Majithia family

Family of Shergill sadars From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Majithia family are a family of Shergill Jat sardars that derive their name from the village of Majitha, in Amritsar District, Punjab.^[1] The Majithias were a prominent family in the court of the Sikh Empire, serving as administrators and military generals.^[2]^[3]

Some members of the family continue to play a role in Indian politics, such as Bikram Singh Majithia, who served as a cabinet minister in the Punjab government.^[4]

History

The family is divided into three principle branches, the Dayal Singh branch, Surat Singh branch, and Mahtab Singh branch.^[5]^[1] Dayal Singh and Matab Singh were fifth cousins, whilst Surat Singh was considerably more distantly related to them. One had to go back fourteen generations from their generation to find a common relation between Surat Singh and the other two branches.^[6] An early ancestor of the family was Madho, a Jat of the Gill clan, which the Sher-Gill clan is a derivative of.^[7]^[8] He founded the village of Madho-Jetha, later known as Majitha.^[9]^[10] Lepel H. Griffin in his work, Panjab Chiefs (1865), states that the Majithia family is the progeny of a certain Rana Dhar, who was the son of Sher-Gil (founder of the clan).^[11]

Notable Members

Below is a list of prominent members of the Majithia family.^[12]

Dayal Singh branch

Desa Singh (1768–1832)^[2]^[13]
Lehna Singh (d. 1854)^[14]^[15]
Ranjodh Singh (d. 1872)^[16]
Dyal Singh (1848–1898)^[17]

Surat Singh branch

Surat Singh (1810–1881),^[18] zamindar and military officer in the Khalsa Army^[19] In 1877, he was awarded the title of Raja and made a Companion of the Star of India.
Sundar Singh Majithia (1872–1941),^[20] landowner and politician. He was a member of Khalsa Nationalist Party and Revenue Member at the first and second legislative councils of the Punjab Legislative Assembly. The first president of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee
Umrao Singh Sher-Gil (1870–1954)^[21] aristocrat and a scholar in Sanskrit and Persian and Father of Amrita Sher-Gil
Amrita Sher-Gil (1913–1941, through her father, Umrao Singh Sher-Gil),^[22]^[23]^[24] Hungarian-Indian painter. Daughter of Umrao Singh
Wing Commander Surjit Singh Majithia (1912–1995),^[25] Indian politician, diplomat, and air force officer. Son of Sundar Singh Majithia
Satyajit Singh Majithia, educationist, industrialist, philanthropist, and Chancellor of Khalsa University. Son of Sardar Surjit Singh Majithia, former Deputy Defence Minister
Harsimrat Kaur Badal, a former Union Cabinet Minister of Food Processing Industries. Daughter of Satyajit Singh Majithia
Bikram Singh Majithia, a former cabinet minister in the Punjab Government. Son of Satyajit Singh Majithia
Jimmy shergill(born Jasjit Singh Gill; 3 December 1970), also known as Jimmy Shergill, is an Indian actor and producer who primarily works in Hindi and Punjabi films

Mahtab Singh branch

Mahtab Singh (1811–1865)^[26]

Pedigrees

Pedigree for Dayal Singh branch of Majithias
Pedigree for Surat Singh branch of Majithias

