Deshastha Brahmin

Deshastha Brahmin

Deshastha Brahmins are a Hindu Brahmin sub-caste mainly from the Indian state of Maharashtra and Northern area of the state of Karnataka. The word Deshastha comes from the Sanskrit words Desha and Stha which mean inland or country and resident respectively. Fused together, the two words literally mean "residents of the country".

Deshasthas belong to the Pancha Dravida Brahmins group. Over the millennia, the community produced the Sanskrit scholar Bhavabhuti in the 8th century, the mathematician, Bhāskara II and the 13th century Varkari saint and philosopher, Dnyaneshwar. Samarth Ramdas All of the Peshwas during Shivaji's reign were Deshasthas.

Brahmins constitute 4 percent of the population of Maharahstra, and 60 percent of them are Deshastha Brahmins. The valleys of the Krishna and the Godavari rivers, and a part of Deccan plateau adjacent to the Sahyadri hills, are collectively called the Desha – the original home of the Deshastha Brahmins.

The second largest Maharashtrian Brahmin community, the Konkanastha Brahmins, who historically lagged the Deshastha Brahmins socioeconomically and in Brahmin rituals achieved parity with them in the nepotistic era that followed the passing of the seat of the Peshwa of the Maratha Empire into Konkanastha hands in 1713. This era marked a period of social warfare between the two Brahmin sub-castes.