_Ahir, [13] Gaoli, Guala, Golkar, Gaolan, Rawat, Gahra, Mahakul._--The
caste, of cowherds, milkmen and cattle-breeders. In 1911 the Ahirs
numbered nearly 750,000 persons in the Central Provinces and Berar,
being the sixth caste in point of numbers. This figure, however,
excludes 150,000 Gowaris or graziers of the Maratha Districts,
and if these were added the Ahirs would outnumber the Telis and
rank fifth. The name Ahir is derived from Abhira, a tribe mentioned
several times in inscriptions and the Hindu sacred books. Goala,
a cowherd, from Gopala, [14] a protector of cows, is the Bengali
name for the caste, and Gaoli, with the same signification, is now
used in the Central Provinces to signify a dairyman as opposed to
a grazier. The Gaolans appear to be an inferior class of Gaolis in
Berar. The Golkars of Chanda may be derived from the Telugu Golars or
graziers, with a probable admixture of Gond blood. They are described
as wild-looking people scattered about in the most thickly forested
tracts of the District, where they graze and tend cattle. Rawat, a
corruption of Rajputra or a princeling, is the name borne by the Ahir
caste in Chhattisgarh; while Gahra is their designation in the Uriya
country. The Mahakul Ahirs are a small group found in the Jashpur
State, and said to belong to the Nandvansi division. The name means
'Great family.'