Caste

The word caste is commonly used for inherited social groupings whose perceived status can shape marriage, social relations, work and access to resources. In South Asia, two terms frequently discussed alongside caste are varna and jati. Varna is a broad fourfold classification found in Hindu textual traditions; jati refers more directly to numerous local communities associated with birth. The terms overlap in some descriptions but are not interchangeable, and neither provides a complete map of social life. Jatis have different histories and relationships in different regions, and caste practices have changed over time. No single ranking or occupational rule describes every community.

Caste should not be treated as an unchanging system with one origin or one uniform form. Textual ideals, local customs, political authority, economic relations and everyday social practice have all shaped caste identities. Historians have documented how colonial government, economic changes and censuses influenced the classification and organization of caste communities; at the same time, scholarship emphasizes that social hierarchies and caste-related practices were not simply creations of the colonial state. The extent and effects of these changes remain subjects of historical debate. Social movements and political organizing have also challenged hierarchy and reshaped public discussion of caste.

Caste hierarchy has been associated with exclusion, stigma and unequal treatment, including restrictions on social interaction and the assignment of stigmatized work to some communities. Dalit is a term used by many people and movements to describe communities historically subjected to caste oppression; Scheduled Castes is an administrative and constitutional category in India, and the terms are not identical in every context. The Constitution of India prohibits untouchability in Article 17. Legal measures and public policy have sought to address caste-based inequality, while United Nations human-rights experts have documented continuing discrimination against caste-affected communities in South Asia and in diaspora communities. Formal legal protections do not by themselves establish that discrimination has ended.

Caste is not limited to religious doctrine or to one country. In South Asia, caste identities and discrimination occur among people of different religious communities, though their forms and local meanings vary. Migration has also carried caste identities and related disputes into diaspora settings. Researchers and human-rights bodies describe consequences in areas such as education, employment, housing and civic participation. Understanding caste therefore requires attention both to the broad language of hierarchy and to the particular histories and voices of the communities affected by it.