The Habshi Community                

by Vikas Kamat
First Online: November 01, 2007
Page Last Updated: February 17, 2024

The Habshis are the descendants of people from Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa. They rose to prominence in India through their position as bodyguards.  Jamal Uddin Yaqut, the  lover of much celebrated ruler Razia Sultana was a Habshi man.

The Habshis who arrived in India by sea, were strongly built and were preferred as soldiers and generals in the local armies.  They served as kotwals, generals, governors, and diwans in the predominantly Muslim kingdoms of India.

Reference:

• Rizvi S.A. A, "The Wonder that was India - II", Sidgwick & Jackson, Londo, 1987

See Also:

• The Siddi Community
• The African Connection -- Feature on the Indo-African nexus over the centuries. Includes pictures of the Siddi community.