village.[10] Sardar Harman Singh was appointed Honorary Magistrate and was considered the chief of the Bhangu clan during his time.[10]
The descendants of Mahtab Singh and Rattan Singh Bhangu established an estate in Ludhiana. They formed a fort at Bhari and controlled surrounding villages.[10] They were the part of Karor Singhia Sikh confederation, which defeated the Mughals at Sirhind in 1763 AD.[10]
The Bhangoo clan is found in Amritsar, Patiala (Rajpura), Ropar, Ludhiana, Fatehgarh Sahib, Sangrur (Sunam, Barnala), Gurdaspur, Jalandhar, Mansa and Hoshiapur districts of Indian Punjab. They are also found in the district of Sri Ganganagar in Rajasthan since the 1920s. In the Punjab Province of Pakistan they are in Sialkot, Narowal, Montgomery (Sahiwal), Gujranwala, Kasur, Sheikhupura and Jhang districts. The Bhangoos hold large villages in the district of Amritsar.[11] In the Sindh province of Pakistan the Bhangoo are found in Khairpur district.
The Bhangoos in the adjoining Fatehgarh Sahib and Ropar districts use Hir-Bhangoo, Bhangoo (Bhangu)-Hira or Hira as their surname. "Hir" in these areas is a sub-division of Bhangoos. In 1923–1924 the population of the Hir-Bhangoo subdivision was approximately 2176 people.[12]
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