The Molesalam are a Muslim Rajput (Muslim Indo-Aryan)[2] community found in the state of Gujarat in India.[1] They also refer to themselves as Molesalam Thakur and sometimes Molesalam Girasia or मॉलेसलाम[1] (Grasiya). There is some documentation of "nomadic Molesalam", but it is unclear from the single source of the relationship with the "origin community".[3]

Molesalam Rajput
Total population
108,000[1]
Regions with significant populations
India
Languages
Gujarati[1]
Religion
Sunni Islam[1]
Related ethnic groups

The Molesalam were targeted in an oppressive shuddhi ‘purification’ campaign launched by the Arya Samaj Hindu organization in 1908. In March of 1926, the Molesalam held an anti-shuddhi conference in Charotar, led by a prominent leader of their community and member of the Bombay Legislative Assembly, Sardar Naharsinhji Ishvarsinhji.[4]: 114 

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "Molesalam in India people group profile". Joshua Project. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
  2. ^ Berger, Peter; Heidemann, Frank (3 June 2013). The Modern Anthropology of India: Ethnography, Themes and Theory. Routledge. p. 1961. ISBN 978-1-134-06118-1. The dominant Rajput landowners ....which encompassed branches of both Hindu and Molesalam (Muslim) Rajputs.
  3. ^ Bhakare, Shilpa (27 July 2020). "Nomadic Molesalams peddle traditional medicine despite challenges". Village Square. New Delhi, India. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
  4. ^ Virani, Shafique N. (2011). "Taqiyya and Identity in a South Asian Community" (PDF). The Journal of Asian Studies. 70 (1): 99–139. doi:10.1017/S0021911810002974. S2CID 143431047.