See also:

• BHILS, or BHEELS (" bowmen," from Dravidian bit, a bow)

BHILS, or BHEELS (" bowmen," from See also:

• DRAVIDIAN (Sanskrit Dravida)

Dravidian See also:

• BIT (from the verb " to bite," either in the sense of a piece bitten off, or an act of biting, or a thing that bites or is bitten)

bit, a See also:

• BOW (pronounced " bo ")

bow)  , a See also:

• DRAVIDIAN (Sanskrit Dravida)

Dravidian See also:

• PEOPLE

people of central See also:

• INDIA
• INDIA, FRENCH

India, probably See also:

• ABORIGINES

aborigines of Marwar . They live scattered over a See also:

• GREAT

great See also:

• PART

part of India . They are found as far See also:

• NORTH
• NORTH, BARONS
• NORTH, MARIANNE (1830—1890)
• NORTH, ROGER (1653-1734)
• NORTH, SIR THOMAS (1535?-16o1?)

north as the Aravalli Hills, in See also:

• SIND

Sind and See also:

• RAJPUTANA

Rajputana, as well as See also:

• KHANDESH, EAST

Khandesh and See also:

• AHMEDABAD, or AHMADABAD

Ahmedabad . They are mentioned in See also:

• SANSKRIT

Sanskrit See also:

• WORKS

works, and it is thought that See also:

• PTOLEMY (CLAUDIUS PTOLEMAEUS)

Ptolemy (vii . 1 . 66) refers to them as cl,uX aiTat . (" See also:

• LEAF (O. Eng. leaf, cf. Dutch loof, Ger. Laub, Swed. lof, &c.; possibly to be referred to the root seen in Gr. Ma-eta, to peel, strip)

leaf wearers "), though this word might equally apply to the Gonds . Expelled by the See also:

• ARYANS

Aryans from the richer lowlands, they are found to-See also:

• DAY (O. Eng. dreg, Ger. Tag; according to the New English Dictionary, " in no way related to the Lat. dies")
• DAY, JOHN (1574-1640?)
• DAY, THOMAS (1748-1789)

day in greatest See also:

• NUMBERS, BOOK OF
• NUMBERS, PARTITION OF

numbers on the hills of central India . In many See also:

• RAJPUT

Rajput states the princes on See also:

• SUCCESSION (Lat. successio, from succedere, to follow after)

succession have their foreheads marked with See also:

• BLOOD

blood from the thumb or toe of a Bhil . The Rajputs declare this a See also:

• MARK
• MARK, CARL (1858– )
• MARK, GOSPEL OF ST
• MARK, ST

mark of Bhil See also:

• ALLEGIANCE (Mid. Eng. ligeaunce; med. Lat. ligeantia, &c.; the al- was probably added through confusion with another legal term, allegeance, an allegation; the Fr. allegeance comes from the English; the word is formed from " liege," of which the derivatio

allegiance, but it is more probably a relic of days when the See also:

• BHILS, or BHEELS (" bowmen," from Dravidian bit, a bow)

Bhils were a See also:

• POWER [WILLIAM GRATTAN] TYRONE (1797-1841)

power in India . The Bhils eagerly keep the practice alive, and the right of giving the blood is hereditary in certain families . The popular See also:

• LEGEND (through the French from the med. Lat. legenda, things to be read, from legere, to read)

legend of the Bhil origin assigns them a semi-divine See also:

• BIRTH (a word common in various forms to Teutonic languages from the root of the verb " to bear ")

birth, Mahadeva (See also:

• SIVA

Siva) having wedded an See also:

• EARTH
• EARTH (a word common to Teutonic languages, cf. Ger. Erde, Dutch aarde, Swed. and Dan. jord; outside Teutonic it appears only in the Gr. 'pq'e, on the ground; it has been connected by some etymologists with the Aryan root ar-, to plough, which is seen in
• EARTH, FIGURE OF
• EARTH, FIGURE OF THE

earth See also:

• MAIDEN, or MAID

maiden who See also:

• BORE

bore him See also:

• CHILDREN, LAW RELATING TO

children, the ugliest of whom killed his See also:

• FATHER

father's See also:

• BULL
• BULL, GEORGE (1634–1710)
• BULL, JOHN (c. 1562–1628)
• BULL, OLE BORNEMANN (18ro-188o)

bull and was banished to the mountains .

The Bhils of to-day claim to be his descendants . Under the Moguls the Bhils were submissive, but they rebelled against the See also:

• MAHRATTAS

Mahrattas, who, being unable to subdue them, treated them with the utmost See also:

• CRUELTY (through the O. Fr. crualte, mod. cruaute, from the Lat. crudelitas)

cruelty . The See also:

• RACE

race became outlaws, and they have lived their See also:

• PRESENT

present See also:

• WILD, JONATHAN (c. 1682-1725)

wild See also:

• LIFE

life ever since . Their See also:

• NOMAD (Gr. voµas, voµabes, wandering)

nomad habits and skill with their bows helped them to maintain successfully the fight with their oppressors . An unsuccessful See also:

• ATTEMPT (Lat. adtemptare, attentare, to try)

attempt was made in 1818 by the See also:

• BRITISH

British to conquer them . Milder See also:

• MEASURES

measures were then tried, and the Bhil Agency was formed in 1825 . The Bhil See also:

• CORPS (pronounced as in French, from which it is taken, being a late spelling of tors, from Lat. corpus, a body; cf. " corpse ")

corps was then organized with a view to utilizing the excellent fighting qualities of the tribesmen . This corps has done See also:

• GOOD, JOHN MASON (1764-1827)

good service in gradually reducing their more lawless countrymen to habits of See also:

