_Sonjhara, Jhara, Jhora, Jhira._--A small occupational caste who
wash for gold in river-beds, belonging to the Sambalpur, Mandla,
Balaghat and Chanda Districts and the Chota Nagpur Feudatory States. In
1911 they numbered about 1500 persons. The name probably comes from
_sona_, gold, and _jharna_, to sweep or wash, though, when the term
Jhara only is used, some derive it from _jhori_ a streamlet. Colonel
Dalton surmised that the Sonjharas were an offshoot of the Gonds,
and this appears to be demonstrated by the fact that the names of
their exogamous septs are identical with Gond names as Marabi, Tekam,
Netam, Dhurwa and Madao. The Sonjharas of Bilaspur say that their
ancestors were Gonds who dwelt at Lanji in Balaghat. The caste relate
the tradition that they were condemned by Mahadeo to perpetual poverty
because their first ancestor stole a little gold from Parvatis crown
when it fell into the river Jamuna (in Chota Nagpur) and he was sent
to fetch it out. The metal which is found in the river sands they
hold to be the remains of a shower of gold which fell for two and
a half days while the Banaphar heroes Alha and Udal were fighting
their great battle with Prithvi Raj, king of Delhi. The caste is
partly occupational, and recruited from different sources. This is
shown by the fact that in Chanda members of different septs will not
eat together, though they are obliged to intermarry. In Sambalpur the
Behra, Patar, Naik and Padhan septs eat together and intermarry. Two
other septs, the Kanar and Peltrai who eat fowls and drink liquor,
occupy a lower position, and members of the first four will not take
food from them nor give daughters to them in marriage, though they
will take daughters from these lower groups for their sons. Here
they have three subcastes, the Laria or residents of Chhattisgarh,
the Uriya belonging to the Uriya country, and the Bhuinhar, who may
be an offshoot from the Bhuiya tribe.