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Glossary — 25 Terms
| Term (EN) | Definition | Exam Relevance |
|---|---|---|
| Varna | Fourfold Vedic classification: Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya, Shudra | Caste origin |
| Jati | Endogamous, hereditary, birth-based caste group (~3,000 in India) | Core caste concept |
| Caste | System of social stratification based on birth, ritual purity, and occupation | All caste Qs |
| Dominant Caste | Caste with numerical, economic, political, and ritual dominance (Srinivas 1959) | PYQ 2021 |
| Dalit | Political identity of formerly "untouchable" castes; championed by Ambedkar | SC/ST context |
| Untouchability | Ritual exclusion of lowest castes; abolished by Art. 17 of Indian Constitution | Constitutional provision |
| Jajmani System | Traditional patron-client interdependence between caste groups in villages | Pre-industrial caste economy |
| Sanskritisation | Lower caste adoption of upper caste practices for upward mobility (Srinivas 1952) | PYQ — high priority |
| Westernisation | Adoption of Western values, technology, and institutions (Srinivas 1956) | Modernisation context |
| Social Class | Open group defined by economic position: income, wealth, occupation | Marx/Weber basis |
| Bourgeoisie | Capitalist class owning means of production (Marx) | Class conflict theory |
| Proletariat | Working class selling labour for wages (Marx) | Class conflict theory |
| Social Stratification | Hierarchical arrangement of society into layers based on wealth, power, prestige | Core concept |
| Social Mobility | Movement of individuals or groups between social positions | Class vs. caste comparison |
| Vertical Mobility | Upward or downward movement in social hierarchy | Mobility types |
| Horizontal Mobility | Movement between positions of equal rank | Mobility types |
| Segmental Division | Division of society into clearly defined, separated groups (Ghurye/Dumont) | PYQ 2023 |
| Purity-Pollution | Dumont's basis of caste hierarchy: ritual purity determines rank | Homo Hierarchicus |
| Creamy Layer | Upper economic strata of OBC/SC/ST excluded from reservation benefit | Indra Sawhney 1992 |
| Reservation | State policy of setting aside seats for SC/ST/OBC/EWS in education and employment | Constitutional policy |
| OBC | Other Backward Classes; 3,743 castes; 27% reservation per Mandal Commission | Mandal context |
| EWS | Economically Weaker Sections; 10% reservation via 103rd Amendment (2019) | Recent policy |
| Endogamy | Marriage within one's own caste/social group — key feature of caste system | Caste definition |
| Commensality | Rules restricting food sharing between castes — defines social boundaries | Caste characteristics |
| Graded Inequality | Ambedkar's term: each caste has someone above and below, all complicit in system | Annihilation of Caste |
Sources: RPSC Mains PYQ 2021, 2023; G.S. Ghurye, Caste and Race in India (1932); M.N. Srinivas, Religion and Society Among the Coorgs (1952); Louis Dumont, Homo Hierarchicus (1966); B.R. Ambedkar, Annihilation of Caste (1936); André Béteille, Caste, Class and Power (1965); Mandal Commission Report (1980); NCRB Crime in India 2022; IHDS Survey 2016; 103rd Constitutional Amendment Act 2019.