• ORDER
• ORDER (through Fr. ordre, for earlier ordene, from Lat. ordo, ordinis, rank, service, arrangement; the ultimate source is generally taken to be the root seen in Lat. oriri, rise, arise, begin; cf. " origin ")
• ORDER, HOLY

order, and many Bhils are now settled in See also:

• REGULAR

regular See also:

• INDUSTRIES

industries . The pure Bhil is to-day much what he has always been, a See also:

• SAVAGE
• SAVAGE, MINOT JUDSON (1841– )
• SAVAGE, RICHARD (d. 1743)

savage See also:

• FOREST

forest dweller . The Bhils are a stunted race, but well built, active and strong, of a See also:

• BLACK
• BLACK, ADAM (1784-1874)
• BLACK, JEREMIAH SULLIVAN (1810–1883)
• BLACK, WILLIAM (1841-1898)

black See also:

• COLOUR (Lat. color, connected with celare, to hide, the root meaning, therefore, being that of a covering)

colour, with high cheek-bones, wide nostrils, broad noses and coarse features . Like all Dravidians the See also:

• HAIR (a word common to Teutonic languages)

hair is See also:

• LONG, GEORGE (1800-1879)
• LONG, JOHN DAVIS (1838– )

long and wavy . The See also:

• LOWLAND

lowland Bhils are not now easily distinguished from the See also:

• LOW, SETH (1850- )
• LOW, WILL HICOK (1853- )

low-See also:

• CASTE (through the Fr. from Span. and Port. casta, lineage, Lat. cast us, pure)

caste See also:

• HINDUS

Hindus .

Surgeon-See also:

• MAJOR
• MAJOR (Lat. for " greater ")
• MAJOR (or MAIR), JOHN (1470-1550)

major T . H . Hendley writes:—" The Bhil is an excellent woodman, knows the shortest cuts over the hills; can walk the roughest paths and climb the steepest crags without slipping or feeling distressed . Though robbers, and timorous owing to ages of See also:

• ILL

ill-treatment, the men are brave when trusted, and very faithful . See also:

• HISTORY

History proves them always to have been faithful to their nominal Rajput sovereigns, especially in their adversity . The Bhil is a merry soul, loving a jest." The See also:

• HILL
• HILL (0. Eng. hyll; cf. Low Ger. hull, Mid. Dutch hul, allied to Lat. celsus, high, collis, hill, &c.)
• HILL, A
• HILL, AARON (1685-175o)
• HILL, AMBROSE POWELL
• HILL, DANIEL HARVEY (1821-1889)
• HILL, DAVID BENNETT (1843–1910)
• HILL, GEORGE BIRKBECK NORMAN (1835-1903)
• HILL, JAMES J
• HILL, JOHN (c. 1716-1775)
• HILL, MATTHEW DAVENPORT (1792-1872)
• HILL, OCTAVIA (1838– )
• HILL, ROWLAND (1744–1833)
• HILL, SIR ROWLAND (1795-1879)

hill Bhils See also:

• WEAR

wear nothing but a See also:

• LOIN (through O. Fr. loigne or logne, mod. lunge, from Lat. Iambus)

loin-See also:

• CLOTH

cloth, their See also:

• WOMEN

women a coarse robe; lowland Bhils wear See also:

• TURBAN

turban, coat and See also:

• WAIST

waist-cloth . The Bhils have oaths none of them will break . The most sacred is that sworn by a See also:

• DOG

dog, the Bhil praying that the curse of a dog may fall on him if he breaks his word . Their See also:

• CHIEF (from Fr. chef, head, Lat. caput)

chief divinity is See also:

• HANUMAN

Hanuman, the See also:

• MONKEY

monkey-See also:

• GOD

god . Offerings are made to the much-feared goddess of smallpox . See also:

• STONE
• STONE (0. Eng. shin; the word is common to Teutonic languages, cf. Ger. Stein, Du. steen, Dan. and Swed. sten; the root is also seen in Gr. aria, pebble)
• STONE, CHARLES POMEROY (1824-1887)
• STONE, EDWARD JAMES (1831-1897)
• STONE, FRANK (1800-1859)
• STONE, GEORGE (1708—1764)
• STONE, LUCY [BLACKWELL] (1818-1893)
• STONE, MARCUS (184o— )
• STONE, NICHOLAS (1586-1647)

Stone See also:

• WORSHIP (i.e. " worth-ship," O. Eng. weor8scipe)

worship is found among them, and some lowland Bhils are Moslems, while many have adopted See also:

• HINDUISM

Hinduism . The Bhils of pure blood number upwards of a million, and there are some 200,000 Bhils of mixed descent .

See Gustav See also:

• OPPERT, JULIUS (1825-19o5)

Oppert, The See also:

• ORIGINAL

Original Inhabitants of India (1893) ; T . H . Hendley, See also:

• ACCOUNT
• ACCOUNT (through O. Fr. acont, Late Lat. comptum, cornputare, to calculate)

Account of Marwar Bhils," in See also:

• BENGAL
• BENGAL, BAY OF

Bengal See also:

• ASIATIC

Asiatic See also:

• JOURNAL
• JOURNAL (through Fr. from late Lat. diurnalis, daily)

Journal, vol . 44; W . I . See also:

• SINCLAIR
• SINCLAIR, SIR JOHN, BART

Sinclair in See also:

• INDIAN

Indian See also:

• ANTIQUARY

Antiquary, vol. iv. pp . 336-338 ; See also:

• COL
• COL (Fr. for " neck," Lat. collum)

Col . W . Kincaid, " On the Bheel Tribes of the Vindhyan Range," Jour . Anthrop . See also:

• INSTITUTE (from Lat. instituere, to establish or set up)

Institute, vol. ix .