Brahmin
varna (class) in Hinduism
Brahmin (; Sanskrit: ब्राह्मण, romanized: brāhmaṇa) is a varna (social class) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the Kshatriya (rulers and warriors), Vaishya (traders, merchants, and farmers), and Shudra (labourers). The traditional occupation of Brahmins is that of priesthood (purohit, pandit, or pujari) at Hindu temples or at socio-religious ceremonies, and the performing of rite of passage rituals, such as solemnising a wedding with hymns and prayers. In the Bhagavad Gita, Varna is connected with a person's qualities, conduct and occupation rather than being defined by birth.
Traditionally, Brahmins are accorded the supreme ritual status of the four social classes, and they also served as spiritual teachers (guru or acharya). In practice, Indian texts suggest that some Brahmins historically also became agriculturalists, warriors, traders, and had also held other occupations in the Indian subcontinent. Within the jati (caste) system, Brahmins similarly occupy the highest position, though that is complicated by strict stratification even among Brahmins and historical attempts by other castes and sub-castes to challenge Brahminical dominance.
Origin and history
It seems likely that Kannauj and Madhyadesha was the place of origin of the majority of migrating Brahmins throughout the medieval centuries. Coming from Kannauj is a frequent claim among Brahmins in areas distant from Madhyadesha or the Ganges heartland.
Generic meaning of the term "Brahmin"
The term Brahmin appears extensively in ancient and medieval sutras and commentary texts of Buddhism and Jainism.
The public source identifies “Brahmin” as varna (class) in Hinduism. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Brahmin, varna and class.
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Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 13, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q47140. The Library of Congress control number is sh85016305. None of the 1 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
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This entry incorporates text from “Brahmin” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.