References

[1]
Rekhi, Gurnam Singh (1999). Sir Sundar Singh Majithia and His Relevance in Sikh Politics (PDF). Har-Anand Publications Pvt. Ltd. p. 15. ...the small village of Majithia (near Amritsar)—which the family of Sir Sundar Singh, of Shergill clan among the Jat Sikhs—had adopted as their surname, could also be proud of its illustrious Sardars.
[2]
Hasrat, B. J. (2002). Singh, Harbans (ed.). The Encyclopedia of Sikhism. Vol. 1: A–D (4th ed.). Punjabi University, Patiala. pp. 555–556. ISBN 8173801002.
[3]
Samra, Mandeep Kaur (1993). Singh, Ganda (ed.). "Socio -Cultural Conditions of Early to Mid-Nineteenth Century Punjab as Described by Baba Prem Singh Hoti". The Panjab Past and Present. 27 (2). Punjabi University: 63. ISSN 0031-0786. Jats constituted the most important and powerful class among the Sikhs... Ranjeet Singh a Jat himself knew their potential for dash and courage and gave them important posts in the army. For example Desa Singh Majithia...
[4]
"Council of Ministers – Government of Punjab, India". punjab.gov.in. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
[5]
Gopal, Madan, ed. (1998). Brahmo Samaj and Dyal Singh Majithia. New Delhi: Uppal Publishing House. p. 3. ISBN 8185565929.
[6]
Griffin, Lepel Henry (1890). The Panjab Chiefs: Historical and Biographical Notices of the Principal Families in the Lahore and Rawalpindi Divisions of the Panjab. Civil and Military Gazette Press. p. 267.
[7]
Gill, Gurcharan Singh (2008). "CHAPTER 2: The Gill Clan - Section A. Indo-Scythian Origin". In Bunker, Janice Gill (ed.). Deeper Roots of the Gill, Bhatti, Sidhu, Brar, Tur, and Related Jat and Rajput Clans. Indian Family History Society. p. 12. The descendants of Gillpal use the family surname 'Gill'. There are many sub-castes such as Sher-Gill, Jhalli-Gill and so on.
[8]
Duleh, Hoshiar Singh; Singh, Gurjant (2001). Jatta da Itihas ਜੱਟਾਂ ਦਾ ਇਤਿਹਾਸ [History of the Jats] (in Punjabi). Translated by Preet, Pritam Singh. Lahore Books Ludhiana. pp. 106–112.
[9]
Majithia, Satyajit Singh; Sandhu, Manleen; Singh, Sukhpal (28 May 2013). "Oral history with Satyajit Singh Majithia". The 1947 Partition Archive, Survivors and their Memories - Spotlight at Stanford - Stanford Libraries - Stanford University. Retrieved 13 September 2022. Mado Jetha was the name that established Majitha, a place thirty odd miles from Amritsar.
[10]
Walia, Varinder (8 September 2005). "Special on the death anniversary of Sardar Dyal Singh Majithia, which falls on September 9 - Majithia's virasat knows no sarhad". The Tribune India. Majitha is situated 16 kilometre to the north east of Amritsar. The town is connected with Amritsar by train and road. The town was founded by one Madho, a Jat of the Gill clan. He was 'jetha' (the eldest son) of his father and hence the place was 'Madho-Jetha'. The 'Madho-Jetha' subsequently got contracted into Majitha. Madho was thus the ancestor of Majithia Sardars, some of whom held high positions during the Sikh rule. It is believed that the forefathers of legendary Maharaja Ranjit Singh were closely associated with the town.
[11]
Griffin, Lepel H. (1865). The Punjab Chiefs: historical and biographical notices of the principal families in the territories under the Punjab government. T.C. McCarthy, Chronicle Press. p. 353. Shergil had four sons. The two youngest died without issue, but from the eldest Rana Dhar has descended the great house of Majitha
[12]
Gill, Dawinder Singh. Majithia (Bansawali) Gharane Da Itihaas [History of the House of Majithia (Genealogy)] (in Punjabi). B. Chattar Singh Jiwan Singh Amritsar.
[13]
Nadiem, Ihsan H. "A Glimpse of The Unsung Hero From Punjab, Sardar Dyal Singh Majithia". Sardar Dyal Singh Majithia: As Seen by His Contemporaries (2nd ed.). Dyal Singh Research & Cultural Forum. pp. 16–18.
[14]
"Desa Singh Majithia". The Sikh Encyclopedia. 19 December 2000. Retrieved 13 September 2022. Desa Singh died in 1832, and was succeeded in all his estates and honours by his eldest son, Lahina Singh Majithia.
[15]
"Lahina Singh Majithia". The Sikh Encyclopedia. 19 December 2000. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
[16]
"Ranjodh Singh Majithia". The Sikh Encyclopedia. 19 December 2000. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
[17]
"Dyal Singh Majithia". The Sikh Encyclopedia. 19 December 2000. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
[18]
"Surat Singh Majithia, Raja". The Sikh Encyclopedia. 19 December 2000. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
[19]
"Amrita Sher-Gil Portrait Comes to Market After 80 Years". Sotheby's. 26 November 2018. Archived from the original on 24 April 2021. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
[20]
"Sundar Singh Majithia, Sardar Bahadur Sir". The Sikh Encyclopedia. 19 December 2000. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
[21]
"Sher-Gil Sundaram Arts Foundation | Sher-Gil Sundaram Family". Retrieved 28 January 2024.
[22]
Anand, Mulk Raj (1989). Amrita Sher-Gil. National Gallery of Modern Art. pp. 2, 7. Page 2: Amrita Sher-Gil, born of Marie Antoinette, a cultured Hungarian mother, and Sardar Umrao Singh Gil, an aristocrat from the Majithia family of Amritsar..." Page 7: "Amrita Sher-Gil was brought to India by her parents at the age of eight and lived on the slopes of Summer Hill at Simla, and in Saraya a village in the Gorakhpur district of U.P., which was the Majithia family estate.
[23]
Anand, Mulk Raj (1997). "Conversation with Amrita Sher-Gil". In Anand, Mulk Raj (ed.). Splendours of Himachal Heritage. Abhinav Publications. p. 113. ISBN 978-81-7017-351-9. Mulk Raj Anand (speaking to Amrita Sher-Gil): 'You from Majithia family say so, you are more progressive than me!' Amrita replied: 'I hope so.'
[24]
Nigam, Raj Kumar (1985). Memoirs of Old Mandarins of India: The Administrative Change as the ICS Administrators Saw in India. Documentation Centre for Corporate & Business Policy Research. From Dehra Dun, I came to Gorakhpur. After two more years at Gorakhpur, I was posted to Rae Bareli, perhaps, the most feudal district in the U.P. with Rajas, Ranas, and Sardars (Majithia family whom I had known from before through Amrita Sher-Gil, the painter who lived in Sardarnagar in Gorakhpur).
[25]
"Surjit Singh Majitha". The Sikh Encyclopedia. 19 December 2000. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
[26]
"Mahtab Singh Majithia". The Sikh Encyclopedia. 19 December 2000. Retrieved 13 September 2022.

Dayal Singh branch

Surat Singh branch

Mahtab Singh branch

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