Dhani (settlement type)

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Smallest conglomeration of houses

title: "Dhani (settlement type)" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["culture-of-rajasthan", "types-of-populated-places", "rural-geography"] description: "Smallest conglomeration of houses" topic_path: "geography" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dhani_(settlement_type)" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Smallest conglomeration of houses ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bd/Sitadhani.jpg" caption="View of a dhani"] ::

Dhani ( hi) or Thok constitutes a gram panchayat village community. A typical dhani in the arid zone of Rajasthan is a cluster of huts with a boundary (bara or बाड़ा) made of dried shrubs around it and with owners' livestock such as goats, sheep and camels inside the bara. Dhani are atypically mud huts in Rajasthan. Houses in dani nowadays are made of modern brick and mortar, specially in affluent higher-per-capita-income states of Haryana and Punjab, and some richer families of Rajasthan.

A hamlet is called "Nesada" (નેસાડા) in Gujarat, "Pada" (पाडा, for example Nagpada and Patlipada) in Maharashtra, "Bigha" (बिघा, for example Bhagan Bigha and Jhakar Bigha) in Bihar.

Etymology

The word dhan (धन in Hindi, धण in Haryanvi and Rajasthani languages) means wealth or possession, and dhani means wealthy in English (धनी in Hindi, धणी in Haryanvi and Rajasthani). Thus, in the context of a hamlet, the corrupted form of Hindi word dhani is pronounced dhaani (ढाणी) in Haryanvi and Rajasthani languages, which implies the "wealth or possessed settlement" (of the owner). Hence, Dahni's name usually have a prefix, such as "xyz's Dhani", where "xyz" is either the name or gotra of founder-owner. Examples include Garodia Ki Dhani, Ghaslo Ki Dhani, Gujjaro ki Dhani, Meharon Ki Dhani, Navora Ki Dhani, Pujari Ki Dhani, Salamsingh Ki Dhani, Dhab Dhani and Nimakidhani. Example of gotra based dhani include Taak Ki Dhani, Dhab Poonia.

Caste system

Usually there is one specific caste (such as Jat, Kumhar (Prajapat), Gujjar, Rajput, Meena, etc.) or more typically a specific gotra (Jaglan, Dhillon, Gehlot, etc.) of a particular caste that comprises all or the bulk of population of dhani.

Dhanis as origin of Chak

During the British Raj when new canals were built to irrigate barren (bangar, barani and bagar tract) areas of Punjab region, to farm the land migrant farmers were brought in to settle into those areas around the core of new villages [which started out as dhanis]. Those new villages falling in under the irrigation of canals were given a unique chak number each and government left it to those residents to give each "chak" a proper village name later. Thus, the term "village" became synonymous with "chak".

References

References

  1. Sukhvir Singh Gahlot: ''Rural Life in Rajasthan'', page 4.Rajasthani Granthagar, Giani Press Delhi 1986
  2. is a type of [[Hamlet (place). hamlet]], the smallest conglomeration of houses, in the sandy [[Bagar region]] of the northwestern states of [[Rajasthan]], [[Haryana]] and [[Punjab, India
  3. S. H. M. Rizvi, 1987 [https://books.google.com/books?id=jF9uAAAAMAAJ "Mina, the ruling tribe of Rajasthan: socio-biological appraisal."], pp. 34.
  4. 9380844786.
  5. Rann Singh Mann, K. Mann, 1989, [https://books.google.com/books?id=q29TcbHrMfUC "Tribal Cultures and Change."], pp. 23.
  6. Sunil Munshi, P. T. Girish, Anu Tandon, 1992 [https://books.google.com/books?id=z58SAQAAMAAJ "Pattu weaving of Western Rajasthan."], pp6.
  7. Chandana Saha, 2003, [https://books.google.com/books?id=TiXaAAAAMAAJ&q=why+villages+are+called+dhani ".Gender Equity and Equality: Study of Girl Child in Rajasthan"], Rawat Publications, pp257.
  8. Jessica Hines, 2014, [https://books.google.com/books?id=_foPAwAAQBAJ&dq=why+villages+are+called+dhani&pg=PT175 "Looking for the Big B: Bollywood, Bachchan and Me"], Chpt.9.
  9. Karan, [https://www.maharajas-express-india.com/blog/off-the-beaten-path-bishnoi-village-jodhpur-2/ "Off the Beaten Path: Bishnoi Village, Jodhpur"] {{Webarchive. link. (21 January 2022 , [https://www.maharajas-express-india.com Maharajas Express India], 27 December 2013.)
  10. 0080543863.
  11. 1997, [https://books.google.com/books?id=ZcdQAQAAMAAJ "A Glossary of the Tribes and Castes of the Punjab and North-West Frontier Province"], vol 1, pp 50.
  12. [http://www.chokhidhani.com/blog/5-star-luxury-hotel-resorts-in-jaipur/ "Chokdi Dhani, the fine hamelt"] {{Webarchive. link. (25 September 2021 .)
  13. Singh, Kumar Suresh. (1998). "Rajasthan, Volume 2 Volume 38 of People of India". Popular Prakashan.
  14. Randhir Singh, Sir William Roberts, 1932, [https://books.google.com/books?id=QCvtAAAAMAAJ&q=villages+are+called+chak An economic survey of Kala Gaddi Thamman (Chak 73 g. b. ) a village in the Lyallpur District of the Punjab].

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culture-of-rajasthantypes-of-populated-placesrural-geography