_Dhobi, Warthi, Baretha, Chakla, Rajak, Parit._--The professional
caste of washermen. The name is derived from the Hindi _dhona_,
and the Sanskrit _dhav_, to wash. Warthi is the Maratha name for the
caste, and Bareth or Baretha is an honorific or complimentary term of
address. Rajak and Parit are synonyms, the latter being used in the
Maratha Districts. The Chakla caste of Madras are leather-workers,
but in Chanda a community of persons is found who are known as Chakla
and are professional washermen. In 1911 the Dhobis numbered 165,000
persons in the Central Provinces and Berar, or one to every hundred
inhabitants. They are numerous in the Districts with large towns and
also in Chhattisgarh, where, like the Dhobas of Bengal, they have to
a considerable extent abandoned their hereditary profession and taken
to cultivation and other callings. No account worth reproduction has
been obtained of the origin of the caste. In the Central Provinces
it is purely functional, as is shown by its subdivisions; these
are generally of a territorial nature, and indicate that the Dhobis
like the other professional castes have come here from all parts of
the country. Instances of the subcastes are: Baonia and Beraria from
Berar; Malwi, Bundelkhandi, Nimaria, Kanaujia, Udaipuria from Udaipur;
Madrasi, Dharampuria from Dharampur, and so on. A separate subcaste
is formed of Muhammadan Dhobis. The exogamous groups known as _khero_
are of the usual low-caste type, taking their names from villages or
titular or professional terms.