ਖੱਤਰੀ · ਅਰੋੜਾکھتری · اروڑا
Hindu & VedicIslam & SufiSikh
- Where
- The towns and cities: Lahore, Amritsar, Multan, Rawalpindi, Peshawar; Aroras especially in the south-west
- Traditionally
- Traders, shopkeepers, bankers, clerks and administrators
The trading and writing communities of the towns. All ten Gurus were born into Khatri families, and Khatris and Aroras made up much of the early Sikh sangat as well as the Hindu merchant class. Ranjit Singh's governors and ministers included many Khatris, such as Diwan Mokham Chand and Diwan Sawan Mal of Multan; some Khatris and Aroras became Muslim, the Khojas and Punjabi Shaikhs of the towns.
In 1947 almost all the Hindu and Sikh Khatris and Aroras of the west lost their homes and moved to India, rebuilding businesses in Delhi, Amritsar and elsewhere. Manmohan Singh, born at Gah in the Chakwal district, was one of them.
